Knowledge base · Part VIII — Pronouns, Demonstratives, Postpositions, and Numerals · this topic as a network
51. Interrogative, Indefinite, and Negative-Polarity Pro-forms
How are interrogative, indefinite, and negative-polarity pro-forms formed and distributed across dialects and contexts?
Overview
What semantic slots do interrogative pro-forms cover, and what parts of speech do they belong to?
When using hnta to ask 'what is it?', both hnta an? and hnta ne? can be used. (Nakagawa 2024: 412) To ask 'who is it?', hunna an? (literally 'who exists?') is normally used. (Nakagawa 2024: 413) When asking about an ongoing action observed right before one's eyes ('what are you doing?'), Ainu normally uses makanak / mak rather than hemanta. (Nakagawa 2024: 414) In Ainu interrogative pro-forms, there is a distinction in several cases between interrogative forms used in questions and indefinite forms used in indefinite expressions. (Satō 2008: 138)
The Saru inventory
What are the interrogative forms in the Saru dialect, and how are they classified by part of speech?
In the Shizunai dialect, the interrogative nekon means 'how / in what way'. (Refsing 1986: 101) The pro-form henpak 'how many' functions as both an interrogative and an indefinite. (Satō 2008: 137) The temporal interrogative is henpara 'when', whereas the indefinite pro-form is ney (or henpara). (Satō 2008: 137) The manner interrogative is makanak 'how', whereas the indefinite pro-form is néun. (Satō 2008: 137) The interrogative word nen means 'who', while nep means 'what'. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The interrogative stem ne- forms locative interrogatives nei-ta 'where (at)' and nei-un (or né-un) 'whither'. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The interrogative nekona (or nekon) means 'how'. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The interrogatives ine and its derivative ine-an (contracted to inan) mean 'which'. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The interrogative inki 'which' is used only in elevated or poetic language. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) In the Saru dialect, hemanta, hnta, and hinta 'what', hunna 'who', and hunak and hinak 'where' are categorized as nouns. (Nakagawa 2024: 411) In the Saru dialect, mak and makanak 'how' and hempara 'when' are categorized as adverbs. (Nakagawa 2024: 411) In the Saru dialect, hempak 'how many' and inan / hinaan 'which' are categorized as adnominals. (Nakagawa 2024: 411) In the Saru dialect, hnta occurs as a contracted form of hemanta, in which hn- has no vowel and n behaves as a syllabic consonant. (Nakagawa 2024: 412) In the Saru dialect, the interrogative adverb makanak 'how' is also frequently used in the form mak. (Nakagawa 2024: 414) The interrogatives hinaan and inan 'which, which of' function as adnominal demonstratives/words. (Nakagawa 2024: 415) Within the Saru dialect, hinaan is used in the upstream area (Penakori), whereas inan is used in Nibutani and downstream areas. (Nakagawa 2024: 415) In Saru dialect, inkian can also be used in verse/oral literature. (Nakagawa 2024: 419) In the Saru-Chitose group, the indefinite nouns nep 'something' and nen 'somebody' contrast with the interrogatives hemanta 'what' and hunna 'who'. (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) The interrogative nep means 'what'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative nen means 'who'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative neyta means 'where'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative hempara means 'when'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative hempak means 'how many'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative nepkus(ta) means 'why'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative enun means 'to where'. (Refsing 1986: 102) The interrogative onun means 'from where'. (Refsing 1986: 102) In the Saru dialect, the interrogative pronoun neoro means 'what place'. (reported in Refsing 1986) The question interrogative for 'who' is hunna, while the corresponding indefinite interrogative is nen (hunna is also used). (Satō 2008: 137) The question interrogative for 'what' is hemanta, while the corresponding indefinite interrogative is nep. (Satō 2008: 137) The question interrogative for 'where' is hunak, while the corresponding indefinite interrogative is ney or ne. (Satō 2008: 137) The interrogative for 'which' is inan in both interrogative and indefinite uses. (Satō 2008: 137)
Dialect geography: the h-series and n-series
How do interrogative forms vary geographically across Hokkaido dialects?
The interrogative phrase for 'where (at)' is hunak ta or hinak ta in Saru and Chitose, ney ta (nei ta) in other Hokkaido dialects, and nah ta (nahta) in Sakhalin Ainu. (Nakagawa 2024: 108, Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.2) In the Shizunai dialect, interrogatives derived from the roots hem- and hun- are limited strictly to hempara 'when' and hempak 'how many'. (Refsing 1986: 101) Dialects in southeastern Hokkaido possess the h-stem interrogatives hemanta 'what', hunna 'who', and hunak 'where'. (reported in Refsing 1986: 101) In the Shizunai dialect, the forms neun 'what kind of' and hempak 'how many' function as interrogative adnouns. (Refsing 1986: 155) In the Shizunai dialect, onunka functions as an indefinite adnoun meaning 'from somewhere'. (Refsing 1986: 155) Question words exhibit dialectal variation in Ainu, differing partly even between Saru and Chitose. (Bugaeva 2012: 500–501) In Sakhalin dialects, the interrogatives are hemata 'what' and naata 'who', and the indefinites are neeranpe (ka) 'something' and naata (ka) 'somebody'. (Bugaeva 2022: 20.6) A group of interrogatives is built on the roots hem, hum, and hun, including hempar 'when', hempak 'how much/many', hemanta and hem 'what', humna 'who', and hunak 'where'. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) A group of interrogatives is built on the root mak, including makan 'what kind of', makanak 'how / what kind of', and makanak-an 'what kind of'. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The forms kanak and kanakan 'what kind of' are formed by apheresis from makanak. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The forms enon 'whither' and onon 'whence' are used exclusively in northern dialects. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) In Saru, Chitose, and Mukawa, the hem- series such as hemanta 'what?' is mainly used for interrogatives, whereas in other regions the ne- series such as nep 'what?' is used. (Nakagawa 2024: 110) From eastern Hidaka to Tokachi, special interrogatives enon 'where to' and onon 'where from' are used, whereas most dialects express these meanings with 'where' plus a case particle. (Nakagawa 2024) To express 'of where' (adnominally specifying origin), the form ney un is used rather than hunak. (Nakagawa 2024: 413) The interrogative 'what' is expressed by the h-stem form hemanta in Saru, Chitose, and Mukawa, whereas all other regions use the n-stem form nep. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) In Horobetsu dialect, hemanta also occurs, but it is basically used in the indefinite pro-form function. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) In Tokachi dialect, interrogative clauses meaning 'what is it?' are formed with nep tap an a in addition to nep ne and nep ne ya. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) In Ishikari dialect, the interrogative expression nepe a? (derived from nep he a?) also occurs. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) In Chitose dialect, as in Saru dialect, hemanta is also used to mean 'strange thing' or 'monster', and in expressions such as kor hemanta! as a vituperative insult. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) The interrogative 'why' is expressed by h-stem forms such as hemanta kusu in Saru and Chitose, whereas all other regions use n-stem forms nep kusu or ne kusu. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) A few examples of hamanta kusu occur in Horobetsu dialect. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) The interrogative 'who' is expressed by the h-stem form hunna in Saru, Chitose, and Mukawa, whereas all other regions use the n-stem form nen. (Nakagawa 2024: 417) For 'where (locative)', h-stem areas use hunak or hinak + ta, whereas other areas basically use ney ta. (Nakagawa 2024: 417) For 'whither (allative)', h-stem areas use the case postposition un giving hunak un or hinak un; Horobetsu uses ney un; Asahikawa uses ney ne; Bihoro contracts this to nene; and Eastern Hidaka and Tokachi use the special interrogative enon instead of *ney en. (Nakagawa 2024: 417) In regions that use enon for 'whither', 'where from' is expressed as onon, whereas in other regions it is formed with the interrogative 'where' plus the case postposition wa. (Nakagawa 2024: 418) Even h-stem dialects such as Saru and Chitose exceptionally use the form ney un for 'of where / belonging to where'. (Nakagawa 2024: 418) For 'how / in what way', h-stem areas use makanak (with mak also used in Saru and makak seemingly occurring in Mukawa), whereas a wide area including Horobetsu, Eastern Hidaka, Tokachi, Ishikari, and eastern Hokkaido uses nekon, alongside nekona in parts of Iburi and Eastern Hokkaido. (Nakagawa 2024: 418) The interrogative 'when' is nempara in Tokachi and Bihoro, but hempara in other regions, likely reflecting an original hempara undergoing h- > n- under the influence of other interrogatives in some n-stem regions. (proposed in Nakagawa 2024: 419) The interrogative 'how many' is nempak in Tokachi, Bihoro, and Kushiro, whereas it is hempak in other regions. (Nakagawa 2024: 419) For the interrogative 'which', western Hokkaido mainly uses inan (with hinaan in upper Saru), eastern Hokkaido mainly uses inkian, and Asahikawa uses nean. (Nakagawa 2024: 419) The interrogative phrase meaning 'where (to-where)' is hunak un or hinak un in Saru and Chitose, ney un or nei un in western dialects, enon in Samani, Obihiro, Shizunai, and Urakawa, and ney ne or nei ne in the rest of Hokkaido and in Sakhalin. (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.2) In Western Hokkaido dialects, 'how many' is hempak(-pe) and 'when' is hempara, whereas in Eastern Hokkaido dialects they are nempak(-pe) and nempara. (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) In Western Hokkaido dialects, 'which' is inan... or inan(-pe/-ike), whereas in Eastern Hokkaido dialects it is inkian/inkean... or nean... (and their nominalized forms). (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) In the majority of Hokkaido Ainu dialects outside the Saru-Chitose group, interrogative and indefinite pronouns have the same form, with the indefinite meaning optionally marked by ka(y) 'also' (e.g. nep ka(y)). (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) In Sakhalin Ainu, the interrogative pronoun 'what' takes the form hemata. (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) The Shizunai dialect lacks a corresponding interrogative pronoun *neorke. (Refsing 1986) In the Obihiro dialect, the interrogative pronoun neor means 'what place'. (reported in Refsing 1986)
Morphology of the wh-roots
What roots and internal structure underlie the interrogative forms?
In the Shizunai dialect, one set of interrogatives is derived from the root ne-, while another set is derived from hem- and hun-. (Refsing 1986: 101) A group of interrogative pro-forms is formed with the root ne, such as ne-kotan-un-pe and ne-moshir-un-pe. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) hemanta is also used as a noun meaning 'something unknown' or 'monster / goblin'. (Nakagawa 2024: 412) In the nominal sense of 'monster / goblin', the contracted form hnta is not used. (Nakagawa 2024: 412) hempak also serves as a root in derived forms such as hempakpe 'how many (things)' and hempakiw 'how many people'. (Nakagawa 2024: 414) Ainu interrogatives are primarily built on two stems: h-stems (such as hem-, hun-, hin-) and n-stems (such as nep-, nen-), alongside regionally restricted roots like mak-. (Nakagawa 2024: 416) The interrogative base ney is considered to derive from ne plus hi 'time, place'. (proposed in Nakagawa 2024: 417) In dialects where 'whither' is hunak un but 'of where' is ney un, the particle un in the former is a case postposition whereas in the latter it is the bivalent verb un 'belong to'. (proposed in Nakagawa 2024: 418) The final syllable ta in Saru-Chitose hemanta 'what' is a fossilized suffix originating from the focus adverbial particle ta, allowing a redundant structure with the focus particle added (such as hemanta ta? 'what?'). (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) The majority of indefinite pronouns are formed by adding the restrictive postposition ka to an interrogative pronoun. (Refsing 1986: 102) In the Shizunai dialect, the indefinite pronoun nenka means 'somebody', 'anybody', or 'nobody'. (Refsing 1986) In the Shizunai dialect, neytaka means 'somewhere'. (Refsing 1986) In the Shizunai dialect, neorkeka means 'somewhere (inside)' and is similar in meaning to neytaka. (Refsing 1986)
Indefinite pro-forms and the particle =ka
How are indefinite pro-forms formed from interrogatives, and how do they differ across dialects?
In the Shizunai dialect, the reduplicated indefinite pro-form nennen expresses emphatic indefiniteness or negative polarity ('whoever' or 'nobody whatsoever'). (Refsing 1986: 104) In the Shizunai dialect, the reduplicated form onunonun functions as an indefinite meaning 'from various/different places'. (Refsing 1986: 104, 109) The particle ka originally means 'also/even', and when attached to an interrogative, it generally makes its meaning indefinite. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The particle ka attaches to interrogative and negative words to form indefinite expressions or emphasize negation. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The combination nep is usually used as an indefinite pronoun meaning 'what / something' and is not used as a demonstrative pronoun. (Nakagawa 2024: 287) When combined with indefinite pronouns like nep 'what' or nen 'who', ka and kay yield indefinite expressions meaning 'something' or 'someone'. (Nakagawa 2024: 323) When used in a negative context, indefinite pro-forms combined with ka express that there is nothing further to add, translating as 'nothing' or 'no one'. (Nakagawa 2024: 323) Indefinite pro-forms refer to unspecified entities, and while they often share the same forms as interrogatives, some dialects distinguish indefinite pro-forms from interrogatives. (Nakagawa 2024: 419) Regions that use h-stem interrogatives for 'what', 'who', and 'where' use n-stem forms for the corresponding indefinite pro-forms, just as in other dialects. (Nakagawa 2024: 420) Indefinite pro-forms are frequently followed by adverbial particles such as ka(y) 'also/even', hene 'also/even', ne yakka 'even if it is', or equivalent expressions. (Nakagawa 2024: 420) In dialects such as Saru, h-stem interrogatives can sometimes also be used as indefinite pro-forms. (Nakagawa 2024: 420) In Horobetsu dialect, while the interrogative 'what' is basically nep, hemanta is sometimes used as an indefinite pro-form. (Nakagawa 2024: 420) In all dialects, the interrogative and indefinite words for 'how many' and 'which' have the same form. (Nakagawa 2024: 421) hempak is often used in the form inehempak with the meaning 'many, a great number of'. (Nakagawa 2024: 421) hinaoka is considered the plural form of hinaan, and is used as an indefinite pronoun in the phrase hinaoka hike 'whichever / both of the two side(s)'. (proposed in Nakagawa 2024: 421) The restrictive postposition ka corresponds in meaning and function to Japanese mo. (Refsing 1986: 104) Ainu uses the same forms of indefinite pronouns in both declarative and negative sentences, so that nenka means 'somebody' with an affirmative predicate and 'nobody' with a negated predicate. (Refsing 1986: 104) The concept 'everybody' is expressed not with an interrogative plus ka, but with different morphemes such as aynu opitta 'all the people'. (Refsing 1986: 104) A few indefinite pronouns are formed by reduplicating the interrogative pronoun as an extra form alongside the form constructed with -ka. (Refsing 1986: 104) The indefinite pronoun nekonka means 'somehow'. (Refsing 1986: 104) The indefinite pronoun nepka means 'something', 'anything', or 'nothing'. (Refsing 1986: 104) The expression nep neyakka means 'anything at all' and is composed of nep 'what', the copula ne, and the concessive conjunctionalizer yakka. (Refsing 1986: 104) The indefinite form enunka means 'to somewhere'. (Refsing 1986: 109) The indefinite form onunka means 'from somewhere'. (Refsing 1986: 109) When the interrogative ney ta 'where' is accompanied by hene 'even/also', it means 'anytime/always'. (Satō 2008: 119) The expression ney ta ne yakka means 'anywhere'. (Satō 2008: 119) The interrogative pronoun hunna 'who' can also be used in an indefinite sense meaning 'someone'. (Satō 2008: 241) 'Someone' can also be expressed as hunna ka with the indefinite particle ka, or as nen ka. (Satō 2008: 241) hunak wa 'from where' can also be used in the indefinite sense 'from somewhere'. (Satō 2008: 353)
Syntactic position and embedding
Where do wh-words appear in a clause, and how does embedding affect their position?
Interrogative pro-forms in content questions remain in situ, occupying the position of corresponding non-question constituents. (Bugaeva 2012: 496–497) Interrogative pronouns generally appear at the beginning of the sentence. (Kindaichi & Chiri 1936) The indefinite pro-form nen behaves syntactically as a third-person common noun, triggering third-person verb agreement. (Nakagawa 2024: 182) Interrogative pro-forms do not constitute a single part of speech, but comprise nouns, adverbs, and adnominals. (Nakagawa 2024: 411) The question 'what is it?' is expressed as hemanta an? rather than *hemanta ne?. (Nakagawa 2024: 412) The phrase hemanta ne functions in the meaning of 'why'. (Nakagawa 2024: 412) hunak 'where' is syntactically treated as a spatial noun and directly takes case postpositions such as ta, un, and wa. (Nakagawa 2024: 413) The interrogative hempak 'how many' is an adnominal modifier and is normally followed by a noun. (Nakagawa 2024: 414) hunna perka cannot mean 'her face is pretty' and can only be interpreted as 'who is pretty?'. (doubted in Nakagawa 2024: 541) In most Hokkaido dialects, the interrogative reading of a pro-form can be marked by the focus particle ta immediately following it. (Nakagawa & Fukazawa 2022: 8.5) In sentences containing an interrogative pronoun, the sentence-final interrogative suffix ya is optional. (Refsing 1986: 228) The interrogative hemanta is typically nominal ('what') but also has an adnominal use ('what kind of'). (Satō 2008: 294) Interrogative pronouns appear sentence-initially due to subject pronoun omission rather than syntactic fronting, as Ainu is wh-in-situ. (Shibatani 1990)