Non-Canonical Switch-Reference in Serer

Abstract

This paper takes a closer look at third-person pronouns in the Atlantic language Serer. In canonical affirmative clauses, the language disposes of two sets of non-locative subject pronouns. Previous descriptions of the language relate their distribution to conjugation paradigms on the one hand and/or to construction types on the other. However, an analysis of corpus data clearly contradicts these claims. The data rather provide evidence for a functional account of these pronouns relating their distribution to non-canonical switch-reference -- in the sense that it deviates from the definition of prototypical instances of the latter. This finding contributes to the description of variations of switch-reference systems in general as well as to a more accurate typological profile of Serer.