Generic expressions in Tunisian Arabic

Abstract Previous analyses of generic expressions in Arabic have focused on definite singular and plural DPs headed with the definite article al- ( Fehri, 2004 ; Al-Malki et al., 2014 ). This study introduces an additional type of generic reference expressed with the Tunisian Arabic (TA) demonstrative hāk . Based on an analysis of naturally occurring discourse, this study shows that the felicity of this generic demonstrative is subject to a number of constraints. First, the generic demonstrative hāk always occurs with a plural count or singular non-count noun and a restrictive modifier in order to denote a familiar (i.e., in memory) kind set. Second, the evoked kind set must be a relatively subordinate and atypical (i.e., less central) kind set in accordance with Rosch (1978) and Lakoff’s (1987) principles of categorization.