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Article published In: Journal of Uralic Linguistics
Vol. 4:2 (2025) ► pp.179–216

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Epistemic perspective of temporal deictics

A study on Mari retrospectivizing particles

ORCiD logo with link | University of Turku, Finland
Published online: 24 October 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/jul.00041.spe
Abstract
Deictic items encoding coordinative dimensions of space and time often grammaticalize into markers of epistemic categories. This study examines what kind of epistemic system is formed by the tense-deictic retrospectivizing particles əʎe/əʎə and ulmaʃ/ələn in the Mari languages. Based on a corpus study, the paper proposes a new perspective-based approach to the evidentiality of the particle constructions and shows how they also participate in a discourse-interactive custom of Common Ground management. Both functions stem from the internal semantics of the particle constructions which in essence are multiple perspective constructions expressing two observer positions with respect to one state of affairs. Crucially, also spatial deictics express epistemic differences based on observer positions, but they have different communicational properties. Spatial environment allows intersubjective reference to speaker and addressee perspectives, while the Mari temporal particle constructions are fully speaker-anchored. Thus, the epistemic grammaticalization potential of the two types of deictics is shown to be different.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Mari languages and current views on their retrospectivizing particles
    • 2.1The profile of the Mari languages
    • 2.2Current views on the syntax and semantics of the retrospectivizing particles
  • 3.Multiple perspective constructions
    • 3.1Mari retrospectivizing past tenses as multiple perspective constructions
    • 3.2Types of multiple perspective constructions
  • 4.Data and methods
  • 5.Perspective-based evidential system of the Mari retrospectivizing particles
    • 5.1əʎe/əʎə as a marker of internal observation
    • 5.2Ulmaʃ /ələn as a marker of external observation
  • 6.Mari retrospectivizing particles in Common Ground management
    • 6.1Common Ground management as an information structural process
    • 6.2Types of common ground management functions of the Mari retrospectivizing particles
      • 6.2.1Assertive functions of əʎe/əʎə
      • 6.2.2Contrastive and corrective functions of əʎe/əʎə
      • 6.2.3Additive functions of əʎe/əʎə
      • 6.2.4Information structural functions of əʎe/əʎə and ulmaʃ/ələn contrasted
  • 7.Grammaticalization of epistemics from multiple perspective constructions
  • 8.Summary and conclusions
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations
  • Sources
  • References
References (58)
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