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In:Perfects in Indo-European Languages and Beyond
Edited by Robert Crellin and Thomas Jügel
[Current Issues in Linguistic Theory 352] 2020
► pp. 377–410

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Chapter 11
The Hittite periphrastic perfect

 | University of Pavia
 | University of Pavia
Published online: 23 September 2020
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/cilt.352.11ing
Abstract
In Hittite, the meaning associated with the Proto-Indo-European perfect, i.e. to indicate a state resulting from a change-of-state event, was covered by compound verb forms consisting of the -ant- participle plus the finite forms of the verbs ḫar(k)- “have” and eš- “be”. The origin and the function of this construction have been a matter of debate. In this chapter, we review the standard description of the Hittite periphrastic perfect, and reassess its status and function based on an analysis of its occurrences in texts ranging from Old to New Hittite. We argue that periphrastic forms involving ḫar(k)-/eš- and the participle instantiate three different constructions: the stative construction and two distinct auxiliary verb constructions, i.e. the passive and the perfect. We also suggest that the stative construction was probably the most ancient, and that the perfect construction, which functions as an anterior, constitutes a later development.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
    • 1.1Aims and structure of the chapter
    • 1.2The Anatolian verbal system in an Indo-European perspective
  • 2.Periphrastic perfect constructions in a cross-linguistic perspective
    • 2.1Typology of periphrastic constructions
    • 2.2Aspect and actionality
  • 3.Current research and open issues
    • 3.1ḫark- and eš- constructions
    • 3.2Semantics of the Hittite participle
    • 3.3The periphrastic passive construction
    • 3.4Formal aspects of ḫark- and eš- constructions
    • 3.5Relationship between ḫark- and eš- constructions
  • 4.AVC or stative construction?
    • 4.1Imperative
    • 4.2Indicative
      • 4.2.1With ḫark-
      • 4.2.2With eš-
    • 4.3Discussion
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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