Cycle BCL – Karen De Clercq (CNRS/LLF/Université Paris Cité) – NEG-TAM Interactions across the Globe: a case study of Bengali

Abstract The aims of this talk are twofold. First, I will discuss an ongoing large-scale typological study on TAM- NEG interactions of the type illustrated by Alamblak in (1): while {fiñji} is the standard negator (SN) used in past and present tenses (1a), the suppletive marker {afë} is used in the context of the future tense, (1b) (Miestamo, 2005; Bruce, 1984).

1. (1) a. fiñji yay- kah- r- m.
2. NEG eat IRR.PRS 3SG.M 3PL
3. ‘He is not eating them/does not eat them.’
4. b. afë noh- rhw- a- t- r
5. NEG.FUT die FUT PRESUPP IRR 3SG.M
6. ‘He will not die’

I will discuss the typology of NEG-TAM interactions, and report on the methodology and first results of the project, which consists in an investigation of a balanced sample of 179 languages (Miestamo, 2005). Second, the talk will zoom in on an intricate case of NEG-TAM interactions in Bengali, and provide a nanosyntactic account for it. The Bengali facts to be accounted for are: 1) the distribution of the standard negator {na}, (2), and its perfect-conditioned allomorph {ni}, (3c); 2) the blocking of perfect morphology, i.e. e and ch(i) in (3a)-(3b), under {ni} (3c); 3) the neutralisation of the past {vs.} the present perfect under {ni}.

1. (2) a. mach kha-i
2. fish eat-1
3. ‘I eat fish.’
4. b. mach kha-i na
5. fish eat-1 NEG
6. ‘I do not eat fish.’ (Banerjee, 2021)
7. (3) a. mach khe-e = ch-i
8. fish eat-PRF=AUX-1
9. ‘I have eaten fish.’
10. b. mach khe-e = chi–1-am
11. fish eat-PRF=AUX-PST-1
12. ‘I had eaten fish.’
13. c. mach kha-i ni
14. fish eat-1 NEG.PRF
15. ‘I haven’t/hadn’t eaten fish.’

References Banerjee, Neil. 2021. Two ways to form a portmanteau: Evidence from ellipsis. In Patrick Farell (ed.), Proceedings of the Linguistic Society of America, vol. 6 1. 39–52. Bruce, Les. 1984. The Alamblak language of Papua New Guinea (East Sepik) (C 81). Canberra: Pacific Linguistics. Miestamo, Matti. 2005. Standard negation. The negation of declarative verbal main clauses in a typological perspective. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.