Original scientific paper

What is the Dative if Possession?

Dubravko Kučanda ; Pedagoški fakultet, Zagreb

Abstract

Possessive dative is a notion which recurs in the description of many languages that have
overt case marking distinctions between nominatives (typical subjects), accusatives (typical
direct objects) and datives (typical indirect objects). The basic ideas lurking behind the term
possessive dative are that it is semantically equivalent to possesive determiners or genitives
and that it can be used only with a limited set of nouns, which is usually restricted to
nouns denoting inalienable possession (e. g. kinship terms and body parts).
This paper argues that possessive datives are not derived from the same source as possessive
determiners or genitives and that they are therefore not semantically and pragmatically
equivalent with them. The evidence in support of this claim is mainly adduced from Croatian,
German and Polish, but a comparison is also made with some equivalent constructions
in Dutch. More specifically, it is argued that the so-called dative of possession is a pragmatic
device which enables the speaker to empathize with the referent of the dative, that
is, to present the state of affairs expressed by the predication from the point of view of the
referent of the dative.

Keywords

Hrčak ID:

24215

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/24215

Publication date:

3.6.1996.

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