Comparing English and Mo/Deg Nominal Group Qualifiers

Abstract

The task of this study is primarily to investigate the differences between English and Mo/Deg nominal group (NG) qualifiers to identify any similarities within the NG qualification structures of these languages. In otherwise, the study finds answers to the questions:  “What are the qualifying elements within the Mo/Deg and English NGs?” and “What are the differences and similarities between the Mo/Deg NG qualification and that of English?” Using homogeneous sampling, the study purposefully sampled thirty (30) educated Mos/Dega (speakers of the Mo/Deg language). Short simple English sentences containing NG qualifiers designed by the researcher were given to them to translate into Mo/Deg. This was to see how the qualifiers are used in the language. Also, some of these sentences were given to some members of the staff of the Mo/Deg project of GILLBT to translate into Mo/Deg for further correct use of the qualifiers in the Mo/Deg language. The translated versions were then collected as data and analysed based on the Systemic Grammar principles of the NG structure. The results showed that the adjectival groups (AdjG), the clause, the numerals, and the determiners (pre-central, central, and post-central) occur at the qualifier position in Mo/Deg, whereas in English, it is the prepositional groups (PG), the adjectival groups (AdjG) (under some conditions), and the clause, which occupy the qualifier slot. However, it was also found out that the common linguistic units which occur in both languages as qualifiers are the adjectival groups and the clause.