Auxiliary Verbs in Tungusic from the Perspective of Areal Linguistic

The main objective of this paper is to study distinctions of auxiliary verbs in Tungusic from the perspective of areal linguistics. In spite of some previous typological studies conducted in this regard, the specific difference of auxiliary verb development within the Tungusic languages has not been fully discussed so far. Thus, this paper examines seven auxiliary verbs in Tungusic and its neighboring languages (Sakha, Kolyma Yukaghir, Mongolian, and Chinese). The auxiliary verbs in question are as follows; inceptive, completive, capable, progressive, attemptive, benefactive, and perfective. In conclusion, this study shows that variations in these auxiliary verbs among Tungusic in accordance with their areal distribution are confirmed and their attested numbers gradually increase from North Tungusic to South Tungusic. In addition, verb types employed in capable-related auxiliary verb structure also vary depending on geographical distribution of Tungusic. These phenomena are considered to be closely related to the degree of language contact with adjacent Mongolian and Chinese language