The morphology of Ịzọn : materials for establishing the word as a linguistic unit in Tarakiri

Abstract

This study explores the morphology of Tarakiri in the context of the notion of word. After discussing the genetic relationship of Tarakiri to its near relations, and providing a sociolinguistic overview of the role it plays in society and the geo-linguistic background of the Ịzọn (ızɔ) people and their language, we discuss the status of Ịzọn as a main language in Nigeria and among the Ijọ languages of the Niger Delta, as well as the ethnography and demography of the Ịzọn. We give a linguistic classification of Ịzọn and provide background information on the Tarakiri people and dialect, as well as a brief history of Tarakiri. We note that Tarakiri is a North-Western and South-Central dialect of Ịzọn, spoken in Ekeremor Local Government Area (LGA), Sagbama LGA and Southern Ijọ LGA of Bayelsa State and in Bomadi LGA of Delta State, by the people of Adọbụ, Agbere, Amatolo, Angalabiri, Ayamasa, Bulou-Orua, Ebedebiri, Egbemọ-Angalabiri, Isampou, Lalagbene, Obololi, Oduofori, Odurubu, Ofoni, Tọrụ-Orua and Bulou-Orua towns. Using data collected by means of Comrie & Smith (1977), participation in everyday life and cultural activities, observation and informal interviews, then collating, and analysing the data as well as making inferences from relevant available raw linguistic data, textbooks, journals and on-line materials, we discuss the research methods and materials, how the available textbooks, journals and online materials were handled and used, and the grounds for choosing the descriptive approach to record what native speakers actually say or write. After a detailed review of the literature on the notion of the word in cross-linguistic typology and in African languages, tone in African languages, Ịzọn, and Tarakiri, as well as lexical and grammatical tone in Tarakiri, we provide a comprehensive description of the morphology of Tarakiri by describing the various word classes in Tarakiri with a view to determining the status of the word in Tarakiri. We discuss nouns and noun morphology including gender, number, determiners/articles, pronouns, adjectives, numerals, verbs and verbal morphology including tense and the formal marking of tense distinctions, aspect, mood, negation, adverbs, postpositions, locatives, ideophones, interjections, greetings, questions, conjunctions, emphasizers, commands and requests. We then discuss the word formation processes in Tarakiri including borrowed words, acronyms, compound morphology and inflectional morphology. We take a preliminary look at materials for establishing the status of the word in Tarakiri, and discuss the problems relating to establishing the word in Tarakiri. We conclude by summarizing the findings of the study in establishing the word as a morphological unit in Tarakiri, giving the salient points necessary for establishing the word and determining its status in Tarakiri, the contributions of this work to knowledge, the applications and the social significance of the research, as well as the relevance of this study on a national and international scale.