This volume presents a typological/theoretical introduction plus eight papers about ergative alignment in 16 Amazonian languages. All are written by linguists with years of fieldwork and comparative experience in the region, all describe details of the synchronic systems, and several also provide… read more
When speakers need to communicate a piece of information in which they allocate all the components the same degree of informational density – especially the components expressing the state of the world described and the entities associated with it – they rely on linguistic mechanisms that may… read more
In Sikuani (Guahiban, Orinoco) the only explicitly marked tense is future. Present and past are lumped together as a default subproduct of realis mood. As usual, future entails modal meaning. But space and aspect contribute much more to the elaboration of modal distinctions.The paper will unveil… read more
Katukina-Kanamari, possibly the only extant language of the Katukina family, features ergative alignment both in morphology and syntax. The paper is devoted to the description of the various domains of grammar where ergativity is present, as well as of a functionally conditioned accusative pattern.… read more
