コノム konomu's notebook

Wa and Ga Addendum - Atypical Noun Sentences

Since writing A Guide to Wa and Ga, I’ve come to realize that some usages of が are difficult to explain with the typology given by Noda (野田 1996). Technically, his sentence typology covers most of the sentences I will explain in this chapter, but they function distinctly from typical sentences you will see in Noda’s categories, so I believe they deserve their own descriptions. Also, I am writing this because I’ve never seen any of these sentence forms described in English-language Japanese-learning resources (except for a mention of breakdown sentences in Kuno’s The Structure of the Japanese Language). All information and examples that follow come from 今田 (2010).

“Noun sentences” are sentences with a noun as its predicate. We will look at four sentence forms, all of which are topicless noun sentences, and all of which contain が.

I call these “atypical” noun sentences, but that doesn’t mean that they are exceedingly rare. I notice these sentences used in both speech and writing quite often, but the “typical” sentences described in the main guide still make up the vast majority of sentences.

Neutral-Description Noun Sentences (中立叙述型名詞述語文)

The “neutral-description sentences” make up the vast majority of typical topicless sentences as described by Noda. The term “neutral-description” is just the formal name for sentences that use descriptive が, which I introduced in the main guide. Thus, all sentences given as examples of topicless sentences in the main guide are neutral-description sentences. In this section, I will specifically be focusing on neutral-description noun sentences, as these are much rarer than their adjective or verb counterparts.

When we use が in a noun sentence with no further context, the interpretation of the sentence which uses exclusive が is usually the one the speaker means.

1. 私が田中(たなか)です。(Exclusive が)
I am Tanaka.

2. (?) 私が田中です。(Descriptive が)
(?) Look, I’m Tanaka!

Consider example (1), a noun sentence using exclusive が. We can imagine that this is a sentence spoken by Tanaka in response to someone asking “Who in this group is Tanaka?” Tanaka is specifying that he is Tanaka, so this is the natural interpretation.

But if we were to interpret the same sentence using descriptive が, as in example (2), it comes across as awkward. In The Principle of Topic Presence, I explained the conditions under which a sentence is likely to be expressed as a topicless sentence (i.e. use descriptive が). One of those conditions was that “a temporary state directly observable to the speaker, expressed at that moment,” was being conveyed. Descriptive が imparts a nuance that the sentence is describing an event or something the speaker is percieving. Thus, this interpretation is unnatural unless we imagine a fantastical situation where the speaker has magically assumed Tanaka’s body and is pointing it out (or something similar).

Nevertheless, neutral-description noun sentences are grammatical and will sound natural if the context allows for it. The following examples (3) to (10) all use descriptive が.

3. あっ、(いえ)ドーム(がた)だ!
Woah, the house is dome-shaped!

4. あっ、イチローが四番(よんばん)打者(だしゃ)だ!
Hey look, Ichiro’s batting fourth!

5. 信号(しんごう)(あか)だ。
The traffic light’s red.

Examples (3) through (5) are neutral-description noun sentences in which something directly perceptible to the speaker is described. But as outlined in the introductory section on Topicless Sentences in the main guide, there are other categories of topicless sentences which don’t describe perceptible events/states. (6) through (10) are examples of such sentences.

6. 日本(にほん)チームの()けは濃厚(のうこう)だ。主力選手(しゅりょくせんしゅ)ベンチウォーマーだ。
The Japanese team is on the verge of defeat. Their best guy’s on the bench.

7. 上司(じょうし)あいつですよ。やる()()ませんよ、まったく。
My boss is that guy. I can’t stand it.

8. 彼女(かのじょ)信頼(しんらい)して(すべ)てをまかせたのだが、これがとんだペテン()だった。
I put my trust in her and left it all in her hands, but she turned out to be a crook.

9. 友人(ゆうじん)(いえ)()めた。ところがその(おとこ)大酒(おおざけ)のみだ。()(はじ)めたら()まらない。
I let my friend stay at my house. But it turns out, he was a drunkard. Once he started drinking, he wouldn’t stop.

10. と、その(とき)、ぼくの右手(みぎて)(した)布地(ぬのじ)(うご)く、ハッとした。ひょっとすると、(せき)の布地だとばかり(おも)っていたところが、彼女の。まさか。やっぱりそうだった。彼女のスカートだった。
At that moment, the fabric under my right hand shifted, and I gasped. I thought I had my hand on the fabric of the seat… it couldn’t be. But it was… my hand was on her skirt.

Examples (6) and (7) are neutral-description noun sentences which don’t describe directly perceptible states, but temporary states occurring in the present.

Examples (8) through (10) are neutral-description noun sentences which function like a description of a temporary state or event as experienced by the speaker. These examples are of recounted stories (events that happened in the past), so they demonstrate that descriptive が isn’t only used in statements narrated in the moment.

Enumeration and Breakdown (項目の列挙・内訳)

が may be used to list items or to present a breakdown of data in a noun sentence. These sentences are a subcategory of the neutral-description noun sentences, so there is no nuance of exclusion in them.

Examples of Sentences With Enumeration

11. 利益(りえき)(めん)でも減益(げんえき)()けられない」が二十四社(にじゅうよんしゃ)増収(ぞうしゅう)生産性向上(せいさんせいこうじょう)などで増益(ぞうえき)可能(かのう)」が二十二社(にじゅうにしゃ)できっこう。
As opposed to the 24 companies that say that “a decrease in profits is unavoidable,” 22 companies say that “increasing profits is possible through improving yield and productivity.”

12. チンパンジーが(さき)ヒトがあとである。
Chimpanzees came first, and humans came afterward.

13. (うえ)()二歳(にさい)三ヵ月(さんかげつ)(した)の子が六ヶ月(ろっかげつ)
My older kid is 2 years and 3 months old, and my younger kid is 6 months old.

14. 正面(しょうめん)のドアを(はい)るとすぐ右手(みぎて)リビングルーム、(となり)寝室(しんしつ)(つぎ)ダイニングルーム。
When you enter from the front door, the living room is to your right, the one after that is the bedroom, and then you have the dining room.

15. 山田君(やまだくん)受付(うけつけ)田中(たなか)さんが司会(しかい)佐藤(さとう)(くん)会計(かいけい)だ。
Yamada is doing reception, Tanaka will be the presenter, and Satou will do the accounting.

Examples of Sentences With a Breakdown

16. 二十件(にじゅっけん)のうち十六件(じゅうろっけん)六十五歳(ろくじゅうごさい)以上(いじょう)のお年寄(としよ)りだった。
Of the 20 instances, 16 of them involved people over 65 years of age.

17. 米国(べいこく)貿易赤字(ぼうえきあかじ)(やく)千五百億(せんごひゃくおく)ドルに(たっ)し、そのうち、(やく)半分(はんぶん)対日貿易(たいにちぼうえき)によるものだ。
The US trade deficit is over $150 billion, of which about half is with Japan.

18. 私のクラスでは、()(にん)(おとこ)で、(ろく)(にん)(おんな)です。
In my class, there are five boys and six girls.

19. 大部分(だいぶぶん)学生(がくせい)独身(どくしん)です。
Most students are single.

20. ほとんどの学生(がくせい)金持(かねも)ちの息子(むすこ)です。
Almost all of the students are sons of affluent families.

21. 老人(ろうじん)(おお)くが病身(びょうしん)です。
Many old people have fragile health.

22. 日本人(にっぽんじん)(さん)(にん)一人(ひとり)近眼(きんがん)だ。
One out of three Japanese are near-sighted.

Identificational Sentences (同定文)

Identificational sentences are noun sentences that use が to assign characteristics or meanings to their predicate.1 They are distinct from both neutral-description sentences and specificational sentences. They may resemble specificational sentences, but there is no nuance of exclusion within them. Here are some examples:

23. 苦労(くろう)してやっと()()れたのがこれだ。
This is what I have finally gotten my hands on after much hard work.

24. (なに)でも反対(はんたい)するのが山田(やまだ)さんだ。
Yamada is a guy who’s quick to object to everything.

25. 結婚(けっこん)多少(たしょう)(かね)もたまると()しくなるのが、(いえ)だ。
A house is what everyone wants after they’ve gotten married and saved money.

26. この問題(もんだい)()かりやすく解説(かいせつ)したのが、本書(ほんしょ)である。
This book is what provides a clear explanation of this problem.

If you have read through How to Tell When Inversion is Possible, these sentences may be confusing to you. In that section, I introduced the rule that sentences with a referential topic can’t be inverted and should not be expressed as specificational sentences. But the examples above look like sentences with a referential topic which have been inverted.

Indeed, the “uninverted” forms of (23) through (26) are indistinguishable from basic topic sentences that can’t be inverted if you only look at the meaning of their subject and predicate. But because they serve a different overall function from typical sentences with a referential topic, it is perfectly acceptable to express them in this way, with が. The functions of identificational sentences are described with (27) through (29). The prototypical identificational sentence in each example is (i), and its uninverted form is (ii).

27. Pointing out uniqueness:

    1. 県下(けんか)唯一(ゆいいつ)高校野球優勝校(こうこうやきゅうゆうしょうこう)この高校(こうこう)だ。
    2. この高校は県下唯一の高校野球優勝校だ。
      This high school is the only one in the prefecture to have won a baseball championship.
    1. 世界一(せかいいち)金持(かねも)ちが(かれ)だ。
    2. 彼は世界一の金持ちだ。
      He is the richest man in the world.

28. Characterization:

    1. (ころ)んでもただでは()きないのが太郎(たろう)だ。
    2. 太郎は転んでもただでは起きない。
      Taro's the kind of guy to get right back up when he stumbles.
    1. いざというとき(ちから)発揮(はっき)するのが(おんな)だ。
    2. 女はいざというとき力を発揮する。
      Women show their strengths when the time comes.

29. Assigning a definition:

    1. 三辺(さんぺん)(なが)さが(ひと)しい三角形(さんかっけい)正三角形(せいさんかっけい)だ。
    2. 正三角形は三辺の長さが等しい三角形だ。
      An equilateral triangle is a triangle whose three sides are of equal length.
    1. 茶釜(ちゃがま)(つく)職業(しょくぎょう)(ひと)釜師(かまし)だ。
    2. 釜師は茶釜を作る職業の人だ。
      A kettle caster is a person whose job is to make tea kettles.

In all the above examples, you will realize that we are assigning a special kind of meaning to the predicate. Instead of mentioning some aspect of the topic or placing the topic into a category like basic topic sentences, identificational sentences connect the predicate to an idea within a broader context, thus identifying it with other ideas related to that broader context.

For example, consider the identificational sentences (30) and (31).

30. ニュートンは[物体(ぶったい)から微粒子(びりゅうし)()んでくるのが(ひかり)だ](かんが)えたが、ハイゲンスが()()波動(はどう)(せつ)(とな)えこれが承認(しょうにん)されるに幾多(いくた)年月(としつき)がかかった。
Newton believed that light was particles emitted from a source, but Huygens voiced his support for wave theory, and it took many years for Newton’s idea to garner recognition.

In (30), “光” (light) is being tied to “物体から微粒子が飛んでくるの” (particles emitted from a source). The listener/reader of this sentence probably already has an idea of what light is in their own mind. The sentence adds onto that idea of light and characterizes it by connecting light to another idea in a scientific context.

31. (つぎ)卓上(たくじょう)(あら)われたのが、献立表(こんだてひょう)(たん)に 「熊肉(くまにく)」 と()いてある料理(りょうり)だ。これについても、張伊三(ちょういぞう)解説(かいせつ)(くわ)えるのである。これは、(くま)(もも)(にく)であった。[まず、肉を高熱(こうねつ)充分(じゅうぶん)煮込(にこ)み、さらに五香(ごこう)(こな)()()んで一昼夜(いっちゅうや)()、それを(ほん)胡麻(ごま)(あぶら)でいためて、(しお)醤油(しょうゆ)(あじ)をつけ、野菜(やさい)()えて(きょう)したのが、これであります、]()うのだ。
The next dish to appear at our table was something simply labeled “bear meat” on the menu. Chou Izou also explained this dish to us. It was meat from the thigh of a bear. He told us that the dish in front of us was meat, first thoroughly stewed at high heat, then soaked in five-spice powder for a full day, fried in sesame oil, seasoned with salt and soy sauce, and served with vegetables.

In (31),2 the narrator, who is listening to “Chou Izou,” does not know what the dish “bear meat” entailed. An identificational sentence is used to recount Chou Izou’s explanation of the dish, where “これ” (referring to the dish) is the predicate. “これ” is defined with a long explanation that serves as the subject of the sentence (“まず、肉を高熱で充分煮込み、さらに…”). This subject exists among other ideas within the context of cooking, like other dishes, techniques for preparing food, common objects found in a kitchen, etc. The sentence makes a connection between the dish “bear meat” and its method of preparation, as well as the contexts that method of preparation resides in and its related ideas.

Subjects in Identificational Sentences

You may have noticed that the types of subjects that identificational sentences take are quite limited. In general, there are only three types of subjects in identificational sentences:

  1. 〜の Clauses (何でも反対するのが山田さんだ。)
  2. Noun-modifying Clauses (何でも反対する人が山田さんだ。)
  3. Clauses Expressing Roles (反対派のリーダーが山田さんだ。)

Presentational Sentences (提示文)

Eminent researchers in Japanese linguistics disagree on how to characterize presentational sentences in sentence typology. We will take the view that presentational sentences are a subcategory of identificational sentences.

32. 丈夫(じょうぶ)品種(ひんしゅ)がたくさんある。(とく)におすすめなのがこれだ。
There are many hardy varieties available. This is one I particularly recommend.

Example (32) shows a presentational sentence, where “得におすすめなの” (one I particularly recommend) is the subject and “これ” (this) is the predicate. The reason why presentational sentences are often brought up in their own category is because of their information structure. Namely, the predicate is new information, and the subject is old information.3 That is, the predicate of presentational sentences are newly introduced to the listener or brought to the listener’s attention. This goes against a rule-of-thumb for Japanese commonly repeated to learners, that “は marks old information, and が marks new information.” It also differs from regular identificational sentences, where the subject is new information and the predicate is old information.

Apart from this difference, presentational sentences mostly function in the same way as identificational sentences. They are used for the same reasons brought up in (27) through (29).

33. フェラーリは第二次世界大戦(だいにじせかいたいせん)()わってレースが再開(さいかい)された(とき)から、クルマを製作(せいさく)し、チームを(つく)ってレースに参加(さんか)している。その()現在(げんざい)(いた)るまで1年(いちねん)として(やす)んだことはない。そのフェラーリがクルマを作るようになる以前(いぜん)、すなわち1920年代(ねんだい)や30年代に、ちょうどこの現代(げんだい)のフェラーリの役割(やくわり)()たしていたのが、アルファ・ロメオだった。
Ferrari has been building cars, forming teams, and participating in races since racing resumed after the end of World War II. This practice of theirs has continued every year, all the way up to current day. But in the 1920s and 1930s, before Ferrari was a carmaker, it was Alfa Romeo that played the role of the modern Ferrari.

34. トイレの装置(そうち)として急速(きゅうそく)普及(ふきゅう)しているのが音姫(おとひめ)」だ。(おとこ)(ひと)にはあまり()られていないようなので紹介(しょうかい)すると、衛生陶器(えいせいとうき)最大手(さいおおて)のTOTOが発売(はつばい)している擬音装置(ぎおんそうち)で、ボタンを()したり、()をかざすとスピーカーから流水(りゅうすい)(おん)(なが)れるもの。
The toilet appliance “Otohime” is now seeing more widespread use. It’s not well known among men, so to explain: The “Otohime” is a device produced by the toilet manufacturer Toto that plays a flushing sound when you place your hand near it or push a button.

35. 人々(ひとびと)賃金(ちんぎん)目減(めべ)りを副業(ふくぎょう)内職(ないしょく)(おぎな)ってきたが、副収入(ふくしゅうにゅう)(くわ)えた実質所得(じっしつしょとく)昨年(さくねん)(あき)のルーブル暴落(ぼうらく)(さかい)減少(げんしょう)(てん)じた。これに()()ちをかけたのが、今年(ことし)(はじ)以来(いらい)公共料金(こうきょうりょうきん)大幅(おおはば)アップだ。公営住宅(こうえいじゅうたく)家賃(やちん)鉄道(てつどう)運賃(うんちん)二・四倍(にてんよんばい)、ガス料金(りょうきん)()(ばい)()()がった。
Many have been making up for the reduced wages by taking on second jobs, but their real income has also been declining since the ruble crashed last fall. Compounding this is the sharp increase in public utility fees since the beginning of this year. Rents for public housing and train fares are up 140%, and gas prices have risen five-fold.

Citations

今田, 水穂. (2010). 日本語名詞述語文の意味論的・機能論的分析. (Doctoral dissertation, 筑波大学).

Notes

  1. Identificational sentences are also called が-cleft sentences (ガ分裂文). The 「花が咲くのは7月ごろだ。」 structure covers は-cleft sentences (ハ分裂文). 野田 (1998) defined his 陰題文 to include identificational sentences, but I separated them out of the category (leaving only specificational sentences) in my guide so that I could present them here. I do believe they function distinctly enough to warrant this recategorization, and I feel like lumping identificational sentences into the same category as 陰題文 is confusing. 

  2. In addition to the sentence with the underlined portion, the first sentence in (31) is also an identificational sentence. 

  3. This is debated. Some linguists consider presentational sentences to be a subcategory of neutral-description noun sentences, which would mean the entirety of the sentence is new information.