A direct-inverse language is a language where clauses with transitive verbs can be expressed either using a direct or an inverse construction. Linguistic Typology is an international Peer-reviewed journal in the field of Linguistic typology, founded in 1997 Morphological typology is a way of classifying the languages of the world (see Linguistic typology) that groups languages according to their common morphological structures In morphological typology (in linguistics an isolating language (also analytic language) is any Language in which words are composed of A synthetic language, in Linguistic typology, is a Language with a high Morpheme -per- word ratio Polysynthetic languages are highly Synthetic languages ie languages in which words are composed of many Morphemes Definition The degree of For fusion in Word formation, see Compound (linguistics. A fusional language (also called inflecting language) is a An agglutinative language is a Language that uses Agglutination extensively most Words are formed by joining Morphemes together Morphology is the field of Linguistics that studies the internal structure of words In Linguistics, morphosyntactic alignment is the system used to distinguish between the arguments of Transitive verbs and those of Intransitive A nominative-accusative Language (or simply accusative language) is one that marks the direct object of Transitive verbs distinguishing them An ergative-absolutive Language (or simply ergative language is a language that treats the argument (" subject " of an Intransitive Austronesian alignment, commonly known as the Philippine- or Austronesian -type voice system, is a typologically unusual Morphosyntactic alignment An active-stative language, or active language for short is one in which the sole argument of an Intransitive verb is sometimes marked in the same way A tripartite language, also called an ergative-accusative language, is one that treats the subject of an intransitive verb the subject of a transitive verb and the object The syntactic pivot is the Verb argument around which sentences "revolve" in a given Language. In Generative grammar, (in particular Government and binding theory and the Standard Theory of Transformational Grammar a theta role or θ-role is the In Linguistics, word order typology refers to the study of the different ways in which languages arrange the constituents of their sentences relative to each other and the systematic In Linguistics, a VO language is a language in which the Verb typically comes before the object (thus including SVO, VOS and In Linguistic typology, subject-verb-object ( SVO) is a sentence structure where the subject comes first the Verb second and the object Verb Subject Object ( VSO) is a term in Linguistic typology. It represents one type of languages when classifying languages according to the sequence of these In Linguistic typology, Verb Object Subject or Verb Object Agent - commonly used in its abbreviated form VOS or VOA - represents the language-classification In Linguistics, an OV language is a language in which the object comes before the Verb. In Linguistic typology, Subject Object Verb (SOV is the type of languages in which the subject, object, and Verb of a sentence appear or usually Object Subject Verb (OSV or Object Agent Verb (OAV is one of the permutations of expression used in Linguistic typology. Object Verb Subject (OVS or Object Verb Agent (OVA is one of the Permutations of expression used in Linguistic typology, although it is rare among Time Manner Place (TMP describes one possible ordering of Adpositional phrases in sentences Place Manner Time is a term used in Linguistic typology to state the general order of Adpositional phrases in a language's sentences "to the store by car The direct construction is used when the subject of the transitive clause outranks the object in saliency or animacy but the inverse is used when the "notional object" outranks the "notional subject". Animacy is a grammatical and/or Semantic category of Nouns based on how Sentient or alive the Referent of the noun is

This means that in an inverse language morphosyntactic markers vary according to compliance or non-compliance with normal rules governing the neutral order of verb arguments with respect to the position of each on a hierarchy. Morphology is the field of Linguistics that studies the internal structure of words A syntactic verb argument, in Linguistics, is a Phrase that appears in a relationship with the Verb in a Clause.

The direct form is used when the subject has higher obviation status (i. e. topicality) or animacy, including person hierarchy, e. In Linguistics, the topic (or theme) is the part of the proposition that is being talked about ( predicated) g. 1st > 2nd > 3rd, than the object, while the inverse form is used when the reverse is true. A more 'unusual' semantic occurrence not matching the expected syntactic role of the arguments as given by their rank on the hierarchy is marked on the verb, giving flexibility to what can act as an agent on a higher ranking patient. In Grammar, the voice (also called gender or diathesis of a verb describes the relationship between the action (or state that the verb expresses and the participants identified In Linguistics, a grammatical agent is the Participant of a situation that carries out the action in this situation In Linguistics, a grammatical patient is the participant of a situation upon whom an action is carried out

Klaiman (1989, 1992, 1993) has suggested four common properties of inverse languages:

1. Core participants of transitive predicates are ranked on a hierarchy of Salience, Topicality or Animacy.
2. Only transitive predicates can participate in the direct/inverse alternation.
3. A morphosyntactic device should be used to signal whether the most salient participant is notional subject or notional object.
4. Direct/inverse alternation does not entail detransitivization.

Languages complying with Klaiman's definition of an inverse language is for example: Maasai, Carib, Wastek, the Algonquian languages and some Athapaskan languages like Koyukon and Navaho, and Mixe-Zoquean languages. The Maasai language ( autonym: ɔl Maa is an Eastern Nilotic language spoken in Southern Kenya and Northern Tanzania by the Maasai The Cariban languages are an indigenous Language family of South America. The Wastek or Huastec language is a Mayan language of Mexico spoken by the Huastecs living in rural areas of San Luis Potosí and northern The Algonquian (also Algonkian, and pronounced both and) languages are a subfamily of Native American languages that includes most of the languages in the Algic Athabaskan or Athabascan (also Athapascan, Athapaskan, Athabasca Indians or Athapaskes) is the name of a large group of closely Koyukon is an Athabaskan language spoken along the Koyukuk and middle Yukon River in western interior Alaska Navajo or Navaho ( native name: Diné bizaad) is an Athabaskan language (of Na-Dené stock spoken in the southwest United States by The Mixe-Zoque languages constitute a Language family whose living members are spoken in and around the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico. Roberto Zavala describes an inverse system in the Mixe-Zoquean language Oluta Popoluca which doesn't conform to these rules, because also certain intransitive verbs and passives of bitransitives can take inverse morphology. Oluta Popoluca also called Olutec is a Moribund Mixe-Zoquean language of the Mixean branch spoken by a few elderly people in the town of Oluta

Inverse Morphology in Ojibwe

For example, in Ojibwe, an Algonquian language of North America, the person hierarchy is second person > first person > proximate (the third person considered more important or basic in a discussion) > obviative (the third person considered less important or basic in a discussion). The Algonquian (also Algonkian, and pronounced both and) languages are a subfamily of Native American languages that includes most of the languages in the Algic Ojibwe has no case distinctions, so in a transitive verb with two participants, the only way to distinguish subject from object is through direct/inverse suffixes. In Grammar, the case of a Noun or Pronoun indicates its Grammatical function in a greater Phrase or Clause; such as the A direct suffix indicates that the action is performed by someone higher on the person hierarchy on someone lower on the person hierarchy (e. g. , by the addressee on the speaker, or by a proximate third person on an obviative):

An inverse suffix indicates that the action is performed by someone lower on the person hierarchy on someone higher on the person hierarchy (e. g. , by the speaker on the addressee, or by an obviative third person on a proximate):

As can be seen, the only difference between these two verbs is the direct/inverse opposition, rather than case markers, morpheme order, or word order (when separate nominals are used).

In such languages, an inverse verb is not necessarily passive, and many direct/inverse language have separate passivity markers, distinct from the direct/inverse markers:

Direct-inverse systems on verbs coexist with the various morphosyntactic alignments in nouns. In Linguistics, morphosyntactic alignment is the system used to distinguish between the arguments of Transitive verbs and those of Intransitive

References

• Gildea, Spike (1994) Semantic and pragmatic inverse - "inverse alignment" and "inverse voice" - in Carib of Surinam. Voice and Invesion ed. by T. Givón, 187-230. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. ISBN 9781556194207
• Klaiman, M. H. (1989) Inverse voice and head-marking in Tanoan languages. Chicago Linguistics Society. 25:258-71
• Klaiman, M. H. (1992) Inverse Languages, Lingua 88:227-61
• Klaiman, M. Lingua An International Review of General Linguistics is a leading international Peer-reviewed monthly journal in General linguistics, founded in 1949 and published H. (1993) The relationship of inverse voice and head-marking in Arizona Tewa and other Tanoan languages. Studies in Language. 17:343-70
• Mithun, Marianne (1999) The Languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521232287
• Valentine, J. Randolph, 2001) Nishnaabemwin Reference Grammar. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
• Zavala, Roberto (2002) Verb Classes, Semantic roles and Inverse in Olutec, Ed. Paulette Levy Del Cora al Maya Yucateco, UNAM, Mexico
• Zúñiga, Fernando (2006) Deixis and Alignment. Inverse systems in indigenous languages of the Americas. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins. ISBN 9789027229823

External links

• Yi and Bi: Proximate and Obviative in Navajo
• TYPOLOGY 5, Argument Structure and its Morphosyntactic Representation: Nominative/Accusative, Ergative/Absolutive, Active/Inactive, Direct/Inverse
• Lecture 8: Split Ergative and Inverse Systems
• Topic, Focus and Point of View in Blackfoot
• Inversion and Obviation in Mesoamerica
• Ojibwe Verb Paradigms
• WALS Alignment of Verbal Person Marking (see Hierarchical alignment)