Original scientific paper
Use of Indefinite Pronominal Words in Sentences such as Je li me netko/tko/tkogod tražio? (Did anyone ask for me?)
Mate Milas
Abstract
The paper explores grammatical and semantic explication of the normative rule about
correct/incorrect use of indefinite pronouns in sentences such as: Je li me netko/tko/tkogod
tražio? (Did anyone ask for me?) in standard Croatian language. In normative rules of the
appropriate use of standard language the difference between indefinite pronouns with the
prefix ne- and pronouns without affixes or with the suffix -god is based on two distinctive features: existence/nonexistence of referent and unknown identity of referent. The author
thinks that the first distinctive feature is not precise enough and that the second one is partly
inaccurate. The difference between these series of indefinite pronouns could be precisely
described by grammatical and semantic concepts of specificity or referentiality, which were
used in linguistics from 1960’s. It is interesting that these concepts were described by the
Croatian linguist August Musić at the end of the 19th century in his articles about the use
of indefinite pronouns in the Croatian language. For these concepts, he proposed the terms
individual indefinite and general indefinite. Individual indefinite implies that a particular
entity has already been actualized but the speaker can not or does not want to name it more
precisely and therefore uses an indefinite pronoun (Netko kuca na vrata. Nešto sam ti kupio.
Somebody knocks on the door. I bought you something.), and general indefinite means
that the choice of a particular entity has not been realized yet and that it can be any entity
from the group of the same kind (Ako tko/tkogod pokuca na vrata, pozovite me. If anyone
knocks on the door, call me.).
Keywords
standard Croatian language; indefinite pronouns; specificity; unspecificity; referentiality; unreferentiality; individual indefinite; general indefinite
Hrčak ID:
237729
URI
Publication date:
1.12.2019.
Visits: 1.516 *