Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.2002, Side 78

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QUIRKY CASE IN FAROESE
these changes, since we will leave this to
future investigations and researchers.7
References
Bames, M. 1986. Subject, Nominative and Oblique
Case in Faroese. Scripta Islandica 37:13-46.
Dixon, R.M.W. 1997. The rise and fall of languages.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Jónsson, G.J. 1997/1998. Sagnir með aukafallsl'rumlagi.
Islenskt mál og almenn málfrceði. 19/20:11-45.
Levin, B. 1993. English Verb Classes and Alternations:
A Preliminary Investigation. Chicago, University of
Chicago Press.
Petersen H.P. and Staksberg, M. 1995. Donsk-føroysk
orðabók. Fróðskaparfelag Føroya. Tórshavn.
Poulsen J.H.W. et al. 1998. Føroyskorðabók. Fróðskap-
arfelag Føroya. Tórshavn.
Ura, H. 2000. Cltecking Theoryand Grammatical Func-
tions in Universal Grammar. New York, Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
Zaenen, A.J.M. and Práinsson, H. 1985. Case and
Grammatical Functions: The Icelandic Passive. Nat-
ural Language and Linguistic Theory 3:441-483.
Notes
1 I would like to thank M. P. Barnes and Ei. Weyhe for
extensive comments on the article and correcting my
English.
2 Or in the words of Dixon: “Documenting languages
is the responsibility of linguists.” (Dixon,
1997:136), and further: “The most important task in
linguistics today - indeed, the only really important
task - is to get out in the field and describe lan-
guages, while this can still be done. Self-admiration
in the looking glass of formalist theory can wait; that
will always be possible.” (Dixon 1997:144). Since
Faroese is the least studied North Germanic lan-
guage, we can go along with this.
He is here talking about endangered languages,
but one can go along with what has been said here
when we are talking about Faroese - the least stud-
ied North Germanic language.
3 The notion experiencer is to be understood as de-
noting someone that experiences something without
having any influence on what is happening (Jónsson
1997/98:18).
4 An investigation into the matter, using a short text
into which people were asked to add 3 person of the
personal pronoun, showed that dúina is common
with a dative subject
5 The abbreviations are FD = Faroese Dictionary
(1998), DD = Danish Diclionary (1995), Dimml. =
Dimmalætting (a Faroese newspaper).
6 This expression is extremely archaic in colloquial
Faroese.
7 The following expressions are also impersonal in
Faroese:
(i) a. mær líður einki
me-dat. passes nothing
T am not making any progress’
b. tær nýtist ikki at renna
you-dat. do not have to run
‘you need not to run’
c. honum nyttar einki at rópa
him-dat. is of no use to yell
‘there is no use his yelling’
d. mær rennur týðan til hansara
me-dat. runs-3.sg. kindness to him-gen.
‘I think about him with kind feelings’
e. mær var rógvandi/gangandi/vitandi
me-dat. was rowing/walking/knowing
‘I was rowing/walking’
f. mær skilst
me-dat. understands
‘I understand’