A question is an utterance that serves as a request for information. Interrogative refers to the grammatical form used in questions. Yeh has several interrogative forms associated with different question types.
Polar questions, also known as "yes-no" or "binary" questions, contain a statement and ask the listener if the statement is true. Polar questions in Yeh are formed by adding the question particle su to the beginning of a statement.
kóvëh yé=më oi cut 3.AN=A 3.INAN "They cut it."
su kóvëh yé=më oi Q cut 3.AN=A 3.INAN "Did they cut it?"
Yeh polar questions tend to fall in pitch. Particular words in the question can be given focus by sharply rising in pitch on the stressed syllable of the word, followed by a sharp fall in pitch. Giving a word focus indicates what information the speaker is requesting and helps narrow the scope of responses to the question.
Su kovëh yemë oi? "Did they cut it?" (or did they leave it in tact?)
Su kovëh yemë oi? "Did they cut it?" (or was it someone else?)
Yeh lacks words for yes and no. Polar questions are generally answered with tai (indicating that the respondant agrees with the proposition put by the question), or ën (indicating disagreement). Unlike Yes and No, there is no ambiguity when polar questions are formed negatively.
Q: Didn't they cut it? A: Tai. (Correct, they did not.) A: Ën. (Wrong, they did.)
Coming soon.
Coming soon.
Content questions, also known as wh-questions, request specific information that is not known to the speaker. In Yeh, content questions are formed by using any of six interrogative words, each representing a different category of information being sought:
All of Yeh's interrogative words can behave either as a noun or an adjective, with the exception of ekím (which always behaves as a verb). When used adjectivally, they are placed on the right-most periphery of the noun phrase, with the exception of yóte, which only occurs in the initial position of the noun phrase, similar to a demonstrative.
In content questions, the interrogative phrase is shifted from it's normal position to the beginning of the sentence ("wh- movement"). This is demonstrated by the following example: the interrogative word is moved to a sentence-initial position, even when the word it replaces would normally appear elsewhere.
tswáhna ím=ë kentsói drink 2=A water "You drink water."
kéma tswáhna ím=ë what drink 2=A "What did you drink?"
While the example above involved moving a single word, the following examples demonstrate entire phrases (noun phrase, prepositional phrase, posessive phrase) being moved to the sentence-initial position when they contain an interrogative word ("pied piping").
otánga téka hwánge emrúna=më fish how.many eat bear=A "How many fish did the bear eat?"
kentsói-nem ba tswáhna ím=ë water-POSSD who drink 2-A "Who's water did you drink?""
kráv-o yóte priyíh tswáhna ye=më from-INAN which stream drink 3=A "Which stream do they drink from?"
This fronting of the interrogative-encompassing phrase is obligatory in most situations. There are, however, some configurations that prohibit such movement ("syntactic islands"). [More to come...]
Ba conveys the sense of "selection" when used adjectivally. It is used this way only when the noun being modified is considered animate. Likewise, it is considered improper to use yóte to modify an animate noun.
kosengë́h ba speaker who "Which speaker?"
The use of kéma as an adjective carries a meaning distinct from yóte. While yóte concerns making a selection from a range of choices, kéma does not presume the existence of any choices.
íkong kéma jah tree what fall "Which (if any) trees fell?"
A common adjectival use of kéma is to question another's presumption.
su bihnyói ím=ë oikáte Q find 2=A shelter ""Did you find the house?""
yóte oikáte which shelter "Which house? (I found several)"
oikáte kéma shelter what "What house? (I didn't see any!)"
In content questions, pitch usually rises sharply on the question word, and then gradually falls.