John Middleton

This paper sheds light on sluicing structures in Tokelauan, a predicate-initial Polynesian language. Crosslinguistically, sluicing has been analyzed as having various different underlying structures, with many Austronesian languages deriving sluicing from pseudoclefts, which have wh-predicates. For Malagasy, it has been proposed that this is predicate-sluicing, which implies any wh-predicate should be able to appear as a sluicing remnant. Tokelauan has multiple structures with wh-predicates, including pseudoclefts (with ko-predicates), interrogative locative PPs, and interrogative verbs. We can therefore test the concept of predicate-sluicing to see whether all wh-predicates are licit sluicing remnants, or if the distribution is narrower. This paper demonstrates that for Tokelauan, only ko-predicates (i.e., predicates that combine a DP with a ko morpheme) can underlie genuine sluicing with clausal-ellipsis. Other wh-predicates may appear in sluicing-like constructions, but these are formed from pseudosluicing (pro-drop that creates the appearance of a genuine sluice). It is proposed that the distinction between ko-predicates and other predicates in sluicing is due to the structure of these predicates. Only ko-predicates check the E(llipsis)-feature to form genuine sluicing, while other predicates are unable to check this E-feature, meaning they are never found in genuine sluicing. Consequently, the concept of predicate-sluicing is too broad for the phenomenon found in Tokelauan, as only ko-predicates may be sluiced.

Migration motivated by anthropogenic climate change is expected to affect a significant population of individuals in the near-to-immediate future. As a direct consequence of climate change and the subsequent migration that it triggers, migrant languages face an existential threat. This chapter examines the flow-on effect of climate change to Pacific languages, and how this leads to an increased demand for language resources and translation services for migrant languages. This will be highlighted by observing the case study of Tokelau, an island state which is expected to be among the first to suffer the consequences of climate change, and where migration has already resulted in more Tokelauan speakers being located in diasporic regions than in the islands themselves.

The Moriori language has no native speakers, so any historical data from the language is invaluable. This paper presents an unpublished Moriori manuscript, with a new morpheme-for-morpheme gloss. The manuscript, Ko Tahopuni rauu Ko Paonga, is an eight-page handwritten document detailing the story of Tahopuni and his son Paonga, who invade the land of the monster Tchurawhateitei and eventually kill her. The manuscript was seemingly intended for the Journal of the Polynesian Society, where Shand’s other narratives were published (1894–1898), but it was not included among those. Unlike the original, this paper unites the Moriori and English translations so that it may be read line for line. This paper therefore presents historical Moriori language data in a modern arrangement.

Pseudosluicing diagnostics have played an important role in wider debates about sluicing. Sluicing is the term used to describe the deletion of an embedded clausal constituent, which leaves only a wh‐phrase overt. Genuine sluicing requires syntactic or semantic identity between the sluiced clause and its antecedent, contrasting with pseudosluicing, in which pro ‐drop creates the appearance of a sluice but no identity is required. The underlying structure of sluicing in several Austronesian languages has been argued to be pseudoclefts, which involve a nominal wh‐predicate and a headless relative clause argument. Both Malagasy and Nukuoro have been analysed as having pseudocleft sluicing, and on the basis of this, claims about the type of identity required in sluicing have been made. Both analyses rely on diagnostics that rule out the possibility of pseudosluicing. This paper reexamines the pseudosluicing diagnostics used for Malagasy and Nukuoro and concludes that they have been insufficiently controlled for. This is supported by data from Madurese showing that pseudosluicing diagnostics are inconclusive in these Austronesian languages. Language‐internal support is needed for such diagnostics, especially as they play an important role in the conclusions drawn from Austronesian languages on the wider identity requirement for sluicing. Three language‐specific diagnostics are given which are successfully able to identify pseudosluicing in Madurese.

The concepts of “loss” and “damage” relate to the effects of anthropogenic climate changes that affect people’s livelihoods. This short communication proposes that these concepts should be broadened to include cultural intangibles such as language. Migration caused by climate change is a known phenomenon, as are the potentially negative effects migration has on language vitality. We link these concepts together to argue that climate change can have a direct negative impact on the relative health of endangered languages. Focusing on Pacific islands and atolls, it is demonstrated that migration away from these homelands results in decline of use of the associated language. With the effects of climate change on these islands well documented, there is a distinct possibility that climate migration could cause language loss in the near future. We suggest that culturally protective public policies alongside climate policies are needed to support languages (and by extension, cultures) from “loss” and “damage”.

This paper examines the curious occurrence of preverbal determiners in Moriori (Chatham Islands), which are best analyzed as passive markers. In some Moriori sentences, a determiner is found following the clause-initial tense/aspect particle and preceding the verb. Examining the morphological markings of the arguments in these sentences shows that the verb is in the passive form, though without the usual -Cia passive suffix. This paper demonstrates that preverbal determiners mark a passive verb, and are in complementary distribution with the standard passive suffix. Previous analyses for preverbal determiners, including being part of continuous aspect particle or introducing a nominalized verb, are ruled out. Preverbal determiners which identify a verb as passive are not found in any other Polynesian language, making this construction unique.

Background and Objectives: There are calls for urgent climate action to combat climate change, usually focused on mitigation such as renewable energy sources, protection of coastal wetlands, and agroforestry measures. However, we often ignore one of the most important tools for climate action:...

Synopsis: The climate crisis is a public health emergency. Evidence has highlighted climate change impacts to the social and environmental determinants of health- from clean air, safe drinking water, food security, and even, the built environment. The public health systems have an important...