Spatial Deictics in Oromo

Abstract

This paper investigates the forms and functions of linguistic structures in Oromo that are employed for making reference in space, i.e. spatial deictics. Three principal types viz demonstrative, adverbial and directional deictics are examined. Of the three types, the first is the most productive. In the category of nominal deictics, simple and complex demonstrative deictics (the latter ones involving case and focus marking) as well as contrastive and reduplicative demonstrative deictics are apparent. A class of deictics termed presentative has also been found to be morphologically and semantically related to the
nominal category of deictics although it has predicative grammatical functions. In the adverbial category are place and manner deictics. From directionality viewpoint, adverbial and verbal deictics are in use. All of the preceding deictics of the spatial type are scrutinized from the perspectives of their pragmatic structuring and interpretation since specified interpretations of linguistic structures can only be secured taking into account the contexts within which they are
uttered.