evidentialitywhether

Evidentiality refers to grammatical markers that indicate the source of information a speaker is using. This means a speaker explicitly signals how they know something, whether through direct experience, hearsay, inference, or assumption. Languages that utilize evidentiality often have specific verb endings or particles that convey this information. For example, a language might have one marker for "I saw it myself," another for "I heard it from someone else," and a third for "I deduce it based on evidence."

The category of evidentiality is broad and encompasses various linguistic systems worldwide. While some languages have extensive systems of evidentiality, others may only mark a limited range of information sources, or none at all. The specific categories and how they are expressed can vary significantly from one language to another.

Understanding evidentiality is crucial for linguists studying grammar and semantics. It sheds light on how languages encode epistemological stances – a speaker's attitude towards the truth or reliability of their statement. It also plays a role in cross-linguistic communication, as misunderstandings can arise when speakers of different languages have differing assumptions about how information sources are marked. The concept helps explain why direct translations of utterances can sometimes sound unnatural or convey unintended meanings.