SOAS Research Online

Abstract

The thesis aims to provide a set of Basic Structures for the description of Malay Syntax. Further substructures could be set up for a more delicate description of a part or the whole of the language. A basic framework for Standard may be set up with the units Morpheme, Word, Phrase, Clause and Sentence. Morphemes are described as bound and free. The affixes are bound morphemes and may be prefixes or suffixes or simultaneously operating prefix and suffix. A small inventory of prefixes does service for a number of syntactic and semantic purposes. The distinction between prefix and prepositional particle is made. There are cases however in which the distinction cannot be too sharply held. A few prepositional phrases can take the affix t?r- as though they were adjectives. Such are however restricted lexically. Some prefixes are homophonous with directional particles. Words in Malay are conveniently divided into two main groups, namely, Particles and Pull words. In the word-class scheme these arc called Particles and Non-particles respectively. Particles form a closed class and are small in number. Non-particles forming the main bulk of the lexicon, are divisible into classes the two main of which are Nominals and Verbals. These undergo the morphological processes of Affixation and Duplication, sometimes derivational and sometimes inflectional. Three types of Phrases are described - Nominal, Verbal and Prepositional The structure of the Nominal Phrase is of special interest in that it allows of the use as exponent of Q in its structure, almost all members of the Verbal class or their syntactic equivalent, most of which are capable also of being exponent of P in clause structure. Among the syntactic equivalents of the verb are certain Prepositional phrases. The prepositional phrase may be divided into groups according to the preposed particle. The prepositional phrase with oleh is part of the diagnostic test for the passive clause. In the verb system the two main categories of Transitive and Intransitive have been set up for Standard Malay. These do not correlate with the categories of Passive and Non-passive which are set up as inflections of the verb. Two forms of Passive are described one with prefixed di- and one with prefixed ter-. The passive with prefixed ter- is found both in Transitive and Intransitive verbs but the passive with di- is found only with Transitive verbs. An inflectional opposition is set up for the Transitive verbs between ms(~)- and O prefixed forms. Two types of clause are recognised in Standard Malay, namely the verbal clause in which the P element in structure has as its exponent a verb or its syntactic equivalent, and the Nominal clause in which the exponent of P is a noun or its syntactic equivalent. The two relations of Co-ordination and Subordination are described. In clause relations these may be effected with particle alone or with particle and transformation; without particle, or without particle but with transformation. The included clause is a feature of Standard Malay. Such downgraded clauses may operate in more than one position in clause structure.