Vol. 23 No. 3 (2014): Nordic Journal of African Studies
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Information Packaging – Focus Marking and Focus Constructions in Leteh (Larteh)

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  • Mercy Akrofi Ansah
Mercy Akrofi Ansah
University of Ghana
Nordic Journal of African Studies
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53228/njas.v23i3.143

Published 2014-03-31

How to Cite

Ansah, M. A. (2014). Information Packaging – Focus Marking and Focus Constructions in Leteh (Larteh). Nordic Journal of African Studies, 23(3), 18. https://doi.org/10.53228/njas.v23i3.143

Abstract

This paper describes focus marking phenomenon in Leteh (Kwa: South Guan), and the formation of four focus constructions in the language. The study is informed by tenets of Basic Linguistic Theory (Dixon 1997; Dryer 2006). Non-subjects are obligatorily focus marked with a dedicated morpheme né, and a clause-final definiteness marker a, whereas subject focus marking is by a clause-final definiteness marker a only. Constituents that are focused represent the most salient information in the discourse. The occurrence of gaps is contingent on the lexical category of the focused constituent. Data are sourced from recorded Leteh folktales and constructed discourse. The paper adds new data on focus constructions in Kwa languages.

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