Evidentiality in Uzbek and Kazakh

4.2 
Ekan/Eken and Temporal Reference 
As ekan/eken are derived from (or at least very closely related to) the past tense forms 
-gan/-GAn, one might expect that ekan/eken would also express past tense. The relationship 
between these forms and tense is, however, much more complicated. 
Ekan/eken are able to refer to both present and past states, regardless of the temporal 
reference of the rest of the predicate. In the following examples, we see that past temporal 
reference may be contributed by ekan/eken, even when the rest of the verb bears a present tense 
marker (164) or when a non verbal predicate (which expresses present tense by default) is 
present (165). 
(164) Amir Temur ota-si-ning bu gap-i-ni o'g'l-i-ga ayt-ar ekan (Uz) 
Amir Temur father-3-
GEN
this word-3-
ACC
son-3-
DAT
say-
AOR EVID
‘Emir Timur’s father used to say these words to his son…’
22
 
 
(165) Esim bi üy-de žoq eken, qalmaq-qa žorïq-qa ket-ken eken. 
Esim lord home-
LOC
NEG
.
EXIST EVID
Kalmyk-
DAT
raid-
DAT
go-
PRF EVID
‘Lord Esim was not at home; he had gone off to raid the Kalmyks.’
23
 
 
But ekan/eken does not always express past tense the past tense reference may be neutralized 
(166-167). 
(166) ular tuz-gan yil solnoma-si-ga ko`ra biz-ning era-miz-ning tugash-i
2012 yil-ning 21 dekabr-i-ga to'g'ri kel-ar ekan. (Uz) 
they found-
PRF
year calendar-3-
DAT
according.to we-
GEN
era-1
PL
-
GEN
end-3 2012 year-
GEN
21 december-3-
DAT
true come-
AOR EVID
'According to the calendar they established, the end of our era will come on December 3, 
2012.' 
24
 
 
22
1990. “Amir Temur o’g’lining o’limi haqida rivoyat.” Linguists. Accessed 6 Feb 2011. 
http://linguists.narod.ru/rivoyat.html 
23
Köpeyulï, Mäšhur Žüsip. 2009. “Shora Batïr.” Ädebi Älem. Accessed 4 Feb 2011. 
http://adebiet.kz 
24
2010. “2012-yilga borib dunyo rostdan ham tugaydimi?????? (siz nima deysiz?????)” Ozbek 
Onaforum, 9 Oct. http://www.voy.uz/forum/43-1617-1 

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114 
(167) Keše tüngi smena-da iste-p-ti de, qazir demal-ïp žat-ïr eken. (Kaz) 
Yesterday night shift-
LOC
work-
CPST
-3 and now rest-
CVB PROG
-
PRES EVID
‘He worked the night shift yesterday; he must be resting now.’
25
 
 
The temporal reference of ekan/eken, while variable, is not completely unconstrained. For the 
most part, any past tense features borne by ekan/eken are neutralized, and tense is expressed by 
the main piece of the predicate. Nevertheless, speakers have the option of employing ekan/eken 
as past tense markers when necessary. As seen in (165), for example, when the predicate is non-
verbal, a past tense reading may be forced by the expression of past tense in a later part of the 
utterance. And when ekan/eken are employed in folktales, past tense reference is the default 
interpretation. The combination of ekan/eken and various other verbal markers produce 
interesting results with regard to temporal reference. These are discussed in the following 
paragraphs. 
In Kazakh, the suppression of the past tense reference of eken is counterbalanced by the 
inability of eken to co-occur with certain present tense makers. The aorist -Ar does not occur 
with eken in declarative clauses, although it is allowed in questions (Friedman 2010): 
(168) Öt-ip kel-e al-ar me eken-siŋ, Sokolov? (Kaz) 
pass-
CVB
come-
CVB
be.able-
AOR Q
EVID
-2
SG
Sokolov 
‘Will you be able to get through, Sokolov?’ 
(Friedman 2010, 439)