Multi-verb constructions in Sri Lanka Malay

This paper investigates serial verbs and related constructions in Sri Lanka Malay and shows that at least four types have to be distinguished (Motion Verb Serialization, Vector Verb Serialization, Compound Verbs, Clause Chains). The constructions found are quite different from those found in Atlantic or Pacific Creoles. This is due to the different input languages: Two of the constructions can be traced to influence from the local languages Tamil and/or Sinhala; one is of Indonesian origin, and one is mixed. Sri Lanka Malay is thus not a simple combination of South Asian Grammar and Malay lexicon but also shows retentions of Malay grammar, as already demonstrated by Slomanson (2006). This recombination of features can only be explained with an account which acknowledges the possibility of grammatical contributions from all input languages, whether substrate, superstrate, or any other.