Optional or Syntactic Ergativity in Shawi: Distribution and Possible Origins

Abstract

In this article we provide a preliminary description and analysis of the most common ergative constructions in Shawi, a Kawapanan language spoken in Northwestern Amazonia. We offer a comparison with its sister language, Shiwilu, for which an optional ergativity marking pattern has been claimed (Valenzuela, 2008, 2011). There is not enough evidence, however, to claim the exact same for Shawi. Ergativity in the language is driven by mere syntactic motivations. One of the most common constituent orders in the language where the ergative marker is obligatory is OAV. We close the article with a tentative proposal on the passive origins of OAV ergative constructions in the language, via a by-phrase-like incorporation, and eventual grammaticalisation, resorting to the formal syntactic theory known as Semantic Syntax (Seuren, 1996).

Keywords

• ergativity
• kawapanan
• amazonian