Associated motion in South America: Typological and areal perspectives

This article investigates the recently recognized concept of in 66 South American languages located on the western fringes of the Amazonian basin. In that region, associated motion is a widespread and particularly complex phenomenon. It is instantiated by verbal affixes in 44 languages, of which 22 display complex systems of multiple affixes. Correlations are noticed between the degree of complexity of the systems and the semantic content of the markers. Two implicational scales are proposed: (i) motion of the subject > motion of the object and (ii) prior motion > concurrent motion > subsequent motion. Correlations are also observed between the types of systems and their geographical distribution. These are taken as evidence that diffusion must have played an important role in spreading associated motion in this region and shaping its particular semantic make-up in the different languages.