Chapter 49Independent Personal Pronouns

49.1 Independent pronouns and person markers

An independent personal pronoun can identify or contrast a participant, while the predicate retains its person marking. In Chitose, for example, kani “I” can emphasize the speaker's decision to undertake a task Nakagawa (2024: 255). The pronoun and the prefix have different grammatical roles:

Satō and Refsing likewise distinguish independent forms from the person markers carried by predicates Satō (2008: 27–28); Refsing (1986: §12.3.1). Third person has zero indexing, so this distinction does not imply a pronounced affix in every clause. The marker paradigms are in Chapter 62 (Person Marking and Argument Roles).

49.2 Saru and Chitose forms

Nakagawa gives the following reference paradigms Nakagawa (2024: 250, tables 60–61). First-person plural excludes the addressee; inclusive reference uses the fourth-person series. Parenthesized y reproduces the variants in the Chitose table.

Fourth-person forms have several contextual readings, including a narrator's “I,” inclusive “we,” and respectful address. They cannot all be translated as “we.” Satō's teaching paradigm separates inclusive and honorific functions Satō (2008: 26–27); Nakagawa groups the forms under a common fourth-person label Nakagawa (2024: 250–252).

49.3 Selected dialect comparisons

Nakagawa's other dialect tables differ both in form and in the distinctions they make Nakagawa (2024: 251, tables 62–65). A question mark below reproduces incomplete information in his table; it does not demonstrate that the dialect lacks a pronoun.

The fourth-person forms require separate explanation. Shizunai has singular anani and plural anoka / anutari. Horobetsu aokay and Ishikari anokay each occupy a cell spanning both numbers. Tokachi anokay and anutari occur together in such a cell; the table does not set them out as a simple singular/plural opposition Nakagawa (2024: 251).

Pronoun number and verb number need not correspond directly. Nakagawa gives Shizunai singular anani with a plural verb, and Horobetsu aokay with singular an=an. His Horobetsu account differs from the earlier Handbook comparison, which includes an-an-i and groups Horobetsu differently for singular-stem use Nakagawa (2024: 251–252); Nakagawa & Fukazawa (2022: §4.1) ‹contested›.

49.4 Emphasis, contrast, and particles

Independent pronouns are often unnecessary in a neutral statement whose participants are identified by person marking and context. Nakagawa describes an overt pronoun as unusual in a neutral narrative self-introduction, while showing its use for emphasis and contrast Nakagawa (2024: 255–256). His contrastive example assigns different amounts of food to a puppy and to eani “you”; no topic particle is required there.

An independent pronoun can also support a particle. Nakagawa contrasts kani anakne with the rejected *ku= anakne: the person prefix cannot stand alone as the host for topic anakne Nakagawa (2024: 256, example 323). This is a syntactic difference between a word and a bound marker, beyond their shared person reference.

49.5 Third-person expressions

Nakagawa includes third-person pronouns and cites their contrastive uses, including Chitose sinuma alongside the narrator's asinuma. His Horobetsu examples also contain anihi, beyond table 63's ani Nakagawa (2024: 256–257).

Satō acknowledges sinuma and okay in Nakagawa's dictionary, but omits third-person pronouns from his teaching paradigm because they are rare Satō (2008: 26). Refsing describes Shizunai reference through demonstrative expressions, including ikiap Refsing (1986: §§12.3.1–12.3.2). These treatments differ in classification and material; none establishes a universal absence of third-person pronouns.

The plural forms are particularly difficult to count because they coincide with existential oka(y). Nakagawa identifies a Saru example whose syntax and antecedent support a pronominal reading Nakagawa (2024: 257, example 327).

49.6 The boundary between group nouns and pronouns

Forms in utari can be pronominal, especially in Tokachi, but similar possessed group nouns occur elsewhere. Nakagawa's Chitose a=utari in the following question means the addressee's family:

By contrast, he gives Tokachi anutari with a fourth-person predicate, and another example where eciutari means “you” but the verb has third-person indexing. He regards the latter as intermediate between a group noun and a pronoun Nakagawa (2024: 253–254, examples 316–319) ‹contested›. Related nominal forms are discussed in Chapter 41 (Nominal Number and Utar).

49.7 Formation accounts and historical limits

Nakagawa distinguishes three formation patterns: forms built around an existential verb, forms containing utari, and sinuma-based forms. His existential account, developed through Tamura (1971), includes a nominal element historically related to hi Nakagawa (2024: 253–255) ‹speculative›. Kindaichi and Chiri provide an earlier derivational analysis and register-based tables Kindaichi & Chiri (1936: 52–53, §§76–79).

The older tables include esinuma. Nakagawa reports that an actual example has not been confirmed despite its appearance in earlier works Nakagawa (2024: 255). The status of that form differs from the attested pronouns above. Respectful choices likewise require contextual and dialect information; see Chapter 48 (Kinship, Address, and Possession).