The discourse function of inverse voice: An experimental study in Teribe (Chibchan)

It has been argued that the use of inverse voice in languages with pragmatic inversion depends on the discourse status of the referents: this voice occurs when the patient outranks the agent in topicality. In our article, we present empirical evidence from Teribe, a Chibchan language of Panama and Costa Rica and we examine the interaction between inverse voice and information structure. We report the results of three production experiments which show that there is a strong correlation but not a categorical association between inverse voice and particular information structural properties. On this empirical basis, we claim that the occurrence of inverse voice in discourse may be accounted for in terms of discourse-oriented preferences concerning the linear order and does not require the assumption that discrete pragmatic properties such as topic or focus are inherent part of the construction at issue.