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The converb -las in Old Tibetan

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 June 2010

Nathan W. Hill
Nathan W. Hill*
Affiliation:
School of Oriental and African Studies
*
nh36@soas.ac.uk
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Abstract

In contrast to its description in available grammars and manuals, the converb -las in Old Tibetan is used primarily to mark off the following clause as surprising given the background of the preceding clause. The converb -las enters into two distinct syntactic constructions: after a reduplicated verb it indicates the interruption of a continuous event; and in a three-clause pattern with the converb -kyis, -las introduces a surprise or contrast in the second clause, but -kyis in the third clause returns the sentiment to that of the first clause. Although the examples which demonstrate the use of -las are drawn from Old Tibetan texts, this use continues in later texts.

Type
Articles
Information
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies , Volume 73 , Issue 2 , June 2010 , pp. 245 - 260
Copyright
Copyright © School of Oriental and African Studies 2010

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References

References

Contracts = Takeuchi 1995

Ḥdzaṅs-blun = Schmidt 1843

OTA = Old Tibetan Annals (PT 1288 and ITJ 750, Imaeda et al. 2007: 230–44)

OTC = Old Tibetan Chronicle (PT 1287, Imaeda et al. 2007: 200–29)

Rāma = de Jong 1989

Rkoṅ-po = Li and Coblin 1987: 193–226

Treaty of 821–822 = Li and Coblin 1987: 34–137

Źol = Li and Coblin 1987: 138–85

Źwa-baḥi = Li and Coblin 1987: 261–99

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Fang-kuei, Li and Coblin, Weldon South. 1987. A Study of the Old Tibetan Inscriptions. (Special Publications 91.) Taipei: Academia Sinica.Google Scholar
Schmidt, Isaac Jakob. 1843. Ḥdzaṅs-blun oder der Weise und der Thor. St. Petersburg: W. Gräff's Erben.Google Scholar
Schwieger, Peter. 2006. Handbuch zur Grammatik der klassischen tibetischen Schriftsprache. Haale: International Institute for Tibetan and Buddhist Studies GmbH.Google Scholar
Takeuchi, Tsuguhito. 1995. Old Tibetan Contracts from Central Asia. Tokyo: Daizo Shuppan.Google Scholar
Géza., Uray 1954. “Duplication, germination and triplication in Tibetan”, Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 4/1–3, 177–256.Google Scholar
Zeisler, Bettina. 2001. “The development of temporal coding in Tibetan: some suggestions for a functional internal reconstruction. Part II: The original semantics of the ‘past stem’ of controlled action verbs and the re-organisation of the Proto-Tibetan verb system”, Zentralasiatische Studien 31, 169–216.Google Scholar
Zeisler, Bettina. 2004. Relative Tense and Aspectual Values in Tibetan languages. A Comparative Study. (Trends in Linguistics, Studies and Monographs, 150.) Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beyer, Stephan V. 1992. The Classical Tibetan Language. New York: State University of New York Press; reprinted, Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications, 1993.Google Scholar
Denwood, Philip. 1999. Tibetan. (London Oriental and African Language Library 3.) Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kesang, Gyurme (ed. and trans. Stoddard, Heather and Tournadre, Nicolas). 1992. Le clair miroir. Enseignement de la grammaire tibétaine. Arvillard: Éditions Prajñā.Google Scholar
Hahn, Michael. 1996. Lehrbuch der klassischen tibetischen Schriftsprache. (Indica et Tibetica 10.) Swisttal-Odendorf: Indica et Tibetica Verlag.Google Scholar
Yoshiro, Imaeda et al. 2007. Tibetan Documents from Dunhuang, Kept at the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the British Library. Tokyo: Institute for the Study of Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies.Google Scholar
de Jong, Jan Willem. 1959. Mi la ras pa'i rnam thar: texte tibétain de la vie de Milarépa. ‘S-Gravenhage: Mouton.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Jong, J. W. 1989. The story of Rāma in Tibet: Text and translation of the Tun-huang manuscripts. Stuttgart: F. Steiner.Google Scholar
Fang-kuei, Li and Coblin, Weldon South. 1987. A Study of the Old Tibetan Inscriptions. (Special Publications 91.) Taipei: Academia Sinica.Google Scholar
Schmidt, Isaac Jakob. 1843. Ḥdzaṅs-blun oder der Weise und der Thor. St. Petersburg: W. Gräff's Erben.Google Scholar
Schwieger, Peter. 2006. Handbuch zur Grammatik der klassischen tibetischen Schriftsprache. Haale: International Institute for Tibetan and Buddhist Studies GmbH.Google Scholar
Takeuchi, Tsuguhito. 1995. Old Tibetan Contracts from Central Asia. Tokyo: Daizo Shuppan.Google Scholar
Géza., Uray 1954. “Duplication, germination and triplication in Tibetan”, Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 4/1–3, 177–256.Google Scholar
Zeisler, Bettina. 2001. “The development of temporal coding in Tibetan: some suggestions for a functional internal reconstruction. Part II: The original semantics of the ‘past stem’ of controlled action verbs and the re-organisation of the Proto-Tibetan verb system”, Zentralasiatische Studien 31, 169–216.Google Scholar
Zeisler, Bettina. 2004. Relative Tense and Aspectual Values in Tibetan languages. A Comparative Study. (Trends in Linguistics, Studies and Monographs, 150.) Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.CrossRefGoogle Scholar