I study the expression of time in the Masa languages, focussing on the interpretation of temporal particles: words that contribute temporal meaning while lacking the typical features of verbs and adverbs. This research focuses on four Masa languages (there are ten total): Gizey (glottocode: gize1234), Masana (glottocode: masa1322), Musey (glottocode: muse1242), and Peve (glottocode: peve1243). These languages are chosen in particular because they already have some grammatical description, offering an important basis for the project.

I collaborate with Oxford's Daniel Altshuler. Our analyses are done through the lens of semantics and pragmatics, viz., the study of inherent and context-dependent meanings, respectively. Analyses are based on datasets comprising narrative texts (folktales) and elicited constructions. By focussing on the Masa languages, this research aims to engage with the growingly impactful literature on temporality in lesser-known and lesser-described languages.

This research is funded by the Fondation Wiener-Anspach.

Situations in which a linguistic form is repeated twice or more within a word (e.g., papa) or a sentence (e.g., ‘Minda is very very smart.’) are a pervasive feature of human language. This phenomenon is well understood in cases where it is iconic, viz. when more of the same form means more of the same content (increase/plural), e.g., ‘Minda is very very smart’ means ‘Minda is extremely smart’. Sometimes, however, repetition is non-iconic, i.e.,  repetition does not express increase/plural. This phenomenon is less well understood because its interpretation is often counter-intuitive. Generally, instances of non-iconic doubling are thought to originate from iconic sources, via semantic shift/extension, or to reflect a weak "more of..." semantics. However, can all non-iconic doubling phenomena be viewed through this lens?

The Masa languages provide a rich empirical ground for exploring this question. They exhibit many cases of doubling, e.g., verb and conjunction doubling, with rare and complex semantic and pragmatic functions.

Ihimbru Zadolf (the developer) and I are converting dictionaries of the Masa languages, originally compiled by Antonino Melis & colleagues, into digital applications. The first two apps, Gizey and Masana, are available on Play Store.