Motion time and tense on the grammaticalization of come and go to future markers in Bantu

Abstract

Many Bantu languages have grammaticized one or both types of motion verb -COME and GO - as future markers. However, they may differ in the semantics of future temporal reference, in some cases referring to a "near" future, in others to a "remote" future. This paper explores how the underlying image-schemas of such verbs in several languages - Bamileke-Dschang, Bamun, and Lamnso' (Grass fields Bantu), Duala, Chimwera, Chindali, Kihunde, and Zulu (Narrow Bantu) - contribute to how the verbs become grammaticized in relation to the dual construals of linguistic time: ego-moving vs. moving-event.

Keywords

• Bantu
• grammaticalization
• motion verbs
• future tense