Advances in Role and Reference Grammar

(^138) ROBERT D. VAN VALIN, JR.
a felicitous answer to a yes-no question, and the second is the distribution
of etq "some (non-specific)", which is only possible if it is the focus of a yes-
no question or if it occurs in the scope of the future/irrealis morpheme -kte;
it is its use in questions that is relevant here. It contrasts with eyá "some
(specific)", as the following pairs of sentences illustrate.
(122) a. Hoksíla eyá thaló ki manúpi.
boy some[+sPEc] meat the 3PL.steal
b. Hoksíla etq thaló ki manúpi.
some[-sPEc]
"Some boys stole the meat."
(123) a. Hoksíla eyá thaló ki manúpi he? [with focus on "boys"]
b. Hoksíla etq thaló ki manúpi he?
"Did some boys steal the meat?"
Not only must etq be in an interrogative clause, but it must be the focus of
the question. The distribution of etq in complex sentences serves as an indi­
cator of the PFD of the IF operator in the sentence. The following pairs of
sentences exemplify a clausal complement (124), a definite restrictive rela­
tive clause (which is head-internal; 125), and an adverbial clause (126).
(124) a. [Hoksíla etq thaló ki manúpi] iyúkca he?
boy some meat the 3PL.steal 3SG.think Q
"Does he think some boys stole the meat?"
b. [Hoksíla etq thaló ki manúpi] iyúkca.
"He thinks some boys stole the meat. "
(125) a. Wichása ki [[sqka wq igmú etq wicháyaxtake] ki
man the [[dog a cat some 3sc3pL.bite] the
le] wqyqka he?
this] 3sG.3sG.saw Q
"Did the man see the dog which bit some cats?"
b. * Wichása kim[[si¿ka wq igmú etq wicháyaxtake] ki le] wqyqke.
"The man saw the dog which bit some cats."
c. Wichása ki [[sqka wq igmú eyá wicháyaxtake] ki le] wqyqke.
some[+sPEc]
"The man saw the dog which bit some cats."
d. Wichása ki [[sqka wq igmú eyá wicháyaxtake] ki le] wqyqka he?
"Did the man see the dog which bit some cats?"