User:LhikJovan/Mermaid construction

A mermaid construction (人魚構文, ningyo kōbun) is a type of grammatical construction found among several of the world's language families, includingJaponic, Ainuic, Korean, Sino-Tibetan, Austronesian, Kra-Dai Mongolic, Dravidian, Yukaghir, Indo-Aryan, Chukotko-Kamchatkan, Tungusic, and Cushitic.^[1] The description "mermaid" refers to two-halved nature: one part of the sentence resembles a verbal sentence, while the other part resembles a copular sentence.

Mermaid constructions appear to be mostly localized around East, Southeast, and South Asia. However, they are by no means limited to this area, as evidenced by their presence in the Yukaghir languages of Siberia and Sidaama language of Ethiopia.

Definition[edit]

As defined by Tsunoda (2013), a prototypical mermaid construction is defined by several key criteria:

It has a structure consisting of three "slots": clause + noun + copula, in that order.
The noun is an independent noun.
The clause's subject and the noun are not coreferential.
The clause can occur as an independent sentence.
The clause is not the subject of the sentence noun + copula.

These prototypical criteria are based on the mermaid construction as found in Japanese, the first language for which the construction was studied in-depth. Many languages' mermaid constructions differ somewhat from this prototype, including some examples in Japanese, and those that deviate significantly are sometimes called "quasi-mermaid constructions." Some deviations include:

Use of verbs other than a copula, or of a zero copula, in the copula slot. (Variation in #1)
Use of a different word order than clause + noun + copula. (Variation in #1)
Use of a clitic, noun-derived affix, or zero for the noun slot. (Variation in #2)
Use of nominalized, attributive, or other non-finite forms for the verb of the clause. (Variation in #4)

Individual mermaid constructions are usually differentiated from each other by the morpheme that is used in the noun slot.

Examples[edit]

In each of the example sentences in the following sections, the noun will be marked in bold text, and the clause in red.

Japonic languages[edit]

Mermaid constructions are found in abundance among Japonic languages in general.

Japanese[edit]

Mermaid constructions were first studied in-depth as Japanese constructions. Tasaku et al. (2013) identified more than 106 nouns that can be used in prototypical mermaid constructions in Modern Standard Japanese, including:

Grammaticalized Noun	Etymological Meaning	Function	Example
予定 yotei	plan	planning	* 花子は Hanako=wa Hanako=TOP 名古屋に Nagoya=ni Nagoya=DAT/LOC 行く ik-u go-NPST 予定だ。 yotei=da plan=COP.NPST 花子は名古屋に行く予定だ。 Hanako=wa Nagoya=ni ik-u yotei=da Hanako=TOP Nagoya=DAT/LOC go-NPST plan=COP.NPST "Hanako plans to go to Nagoya."
所 tokoro	place, location	aspectual, temporal, formal	* 花子は Hanako=wa Hanako=TOP 本を hon=o book=ACC 読んで yon-de read-GER いる i-ru be-NPST ところだ。 tokoro=da place=COP.NPST 花子は本を読んでいるところだ。 Hanako=wa hon=o yon-de i-ru tokoro=da Hanako=TOP book=ACC read-GER be-NPST place=COP.NPST "Hanako is reading a book."
模様 moyō	appearance, figure, model	seeming, appearing	* 外では soto=de=wa outside=LOC/INS=TOP 雨が ame=ga rain=NOM 降って fut-te fall-GER いる i-ru be-NPST 模様だ。 moyō=da appearance=COP.NPST 外では雨が降っている模様だ。 soto=de=wa ame=ga fut-te i-ru moyō=da outside=LOC/INS=TOP rain=NOM fall-GER be-NPST appearance=COP.NPST "It appears/seems to be raining outside."
表情 hyōjō	facial expression	expression, appearance	* 花子は Hanako=wa Hanako=TOP いつも itsumo always 明るい akaru-i cheerful-NPST 表情だ。 hyōjō=da expression=COP.NPST 花子はいつも明るい表情だ。 Hanako=wa itsumo akaru-i hyōjō=da Hanako=TOP always cheerful-NPST expression=COP.NPST "Hanako always looks cheerful."
積り tsumori	estimation	intention, decision, evaluation	* 花子は Hanako=wa Hanako=TOP 本を hon=o book=ACC 書く kak-u write-NPST つもりだ。 tsumori=da intention=COP.NPST 花子は本を書くつもりだ。 Hanako=wa hon=o kak-u tsumori=da Hanako=TOP book=ACC write-NPST intention=COP.NPST "Hanako intends to write a book." 花子は Hanako=wa Hanako=TOP 天才で tensai=de genius=COP.GER ある ar-u be-NPST つもりだ。 tsumori=da evaluation=COP.NPST 花子は天才であるつもりだ。 Hanako=wa tensai=de ar-u tsumori=da Hanako=TOP genius=COP.GER be-NPST evaluation=COP.NPST "Hanako considers herself to be a genius."
筈 hazu	nock	expectation, schedule, realization	* 花子は Hanako=wa Hanako=TOP 明日 ashita tomorrow 名古屋へ Nagoya=e Nagoya=ALL 行く ik-u go-NPST はずだ。 hazu=da expectation=COP.NPST 花子は明日名古屋へ行くはずだ。 Hanako=wa ashita Nagoya=e ik-u hazu=da Hanako=TOP tomorrow Nagoya=ALL go-NPST expectation=COP.NPST "Hanako is expected to go to Nagoya tomorrow."
の no	(nominalizer & complementizer)	cause, reason, etc.	* 試験が shiken=ga examination=NOM ある ar-u be-NPST のだ。 =no=da =no=COP.NPST 試験があるのだ。 shiken=ga ar-u =no=da examination=NOM be-NPST =no=COP.NPST "This is because there will be an examination."

The closely related Hachijō language also contains mermaid constructions with nouns such as toko "place," moN "thing," hazu "expectation," and go͡oN "seeming."

Old and Middle Japanese[edit]

Mermaid constructions are attested throughout the entire history of Japanese, the earliest being found in Old Japanese in the Man'yōshū, where the phrase mono₂ so₂ "a person, a thing" is used (with a zero copula) to express inevitability, obligation, and related meanings:

(1)

久礼奈為波／宇都呂布母能曾／都流波美能／奈礼爾之伎奴爾／奈保之可米夜母
kurenawi pa / uturo₂pu mo₂no₂ so₂ // turupami₁ no₂ / narenisi ki₁nu ni / napo sikame₂ ya mo₂

kurenawi=pa

carthamin=TOP

uturo₂p-u

fade.away-ADN

mono=so₂

thing=FOC

//

turupami₁=no₂

acorn.color=GEN

nare-n-i₍₁₎-si

get.used.to-PFV-INF-PST.ADN

ki₁nu=ni

clothes=DAT

napo

further

sik-am-e₂

reach-TENT-EXCL

ya

FOC

mo₂

TOP

"Red (is flashy, but) is destined to fade. There is no match for a brown, well-used kimono."
(Man'yōshū Book 18, Poem 4109)

(2)

古衣／打棄人者／秋風之／立來時爾／物念物其
purukoromo ／ utituru pito pa ／ akikaze no ／ tatikuru toki ni ／ monomopu mono so₂.

puru-ko₂ro₂mo₂

old-clothes

utit-uru

discard-ADN

pi₁to₂=pa

person=TOP

aki₁-kaze=no₂

autumn-wind=GEN

tat-i₍₁₎-k-uru

stand-INF-come-ADN

to₂ki₁=ni

time=DAT

mo₂no₂-(o)mo₂p-u

thing-think-ADN

mo₂no₂=so₂

thing=FOC

"Someone who throws away old clothes is bound to think about things when the autumn wind comes."
Poetic meaning: "The kind of man who deserts his wife who he has been married to for a long time is bound to regret it when his days are over."
(Man'yōshū Book 11, Poem 2626)

This construction continued to be used in Early Middle Japanese in the form ものぞ mono zo. Early Middle Japanese also attests many more prototypical mermaid constructions:

(3)

ゆふやみにはものをおもはぬけしきなり
（夕闇には、物を想はぬ氣色なり。）

yufuyami=ni=fa

dusk=DAT=TOP

mono=wo

thing=ACC

omof-an-u

consider-NEG-ADN

kesiki=nar-i

sign=COP-CONCL

"In the dusk, (Princess Kaguya) seems to not be worried about anything."
(Taketori Monogatari)

Unlike Modern Japanese, Old and Middle Japanese distinguished attributive and sentence-concluding forms of verbs, meaning that the clause was not necessarily able to appear as an independent sentence.

Miyako[edit]

The Irabu dialect of the Miyako language has mermaid constructions quite similar to Japanese. However, as Irabu Miyako allows for a zero copula, the copula slot is often empty. Some example nouns for mermaid constructions in Irabu are:

Grammaticalized Noun	Etymological Meaning	Function	Example
kutu	fact	deontic modal, anticipated future	* Vvaa zzair kutu. vva=a 2SG=TOP z-zai-r scold-PASS-ADN.NPST kutu be.supposed.to vva=a z-zai-r kutu 2SG=TOP scold-PASS-ADN.NPST be.supposed.to "You are supposed to be scolded." Uriubaa mainic as kutudooi. uri-u-baa that=ACC=TOP mainic everyday as do.ADN.NPST kutu=dooi should=EMPH uri-u-baa mainic as kutu=dooi that=ACC=TOP everyday do.ADN.NPST should=EMPH "(You) should do that everyday."
munu	thing	causal	* Jamatukara hikookisii cciur munu. jamatu=kara mainland=ABL hikooki=sii airplane=INS c-ci-u-r come-THM-PROG-ADN.NPST munu because jamatu=kara hikooki=sii c-ci-u-r munu mainland=ABL airplane=INS come-THM-PROG-ADN.NPST because "because (he) came from mainland Japan by airplane"
-paz	nock	conjecture	* Karia pzsarakara ttarpaz. kari=a 3SG=TOP pzsara=kara Hirara=ABL t-tar=paz come-ADN.PST=maybe kari=a pzsara=kara t-tar=paz 3SG=TOP Hirara=ABL come-ADN.PST=maybe "He may have come from Hirara."
-suu ~ -ruu	person, thing	evidential?	* Pztunu jaanu suijagaman ikii mmna parrii ukiarruu. pztu=nu person=GEN jaa=nu house=GEN suija-gama=n balcony-DIM=DAT ik-i-i go-THM-MED mmna all par-ri-i leave-THM-MED uk-i-ar=ruu put-THM-RSL.ADN.NPST=it.seems pztu=nu jaa=nu suija-gama=n ik-i-i mmna par-ri-i uk-i-ar=ruu person=GEN house=GEN balcony-DIM=DAT go-THM-MED all leave-THM-MED put-THM-RSL.ADN.NPST=it.seems "It seemed that (they) had gone to the balcony of someone's house, and had all entered (under it)."

Sino-Tibetan languages[edit]

In addition to in the varieties described below, mermaid constructions have been found in the Lolo-Burmese Lahu language, the Sal Jingpho language, and in Central Tibetan.

Amdo Tibetan[edit]

Amdo Tibetan is one of the four main spoken Tibetic languages within the Sino-Tibetan language family. Amdo Tibetan has six independent nouns that can be used in mermaid constructions:

Grammaticalized Noun	Etymological Meaning	Function	Example
ntɕʰarʑə	plan	intention	* ཨ་པ་ གིས arɟa=kə father=ERG ནོར nor yak བཙོངས ptsoŋ-ɟu sell.IPF-NMLZ.GEN འཆར་གཞི་ ntɕʰarʑə plan རེད rɛ COPB {ཨ་པ་ གིས} ནོར བཙོངས འཆར་གཞི་ རེད arɟa=kə nor ptsoŋ-ɟu ntɕʰarʑə rɛ father=ERG yak sell.IPF-NMLZ.GEN plan COPB "(My) father plans to sell yaks."
le	karma	destiny	* ཁུར་གེ་ kʰərgɛ 3SG མཐའ་མ་ mtʰama=a last=DAT ཕམ་ཁ་ pʰamkʰa defeat ཉོ་རྒྱུ་ ȵo-ɟu buy.IPF-NMLZ.GEN ལས le karma རེད rɛ COPB ཁུར་གེ་ མཐའ་མ་ ཕམ་ཁ་ ཉོ་རྒྱུ་ ལས རེད kʰərgɛ mtʰama=a pʰamkʰa ȵo-ɟu le rɛ 3SG last=DAT defeat buy.IPF-NMLZ.GEN karma COPB "He/she was destined to suffer a defeat after all."
bkopa	way, manner	decision, planning, future	* ང་ ŋa 1SG ཁེར་ kʰɛrndək being.single X X jɛc-cu do.IPF-NMLZ.GEN X bkopa way X jən COPA ང་ ཁེར་ {X X} X X ŋa kʰɛrndək jɛc-cu bkopa jən 1SG being.single do.IPF-NMLZ.GEN way COPA "It have decided to remain single."
tsʰəkka	appearance	counterfactual evidential	* ཁུར་རྒེ་ kʰərgɛ 3SG X hpo anger ལང་ X ནོའི laŋ=go=nu rise.up=AUX=NMLZ.GEN ཚུགས་ཀ་ tsʰəkka appearance རེད rɛ COPB ཁུར་རྒེ་ X {ལང་ X ནོའི} ཚུགས་ཀ་ རེད kʰərgɛ hpo laŋ=go=nu tsʰəkka rɛ 3SG anger rise.up=AUX=NMLZ.GEN appearance COPB "He looks angry (but actually he is not angry)."
ndʑoŋwa	character, nature	by nature, habitual aspect	* ཁུར་རྒེ་ kʰərgɛ 3SG དྲང་མོ་ ʈaŋmo honest ཡིན་ནོའི་ jən=nu COPA=NMLZ.GEN X ndʑoŋwa nature རེད rɛ COPB ཁུར་རྒེ་ དྲང་མོ་ ཡིན་ནོའི་ X རེད kʰərgɛ ʈaŋmo jən=nu ndʑoŋwa rɛ 3SG honest COPA=NMLZ.GEN nature COPB "He is honest by nature."
xwe	habit, custom	habitual aspect, deontic modality	* ཁུར་རྒེ་ kʰərgɛ 3SG ལས་ཀ་ lehka work མ་ལས་ནོའི mə-le=nu NEG-do=NMLZ.GEN དཔེ? xwe habit རེད rɛ COPB ཁུར་རྒེ་ ལས་ཀ་ མ་ལས་ནོའི དཔེ? རེད kʰərgɛ lehka mə-le=nu xwe rɛ 3SG work NEG-do=NMLZ.GEN habit COPB "It is his habit not to work." ཡི་ཀེ་ jəkɛ everyone སློབ་གྲྭར ɬopʈa=a school=DAT འགྱོ་ nɟo go.IPF དགོས་ནོའི rgo=nu need=NMLZ.GEN དཔེ? xwe custom རེད rɛ COPB ཡི་ཀེ་ སློབ་གྲྭར འགྱོ་ དགོས་ནོའི དཔེ? རེད jəkɛ ɬopʈa=a nɟo rgo=nu xwe rɛ everyone school=DAT go.IPF need=NMLZ.GEN custom COPB "Everyone needs to go to school (due to the custom of society)."

In addition to these six nouns, Amdo Tibetan also has several clitics and affixes that can be used in the noun slot, such as =kʰawo "mood, appearance" and =ɟə ~ =cə "thing to do, value of doing."

nDrapa[edit]

nDrapa or Zhaba is a Qiangic language within the Sino-Tibetan language family. nDrapa has four morphemes that can appear in the noun slot of its mermaid constructions:

ndei³ ~ =ndei: Expresses a plan or intention.

(1)

original

somuȵi³

tomorrow

no¹

2SG

tɕhei³

what

mɵ=ndei³

make=intention

wa³

COP_1‍

"What do you intend to do tomorrow?"

-zɨ: Expresses an expectation.

(2)

original

anʌ³

today

ȵjɛ=ʈo¹

1PL=place

lɛmɛ³

monk

vo-zɨ³

come-prospect

rɛ³

COP_4‍

"A monk is scheduled to come to our home today."

nkhei¹ ~ =nkhei: Expresses evidentiality such as seeming or appearance.

(3)

original

ŋoro¹

3SG

kaoʈoŋ¹

high.school

l̥o=ɕi²

learn=wish

ɦdi=ʈɨ³

think=IPFV

nkhei¹

appearance

rɛ³

COP_4‍

"He seems to want to go to high school."

mʌlo³: Expresses readiness to perform an action.

(4)

original

ŋoro¹

3SG

ȵjɛ=ʈo¹

1PL=place

kɨ-m̥i-a¹

INW-sleep-RT

mʌlo³

readiness

ʈɛ³

COP_3‍

"He is ready to sleep in our house."

Newar[edit]

Newar or Nepāl Bhāṣā is a Newaric language within the Sino-Tibetan language family. In the Kathmandu–Patan dialect of Newar, there are two morphemes that can appear in the noun slot of its mermaid constructions:

=gu bhāgya: Expresses that an action was destined, lucky, or otherwise caused by fate. This construction uses the noun bhāgya "fate, destiny, lot, luck," borrowed from Sanskrit भाग्य bhāgya.

(1)

वएक:या

waekaː=yā

3.HON=GEN

ज्यलए

jyal=ae

jail=LOC

सि:

siː

die-INF

मा:गु

māː=gu

need.NFND=NMLZ

भाग्य

bhāgya

fate

जुय

juy-a

COP-CM

च्वन।

cwan-a.

CONT-NFPD

"That person was destined to die in the jail."

inanimate nominalizer =gu: Expresses a variety of meanings such as assertion, explanation, and elaboration.

(2)

राम्

rām

Ram

दाक्तर्

dāktar

doctor

जु:गु

juː=gu

COP.NFND=NMLZ

ख:।

khaː

COP.NFND

"(It is the case that) Ram has become a doctor."

(3)

चानए

cān=ae

night=LOC

वा

wā

rain

व:गु

waː=gu

come.NFND=NMLZ

खए

kha-e

COP-INF

मा:।

māː

should.NFND

"It must have rained during the night."

Burmese[edit]

Burmese is a Lolo-Burmese language within the Sino-Tibetan language family. Burmese has many morphemes that can appear in the noun slot of its mermaid constructions; among them are:

pòuɴ "shape": Expresses evidentiality such as seeming or appearance.

(1)

X

t̪ù

3SG

X

dì

this

X

híɴ=ɡò

curry=KO

X

sá=dɛ̂

eat=AN

X

pòuɴ(=bɛ́)

shape(=EMPH)

"It seems that he ate this curry."

hàɴ "appearance": Expresses evidentiality such as seeming or appearance.

(2)

X

t̪ù

3SG

X

dì

this

X

híɴ=ɡò

curry=KO

X

sá=dɛ̂

eat=AN

X

hàɴ(=bɛ́)

appearance(=EMPH)

"It seems that he ate this curry."

d̪ăbɔ́ "nature": Expresses an assertion or a statement of fact.

(3)

X

t̪ù

3SG

X

dì

this

X

híɴ=ɡò

curry=KO

X

măhlwɛ́d̪àlô

against.one's.will

X

sá=dɛ̂

eat=AN

X

d̪ăbɔ́(=bɛ́)

nature(=EMPH)

"It is that he unwillingly ate this curry."

shɛ́zɛ́ "moment just before": Expresses that an action is or was about to happen.

(4)

X

t̪ù

3SG

X

dì

this

X

híɴ=ɡò

curry=KO

X

sá=mɛ̂

eat=AN

X

shɛ́zɛ́(=bɛ́)

just.before(=EMPH)

"He is about to eat this curry."

Mandarin Chinese[edit]

Mandarin is the dominant variety of Chinese within the Sino-Tibetan language family. Mermaid constructions in Mandarin are distinct from the Japanese-based prototype in that Mandarin's word order is subject–verb–object, not subject–object–verb. Mandarin mermaid constructions can occur in the following two structures:

subject₁ + copula + clause₁ + noun
subject (clause₁) + copula + clause₂ + noun

In structure 1, the subject₁ is the subject of clause₁. In structure 2, clause₁ is the subject of the entire sentence.

Mandarin mermaid constructions can use the following nouns:

样子 yàngzi "appearance, expression": Expresses evidentiality such as seeming or appearance.

(1)

大家

Dàjiā

everyone

都

dōu

all

是

shì

COP

松了

sōng-le

relax-ASP

一

yì

one

口

kǒu

CL

气

qì

breath

的

de

PART

样子

yàngzi

appearance

"Everyone seemed to be relieved."

缘故 yuángù "reason, circumstance": Expresses a reason. (Uses structure 2.)

(2)

冯庆

Féng Qìng

Feng Qing

从

cóng

from

小

xiǎo

young

便

biàn

already

长得

zhǎng-de

grow-PART

细高

xìgāo

tall.and.slender

精瘦

jīngshòu

thin

大概

dàgài

probably

是

shì

COP

吃

chī

eat

饭

fàn

meal

时中

shǐzhōng

throughout

没

méi

NEG

有

yǒu

have

胃口

wèikǒu

appetite

的

de

PART

缘故

yuángù

reason

"Feng Qing has been tall, thin, and pretty skinny since he was a child, and this is probably because he has never had a (good) appetite."

脾气 píqì "nature, character": Expresses someone's nature, personality, or propensity.

(3)

他

Tā

3SG

从

cóng

from

小

xiǎo

young

就

jiù

already

是

shì

COP

一

yí

one

副

fù

CL

天

tiān

heaven

不

bú

NEG

怕

pà

fear

地

dì

earth

不

bú

NEG

怕

pà

fear

的

de

PART

脾气

píqi

nature

"He has been afraid of nothing (lit. neither heaven nor earth) since he was a child."

德行 déxing "bad attitude": Expresses the consequence of someone's poor attitude or behavior.

(4)

他

Tā

3SG

从

cóng

from

小

xiǎo

young

就

jiù

already

是

shì

COP

一

yí

one

副

fù

CL

姥姥

lǎolao

grandmother

不

bù

NEG

亲

qīn

kiss

舅舅

jiùjiu

uncle

不

bú

NEG

爱

ài

love

的

de

PART

德行

déxing

bad.attitude

"He has a bad attitude such that his grandmother has not kissed him and his uncle has not loved him since he was a child."

架势 jiàshi "posture, arrogance": Expresses the extent of someone's arrogance.

(5)

他

Tā

3SG

现在

xiànzài

now

完全

wánquán

completely

是

shì

COP

一

yí

one

副

fù

CL

要

yào

will

把

bǎ

CAUS

皇帝

huángdì

emperor

拉下

lā-xià

pull-down

马

mǎ

horse

的

de

PART

架势

jiàshi

arrogant.manner

"Now, he is totally arrogant enough to attempt to topple the emperor."

Austronesian languages[edit]

In addition to in Tagalog (described below), mermaid constructions have been found in the Oceanic Neku language and the Philippine Kapampangan language.

Tagalog[edit]

Tagalog is a Philippine language within the Austronesian language family. Mermaid constructions in Tagalog differ from the Japanese-based prototype in that Tagalog's word order is verb–subject–object, not subject–object–verb, and Tagalog is a zero copula langauge. As a result, its mermaid clauses take the form of noun + clause, with a linking morpheme attached to the noun.

There is only one type of mermaid construction in Tagalog that is used used with a finite clause in the clause slot, which uses the noun mukha "face."

(1)

Mukhang binatapasiya.

mukha-ng

face-LK

binata=pa=siya

bachelor=yet=3SG:TOP

"It seems he is still a bachelor."

(2)

Mukhang sasabogna ang bulkan.

mukha-ng

face-LK

sa-sabog=na

AF:CONT-erupt=already

ang

TOP

bulkan

volcano

"It seems the volcano will erupt soon."

There are five types of quasi-mermaid constructions that can be made with infinitive verbs in the clause slot:

plano "plan"

(1)

Planong bumisita ni Noya sa Davao bukas.

plano-ng

plan-LK

b-um-isita

AF:INF-visit

ni

GEN

Noya

Noy

sa

OBL

Davao

bukas

tomorrow

"Noy plans to visit Davao tomorrow."

tradisyon "tradition"

(1)

Tradisyong ipagdiwang nang manga Filipino ang Easter.

tradisyon-g

tradition-LK

ipag-diwang

PF:INF-celebrate

nang

GEN

manga

PL

Filipino

ang

TOP

Easter

"Filipinos have the practice of celebrating Easter."

kapalaran "fate"

(1)

Kapalarang matalo ni Erap noong eleksyon.

kapalaran-g

fate-LK

ma-talo

AF:INF-lose

ni

GEN

Erap

noon-g

last-LK

eleksyon

election

"Erap was destined to lose in the last election."

balak "plan"
destino "destiny"

Korean[edit]

More than 70 different nouns can be used for mermaid constructions in Korean. The copula slot can be filled by the copula 이다 ida or by one of its variants depending on context. Some examples are:

Grammaticalized Noun	Etymological Meaning	Function	Example
예정 yeyceng	prediction, expectation	intention, planning	친구는 chinkwu=nun friend=TOP 일본에 ilpon=ey Japan=DAT/LOC 갈 ka-l go-ADN.PROS 예정이다 yeyceng=i-ta plan=COP-DECL 친구는 일본에 갈 예정이다 chinkwu=nun ilpon=ey ka-l yeyceng=i-ta friend=TOP Japan=DAT/LOC go-ADN.PROS plan=COP-DECL "(My) friend plans to go to Japan."
모양 moyang	appearance, condition	sensory evidential	밖에는 pakk=ey=nun outside=DAT/LOC=TOP 비가 pi=ka rain=NOM 오는 o-nun fall-ADN.NPST 모양이다 moyang=i-ta appearance=COP-DECL 밖에는 비가 오는 모양이다 pakk=ey=nun pi=ka o-nun moyang=i-ta outside=DAT/LOC=TOP rain=NOM fall-ADN.NPST appearance=COP-DECL "It appears to be raining outside."
길 kil	road, path, means	progressive aspect	나는 na=nun me=TOP 은행에 unhayng=ey bank=DAT/LOC 가는 ka-nun go-ADN.NPST 길이다 kil=i-ta road=COP-DECL 나는 은행에 가는 길이다 na=nun unhayng=ey ka-nun kil=i-ta me=TOP bank=DAT/LOC go-ADN.NPST road=COP-DECL "I am on my way to the bank."

Ainu[edit]

Ainu has ten nouns that are usable in mermaid constructions, all of which are used with the equative copula ne:

Grammaticalized Noun	Etymological Meaning	Function	Example
ruwe	the trace of	inferential, or modal marker of certainty	* タネ tane already アィヌ aynu ainu コタン kotan village ハンケ hanke be.close ルヱ ru-w-e trace-EP-POSS ネ。 ne COP タネアィヌコタンハンケルヱネ。 tane aynu kotan hanke ru-w-e ne already ainu village be.close trace-EP-POSS COP "I infer that an Ainu village is already nearby." Lit. "It is the trace (that an) Ainu village is already close."
hawe	the voice of	reportative	* ピㇼカ pirka be.good ウエペケㇾ uepeker folktale ネ ne COP ハヱ haw-e voice-POSS ネ ne COP ワ。 wa FIN ピㇼカウエペケㇾネハヱネワ。 pirka uepeker ne haw-e ne wa be.good folktale COP voice-POSS COP FIN "It is said to be / Based on what you said, I assume that it is a good folktale." Lit. "It is the voice (that) the folktale is good."
siri	the sight of	visual	* アコㇿ a=kor IND.A=have フチ huci grandmother アコㇿ a=kor IND.A=have エカシ ekasi grandfather アイメッカㇻ a=imekkar IND.A=give.presents.to シリ sir-i sight-POSS ネ。 ne COP アコㇿフチアコㇿエカシアイメッカㇻシリネ。 a=kor huci a=kor ekasi a=imekkar sir-i ne IND.A=have grandmother IND.A=have grandfather IND.A=give.presents.to sight-POSS COP "Grandmother, grandfather, look, this is for you." Lit. "It is the sight (that) I am giving presents to my grandmother and grandfather."
humi	the sound of	non-visual sensory	* アツ゚イェサㇳサチ atuyesatsaci shallow.stream タ ta LOC ラヤン ray=an die.SG=IND.S フミ hum-i sound-POSS ネ。 ne COP アツ゚イェサㇳサチタラヤンフミネ。 atuyesatsaci ta ray=an hum-i ne shallow.stream LOC die.SG=IND.S sound-POSS COP "I felt that I was going to die in the shallow stream." Lit. "It was the feeling (that) I was going to die in the shallow stream."
kusu	the reason of	intentional	* アウㇰ a=uk IND.A=take.SG ワ wa and アエ a=e IND.A=eat クス kus-u reason-POSS ネ。 ne COP アウㇰワアエクスネ。 a=uk wa a=e kus-u ne IND.A=take.SG and IND.A=eat reason-POSS COP "(If you offer some hard wine lees), I will accept that and eat." Lit. "It is the reason/intention (that) I will accept that and eat."
kunip	should	deontic	* エチキ eci=ki 2PL.A=do クニㇷ゚ kun-i-p obligation^?-POSS-thing/person ネ ne COP ナ。 na FIN エチキクニㇷ゚ネナ。 eci=ki kun-i-p ne na 2PL.A=do obligation^?-POSS-thing/person COP FIN "You should do (this)." Lit. "It is the obligation (that) you (will) do this."
pe ~ p	thing, person	assertive, pragmatic imperative	* ヌプリ nupuri mountain ケㇱ kes end ウン un attach.to プリ puri habit ヱン wen be.bad クㇽ kur person アネㇷ゚ a=ne-p IND.A=COP-thing/person ネ ne COP クス… kusu because ヌプリケㇱウンプリヱンクㇽアネㇷ゚ネクス… nupuri kes un puri wen kur a=ne-p ne kusu mountain end attach.to habit be.bad person IND.A=COP-thing/person COP because "Because I am surely the demon from the end of the mountains..." Lit. "It is the thing/fact (that) I am the habitually bad person (who) belongs to the end of the mountains."
katu	the shape/manner of	assertive	* アカㇻ a=kar IND.A=make アィネ ayne finally アィヌ aynu human ウワㇱテ u-w-as-te RECP-EP-stand.SG-CAUS カツ゚ kat-u shape/reason-POSS ネ。 ne COP アカㇻアィネアィヌウワㇱテカツ゚ネ。 a=kar ayne aynu u-w-as-te kat-u ne IND.A=make finally human RECP-EP-stand.SG-CAUS shape/reason-POSS COP "(The gods) made (this and that) so finally humans reproduced (and became so numerous)." Lit. "It is the shape (that) humans grew in number."
hi	place, time, thing	assertive	* カムィ kamuy gods テンカィネ tenkayne thanks エパ e=pa 2SG.A=find ワ wa and エシㇰヌレ e=siknu-re 2SG.A=be.alive-CAUS ヒ hi place/time/thing ネ ne COP アーン。 aan ADM カムィテンカィネエパワエシㇰヌレヒネアーン。 kamuy tenkayne e=pa wa e=siknu-re hi ne aan gods thanks 2SG.A=find and 2SG.A=be.alive-CAUS place/time/thing COP ADM "You must have found (that girl) with the help of the gods and revived her!" Lit. "It is the thing (that) you found (that girl) with the help of the gods and revived her."
uske	the place of	progressive	* タネ tane already イペアン ipe=an eat=IND.S ウㇱケ us-ke place-POSS ネ。 ne COP タネイペアンウㇱケネ。 tane ipe=an us-ke ne already eat=IND.S place-POSS COP "I'm eating right now." Lit. "It is the place (that) I am eating now."

The noun kunip is so strongly grammaticalized that it does not appear outside of mermaid constructions.

Evidential-type nouns, namely ruwe, hawe, siri, and humi, have also been attested in quasi-mermaid constructions with the verbs an "to exist," isam "to not exist," and as "to stand" instead of the copular verb ne.

Thai[edit]

Thai is a Tai language within the Kra–Dai language family. Thai has structures similar to a mermaid construction, considered "quasi-mermaid constructions." There are three types within Thai, which are only used with verbs denoting psychological or speech actions.

(target + ) copula + nominalizer + psych. verb ( + oblique + experiencer)
(target + ) copula + nominalizer + speech verb ( + oblique + speaker)
copula + nominalizer + psych./speech verb + complement clause

To elaborate:

The target identifies the target, goal, etc. of the psychological or speech act.
A psych. verb is a verb denoting a psychological act such as "worry," "love," "want," "believe in," etc.
A speech verb is a verb denoting a speech act such as "say," "mention," "criticize," "rumor," etc.
An oblique is an adjunct prepositional phrase.
The experiencer and speaker are the agents of the psychological or speech acts.
The complement clause is the quotative complementizer wâa plus a clause.
The nominalizer, equivalent to the noun slot of a prototypical mermaid construction, can be occupied by the noun thîi "place, entity" or kaan "activity, matter."

(1)

X

phûu ráp cháy

employee

X

thîi

REL

X

thɯ̌ɯ

hold

X

khwaam sɯ̂ɯ troŋ

loyalty

X

pen

COP

X

thîi

NMLZ

X

ʔùn cay

feel.relieved

X

khɔ̌ɔŋ

GEN

X

hǔa nâa

boss

"Employees with loyalty are a relief to the bosses."

(2)

X

phalìttaphan

product

X

làw níi

these

X

pen

COP

X

thîi

NMLZ

X

klàaw khwǎn

criticize

X

thɯ̌ŋ

reach

X

yàaŋ mâak

very.much

"These products are criticized very much."

(3)

X

pen

COP

X

thîi

NMLZ

X

yɔɔm ráp

admit

X

kan

RECP

X

thûa

be.overall

X

pay

go

X

wâa

COMP

X

wannakam

literary.work

X

lɛ́ʔ

and

X

phâaphayon

movie

X

mii

have

X

ʔìtthíphon

influence

X

tɔ̀ɔ

upon

X

kan lɛ́ʔ kan

each.other

X

yàaŋ mâak

very.much

"It is generally admitted that literary works and movies influence each other very much."

Mongolian (Khalkha)[edit]

Khalkha Mongolian is the predominant variety of the Mongolian language within Mongolia. It has only one type of mermaid construction:

xereg "occurrence, fact, circumstance, necessity": Adds a tone of explanation like English "I mean that ..." or inquiring an explanation like "Do you mean that ...?" in a question).

(1)

Визээр

viz-eer

visa-INS

бизнес

biznjes

business.NOM

хийгчид

xijgč-i-d

doer-EP-PL.NOM

чухам

čuxam

actually

хаана

xaana

where

орогнодог

orogno-dog

flee-VN.HAB

хэрэг

xereg

occurrence

вэ.

ve

Q

"Where on earth do (illegal) visa dealers flee to?"

(2)

Эндээс

end-ees

here-ABL

аваачсан

avaač-san

take-VN.PST

хэрэг

xereg

occurrence

үү?

üü

Q

"Did they take (it) from here?"

(3)

Гадаадад

gadaad-a-d

foreign.country-EP-DAT

хаанач

xaana=č

where=even.FOC

билээ

bilee,

MP

хуралтай

xuraltaj

with.meeting

байсан

baj-san

be-VN.PST

хэрэг.

xereg

occurrence

"He was going to have a meeting in a foreign country; I cannot remember which."

Khalkha Mongolian also has two types of quasi-mermaid constructions:

(gesen) üg and (gedeg) üg: Elaborates on the meaning or significance of something, like English "This means that..." This is not a true mermaid construction because the noun üg is coreferential with the subject of the clause, e.g. enen’ "this" in example 4 below:

(4)

(Энэнь)

(ene=n’)

(this.NOM=3.POSS)

амьнаснь

am’+nas=n’

live.NOM=3.POSS

аюулгүй

ajuulgüj

safe

байнал

bajna=l

be-TV.NPST=only.FOC

гэсэн

ge-sen

say-VN.HAB

үг.

üg

word

"(This) only means that their lives are safe."

-taj ~ -toj ~ -tej: A proprietive adjective-deriving suffix that attaches to a noun. This is not a true mermaid construction because the noun slot is filled by an adjective, not a noun.

(5)

Би

bi

1SG.NOM

маргааш

margaaš

tomorrow

хөдөө

xödöö

countryside

явах

jav-a-x

go-EP-VN.NPST

төлөвлөгөөтэй

tölövlögöö-tej

plan-PROP

байна.

baj-na

be-TV.NPST

"I am planning to go to the countryside tomorrow."

(6)

Монголчууд

mongol-čuud

Mongolian-PL.NOM

өвөгдээдсээ

övög+deeds-ee

ancestors-REFL

хүндэлдэг

xündel-deg

respect-VN.HAB

заншилтай.

zanšil-taj

custom-PROP

"Mongolians have the custom of ancestor worship."

Yakut[edit]

Yakut or Sakha is a Siberian Turkic language within the Turkic language family. Yakut has 28 nouns that can be used in quasi-mermaid constructions. They are considered not to be true mermaid constructions because the clause must be non-finite, and the noun is required to take a proprietive suffix meaning "having," essentially filling the noun slot by an adjective. For example:

(1)

Мин

min

1SG

Токиоҕа

tokio-ʁa

Tokyo-DAT

барар

bar-ar

go-VN.PRS

былааннаахпын.

bɯlaan-naax-pɯn

plan-PROP-COP.1SG

"I plan to go to Tokyo."

(2)

Үлэтэ суох

ylete suox

without.work

хаалар

xaal-ar

remain-VN.PRS

кэскиллээхтэр.

keskil-leex-ter

future-PROP-COP.3PL

"They will still be unemployed."

(3)

Дьолломмут

žollom-mut

feel.happy-VN.PST

дьүһүннээххин.

žyhyn-neex-xin

shape-PROP-COP.2SG

"You look happy."

Kurukh[edit]

Kurukh or Oraon is a language within the Dravidian language family. It has two clitics and one noun that can occupy the noun slot in its mermaid constructions.

(1)

इ:

iː

this

रे:ल्ग:ड़ि

reːlgaːɽiː

train

को:डर्म:

koːɖarmaː

Koderma

क:लु:मधेद्

kaːl-uː=madʰe(-d)

go-PRS.VADJ=ADJ-NM

हिके।

hike

COP.PRS.3SG.NM

"This train is scheduled to go to Koderma."

(2)

अ:स्

aːs

3SG.M.NOM

चिं:ख़न:बेसे:

cĩːx-naː=beseː

cry-VBN=like

रह्चस्।

rahc-as

be.B2-PST.3SG.M

"It was as if he would cry," or "He was about to cry."

(3)

अ:स्

aːs

3SG.M.NOM

तम्बसिन्

tamba-s-in

own.father-M-ACC

इल्च्क:

ilc-kaː

fear.B2-PST.VADJ

चड्डे:

caɖɖeː

because

बोङगस्

boŋg-as

run.away-PST.3SG.M

केरस्।

ker-as

go.B2-PST.3SG.M

"He ran away because he was scared of his father."

Sidaama[edit]

Sidaama is a Highland East Cushitic language within the Afroasiatic language family, and the first language outside of Asia to be described as having a mermaid construction. It has three types of mermaid constructions:

ɡara "manner, way": Expresses evidentiality such as seeming or appearing.

(1)

X

ise

3SG.F.NOM

X

dod-d-anno

run-3SG.F-IPFV.3

X

ɡara-a=ti

manner-LV=NPC.PRED.MOD

"It seems like she (habitually) runs."

=ɡede "like, as if, so that": Expresses evidentiality such as seeming or appearing.

(1)

X

ise

3SG.F.NOM

X

dod-d-anno=ɡede-e=ti

run-3SG.F-IPFV.3=like-LV=NPC.PRED.MOD

"It seems like she will run."

dative-locative suffix -ra: Expresses that an action is or was about to occur.

(1)

X

ise

3SG.F.NOM

X

dod-d-a-ra-a=ti

run-3SG.F-INF-DATLOC.MOD-LV=NPC.PRED.MOD

"She is about to run."

Kolyma Yukaghir[edit]

Kolyma Yukaghir is one of the two extant Yukaghir languages. Kolyma Yukaghir has two varieties of mermaid construction that deviate from the Japanese prototype:

The noun slot is occupied by an enclitic =ben ~ =bed, and the verb of the clause is in a non-finite participle form. This type of mermaid construction usually describes past (uncommonly, present) actions and also has a modal meaning of assertion.
The noun slot is occupied by a nominalizing suffix -joːn ~ -joːd ~ -d’oːn ~ -d’oːd ~ -t’oːn ~ -t’oːd, and the verb of the clause is in its stem form. This type of mermaid construction also describes past actions, but does not have a modal meaning.

The copula slot can generally be filled by the focus marker -(e)k for either type, or by the copular verb "to be" for type 2.

(1a)

Тудэл

tudel

3SG

тудаа

tudaː

before

миидьиилэ

miːd’iː-le

sledge-INS

хонрошмэлэбэдэк.

xonroʃ-mele=bed-ek

break-PTCP.3SG=bed-FOC

"He broke a sledge before."

(1b)

Мэт

met

1SG

төвкэ

töwke

dog

йуомэбэдэк.

juo-me=bed-ek

see-PTCP.1SG=bed-FOC

"I saw a dog."

(2a)

Тэт

tet

2SG

тудаа

tudaː

before

хондьоон

xon-d’oːn

go-d’oːn

оодьэк.

oː-d’ek

be-INTR.2SG

"You went (there) before."

(2b)

Титтэл

tittel

3PL

киэтьоонпэк.

kie-t’oːn-pe-k

come-t’oːn-PL-FOC

"They came."

Hindi[edit]

Hindi is an Indo-Aryan language of the Indo-European language family. Hindi has one mermaid construction, where the noun slot is filled by the enclitic =vālā "one who ~s," and the verb of the clause is in the non-finite infinitive form. This mermaid construction can indicate:

Aspectual meaning, expressing that an action is about to occur.
Deontic modal meaning, expressing an intended or scheduled action.
Epistemic modal meaning, expressing the speaker's belief about the occurrence of an action.

(1)

मैं

mãĩ

1SG

यूनिवर्सिटी

yūnivarsiṭī

university.F.SG

जानेवाला

jā-ne=vālā

go-INF.OBL=vālā.M.SG

हूँ।

hū̃

COP.PRS.1SG

"I am about to go to the university," or "I am on my way to the university."

(2)

वह

vah

3SG

आज

āj

today

कल

kal

tomorrow

मरनेवाला

mar-ne=vālā

die-INF.OBL=vālā.M.SG

है।

hai

COP.PRS.3SG

"He will die in a day or so."

Hindi -vālā "one who ~s" is thought to derive from Sanskrit पाल pāla or पालक pālaka, both meaning "guardian, protector, maintainer."

Koryak[edit]

Koryak is a Chukotkan language within the Chukotko-Kamchatkan language family; this section specifically deals with the Chawchəvan dialect. Koryak has one quasi-mermaid construction, where the noun slot is filled by the nominalizing suffix -jolqəl, and the verb of the clause is in its stem form.

Koryak does not have a copula, instead marking subject complements (in this case, -jolqəl) by personal pronoun suffixes. For quasi-mermaid construction, this suffix follows ergative–absolutive alignment: it agrees with the intransitive subject or transitive object of the clause.

The nominalizing suffix -jolqəl expresses a deontic modal meaning of obligation:

(1)

(Гыцци)

(ɣəcci)

(2SG.ABS)

эцги

ecɣi

today

вайолӄылэгэ

va-jolqəl-eɣe

stay-should-2SG.S

гэньпицитэ

ɣ-eɲpici-te

COM-father-COM

йайак.

jaja-k

house-LOC

"You should stay at home with your father today."

(2)

(Ыццу)

(əccu)

(3PL.ABS)

ав’йэйолӄыло

awje-jolqəl-o

eat-should-3PL.S

ав’йэйак.

awje-ja-k

eat-house-LOC

"They should eat at the buffet."

(3)

(Гымнан)

(ɣəmnan)

(1SG.ERG)

инг’э

inʕe

soon

г’айӈав’йолӄыл

ʕajŋaw-jolqəl-∅

call-should-3SG.O

ӄайыкмиӈын.

qajəkmiŋ-ə-n

boy-EP-ABS.SG

"I should call the boy soon."

(4)

(Митив’)

mitiw

tomorrow

гынан

(ɣənan)

(2SG.ERG)

ӈэлвылг’ыӈӄо

ŋelvəlʕ-ə-ŋqo

reindeer.herd-EP-ABL

йылэйолӄыл

jəle-jolqəl-∅

bring-should-3SG.O

тымйон.

təm-jo-n

kill-NMLZ-ABS.SG

"You should bring the killed (reindeer) from the herd tomorrow."

Xibe[edit]

Xibe or Sive is a language within the Tungusic language family, and a close relative of Manchu language. Xibe has at least two different mermaid constructions, which are used with a zero copula:

aliŋe "like": Expresses likeness or seeming.

(1)

X

merxenje da

Merxenje

X

ji-xe

come-PRF.ADN

X.

aliŋe.

like.

X

kicebu da

Kicebu

X

ji-xe

come-PRF.ADN

X

aqu

NEG

X.

aliŋe.

like.

"It seems that Merxenje came, (but) it seems that Kicebu didn't come."

nominalizer =ŋe: Expresses discourse-relative functions such as assertion.

(2)

X

si

2SG

X

zuŋgo

China

X

nane

person

X?

na

yes.no.Q

/

X.

waqe.

not.

X

bi

1SG

X

zibeN=deri’

Japan=ABL

X.

ji-xe=ŋe

come-PRF.ADN=NMLZ

"Are you Chinese? / No, I came from Japan."

(3)

X

si

2SG

X

ai

what

X?

are-maχe=ŋe

do-PROG.ADN=NMLZ

/

X

bitke’

book

X.

ta-maχe=ŋe

read-PROG.ADN=NMLZ

"What are you doing? / I'm reading a book."

References[edit]

^ Tsunoda (2013), pp. 1–2.

Works Cited[edit]

Kaneda Akihiro [in Japanese] (2001), 八丈方言動詞の基礎研究 (Basic Research on Verbs in the Hachijō Dialect), 笠間書院 (Kasama Shoin Co., Ltd.).
Tsunoda Tasaku, ed. (2013), Adnominal Clauses and the ‘Mermaid Construction’: Grammaticalization of Nouns, doi:10.1515/9783110670844, ISBN 9783110670806.

[FOOTNOTETsunoda20131–2-1] Tsunoda (2013), pp. 1–2.

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