Page 598 - A GRAMMAR OF BHOJPURI _ PhD Dissertation 2020 TU

15.2.5 Verbs with nominal and adjectival functions
This feature is common in the NIA languages along with TB languages too (Regmi,

2013:270). So, it is present in the Bhojpuri language (see chapter 6.1.3 for details).
15.2.6 Evidentiality in the verb complex
In Bhojpuri evidentiality, i.e., witnessed or highly reliable vs. not witnessed or

hearsay or not highly reliable is expressed by the verbals (see 10.3.1 for details). This
feature is common in the NIA languages.

15.2.7 Dative subject construction
This is a common NIA feature and so Bhojpuri does have. Moreover, this feature

is a South Asian areal feature of the language (Misica, 1976:190 and Subbārāo 2012:137).
15.2.8 Participials

Participial forms are common in the NIA languages and Bhojpuri does have
simultaneous and sequential participials, though is not only one of the characteristic
features of the Indo-Aryan languages but also a South Asian areal feature (Misica,

1976:108-40).
15.2.9 Complex predicates

Complex predicates are the South Asian areal features (Masica, 1976).
Bhojpuri also presents this feature (see 6.1 for details).

15.2.10 Cleft coustruction
Although Subbārāo (2012:41) attests cleft construction only in Sinhala among

Indo-Aryan languages, Bhojpuri does have such feature already discussed in Chapter 12.
15.2.11 Other features
Apart from the features discussed above Bhojpuri also exhibits some features

which are common in the Indo-Aryan languages. They include relative pronouns,
passive constructions, inflectional gender and writing system. We present the summary

of the main morphosyntactic features of the Bhojpuri language with regard to the
general characteristics in the NIA languages and the Bihari group in Table 15.14.

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