Northern Jê Verb Morphology and the Reconstruction of Finiteness Alternations

Abstract

This paper examines the morphology of verbs in the Northern branch of the Jê language family, paying particular attention to verbal finiteness, a pervasive category in the family that exhibits a number of morphological complexities. We argue that a number of Proto-Northern Jê verbs whose nonfinite forms have been traditionally regarded as suppletive can be shown to be derived through morphophonological processes that are plausible in comparative perspective. The proposal advanced here also illuminates a number of points regarding person inflection and other verbal morphology that have figured prominently in historical studies of Macro-Jê languages.