The Study On Zi And Ji Of Cunshi Dialect In Xinshao

Taking the spoken language of Cunshi in Xinshao as the research object, in the foundation of strict discrimination between affix and auxiliary word, this thesis describes and analyzes the distribution, the use rule and the developmental tendency of the affix zi and ji in detail;and we has thoroughly analyzed the grammatical functions of the auxiliary word ji and established its syntax status as an auxiliary word of structure and a topic marker. We have proved the grammaticalization process of the auxiliary word ji as a topic marker and its typological significance.Mainly as an affix , zi is often put behind other morphemes and together with them to constitute nouns in Cunshi dialect in Xinshao . Besides as an affix constituting extremely few nouns, ji is used mainly as an auxiliary word . It may be put behind adverbial modifiers and become an auxiliary word of structure whose grammatical function is equal to de₁;it may be put behind status adjectival modifiers and become an auxiliary word of structure whose grammatical function is equal to de₂ . it may be put behind topic structures and become a topic marker. The distributions and the functions of zi and ji are approximately supplementary and this kind of complementarity has happen to manifested the principle which the form and the meaning unifies. In this dialect the affix zi and ji and the auxiliary word ji correspond with zi in Changsha dialect ,which has the identical form but different functions.Along with substantive ingredients entering , when the structure x+ ji is located in the beginning of a sentence , it is easy to become a topic, and ji becomes a topic marker. The auxiliary word ji is often located behind status adjectival modifiers in Cunshi dialect in Xinshao, which causes the structure x+ji to become a kind of structure to highlight the condition and ji gains the function of highlighting thecondition . That is precisely the reason why ji suitablly makes the topic marker . The topic marker// has experienced grammaticalization process from an affix to an auxiliary word of structure again to a topic marker and this formation has a typological significance.