WH-QUESTION IN KỌRING (THE MOVEMENT OF THE WH-ELEMENT IN QUESTION FORMATION IN KỌRING)

WH-QUESTION IN KỌRING (THE MOVEMENT OF THE WH-ELEMENT IN QUESTION FORMATION IN KỌRING)

ABSTRACT

Wh-movement is a transformational process which causes the displacement of a wh-element from its base generated position to string initial position. This movement process is used to structurally change a wh-question. This study investigated the movement of wh-elements in question formation in Kọring. Kọring is a minority language spoken in parts of Ebonyi and Benue states. The data used in the analysis were collected from a series of fieldwork undertaken by the researcher. The data were analysed, using the minimalist framework of Chomsky (1993, 1995). It is found that both the LF wh-movement and the syntactic wh-movement are existing in question formation in Kọring. It is also found that the application of syntactic wh-movement in Kọring has its own parameter of insertion and movement of constituents.