grammatical constraints and motivations for - University of the ...

Turn Mixed verb Afrikaans equivalent
852 ge-split verdeel
858 ge-bless gesëen
911 ge-jummuah no single- word equivalent
All of the above counter-examples can be accounted for in terms of social
motivations. It is crucial to bear in mind that the tone of this talk-show is
informal and humorous, simulating an informal, casual conversation between
friends.
In turn 14, the host opts to use ‘ge-navigate’ instead of, ‘gevaar’. This may be
due to the fact that ‘gevaar’ also exists in Afrikaans as a noun, meaning ‘danger’.
It is likely that the host has chosen not to use the word as a verb as listeners would
be more familiar with the noun, which carries a negative connotation.
Historically, the word gevaar is also closely associated with the National Party’s
1948 election slogan, ‘swart gevaar’, which led to the institution of apartheid.
Also, by using a ‘big’ word (navigate), the host may be attempting to sound more
professional and knowledgeable. In a sense, using a fancy, uncommon English
word provides the speaker with some degree of prestige.
In turn 55, ‘ge-lug’ is used to replace ‘gesleep’. This may be due to a close
association between the noun, ‘luggage’, and its verb, ‘lug’. In addition, the
correct Afrikaans verb, ‘gesleep’, suggests dragging and pulling, which in actual
fact does not give a correct interpretation of what the person being spoken about
was doing, as he was pushing his bags on a trolley, rather than dragging it on the
ground.
‘Ge-argue’ in turn 55 could possibly be a shortened form of the phonetically
similar Afrikaans equivalent, i.e. ‘geargumenteer’. The host may also have
chosen not to use the correct Afrikaans verb as it is not a commonly used word in
everyday conversation. The Cape Flats audience would more likely use the verb
‘geskel’, which is directly translated into English as ‘scold’. ‘Geargumenteer’
would be thought of as formal and would be unfamiliar to the audience.
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