Markedness in evidential systems: a cross-linguistic study of the languages in China

Abstract This paper explores the typological diversity and markedness of evidential systems in the languages in China, emphasizing their unique characteristics and cross-linguistic variations. The study reveals that evidential systems in the languages in China are shaped by the interplay of perceptual directness, perception neutrality, and grammatical economy. Direct sensory evidence, such as visual perception, typically employs unmarked zero-forms, aligning with the principle of linguistic economy, while indirect evidence, like inference or hearsay, often requires explicit morphological or syntactic markers. The analysis highlights binary oppositions in evidential systems, such as direct versus indirect evidence, personal versus mediated knowledge, and factual versus subjective interpretations. Direct evidence is generally less marked, whereas indirect evidence and subjective interpretations reflect the speaker’s evaluative stance and control over information. The degree of neutrality and markedness forms a continuum, influenced by language types and cognitive strategies. These findings underscore the intricate relationship between information sources, perception, and linguistic encoding in the evidential systems in the languages in China.