현대몽골어 첨사 č의 의미와 기능

On the meaning and function of the particle č of modern Mongolian

There is much disagreement in the literature about the true nature of the particle `c˘`, which has been often treated as an emphatic particle in most of the previous studies. While some argue that it should be defined as an concession particle, others still maintain it on be a connective particle. This paper attempts to provide a consistent account of the true nature of the particle `c˘`. The findings obtained in this paper are as follows: Firstly, the particle `c˘` presuppose that the registered or expected sister members explicitly or implicitly exist in a given discourse or in the context including the speaker-addressee assumption. The sister members have the same value as the c˘-attached element has. So the meaning of the particle `c˘` is `equality` or `inclusion`. Secondly, the particle `c˘` should be added to interrogative prowords to make indefinite prowords which constitute Negative polarity items licensed by strong negatives. Thirdly, linguistic expression denoting poles or extreme value in pragmatic scales constitute polarity items with the help of the particle `c˘`. In this case the meaning of the particle `c˘` is characterized by concession going down to the least expected bottom line. Fourthly, the particle `c˘` can be attached to some adverbials or adjectivals to intensify only their original meaning, hence an emphtic particle. And we also analysed the meaning of the particle `c˘` after some converbal constructions to be a mere emphatic one. In sum, this paper argues that the primary meaning of the particle `c˘` of modern Mongolian should be equality or inclusion, not emphasis or concession which was claimed to be by most of previous studies. and the meaning of concession could arise from the fact of going down to the least expected bottom line in pragmatic scales. Otherwise the meaning of the particle `c˘` after some adverbials, adjectivals or converbals should be construed as a mere emphatic one.