Greener Journal of Arts and Humanities

Greener Journal of  Art and Humanities Vol. 2 (2), pp. 017-022, December 2012

 ISSN: 2276-7819 

Research Paper

Manuscript Number: 103112186

 

Yes Or No Questions in Kanuri: A Minimalist Approach

                                    

Baba Kura Alkali Gazali                                

 

Department of Languages and Linguistics (Lecturer Ii) University Of Maiduguri, P.M.B 1069, Borno State, Nigeria

Abstract: 

This paper examines the three types of echo question sentences in Kanuri within the minimalist program. In conducting the research, the researcher uses his native speaker intuition and three other competent native Speakers to validate the data. The study identifies three types of movement: Subject movement from Spec. IP position to Spec. CP position, Object movement from Spec. VP position to Spec. CP position and finally the movement of the finite non auxiliary verb under Spec. V position to Spec. CP position to check question feature of Comp in Kanuri. The Study also identifies Structural ambiguity when one constituent moves across another constituent in Kanuri sentence structure. Case marking is used to disambiguate such sentence structures.

Keywords: Kanuri, Movement, Minimalist, Yes or No Questions.

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