Mandenkan (Dec 2023)
Non-existential bound pronouns and restricted reflexive: the emergence of reflexive pronoun in Manding and Mokole languages
Abstract
The paper deals with the emergence of reflexive pronouns in Manding and Mokole languages. Special attention is paid to the sources of grammaticalization. It is claimed that besides well-known sources for the reflexive pronouns, like nouns for 'head' or 'body', a reflexive pronoun can go back to the 2 person singular pronouns in its generic use. More precisely, a path is suggested where the reflexive pronoun originates from the second person singular pronoun which passes through the step of generic usage. It is postulated that the generic second person singular pronoun transforms into a bound non-existential pronoun by losing person specification. This analysis is based on the distribution of the pronoun i in Manding and Mokole languages, but also on the generic and impersonal uses of the 2 personal singular pronouns in the neighbouring languages belonging to the Atlantic family.
