tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Dec 19 15:51:38 2007

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Re: jIHtaHbogh naDev vISovbe'

qa'vaj ([email protected]) 

On Dec 19, 2007 12:44 PM, David Trimboli <[email protected]> wrote:
> There isn't much semantic difference, but there IS a reason to make the
> distinction. If {pa'DajDaq} isn't the predicative, but a locative, then
> there is no predicative. The sentence would be *{pa'DajDaq, ghaH
> HoD'e'}. But *{ghaH HoD'e'} isn't a valid sentence so far as we know.
> And why isn't it *{pa'Daq, HoD ghaH}? Why not *{HoD'e', pa'Daq, ghaH}?
>

DaH! maj!

This is the crux: *{ghaH HoD'e'} not being accepted as a valid sentence.

I've always interpreted the distinction as being symmetric with swapping the
subject in English:

HoD ghaH
"He is the captain"

ghaH HoD'e'
"The captain is he"


But you comments indicate that the latter is unattested.  I certainly agree
with the reasoning that if:

<pronoun> [topic]'e'

Isn't a sentence, than neither is:

[headers] <pronoun> [topic]'e'

Under that assumption, I like your grammatical description.

Does that imply that <pronoun> is not a grammatical sentence,  because can't
the topic be placed in the header as well?



-- 
qa'vaj
qo'lIj DachenmoHtaH

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