The confirmational marker ha in Northern Mandarin

- Northern Mandarin ha is explored under different types of contexts.
- The two instantiations of ha are restricted by the target of confirmation.
- Ha in NM modifies the illocutionary force of its host clauses.
- Ha and other confirmationals are restricted on the degree of confirmativeness.
- The use of ha is associated with politeness.

This paper focuses on the form, distribution and function of the sentence-final particle ha (哈) in Northern Mandarin. To understand its function, we also compare ha with two other Mandarin particles: ba and the A-Not-A tags (dui bu dui and shi bu shi) in their confirmational use. The interpretation of these particles is highly context-dependent. We show that there are three distinct phonetic forms of ha and each of them has a different pragmatic function. Ha1 is used for confirmation of the speaker's stance; ha2 is used for confirmation of the addressee's stance; and ha3 is a narrative marker. We develop an analysis according to which the two confirmational instances of ha modify the illocutionary act of an utterance. We also show that the choice among particles with seemingly identical function is determined by the strength of the speaker's stance toward the proposition as well as considerations of politeness.