English differs from Hoyloy in the formation of questions by two major features. The first feature involves the constrain that the subject be preceded by the proper auxilliary verb or the linking verb. This constrain applies to all typical yes-or-no questions. Secondly, a wh-word, alone or in a phrase, that initiates a wh-question, is distinguished as an interrogative formally by the entailed yes-or-no question frame unless the interrogative --''who'', for example -- serves as the subject. In Hoyloy, by contrast, a yes-or-no question is marked with a yes-or-no interrogative, whereas a data question* counts upon a wh-word like interrogative placed at its due location. The formation of an or-question in English is generally the same as a yes-or-no question but the appended or-switch. For such a question in Hoyloy, the or-interrogative is used. Contrastive examples are given in the illustrative discussion that follows.
* In English the name of interrogative belongs to each of the so-called wh-words, what, when, where, who, and how, for examples. Upon looking at such an interrogative in a question as a label for some new data to be obtained from the answer, such a question can be called a data question, and the interrogatives used for data questions can be named data interrogatives. Accordingly we have different names for different types of interrogative used in Hoyloy such as the yes-or-no interroative, the or-interrogative and the data interrogative.
As questions and answers usually dominate a conversation, let us start with a sample dialogue here.
1. Do you know who Homer is?
1a. [li" tzai-ya~=/+/ Homer si_/ sya~=/+mi=/+ /laNg+ |bo']
[li"] = you; [tzai-ya~"] = know; [si-] = linking verb; [sya~=/+mi"] = what; [laNg+]
= person; [.bo'] = final partical as a yes-or-no interrogative.
1b. [li" si_m_si_/ tzai-ya~=/+/ Homer si_/ sya=/+mi=/+/ laNg+]
[li"] = you; [si_m_si-] = whether or not (used here as a yes-or-no interrogative);
[tzai-ya~"] = know; [si-] = linking verb; [sya~=/+mi"] = what; [laNg+] = person.
1c. [li" qam=/+\tzai-ya~=/+/ Homer si_/ sya=/+mi=/+/ laNg+]
[li"] = you; [qam."] = hesitative interrogative; [tzai-ya~"] = know; [si-] = linking verb;
[sya~=/+mi"] = what; [laNg+] = person.
2. Well, I don't. He or she?
2a. [gwa" m_tzai-ya~" |neQ-//dta-bpO=/-|e' yaQ=si_\ tza-bO"|e']
[gwa"] = I; [m_tzai-ya~"] = know not; [.neQ-] = final particle usually for ending a negative
answer similar to starting with 'well' in an English negative answer; [dta-bpO=/-] =
man; [yaQ=si.-] = or; [tza-bO"] = woman; [.e'] = enclitic attribute marker.
3. He, I think.
3a. [gwa" syu~- i=/- si_/ dta-bpO=/-|e']
[gwa"] = I; [syu~-] = think; [i=/-] = he, him, she, her; [si-] = linking verb; [dta-bpO=/-]
= man; [.e'] = enclitic attribute marker.
4. Then, who's he?
4a. [a=ne= i=/- si_/ sya~mi=/+/ laNg+]
[a=ne=] = thus or then; [i=/-] = he, him, she, her]; [si-] = linking verb; [sya~=/+mi"]
= what; [laNg+] = person )
5. The ancient Greek author of two famous classic epics. You see?
5a. [qO=/+tza" he-la=/+s(u)Q- nNg_pi~-/ ku-la=si=k(u)Q=/ e-pi=k(u)Q- |e'/tzOK=tzya"//
tzai-ya~" |bo']
[qO=/+tza"] = long ago, old times; [he-la=/+s(u)Q-] = Hellas; [nNg-] = two; [pi~=/-]
= numerative for counting of literary works; [ku-la=si=k(u)Q-] = classic; [e-pi=k(u)Q-]
= epic; [.e'] = enclitic attribute marker; [tzOK=tzya"] = author; [tzai-ya~"] = know; [.bo']
= final partical as a yes-or-no interrogative.
6. By what names?
6a. [ho_tzo"\ sya~=mi"]
[ho-] = (to) name/be named; [tzo.'] = clitic particle derived from [tzo'] for (to) work/
make, and used after a verb to yield the meaning of 'to become as ...'; [sya~=/+mi"]
= what.
7. The Illiad and the Odyssey.
7a. [Iliad ham-/_\ Odyssey]
Now we shall examine each of the questions in this dialogue and some enriching examples to be given later to detail the contrastive features between English and Hoyloy just mentioned.
Question 1. demonstrates the constrain for a yes-or-no question in English with the auxilliary verb 'do' in front of the subject 'you', whereas the first counterpart in Hoyloy, question 1a., makes use of the interrogative final particle [bo'] to mark out the sentence as a yes-or-no question. Another way of forming a yes-or-no question in Hoyloy gets the yes-or-no interrogative [si_m_si-] to introduce the predicate in a sentence such as examplified by question 1b. Still another type of yes-or-no question is called the hesitative question with the hesitative interrogative [qam."] such as examplified in question 1c. In Hoyloy usually you pose a hesitative question when a positive answer is not particularly wished or highly expected. But often it can be simply a practice of courtesy or rhetoric.
For negative yes-or-no questions, let us look at the following four examples.
8. Don't you want to see the doctor?
8a. [li" qam=/+\ bo_/=ai"/ ki"/ kwa~"/i-sE/iNg=];
[li] = you; [qam."] = hesitative interrogative; [bo_/-ai'] = don't want; [ki'] = go; [kwa~']
=see; [i-sE/iNg=] = doctor.
8b. [li" bo_ai"/ ki"/ kwa~"/ i-sE/iNg= syOQ-]
[li] = you; [bo_/-ai'] = don't want; [ki'] = go; [kwa~'] = see; [i-sE/iNg=] = doctor;
[.syOQ-] = interrogative final particle.
8c. [li" bo_ai"/ ki"/ kwa~"/ i-sE/iNg= hO~Q-]
[li] = you; [bo_/-ai'] = don't want; [ki'] = go; [kwa~'] = see; [i-sE/iNg=] = doctor;
[.hO~Q-] = interrogative final particle.
The interrogative [.syOQ-] suggests somthing like 'it dosen't seem quite good if you don't want to go to see the doctor'. It is the short form of [si-|bo'] and can be replaced with [si-|m'] or [simQ-]. And the interrogative [hO~Q-] hints that 'it seems to me that you don't want to see the doctor'. These interrogatives can also be used in non-negative yes-or-no questions such as:
9. You can speak Japanese? (disapproving)
9a. [li" e_hyau=/+/ qONg=/+ Rit_bpun=/+we-|syOQ-]
[li"] = you; [e_hyau"] = can; [qONg"] = speak; [Rit_bpun=/+we] = Japanese.
10. Isn't it that you can speak Japanese? (approving)
10a. [li" e_hyau=/+/ qONg=/+ Rit_bpun=/+we-|hO~Q-]
[li"] = you; [e_hyau"] = can; [qONg"] = speak; [Rit_bpun=/+we] = Japanese.
Question 2. is the short form for the or-question:
11. 'Is the person by the name of Homer a man or a woman?
11a. [ho_tzo"\ Homer tzit=e-/_/ laNg+ si_/ dta-bpO=/-|e' yaQ=si_\ tza-bO"|e']
[ho-] = (to) name/be named; [tzo.'] = clitic particle derived from [tzo'] for (to) work/
make, and used after a verb to yield the meaning of 'to become as ...'; [tzit=e+] =
this one; [laNg+] = person; [si-] = linking verb; [dta-bpO=] = man; [yaQ=si.-] = or;
[tza-bO"] = woman; [.e'] = enclitic attributive marker.
While question 11 in English follows the forming scheme of a yes-or-no question ending with an or-switch, the word or plays the role of marking its short form as a question. In both of the Hoyloy counterparts, question 2a. and 11a., the or-interrogative [yaQ=si.-]*, equivalent to the English or, functions alone as an interrogative in a question.
* In my opion, it is likely that the word [yaQ=si.-], compound of [yaQ+/=] (change) and [si-] (become) for the meaning of or, has switched the linking tone of its first syllable from the flat pattern to the high level pattern. This is necessary for keeping it from confusioning with the other word [ya_si.-] of Mandarin origin for the meaning of also. The indigenous Hoyloy word for also is made with the clitic [ma.-] in conjunction with [si-] or a modal verb such as [b(w)eQ-] (want)], or a predicative adjective such as [ho"] (good).
Before getting into further discussion on data interrogatives, let us pay some attention to the difference in English between a direct question and an indirect question such as that of 'who Homer is' inside question 1. Such a difference is not featured in Hoyloy as examplified in the ten questions cited below. Also, as noted in the beginning paragraph, when the wh-word itself functions as the subject, the form of a direct question is the same as its correspondant indirect question.
12. Who is Homer?
12a. [Homer si_/ sya~=/+mi=/+/ laNg+]
13. I don't know what I have to do.
13a. [gwa" m_tzai-ya~=/+/ gwa" dtyoQ_ai"/ tzo(e)"/ sya~=/+/mi"]
[dtyoQ_ai'] = have to; [tzo(e)'] = (to) work/do.
14. What do I have to do?
14a. [gwa" dtyoQ_ai"/ tzo(e)"/ sya~=/+/mi"]
15. Who asked her to go away?
15a. [Sya~-/+m"=/+/ laNg+ qyo"/i=/- tzau"]
[sya~=/+mi"] = what; [laNg+] = person; [qyo'] = (to) call; [i=/-] = he/him/she/her;
[tzau"] = run, go away.
16. Do you know who asked her to go away?
16a. [li" qam=/+\tzai-ya~=/ sya~=/+mi=/+/laNg+ qyo"/i=/- tzau"]
[li"] = you; [qam."] = hesitative interrogative; [tzai-ya~"] = know; [sya~=/+mi"]
= what; [laNg+] = person; [qyo'] = (to) call; [i=/-] = he/him/she/her; [tzau"] =
run, go away.
In contrast to that a wh-word, such as in "who's he?" (question 4), or a phrase with a wh-word such as in "by what names" (question 6), typically leads the word order in either a direct or an indirect question in English, in a Hoyloy question the slot a data interrogative holds in the word order is the same as will be the slot that is suitable to the part of speech of the data (words) labeled by the particular interrogative. The following examples in addition to those cited previously will be sufficient for our discussion here to illustrate this contrastive feature.
17. When will the game start?
17a. [bpi=/+sai' dti_si+ e_/ kai-si"]
17b. [dti_si+ bpi=/+sai' e_/ kai-si"]
17c. [bpi=/+sai' qwi=/+dtyam" e_/ kai-si"]
17d. [qwi=/+dtyam" bpi=/+sai' e_/ kai-si"]
17e. [bpi=/+sai' sya~=/+mi=/+/ si-/_tzun- e_/ kai-si"]
17f. [sya~=/+mi=/+/ si-/_tzun- bpi=/+sai' e_/ kai-si"]
17g. [dti_\sya=/+mi=/+/ si-/_tzun- bpi=/+sai' e_/ kai-si"]
17h. [ bpi=/+sai' dti_\sya=/+mi=/+/ si-/_tzun- e_/ kai-si"]
17i. [ bpi=/+sai' e_/ dti_\sya=/+mi=/+/ si-/_tzun- kai-si"]
[bpi=/+sai'] = game, contest; [dti_si+] = when; [e-] = will, can,may; [kai-si"] =
start; [qwi=/+dtyam"] = what hour; [sya=/+mi=/+/ si-/_tzun-] = what time;
[dti.-] = clitic particle for at/on/in placed in front of a time-or-location word.
18. The game will start at 3 PM.
18a. [bpi=/+sai' e-bpO= sa~-dtyam" e_/ kai-si"]
18b. [e-bpO= sa~-dtyam" bpi=/+sai' e_/ kai-si"]
18c. [bpi=/+sai' e-/ dti_\ e-bpO= sa~-dtyam" kai-si"]
[e-bpO=/-] = afternoon; [sa~-dtyam"] = three oclock.
19. Where did they go?
19a. [in-/= ki"/ dto=/+wi-]
[in-/=] = they/them; [ki'] = go; [dto=/+wi-] = where.
20. They went to the railway station.
[in-/= ki"/ h(o)e=/+tsya-/tau+]
[h(o)e=/+tsya-/tau+] = railway station.
21. How do you write it in/with kanji?
21a. [tzit-e=/+ li" b(w)eQ=/ an"tzwa~=/+ E/i(u)Ng_/ han"Ri- sya"]
[tzit-e=/+] = this; [li"] = you; [b(o)eQ-] = will/want to be; [ an"tzwa~"] = how;
[E/i(u)Ng-] = use, using (with); [han"Ri-] = kanji; [sya"] = write.
22. Like this.
22a. [tsin-tsyu~_/ an=/-ne=/-]
[tsin-tsyu~-] = (to be) like; [an=/-ne=/-] = this way.
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