The Definite Article in Yucatec Maya: The Case Of Le … O’ 1

In this paper we propose a novel analysis of the Yucatec Maya determiner le … o’. Based on elicited and text data, we argue that this determiner may have demonstrative uses, but we show that it is primarily a definite article, since it can locate a referent in any of four domains of the universe of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of American linguistics 2018-04, Vol.84 (2), p.207-242
Main Authors: Maldonado, Violeta Vázquez-Rojas, Fajardo, Josefina García, Gutiérrez-Bravo, Rodrigo, Loyo, Julia Pozas
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:In this paper we propose a novel analysis of the Yucatec Maya determiner le … o’. Based on elicited and text data, we argue that this determiner may have demonstrative uses, but we show that it is primarily a definite article, since it can locate a referent in any of four domains of the universe of discourse (García Fajardo 1994). We compare the range of uses of le … o’ to those of other definite determiners found in Yucatec Maya to support this conclusion.
ISSN:0020-7071
1545-7001
DOI:10.1086/696197