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Marten, Lutz (2021) 'Noun classes and plurality in Bantu languages.' In: Cabredo Hofherr, Patricia and Doetjes, Jenny, (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Grammatical Number. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 539-557.

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Abstract

Noun classes are a prominent grammatical feature of Bantu languages where typically each noun (or noun stem) is assigned to one of between fifteen and eighteen noun classes. Noun classes are often analysed as a form of nominal classification system and seen as belonging to the same domain as grammatical gender systems. Number in Bantu languages is mediated by the noun class system and the intricate interaction between noun class and number in Bantu has given rise to different theoretical analyses. The chapter focuses on three approaches to analysing grammatical number in Bantu languages—approaches based on an inflectional notion of number, those which analyse number as a derivational relation, and approaches adopting notions of polysemy and paradigms for analysing Bantu noun class systems.

Item Type: Book Chapters
Keywords: noun class systems, inflection, derivation, agreement, paradigm, nominal classification, polysemy, individuation, Bantu, Swahili
SOAS Departments & Centres: Departments and Subunits > School of Languages, Cultures & Linguistics
Departments and Subunits > School of Languages, Cultures & Linguistics > Department of Linguistics
ISBN: 9780198795858
Copyright Statement: This is the version of the chapter accepted for publication in Cabredo Hofherr, Patricia and Doetjes, Jenny, (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Grammatical Number. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 539-557. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198795858.013.26 Re-use is subject to the publisher’s terms and conditions
DOI (Digital Object Identifier): https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198795858.013.26
Date Deposited: 02 Oct 2018 07:59
URI: https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/id/eprint/26347
Funders: Leverhulme Trust

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