Datapoint Berbice Dutch/Special dependent person forms for subject and object

The "short" 3SG pronouns are subject to distributional restrictions, which suggest that these are dependent pronouns. In particular, 3SG o (used by all speakers) is not used emphatically, does not appear in dislocated position or in focus, and cannot be conjoined or modified, in contrast with the full form ori, which is not restricted in this manner. Furthermore, the 3SG form a, whose use is idiosyncratically restricted to a single speaker, is used only as non-emphatic subject pronoun.

Values

Dependent subject and object forms

Example 28-32:
ori, o noko redi noko ka
ori,
3sg
o
3sg
no-ko
not-res
redi
ready
noko
yet
ka
neg
As for her, she wasn't ready yet.

Source: Kouwenberg 1994: 649

Example 28-39:
o kumu fragtɛk bi ɛk ma swɛto
o
3sg
kom
come
fragi-tɛ
ask-pfv
ɛkɛ
1sg
bi
say
ɛkɛ
1sg
ma
irr
swɛt
sweat
o
3sg
He came to ask me if I would give him a steam bath.

Source: Kouwenberg 1994: 662

Confidence:
Intermediate