Dream as Deceit, Dream as Truth: The Grammar of Telling Dreams

Abstract

The Kagwahiv (Tupí-Guaraní) grammatical particle used exclusively in the telling of dreams had earlier been claimed to be just a specialized tense marker used in dream narrative. Instead, it is argued that this particle is also part of a system of evidentials—specifically, of a set of reportative past markers. This is supported both by the form of the particle and by examination of its functions and etymological connections.