The negative existential cycle in Bantu

Renewal of negation has received ample study in Bantu languages. Still, the relevant literature does not mention a cross-linguistically recurrent source of standard negation, i.e., the existential negator. The present paper aims to find out whether this gap in the literature is indicative of the absence of the Negative Existential Cycle (NEC) in Bantu languages. It presents a first account of the expression of negative existence in a geographically diverse sample of 93 Bantu languages. Bantu negative existential constructions are shown to display a high degree of formal variation within both dedicated and non-dedicated constructions. Although such variation is indicative of change, existential negators do not tend to induce changes at the same level as standard negation. The only clear cases of the spread of an existential negator to the domain of standard negation in this study appear to be prompted by sustained language contact.

班图语支（Bantu languages）中的否定更新现象已得到充分研究。然而，现有相关文献并未提及跨语言层面反复出现的一类标准否定词来源——存在否定词。本文旨在探究文献中的这一空白是否表明班图语支中不存在否定存在循环（Negative Existential Cycle，NEC）。本文首次对地理分布多样的93种班图语支语言的否定存在表达进行了系统性考察。研究显示，班图语支的否定存在结构在专用结构与非专用结构中均呈现出高度的形式变异。尽管此类变异暗示着语言演变，但存在否定词并不会像标准否定词那样在同一层级引发演变。本研究中，存在否定词扩展至标准否定词领域的仅有的明确案例，似乎均由持续语言接触所触发。