Binding Connectivity in Kipsigis Copula Clauses
Abstract
Research in language typology is geared towards explaining and describing the facts of natural language structure. Several linguists have developed an interest in the study of copula clauses in various languages. In linguistics, a copula (plural copulas or copulae; abbreviated COP) is a word or phrase that links the subject of a sentence to a subject complement. This study aimed to investigate the binding connectivity of copula clauses in Kipsigis. Kipsigis is a Nilo-Saharan language of the Kalenjin language subgroup spoken by approximately 1.9 million people, according to the 2019 Census. The Kipsigis are the southernmost of the Kalenjin people. They inhabit the current administrative counties of Kericho and Bomet, but they also live in parts of Nakuru, Nandi, Uasin Gishu and Narok counties. The main objective of the study was to investigate the binding connectivity of Kipsigis copula clauses. This research was based on Chomsky’s Minimalist program, which has a track record of effectively analysing diverse language structures. As a result, it appears reasonable to apply this model to investigate copula clauses in the Kipsigis dialect. The approach emphasises using concise representations in linguistic analysis and descriptions, ensuring that syntactic specifications and derivational procedures contain only the necessary elements. The study adopted a descriptive research design and the data was collected through self-introspection and triangulation. This study established that Kipsigis has only one copula element ko. In the literature of Binding theory, binding principles do not apply to Kipsigis copula clauses, where the two phrases flanking the copula come into the structure with the same index. It also shows that Kipsigis copula clauses exhibit different behaviour with regard to copula constructions. That is, connecting two referential expressions with the copula means that the same reference is given to both of them hence violating the principles of Binding Theory. This implies that the study of any human language is important for its own sake. The findings from this study can be also used in linguistic analysis of copula clauses in future studies.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Vincent Kiplangat, Peter Muriungi, PhD, Mary Karuri, PhD
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