Deictic Shift and the Origins of Japanese Demonstratives
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Date
2024-08
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Publisher
Ohio State University. Libraries
Abstract
In their highly original analysis, Frellesvig and Whitman (2008) propose a theory of deictic shift in Japanese, arguing that an earlier proximal demonstrative *i was replaced by *kɨ, which triggered a shift of *sɨ from distal to mesial reference. In so doing, they reconstruct a Proto-Japanese demonstrative set that closely resembles Korean. This paper shows that Frellesvig and Whitman’s reconstruction is contradicted by both data from Ryukyuan and by Quinn’s (1997) theory of kakari-musubi origins. Instead, I reconstruct an alternate system of Proto-Japanese demonstratives that rejects deictic shift in Japanese but nevertheless preserves convincing aspects of Frellesvig and Whitman’s theory. Finally, I show how it is possible to still find convincing correspondences between this Japanese demonstrative system and that of Korean. By identifying Japanese demonstratives so and ka as cognates with non-demonstrative grammatical markers in Korean, this paper suggests that some features of the Japanese phenomenon known as kakari-musubi may be Japano-Koreanic in origin, with some exploration of the implications that this has for the chronology of grammaticalizations in Japanese.
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Keywords
Deictic shift, demonstratives, Old Japanese, Middle Korean, Japano-Koreanic
Citation
Francis-Ratte, Alexander. "Deictic Shift and the Origins of Japanese Demonstratives." Buckeye East Asian Linguistics, vol. 8 (August 2024), p. 84-97.