Françoise Rose (DDL)
"The functions of Mojeño Trinitario classifiers in discourse
Mojeño Trinitario has a set of classifiers that shows a wide distribution. They are found on numerals, nouns, adjectives and verbs, but are obligatory on numerals only. They can be used in nominal derivation, when found on nominal or verbal roots. Otherwise, beside their use on numeral and their lexical occurrences, they are optional. This talk will focus on the functions they then serve in discourse. For instance, classifiers in the verb refer to S, O or a locative participant and foreground the participant when it is expressed as a noun phrase. They are then used to introduce a new topic (that was given ot not). In absence of an overt noun phrase, the classifiers instead background the participant. They are then used to introduce a new non-topical participants or to mention participants that are given ('anaphoric use').