Re: terminators

[Ivan A Derzhanski <iad@MATH.ACAD.BG>]

Lee Sau Dan ~{@nJX6X~} wrote:
> >>>>> "Robin" == Robin Turner <robin@BILKENT.EDU.TR> writes:
>     Robin> The closest I've found is Chinese, which employs a few
>     Robin> terminator-like structures, e.g. "yinwei ...  suoyi" for
>     Robin> causation (normally rendered into English as "because ...
>     Robin> therefore ...").
>
> This is not   a  good example  of  terminators.   That's  because  the
> "yin1wei4  A,  suo3yi3 B" can  be replaced  by  "A, suo3yi3 B" without
> removing  the causual relationship.  Moreover,  the same idea can also
> be rendered as "B, yin1wei4 A".

It is also not a good example because _suo3yi3_ does not terminate the
construction; it simply introduces the second part.

I wonder why the English _if ... then ... else/otherwise ..._ wasn't
offered as an example.  It looks very much like _yin1wei4 ... suo3yi3
..._, and again it has no terminator, although it would have one if
English, like Algol 68 or Ada, used _fi_ or _end if_.

> For examples of terminators,  how about postpositional languages, such
> as  Korean and Japanese?   Aren't   the postpositions terminators   by
> themselves?

No.  A terminator is a (frequently optional) right bracket that matches
a required left bracket.  If a postposition is a right bracket, what is
the left?

--Ivan