expansive
sáal
light [not heavy]
sáa-sa-l
glib (words)
síis cold
síi-si-s frigid
The same is true if the vowel in root is long and low:
(7) Adjectival
Partial
Root
Gloss
Reduplication
Gloss
k’àas
bad, ugly
k’àa-k’a-s
evil, poisonous
sàak’
itchy
sàa-sa-k itchy
In one case of a root with a long vowel, the reduplicand also has a long vowel and is therefore a prefix:
náa-náač ‘rather far’ (< náač ‘far’).
REDUPLICATION
329
The glosses of the reduplicated terms in (5)-(7) contain a mixture of moderate and high intensity, sug-
gesting that some partially reduplicated terms have acquired semantic features of the earlier completely
reduplicated versions of these terms. Thus, kóo-ko-č ‘very wide’ and k’àa-k’a-s ‘evil, poisonous’ refer to high
intensity, but náa-náač ‘rather far’ and ʔú-ʔuȼ ‘nice’ encode moderate intensity. The contrast between kóoč
‘wide, broad, expansive’ and kóo-ko-č ‘very wide’ is clarified in context in (8a–b):
(8a)
le in nòok’aʔ sen kóoč
‘these clothes of mine are very wide’ (V. Bricker et al. 1998:131)
(8b)
u nòok’ š pìileʔ kóo-koč
‘Phyllis’ dress is very wide’ (V. Bricker et al. 1998:131)
In (8a), “very” is expressed by the adverbial particle, sen, whereas in (8b), it is the reduplication in kóo-ko-č
itself that expresses the same intensity.
The significance of reduplication in color terms is problematic in both Colonial and Modern Yucatec.
The Spanish glosses in the Calepino de Motul do not distinguish semantically between the plain and par-
tially reduplicated forms of the terms for “red,” “green,” and “white” (cf. [1] above), nor between the plain
and completely reduplicated forms of the term for “black” (cf. [2] above). Only the glosses for the plain and
completely reduplicated forms of the term for “red” are distinguished semantically in that source (cf. [2]
above).
Reduplicated color terms appear with some frequency in the Books of Chilam Balam of Chumayel and
Kaua, but they lack translations into Spanish by contemporary bilingual speakers of Maya and Spanish that
might have resolved the ambiguity evident in the Calepino. Furthermore, the overwhelming majority of
such color terms in those Books are only partially reduplicated. Only the term for “red” has both complete
and partial reduplications. The term for “yellow” is always completely reduplicated in those sources.
The Hocaba dialect of Modern Yucatec has retained only the partially reduplicated form of “red” and
“white” and the fully reduplicated form of “yellow.”
For an understanding of what the original semantic distinction between the complete and partial redu-
plication of color terms might have been, it is necessary to turn to Itsaj, which seems to have been more
conservative in this respect, with both partial and complete reduplication for all five color terms (Hofling
and Tesucún 1997:877–878, 903–904):
(9)
Partial
Full
Reduplication Gloss
Reduplication
Gloss
ʔe-ʔek’
rather black
ʔeek’-ʔeek’
very black
čə-čək
rather red
čək-čək
very red
k’ə-k’ən
rather yellow
k’ən-k’ən
very yellow
sə-sək
rather white
sək-sək
very white
yaʔ-yaʔaš
rather green
yaʔaš-yaʔaš
very green
On the other hand, Mopan has retained only the completely reduplicated color terms in column 3 in (9)
(Hofling 2011:6, 21, 661).
1.2. REDUPLICATED ADJECTIVES BASED ON AFFECT STEMS. The adjectival affects are marked by -ci and -nac
(cf. 2. in Chapter 12). Reduplication is a characteristic of all the -ci affects but of only one-third of all -nac
affects.
330 REDUPLICATION
Table 13-1. Fully reduplicated adjectives marked by -ci in the Calepino de Motul (Ciudad Real 1600?).
Adjective
Gloss
bi-bi-ci
slightly patched ?
can-can-ci
swollen (body part), tightened, hard (clay, wood, stone); disheveled (hair)
çab-çal-ci
drying after being wet {çalçalci misspelled}
çin-çin-ci
extended, stretched
tzay-tzay-ci
very sticky
chen-chen-ci
very calm, peaceful {cħencħenci misspelled}
hol-hol-ci
slippery, smooth
hox-hox-ci
rough
lác-lác-ci
coagulating, curdling
lem-lem-ci
strong, robust, tied tightly
lotz-lotz-ci
coagulated, curdled
lu-lu-ci
soft, soaked
maz-maz-ci
fraying, wearing out (cord)
moch-moch-ci
retracted, pulled back, shrunken, lame, crippled
mul-mul-ci
piled up
muy-muy-ci
pulverized, sifted
nol-nol-ci
hardened (clay, bread)
pok-pok-ci
drenched
pox-pox-ci
stuffed
ppoo-ppo-ci
filthy and drenched with perspiration (clothes)
ppul-ppul-ci
stuffed, swollen (boot)
ppuuy-ppuy-ci
abraded, crumbled
tepp-tepp-ci
swollen, taut
tij-tii-ci
noisy
uk-uk-ci
humid
xek-xek-ci
fallen apart from overcooking
1.2.1. REDUPLICATED ADJECTIVES MARKED BY -CI. The Calepino de Motul contains 81 adjectival stems
marked by -ci, of which 28 involve full reduplication (Table 13-1) and 53 are partially reduplicated (Table
13-2). Only three fully reduplicated stems also have partially reduplicated counterparts. The glosses for the
two kinds of stems are identical:
(10) Partial
Full
Reduplication
Reduplication
Gloss
mu-muy-ci
muy-muy-ci
pulverized, sifted
no-nol-ci
nol-nol-ci
hardened (clay, bread)
po-pox-ci pox-pox-ci stuffed
A significant difference between the full and partially reduplicated stems in Tables 13-1 and 13-2 is
the presence of root-final nasal consonants in Table 13-1 and their complete absence in the much larger
sample in Table 13-2:
REDUPLICATION 331
Table 13-2. Partially reduplicated adjectives marked by -ci in the Calepino de Motul (Ciudad Real 1600?).
Adjective
Gloss
a-ay-ci
juicy, greasy, sticky
a-ak-ci
humid, greasy
ba-bah-ci
hard, stiff (dough, bread, mud, wood, tree), shrivel (limb, skin, needlework), unyield-
&n
bsp; ing, shrunken (skin, limb)
ba-bai-ci
smooth, combed (hair)
bi-bil-ci
trampled, dragged along
bo-boh-ci
drying, dessicating (wound); dry (bark of trees); parchment) filthy
ci-cib-ci
filthy, dirty
ci-cip-ci
smooth, slippery (soap)
co-cotz-ci
brittle, fragile, easily burst (cord, thread)
co-coɔ-ci
rolled up (parchment)
co-coh-ci
tight, compressed, tightly pressed, thick (closely spaced stakes)
co-col-ci
loose
co-cop-ci
arched, bent, folded
cu-cuc-ci
fainting, swooning
cu-cuc-ci
very ripe (fruit)
cu-cutz-ci
unravelled at top or bottom (cloth)
cu-cuch-ci
taken treacherously
cu-cuy-ci
hardened (fruit); clumsy (man walking)
cu-cul-ci
hard, hardened (abscess, pimple, boil)
cu-cul-ci
noisy, clattering
ça-çah-ci
dry, parched by the sun (leaves of tree)
çi-çi-ci
very parched (plant)
ci-ciz-ci
very parched (plant) {çiçiçci misspelled}
ço-zot-ci
swollen, full of air (wine bag), inflated, stuffed (stomach full of food or gas)
cu-zul-ci
soft, very ripe (fruit) {çuzulci misspelled}
tzi-tzi[c]-ci
unravelled
ɔa-ɔa[c]-ci
humid
cha-chal-ci
melting in sun or fire (wax, grease) {cħacħalci misspelled}
cħa-cħa[c]-ci
remembering or learning quickly
cħa-chap-ci
greasy, dirty, filthy, stained with filth {cħacħapci misspelled}
cħe-cħeh-ci
very close together, tight, compact
ha-hac-ci
slippery, slick
ha-ha[ɔ]-ci
shiny (knife, glossy horse, combed hair of a woman) {hahaɔci misspelled ?}
ha-hax-ci
curly, twist (hair)
he-hepp-ci
creaking, squeaking
hu-hucħ-ci
dense, thick, close-woven (blanket, basket)
hu-hutħ-ci
narrow, tight
ka-kax-ci
tied very tightly
la-lab-ci
rotten (plants, roots)
lo-lo[c]-ci
damp, humid (perspiration, fog, drizzle)
332 REDUPLICATION
Table 13-2. (cont’d) Partially reduplicated adjectives marked by -ci in the Calepino de Motul.
Adjective
Gloss
ma-mak-ci
soft, tender
mu-muk-ci
patient, long-suffering
mu-muy-ci
pulverized, sifted
no-nol-ci
hardened (clay, bread)
no-notħ-ci
thin, feeble, frail (man because of some illness); impoverished, dried out (soil that
lacks moisture and substance and is not good for cornfields, where there are rocks)
o-oɔ-ci
wrinkling
o-opp-ci
dried out from too much toasting, roasting, or cooking
pa-pach-ci
stuck, sticky, viscous {papakci misspelled}
pi-piz-ci
ordinary, common
po-pot-ci
smooth, slippery
po-pox-ci
stuffed
ua-uah-ci
dry (corn on the cob, beans in pod)
xi-xicħ-ci
full, stuffed, swollen
xu-xul-ci
to the utmost
(11) Full
Reduplication
Gloss
can-can-ci
swollen (body part), tightened, hard (clay, wood, stone); dishelveled (hair)
çin-çin-ci
extended, stretched
cħen-cħen-ci
very calm, peaceful
lem-lem-ci
strong, robust, tied tightly
Missing from both tables, of course, is unambiguous evidence of root-final glottal stop, but the doubling
of vowels, combined with semantic information, have made it possible to identify the presence of a glottal
stop in several cases. None of the roots in either table seem to have had a root-final laryngeal “h.”
In the transition from Colonial to Modern Yucatec, -ci became -kil, and the number of fully reduplicated
adjectives marked by this suffix declined significantly. Only nasal- and glottal-stop-final roots have fully
reduplicated forms today. The fully reduplicated nasal-final examples in the Hocaba dictionary of Modern
Yucatec are listed below:
(12) Full
Reduplication
Gloss
b’an-b’an-kil
fat, heavy
ȼan-ȼan-kil
hardened, tempered
ȼ’an-ȼ’an-kil
dense (leaves), crammed (meat in stew)
čin-čin-kil
bowed [from weight of fruit]
č’en-č’en-kil heavy
kan-kan-kil
stiff (neck, back)
son-son-kil
thick, covered (with weeds or vines)
tin-tin-kil
taut, tight
t’in-t’in-kil
very tight (guitar strings)
REDUPLICATION 333
They seem to be examples of persistent nasalization in cases where the base or root of the reduplication
contains a final nasal consonant and the copy of a reduplicated form must have the same feature. How-
ever, the Hocaba dictionary also contains two partially reduplicated N-final examples, implying that the
retention of final N is optional:
(13) Partial
Reduplication
Gloss
le_-len-kil
firm, heavy
wa_-wan-kil
stuffed, blown up
The fully reduplicated stems based on roots that end in a glottal stop appear below:
(14)
Full
Reduplication
Gloss
b’íʔi-b’iʔ-kil
soft, smooth
ȼ’iʔ-ȼ’iʔ-kil
sparkling clean
ȼ’úʔu-ȼ’uʔ-kil
soft, mushy
čáʔa-čáʔa-kil loose
háʔa-haʔ-kil juicy
síʔi-síʔi-kil
dry [in sun or near fire]
t’iʔ-t’iʔ-kil distended
yuʔ-yuʔ-kil soft
It should be noted that, in the data, sometimes a morpheme-final glottal stop has an echo vowel (a total
copy of the preceding vowel) after it. Consequently, the root and the reduplicated form are realized as CVʔ
or CVʔV.
Two roots that end in a glottal stop are only partially reduplicated in the Hocaba dictionary:
(15) Partial
Reduplication
Gloss
hu_-huʔ-kil
very thick (leaves on tree)
pa_-paʔ-kil drenched
Another group of reduplicated CV-CVʔ-kil stems are based on roots that end in glottalized velar /k’/
consonants:
(16)
Partial
Root
Reduplication
Gloss
ȼak’
ȼa_-ȼaʔ-kil
very sharp (knife, scissors)
čok’
čo_-čoʔ-kil crammed
k’áak’
k’a_-k’aʔ-kil dessicated
nuk’
nu_-nuʔ-ki
l encysted
píʔik’
pi_-piʔ-kil
loose (post, tooth)
tak’
ta_-taʔ-kil sticky
tuk’
tu_-tuʔ-kil bulging
These velar-final roots are interesting because the original root is modified when followed by /kil/, a suffix
beginning in a velar consonant.
334 REDUPLICATION
As can be seen below, non-velar glottalized root-final consonants are retained:
(17) Partial
Reduplication
Gloss
ʔó-ʔoȼ’-kil
covered with wrinkles
ʔó-ʔop’-kil fragile
ha-hap’-kil gritty
he-hep’-kil
tightened, cinched
hi-hiȼ’-kil
extractable; painful (crying)
hi-hič’-kil
porous, grainy
ho-hoȼ’-kil
disintegrated, rotten
ho-hoč’-kil limp
ki-kiȼ’-kil grimy
le-leȼ’-kil
glistening, shining
lo-lot’-kil
shrivelled, wrinkled
na-nat’-kil
cramped, crowded
ni-nič’-kil itchy
no-not’-kil shrivelled
pa-pač’-kil
weak [from drinking]
po-poȼ’-kil
very slippery
sa-saȼ’-kil
elastic, weak, shaky
te-tep’-kil
easily burst
to-toč’-kil
very drunk
ya-yač’-kil
squishy (mud), oozy (blister)
As (18) shows, final h’s are also retained before -kil:
(18) Partial
Reduplication
Gloss
b’a-b’ah-kil
swollen, inflamed [with pus]; crowded (bus, house)
b’o-b’oh-kil
swollen, flatulent (stomach, like a drum); dry (cough, throat, lungs)
b’u-b’uh-kil
dense, thick (leaves on trees); splittable
ȼa-ȼah-kil
well toasted
ȼ’u-ȼ’uh-kil
creamy (beans)
čo-čoh-kil
hanging (fruits)
č’e-č’eh-il
sticking up (points or tips)
ko-koh-kil
densely woven
no-noh-kil
hanging around
to-toh-kil
taut, tight
t’o-t’oh-kil brittle
we-weh-kil
loose (grains on corncob)
Roots ending in plain consonants are also partially reduplicated when followed by -kil (Table 13-3).
On the other hand, the Hocaba dictionary contains examples of b’-, and ȼ’-final roots that reduce them
to /ʔ/ before -kil:
REDUPLICATION 335
(19)
Partial
Root
Reduplication
Gloss
ȼ’aȼ’
ȼ’a_-ȼ’aʔ-kil squishy
kib’
ki_-kiʔ-kil
dirty, filthy (clothing)
Itsaj has followed a different path in its evolution from Proto-Yucatecan. In Itsaj, the CVC root redu-
A Historical Grammar of the Maya Language of Yucatan (1557-2000) Page 55