Personal pronouns as subjects (Surgut Khanty)

PPDrop: The presence of an independent pronoun in subject position is not required to replace a nominal agent.


(1a) qoʌtaɣiʌ (mīn) wɔ̄č-nam mən-ʌ-əmən.

tomorrow we.two town-apr go-prs-1du

’Tomorrow, the two of us are going to the town.’


(1b) qoʌtaɣiʌ (məŋ) wɔ̄č-nam mən-ʌ-əw.

tomorrow we town-apr go-prs-1pl

’Tomorrow, we are going to the town.’


(1c) qoʌtaɣiʌ (ʌəɣ) wɔ̄č-nam mən-ʌ-ət.

tomorrow they town-apr go-prs-3pl

’Tomorrow, they are going to the town.’


Since the personal suffix on the verb unequivocally refers to the number and the person of the subject in Surgut Khanty, personal pronouns are optional. If the context disambiguates the referent of the third person singular subject, it can also be dropped. If the personal pronoun is present in the sentence as the subject, it serves an emphatic function.

Author: 

Márta Csepregi