N-Words in Dawurotsuwa

This article investigates n-words in Dawurotsuwa, which is classified under the Omotic language family under the Afroasiatic phylum. Speakers of the language are found in Ethiopia, specifically in the southwest part of the country. The study aims to describe n-words in this language, which is one of the scarcely described languages in the area. N-words in the language are formed by suffixing the morpheme -kka/-nne to content question words. These morphemes also mark indefiniteness in the language. These formed n-words express negation in fragmented answers but don’t in a complete main clause. In the main clause, they are accompanied by sentential negative markers to transfer negative meanings. In Dawurotsuwa, n-words are not inherently negative. These n-word-forming morphemes -nne and -kka are also used for coordinating conjunction and emphatic coordination, respectively. The morpheme -kka also serves as a scalar focus suffix. They also express a specificity that is indefinite, but when the specificity is definite, the last vowel changes to -o and becomes only -kko. Thus, n-words can be named indefinite pronouns.