On MIA *lagg* Used as a ‘Vector’ Verb
By Harivallabh Chunilal Bhayani
Summary
The verb *lagg* (Prakrit/Apabhraṃśa) functions in many medieval texts not as a lexical verb but as a ‘vector’ or auxiliary verb. This study compiles instances from Jain canonical works, secular narratives and early dialectal literature where *lagg* follows another verb to indicate the inception of an action. Examples show forms like *viggahijja lagga* (‘began to fight’) or *ḍahaa laggai* (‘starts to burn’), where *lagg* merely signals the onset of the main actionfile:///home/oai/share/520769%20(19)%201-182.pdf#:~:text=As%20compared%20to%20the%20description,C. It also catalogues phonological and morphological variants (*laga*, *laggaï*) and notes how the auxiliary loses its original meaning of ‘to cling’file:///home/oai/share/520769%20(19)%201-182.pdf#:~:text=Lagg,in%20the%20Apabhramsa%20epic%20poem. The article argues that recognising *lagg* as a vector verb clarifies syntactic patterns and helps distinguish aspectual nuances in Middle Indo‑Aryan languages. These findings contribute to understanding the development of complex predicates in Indo‑Aryan and offer insights for lexicographers and historical linguists.
Conclusion
The survey demonstrates that auxiliary uses of *lagg* were widespread and systematically encoded aspectual meanings in Middle Indo‑Aryan. Recognising this development elucidates the history of periphrastic constructions and underscores how verbs of posture or contact evolved into markers of inception. The conclusion invites further corpus‑based research into other vector verbs to map the emergence of complex predicates in South Asian languages.