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Typological Features Template for Konkomba

by Mary Steele of GILLBT Tamale, Ghana. Email:Mary_Steele@sil.org

Feature Description
Phonological Features
Vowel inventory a, aa, e, ee, i, ii, u, uu, o, oo, ɔ, ɔɔ
Vowel harmony Konkomba does not have vowel harmony.
Consonant inventory p, t, ch, f, b, d, g, gb, k, kp, p, h, j, l, m, n, ŋ, ŋm, r, s, w, y
Tone Konkomba is a tonal language, but tone is not marked in the orthography. Some minimal tone pairs are marked by spelling, using a silent letter /h/
Syllable Structure cv, cvv, cvc, cvvc, v, vv, C (C is restricted to syllabic nasal only)
Morpho-syntactic Features In the following fields some of the basic morpho-syntactic parameters of Konkomba are described.
morphological classification (1) Konkomba is an isolating language rather than aglutinating. Most nouns have class affixes, some verbs have aspect markers, but apart from that most words consist of one morpheme.
morphological classification (2) Konkomba is both a head-marking and a dependent-marking language: in a noun phrase the possessive marker is attached to the possessed element, (head marking), but it is also dependent-marking in that it is the adjective that is marked in a descriptive noun phrase.
Nominal Phrases In the following fields there is a description of some of the basic morpho-syntactic properties of nominal constituents
syntactic structure Linear order of elements in the noun phrase: N-ADJ/NUM-DET
nominal modification There are few adjectives in Konkomba. Often the Adjective is fused with the noun as a suffix, agreeing with the class of the noun.

The relative clause normally follows the head noun. The relative pronoun agrees with the noun it modifies in class and number.

nominal specification Konkomba has determiners, demonstratives, numerals and quantifiers.
possession In Konkomba possession is expressed by a possessive/associative particle which immediately follows the possessor (if a noun) and is affixed to the possessed element, replacing the class prefix (if present)of the possessed element. Konkomba distinguishes alienable and inalienable possession.
pronominal system Konkomba has free pronoun forms. Some personal pronouns are marked for object. Pronouns have an emphatic form. There are bound pronouns, e.g. when followed by a negative morpheme or a possessive morpheme. There are reflexive pronouns.
Verbal Phrases The Verbal Phrase consists of: optional tense marker/s, (T) followed by the Verb (V).
word order SVO
TAM Future, Imperfect, Perfect, Time-depth markers
infinitival forms Konkomba may use a verbal noun as Infinitive. Alternatively the Infinitive may be marked by a pre-verbal nasal with high tone.
verbal constructions Konkomba has ditransitive constructions - Object and Indirect Object. There are also serial verb constructions composed of more than one verb (usually not more than two).
Adpositions Konkomba has postpositions.
Complementation Konkomba has descriptive Complement: (SVO - X is Y); Identity Complement: (Who is X?); and Quote Complement: X said What?
Special Properties of Konkomba --


Adverbial Conjunction in Konkomba