Advances in Role and Reference Grammar

548 JAMES K. WATTERS

straints: -mElI, in general, can only be followed by person suffixes (Karl

Zimmer, p.c.). To express (32), -ken must occur as a separate word (with /

or ol, see Lewis 1967) rather than as a suffix:

(32') Ben -malι i-ken siz sus-malI-sιnιz.

I speak-oBL -ken 2PL be.quiet-MALi-2pL

"When I have to speak, you should keep quiet."

5.3 -Eli

Another example of cosubordinate nexus at the clausal level is the -Eli con­

struction, usually translated as "since". The dependent verb in such a sen­

tence may be independently specified for its core arguments as well as for

modality:

(33) Oglu-m yürü-yebil-eli mutluyu-m

son-lposs walk-ABIL Eli happy-ISG

"Since my son has been able to walk, I've been happy."

This independence of core arguments and the core operator demonstrates

that it is an instance of clausal rather than core juncture. That the type of

nexus involved is cosubordination is suggested by two facts. First, as can be

observed above, there is no case or postposition involved, suggesting that it

is not subordination. Second, unlike clausal coordination, the -Eli clause is

dependent on the main clause for tense, as shown above, and for evidential­

­­y:

(34) *0 buraya gel-- kork-uyor-um.

PRO here comc-mIş-Eli get.afraid-PROG-lsG

"Since (they say) he's coming, I'm getting scared."

This example is ungrammatical since the dependent clause is specified for

evidentiality. The closest paraphrase that is permitted is one in which the

dependent clause is marked by the (core-level) status adverb belki. That is,

the doubt is marked directly by the speaker on the actuality of the event

(status) rather than by marking how the speaker has ascertained the propo­

sition (evidentiality):

(35) O-nun belki buraya gel-iyor ol-ma-sin-dan

PRO-GEN maybe here come-PROG become-vN-poss-ABL

kork-uyor-um.

get. afraid- ISG

"Since he may be coming here, I'm getting afraid."