Acta Linguistica Asiatica, 15(1), 2025. ISSN: 2232-3317, http://revije.ff.uni-lj.si/ala/ DOI: 10.4312/ala.15.1.31-46 An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: Focusing on the eul/reul / – i/ga / Alteration Maša ŽBOGAR Yonsei University, Republic of Korea zbogar.masa@gmail.com Abstract In this research, we examine the manifestation of the accusative case marker eul/reul / alteration, where it is replaced by the nominative case marker i/ga / , specifically in -go sipda - construction and in clauses with a transitive predicate (NP i/ga / NP eul/reul / VP). The results show that the object or theme must have a definitive reference, and the verb immediately preceding -go sipda construction should not form part of a complex predicate within the inner clause. In case of the NP i/ga / NP eul/reul / VP structure, the verb should convey a static meaning. The case marker i/ga attached to NP2, does not indicate the subject. Instead, it functions as type of auxiliary marker with characteristics similar to those of determiners. Keywords: case marker alteration, eul/reul – i/ga alteration, -go sipda construction, case marker functions, determiner Povzetek Članek preučuje primere konstrukcije -go sipda - in stavkov s prehodnim povedkom (NP i/ga / NP eul/reul / VP), v katerih se namesto tožilniškega členka eul/reul / uporablja imenovalniški členek i/ga / . Rezultati kažejo, da mora predmet ali tema stavka vsebovati določeno referenco, hkrati pa glagol neposredno pred obliko -go sipda ne sme biti del kompleksnega povedka notranjega stavka. V primeru stavkov s prehodnim povedkom NP i/ga / NP eul/reul / VP mora glagol vsebovati statični pomen. Sklonski členek i/ga, pritrjen na NP2, ne označuje predmeta. Namesto tega deluje kot vrsta besedilnega členka s podobnimi značilnostmi, kot jih imajo členi. Ključne besede: sprememba rabe sklonskih členkov, sprememba rabe eul/reul – i/ga, struktura -go sipda, funkcije sklonskih členkov, členi 32 Maša ŽBOGAR 1 Introduction Case marker alteration (gyeogjosa gyoche ) is a phenomenon where one case marker is replaced by a different case marker. In this paper, we will look at the examples of syntactic structures where one case marker eul/reul / is changed, or altered, with case marker i/ga / , and try to determine in what environment can alteration occur, whether there is a change in the syntactic or pragmatic meaning of the sentence, and what is the meaning of i/ga. A typical example of case alteration is the -go sipda - construction, where the noun phrase immediately before the predicate connected with - go sipda construction changes the case marker from eul/reul to i/ga. However, in Korean, case marker alterations are not a rare phenomenon. They appear in various sentence constituents. One of the most commonly used case marker alterations is the subject case alteration form, where the type of case marker to appear depends on the preceding noun phrase’s features such as [± group], and [± honorific]. (1) (1) b. . Hoi-sa-e-seo jung-yo-han sang-eul bad-ass-da. company-NOM(+group) important-ADN prize-ACC receive-past-DEC ‘The company has received/won an important award.’ (1) c. . Han-meo-ni-kke-seo daeg-e gye-sin-da. grandmother-NOM(+hon) house(+hon)-LOC be(+hon)- present-DEC ‘Grandmother is at home.’ In (1b), the ‘company’ hoisa , having a [+group] feature, is followed by case marker eseo while in (1c), ‘grandmother’ halmeoni , having an [+honorific] feature, is followed by case marker kkeseo . The first example presented, namely (1a) ‘Cheolsu’ cheolsu , which is characterized by [-group] and [-honorific] features is followed by case marker i/ga and could be considered an unmarked case marker. There are numerous case marker alterations in an adverb (busaeo ) positions as well. Let us look at the e – (eu)ro ( ) case marker alteration. An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: … 33 (2) a. bu-san-e ga-neun gi-cha Busan-LOC go-ADN Train ‘a train going to Busan’ (2) b. bu-san-eu-ro ga-neun gi-cha Busan-DIR go-ADN train ‘a train going to Busan’ This paper will focus on case marker alterations that occur in object positions and analyze their functions or meanings. It is organized as follows. Section 2 will briefly review case markers in Korean and discuss them in a sentence or clause. Section 3 will first delve into case marker alterations in the -go sipda construction and continue with case alterations in a transitive sentence of the following structure: NP1 / NP2 / VP. In Section 4, the focus will be on the meaning of the case marker i/ga and its function when it appears as the alternative case marker. Lastly, Section 5 will sum up our findings. 2 The position and functions of case markers in a noun phrase In Korean, grammatical case is usually indicated by the use of case markers.1 Case markers point to the syntactic relation between a predicate and its arguments. However, case markers do not necessarily have to appear for the case to be expressed, and are indicated without a marker. When so, the sentence constituent loses the ability to move to a different position in a sentence. To better understand the position of case markers, let us look at what position they take in a noun phrase. Due to the case markers’ ability to be omitted, their inability to appear as a free-standing form, and the fact that they only carry a grammatical meaning, it could be considered, that they are not the head of the phrase; instead, the noun is. However, according to Lim (2008) case markers take the position of a head of a phrase. As proof of that, he points out that the presence or absence of case marker changes the 1 In Korean, reference grammars define case markers as follows. In Nam et al. (2019), a case marker binds to a noun or noun-like form and expresses the relation that the noun or noun-like form has with a different word. In Ko and Koo (2008), case markers denote grammatical relations between words. 34 Maša ŽBOGAR meaning of the clause or sentence. 2 And that in cases where the predicate can facilitate the use of two different case markers for the same argument, the use of either of cases does not depend on the different theta roles but on the meaning of the sentence. For example, the verb ‘to leave’ tteonada , which is a motion verb, demands a noun phrase NP2 to denote a departure or exit point. However, the verb ‘to leave’ tteonada can realize both eseo and eul/reul / within the same noun phrase. Let us look at the examples below. (3) a. . Chin-gu-ga han-gug-e-seo tteo-nass-da. friend-NOM Korea-LOC leave-past-DEC ‘Friend left Korea.’ (3) b. . chin-gu-ga han-gug-eul tteo-nass-da friend-NOM Korea-ACC leave-past-DEC ‘Friend left Korea.’ According to Lim (2008), the theta role of the NP2, namely ‘Korea’ hangug , remains as a departure point in both examples, however, while in (3a), it is the semantic relation that is more enhanced, in (3b), the grammatical relation takes the enhancement. Moreover, the accusative case marker eul/reul appears to have more than just a pure syntactic function. Lee (2015) examined the phenomenon of the case marker eul/reul being attached to an adverb which immediately preceded the main predicate in long negation form. The findings indicate that the appearance of case markers eul/reul is due to the auxiliary predicate anihada which is a transitive verb, and therefore, requires an object. However, in this case, a case marker no longer performs the function of marking an object of the sentence; instead, it functions as a focus marker.3 2 Kim (1991) and Kim (2007) found that when noun phrase is not marked with a case marker, it expresses a specific or definitive reference. In other words, when case is expressed without the use of a case marker, it expresses already-known information. 3 Sentences with two accusative case markers are observed to behave similarly. Their NP2 and NP3 are both marked with accusative eul/reul, however, the accusative case marker attached to NP2 does not express the meaning, object, or patient. Instead, the function of case marker seems to be closer to the one of an auxiliary marker. For example: An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: … 35 It seems that although the primary meaning of case markers is purely syntactic, there are situations where markers express meanings that go beyond their grammatical relations with predicates and their arguments. In such examples, case markers seem to add to the overall semantic meaning of a clause or sentence. 3 Eul/reul – i/ga case marker alteration In this section, we will look at the examples where the accusative case marker eul/reul is replaced by the nominative case marker i/ga. The focus will be on two types of constructions or clauses where the alteration takes place: the -go sipda - construction and a transitive verb clause or sentence. 3.1 Eul/reul – i/ga case marker alteration in the -go sipda construction Arguably, the most typical example is the replacement of the case marker eul/reul with the case marker i/ga in the -go sipda structure. With the most well-known example illustrated as follows. (4) a. . Jeo-neun chin-gu-ga bo-go sip-da. I-TOP friend-NOM see-CONN Want-DEC ‘I miss my friend(s).’ (4) b. . Jeo-neun chin-gu-reul bo-go Sip-da I-TOP friend-ACC see-CONN want-DEC ‘I miss my friend(s).’ Researchers generally agree that the case marker change does not necessarily occur in all of the -go sipda constructions. Um (2003) focused on the type of structures where case marker alteration can or cannot occur. He found out that the alteration cannot take place in the following two cases: 1. When the ‘inner’ predicate consists of a main and an auxiliary verb, as in (5a). (i) . Cheol-su-ga yeong-hui-reul son-eul jab-ass-da. Cheolsu-NOM Yeonghui-ACC hand-ACC grab-past_DEC ‘Cheolsu grabbed Yeonghui’s hand.’ 36 Maša ŽBOGAR 2. When the entire -go sipda construction modifies a noun, as in (5b). According to Lee (2016), the alteration cannot be realized when a verb before -go sipda is an adjective with the ha - - suffix as in (5c).4 (5) a. { /* } . Chi-ma-reul-ga ib-eo bo-go sip-da. skirt-ACC-NOM wear-CONN see- CONN want-DEC ‘I would like to try on the skirt.’ (5) b. { /* } Geu-reon i-ya-gi-reul-ga deud-go sip-eun saeng-gag-do this-ADN story-ACC-NOM hear-CONN want-ADN thought-AUX (5) b. . eobs-eoss-da. not have-past-DEC ‘I had no intention of listening to this kind of story.’ (5) c. { /* } O-neul-man-keum-eun u-ri-eui seung-ri-reul-ga today-AUX-TOP our-GEN win-ACC-NOM (5) c. . …….... gi-ppeo-ha-go sip-da happy-suffix-CONN want-DEC ‘Today I want to celebrate our victory.’ Whilst Um (2003) examined the overall characteristics of the -go sipda construction involving case marker alteration, Lee (2016) and Kim (2020) focused on analyzing the noun phrases where alteration takes place and the types of predicates (verbs) that permit such alteration. According to Lee (2016, p. 35), predicate must be either a transitive or non-transitive verb with an argument which can be perceived as patient or target. (6) a. . Do-seo-gwan-e ga-go sip-da. library-LOC go-CONN want-DEC ‘I want to go to the library.’ 4 Example (5b) corresponds to the example (19a’) in Um (2003, p. 181) and (5c) corresponds to the example (17)ㄴ in Lee (2016, p. 36). An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: … 37 (6) b. . Do-seo-gwan-i ga-go sip-da. library-NOM go-CONN want-DEC ‘I want to go to the library.’ Interestingly, though example (6b) is grammatically possible according to Lee (2016), Kim (2020) does not accept it as such due to the lack of examples in corpora of Korean language. He extends his claim to all motion verbs that appear in the main clause. Kim also argues that in constructions with typical transitive verbs (jeonhyeongjeogin tadong guseong ) and in cases where the noun phrase directly preceding the verb must serve as its object or theme, it typically denotes a definitive or specific reference. In sentences where a noun phrase in the object position does not refer to a specific reference, alteration cannot occur. (7) { / } . U-ri gang-a-ji-reul-ga geu-ri-go sip-da. our puppy-ACC-NOM draw-CONN want-DEC ‘I want to draw our puppy.’ (8) { /* } ? Eo-tteon geos-eul/i geu-ri- sip-ni? What-ADN thing-ACC-NOM draw-CONN want-INT ‘What would you like to draw?’ If we sum up, the following conditions have to be met for the marker alteration to take place. First, the target noun phrase must serve as an argument functioning as a specific object or theme of the predicate. Second, the predicate of the main clause must be a transitive verb and not an adjective with the suffix ha - -. Even though the environment in which a case marker alteration occurs can be pinned down, there is no clear consensus on what motivates case markers to change, and how to classify the marker i/ga once it replaces the original eul/reul. 5 The reason for this might be in the fact that the case alteration is not obligatory. To put it plainly, the occurrence or the non- occurrence of case marker alteration has no influence on the grammatical correctness of the entire construction. Despite the fact that the factor or motivator for case marker alteration is not necessarily agreed upon, there 5 Park (2001) sees the NP2 as the cause of the action or state in the predicate that the NP1 wishes to occur, which facilitates case marker eul/reul to be replaced by case marker i/ga. 38 Maša ŽBOGAR seems to be an agreement regarding the function of i/ga. That is, it no longer has the ability to function as a case marker. As seen from the examples, the overall grammatical meanings of the sentences that undergoes alteration are not affected. On the contrary, the semantic meanings are. I/ga functions as a focus marker for the patient, the target of the action, or the state that is expressed in a predicate. On the other hand, Ko (2003) and Lee (2016) argue that with the occurrence of a case marker alteration, a change in grammatical structure also arises. According to Ko (2003) a case marker alteration is nothing more than a phenomenon which occurs when the syntactic properties of some predicates require multiple argument structures. Lee (2016) partially agrees but adds that it is a combination of the main verb’s argument structure and auxiliary verb’s lexical characteristics.6 The case marker eul/reul can undergo the alteration to case marker i/ga even in constructions with simple predicates. Unfortunately, there is not much literature on the eul/reul – i/ga case marker alteration in non-complex sentences, compared to the works that focus on case marker alteration in the -go sipda constructions. Yu (2009) looked at the verbs which allow the alteration and divided them into different groups based on their meaning. She further looked into the semantic changes of sentences before and after case marker alterations and found out that verbs belonging to ‘middle voice auxiliary verbs’ (piwiseong junggandongsa ) which can be categorized by meaning as dachida-type verbs act differently than the verbs belonging to the group of ‘reflexive middle verbs’ (jaegwiseong junggandongsa ). In case of the former, the NP2 i/ga / receives more focus, and in case of the latter, the entire clause reportedly expresses the meaning of a patient. Let us look at a few examples. 6 The -go sipda construction is not the only construction where the combination of two verbs causes an overlaying effect. In Lee (2015), it is pointed out that a similar phenomenon takes place in sentences with long-form negation. In long-form negations, a case marker eul/reul can occur in the main clause behind an adverb (busaeo ). They argue that eul/reul appears due to anihada ’s transitive characteristics, which overlay into the main clause. An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: … 39 (9) a. . Gyo-tong sa-go-e cheol-su-ga meo-ri-reul da-chyeoss-da. traffic accident-LOC Cheolsu-NOM head-ACC hurt-past-DEC ‘Cheolsu hurt his head in a traffic accident.’ (9) b. . Gyo-tong sa-go-e cheol-su-ga meo-ri-ga da-chyeoss-da. traffic accident-LOC Cheolsu-NOM head-NOM hurt-past-DEC ‘Cheolsu hurt his head in a traffic accident.’ (10) a. . Yeong-hui-ga a-ju jol-lyeo-seo nun-eul gam-ass-da. Yeonghui-NOM very sleepy-CONN eyes-ACC close-past-DEC ‘Yeonghui closed her eyes because she was very sleepy.’ (10) b. . Yeong-hui-ga a-ju jol-lyeo-seo nun-i gam-ass-da. Yeonghui-NOM very sleepy-CONN eyes-NOM close-past-DEC ‘Yeonghui closed her eyes because she was very sleepy.’ In (9a), ‘hurt (his) head’ meorireul dachyeossda merely expresses where Cheolsu got hurt. On the other hand, in (9b) ‘hurt (his) head’ meoriga dachyeossda puts an emphasis on the fact that Cheolsu hurt his head. Therefore, the semantic meaning of the sentence has changed with the alteration of a case marker. Whereas, in the case of the latter, the case marker alteration prompts changes in the meaning of the construction – the agent is not as clear anymore and the meaning of a patient is more widespread. To go further, in example (9b), a case marker i/ga seems to carry the meaning of exclusivity that affects an object or target. The case marker alteration in example (10b) seems to convey a different meaning. Namely, due to the verb expressing an involuntary action, the action is not intentionally or purposefully done by the subject. Parallels can be drawn with findings by Hong (2017), who identified i/ga as a case marker that marks a controller, and eul/reul as a target of change either caused by the controller or expressed with a full clause. He further classified verbs into different groups. One of the groups includes verbs that describe situations where change is possible without a controller, allowing for the eul/reul – i/ga case marker alteration. According to (Hong, 2017, p. 977), the verbs allowing this case marker alteration share the following characteristics: the predicate must be a state verb expressing the continuation of a state and must be non-accusative, while the subject of such predicates is non-specific. 40 Maša ŽBOGAR It does appear there is a common thread that indicates the use of and function of the case marker alteration in this environment. The alternative case marker i/ga does not fulfil its function or meaning as a subject case marker. On the contrary, it seems to hold purely pragmatic meaning of altering the overall meaning of the clause or sentence. Therefore, the case marker i/ga has lost its syntactic meaning, and it functions similarly if not identically as an auxiliary marker. 4 Characteristics of the case marker i/ga in contexts of case marker alteration In this section we will look at the characteristics of case marker i/ga in more detail. In cases like these, the question that may occur is whether with the change of marker, a change of function of the noun phrase also occurs. For example, the noun phrase changing from object to subject of the predicate. According to Lee (2016), in instances of case alteration, where the previously object noun phrase receives the subject case markers, it does not make the entire noun phrase a subject marker. Lee (2016) concludes that this means that i/ga, when replacing eul/reul, is not functioning as a subject case marker but is instead more akin to auxiliary markers. From distribution’s point of view, it is easy to draw the similarities between the case marker i/ga and auxiliary markers, as both belong to the same family of parts of speech – markers (josa ). However, considering the meaning expressed by i/ga, it does not function as a case marker. It appears to do more than just place focus on the noun phrase, as an auxiliary marker would; it also conveys definitiveness, making the noun phrase more specific (Um, 2003; Kim, 2020).7 Let us compare the sentences in which case alteration occurs and where eul/reul is replaced by auxiliary marker. (11) a. . Yeong-hui-neun min-su-reul bo-go sip-da. Yeonghui-TOP Minsu-ACC see-CONN want-DEC ‘Yeonghui misses Minsu.’ 7 Kim (2020, p. 43) points out that noun phrase with i/ga expresses a more concrete object. An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: … 41 (11) b. . Yeong-hui-neun min-su-ga bo-go sip-da. Yeonghui-TOP Minsu-NOM see-CONN want-DEC ‘Yeonghui misses Minsu.’ (11) c. . Yeoung-hui-neun min-su-man bo-g- sip-da. Yeonghui-TOP Minsu-AUX see-CONN want-DEC (literally) ‘Yeonghui misses only Minsu.’ (11) d. . Yeoung-hui-neun min-su-kka-ji bo-go sip-da. Yeonghui-TOP Minsu-AUX see-CONN want-DEC (literally) ‘Yeonghui misses everyone up to Minsu.’ In the examples above, we can see that in (11b), ‘Minsu’ minsu is the friend who ‘Yeonghui’ yeounghui misses. However, when comparing this sentence to (11c), we notice a difference in meaning when the auxiliary marker man is used instead. With man, the only person Yeonghui misses is Minsu, and no one else. On the other hand, when kkaji is used, it conveys the meaning that Yeonghui misses everyone up to and including Minsu. In contrast, in (11b), it is not explicitly stated whether Minsu is the only one missed; however, Minsu is the person who is in focus. When comparing this to auxiliary markers, we can also observe that the meaning is not fully aligned. It is argued that in case marker alterations, i/ga points out that the noun phrase (NP2) refers a specific entity, which is the object or theme of the action or state verb in the predicate. From this, we can infer that i/ga expresses some form of exclusivity. However, when compared to man, we can observe that the meaning differs. Man expresses ‘strict’ exclusivity, meaning that out of all friends, only Minsu is missed. In contrast, kkaji also carries a sense of exclusivity but is not as rigid as in man . It suggests that there are more people than just Minsu whom Yeonghui misses. This far, we have only examined examples of case marker alterations where the noun phrase refers to something or someone specific. Now, let us investigate whether case marker alteration is possible when NP2 refers to a non-specific noun. 42 Maša ŽBOGAR (12) a. * . Cheol-su-neun a-mu sa-ram-eul bo-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP any person-ACC see-CONN want-DEC * ‘Cheolsu wants to see anyone.’ (12) b. * . Cheol-su-neun a-mu sa-ram-i bo-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP any person-NOM see-CONN want-DEC * ‘Cheolsu wants to see anyone.’ (12) c. . Cheol-su-neun a-mu sa-ram-i-na bo-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP any person-AUX see-CONN Want-DEC ‘Cheolsu wants to see anyone.’ (13) a. . Cheol-su-neun tteog-bokk-i-reul meog-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP tteogbokki-ACC eat-CONN Want-DEC ‘Cheolsu wants to eat tteogbokki.’ (13) b. . Cheol-su-neun tteog-bokk-i-ga meog-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP tteogbokki-NOM eat-CONN Want-DEC ‘Cheolsu wants to eat tteogbokki.’ (13) c. {* /* / } . Cheol-su-neun a-mu eum-sig/i/a-ni meog-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP any food-ACC/NOM/AUX eat-CONN Want-DEC ‘Cheolsu wants to eat any food.’ Looking at the above examples (12c) and (13c), we can observe that in sentences where a noun phrase expresses a non-definite reference, case marker alteration cannot take place. Instead, the auxiliary marker (i)na ( ) is used. (14) a. . Cheon-su-neun sa-ram-eul bo-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP person-ACC see-CONN want-DEC ‘Cheolsu misses people.’ An Overview of Korean Case Marker Alterations: … 43 (14) b. . Cheon-su-neun sa-ram-i bo-go sip-da. Cheolsu-TOP people-NOM see-CONN want-DEC ‘Cheolsu misses people.’ (15) a. . cheon-su-neun eum-sig-eul meog-go sip-da Cheolsu-TOP food-ACC eat-CONN want-DEC ‘Cheolsu wants to eat food.’ (15) b. cheol-su-neun eum-sig-i meog-go sip-da Cheolsu-TOP food-NOM eat-CONN want-DEC ‘Cheolsu wants to eat food.’ Examples (14) and (15) show that, despite the nouns for people and food being less specific and definitive compared to ‘Minsu’ minsu in (11) and ‘tteogboggi’ tteogbokki in (13), case marker alteration can still occur. The potential reason for the alteration to take place are the nouns with their contrasting meanings. In case of ‘people’ saram it can be contrasted with ‘animals’ dongmul , and in case of ‘food’ eumsig it can be contrasted with ‘drinks’ eumnyo . On the contrary, with ‘any person’ amu saram and ‘any food’ amu eumsig , which also express the lack of specificity, a reference with a contrasting meaning cannot be found.8 Considering the case marker i/ga following a noun phrase and denoting a relatively specific reference, it would also be interesting to analyze the case marker i/ga from the point of view of a determiner. Mok (1998a, 1998b) researched this angle and concluded that case markers i/ga and eul/reul function as determiners 9 though expressing a different meaning. Whilst the 8 This does not seem to be the case in other cases of alterations, such as e – eul/reul alterations. In those cases, alteration is possible due to syntactic characteristics of the verb in a predicate position. In other words, a verb enables both case markers eul/reul and e to appear in the same structure. However, there are different views on why alteration is possible. As already pointed out, Lim (2008) argues that with case alteration, theta roles remain the same and only the semantic meaning of the sentence changes. Kim (2014) explains the phenomenon as the NP2’s ability to express two semantic roles – theme and goal. In some research, the condition that dictates whether alteration can take place or not is assigned to a predicate, which should contain a motion verb or a resultative state verb (gyeolgwa-sanghwang dongsa, ) (Kim, 2004; Park, 2007). 9 It should be pointed out that Mok (1998a, 1998b) holds the position that case markers do not possess the function of marking cases. Instead, NPs are the ones who do so through the position in the sentence and argument relation with the predicate. 44 Maša ŽBOGAR case marker i/ga expresses a distinct and subject-oriented meaning, the case marker eul/reul expresses a common and object-oriented meaning. 5 Conclusion In this paper we looked at the possible case marker alteration that takes place in the object noun phrase position. To be more specific, we looked at two instances in which the case marker eul/reul is replaced by i/ga: one in a construction with a simple predicate and the other in the -go sipda construction. Our analysis focused on the conditions that allow case marker alteration to take place and the changes that take place in clauses or sentences after the alteration. Regarding the conditions, alteration can occur if the noun phrase is not a non-specific reference. The predicate also plays an important role in the facilitation of case marker alteration. In case of the -go sipda construction, the verb immediately preceding the construction should not be part of a complex predicate of the inner clause. In case of the NP i/ga / NP eul/reul / VP structure, the verb should carry static meaning, such as state or result of a situation. The changes that occur within a clause or sentence once the alteration takes place are more often semantic than syntactic or grammatical. We observed, that the structure NP2 i/ga / does not have the function of marking the subject. Instead, the case marker i/ga generally functions as a type of a focus marker, which makes the reference in the noun phrase more definitive. We have briefly looked at the characteristic of case marker i/ga in this environment and compared it with auxiliary markers. Though the case marker i/ga conveys some similarities with them, it would be worthwhile to explore i/ga as an auxiliary marker in more detail in future studies. 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