A Grammar of Tamashek (Tuareg of Mali)

670 13 Clausal subordination

13.1.2 Spatial adverbial clauses ('where ...')

Spatial adverbial clauses ('where ...') are definite relative clauses. They have a

demonstrative adverb as the head, followed by cliticized Comit -\d. The

construction can be glossed literally "here/there where ...". The unmarked

adverbial in this construction is d-i-ha 'here'.

(803) a. s-sens t-äe-hon-t

Caus-lie.down.Imprt Fe-Sg-stone-FeSg

[d-i-hd-\d-\hi e 0-iba]

[here-\Comit-\lSgO Fut 3MaSgS-be.lost.ShImpf]

'Put a stone down (here) where I will die!' [T-md]

b. d-i-ha-\d i-t-asttses

here-\Comit 3MaSgS-LoImpf-sleep(Vds).LoImpfP

'(the place) where he sleeps.' [R]

In (803.b), the stem -t-aettes- has undergone the morphophonological

treatment typical of 3SgS LoImpfP verbs in definite relative clauses (compare

-t-attaes- in normal LoImpfP clauses). See χ-pcl Erasure (130).

There is frequent slippage of spatial into temporal contexts, or into more

abstract spatiotemporal or situational 'in the event that ...'. These clauses can

therefore abut on the domain of conditional antecedents.

(804) a. ad 0-asts X

Fut 3MaSgS-laugh(Vdz).ShImpf X

d-i-ha-\d-\hl 0-geba

here-\Comit-\l SgO 3MaSgS-be.lost.PerfP

'X [name] will laugh when I have died.' [T-md]

b. d-i-hci-\d i-ggat "a-janna

hereAComit 3MaSgS-hit(Vwt).LoImpfP Sg-rain

ns-t-ajjaes

lPl-LoImpf-enter.LoImpfP

'When(-ever) it rains, we (regularly) go inside.' [T-ka]

13.1.3 Manner adverbial clauses (' how ...')

A definite instrumental relative clause can be formed with the noun ammak

'way, manner, method'.

(805) ammak [w-a-\s 0-ossel]

manner [Ma-Dem.Sg-Mnstr 3MaSgS-run.Reslt]

'the way (in which) he runs'