Focus and the association with focus sensitive particle yerane in Kasem

This paper investigates the syntax of focus and the focus sensitive particle yerane‘only’ in Kasem (Mabia, formerly Gur). I begin by discussing focus realization inKasem, and sketched an analysis for it. Next, I discuss the syntactic position of theexclusive particle yerane by comparing it with the German’s nur, and argue thatunlike German’s Extended Verbal Projection (EVP) claim by Büring & Hartmann(2001), Kasem’s yerane is adnominal in nature.1 However, I show that Büring &Hartmann’s (2001) EVP analysis for nur may be extended to Kasem, but with animportant additional assumption: that yerane is licensed by a high covert exclusive operator (Oponly) which occupies an EVP position, and is responsible for theexclusive semantics. Thus, following earlier studies, I assume that this is a bipartiteanalysis which requires that the exclusive interpretation comes from the high exclusive operator [Op] instead of the adnominal-yerane itself (see Bayer 1996, 1999,2018, Lee 2004, Barbiers 2010, Quek & Hirsch 2017, Sun 2021, Branan & Erlewine2023: a.o.). In order to link the high exclusive Op with the adnominal-yerane, Iassume a purely syntactic agreement system.