16. Reciprocal constructions in Olutec

Olutec exhibits three reciprocal strategies each of which convey different levels of prominence of the second reciprocant. In the conjoined subject strategy/, both reciprocants share the same topical status. In the /subject cum adjunct strategy/ the second reciprocant is treated as background information; while in the /subject and object strategy/, the second reciprocant shares the same degree of prominence with the regular primary object. The existence of these three strategies within a language indicates that the pragmatic status of the reciprocants is a key factor to be considered in the cross-linguistic study of reciprocal constructions.