The Structure of Nominalization in Burmese

How Underlying Nominals Provide Order to the Grammar

Ontological Nominals function as a kind of Architectural Support to Language

Burma11-16th Century Written 11-16th Century Written Burmese – Modern – Formal Burmese – Modern – Formal BurmeseBurmese

17-20th Century Spoken 17-20th Century Spoken Burmese – Modern – Colloquial Burmese – Modern – Colloquial BurmeseBurmese

Burmese Nominals

T-B Linguists have observed different kinds of nominalizations with odd functions across many languages (relativization/genitivization).

Observation: Pervasive use of nominalization on multiple levels – word to sentence.

High frequency of affixually derived nominalizations functioning as other parts of speech — adverbs and adjectives.

Nominals functioning as more than local nouns.

What is nominalization?

A noun or noun-like construction “The barbarians’ destruction of the city” “John’s criticism of the book”

"A nominalization is a noun phrase that has a systematic correspondence with a clausal predication which includes a head noun morphologically related to a corresponding verb." “The barbarians destroyed the city.” “John criticized the book.”

Cognitively, a Nominal is a Bounded Region

How is nominalization manifest in Burmese?

Compound Nouns:

‘Television’ image-look sound-hear |kyf\rifoHjum:

[N+V]Noun + [N+V]Noun = Noun

‘Tong’ bamboo hand pinch 0g:vufckyf

[[N+N]Noun + V]Noun Nominalized Clauses:

‘eating is good’ [eat + onf sany] good [V+P]Noun ‘[his having cooked first without going to church] onf sany -

caused us to have to return home twice”

Nominal Construction of New Vocabulary – ‘TV’ and ‘Tong’

Levels of Language Processing

OntologicalGrammatic

al

Conceptual

Semantic

What is Ontology? In Philosophy: “Ontology is the theory of objects and

their ties. The unfolding of ontology provides criteria for distinguishing various types of objects (concrete and abstract, existent and non-existent, real and ideal, independent and dependent) and their ties (relations, dependences and predication)”.(Raul Corazzon 2003)  

In General: “1. A science or study of being: specifically, a branch of metaphysics relating to the nature and relations of being; a particular system according to which problems of the nature of being are investigated; first philosophy”.

“2. a theory concerning the kinds of entities and specifically the kinds of abstract entities that are to be admitted to a language system."(Webster’s 3rd International Dictionary )

Ontology – Artificial Intelligence

An ontology is a specification of a conceptualization.

In AI: “That is, an ontology is a description (like a formal specification of a program) of the concepts and relationships that can exist for an agent or a community of agents. This definition is consistent with the usage of ontology as set-of-concept-definitions, but more general.” (Gruber 1993)

Formation Components

Form Classes – Three types

Nouns Verbs Particles

Things

Relations

Conceptual ObjectsOntological Objects

Juxtaposition — a normal formative processDoubles and Balanced Pairs

P + P chaining

N + N compounding

V + V compound and chaining

Rules of Nominal Formation

N + N Nominal N + V Nominal N + P Nominal Positional Phrase

Compound Noun Clause

Grammatical Construction

Ontological Construction

Types of Nominals

Conceptual Nominal

Ontological Nominal

Grammatical Nominal

Semantic Nominal

Thing

Form

Function Class

Lexical Class

Ontological Nominal is not the same as Grammatical Nominal

Ontological nominals (objects, concepts, or other entities) are:

abstract units that exist as linguistic entities via boundary features

perceptual and posited by the language itself

manifest by cognitive operations such as blending and conceptual integration as well as word formation processes

Key to Understanding

Nominalization is onf sany Nominalizes Sentences

(Sentence final particle)

Nominalizes Clauses (Relative and Attribute

Clauses)

Nominal Topicalizer

Clause

Sentence

Word

Grammatical Nominalization

Burmese: Head-Final Grammar

SOV Verb final postposition particle final

Final is the Head

Modifier + Head Configuration Modifier +

Head

N + N N + V N/V + P V + V

Asymmetrical Relations of Figure and GroundGround + Figure

Absolutive vs.Figure + Ground

Transitive

Sentence final Marker (Realis) onf sany

Example 1.

usefr rSm ajumi f uav: w aumi f |Sd yg onf̀ kyun-ma.

hma kraung ka.le: ta. kaung hri. pa sany

slave-female

Loc cat small one Clf-animal

exist Polite Nom/ Realis

I (female)

kitten one

"I have a kitten."

Nominalized Clause

(Relative) onf sanyExample 4b

t a\y: \ydki f onf. ausmi f: om: rsm: a-pre: pruing sany. kyaung: sa: mya: race compete Nom/Realis school son many

"The pupils who competed in a race..."

Topic Marker onf sany

Example 3

a|_ 0g onf n t cg t arSmi f xJ wGi f \ri f edki f yg onf̀ hrwe wa sany nya. a-

hka a-hmaung

htai: twang mrang nuing pa sany

gold yellow Nom/ Topic

night time darkness in Loc- at

see able Polite Nom/ Realis

"Golden Yellow is able to see at night in the darkness."

Nominal Template – Formal Burmese

(realis)

Nominal Template – Formal Burmese (irrealis)

Nominal Template – Colloquial Burmese

(realis)

Nominal Template – Colloquial Burmese

(irrealis)

Application of the Rules of Ontological Formation

N+N N N+V N N/V +P N

ND15

Formation Process

xdkh ajumifhhtui. kraung.

Dm Res

N N

N

vGwf vyf a|: t p lwat lap re: a-ca.

free vacant Nom beginning

V V

V

N

P

N

N

N

t rsdK: om: aeh u a-myui: sa: ne. ka.

kind son day S

N N

N N

N

N

P

N

[ l I qdk ju yg onf̀hu rwe hcui kra. pa sany

said Tm say Pl-S Plt Nom

V

N

N

P

N

N

V

P

N

P

N

P

Ontological Constructions

WORD

EXPRESSION

SENTENCE

Simple and Complex Words, Phrases, Nominalized Clauses

Clause or Particle Phrase

Sentence, Section, Text

Three Types

Ontological Form Rules

Constructional Forms

Accommodates Traditional Constructions

Basic Structural Description

Word Simple word, Compound Word,

Phrase, Modifier Clauses (N ) + N N

Expression Clause N + V N

N / V+ P N Sentence Sentence, Paragraph, Text N + Obs N

Ontological WORDOne sentence Part 1

Ontological WORDOne sentence Part 2

Ontological WORDOne sentence Part 3

Ontological SENTENCE (Text) Structure

Structural Overview of one Expository Text

Topical Sections of Text - onf sany marked

Expository Text – Ground- Figure Relations

[ Ground Figure ][ Ground Figure ][ Ground ][ Figure ] [ Ground ][Figure]

Ontological SENTENCE (Text)

Structure of a Narrative Text

Particle u ka. Agent/Source marks Sections of Text

Narrative Headedness Figure-Ground

Relations

Reverse of Expository Text Ground - Figure Relations

Particle u ka. Sentence 1

Narrative Action Line and

Offline – distribution of u ka.

Ontological Nominalization The Structure of Abstract Objects that form: Word Expression

s Sentences

(N+N) (V+V)

(Word with Observer)

(N+V) (N + P)

Advantages to Ontological Analysis versus only Grammatical or Semantic Consistent and simple method of analysis

that describes the organization of Word to Text, with same conceptual processes and rules of formation.

Separates Ontological from Semantic and Grammatical and leaves those differences for different constraints.

Explains predominance of nominals and why they are used as major constituents.

Further Advantages

Recognizes Burmese pattern preference for Doublets, Juxtapositioning, Balanced sets.

Recognizes Headedness and the way this is manifest in information structure via Ground – Figure gestalt.

Further Advantages

Recognizes the role of the Observer in The Sentence and Text The nature of nominals themselves Provides the base forms for word constituency

relations in complex units. Analysis recognizes cultural values

balance and harmony distance of the observer from the phenomena;

Buddhist detachment

Burmese Proverb

t|Sif \rifh. u^efwifha-hrang mrang. kwyan tang.master high slave comely

As the master’s position is exalted,the servant’s conduct becomes

decorous.

THE BEGINNING

Of Natural Sound

Practical Application

Burmese Primers — Demonstration of Ontological

Forms used in Literacy

Ontological Word

Literacy with WORD Level Units

Simple Words of One Syllable Inherent Vowel and Tone, Teaching only

Consonant e.g. u ka. ‘dance’ One symbol = Burmese Syllable / Word Juxtaposition of Balanced Set =

Ontological Nominals Simple Ontological Nominals of [N+N],

[N+ V] or [V+V]

KindergartenPrimer

Juxtaposition,Balanced Pairs

First story Kindergarten

Stories based on the Ontological Nominal Unit

First Grade Primer

Complex yet balanced units structure natural Burmese text. The length and complexity of the sentence is not significantly difficult because ontological nominals create ease.

Pedagogical wisdom begins with simple and build to complex sentences. One text of two sentences. First sentence is 2 ontological units long. Second sentence consists of 31 ontological

units.

End of Orthographic Sentence

Second sentence consists of 31 ontological units.

Natural textNo Word Space Normally in BurmeseBut ‘Phrase’ space is not really optional

The Same Natural Text Marked Indicating Particles

‘Phrase’ space following Particles

Less Natural Text -NT Romans 11:23

Less Natural Text with Particles

Ontological Nominals

Naturally used in Literacy Structure complex sentences – even

for newly literates, making meaningful units that can ‘stand alone’.

Naturally marked in text with phrase space to aid in chunking the sub-sentential units.