Paper short abstract:

Tiv(oid), Noun class, Bantoid, semantics, grammaticlization

Paper long abstract:

Noun class and concordial markers consisting of a homorganic nasal (N) plus a

consonant (C) and vowel (V), present an analytical problem and have repercussions for the Tiv(oid) noun class system. The NCV forms pose as an internal reconstruction problem in Tiv because they are unevenly distributed: while the overwhelming majority of Tiv noun classes have at least one concord target bearing the NCV forms, only one class has NCV noun prefixes; and three classes have no trace of these forms on member nouns and concord targets (Angitso, 2020). From a comparative Tivoid perspective, the N is absent in many Tivoids like Iceve-Maci (Cox, 2013), Iyive (Foster, 2012), and Ugare (Cassetta and Cassetta, 1994; personal fieldnotes), which calls for an explanation since its absence would rather be expected in Tiv. Synchronically, this presentation will discuss the lexico-semantic and grammatical properties of these forms, specifically, pointing out their distribution and how certain phenomena including identification and existentiality depend on them. Diachronically, the presentation will outline a historical model of amalgamation and grammaticalization of an entire construction involving a non-concordial element into the structure of inherited noun class and concordial forms.