Igbo Verb Mood: An Adverb Modification

Abstract

Mood as one of the verbal categories in Igbo language refers to a way in which a verb is used to express certain meanings by the speaker at the time of making an utterance/sentence. The verb mood can be in; imperative (command), interrogative (question), indicative (statement), or in subjunctive (fact). Igbo language despite its linguistic importance lacks comprehensive research on the complexities of verb mood modification by adverbs. This knowledge gap necessitates a systematic investigation into the adverbial modification of Igbo verb mood with a view to fill the knowledge gap existing in the language. The aim of this study is to explore Igbo verb moods while the specific objective is to determine how Igbo verb moods could be modified by Igbo adverbs. The study made use of primary and secondary sources of data collections. The primary sources of data collection include interview, observation method; also researcher’s intuitive knowledge as a native speaker. The secondary sources of data collection include sourcing of data from textbooks written by linguists/scholars, journals, and internet materials. Study samples of thirty (30) native speakers (10 males and 10 females) were randomly selected. The respondents were adult males and females who are native speakers of the standard Igbo language within the ages of 50 – 70 years old. These respondents have vast knowledge in the language and have been permanent residents in these towns Onitsha, Umuahia, and Owerri for up to 30 years. The paper adopted both qualitative and descriptive design approaches. The theoretical framework adopted is x-bar theory. This theory is a theory of syntactic structures. The study examined three types of Igbo verb moods- imperative, indicative and the interrogative. The paper discovered that adverbs and verb moods belong to the same slot of Verb Phrase and can function as an adverbial and verb phrase. The paper concludes that verb moods in Igbo can be modified by different types of Igbo adverbs- time, manner, place and adverb of frequency etc. The study contributes to knowledge in Igbo syntax.