The ability to refer to an object according to its distance from the speaker is a universal feaure of the mIE languages. Demonstrative pronouns (DP) both assert the existence of an object and they indicate proximity of the object to the speaker: this farmhouse (near) or that farmhouse (far). Some languages have DPs that distinguish a third cagegory: far from both speaker and hearer: that mountain.
This and That
MIE lanuages with a two-way distinction indicate distance from the speaker’s point of view: objects are relatively close to the speaker opposed to objects that are further away. The location of the object relative to the hearer doesn’t play a role. In some cases, proximity distinction requires the use of an adverb, as in Swedish:
Det här är min bil. [it here is my car] ‘This is my car.’
Det där är din bil. [it there is your car] ‘That is your car.’
Other mIE languages have compound DPs but they all add a nuance of contrast as in This one here is my car. Swedish is unique in having a neutral compound DP.
English
These belong to me. Those belong to you.
Frisian (does not distinguish number)
Dizze hearre by my. [this/these belong at me] Dy hearre by dy. [that/those belong at you]
Romanian
Astea îmi aparțin. [these to+me belong] Alea îți aparțin. [those to you belong]
Lithuanian
Šie priklauso man. [these belong to+me] Tie priklauso tau. [those belong to+you]
Polish
Te należą do mnie. [these belong to me] Tamte należą do ciebie. [those belong to you] (or tamte ‘there+these’)
Persian
inhā māl-e man hastand. [these propery+of me are] Anha māl-e to hastand. [those property+of you are]
Hindi
ye mere hain. [these mine are] ve tumhare hain. [those yours are]
Those over there, those, and these
In the three-way system a speaker can indicate nearness to himself, nearness to both speaker and listener, and distance from both. The three-way systems in Portuguese and Spanish (especially in the Americas) are starting to merge into the the simpler 2-way system. However, Irish, Scots Gaelic, Armenian and Sinhala have sturdy 3-way systems showing no signs of fraying.
Spanish
Estos me pertenecen. [these to+me belong to me] Esos te pertenecen. [those to+you belong]
Aquellos me pertenecen. [those (over there) belong to me]
Scots Gaelic
Tha iad seo agam. [is they this at+me] ‘these are mine’ Tha iad sin agad. [is they that at+you] ‘those are yours.’
Tha iad sud agam. [is they that (over there) at+me] ‘Those over there are mine.’
Armenian
sranq patkanum en indz. [those belonging are to+me] ‘Those belong to me.’ dranq patkanum en kez. [those belonging are to+you] ‘Those belong to you.’
aynnerə patkanum en indz. [those (over there) belonging are to me] ‘Those (over there) belong to me.’
Sinhala
mevā mage. [those mine] ‘Those are mine. ē obē.[those yours] ‘Those are yours.’
aravā mage. [those (over there] mine] ‘Those (over there) are mine.’
In Chile almost no one says aquel/aquella/aquello [‘that’ distal] except, rarely, as a synonym for ese/esa/eso [‘that’ medial]. They are used more in writing, but not much. You can learn these words but never use them. For example, I don’t use them even in writing.1
In real life Spanish, ese has completely absorbed the meaning of aquel, so the medial and distal demonstratives have been merged into the word ese. However, even though aquel is disappearing, the medial and distal difference still exists and can only be expressed by distinguishing the words ese and aquel.2
[In Polish] even if something is physically far away, we can still use “this”, e.g. when it has already been mentioned in the conversation. e.g.:
“Have these (te) girls graduated yet?”
(those mentioned earlier in the conversation; and they may even be on the other side of the world.)3
GRAMMAR TERMS
Adverbs qualify the action expressed in verbs: where, when, how, etc. an action took place, as in I live here.
Demonstrative Pronoun: English this/these, that/those. They take the place of a noun or a noun phrase: That (object I’m pointing to) is not my car. Objects close to the speaker are said the be ‘proximal’, those farther away are ‘distal’, those in between ‘medial’.
These English words have other functions as well. They may function as demonstrative adjectives (determiners); This car is expensive. That car is not. They also serve as connectors between clauses. As such they are sometimes called ‘relative pronouns’, pronouns that relate one phrase to another. This is the house that Jack built. To me this just seems like another instance of DPs taking the place of a noun: This is the house the house that Jack built. But, whatever.
In this post we focus on traditionally termed demonstrative pronouns. We look at other uses of demonstratives in other posts in the series ‘Demonstratives’.
2 responses to “Demonstrative Pronouns (1): Keep Your Distance”
What about some colloquial English? “That there’s the old homestead”
Good question. On one hand it looks like ‘that there is…” could be a borrowing from a Scandinavian language, but it is usually seen as an independent development in English which has mostly died out in Britain. It occurs in the US mainly in southern/Appalachian dialects, where we often find older English forms. Still, it would be interesting to follow its development in England and its spread to and use in other Englishes around the world.