The Verb System in Anaraki: Morphosemntic Categories, Split Agreement System

In this contribution, we aim to analyze the architecture of "verb system" in Anaraki, a central dialect of Iran, regarding the morphosemantics categories and the split agreement system. We argue that in Anaraki, the past tense is expressed through both the affix marker and the split agreement system. Through this split system, the position and the form of the agreement marker change according to the tense, in other words they are encoded tense-sensitively. Anaraki data show that the agreement markers in preset tense are agreement affixes while proclitics in past. This rare condition is of importance because the agreement markers are commonly represented in suffix forms. This portrays a significant linguistic principle that the less a category is related to the root, the more distant it stands from the root. Based on this principle, agreement markers are expected to be positioned at the end of the verbal root, as they are not semantically related to the root, but syntactically. Anaraki interestingly rejects this universal tendency.

Extended Abstract 
1. Introduction
Iranian Languages are a group of related languages, known as a branch of a larger Indo-European language family portraying a remarkably similar pattern shown by the linguistic tree and the generic tree of human ancestry that was verified statistically. The Iranian languages are grouped in three stages: Old, Middle and New and the latter is geographically divided into three subdivisions: Western, Eastern and Central dialects. Anaraki is one of the districts of the county of Na`in in the eastern part of Isfahan province and therefore Anaraki dialect belongs to the Central branch of New Iranian languages. Whereas Semnan province is one of geographic borders of Anarak, the data is collected from Semnan Province and from the city of Shahroud. In this research, we aim to analyze the verb system of Anaraki based on the morphosemantic categories and the split agreement system. Morphosemantic categories including: tense, mood, negation and aspect add related meanings without controlling other elements and split agreement system is referred to an agreement system in which the agreement markers show tense- sensitiveness and the forms of both suffixes and clitics.
 
2. Theoretical Framework
The verb system in Anaraki is analyzed through the morphosemantic features and the split agreement system. To do so, the categories are evaluated using three different theoretical frameworks namely canonical agreement, grammaticalization and relevance principle. The morphosemantic features are studied based upon the “Grammatical Features Inventory”. Following Canonical agreement in which the suffixes form the agreement canonical markers, we portray that Anaraki rejects the theory as it presents the agreement through both suffixes and proclitics. Grammaticalizatiion theory also shows that unlike Persian and many other languages in which the most grammaticalized elements namely affixes encode the agreement relationship, Anaraki uses the less grammaticalized elements namely clitics. Regarding the relevance principle which accredits the direct relationship between the meaning relevance of the elements with the word base and their distance, Anaraki does not follow the principle as it holds the syntactic relation of agreement through the closest element of proclitics in past tense.
 
3. Methodology
The research method in this paper is “survey” method through “interviews”. As Anarak is located at the south part of Semnan province, many Anaraki speakers live in this province specially in the city of Shahroud. Therefore, the data of Anaraki speakers of Shahroud (including 3 men and 3 women, aged 50-90, undergraduate) were gathered by two of the authors who are Shahroud residents. Interviews were carried out in person i.e. face-to-face and also over the phone. The direct interviews were held both in the interviewees’ dwellings and at a more neutral place. It was important for interviewees to decide whether they are comfortable about inviting the researcher into their home and whether they have a room or area where they can speak freely without disturbing other members of the household. The interviewers adopted both a formal and informal approach, either letting the interviewee speak freely about a particular issue or asking specific pre-determined questions. When conducting the interview, the researchers had a check list or a form to record answers and subsequently started to extract the morphosemantic and the agreement markers.
 
4. Result & Discussion
In this contribution, we aimed to analyze the architecture of verb in Anaraki, a central dialect of Iran, regarding the morphosemantic categories and the split agreement system. We demonstrated that the marker of the three imperative, declarative and subjunctive moods is identical and the prefix e-. We also argued that in Anaraki the past tense and the negation are expressed through the suffix: -t and the prefix na- respectively. It was also showed that past tense is encoded through both the affix marker and the split agreement system. Through this rare split system, the position and the form of the agreement marker changes according to the tense, in other words it is encoded tense-sensitively. Based upon Anaraki data, it was recognized that agreement markers in present tense show suffix form but proclitics in past tense.
 
5. Conclusion and Suggestions
Anaraki data show that the agreement markers in preset tense are agreement affixes while proclitics in past. This rare condition is of importance because the agreement markers are often represented in suffix forms. This portrays a significant linguistic principle that the less a category is related to the root, the more distant it stands to the root. Based on this principle, agreement markers are expected to be positioned at the end of the verbal root, as they are not semantically related to the root, but syntactically. Anaraki rejects this universal tendency.