Inchoative verbs in Saami: Derivational types and their variation

The Saami languages employ an extensive system of derivational suffixes to express a variety of functions, including the lexical aspect of verbs. The current paper presents an overview of the different suffixal means of marking the inchoative (i.e. beginning) aspect in different Saami languages, highlighting and analyzing the cross-varietal differences in the use of suffix types and variants. The treatment covers suffixes dedicated exclusively to the inchoative function (such as North Saami -(š)goahti-) as well as those that have diverse functions (for example, North Saami -l- appearing both inchoative, as in čuoigalit ‘set off on skis’, and subitive, as in borralit ‘eat hurriedly’). The analysis is based on extensive dictionary data, and the lexical frequencies of attested inchoative verbs of each suffix type are reported for each language. Finally, some conclusions are drawn on the diachronical development of inchoative marking in Saami. The main result is that several distinct types of inchoative suffixes can be shown to have operated already in Proto-Saami, but the system has diversified considerably after the breakup of the protolanguage. Almost all of the attested inchoative suffixes have developed from other lexical aspect marking verbal suffixes either in Proto-Saami or thereafter.