How Chinese borrowed adjectives are integrated into two Mongolic languages of China: the Dörbed Mongolian Community Language (DMCL) in Heilongjiang and the Dongxiang language in Gansu. Despite similar contact with Chinese, these languages show distinct morphosyntactic strategies for incorporating borrowed adjectives.
Using published research (Bao 2011, Ma 2020) and fieldwork (Lefort 2023,2024) , we examine the types of adjectives borrowed and the morphological mechanisms that govern their integration. Special attention to the lexicalization and the grammaticalization of Chinese particles DE 的 (attributive) and DE 地 (adverbial). Predicative • Quality adjectives require DE 的 (1) Tāmen-de jiā lěngqīngqīng DE 3PL-GEN house quiet.DE 'Their house is very quiet' • State adjectives require degree adverb (2) Tāde chènyī tài duǎn 3SG-GEN shirt very short 'His shirt is short' 3. Chinese adjectives Adverbial • Homophonous particle DE 地 is required with disyllabic adjectives in preverbal positions, e.g. 快速地跑 kuàisù de pǎo -'run quickly' • DE 地 is ungrammatical with most monosyllabic ones Attributive • DE 的 is used in descriptive phrase, e.g. 红的花 hóng DE huā 'a flower that is red' • Classificatory reading, e.g. 红花 hóng huā 'a red flower' • Disyllabic or reduplicated adjectives require DE 的, e.g. 圆圆 的桌子 yuányuán DE zhuōzi 'a round table'