Cross-generational Differences in Spatial Language in aṣ-Ṣāniʿ Arabic

Abstract

I compare linguistic representations of projective spatial relations in two varieties of aṣ-Ṣāniʿ Arabic: Traditional aṣ-Ṣāniʿ Arabic (TAA), spoken by those over age 67, and New aṣ-Ṣāniʿ Arabic (NAA), spoken by the rest of the tribe. My comparison pertains to spatial prepositions and Frames of Reference (FoRs). FoRs – Intrinsic/Relative/Absolute ̶ are semantic strategies used to project coordinate systems onto spatial arrays in order to locate an object F (figure) in relation to another object G (ground) (Levinson 2003). TAA selects the appropriate FoR in context in accordance with Gs’ cultural properties and axial constraints: Intrinsic FoR applies only to [+FAMILIAR][+SHAPED] Gs (man/horse/camel/tent/coffee-pot) with prepositions giddām/gabl/ (ʿa)wijh, while (ʿa)wijh/gabl serve when FG [+FACING-EACH-OTHER] and giddām when FG [FACING-EACH-OTHER]. Relative FoR is applied via Translation to [+FAMILIAR][-SHAPED] Gs (stone/tree/pole/pillow); Absolute FoR is used with [-FAMILIAR] Gs (cow/dinosaur/shoe/chair). Relative and Absolute FoRs are represented by two grammatical strategies: basic prepositions (F wara/šarg G) and “min-chains” (F min G w-ǧāy/ġād/šarg) following Gs and axial distinctions. Each FoR correlates exclusively to certain prepositions (prepositional split). NAA loses traditional ontology of Gs and axial oppositions; prepositional split regresses: gabl applies only when FG [+HUMAN][+FACING-EACH-OTHER]; giddām/(ʿa)wijh serve Intrinsic and Relative FoRs, on all Gs, without axial constraints; Absolute FoR is used only on geographic scale; Relative FoR is applied via Translation and Reflection; the opposition between basic prepositions vs. min-chains in Absolute and Relative FoRs disappears, as min-chains vanish. Beginning with the establishment of the State of Israel and through the early 1950s, the generational gap between TNA and NAA shows how material culture, formal education, language contact, and life style modify the semantics of space and its experience.