Date of Award

8-1976

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Linguistics

First Advisor

John C. Crawford

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to explain the differences among syntactic combinations of verbs in Lakota Sioux (Teton Dakota). The thesis at first examines the literature on combinations of verbs in Lakota. Thereafter criteria for distinguishing morphological combinations of verbs (compounds) and syntactic combinations of verbs are set forth. The criteria are: potential for replacement, regularity of meaning, and potential for variation in inflection. The emphasis of the thesis is on the classification of syntactic combinations of verbs which it proposes.

The classification contains six classes, two of which are subdivided. The classification is based on the interaction of several criteria, viz. meaning, the identity of the verbs of the combination, inflection for subject and plural (-pi), and certain morphophonemic changes (the drop of final a or the change of final a or ą to e in the verb in first position). Differences in stress patterns and the occurrence of prefixes are noted.

Examples of occurrences of combinations of verbs were filed on cards, which numbered approximately 1150. These cards were filed by types of combinations of verbs.

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