Pronominal Clitics in Brahui Language

Abstract

Brahui, an ancient Dravidian language spoken predominantly in parts of Pakistan Iran and Afghanistan, exhibits an intricate system of pronominal clitics, contributing to the flexibility and dynamism of its syntax. This research paper investigates the usage and positioning of pronominal clitics in Brahui, Specifically, it focuses on the pronominal clitics tā (3PL), ta (3SG), and ka (1SG), examining their role in sentence construction and their impact on word order. In Brahui, the normal word order follows Subject-Object-Verb (SOV), as exemplified in sentences like "I asked him" (ī oṛān harrifeṭ). However, pronominal clitics, when combined with a preposed case suffix, can alter the word order to Subject-Verb-Object (SVO). This paper aims to explore the reasons behind this shift in word order, the grammatical implications of pronominal clitics, and the syntactic structures that accommodate such changes. Through an analysis of linguistic data and examples from Brahui texts, it seeks to contribute to our understanding of the syntactic flexibility and morphological complexity of Brahui, shedding light on the intricate interplay between pronominal clitics and word order in the language.