Topics in the Grammar of French Sign Language (LSF)

    Relative clauses in LSF can be marked through a) the relative demonstrative-like pronoun pi, or (b) the relative pronoun person-cl, which is a classifier also used as a demonstrative, or (c) non-manual markers only. The elements that mark the relative clause are underlined in the following examples, while the modified noun is in bold.

 

                                rel

       a. ix₁ prefer vet pi cure dog

       ‘I prefer the vet who cures the dog.’

 

 

 

 

                                                       rel

       b. ix₁ prefer little girl person-cl pet dog

       ‘I prefer the little girl who pets the dog.’

 

 

 

 

 

                            rel

       c. ix₁ prefer vet cure dog

       ‘I prefer the vet who cures the dog.’                  (Hauser, 2019:55-57)

 

 

 

 

 

 

For all three strategies, the set of non-manual markers glossed as ‘rel’ is the same: a) at least one part of the upper body —shoulders or torso— is oriented towards the locus where the head of the relative is located in the signing space b) eyebrows are raised, c) lips are tensed and d) chin is pointed upwards or downwards.

 

The choice of the relative pronoun has an impact on the interpretation of the relative clause [Syntax – 3.4.7]: person-cl yields an appositive reading while pi gives a restrictive interpretation. For non-human or inanimate heads, only the non-manual marking strategy is ambiguous between appositive and restrictive meaning.