The Expression of Nominal Plurality in Eggon

Abstract

This paper examines the various ways of forming nominal plurality in Eggon, a Central Nigerian language. Plural formation is a crucial phenomenon in human languages. In an attempt to examine pluralization of Eggon nouns, the following methods were revealed: zero affixation, ‘mo’ prefixation, vowel alternation, reduplication, tonal permutation and vowel insertion. It was observed that vowel alternation involved the vowel ‘o’ changing to ‘e’ and the vowels ‘/o’ changing to ‘a’. In complete reduplication, the whole word repeats itself. Partial reduplication involves the repetition of the second syllable of a noun in order to form its plural. The vowels ‘a’ and ‘e’ are inserted   immediately after the onset of the second syllable.