673

lexical items and meanings, some of which do not occur else-
where, but there are instances of widely separated dialects
having lexical items with similar or identical meanings
and usages. No one dialect shows a significant number of
lexical items different from those of other dialects.

Some variation in meaning relates to connotation.
Forms which are innocuous in one dialect may be negatively
loaded in another. Impressionistically it seems that La
Paz dialects may have a greater propensity for irony than
dialects of some other places, but this impression may be
the result of greater familiarity with and easier access
to data from the La Paz area than to that from other areas.

The study of Aymara semantics beckons for the future.
Among the many possibilities for investigation is research
into terms used in agriculture and related practices in
different parts of the Aymara world to determine exactly
what is meant by them. It is also to be hoped that with
the growing attention being given by Aymara linguists to
semantic studies (for example the work of Juan de Dios Yapita),
the semantic distinctions governing selectional rules for
verb subjects and complements will be clarified and appropri-

ate labels assigned them in Aymara.