Nou, toe en dan as temporele leksikale elemente in Afrikaans

Abstract

Nou, toe and dan as temporal linguistic items in Afrikaans
The temporal Afrikaans words nou, toe and dan are very frequently used in reference to the three contrasts of the temporal deixis: the present, past and future tenses. They also have the temporal function in common to mark the time-relations between different parts of utterances which refer to a sequence of actions, events or slate of affairs. Each has, however, its own unique features. Toe for example could be described as "marked", since it can be used only to be indicative of the past, while nou and dan, on the other hand, are applicable in the broader spectrum of deictic reference, but not exactly parallel to each other in the different tenses.