Realis and Non-Realis Modalities in Daakie (Ambrym, Vanuatu)

Abstract

This paper analyzes the system of modality marking in Daakie, an Austronesian (Oceanic) language spoken on Ambrym (Vanuatu). Daakie has a fiveway distinction that expresses both temporal and modal notions. In addition to a realis marker there is a potentialis marker for events that are expected to happen, a distal marker for temporally or modally remote events, a realis negation, and a potentialis negation. These markers are used in main and dependent clauses, where they express factive and negative interpretations