Preverbal determiners and the passive in Moriori

Middleton, John (2023) Preverbal determiners and the passive in Moriori. Oceanic Linguistics, 62 (1). pp. 117-142. ISSN 0029-8115

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Abstract

This paper examines the curious occurrence of preverbal determiners in Moriori (Chatham Islands), which are best analyzed as passive markers. In some Moriori sentences, a determiner is found following the clause-initial tense/aspect particle and preceding the verb. Examining the morphological markings of the arguments in these sentences shows that the verb is in the passive form, though without the usual -Cia passive suffix. This paper demonstrates that preverbal determiners mark a passive verb, and are in complementary distribution with the standard passive suffix. Previous analyses for preverbal determiners, including being part of continuous aspect particle or introducing a nominalized verb, are ruled out. Preverbal determiners which identify a verb as passive are not found in any other Polynesian language, making this construction unique.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Moriori Māori Passive -Cia Suffix
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PL Languages and literatures of Eastern Asia, Africa, Oceania
Divisions:	School of Pacific Arts, Communication and Education (SPACE)
Depositing User:	John Middleton
Date Deposited:	03 Jun 2025 03:11
Last Modified:	03 Jun 2025 03:11
URI:	https://repository.usp.ac.fj/id/eprint/14955

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