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1994, Elders 2000), most of which fit grammatically into the class of adverbs.
Ideophones are noted for having exceptional phonological behavior, and thus are not
good evidence for the general patternings of the language. A brief excursus on their
behavior is in order. This excursus is based predominantly on Childs (1994).
The ideophone is a form of sound symbolism found in a large number of African
languages, as well as other parts of the world. It involves a non-arbitrary mating of sound
and meaning. The term can be traced to Doke (1935) who defined the ideophone as “A
vivid representation of an idea in sound. A word, often onomatopoetic, which describes a
predicate, qualificative or adverb in respect to manner, colour, smell, action, state, or
intensity.” (p. 118)
Ideophones can express several different types of notions. The most well-known
examples are onomatopoetic terms in which a word imitates a sound in nature, but this
can be metaphorically extended to the other human senses (sight, smell, taste, and touch),
for which the term “synesthesia” can be employed. Ideophones can express lengthening
or repetition of an action or state (“iconic lengthening”). In addition, phonesthemes are
generally considered to be ideophonic as well.
Doke considered the ideophone to be a grammatical category in Bantu, distinct
from nouns, verbs, etc. However, Childs notes that they ordinarily make up a subset of
one or two already established classes in a given language. It is usually more accurate to
refer to ideophonic nouns, ideophonic verbs, etc. In the majority of cases, ideophones
function syntactically as adverbs.
Several features are used to identify ideophones, but there is no single feature
which is criterial. As a result, Childs states, “It is thus best to think of ideophones as a
prototype category with a core of good members. The full set of ideophones also contains
less optimal members radiating outward from this core type and becoming less and less
ideophone-like” (p. 181).
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