Macedonian Grammar

14. Relative Clauses

Chapter 14 Relative Clauses 1. Types of Relative Clauses In Macedonian, there are three types of subordinate clauses introduced by ‘wh’ words which can be referred to as ‘relative’: (a) clauses that relate to and modify nouns, to which we shall refer as “noun-antecedent relative clauses”, (b) clauses that relate to and modify pronouns, to which we shall refer as “pronoun-antecedent relative clauses”, and (c) clauses which occur without antecedents and impart information that is indirectly related to the information contained in the root clause, to which we shall refer as “free relative clauses”. (1) a. Studentot kojšto ќe pobedi student+the.M.Sg who.M.Sg+that will.Mod.Cl win.3Sg.Pf.Pres ќe odi vo Pariz. will.Mod.Cl go.3Sg in Paris ‘The student that wins will go to Paris.’ b. Toj kojšto ќe pobedi that.M.Sg who.M.Sg+that will.Mod.Cl win.3Sg.Pf.Pres ќe odi vo Pariz. will.Mod.Cl go.3Sg in Paris ‘The one that wins will go to Paris.’ c. Kojšto ќe pobedi ќe who.M.Sg+that will.Mod.Cl win.3Sg.Pf.Pres will.Mod.Cl odi vo Pariz. go.3Sg in Paris ‘Whoever wins will go to Paris.’ 2. Noun-Antecedent Relative Clauses The noun-antecedent relative clauses can be restrictive or appositive, the former restricting the reference to the head nouns, i.e., the nouns they modify, the latter serving as parenthetical comments or afterthoughts. Though there is no difference in the types of nouns that can be modified by restrictive or by appositive relative clauses, these 430 A GRAMMAR OF MACEDONIAN two types of relative clauses are referentially different: while the nouns modified by restricttive relative clauses cannot have unique reference before the relative clause is added,1 the nouns modified by appositive relative clauses are generic or have unique reference.2 Thus, (2a1) is not acceptable because the restrictive relative clause refers to a definite noun which has unique reference independent of the relative clause, while (2b2) is not acceptable because the appositive relative clause refers to a definite noun with non-unique reference. (2) a1 *Jana kojašto dojde včera nema *Jana who.F.Sg+that come.3Sg.Aor yesterday not+have.3Sg da odi so nas. Subjun.Mark go.3Sg with us a2 Jana, kojašto dojde včera, nema Jana who.F.Sg+that come.3Sg.Aor yesterday not+have.3Sg da odi so nas. Subjun.Mark go.3Sg with us ‘Jana, who came yesterday, will not go with us.’ b1 Pretstavite koišto Marina gi performances+the.Pl which.Pl+that Marina 3Pl.Acc.Cl preporača, se otkažani. recommend.3Sg.Aor be.3Sg cancelled.Pl.Pass.Part ‘The performances that Marina recommended have been cancelled.’ b2 *Pretstavite, koišto Marina gi *performances+the.Pl which.Pl+that Marina 3Pl.Acc.Cl preporača, se otkažani. recommend.3Sg.Aor be.3Sg cancelled.Pl.Pass.Part 2.1. Relativizers of Restrictive Noun-Antecedent Relative Clauses Relativizers of restrictive noun-antecedent relative clauses can be (a) the invariant ‘wh’ word što ‘that’,3 (b) the inflecting ‘wh’ words koj ‘who/which’, čij ‘whose’, 1 The relative clause helps them attain unique reference. 2 The appositive clauses begin and end by pauses, which are represented by commas. 3 Since što ‘that’ has been traditionally used in vernacular dialects, prescriptivists recommend it to be used whenever possible, i.e., in all relative clauses, except in those where the relativizers function as objects of prepositions, in which case the complex, “double” relativizers—sequences of forms of koj and što—should be used. (cf. Minova-Ǵurkova 2000: 262). But actual RELATIVE CLAUSES 431 kakov ‘of a kind’ and kolkav ‘of a size’, all of which are often accompanied by the invariant ‘wh’ word što ‘that’, and (c) the adverbial ‘wh’ words koga ‘when’, kade ‘where’, kako ‘how’, kolku ‘as many/much as’, all but the first one of which have to be accompanied by što.4 Each of the ‘wh’ relativizers koj ‘who/which’, čij ‘whose’, kakov ‘of a kind’, and kolkav ‘of a size’, has three forms representing different genders with singular number and a distinct form representing the plural number correlating with all singular forms; the masculine singular form koj also has distinct accusative and dative forms. Table 1. Forms of the Relativizers koj ‘who/which’, čij ‘whose’, kakov ‘of a...