The imperative paradigm of Korowai, a Greater Awyu language of West Papua

The imperative paradigm of Korowai, a Papuan language of West Papua, is the richest independent verb paradigm of Korowai: it makes the same distinctions as all other independent verb paradigms but makes more distinctions in grammatical person: three grammatical persons rather than conflation of second and third person as in all other Korowai and Greater Awyu verb paradigms. This formal richness is matched by functional richness: imperatives are used in a typologically striking range of contexts, for example in bridging constructions (tail–head linkage), in the domain of inner states (through quotative framing of emotion, thoughts, and intentions) and in both addressee-inclusive and addressee-exclusive contexts (in the case of first person plural imperatives). Diachronically, the Korowai imperative paradigm developed from a basic injunctive zero paradigm of proto Greater Awyu that has reflexes in all branches and languages of the Greater Awyu family.