Chapter 3. Coordinating constructions in Fongbe with reference to Haitian Creole

This chapter discusses coordinating constructions in Fongbe and in Haitian Creole. In Fongbe, clausal conjunctions also serve as complementizers. In both their functions these lexical items introduce tensed clauses only. They are thus marked as [+tense]. This explains why they cannot be used to coordinate NPs. In Fongbe, there is no conjunction of NPs. Coordination of NPs is achieved, so to speak, by means of a circumposition ‘with…with’. The last part of the chapter shows that, from a typological point of view, Haitian Creole is like Fongbe. It has a [+tense] clausal conjunction that cannot be used to conjoin NPs. In this language, as well, the so-called coordination of NPs is achieved by means of a preposition meaning ‘with’.