El proceso de formación del alocutivo vasco [The formation process of the Basque allocutive]

Abstract

The allocutive tricasual structures in the Basque language are characterised by the suffixes -k and -n, indicating masculine and feminine respectively, and the infix -i-, which indicates that these two suffixes express the allocutive case. These affixes, however, were not added simultaneously and their dialectal distribution reflects the diachronic process by which they were adopted. The allocutive tricasual structures were formed by adding the suffixes of the second person singular masculine and feminine, -k and -n, to the non-allocutives, and this ancient structure has been conserved in eastern dialects (in Souletin, in the Roncal dialect and part of the Basse Navarre dialect). Later, the allocutive indicator -i- was added between the 3rd person prefix d- and the present infix -a-, and the phonetic evolution of the group [d-i-a-] was produced in accordance with the phonetic change d-i- > y- > dd- > dx- > x- > j- / z-, parallel in part to the Castilian form as described by Schuchardt (1893). Finally, the prefix z- was introduced due to the depalatisation of the prefix xin the dialects which had the auxiliary verb with /i/ (edin) in order to mark a distinction from the non- allocutive structure, with which it was often confused. In monovalent and bivalent auxiliary verbs, on the other hand, the two 2nd person singular flections of the immediately more complex structure with the auxiliary verb of the same were used.