Kavalan

"Spatial deixis has long been the locus of concentrated research due to its propensity to assume multiple functions in spatial-temporal domains. This study investigates the interconnections among spatial deixis, Motion predicates, and aspect markers in Kavalan, an engendered Austronesian language. Specifically, the proximal near-hearer demonstrative (yau ‘that’) may function as a Motion predicate, indicating the referent of the subject either located within or coming
into speaker’s proximal sphere. The same demonstrative also conveys progressive aspect when followed by a verb. On the other hand, the distal demonstrative (wi’u ‘that yonder’) is morphologically related with the Motion verb wi(ya), which predicates the referent of its subject as either located outside or going out of speaker’s proximal sphere. In addition, this verb is associated with inchoative or continuous aspect when followed by another verb, depending on the semantics of the second verb. Therefore, the distal demonstrative shares a parallelism with the proximal near-hearer demonstrative, both linking spatial reference, Motion predication, and temporal contouring functions, which can be ultimately attributed to the conceptual analogy between space and time."

Abstract: One of the amazing characteristics of human language is self-reference, that is, referring to itself by means of itself. This language-with-language phenomenon is most evident in reported discourse, where speech, thought, and perception tend to be interconnected. Hence, this paper investigates reported speech (RS) and reported thought (RT) in Kavalan, an endangered Austronesian language, by focusing on the quotative marker zin, which frames either a speech event or a mental event.