On the Heterogeneity of Northern Paiute Directives

In this chapter, I explore a variety of grammatical constructions involved in expressing or asserting a desired action or outcome-what properly (and traditionally) fall under the functional domain of commands (or directives)-in Northern Paiute (Western Numic; Uta-Aztecan). I also discuss the various situational contexts appropriate to their use and make a preliminary assessment of their historical developments, as both grammatical and sociocultural phenomena. This study is intended to contribute to the typological literature on commands and on nondeclarative speech acts more generally (see, especially, Konig and Siemund 2007 and Aikhenvald 2010, inter alia).