Focus sensitivity in Mabia and Yoruboid

This dissertation investigates the syntax-semantics properties of association with focus sensitive particles in three West African languages: Kasem, Kusaal, and Yorùbá. Specifically, I investigate three focus sensitive particles that have been classified as involving conventional association with focus (Beaver and Clark, 2008). These are 'only', 'also', and 'even'. These particles are focus sensitive because they interact in different ways with the alternatives evoked by the focus constituent. In the three languages, these focus sensitive particles can either be realized adfocally or adverbially, each realization having a distinct morphological form. I propose a uniform analysis for the different associative properties of these particles by arguing for a Propositional Approach. This approach is based on the assumption that the interpretation of each of these focus sensitive particles is always licensed by a propositional operator, which must occupy a propositional position in the syntax. This is especially the case when we are dealing with adfocal association with focus. The minimal propositional node in this case is vP, and the adverbial focus sensitive particles may overtly realize these propositional operators. However, I show that while the covert operators have flexible distribution in the clausal spine, the adverbial focus sensitive particles are restricted in their distribution due to language-specific structural/morphological constraints. The consequence of such a proposal is that we are able to account for a wide range of structural and semantic possibilities that these focus sensitive particles present in these languages. On the other hand, I argue against a Quantifier Approach, which assumes that adfocal particles undergo type-shifting and composes with its focus associate to form a single quantifier, which then undergoes quantifier-raising at LF to a propositional position. I argue that this approach is deficient in many regards, and unlike the Propositional Approach, cannot account for all the syntax-semantic properties of these particles. To support for my claim, I provide morphological, syntactic, and semantic evidence in these languages. Furthermore, contrary to the claim in the literature that, with the Propositional Approach, the adfocal exclusive particles are just agreement morphemes that are semantically vacuous, I argue that these particles perform distinct and dedicated functions. They parameterize the evoked alternatives’ scale used for different exclusive scalar interpretations. The study then provides structural analyses for these focus sensitive particles in relation to their focus associates. The motivation for this study is due to the lack of adequate investigation on the phenomenon of association with focus among the African languages. This study, therefore, provides both empirical and theoretical contributions to association with focus phenomenon, and the theory of focus generally.