7 Interclausal relations
A minimal sentence for Luang is “a clause base” as described for the Buru language by Grimes 1991:389. It can be expanded and made more complex through a number of different methods.
Referential information can be taken from the clause base and fronted at the beginning of the sentence through left-dislocation. Relativisation, serialisation, complementation, or conjunctions are ways in
which clauses can be combined to expand the sentence. The following chart illustrates the structure of the sentence down to the noun phrase level.
Table 36. Structure of the sentence SENTENCE
PERIPHERY CLAUSE
TAG Core
Periphery Time
Fronted CONJ Actor
Verb Nucleus
Undergoer Oblique
Periphery CONPNPCL
Subject NP Predicate
VP Object NP
PP PPNP
7.1 Left dislocationfronting
Left dislocation in Luang can be used to indicate emphasis or to bring to the foreground information being tracked through a discourse. The core constituents of the clause, which include the subject,
predicate, and object, can be fronted. Oblique and peripheral constituents can also be fronted. These would include prepositional phrases or noun phrases which indicate location, instrument and time. Even
adverbs occurring within the verb complex, and time expressions which affect the discourse as a whole but are not relevant to the clause, can be fronted. However, unlike the other constituents which when
fronted move to the beginning of the sentence, adverbs and instrument modification move only to the front of the verb nucleus.
7.1.1 Left-dislocation of subject
It would seem that nouns modified by relative clauses are often fronted. 631 Godtlifa maka k-te’en-nana
loi pa
na-la ul-lia
na-pling-eti
Godtlifa who REL-pole-ABIL canoe to
3s-go ahead-to 3s-not know-yet ‘Godtifa, who had poled ahead in the canoe, did not know yet…’
632 Ke-ke’en maka
na’nam ha-ra-yor-nande et-la
me?
RDP-child who just
AN-3p-DUR is-at
where? ‘Where is the child which has just been born?’
7.1.2 Left-dislocation of the predicate
633 I-ta-’ana-t-emnu nek
de ta’en-niana
1pi-1pi-eat-1pi-drink just that
cannot-ABIL ‘Eating and drinking, we could not even do that.’
7.1.3 Left-dislocation of the direct object
634 A-isko’l-u pai-piair-ni
de ma’m-u
n-pair to’a
a-iskola-’u pairi-pairi-ni de
mama-’u n-pairi to’a
my-school-POS RDP-pay-POS that
mama-POS 3s-pay just
‘My school bill, my mother will just pay it.’
635 Rok de
nona han-ni
dress that miss own-POS
‘That dress, Miss owns.’
7.1.4 Order and left-dislocation of non-core arguments
Modifications for time, manner, instrument and location occur in different order depending on whether these modifications are relevant only to the immediate clause or whether they are relevant to the
development of the discourse as a whole. They also occur in a different order if they are topicalized for reasons of focus or emphasis. The above chart illustrates the normal order of constituents before fronting
or left-dislocation occurs.
7.1.4.1 Manner
Most modification for manner occurs through the use of adverbs at the verb phrase level see §3.4. 636 A-niar
to’a pola
to’ora mot-mota
ida A-u-nairi
to’a pola
to’ora mota-mota
ida 1s-1s-wear
only pants
cut-off RDP-green
one
‘I wore only a green pair of cut-off pants.’
637 A-g-al to-to’a
a-ralm-u la’
iskola A-u-al
to’a-to’a a-ralma-u
la’ iskola
1s-1s-give RDP-truly insides-POS
at school
‘I worked really hard at school.’
638 A-g-ora Om Nico
ma-priksa rew-re’wa
a-g-ora Om Nico
ma-priksa re’wa-re’wa
1s-1s-with Om Nico 1pe-examine
RDP-together
‘Om Nico and I examine it together.’ However, when the manner is topicalized it is left-dislocated to preceding the verb as opposed to
following it, which is the normal occurrence of adverbs. 639 A-ma’m-u
yeher to’
pa n-iwra…
a-mama-’u yeher
to’a pa
n-iwra my-mother-POS
harder yet
to 3s-say…
‘My mother insisted all the more…’ 640 Irrora
walli walli rawoka
ir-rora wali-ni wali-ni
ra-woka
3p-two beside-POS-beside-POS 3p-meet
‘The two of them, on either side they met.’ 641 Rewre’wa
pa t-ler
pa t-pehela
ga’a
re’wa-re’wa pa
t-lera pa
t-pehela ga’a
RDP-together to
1pi-reach for 1pi-strain
forward
‘Together let us strain forward.’
7.1.4.2 Location
Modification for location, which is relevant to the immediate clause, follows the verb complex. However, there are exceptions to this when there is left-dislocation of the location due to emphasis or
foregrounding. Notice in the example below that although the location is fronted the preposition la ‘at’ does not.
642 Leta gen-ni
de tu’u
pila r-pen-puen
la
leta geni-ni
de tu’u
pila r-penu-penu la
village place-GEN that plant plant 3p-RDP-full at
‘At that village’s spot, it was full of plants.’ 7.1.4.3
Time Modification for time, which is relevant to the immediate clause follows the verb complex and is often
preceded by the word pa ‘till.’ Time which is relevant to the discourse as a whole precedes the entire clause, usually at the beginning of the sentence following a connectorconjunction. However, when
sentence level time expression is left-dislocated so that it precedes the connector rather than following, it is topicalized or emphatic.
643 A-g-iwra u-mota
to’o-wa pa n-odi-a
pa dodo’on di. 1s-1s-want 1s-throw up just-PERF till 3s-carry-OBJ till now
this
‘I keep having to throw up even until now.’ 644 A-kuli’a
pa la’nana anni woru rehenu
1s-college till reach year two
more
‘I went to college for more than two years.’
645 La’ ler de
de am-hopal-nana lera-mel
pa wosiewa la’ lora
At time that that 1pe-sail-ABIL day-might
till nine at
sea ‘At that time we sailed on the sea for nine days and nights.’
Time which is relevant to the discourse as a whole precedes the entire clause, usually at the beginning of the sentence following a connectorconjunction.
646 La’ anni 1980 de a-ma’m-u n-la
n-horat a-na’n-u la’ iskola
at year 1980 that 1s-mama-POS 3s-go 3s-write my-name-POS at school
‘In 1980, my mother went to register me for school.’
647 Mere mak-ler de de
a-’u-kleha lawra-raini
seragam iskola
But REL-day that that 1s-1s-did not have cloth-clothes uniform school
‘But at that time I did not have a school uniform.’
648 Noma lera ida ne mak-hi’
o’ta la
iskola SMA n-polg a’u.
Then day one and REL-become head of school SMA 3s-call me
‘Then one day the head of the SMA called me SMA = high school.’ However, when sentence level time expression is left-dislocated so that it precedes the connector
rather than following, it is topicalized or emphatic.
649 c. Ler di na’nama a-h-gi’a
Wahyu tian-ni.
ler di na’nama a-u-hi’a Wahyu
tiana-ni
day this just now 1s-1s-do Wahyu question-GEN
‘Just this day I did Wahyu’s questions.’
650 Repar noka
a-lia’a la
iskola
repra noka
a-’u-la’a la
iskola
tomorrow then
1s-1s-went to
school ‘The next day then I went to school.’
651 Lera ida
noma am-ton-la
Tepa
day one then
1pe-harbor-at Tepa
‘One day finally we harbored at Tepa.’ 7.1.4.4
Instrument Modifications for instrument occur in a prepositional phrase following the verb.
652 Atiu’utu Seri
yamanani la’a
watu
a-u-tutu Seri
yamana-ni la’a
watu
1s-1s-pound name
food-POS INS
stone
‘I pound Seri’s food with a stone.’ However when the instrument is topicalized or emphasized it occurs in a different construction
which precedes the verb.
653 N-ala wehla
na-na-wenna. 3s-take machete INS-3s-kill
‘He took a sword to kill ithim.’
654 N-ala kon-kona-au-puali
na-na-lewna Nuh
3s-take RDP-boat-wood-float INS-3s-save Nuh
‘He used a boat to save Nuh.’
655 N-ala lim-ni
na-n-toreri lir-ni-tun-nu
deul-lu-tatar-ni
3s-take hand-POS INS-3s-hold word-POS-story-POS law-POS-rules-POS ‘He used his hands to hold the teachings and law.’
7.2 Relative clause
