Muundo na Uamilifu wa Kielezi katika Kishazi cha Kiswahili
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Date
2017-06
Authors
Cheruiyot, Chelangat Winny
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
This research endevoured to analyse the structure and functions of the adverb in
the Kiswahili clause. An adverb is a word used to modify a verb, an adjective or
another adverb. It is an important part of speech because it conveys information about
how things happen as well as when, where and to what extent. The adverb is also
taught in both primary and secondary schools in Kenya as one of the categories of
Kiswahili words. However, studies on analysis of the Kiswahili adverb have proved to
be challenging for four main reasons. Firstly, the Kiswahili adverb is traditionally
termed descriptive. It is not clear what the defining features of this category are, since
borders with neighbouring categories such as nouns, adjectives and prepositions are
vague. Secondly, there seems to be many different structures functioning as adverbs in
Kiswahili including morphemes, particles and phrases. These structures need to be
explained vividly. Thirdly, the categorization of the adverb in Kiswahili also seems
unclear as there are adverbs that cannot be categorized according to the already
existing four sub-categories. Lastly, Kiswahili grammar has little to say about the
syntax of adverbs for instance, the tendency of the Kiswahili adverb for multiple
occurrence in the same clause and the range of possible positions in a Kiswahili
clause structure. This research therefore aimed at analyzing the classification of the
Kiswahili adverb, investigating the morphological form and syntactical structure of
the Kiswahili adverb, and identifying the semantic roles of the adverb in the Kiswahili
clausal structure. Independent clauses were used as the main data. Data was collected
through the use of questionnaires and also through listening and recording Kiswahili
language conversation. The clauses were analyzed within the Minimalist theoretical
framework. The morphological study reveals that Kiswahili distinguishes between
pure and derived adverbs. Pure adverbs have a simple structure while derived adverbs
have a compound structure and are formed through three processes: affixation,
reduplication and compounding. This research therefore concludes that, Kiswahili
adverbs can be classified according to their morphological structure. Syntactic study
reveals that Kiswahili adverbs are mobile, they can occur initially at middle or at the
end of a clause. The main syntactic position of an adverb is at the end of a clause but
it can occur at the initial position by fronting through focalization and topicalization
processes. Kiswahili adverb also has various semantic roles including place, time,
process, frequency and degree. This study concludes that the semantic roles influence
the morphological and syntactical structure of a Kiswahili adverb.
Description
Iliyowasilishwa katika Idara ya Kiswahili kwa madhumuni ya kutosheleza baadhi ya mahitaji ya Shahada ya Uzamili ya Chuo Kikuu cha Kenyatta