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Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247

www.elsevier.com/locate/langsci

Tone and syntax in Rutooro, a toneless Bantu language of

Western Uganda
Shigeki Kaji
Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies, Kyoto University,
46 Shimoadachi-cho, Yoshida Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan

Abstract

This paper explores the interaction of tone and syntax in Rutooro, a Bantu language of Western Uganda. Rutooro has
lost its lexical tone but retains a phrasally defined high pitch that appears on the penultimate syllable – the default position
in Bantu. This high pitch can work grammatically and in fact distinguishes between the noun phrase vs. clause structure,
and between the definiteness vs. indefiniteness of the noun phrase. In Rutooro the word weight plays a role in the phono-
logical phrasing. Disyllabic qualifying adjectives form a group with the preceding head noun and hence one high tone
appears in the phrase while longer adjectives are set off from the noun and both the noun and the adjective receive their
own high tone. Also, definite nouns that combine with a qualifying adjective, which usually has an augment, also form a
separate phrase even if the adjective is disyllabic. This suggests that a qualifying adjective forms a tighter grouping with
indefinite nouns than with definite nouns. Although some Bantu languages, such as Chichewa, assign a high tone to the
penultimate syllable for grammatical reasons, it is rare to find languages like Rutooro, which lack lexical tone but get tone
to play grammatical functions.
Ó 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Tone–syntax interface; Phrasal tone; Rutooro; Bantu; Uganda

1. Introduction

When we talk about tone languages, we usually think of the lexical aspect of tone, referring typically to
Mandarin Chinese where the sequence of segments ma, for example, can mean ‘‘mother” (má), ‘‘hemp”
(mă), ‘‘horse” (mà) or ‘‘to scold” (mâ) depending on the tone which each word takes.1
African tone languages, apparently, have two characteristics in contrast with Asian tone languages. One is
that whereas in Asian tone languages we find a relatively rich inventory of tones (tonemes in this context), e.g.
H (high) and L (low), M (mid), F (falling), R (rising), etc., African tone languages normally have only two
tones, namely H (high) and L (low). Most contour tones which they may have are analyzed as phonetic real-
izations of underlying H or L, or their combinations. The other characteristic of African tone languages is that

E-mail address: [email protected]

1
The tone marking follows the IPA system. In the normal Chinese marking they are noted as follows: mā ‘‘mother”, má ‘‘hemp”, mă
‘‘horse”, mà ‘‘to scold”.

0388-0001/$ - see front matter Ó 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.langsci.2008.12.006
240 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247

they have a weaker lexical function of tone than Asian tone languages. In them few pairs are distinguished by
tone alone.2
However, the real characteristic of African tone languages is to be seen in grammatical functions of tone, in
which respect Asian tone languages are weak. This paper illustrates this point with examples taken from the
Tooro language of Uganda.
The Tooro language, or Rutooro, is a Bantu language spoken in the western part of Uganda. It is curious
to find that it has lost its lexical tone. This is confirmed in comparison with the neighboring languages such as
Runyankore which distinguish segmentally identical words by tone alone. In (1a–d) we see that Runyankore,
which is spoken to the south of Rutooro, distinguishes the words by tone, whereas Rutooro does not. In Ruto-
oro words a high tone regularly appears on the penultimate syllable, which means that the high tone is auto-
matic and that it has no lexical function. This is clear even when we do not have tonal pairs. In (1e–h)
Runyankore and Rutooro cognates are shown where the Runyankore words have a high tone on the antepen-
ultimate syllable (1e and 1g) or even before (1f and 1h), while the Rutooro ones uniformly have a high tone on
the penultimate syllable.3

(1) Runyankore Rutooro gloss

a. éndaa énda ‘‘tick”
enda énda ‘‘pregnancy, embryo”
b. orúju orúju ‘‘gray hair”
oruju ‘‘abandoned house” orúju ‘‘big house”
c. omugúgu omugúgu ‘‘burden, load, baggage”
omugugu omugúgu ‘‘species of plant”
d. okusı́nga okusı́nga ‘‘to win, to defeat”
okusinga okusı́nga ‘‘to scrub”
e. e ágama e agáma ‘‘blood”
f. ekifúndikizo omufundikı́zo ‘‘stopper of a bottle”
g. okutándika okutandı́ka ‘‘to begin”
h. oku émererwa oku emerérwa ‘‘to be happy”
a
In Rutooro, as well as in Runyankore, phonetic long vowels appear in consequence of glide formation and compensatory lengthening,
and by a nasal cluster which follows the vowel. Also, the tone pattern HL in pre-pausal position lengthens the penultimate H-bearing
vowel unless preceded by a consonant. However, this lengthening is automatic and no length mark is used in such cases.

High tone on the penultimate syllable reminds us of Swahili, which also has lost its tone. But what happens in
Rutooro is very different from Swahili. Rutooro still has the grammatical function of tone which Swahili does
not. In hearing Rutooro, one must be careful of slight tone changes, otherwise one cannot understand the syn-
tactic structure of sentences.
The paper is organized as follows. After this introduction, we show the morphological structure of Rutooro
nouns, which gives the basis of tone analyses. Then in Sections 3 and 4, we examine the function of the aug-
ment as a sort of nominalizer (which we term the depredicativization function). In Sections 5 and 6, we exam-
ine noun phrases with modifying adjectives of various syllable weight and find that adjectives of two or more
syllables block formation of a single tone domain. In Section 7, we show that the definiteness of the noun also
prevents the noun phrase from forming a single tone domain. With these two conditions clarified, Rutooro can
be properly characterized as a toneless language.

2. The morphological structure of nouns

In this section we will examine the noun structure of Rutooro. To be clear and simple, we use the word
ekitábu ‘‘a/the book” for illustration. This word is a loan from Swahili (originally from Arabic). Rutooro
nouns have the morphological structure shown in (2a), exemplified in (2b), alongside the Swahili equivalent
in (2c) for reference. Rutooro and Swahili have almost the same structure except that (in addition to tone)

2
For the typology of Bantu tone languages, see Kaji (2001).
3
Ample tone data are given in Kaji (2004) for Runyankore and Kaji (2007) for Rutooro.
 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247 241

the former has one additional element e- which the latter lacks. This initial vowel element is called an ‘‘aug-
ment” in Bantu linguistics, the function of which in Rutooro will be explained in Section 3.

(2) a. augment (initial vowel)-prefix-stem

b. e-ki-tábu (sg.), e-bi-tábu (pl.) ‘‘a/the book”
c. 0-ki-tabu (sg.), 0-vi-tabu (pl.) ‘‘a/the book” (Sw.)

In (2) after the augment comes a noun prefix. A noun prefix, to be short, is the singular or plural marker of the
noun. But the shape is not uniform as we shall see later. After the prefix there is the stem. As for the shape of
the augment, it changes according to the vowel of the prefix. That is, it is e- when the vowel of the prefix is /i/,
o- when the vowel of the prefix is /u/, and a- when the vowel of the prefix is /a/. The vowel of the prefix is either
/i/, /u/ or /a/.4 The prefix can also be a nasal, in which case the augment is e-.

(3) a. o-mú-ntu (sg.), a-bá-ntu (pl.) ‘‘a/the person”

b. o-mu-kóno (sg.), e-mi-kóno (pl.) ‘‘a/the arm”
c. e-m-búzi (sg., pl.) ‘‘a/the goat”

3. The function of the augment

The augment has a number of functions of which depredicativization is the one which concerns us here. In
(4a), for example, we have the augment e-, and in (4b) we do not. The difference is the presence or absence of
the augment, but their syntactic structures are completely different. Look at the Swahili equivalents, which are
shown after the English translation.

(4) a. ekitábu ‘‘a/the book”; (Sw.) ‘‘kitabu”

b. kitábu ‘‘it is a book”; (Sw.) ni kitabu”
c. kı́nu kitábu ‘‘this is a book”; (Sw.) ‘‘hiki ni kitabu”

In Rutooro, a simple saying of kitábu constitutes a sentence. Kitábu is a noun, but used as a predicate. No
copula is necessary, nor a subject. If no subject is expressed, the third person, singular or plural, is presup-
posed. In sum, for a noun to become the subject of a sentence (or the object of a verb), it needs an augment.
This is what I term the depredicativization function of the augment. This also obtains in Ruhaya (or Kihaya as
it is called in Tanzania), which is spoken to the south of Runyankore (in Runyankore the augment appears in
predicative nouns). In Swahili which has no augments, the expression kitabu means ‘‘a/the book”. To mean ‘‘it
is a book”, the copula verb ni is necessary though the subject is not (4b). Of course, we can overtly show the
subject if we wish to (4c).
In passing it is to be noted that (4c) kı́nu kitábu is a sentence meaning ‘‘this is a book”, and not a noun
phrase meaning ‘‘this book” on the assumption that kı́nu means ‘‘this”, and kitábu ‘‘book”. It is sure that
the Rutooro kı́nu is not only a demonstrative pronoun, but also a demonstrative adjective as in English,
and kı́nu kitábu might seem to mean ‘‘this book”, as we say in English. But this is not true. In order to say
‘‘this book” in Rutooro, we need an augment to the noun ‘‘book”, as we see in (5).5
(5) kı́nu ekitábu ‘‘this book”; (Sw.) ‘‘kitabu hiki”

4
Rutooro has five vowel phonemes: /i, e, a, o, u/.
5
Another way of saying ‘‘this book” is shown in Section 6.
242 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247

4. With an adjective modifying the noun

Now, suppose we want to say ‘‘my book”. Rutooro adjectives, as well as nouns, need a prefix (also an aug-
ment in some cases) which is in grammatical agreement with the class of the noun it modifies. This is the same
as in Swahili. The stem of the adjective ‘‘my” is -ánge, and it takes the prefix ki- when it modifies the noun
ekitábu ‘‘book”, thus forming ki-ánge > kyánge. One might suppose that ‘‘my book” in Rutooro could be eki-
tábu kyánge, since ‘‘a book” is ekitábu, and ‘‘my” is kyánge (the modifier comes after the head noun). But this
is not correct, because ekitábu kyánge means ‘‘the book is mine”, and not ‘‘my book”. In order to say ‘‘my
book”, we have to say ekitabu kyánge, as shown in (6b).

(6) a. ekitábu kyánge ‘‘the book is mine”; (Sw.) ‘‘kitabu ni changu”

b. ekitabu kyánge ‘‘my book”; (Sw.) ‘‘kitabu changu”

What differs in (6a) and (6b) is that in (6b) the high tone of the noun is not seen. That is to say, in (6b)
the whole ekitabu kyánge has one high tone in it. This means that ekitabu kyánge forms one tight constitu-
ent, ‘‘my book” in this case, in which each word is not autonomous, but is closely related to the other.6 In
ekitábu kyánge (6a), by contrast, each word has a high tone. This means that the words are not tied closely
to each other, the first one functioning as the subject and the second one as the predicate of the sentence. That
is, the existence or absence of a high tone on the noun entails the difference of either a noun phrase or a
sentence.
As an exercise, let us make a sentence meaning ‘‘it is my book”. This will not be difficult. Since the phrase
ekitabu kyánge (6b) means ‘‘my book”, it becomes a sentence (formed with a predicate and no subject) if we
remove the augment e- (7a). Of course, we can have a subject expressed as in (7b).

(7) a. kitabu kyánge ‘‘it is my book”; (Sw.) ‘‘ni kitabu changu”

b. kı́nu kitabu kyánge ‘‘this is my book”; (Sw.) ‘‘hiki ni kitabu changu”

It is not that the augment always shows up with nouns. It can also go well with possessive adjectives. When it
is attached to ‘‘my” as in (8a), ‘‘my” is nominalized and means ‘‘mine”. By contrast, without e-, kyánge is
predicativized and means ‘‘it is mine” (8b). Of course, we can overtly have a subject as in (8c). This is what
we called the depredicativization function of the augment.

(8) a. ekyánge ‘‘mine”; (Sw.) ‘‘changu”

b. kyánge ‘‘it is mine”; (Sw.) ‘‘ni changu”
c. kı́nu kyánge ‘‘this is mine”; (Sw.) hiki ni changu”

5. With the adjective ‘‘good’’

We now introduce another adjective ‘‘good”, the stem of which is -rúngi.

(9) a. kirúngi ‘‘it is good”; (Sw.) ‘‘ni kizuri”

b. kı́nu kirúngi ‘‘this is good”; (Sw.) ‘‘hiki ni kizuri”
c. ekirúngi ‘‘a/the good one”; (Sw.) ‘‘(cha) kizuri”

Following what we have said up to Section 4, there should be no problems with the Rutooro examples in (9).
Unless prefixed by an augment, the word, either a noun or an adjective, is a predicate. However, a problem
arises. When asked how to say ‘‘a good book”, the informant answers ekitábu kirúngi (10a). As ekitábu kirúngi

6
To use Hyman and Katamba’s (1990/1991) term, it forms a tone group (TG). The TG in Luganda is defined as ‘‘a phrasal domain
within which a H to L pitch drop may not occur on successive words.” (p. 11)
 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247 243

can occupy the object position of a sentence as in (10b), there is no doubt that ekitábu kirúngi means ‘‘a good
book”.

(10) a. ekitábu kirúngi ‘‘a good book”; (Sw.) ‘‘kitabu kizuri”

[ekitábu kirúngi]NP
b. nguzı́re ekitábu kirúngi ‘‘I bought a good book”; (Sw.) ‘‘nilinunua kitabu kizuri”
[[nguzı́re]VP [ekitábu kirúngi]NP]S

But does ekitábu kirúngi not mean ‘‘the book is good” since both ekitábu ‘‘a/the book” and kirúngi ‘‘good”
keep their high tone and that kirúngi has no augment? That is, the thinking that kirúngi functions as a pred-
icate will not disappear, that is, the interpretation like (11a). Also, the sentence (10b) might be a combination
of two sentences nguzı́re ekitábu ‘‘I bought a book” (11c) and kirúngi ‘‘it is good” (11d). That is, the structure
might be like the parsing of (11b) (see also the English translation) which comprises two sentences, but it is
understood as saying ‘‘I bought a good book”.

(11) a. ekitábu kirúngi ‘‘the book is good”; (Sw.) ‘‘kitabu ni kizuri”

[[ekitábu]NP [kirúngi]VP]S
b. nguzı́re ekitábu kirúngi ‘‘I bought a book. it is good”; (Sw.) ‘‘nilinunua kitabu. ni kizuri”
?[[nguzı́re]VP [ekitábu]NP]S [[kirúngi]VP]S]S
c. nguzı́re ekitábu ‘‘I bought a book”; (Sw.) ‘‘nilinunua kitabu”
[[nguzı́re]VP [ekitábu]NP]S
d. kirúngi ‘‘It is good”; (Sw.) ‘‘ni kizuri”
[[kirúngi]VP]S

The interpretation (11b) proves wrong after all. This wrong interpretation is induced by a kind of distrust
about the informant by the investigator. The informant might not understand the investigator’s intention . . .
Indeed, the informant does not always respond as the investigator wishes, and he is of course not free from
mistakes. Also, the perception is not so straightforward as one might suppose. High tone is sometimes heard
as stress. This may suggest that something different might be involved . . .
However, as far as the meaning ‘‘a good book” is concerned, the informant persists with the same answer
(10a). On the side of the investigator, too, it seems improbable to him that one might say ‘‘I bought a book. It
is good”, for the meaning of ‘‘I bought a good book”. It is understandable, but not natural.

6. Two tonally different types of adjectives

All this means that if the expression ekitábu kirúngi really means ‘‘a good book”, there should be two
categories of adjectives in terms of tone, namely the one which deletes the high tone of the head noun
and the other one which keeps the high tone of the head noun when the adjective is used attributively to
the preceding noun. Note that it is clearly the adjective which is responsible for the tone change of the noun
since the same noun, ekitábu ‘‘book”, is used here. Therefore, all adjectives need to be tested against various
nouns.
The result is shown in (12), in which in order for the various adjectives to be properly used, other nouns
such as omúntu (sg.) ‘‘person”, ekibánja (sg.) ‘‘building site”, ekı́ntu (sg.) ‘‘thing” are used in addition to eki-
tábu (sg.), ebitábu (pl.) ‘‘book”, but this does not affect the tone concerned. The adjectives are shown with a
prefix in accordance with the class of the noun that they modify.

(12) two tonally different types of attributive adjectives

a. those which delete the high tone of the head noun
1. kyánge ‘‘my” ekitabu kyánge ‘‘my book”
2. kyáwe ‘‘your (sg.)” ekitabu kyáwe ‘‘your (sg.) book”
3. kyáı́tu ‘‘our” ekitabu kyáı́tu ‘‘our book”
244 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247

4. kyányu ‘‘your (pl.)” ekitabu kyányu ‘‘your (pl.) book”

5. kı́mu ‘‘one” ekitabu kı́mu ‘‘one book”
6. bbı́naa ‘‘four” ebitabu bbı́na ‘‘four books”
7. múto ‘‘young” omuntu múto ‘‘a young person”
8. múbi ‘‘bad” omuntu múbi ‘‘a bad person”
9. bı́ke ‘‘(a) few” ebitabu bı́ke ‘‘(a) few books”
10. bı́ngi ‘‘many” ebitabu bı́ngi ‘‘many books”
11. kı́ndi ‘‘another” ekitabu kı́ndi ‘‘another book”
12. kye ‘‘his/her” ekitabú kye ‘‘his/her book”
13. ki ‘‘what kind of” ekitabú ki ‘‘what kind of book”
b. those which keep the high tone of the head noun
1. kirúngi ‘‘good” ekitábu kirúngi ‘‘a good book”
2. bibı́ri ‘‘two” ebitábu bibı́ri ‘‘two books”
3. bisátu ‘‘three” ebitábu bisátu ‘‘three books”
4. bitáéno ‘‘five” ebitábu bitáéno ‘‘five books”
5. mukóéto ‘‘big” omúntu mukóéto ‘‘a big person”
6. mutáı́to ‘‘small” omúntu mutáı́to ‘‘a small person”
7. mukemúke ‘‘small” omúntu mukemúke ‘‘a very small person”
8. mucéke ‘‘slender” omúntu mucéke ‘‘a slender person”
9. mugúfu ‘‘short” omúntu mugúfu ‘‘a short person”
10. kigázi ‘‘wide” ekibánja kigázi ‘‘a wide site”
11. mugârab ‘‘lazy” omúntu mugâra ‘‘a lazy person”
12. kihyáka ‘‘new” ekitábu kihyáka ‘‘a new book”
13. mukûrub ‘‘old” omúntu mukûru ‘‘an old person”
14. mwecúmi ‘‘clean” omúntu mwecúmi ‘‘a clean person”
15. murófu ‘‘dirty” omúntu murófu ‘‘a dirty person”
16. kibı́si ‘‘raw” ekı́ntu kibı́si ‘‘a raw thing”
17. kikámbwe ‘‘difficult” ekı́ntu kikámbwe ‘‘a difficult thing”
18. bingáha ‘‘how many” ebitábu bingáha ‘‘how many books”
19. byóna ‘‘all, whole” ebitábu byóna ‘‘all the books”
20. byómbi ‘‘both” ebitábu byómbi ‘‘both books”
21. kı́nu ‘‘this” ekitábu kı́nu ‘‘this book”
22. éki ‘‘that (near hearer)” ekitábu éki ‘‘that book (near hearer)”
23. ékyo ‘‘that (out of reach of both ekitábu ékyo ‘‘that book (out of reach
speaker and hearer)” of both speaker and hearer)”
24. kı́ri ‘‘that over there” ekitábu kı́ri ‘‘that book over there”
a
Rutooro distinguishes /b/ and /b/ phonemically. /b/ is transcribed as b, and /b/ as bb except after a nasal, in which circumstance b
represents [b], too.
b
We see falling tones [â] in mugâra ‘‘lazy” and [û] in mukûru ‘‘old”. They are phonetic realizations of high tones under the influence of
the liquid [r] which comes after the vowel, and do not concern our discussion here.

Faced with these examples, should we recognize two categories of tonally different adjectives? By examining
the data in (12), however, we notice an important fact, namely that those attributive adjectives which delete
the high tone of the preceding head noun are mostly two syllables long including the prefix, and those attrib-
utive adjectives which keep the high tone of the preceding head noun are mostly three syllables long including
the prefix. Those which do not fit are for the type (a): kye ‘‘his/her” (12a12) and ki ‘‘what kind of” (12a13), and
for the type (b): byóna ‘‘all, whole” (12b19), byómbi ‘‘both” (12b20), and the four demonstrative adjectives
(12b21–24).
With respect to kye ‘‘his/her” (12a12) and ki ‘‘what kind of” (12a13), they delete in fact the high tone of the
preceding head noun, but as they are one syllable long, the phrase-penultimate high tone cannot fall on them
 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247 245

but on the preceding noun. It is also to be noted that the example kyáı́tu ‘‘our” (12a3) gives evidence that diph-
thongs work as one syllable.
The above interpretation is supported by the different behavior of bı́ke ‘‘(a) few” (12a9) and mukemúke
‘‘small small” (12b7). These two adjectives are of the same stem, only that mukemúke ‘‘small small” is a dupli-
cated form and is used in a different class from bı́ke ‘‘(a) few”. If they are put in the same class, the point
becomes clearer. In (13), we confirm that the high tone of the noun disappears when followed by a modifying
adjective of two syllables (13a), and the high tone of the head noun does not disappear when followed by a
modifying adjective of four syllables, i.e. more than three syllables (13b).

(13) a. bı́ke ‘‘(a) few” ebitabu bı́ke ‘‘(a) few books”

b. bikebı́ke ‘‘small small (pl.)” ebitábu bikebı́ke ‘‘very small books”

Concerning the two adjectives, byóna ‘‘all, whole” (12b19) and byómbi ‘‘both” (12b20), and the four demon-
stratives (12b21–24) which violate the generalization, the reason seems due to their meaning. In fact, all six
adjectives have a definite meaning. It is that when the phrase has a definite meaning the head noun keeps
the high tone regardless of the length of the modifying adjective which follows it. This touches another case
of syntactic function of tone, which is dealt with in the following section.

7. Definiteness and high tone

One more case of tone–syntax interface in Tooro is seen in the interaction of definiteness/specificity and
high tone. From (14) to (16) various forms of the adjective -ndi ‘‘other, another” are shown. As is attested
from (14c–d), (15a–b) and (16a–d), the definiteness of the noun phrase is manifested by the augment of the
modifier and the high tone of the head noun. In the case of óndi and éndi (14a–b and e–f) and (15c–f) the prefix
does not appear, but the definiteness is shown by the high tone which persists in the head noun (14b and f) and
(15d and f).7

(14) a. omuntu óndi ‘‘another person”

b. omúntu óndi ‘‘the other person”
c. abantu bándi ‘‘other persons”
d. abántu abándi ‘‘the other persons”
e. mpa omuntu óndi ‘‘give me another person”
f. mpa omúntu óndi ‘‘give me the other person”

(15) a. omuti gúndi ‘‘another tree”

b. omúti ogúndi ‘‘the other tree”
c. emiti éndi ‘‘other trees”
d. emı́ti éndi ‘‘the other trees”
e. nguzı́re emiti éndi ‘‘I bought other trees”
f. nguzı́re emı́ti éndi ‘‘I bought the other trees”

(16) a. ekitabu kı́ndi ‘‘another book”

b. ekitábu ekı́ndi ‘‘the other book”
c. ebitabu bı́ndi ‘‘other books”
d. ebitábu ebı́ndi ‘‘the other books”

7
However, I must confess that in (14b) I heard several times informants say omuntu óndi rather than omúntu óndi. Some reserve is
necessary for omúntu óndi.
246 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247

To return to the examples in Section 6, byóna ‘‘all, whole” (12b19), byómbi ‘‘both” (12b20), and the four
demonstratives (12b21–24), even though the modifiers do not take an augment (at least 12b19–21 and 24),
the high tone of the head nouns clearly shows the definiteness of the phrases. Examples (17a–f) are repetitions
of (12b19–24), together with examples (17g–h) where the modifiers overtly have an augment and retain the
high tone of the head noun to indicate the definite meaning of the noun phrases.

(17) a. ebitábu byóna ‘‘all the books”

b. ebitábu byómbi ‘‘both books”
c. ekitábu kı́nu ‘‘this book”
d. ekitábu éki ‘‘that book (near hearer)”
e. ekitábu ékyo ‘‘that book (out of reach of both speaker and hearer)”
f. ekitábu kı́ri ‘‘that book over there”
g. ekitábu ekyánge ‘‘the book of mine”
h. ekitábu ekirúngi ‘‘the good book”

8. Concluding remarks

As we said earlier, Rutooro has lost its lexical tone. This eliminates much of the tonal complications from
the language. But still, problems remain in the interaction of its tone and syntax. We saw in this paper two
cases of tone–syntax interface, where high tone plays a crucial role in distinguishing between the noun phrase
vs. clause structure, and between the definiteness vs. indefiniteness of the noun phrase. Rutooro is not the only
Bantu language where one finds that some modifiers form a single tone domain with the head noun while oth-
ers do not (see Kanerva (1990) for the case of Chichewa), but it is unique in that it is not a tone language of
lexical function.
(18) is the recapitulation of the morphology and syntax discussed in the earlier part of this paper with the
indication of tone. The problematic phrase ekitábu kirúngi (18h) has two meanings, namely ‘‘a good book”
and ‘‘the book is good”. These two meanings result from homonymous realization of two different syntactic
structures.

(18) a. ekitábu ‘‘a/the book”

b. kitábu ‘‘it is a book”
c. kı́nu kitábu ‘‘this is a book”
d. kı́nu ekitábu ‘‘this book”
e. ekitabu kyánge ‘‘my book”
f. ekitábu kyánge ‘‘the book is mine”
g. ekitábu ekyánge ‘‘the book of mine”
h. ekitábu kirúngi ‘‘a good book; the book is good”
i. ekitábu ekirúngi ‘‘the good book”

Acknowledgements

Research on Ugandan languages was supported by Grants-in-Aid for scientific research Nos. 17520258 and
18632003 of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science of the Japanese Government. An earlier version of
this paper was presented at the University of Tokyo. Here I would like to express my gratitude to all those who
gave me comments and suggestions.
 S. Kaji / Language Sciences 31 (2009) 239–247 247

References

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