Noun Classes and Agreement in Lutsotso

Abstract

One of the most noticeable grammatical features of Bantu languages, is the presence of noun classes. Although each noun (or noun  stem) in the majority of Bantu languages is classified into one of 15–18 noun classes, Lutsotso language captures 21 classes. While it is  frequently hard to distinguish between noun classes semantically, basic meanings or semantic trends of subsets of members may  frequently be identified. Lutsotso nouns consist of a noun prefix and a root. The two elements of the Lutsotso nominal are crucial  because the prefix, for example, denotes the class. Complex agreement morphology in the noun phrase and the sentence is controlled by  class membership, which is indicated morphologically on the noun by a class prefix. As such, the prefix functions as a classifier.  Agreement is a type of syntactic connection in which a word's or phrase's inflectional behaviour is dictated by the features of a nominal  element to which it is closely connected. Number, person, case, and gender are examples of agreement markers. The class to which the  head noun belongs must be reflected throughout the phrase in Bantu languages. This is accomplished through the use of concordial  prefixes, which have distinct forms for the parts of speech to which they are attached. There is no discrete number morphology in Bantu  languages, but the noun class system mediates number; numerous noun classes are paired according to number, forming singular-plural  pairs. The Noun (N) component element of the simple sentence exists as a complex Noun phrase (NP) with nominal qualities  indicated by affixes. Accordingly, concord prefixes control and impact the words connected with them in the Lutsotso noun phrase. The  study discovered that concord prefixes sustain the grammatical relationship between the head noun and the rest of the noun phrase.