Tamil auxiliary verbs.

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A T h e s is S ubm itted f o r the

d e g re e of

D o c to r of P h ilo sop hy

by

Ian R an d all H am pton D ale

School of O rie n ta l and A fric a n S tudies in the

U n iv e rsity of London 1975

2

a b s t r a c t

T he im m e d ia te su b je c t of th is w o rk is the s e m a n tic s of a s y n ta c tic a lly - defin ed s e t of T a m il v e r b s , a ll b u t one of w hich a r e u sed a s m a in v e r b s a s w ell a s a u x ilia r ie s . T h ose w hich a r e d is c u s s e d in m o st d e ta il a r e k iT u . v iT u . Id T T iru , ir u ,

v ai and v e c c ir u . M entioned in som ew hat le s s d e ta il a r e k iT T u v a a , IciTTupoo, v a a , poo (in two m e an in g s), aaku and to le .

In se ttin g o ut to in v e stig a te th e se f o r m s , c e r ta in lim ita tio n s of the tra d itio n a l m eth od s of lin g u is tic in v e stig a tio n b eca m e a p p a re n t. W ith the hope of o b tainin g m o re r e lia b le in fo rm a tio n th a n w as av ailab le f r o m r e g u la r in fo rm a n ts , a s e r i e s of q u e s tio n n a ire s w as d e v ise d and a d m in is te re d to a to ta l of 117 people fro m 27 v illa g e s in the C h id a m b a ra m T a lu k of T am iln ad u , It is hoped th a t the accou nt given h e r e of the u se of a n in te r r e la te d s e r i e s of q u e s tio n n a ire s f o r the d e ta ile d

in v e stig a tio n of a sp e c ifie d a r e a of a language w ill c o n trib u te to the m eth od olog ical b a s is on w hich lin g u is tic in v e stig a tio n is founded.

F r o m the r e s u lt s of th is in v e stig a tio n , it w as found th a t a stu dy of T a m il a u x ilia ry v e r b s i s re le v a n t to c e r ta in g e n e ra l p o in ts of in te r e s t w ith in c u r r e n t lin g u is tic th e o ry . E v id en ce i s p re s e n te d in fav o u r of the s e p a ra tio n of sy n tax and s e m a n tic s , o n the clo se .re la tio n s h ip b etw een a u x ilia ry and m a in v e r b s , and on the need w ith in a lin g u is tic th e o ry f o r d e v ic e s to handle g ra d a tio n .

A C KNOWLEDGE ME NTS

A t th is p o in t, I w ould lik e to o ffe r a few w o rd s of th an ks to som e of the people and in s titu tio n s who have co n trib u te d , d ir e c tly o r in d ire c tly , to the co m p letio n of th is m a n u s c rip t.

In c h ro n o lo g ic a l o r d e r , I w ould like to m en tio n f i r s t m y te a c h e r s a t the U n iv e rs ity of C hicago, who f i r s t b ro u g h t me in c o n ta c t w ith both lin g u is tic s and T a m il. I a m e s p e c ia lly g ra te fu l to P r o f e s s o r A . K. R am anujaiyw ho tau g h t m e in b o th th e se fie ld s and e n c o u ra g e d me to continue m y s tu d ie s a t the p o stg ra d u a te le v e l.

I a m a ls o g ra te fu l f o r the h elp of my te a c h e r s a t the School of O rie n ta l and A fric a n S tu d ies, hi p a r tic u la r , I w ould lik e to th a n k D r . J .R . M a rr, who p a tie n tly help ed m e w ith my T a m il and kindly lo o te d o v e r som e of the e a r l i e s t

and l a te s t s ta g e s of my w o rk .

T h an k s a r e a ls o due to the te a c h e r s and s tu d e n ts a t Anna m ala i U n iv e rs ity f o r th e ir h o s p ita lity and frie n d s h ip to m e d u rin g m y sta y th e r e , and in

p a r ti c u la r , to P r o f e s s o r A g esth ialin g o m , D r . K. M urug aiy an , and D r . K. K a ru n a k a ra n of the D e p a rtm e n t of L in g u is tic s . M ost helpful of a ll d u rin g th e c o u rs e of my

fie ld w o rk w as R . R e n g a ja lu , M .A ., th en a stu d en t of the U n iv e rs ity , who a s s is te d m e in m any w ays and sm oothed the lia s o n b etw een in v e s tig a to r and s u b je c ts .

A n o th e r in fo rm a n t to w hom I a m g ra te fu l is O. K aru p p ath ev an , B .E d .

4

T h e m o s t im p o rta n t of in stitu tio n a l b e n e fa c to rs h a s been the Canada C ouncil, w ithout w hose d o c to ra l fello w sh ip th is w o rk could n e v e r have been co m p lete d . I would a lso like to e x p r e s s m y g ra titu d e to the C e n tra l R e s e a r c h Fund of the U n iv e rsity of London f o r p ro v id in g fin a n c ia l a s s is ta n c e in co nn ection w ith m y fie ld w o rk and to the School of O rie n ta l and A fric a n S tudies f o r c o n trib u tin g a v ita l su p p lem en t.

T h e re is not ro o m h e re to m en tion the m any fr ie n d s to w hom I a m g ra te fu l fo r the m o ra l and in te lle c tu a l su p p o rt w hich they affo rd ed m e d u rin g the c o u rs e of my r e s e a r c h . I cannot r e f r a in , h o w ev er, f r o m m en tio ning m y w hole­

h e a r te d g ra titu d e in th is r e s p e c t to P r o f e s s o r T .R . D ale of L aw rence U n iv e rsity ,

M rs. I .G .I I . D a le , D r . M .S . G reen e of A rizo n a State U n iv e rsity and F L . M .K . Kantola of T u ru n Y lio p isto .

T h e p e r s o n I w ish to than k m o st of a ll, h o w ev er, is my s u p e r v is o r , D r . D .C , B en n ett, w hose g e n e ro u s a s s is ta n c e in p r a c tic a l m a tte r s , a s w ell a s in

a ll s ta g e s of my r e s e a r c h , h a s m ade it p o ssib le f o r m e to co m p lete th is th e s is . W ithout h is en c o u ra g in g outlook, p e rc e p tiv e q u estio n s and in valuable su g g e stio n s, th is w o rk would have had no hope of s u c c e s s fu l co m p letio n . Above a ll, I have b en efited fr o m h is c o n scie n tio u s d e te rm in a tio n to find se n se w h ere (e sp e c ia lly in th e e a r l i e r sta g e s) m any w ould have found but n o n se n se .

T itle 1

A b s tr a c t 2

A cknow ledge m e n ts 3

C o n ten ts 5

P r e f a c e

In tro d u c tio n 8

T r a n s c r ip tio n

C h a p te r One

In tro d u ctio n to a u x ilia ry v e rb s 19

T a m il v e r b a l m orphology 27

M ore on A u x ilia ry V e rb s 44

P re v io u s w o rk s: T ra d itio n a l 47

P re v io u s w o rk s: E u ro p e a n 48

P re v io u s w o rk s: S tru c tu ra l 55

P re v io u s w o rk s: M odern 59

P re v io u s w o rk s: D e s c rip tiv e 61

P re v io u s w o rk s: T ra n s fo rm a tio n a l 67

r Two - The u s e of q u e s tio n n a ire s in L in g u istic In v estig atio n

81

M ethods of in v e stig a tio n 81

T he in fo rm a n t m ethod 85

The q u e s tio n n a ire m ethod 96

P re v io u s s tu d ie s involving q u e s tio n n a ire s 100 P re v io u s s tu d ie s c o n tra s te d w ith th is one (TAV) 110 G e n e ra l d e s c r ip tio n of TAV p ro c e d u re 119

Q u e stio n n a ire s e r ie s 129

C h a r a c te r iz a tio n of TAV s u b je c ts 134

S u bject r e lia b ility 138

T y p es of re s p o n s e s 143

D iv is io n of u sag e 149

M ultiple r e s p o n s e s 151

T he q u e s tio n of s ta tis tic s 157

Inte r - subje ct influence 160

Cha p te r T h re e - kiT u and viT u 162

In tro d u c tio n 162

P a r t One - IdTu^ 164

in tro d u c tio n 164

s e lf-a ffe c tiv e 164

s im u ltan e ous 1 89

continuous 199

c o a le sc e n c e 207

fin a l r e m a r k s 209

P a r t Two - viT u 210

in tro d u ctio n 210

com pletive 211

o th e r co m p le tiv e s . 244

s e q u e n tia l 269

S u m m a ry 271

g e n e ra l 271

com p letiv e v s . se q u e n tia l 274

C h a p te r F o u r - ld T T ir u , i n n v aij yecciru_ 278

In tro d u c tio n 278

P a r t One - ld T T iru 281

in tro d u c tio n 281

continuous 282

te n s e c o n tra s ts 289

p u n ctu al e v e n ts 297

s u m m a ry 303

P a r t Two - ir u 304

in tro d u c tio n 304

e x iste n c e 305

m a in o r a u x ilia ry v e rb 316

o th e r n e a r c la u s e -fin a l e le m e n ts 321

s u m m a ry 335

P a r t T h re e - vai. and v e c c iru 336

in tro d u c tio n 336

fu tu re affectiv e 337

c o n tra s t w ith ir u 350

m a in o r a u x ilia ry v e rb 361

s u m m a ry 367

S u m m ary 363

C h a p te r F iv e 370

In tro d u c tio n 37 0

T he C oncept of B eing 371

A s p e c ts in E n g lis h 382

A sp e c ts in F r e n c h and G e rm a n 386

A s p e c ts in F in n is h 393

A s p e c ts in O th er L anguages 395

T he S e p a ra tio n of L e v e ls 400

In te rle v e l S tru c tu re 411

S ty lis tic B alan ce 4 1 5

G ra d a tio n 4 1 8

M eaning R e la tio n sh ip s 424

S u m m ary 425

C o n clu sio n 427

A c c o m p lish m e n ts 427

S h o rtco m in g s 430

F u r t h e r P o s s ib ilitie s 431

R e f e r e n c e s 434

8

p b e f a c e

Of the language fa m ilie s in India, the secon d m o st

im p o rta n t, n u m e ric a lly and h is to r ic a lly , is the D ra v id ia n g ro u p , now adays sp o k en p r im a r ily in South India, though p re s u m e d to have b een m o re w idely s p re a d in e a r ly tim e s . C h a r a c te riz e d by su ch a r e a l f e a tu r e s of the su b ­ co n tin en t a s th e p h o no lo gical u se of r e tr o f le x co n so n an ts and fre q u e n t u se of p a r tic ip le s and n o m in a liz a tio n s in em bedding c o n s tru c tio n s , the D ra vidian fa m ily a ls o p o s s e s s e s su ch f e a tu r e s a s r e g u la r v o w el-co n so n an t s u c c e s s io n

in the m o rp h em e (consonant c l u s t e r s o th e r th an h o m o rg an ic n a s a l p lu s stop a r e v e ry r a r e w ith in th e m o rp h em e) and the u se of p a r tic ip le s fo r

su b o rd in a tio n — unlik e Ih d o -A ry an w here co nju nctio ns a r e u s e d . The m o st im p o rta n t language of the fa m ily i s T a m il, both h is to r ic a lly and in its

re p u ta tio n a s the D ra v id ia n langu age the le a s t affected by o u tsid e in flu e n c e s.

A s it is u se d in the o ld e st e x ta n t D ra v id ia n l i te r a t u r e and is re la tiv e ly clo se to the v a rio u s ly r e c o n s tr u c te d P ro to -D ra v id ia n , T a m il m ay be re g a rd e d a s th e q u in te s s e n tia l D ra v id ia n lan g u ag e.

A lthough the d iffe re n c e s betw een m o d e rn w ritte n T a m il and th e c l a s s i c a l T a m il of li te r a t u r e a s e a r ly a s the F if th C e n tu ry o r so a r e not a s m a rk e d a s th o se betw een m o d e rn E n g lish and the E n g lis h of C h a u c e r7s tim e , th e r e a r e of c o u rs e n u m e ro u s d iffe re n c e s . The o ld e r and m o re f o r m a l language p o s s e s s e s , f o r ex am p le, a f a r g r e a t e r abundance of

w o rd s to c a r r y so m e of the f in e r sh a d e s of m ean in g , hi. the spoken lang uag e, th e se tr e n d s a r e c a r r i e d on to a s til l g r e a t e r d e g re e . It is th e re fo re the

spoken language th a t i s th e m o s t r e le v a n t to any study of T a m il a u x ilia ry v e r b s , though such s p e e c h - re la te d l i t e r a r y s o u rc e s a s m o d e rn T a m il no vels and plasms can a lso p ro v id e u s e fu l m a te r ia l fo r such a study , hi the w o rk th a t fo llo w s, we w ill be a lm o s t e x c lu siv e ly co n c e rn e d w ith c o n te m p o ra ry spoken T a m il.

T he p r im a r y m a te r ia l on w hich th is stu dy is b a s e d c o n s is ts of the ta p e - r e c o r d e d r e s p o n s e s of r u r a l T a m il s p e a k e r s to a s e r i e s of q u e s tio n n a ire s d esig n ed to e lic it u n b ia sed in fo rm a tio n about the u se of c e r ta in a u x ilia ry v e r b s . T h e se q u e s tio n n a ire s w e re a d m in is te re d to in h a b ita n ts of v a rio u s v illa g e s in C h id a m b aram T alu k , about 120 m ile s sou th of M a d ra s, d u rin g the a u th o r ’s sta y in A mia m ala in a g a r d u rin g 1971 and 1972. The q u e s tio n n a ire s , the a s s u m p tio n s u n d e rly in g th e ir u s e , th e ir im p o rta n c e to som e of the c o n tro v e r s ie s re g a rd in g c o n te m p o ra ry lin g u is tic m ethodology, the p r in c ip le s of th e ir construction., and the p ro b le m s

e n c o u n te re d in. th e ir u se w ill be d is c u s s e d in d e ta il in C h a p te r Tw o. In the sam e c h a p te r, th is stu d y w ill a lso be c o n tra s te d w ith p re v io u s a tte m p ts to u se a s im i la r m ethod of in v e stig a tin g lin g u is tic p ro b le m s . The d is c u s s io n in C h a p te r Two m ay be fo resh ad o w ed by pointing out h e re th a t the r e s e a r c h b ein g re p o r te d on is p o s sib ly the m o st am b itio u s p r o je c t of its kind e v e r

c a r r i e d out. hi a ll, no le s s th a n 117 s u b je c ts f r o m a to ta l of 27 v illa g e s w ere co n su lted and the r e s p o n s e s d is c u s s e d in C h a p te rs T h re e and F o u r have b een s e le c te d from , the to ta l of 3510 th u s o btained.

C h a p te r One of the th e s is p ro v id e s a g e n e ra l in tro d u c tio n to th e a u x ilia r ie s , d is c u s s e s th e ir id e n tific a tio n , th e ir m orph olog y, and

so m eth in g of th e ir sy n tax . A su rv e y of the tr e a tm e n t of a u x ilia ry v e rb s in p re v io u s g r a m m a tic a l s tu d ie s of T a m il is a lso c a r r ie d o ut, p ro v id in g the m o s t ex te n siv e acco u n t of the li te r a t u r e on th is su b je c t th a t e x is ts to date.

The e x e m p lific a tio n of the r e s e a r c h m ethodology d e s c rib e d in C h a p te r Two is p ro v id e d in C h a p te rs T h re e and F o u r . In the f i r s t of th e se c h a p te r s , the tw o m o st com m on a u x ilia r ie s in the q u e s tio n n a ire s , kiT u and v iT u , a r e d is c u s s e d . A new a n a ly s is of the s e m a n tic s of th e se f o r m s is s u g g e ste d in the lig h t of the m a te r ia l p re s e n te d . C h a p te r F o u r p ro v id e s a d is c u s s io n of ir u , both alone and in com b inatio n w ith k iT u and v a i. The a n a ly s is su g g e ste d f o r the a u x ilia rie s involving ir u m o d ifie s the whole n o tio n of ’’a u x ilia ry v e r b " in re la tio n to T a m il and s u g g e s ts a way of h and ling c o m p a ra b le f o r m s in o th e r lan g u ag es a s w ell.

It is th is lin e of in v e stig a tio n th a t is p u rs u e d in C h a p te r F iv e . The c h a p te r s t a r t s w ith a d is c u s s io n of a u x ilia ry v e r b s in E n g lish , F r e n c h , G e rm a n and F in n is h , w ith b r ie f n o te s a ls o on som e o th e r lan g u ag es th a t have b een d is c u s s e d in the li te r a t u r e . The re le v a n c e of the p ro p o se d a n a ly s is of T a m il a u x ilia r ie s to th a t of a u x ilia rie s in the o th e r lan g u ag es is

d is c u s s e d and c o n s id e ra tio n is given to som e of the c h a r a c te r i s t ic s th a t w ould s e e m d e s ir a b le in a lin g u is tic th e o ry capable of p ro v id in g an adequate a n a ly s is of a u x ilia ry v e r b s in T a m il and p re s u m a b ly in o th e r lan g u ag es a s w ell.

B efo re lau nch in g into the d is c u s s io n of the T a m il fo rm s th e m s e lv e s , som e a tte n tio n m u st be paid to the m ethod by w hich they a r e to be r e p r e s e n te d . The tr a n s c r ip tio n adopted h e re w ill be b ro a d , r a t h e r th an n a rro w . A s the tr a n s c r ip tio n h as m uch in com m on w ith th e T a m il w ritin g s y s te m , its e lf a fa iid y ad equ ate r e p r e s e n ta tio n of the sound s y s te m of T a m il, the two s y s te m s w ill be d is c u s s e d h e re c o n c u rre n tly .

T he T a m il s y lla b a ry co n tain s sy m b o ls f o r tw elve vow els:

s h o r t1 low ( ^ ) , long low (<££)» s h o r t high fro n t ( j§ |) , long high fro n t ( rq.), s h o r t high b a c k (g _ J, long high b a c k (£m), s h o r t m id fro n t ( r { ) , long m id fro n t ( CJ ), s h o r t m id b a c k )> l ° n g niid b a c k (<Q ), a lo w -h ig h fro n t

diphthong ( g ^ ) , and a lo w -h ig h b a c k diphthong (f^ )* A ll b a c k vow els caar occvr ro u n d ed . The sounds r e p r e s e n te d by the f i r s t ele v e n of th e sy m b o ls w ill be tr a n s c r ib e d a s a , a a , i / i i , u , uu, e , _ee, o, oo, and a i, r e s p e c tiv e ly .

XA lthough o th e r la b e ls have b een su g g ested f o r the d e s c r ip tio n of T a m il vow els (eg. " te n s e " and " la x " in s te a d of "long" and " s h o r t" — F o w le r 1954, A s h e r 1966, S chiffm ann 1969), the m e r its of the v a rio u s n o m e n c la tu re s need not be d is c u s s e d h e r e . The tr a d itio n a l la b e ls given h e re a r e adequate fo r

c h a r a c te r iz in g e a c h vow el in o p p o sitio n to the o th e r v ow els of the s y ste m .

T he tw elfth T a m il vow el sym bol is of v e ry r a r e o c c u rre n c e and is not n e c e s s a r y f o r r e c o rd in g spoken T a m il. E v en in w ritte n T a m il, it is not s y s te m a tic a lly d istin g u ish e d fr o m the sequence of s h o r t low vow el and

la b ia l glide ($i<u-av). The _ai diphthong, on the o th e r hand, is d istin g u ish e d in T a m il f r o m the seq uen ce of s h o rt low vowel and p a la ta l glide -a y ), and th is p o licy w ill be follow ed h e re a s w ell. Since the T a m il w ritin g s y s te m is sy lla b ic , b e s id e s th e in itia l vow el fo rm s shown above, th e re a r e v a r ia n ts w hich o c c u r w ith the co nso nant sym b ols in f o r m in g the sy lla b ic s ig n s . T h ese a r e , of c o u rs e , not d istin g u ish e d in the tr a n s c r ip tio n .

B e s id e s the v ow els, th e re a r e T a m il sy m b o ls fo r eig h teen co n so n an ts; th a t i s , f o r eig h te e n sy lla b le s c o n sistin g of in itia l co nso nant p lu s the in h e re n t vow el a — a v o w el-d eletio n sym bol (a su p e rp o s e d dot, o r p u L L i) is r e q u ir e d to in d icate a single v o w e lle ss co n so n an t. T h ese in clu de p lo s iv e s and n a s a ls a t six d iffe re n t p o in ts of a r tic u la tio n : v e la r

1 .

($> »l i j - k , n), p a la ta l ( { jp ,^ - c , n), r e tr o f le x (u -,« W -T , N), a lv e o la r ( p , m - r , n), d e n ta l ~t, n), and la b ia l ( u , C o -p , m ). A s n a s a l-

(exceftw}

p lo siv e c lu s te r s a r e n e a r ly alw ay s h o m o rg an ic, a ll su ch n asals^ w ill be tr a n s c r ib e d m e re ly n, le a v in g the p lo siv e to in d icate the point of

a rtic u la tio n of the whole c lu s te r , h i the r a r e c a s e s w h e re the c lu s te r is not h o m o rg an ic — in the re a d in g p ro n u n c ia tio n of the fu tu re te n se f o r m of

1The sy m b o ls in p a r e n th e s e s c o n s is t of the T a m il sy m bo l (including v ow el- d e le tio n dot, (puLLi) to show th a t the co n so n an tal p a r t of the sym bol alone is re le v a n t) follow ed by the tr a n s c r ip tio n sym bol th a t w ill be u s e d in th is stu dy .

and " a lv e o la r" n a r e both p h o n etically and alw ays n o n - d is tin c tiv e , th is tr a n s c r ip tio n w ill a t no point d istin g u ish betw een th e m . T hey w ill both be tr a n s c r ib e d n in in itia l p o sitio n (w here the a lv e o la r d o es n o t o c c u r), in te rv o c a lic a lly (w here in T a m il o rth o g ra p h y th ey c o n tra s t though only the a lv e o la r f o r m o c c u rs g em in ate ), and fin a lly (w here the d en tal f o rm d o e s not o c c u r). T he p a r tic u la r is e d sy m bo l (n) w ill in th is c a s e be r e s e r v e d f o r u se in n o n -h o rn o rg an ic c l u s t e r s , should th ey o c c u r, a s am b ig uity would o th e rw ise a r i s e . T h is tr a n s c r ip tio n w ill o c c a s io n a l^ d iffe re n tia te betw een the a lv e o la r " p lo s iv e " r and the tap r , even though th e se a r e both p h o n etically ta p p ed r Ts and n o n -d is tin c tiv e. 1 T h is is b eca u se th e p lo s iv e , lik e o th e r p lo s iv e s, m ay o c c u r g em in ated (o rth o g ra p h ic a lly doubled), in w hich c a s e it is r e a liz e d

r 2

a s a p o s t- a lv e o la r a f fric a te [ t_] . The 1’p lo s iv e s " o c c u r p h o n etically a s te n s e / l a x (gem inate /n o n -g e m in a te ), v o ic ed /u n v o ic ed , and p lo siv e /fr ic a tiv e in g r e a te r o r le s s d iv e r s ity (k is p e rh a p s the m o st v a ria b le ) a c c o rd in g to t h e ir e n v iro n m e n t. F o r e x a m p le , k is u su a lly v o ic e le s s in itia lly [k ] , though som e w o rd s, a l l b o rro w in g s f r o m o th e r la n g u a g e s, m ay have in itia l [g ] in so m e d ia le c ts . In te rv o c a lic a lly , k v a r ie s m o re o r le s s fr e e ly b etw een

In s ta n d a rd South In dian T a m il and th e d ia le c t of C h id a m b a ra m u n d e r d is c u s s io n , th is is tr u e . The d is tin c tio n is m ad e, h ow ev er, in som e lo c a l d ia le c ts (eg, Kanya K u m ari) and in C eylon (Jaffna) T a m il. In C eylon a ls o , th e r e is often no pho netic d iffe re n tia tio n betw een L and R .

2 co llo q u ial T a m il, th e gem in ate p lo siv e is u s u a lly r e a liz e d a s [ t t j (dental), and the te n se (or doubled) r r a s a ro lle d [ r ] .

[g j , JYJ , and [ x j . It m ay a lso o c c u r g em in ated in te rv o c a lic a lly , in w hich c a s e it is v o ic e le s s and p lo siv e and is tr a n s c r ib e d kk. In its p o s t- n a s a l

o c c u r r e n c e s , k is p h o n etically [ g j . O th er p lo s iv e s show analogous allophonic d is trib u tio n s . It is in the in te rv o c a lic p o sitio n th a t k i s the m o st v a rie d of the p lo s iv e s . F o r e x a m p le , [4>] and j z j , do not o c c u r a s in te rv o c a lic r e a liz a tio n s of p and c, le t alo n e, sa y , [ s ] o r [ z j a s in te rv o c a lic r e a liz a tio n s of T ,

h i ad d itio n to the s ix p lo s iv e s and six n a s a ls ju s t d is c u s s e d , th e re a r e s ix o th e r co n so n an ts o c c u rrin g in T a m il. T h e s e include the p a la ta l glide (to~Y) [ j] and the la b ia l glide (cyj-v)

jV]

[V]

T h e re is a ls o a r e tr o f le x glide an a lv e o la r l a t e r a l ({p-d) [ l ] , a r e tr o f le x l a t e r a l fcp-L ) [ l j , and the tapp ed ' r f (7 - r ) [r] d is c u s s e d above in co n n ec tio n w ith the a lv e o la r p lo siv e . T o r e p r e s e n t som e sounds

o c c u r r in g in lo a n w o rd s b u t n o t in n ativ e v o c a b u la ry , T a m il u s e s the

su p p le m e n ta ry l e t t e r s (h (s) [s ] ’§ § (1) [ d j , t o . (kS) [k sj , and (h) [h] . T h e s e sy m b o ls o c c u r only r a r e l y , h o w ev er. A ltho ug h,in so m e e n v iro n m e n ts ,

c m ay have th e p h o netic r e a liz a tio n [ s j o r e v en [J j in som e d ia le c ts , th is v a r ia tio n , w hich is n e v e r d istin c tiv e in the m a te r ia l b ein g d is c u s s e d , w ill not be in d ic a te d in the tr a n s c r ip tio n . The sym bol ) a ay ta rn , found only in fo r m a l w r itte n T a m il, w ill be tr a n s l ite r a te d (x) w hen it o c c u rs in c ita tio n s f r o m T a m il w o rk s.

T h e b ro a d n e s s of the tr a n s c r ip tio n a s d e s c rib e d above r e f le c ts the a im s of th e in v e stig a tio n . A s the r e s e a r c h is p r im a r ily co n ce rn ed w ith s y n ta c tic and s e m a n tic ph enom ena, the a c c u ra te re n d itio n of ph onetic m in u tia e is u n im p o rta n t, e x c e p t in the r a r e c a s e s w h ere th is would affect the id e n tific a tio n of one o r m o re of the m o rp h e m e s bein g c o n s id e re d . The q u ality of the ta p e - r e c o r d in g s w as a n o th e r f a c to r influ en cin g the s e le c tio n of a f a ir ly b ro a d tr a n s c r ip tio n , in th a t it w as not e n tir e ly adequ ate to s e rv e a s a b a s is f o r a re lia b le n a rro w tr a n s c r ip tio n . When c itin g f r o m w o rk s th a t follow a d iffe re n t tr a n s c r ip tio n f r o m th a t em ployed h e r e , any e x a m p le s w ill be tr a n s l ite r a te d to a c c o rd w ith th is one.

A s m entio ned above, the re s p o n s e s to th e ite m s on the

q u e s tio n n a ire s w ere r e c o rd e d on tape a t the m o m en t of u tte r a n c e . The ta p e s re c o rd e d in th is way w e re lis te n e d to w hile the a u th o r w as s till in India, and the r e s p o n s e s w e re tr a n s c r ib e d by an a s s is ta n t who w a s a n ativ e s p e a k e r of a v e ry s im ila r d ia le c t of T a m il to th o se of the s u b je c ts . The tr a n s c r ip tio n w a s done in the T a m il w ritin g s y s te m , a s th a t w as the m o s t ex p ed itio u s and

re lia b le m ethod, given the backg ro und and e x p e rie n c e of the p e rs o n doing the tra n s c r ib in g . A s soon a s they w ere co m p leted , the tr a n s c r ip tio n s w ere checked a g a in s t the ta p e s f o r a c c u ra c y by the a u th o r and w e re found to be re lia b le fo r the p u rp o s e s of th e in v e stig a tio n . T he few m is ta k e s th a t o c c u r r e d tend ed to follow f r o m the d iv e rg e n c e s betw een spoken and w ritte n T a m il, and w e re of a s o r t th a t could be e a s ily sp o tted and c o r r e c te d . The re s p o n s e s c ite d in th e follow ing c h a p te rs a r e , th e re f o r e , b a s ic a lly in a tr a n s lite r a tio n

16

of th is o rig in a l T a m il tr a n s c r ip tio n . The in c o n s is te n c ie s of the o rig in a l have b e e n iro n e d o u t, h o w ev er, and a m b ig u itie s re s o lv e d by r e f e r e n c e to the ta p e s . Ite m s f r o m the q u e s tio n n a ire s th e m s e lv e s a r e given h e r e in a tr a n s lite r a tio n of the f o r m in w hich th e y w e re w ritte n th e r e . O th er T a m il e x a m p le s a r e given in a s im ila r fo r m , only d e p a rtin g f r o m the lin e s of a b ro a d tr a n s c r ip tio n w ith in the con ven tion s d e s c rib e d below .

Such in c o n s is te n c ie s th a t o c c u r in the o rig in a l T a m il tr a n s c r ip tio n a r i s e f o r the m o s t p a r t f r o m the tend ency in spoken T a m il f o r a ll w o rd s to end w ith a n open s y lla b le . Since th is tend en cy is le s s tr u e of w r itte n T a m il, c e r ta in of its c o n seq u en c es a r e not p ro v id ed fo r in the w ritin g s y s te m .

F o r u se w ith w o rd s w hich end w ith a con son ant in w r itte n T a m il, fo r e x a m p le , a n u n m a rk e d vow el h a s a r is e n in spoken T a m il. T h u s, p a y ir ’c r o p ', in w r itte n T a m il, c o rre s p o n d s to p a y iru in spoken T a m il. In the o rig in a l tr a n s c r ip tio n , th is b a c k vow el is re p r e s e n te d a s u o r i, depending in eac h c a s e on w h eth er o r no t it w as audibly ro u n d ed . T h e w ritte n poyi-rru 'it w e n t', f o r e x a m p le , c a n b e found both a s pooccu and p o o c c i. Since the two

p ro n u n c ia tio n s a r e in f r e e v a r ia tio n a t th is po in t, th e re is no need to d is tin g u is h b etw een th e m ; u w ill be u se d h e re in a ll su ch c a s e s . In th is we follow A s h e r 1966 and S chiffm an 1969 (K u m arasw am i R aja 1966 adopts a s im ila r p ro c e d u re to o u r T a m il tr a n s c r ip tio n b u t s ta n d a r d is e s th e tr e a tm e n t of e a c h w o rd ). A g ain, w ritte n T a m il w o rd s th a t end in th e seq uence of low vow el p lu s la t e r a l c a n be p a r a lle le d in spoken T a m il by fo rm s w ithout the l a t e r a l — m u n taan aa L ’the day b e fo re y e s te r d a y ’ c o rr e s p o n d s to m u n ta a n a a .

T h e se a r e re n d e re d in th e T a m il tr a n s c r ip tio n s o m e tim e s w ith and so m e tim e s w ithout the la t e r a l . T h ey a r e c o n s is te n tly tr a n s c r ib e d h e re w ithout it. W ords of w ritte n T a m il th a t end w ith a seq u en ce of vow el p lu s n a s a l con son an t often have e q u iv a le n ts in spoken T a m il th a t end w ith a n a s a liz e d vow el. T h u s, the ooT inaan 'lie r a n 1, of w r itte n T a m il, is p a r a lle l to the ooT inaa of spoken T a m il. Since th e re is n e v e r a d istin c tiv e c o n tra s t b etw een a n a s a liz e d vow el and the c o rre s p o n d in g seq uence of vow el p lu s n a s a l, the n a s a liz e d vow el can be r e p r e s e n te d w ithout d a n g e r of am b ig u ity a s the vow el p lu s con son ant seq u en ce . T h is is done in th is study (and in su ch p re v io u s w o rk s d e a lin g w ith spoken

T a m il a s A s h e r 1966, K u m arasw am i R aja 1966, and S chiffm an 1969). The T a m il tr a n s c r ip tio n , on the o th e r hand, so m e tim e s r e p r e s e n t s th e se vow els w ith the VN seq u en ce , so m e tim e s w ith th e u n n a sa liz e d vow el r e p r e s e n ta tio n , and o c c a sio n a lly th e vow el r e p r e s e n ta tio n su p p lem en ted w ith a n a s a liz a tio n d ia c r iti c . B rie f m en tio n should p e rh a p s a lso be m ade of the g em in atio n of

in itia l p lo s iv e s follow ing c e r ta in c la s s e s of w o rd s w hen th e y end in a vow el.

T h is is p r im a r ily a phenom enon of w r itte n T a m il and o u r tr a n s c r ip tio n w ill follow the T a m il tr a n s c r ip tio n in w ritin g , e g . antap p a iy a n o r anta p a iy a n , depending on the a p p a re n t p h o n etic g em in atio n o r la c k of i t in ind iv id ual c a s e s .

W hen T a m il e x a m p le s a r e given in th e follow ing c h a p te rs , a th r e e - lin e p r e s e n ta tio n w ill be adopted. The f i r s t lin e w ill be the T a m il

i

tr a n s c r ib e d a s d e s c rib e d above w ith hyphens d iv id in g i t into con ven ien t se g m e n ts . In g e n e ra l, th e s e seg m e n ts w ill b eg in and end a t w ord o r m o rp h em e b o u n d a rie s but no th e o re tic a l ju s tific a tio n is c la im e d f o r th e ir p la c e m e n t. The p u rp o se of divid in g the T a m il u tte r a n c e s into s e g m e n ts in

18

th is way is to ach iev e c la r ity of p re s e n ta tio n , not to m ake any c la im s about c o n tro v e r s ia l p o in ts of th e ir m o rp h o lo g ical o r s y n ta c tic a n a ly s is . The second lin e w ill p r e s e n t, a ls o betw een hy ph ens, a ro ugh E n g lis h g lo s s o r de s c rip tio n of eac h h yp henated seg m en t of the T a m il u tte ra n c e . T he th ir d line w ill g lo ss th e u tte ra n c e a s a w hole in u n d e rsta n d a b le E n g lis h .

CHAPTER ONE

T he v e rb a l p h ra s e m ay be r e g a rd e d a s the d o m in an t

c o n s titu e n t of the T a m il se n te n c e . It show s the re la tio n betw een the to p ic of the d is c o u r s e and the s p e a k e r, the h e a r e r , o th e r f e a tu r e s of the d is c o u rs e situ a tio n , and w hat is adduced abo ut the to p ic. It can o c c u r on its own, w ith

t

o v e rt s u b je c t, and em bedded in a n o th e r v e rb a l p h ra s e o r n o m in al p h r a s e . In a l l th e s e p o s itio n s, a g r e a t p a r t of its fle x ib ility and d e lic a c y of im p lic a tio n is conveyed by the u se of a u x ilia ry v e r b s . T h e se a r e r e l a t o r s , show ing the r e la tio n of one p a r t of the sen ten c e to an o th er o r to the d is c o u rs e situ a tio n . T hey often involve c o n s id e ra tio n s of a s p e c t, bu t a lso d e a l w ith c e r ta in m isc e lla n e o u s d e n o ta tio n s, h a r d to c h a r a c te r is e , su ch a s f u t u r e b e n e fit"

and " s e lf - a f fe c tiv e " , a s w ill be s e e n in the follow ing c h a p te r s . A s the nam e im p lie s , a u x ilia ry v e r b s a r e v e rb a l in f o r m . T h ey take the v e rb a l d e s in e n c e s of p e rs o n , n u m b e r, te n s e , and g e n d e r; in com binatio n, th e y tak e on v e rb a l co m bining f o r m s in the a p p ro p ria te s itu a tio n s . E a c h is a ls o id e n tic a l in pho no logical shap e to a m a in v e rb of the lan g u ag e, b ein g d iffe re n tia te d f r o m th is on the g ro u n d s of its s y n ta c tic b eh av io u r. In m o s t c a s e s , th e m eaning of an a u x ilia ry v e rb f o r m c a n be re la te d to the m eanin g of the sam e f o r m a s a m a in v e rb . T h is s u g g e s ts , a s w ill be se e n in C h a p te r F iv e , th a t the d is tin c tio n d raw n b etw een a u x ilia ry and m a in v e r b s , though v alid fo r som e p u r p o s e s , m ay not hold a t a ll le v e ls of d e s c rip tio n .

20

In d raw in g a c o n tra s t b etw een m a in and a u x ilia ry v e r b s , we m ay note f i r s t th a t m ain v e rb s can o c c u r alone and n o rm a lly follow n om inal f o r m s . T hey can a ls o follow o th e r v e rb a l f o rm s , and w hen they do so, r e ta in th e ir own independent le x ic a l m eaning . One of the n o rm a l m etho ds of conjoining s e n te n c e s in T a m il is to lin k up an in definite n u m b e r of m a in v e rb s , a ll but the l a s t in th e ir com bining f o r m s , the la s t v e rb b e a rin g the p e r s o n - n u m b e r-g e n d e r (PNg) suffix com m on to th e m a ll. S entence (1) is an ex am p le of th is type of c o n s tru c tio n .

(1) vaT iv e elu -o o T i-v a n tu -o k k a a n ta a r . (n a m e )-ru n -c o m e -s it (past) PN g V adivelu cam e running and s a t down.

It w ill be noted th a t e a c h of the conjoined v e rb s of th is sen ten c e r e ta in s its c a p a b ility to tak e co m p lem e n ts and th us to f o r m the n u c le u s of an independent c la u s e . T h is sen ten c e can, f o r ex am p le, be expanded to (2) w ithout the m eaning of th e in d iv id u al v e r b s th e m s e lv e s being sig n ific a n tly a lte r e d .

(2) vaT iv e e lu -v e e k a m aa -o o T i-u u T T -u k k u - va ntu~ ti. NNe - le - (na m e ) - qui c kly - run~hou.se - to ~ co me - p o r c h -o n - o k k a a n ta a r.

s it (past) PNg

V adivelu cam e ru nning qu ick ly to the h ouse and s a t on the p o rc h .

A u x ilia ry v e rb s , on the o th e r hand, can no t o c c u r alone in a v e r b a l p h ra s e and a re ind iv id u ally found follow ing m a in v e r b s o r o th e r a u x ilia r ie s . Sentence (3), fo r ex am p le, co n tain s a m a in v e rb and two a u x ilia r ie s , k iT u and ir u . 1

3I n tak in g k iT T iru to be a com plex of two a u x ilia r ie s , r a t h e r th an a sin g le ,

u n ita ry one, th is study fo llo w s R am an u jan and A n n am alai (1368) and m o st e a r l i e r wo rim . O bjections to the view ta k en by Sell iff m an (1969) w ill be ta k en up below .

(3) vaT iv e e lu -v e e ka m aa -ooT i-ld T T - n m ta a r .

(nam e )-quiekly~ ru n -(k iT u )-(ii’u) (past) PN g V ad ivelu w as ru nn ing quickly.

In a ll o u r e x a m p le s con tain in g a u x ilia ry v e r b s , we w ill avoid g lo ssin g the a u x ilia r ie s in d iv id u ally in o r d e r not to p reju d g e any of the is s u e s u n d e r d is c u s s io n . \Ve w ill sim p ly id en tify the a u x ilia ry in q u e stio n w ithin p a r e n th e s e s a s is done h e r e . In co nn ection w ith th is s e n te n c e , it w ill be noted th a t k iT u is added to the com bining f o r m of ooTu " r u n ” and ir u is added to the com bining fo r m of k iT u , ju s t a s in (1) vaa "c o m e " w as added

to the com bining f o r m of ooTu " ru n " and o k k aaru " s it" w as added to the co m bining f o r m of v a a . B ut (3) can no t be expanded in the w ay th a t (1) could b e . E a c h of the v e r b s in (1) w a s capable of o c c u rrin g w ith any of th e m e m b e rs

of an open s e t of co m p le m e n ts. T he seco nd and th ir d v e rb f o r m s in (3), on the o th e r hand, cannot tak e c o m p le m e n ts. Only the m e m b e rs of a clo se d s e t of em p h a tic p a r tic le s c a n be in s e rte d betw een th e m and s til l p r e s e r v e th e m eanin g of the p r o g r e s s iv e . The ee of sen ten c e (4) is one of the p a r ti c le s w hich can o c c u r in th is w ay.

(4) vaT iv e e lu -v e e ka m a a -o o T i-k iT T ■ -ee-ru n taar.

(n am e)-quickly-run*- (kiT u)- (e mph)~ (iru) (pa st) PNg V adivelu w as ind eed ru nn in g q u ick ly .

If so m e o th e r le x ic a l ite m , cap ab le of s e rv in g a s a co m p lem en t t o the m a in v e rb i r u rrb e " , is in s e r te d betw een the kiT u and ir u of (4), the

no tio n of " p r o g r e s s iv e " d is a p p e a r s and two c la u s e s r e s u l t in s te a d of only o n e. In sen ten c e (5), th e re is a m a in v e rb (ooTu) follow ed by an a u x ilia ry

22

(kiTu — now w ith the se n se of sim u lta n e ity ), w hich in tu r n i s follow ed by a seco n d rnain v e r b , ir u ' 'b e 1l.

(5) v a T iv e e lu -~ v e e k a m a a -o o T i-k iT T u -k a la p p -a a n a v a r-a a - (n am .e)-q u icld y -ru n - (k iT u )-tire d -b e in g o n e - a s - ir im ta a r u ,

be (past) (PNg)

R unning qu icldy, V ad ivelu w as tir e d .

If th is sen ten c e s e e m s som ew hat aw kw ard, it is d o u b tle ss a m a tte r of p r a g m a tic s . It V ad iv elu is sa id to be tir e d a f te r ru n ning qu icldy, r a th e r th a n a t the tim e of ru n n in g , and kiT u (the " sim u lta n e o u s " a u x ilia ry ) is re p la c e d by v iT u (the " s e q u e n tia l" a u x ilia ry ), a s in (6), th e aw k w ard n ess d is a p p e a r s .

(6) v a T iv e e lu -v e e k a m a a -o o T i-iT T u -k a la p p -a a n a v a ra a - (nam e) - q u ic ld y ~ ru n -(v iT u )- tir e d - b e in g one a s - ir u n ta a r u .

be (past) (PNg)

A fte r ru n n in g quicldy, V ad iv elu w as ti r e d .

C o r r e la te d w ith the s y n ta c tic d is tin c tio n w h ich we have b e e n d raw in g b etw een a u x ilia ry v e rb s and m a in v e rb s is a se m a n tic d is tin c tio n . A n a u x ilia ry v e r b can be s a id to be a v e rb w hich, w hen added to a n o th e r v e rb , g iv e s a n a s p e c tu a l o r r e la tio n a l s e n se to the r e s u ltin g com pound, r a th e r th a n c o n trib u tin g an a d d itio n a l le x ic a l sig n ific a tio n a s w ould a m a in v e rb in the sa m e p o sitio n . A lthough th is te rm in o lo g y is som ew h at v agu e, it s e e m s to w o rk re a s o n a b ly w e ll f o r su ch a u x ilia r ie s a s k iT u and v iT u . It is n o t so u s e fu l, h o w ev er in an aly sin g se n te n c e s w ith ir u , a s w ill be s e e n in C h ap ter F o u r . B ut ev en th is " se m a n tic d is tin c tio n " can only be m ain tain ed in

-connection w ith the s y n ta c tic d is tin c tio n a lre a d y d raw n . V e rb s , w h eth er th ey be a u x ilia ry o r m a in , a r e sy n ta c tic e le m e n ts and m u s t, th e re f o r e , be defined in sy n ta c tic t e r m s .

Indeed, a q u estio n m ay w ell be r a is e d a s to the p ro p r ie ty of I

engag in g in a s e m a n tic a n a ly s is of a sy n ta c tic a lly defined s e t of lin g u is tic f o r m s . T h is q u estio n m ay be a n sw e re d fr o m two s id e s . F i r s t , though we m ay g ra n t th a t th e s e m a n tic and s y n ta c tic levels, of language a r e in dependently s tr u c tu r e d , it is un den iable th a t p a r a lle ls do e x is t b etw een th e two le v e ls of s tr u c tu r e . It is a lm o s t tr i v ia l to saj^ th a t nouns tend to denote p a r tic u la r

" th in g s " — o b je c ts , fe e lin g s , e t c . , o r to say th a t v e rb s te n d to denote p a r ti c u la r a c tio n s o r e v e n ts . In o th e r t e r m s , we m ig h t sa y th a t v e rb s tend to be the sy n ta c tic e q u iv a le n ts of lo g ic a l p r e d ic a te s and nouns of th e ir a rg u m e n ts . It is b e c a u se of th is p a r a lle lis m th a t th e fa lla c io u s "d efin itio n "

of s y n ta c tic c a te g o r ie s in s e m a n tic Ip rm s g rew up in p r e - S a u s s u r ia n W e s te rn lin g u is tic d e s c rip tio n . A noun, fo r ex a m p le , w as defined a s d eno ting a flp e rs o n , p la c e , o r th in g " b e c a u se in m any c a s e s , th a t is w hat nouns do d en o te. It should n o t, th en , be s u r p r is in g if som e of the m e m b e rs of such a s y n ta c tic a lly defin ed s e t a s a u x ilia ry v e rb s sh ou ld be s e m a n tic a lly r e la te d a s w e ll. Second, it is not a c c id e n ta l th a t s e m a n tic tr e a tm e n ts of su ch fie ld s a s k in sh ip and co lo u r te r m s a r e co n ce rn ed u s u a lly w ith w hat a r e sy n ta c tic a lly nouns o r th a t se m a n tic tr e a tm e n ts of r e la tio n s betw een lo g ic a l a rg u m e n ts (eg. B endix 1966) a r e co n ce rn ed w ith v e r b s . H ow ever, th e a r e a s of s e m a n tic s tr e a te d in , sa y , Goodenough 1965, B e r lin and Kay

2'

1969, o r e v en B endix 1966, a r e in tu itiv e ly m uch m o re obviously s tr u c tu re d th a n the a r e a we a r e co n c e rn e d w ith in th is stud y. The v o c a b u la ry of k in sh ip and c o lo u r h a s , of c o u r s e , re la tiv e ly a c c e s s ib le s tr u c tu r e and ev en the v e rb s of g ettin g and giving tr e a te d by B endix a r e c le a r ly r e la te d . But the sam e i s not tr u e of the m a te r ia l tr e a te d h e r e . Such a to p ic a s one m ight s e t u p to in v e stig a te a p r i o r i s e m a n tic n o tio n s, m ight be "W ays of e x p re s s in g

s im u lta n e ity and co n te m p o ra n e ity in T a m il" ' o r "The T a m il p e r f e c t and p r o g r e s s iv e " . But th e se would p re su p p o se the e x is te n c e and sig n ifican ce of p a r tic u la r se m a n tic c a te g o rie s to u n d e rly the la b e ls and thus v itia te in advance m uch of the im p o rta n c e of the r e s u lt s . F o r th is r e a s o n , we have ta k e n a s a b a s is a c le a r ly defined s e t of fo rm s a t th e sy n ta c tic le v e l and have

s e t out to d e te rm in e w hat re la tio n s e x is t betw een th e ir s e m a n tic c o r r e l a te s .

Only som e of the f o r m s th a t fu lfil the sy n ta c tic c r i t e r i a we have e s ta b lis h e d w ill be tr e a te d , h o w ev er. Indeed, n ot a ll w e re ex am in ed in the q u e s tio n n a ire s . Some f o r m s w e re n ot in clud ed b e c a u se th ey a r e u se d only in a re la tiv e ly f o rm a l r e g i s t e r and so would n o t o c c u r in the type of in fo rm a l, co llo q u ial s p e e c h th a t we w e re m o st in te r e s te d in in v e stig a tin g . A m ong the v e rb s of th is s o r t m a y be inclu ded u L L u , w hich is la rg e ly a

som ew h at fo rm a l eq u iv a le n t of ir u — th a t i s , a s a m a in v e r b , it m e an s ro u g h ly " e x is t" and a s an a u x ilia ry , it fu n ctio n s s im ila r ly to the E n g lis h p e r f e c t. A n o th er of th e se m o re l i t e r a r y a u x ilia r ie s is a ru L u ?rhe p le a se d

(of a god)" w hich is u se d a s a n a u x ilia ry to f o r m an h o n o rific . Some a u x ilia r ie s w ere included in the q u e stio n n a ire e x a m p le s bu t w ill not be

d is c u s s e d in p a r tic u la r d e ta il h e r e . T h is is p a r tly b e c a u se th ey o c c u rre d in f e w e r of the ite m s on the q u e s tio n n a ire s th an m o st of th o se to be d is c u s s e d

and p a rtly b e c a u se they gave r is e to fe w e r in te re s tin g p o in ts of a n a ly s is w hich w ere capable of bein g re s o lv e d by the d ata a v a ila b le . Some of th e se w ill, h o w ev er, be m entio ned b rie fly a t a p p ro p ria te p o in ts in the d is c u s s io n . T h ese v e r b s a r e (with ap p ro x im ate m a in v e rb m eaning and m o st u s u a l a u x ilia ry sig n ific a tio n ): pooTu "p u t", aaku T,b e c o m e ", and poo " g o " — co m p letiv es of v a rio u s s o r t s ; vaa "c o m e " — a co n tin u a tiv e ; and to le " lo s e " — an in d ic a to r of d is g u s t. A s m ention ed above, the a u x ilia rie s w hich w ill be a c c o rd e d the m o st a tte n tio n w ill be k iT u , y iT u, i r u ? and v a i. The f i r s t two of th e se a r e the sim u lta n e o u s and seq u en tial a u x ilia r ie s . Of th e s e , kiT u is a ls o u se d a s a " s e lf-a ffe c tiv e " and o c c a sio n a lly a s a co n tin u ativ e, and v iT u is a ls o em p loyed a s the m o st fre q u e n t " c o m p le tiv e " a u x ilia ry . A s a m a in v e rb , M Tu r a r e l y o c c u rs alone in co llo q u ial T a m il; its w ritte n e q u iv a le n t, koL L u, o ften m e an s ,rb e a r " o r " c a r r y " . T he m a in v e rb viT u m e a n s a p p ro x im a te ly " le t go". The ftp e r f e c t" a u x ilia ry ir u o c c u rs in con jun ctio n w ith kiT u to give th e p ro g re s s iv e (or co ntin uative) m eaning illu s tr a te d above (3). A s an a u x ilia ry , vaa a lso o c c u rs follow ing k iT u . T he o th e r a u x ilia ry th a t o c c u rs fre q u e n tly w ith ir u is v a i, w hich m e an s

"k eep " a s a m a in v e rb and, rou gh ly, "future r e le v a n c e " a s a n a u x ilia ry , both on its own and w ith ir u . C h a p te r T h re e w ill take up the d is c u s s io n of

kiT u and v iT u , a s m en tio ned above, and C h a p te r F o u r , ir u , ld T T ir u , v a i, and v e c c iru .

26

B e s id e s the v e rb s m entioned above, w hich m ay be r e f e r r e d to a s " c o re a u x ilia r ie s " , th e re a r e o th e r fo rm s w hich a r e u se d in v a rio u s a s p e c tu a l and re la tio n a l fu n ctio n s and w hich behave m o rp h o lo g ically and s y n ta c tic a lly so m ew hat lik e v e r b s . Some of th e se a r e r e f e r r e d to a s " a u x ilia ry v e r b s " by o th e r w r ite r s on the s u b je c t, and they can be su b su m ed u n d e r the la b e l

" p e r ip h e r a ls " , though they w ill not be c o n s id e re d a s a u x ilia r ie s , s tr ic tly sp eak in g , in th is w ork. T hey include som e th a t behave v e ry s im ila r ly to m ain v e r b s and th e c o re a u x ilia r ie s e x c e p t th a t they o c c u r w ith the in fin itiv e of the m a in v e r b ,r a th e r th an the com bining f o rm . It m ay be noted th a t, in

tr a d itio n a l T a m il te rm in o lo g y , both in fin itiv e and com binin g f o r m a re v a r ie tie s of v in a iy e c c a m "in co m p lete v e rb " , i . e . , a f o r m w hich co m b in es w ith a fin ite v e rb , ju s t a s an a d je c tiv a l p a rtic ip le (p e y a re c c a m "inco m plete noun") d o es w ith a noun. A m ong th is type of p e r ip h e r a l m ay be noted paT u

" s u ff e r" , w hich f o r m s a s o r t of p a s s iv e , and cey "d o" , w hich m ay be sa id to f o r m a type of c a u s a tiv e . A n o th er subg ro up of p e r ip h e r a ls in c lu d e s the

" im p e rs o n a l f o r m s " , the m o d a ls. T h e se a r e v een T u m " it is n e c e s s a r y " , v e e n T a a m " it is not n e c e s s a r y " , kuuT um " it is p o s s ib le " , kuuT aatu " it is n o t p o s s ib le " , te riy u m " it is know n", te riy a a tu "it is not know n", and so on.

T h e se a r e id e n tic a l in f o rm to the a d je c tiv a l p a r tic ip le o r the n egative a d v e rb ia l p a rtic ip le of th e c o rre s p o n d in g m a in v e rb (though h e re v e e n T a a m is an ir r e g u l a r fo rm a tio n ) but d iffe re n tia te d f r o m th o se in being op tionally p re c e d e d by a n o th e r v e r b in the infinitive and being a s s o c ia te d only w ith nouns in the second (accu sativ e) and fo u rth (dative) c a s e s , r a t h e r th a n w ith the u s u a l f i r s t (nom inative) c a s e . M entioned above a s a c o re a u x ilia r y , aak u ,rb e c o in e ”

i s p e rlia p s the m o s t com m on of the v e rb s w hich can he c o n s id e re d a s a

p e r i p h e r a l I t s p e y a re c c a m f o r m a a n a , and the in fin itiv a l vinaiyeccam . fo rm , a ak a, a r e u s e d to su b o rd in ate the p re c e d in g w o rd , p h r a s e , o r sen ten ce to the follow ing noun o r v e rb . A n o th er s u b o rd in a te r is the q u otativ e v e r b , en "sa y ".

‘’ As the m orphology of the co re a u x ilia rie s is id e n tic a l to th a t of the m a in v e r b s , we s h a ll now c o n s id e r the m orphology of the T a m il v e rb .

B a s ic a lly , a T a m il v e rb is of two p a r ts : the r o o t, o r

in d iv id u ated p a r t conveying the c h a r a c te r is tic le x ic a l m ean in g of the v e rb , and th e end ing , r e la tin g the ro o t g ra m m a tic a lly to o th e r p a r ts of the sen ten ce by show ing PNg co n co rd and te n s e , m a n ife stin g a n o m in a liz a tio n p o s s ib ility , o r adding a m o d al sig n ifican ce (eg. im p e ra tiv e , o p ta tiv e, e t c . ) . We have a b b re v ia te d " P e r son--num.ber “g e n d e r1* a s PN g to in d icate th a t, although PNg

en d in g s a lm o s t alw ay s in d icate p e r s o n and n u m b e r, g e n d e r is only in d icated in 3rd p e rs o n f o r m s . In the th ird p e rs o n , th e re i s a b a s ic c o n tr a s t b etw een m a sc u lin e /fe m in in e " h ig h - c la s s " (u y artiN a i) f o r m s and n e u te r " n o - c la s s ” f o r m s in both s in g u la r and p lu r a l. In the s in g u la r, the re spa ctful u y a rtiN a i f o r m is opposed to on es sp e c ifie d f o r the m a scu lin e and fem in in e g e n d e rs , b u t th is c o n tra s t d o e s n ot hold in the p lu ra l.

T he fo r m s of a T a m il v e rb m ay be d iv ided on m o rp h o lo g ical g ro u n d s into two b a sic c a te g o r ie s : f o r m s m a rk e d f o r both PNg and te n s e , and f o r m s m a rk e d f o r e ith e r or n e ith e r . The f i r s t of th e s e w ill be te rm e d

28 y

h e re "finite v e rb f o r m s " , the seco nd "noil-finite v e rb f o r m s " . The d is tin c tio n is d raw n along th e se lin e s p r im a r ily fo r e a s e of d e s c r ip tio n and b e c a u se of the f a c t th a t, divided in th is w ay, the fin ite fo r m s m ake up a f a ir ly hom ogenous gro u p in c o n tr a s t to the d iffu s e n e s s of the n o n -f m ite s , m uch a s the c o re

a u x ilia r ie s , d istin g u ish e d a s ab ov e, f o r m a f a ir ly hom ogenous group c o m p ared w ith the d iffuse g ro up of p e r ip h e r a ls .

A lthough the d is tin c tio n d raw n h e re is m ade a s in d icated above, it should be m entio ned th a t th is d if f e rs slig h tly f r o m the u s u a l d is tin c tio n d raw n b etw een fin ite and n o n -f in ite fo rm s in T a m il and in o th e r la n g u ag es. T ra d itio n a l T a m i l g r a m m a r ia n s a r e a little confused on th is m a tte r , hi h is ilak kaN ac cu ru k k a m ("abrid ged g r a m m a r " ) , K o o v in ta -ra a ja M u ta liy a a r (1928: 67) s a y s in p a r a g r a p h 176: . . v in a i m u rra a v a tu , tiN a i, p a a l, iT a m , e n p a v a r ra i u N a rttip p o ru L m u T in tu n irk u m v in a i. " — "As f o r co m p lete v e r b s , th ey a r e v e rb s stan d in g co m p lete m a n ife stin g the d is tin c tio n s of c l a s s , g e n d e r, and p e r s o n . " H ere it m ay be noted th a t the " c la s s " d is tin c tio n no ted is th a t b etw ee n h ig h - and n o - c la s s m ention ed above, and th a t p aal " g e n d e r" in c lu d es w hat w ould be c a lle d both g e n d e r and n u m b e r in W e s te rn te r m s . He th e n goes on in h is n ex t p a ra g r a p h to in clud e a s s o r ts of co m p lete v e r b (v in a im u r r u ) the im p e ra tiv e (eeval v in a im u r r u ) , w hich is d iffe re n tia te d f o r n u m b e r bu t

no t fo r c la s s o r p e rs o n , and the optative (viyankooL v in a im u r r u ), w hich is u n d iffe re n tia te d fo r any of the th r e e c a te g o rie s . A n o th er d is tin c tio n m ade by K oovinta--raaja (1928:63), follow ing the T a m il tra d itio n , is th a t betw een te r i n il a i vinai " tim e -sh o w in g v e rb (fo rm )" and k u rip p u v in ai ’h in tin g v erb

(fo rm )", v e rb fo r m s w hich la c k a te n se m a r k e r . A s K u m arak u lasin g h e (1929:71), a lso follow ing the c la s s ic a l T a m il g ra m m a ria n s , s a y s in th is r e g a r d , "d efinite v e r b s a r e th o se w hich have in fle c tio n s of t e n s e . . .in d e fin ite v e r b s a r e th ose w hich have no in flectio n of te n s e . " E uropean, g r a m m a r ia n s of T a m il have u su a lly co n ten ted th e m s e lv e s w ith tr a n s la tin g the T a m il te r m v in a in iu rru by "finite v e r b " and c o n s id e rin g the m a tte r c lo se d . In con nection w ith L a tin , H ockett (1958:238) m a k es a m o re c a re fu l d is tin c tio n . He m a k es a th re e -w a y d iv isio n of L a tin v e rb fo rm s b a s e d on th e ety m o lo g ic a l se n se of

" fin ite " a s l i m i t e d " , o r sp e c ifie d by the m ax im u m n u m b e r of m o rp h o lo g ically m a rk e d d is tin c tio n s . He s e ts off a s " f in ite s " the f o r m s conjugated f o r the fu ll s ix - te r m n u m b e r- p e rs o n s y s te m , a s w ell a s v o ic e , a s p e c t, and w hat he

c a lls " te n s e -m o d e " . He c o n s id e rs im p e ra tiv e s a s " s e m i- f in ite " b eca u se they

It m ig ht be arg u e d th a t the second p e r s o n and the hig h c la s s a r e im p lic it in a

"com m and w o rd " (eev a lco l), and th a t th e re fo re the im p e ra tiv e should be re g a r d e d a s a fin ite v e rb . But e v en if the im p e ra tiv e i s c o n s id e re d in v a ria b ly to be a s s o c ia te d w ith a p a r ti c u la r p e rs o n o r c la s s , in d iv id u al im p e ra tiv e s can not th e n be re g a rd e d a s d iffe re n tia te d f r o m e a c h o th e r by w hich p e rs o n o r c la s s th ey o c c u r in. F u r th e r m o r e , im p e ra tiv e s m ay be a d d r e s s e d to n o n -h u m an s,

su ch a s a n im a ls , th a t w ould n o rm a lly be c o n sid e re d to be denoted by n o - c la s s nouns. Such im p e ra tiv e s a r e in no way fo rm a lly d iffe re n tia te d fro m " n o rm a l"

im p e ra tiv e s . It m ay be th a t the u s e of such im p e ra tiv e s in v o lv es re c a te g o riz a tio n of the a d d r e s s e d a n im a ls a s hu m an , o r it m ay be th a t th e im p e ra tiv e do es n o t in f a c t im ply h ig h - c la s s in the a d d r e s s e e .

30

.p a rtic ip a te in fe w e r d is tin c tio n s th an the f in ite s . " N o n -fin ite s " , p a rtic ip a tin g in none of th e s e d is tin c tio n s , include in h is view in fin itiv e s , g e ru n d s,

p a r tic ip le s and su p in e s. It is in a s e n se akin to th is of H o c k e tt's th a t the t e r m s " fin ite " and 'to o n -fin ite " a r e u s e d h e re in r e la tio n to T a m il.

A s m entio ned abo ve, the T a m il v e rb f o r m can be divided into two p a r ts — the in v a ria b le p a r t, o r ro o t, and the v a ria b le p a r t, o r ending.

In the c a s e of fin ite v e rb f o r m s , the ending is d iv isib le in tu r n into te n se and PN g m a r k e r s . The te n se m a r k e r s a r e suffixed to the r o o t and p re c e d e th e PN g d e s in e n c e s . T he PNg m a r k e r s a r e the sam e fo r a ll v e rb s and som e a r e even s im ila r a s b etw een w ritte n and spoken T a m il, so long a s the p ro v is o given in the p re fa c e is kept in m ind — th a t w ith r e g a r d to spoken T a m il, a fin a l n a s a l in the tr a n s c r ip tio n r e p r e s e n ts w hat is p h o n etically a n a z a liz e d vow el. In spoken T a m il, th e re f o r e , the f i r s t p e rs o n sin g u la r m a r k e r is p h o n etically jb e j , the w r itte n eq u iv alen t being £ e e n ] (- 6J0T ). T he sp ok en T a m il PNg

d e s in e n c e s a r e show n in the follow ing ta b le (7)

( V )

1s t p e r s o n 2nd p e rs o n 3 rd p e r s o n

hig h c la s s m ale fe m a le no c la s s

■een

p lu r a l -o o m

-e e {-say) -iin k a (-iirk a L )

-a a r

-aan -a a n k a (-a a rk a L )

-aa (-aaL )

-atu -a tu n k a (-in ra n a )

W here the w r itte n f o r m d if f e r s fro m the spoken one, it is shown in p a r e n th e s e s , h i w ritte n T a m il, th e re is an a d d itio n a l, second p e r s o n p o lite s in g u la r f o r m -d ir,

f o r m s in not being o b lig a to rily m a rk e d fo r the s in g u la r /p lu r a l d is tin c tio n . T h is is u su a lly a lso the c a se fo r v e r b s . T h u s, though som e n ativ e s p e a k e rs m ake u s e of a p lu r a l n o - c la s s f o r m - atunka (cf, A s h e r 1966; fn 10 and 35), th is is a r e la tiv e ly r a r e u sag e and d o es not happen to o c c u r in the q u e stio n n a ire r e s p o n s e s w ith w hich we a r e p r im a r ily co n ce rn ed in th is stud y. T h e se PNg d e s in e n c e s a r e u se d w ith a ll v e rb s and w ith a ll th r e e te n s e s , e x c e p t fo r the n o - c la s s fu tu re w hich is sy n th e tic a lly fo rm ed by suffixing -m to the in fin itiv e .

T e n s e m a r k e r s , on the o th e r hand, a r e n ot the sam e f o r a ll v e r b s , though, w ith few e x c e p tio n s, they v a ry w ithin w e ll-d e fin e d lim its . The p r e s e n t te n se in d ic a to rs in c o n te m p o ra ry w ritte n T a m il have the com m on f e a tu re of v e la r ity (~kir~ o r - k lrir- ) , the fu tu re te n se m a r k e r s th a t of la b ia lity ( - v - , o r - p p - ) , and the p a s t te n se in d ic a to rs th a t of clentality o r a lv e o la rity (-t~ , —tfc—, - n t - , o r - in - ) . The spoken T a m il f o r m s a r e le s s e a s ily c a te g o riz e d , h o w ev er. The " te n s e " (cf. A s h e r 1966:20), o r g em in ated , a lte r n a n t of the p r e s e n t te n se m a r k e r is - k k r~ ; the " la x " , o r n o n -g em m a ted a lte r n a n t is - r - . T he "ten se a lte r n a n t of the fu tu re te n se m a r k e r is ~pp_- , the

" la x ” a lte r n a n t bein g - v - . hi the c a s e of the p a s t te n se m arin er, the g em in ate a lte r n a n t is - c c - o r -tt~ , depending on w h eth er o r not the ro o t end s in a fro n t vow el. T h e re a r e fo u r n o n -g em in ate a lte r n a n ts of the p a s t te n se m a r k e r : -n c ~ , - n t - , - ty , and - i n - . Of th e s e , the f i r s t two v a ry a s do the

32 fi

g em in ate f o r m s , -4 - is of r e la tiv e ly r a r e o c c u rre n c e , and - i n - is the m o st com m on fo rm and the one th a t is c u rr e n tly the m o st p ro d u c tiv e .

T a m il v e rb c la s s ific a tio n s a r e u s u a lly b a s e d on the a lte rn a tio n of te n se m a r k e r s d e s c rib e d above, p a r tic u la r ly the r e la tiv e ly co m p lex p a s t te n s e a lte r n a tio n . T h is h a s not alw ay s b een the c a s e , h o w ev er. The native T a m il g r a m m a r ia n s , s tra n g e ly enough, had nothing to say on the su b je c t, P av aN an ti, f o r e x a m p le , m e re ly e n u m e ra te s in s u c c e s s iv e s u tr a s (142-44;

e g . P av aN an ti 1936:123-4) the a lte rn a tiv e te n se m a r k e r s w ith w hich he is c o n ce rn ed and m a k es no a tte m p t to in d icate c o r r e la tio n s b etw een the u se of p a r tic u la r a lte r n a n ts and p a r tic u la r c la s s e s of v e r b s . Indeed, the idea of a m o rp h o lo g ic a l c la s s ific a tio n of v e rb s d o es not a p p e a r to have a r is e n u n til E u ro p e a n s beg an w ritin g g r a m m a r s of T a m il, M ost of the e a r ly E u ro p e a n w r ite r s tak e the th ir d - p e r s o n s in g u la r p r e s e n t te n se f o r m of the v e rb a s the c ita tio n f o r m and e x p la in the d iffe re n c e s b etw een th is and the o th e r p o ssib le f o r m s . In th is w ay, v e r b s a r e c la s s ifie d by the fin a l sound ( 'l e t t e r " ) of the s te m and by w h e th e r th ey f o r m the p r e s e n t te n se f o r m s w ith a sin g le - k - o r double -kk~ . Z iegenb alg (1716:94—104) gives a f a ir ly in c o h e re n t acc o u n t of th is s o r t, in clu d in g a to ta l of e ig h t m eth od s f o r fo rm in g the p a s t te n s e . B e s c h i (1738:50-56; t r . M ahon 1848:41-51) g iv es a b e t te r o rg an iz ed s e r ie s of eig h t r u le s , a r r a n g e d in a g rou p of th r e e f o r v e r b s fo rm in g the p r e s e n t te n s e w ith - k k - and a g ro u p of five f o r v e rb s fo rm in g the p r e s e n t te n se w ith - k - . S im ila r l i s t s of r u le s a r e given by su ch o th e r e a r ly w r ite r s a s W alther

(1739:26-30), R h en iu s (1836:78-86), D upuis (1863:41-61), L a z a ru s (1870:112-122),