A Study of aspect marking in the copan inscriptions: a morphosyntactical approach

Date
1988
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Abstract
Maya language grammars define the representation of time by the verb as a tense system. Script grammars, on the other hand, present the system as aspectual. This study analyzes the function of aspectual glyphs using a 'Morphosyntactical' procedure which looks at the syntax of the clause and of the verbal morphology. The glyphs examined were T.115, T.125, T.126, T.130, T.142, T.246, T.255, T.340, T.679, and T.683. The inscriptions used, come from the Classic Maya site of Copan, Honduras. This study used the split-ergative model (Schele 1982, Bricker 1986) to analyze clause syntax, and the model given by Kaufman and Norman (1984) to analyze the verbal morphology. This thesis concludes that the split-ergative model represents a more complex phenomenan than has been presented to date in the epigraphic literature. This study also suggests that the morphemes for completive aspect alternate with those for perfective aspect to communicate the transitivity status of the hieroglyphic verbal unit.
Description
Bibliography: p. 411-425.
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Citation
Williamson, J. (1988). A Study of aspect marking in the copan inscriptions: a morphosyntactical approach (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/18127
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