424 Chapter 13 Anaphora
(34) Siti e-bala-i Ita bab aba'na.
Siti OV-say-LOC Ita about her
‘Ita told Siti about herself.’
In each instance, aba'na can be replaced by aba'na dibi', at least for some
speakers.
Additionally, with the appropriate context, it is acceptable for some
speakers to use the pronominal form in some environments in which aba'na
dibi' might be expected. These include:
(35) Atin nenggu aba'na neng tifi.
Atin AV.watch her on TV
‘Atin watched herself on TV.’
(36) Rika ngennal-lagi aba'na ka Evi.
Rika AV.know-AGI her to Evi
‘Rika introduced herself to Evi.’
(37) Siti melle permen kaangguy aba'na.
Siti AV.buy candy for her
‘Siti bought candy for herself.’
In each of these instances, aba'na can be replaced by aba'na dibi'. However,
with the appropriate context, in each case, the sentence can be interpreted as
reflexive. Aba'na can also replace aba'na dibi' in the examples in (26-32) with-
out altering the meaning. Thus, aba'na dibi' should not be viewed as a dedicated
reflexive anaphor nor as the sole means of expressing reflexive meaning.^5
(^5) This is, similar to the facts reported by Cole et al. (2005) for the Mudung Darat and
Tanjung Raden dialects of Jambi Malay. In these dialects, the third person pronoun is
ambiguous between a non-reflexive and reflexive meaning, as in (i).
(i) Jambi Malay (Mudung Darat dialect)
Dio cinta dio.
3 love 3
‘He loves himself/him.’
While the non-reflexive meaning is preferred, sufficient context allows coreference
between subject and object in (i). When the emphatic particle la occurs with the object
pronoun, both reflexive and non-reflexive interpretations are again possible (ii), in this
instance the reflexive interpretation being preferred.
(ii) Jambi Malay (Mudung Darat dialect)
Dio cinta sama dio-la.
3 love with 3-EMPH
‘He loves himself/him.’