Justifying the dichotomy of questions in Jin Chinese and proposing an implicational universal

Abstract The dichotomy of confirmation-seeking (CS) polar questions versus information-seeking (IS) constituent questions – based on the semantics of singleton sets versus non-singleton sets of propositions – is instrumental in reassessing the typology of questions in several Sinitic languages (Mandarin, Xiang, Southern Min, and Cantonese) as well as in English and Paiwan (Austronesian), and in demonstrating that Xiang has no CS questions, while Paiwan, and perhaps also English, have only intonational CS questions. This study reexamines questions in Jin Chinese, the only non-Mandarin Sinitic language spoken in Northern China, and demonstrates that the CS versus IS dichotomy is more revealing than previous distinctions. Jin clearly exhibits the contrast between CS and IS questions, as well as a significant functional overlap between polar questions and disjunctive questions. We propose that CS questions can evolve from disjunctive IS questions, suggesting that IS questions are universal while CS questions are not. Consequently, a tentative implicational universal is proposed: languages that have CS questions also have IS questions, but not vice versa. The typology of questions is further enriched by the fact that, in addition to morphosyntactic marking for CS questions, languages also employ prosodic strategies. However, the Jin variety spoken in Jingle County (Jingle Jin) does not employ such prosodic strategies.