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Article published In:
Lexical flexibility in Oceanic languages
Edited by Eva van Lier
[Studies in Language 41:2] 2017
► pp. 502–520

Dozing eyes and drunken faces

Nominalized psycho-collocations in Daakaka (Vanuatu)

| Humboldt-Universitt zu Berlin
Like many languages of the world, the Oceanic language Daakaka (Vanuatu) uses idiomatic combinations of body-part terms and verbs to express emotions, medical conditions and related concepts. However, languages differ in how they express the same concepts nominally. I will contrast the nominalization strategy found in Daakaka with other languages and discuss the differences. I will argue that the nominalization strategy in Daakaka is less transparent than its alternatives but that it allows for the formation of a paradigm that also includes meteorological expressions. This phenomenon highlights the need to look beyond individual lexemes when comparing lexical classes and derivational processes cross-linguistically.
Keywords: lexical classes, Oceanic languages, nominalization, psycho-collocations, idioms
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Expressing emotions
    • 2.1Overview
    • 2.2Psycho-collocations in Oceanic languages
    • 2.3Expressing emotions in Daakaka
  • 3.Nominalizing psycho-collocations
    • 3.1Strategies for nominalizing psycho-collocations
    • 3.2Nominalizing psycho-collocations in Daakaka
      • 3.2.1Overview
      • 3.2.2Exocentricity
      • 3.2.3Uninflected body-part terms
      • 3.2.4Paradigm consistency
  • 4.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 5 October 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/sl.41.2.08von
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