The dialects of the Ashraf group (Shingaani, Merka, Gendershi) use sentence particles differently from the Maxaad-tiri dialects.
They are also absent in some affirmative sentences using archaic grammatical (verbal) forms, mainly in proverbs.
In the opinion of Cushitologists (Andrzejewski, 1975; Banti, 1984; Saeed, 1984; Tosco, 1996; Orwin, 1997 and others) the focus system in Somali fulfils the same syntactic function as the cleft constructions in other Afrasian languages of the Horn of Africa. But as was pointed out by Griefenow-Mewis (1998), in the Oromo language there are at least two “optional” focus markers (one for the subject, the other for the predicate) as well as the emphatic particle uma, which tends to turn into a focus marker for an object. Forms of expressing focus which resemble those in Somali have been observed in some West African languages, in particular in Songai (Vinogradov, 1977).
0.4.3. In my dissertation I called waa, baa (ayaa) and waxaa ‘phrase particles’. This term had been introduced by the pioneer of Somali studies in Russia, Zholkovsky (1971). It is also used by the German Cushitologist Griefenow-Mewis (El-Solami-Mewis, 1987). Giorgio Banti suggested that I substitute ‘phrase particles’ by ‘sentence particles’, which I did. This term had already been applied by Mohamed Haji Rabi in his paper at the 8th Congress of the Somali Studies International Association, held in Hargeisa in 2001.[8]
Other western specialists in the Somali language use the terms ‘indicator’ (Bell, 1953), ‘indicator particles’ (Andrzejewski, 1956, 1964; Antinucci and Puglielli, 1980), ‘focus particles’ (Lamberti, 1983), ‘focus markers’ (Heine and Reh, 1983; Tosco, 1993) and ‘classifiers’ (Saeed, 1984). Griefenow-Mewis proposes the differentiation of ‘focus markers’ (which she equates with sentence particles) from ‘focus particles’. In her opinion, the first fulfils a mainly grammatical function, the second a lexical one.
0.4.4. In the majority of Somali dialects (Maxaad-tiri and others) the development of the system of focus with the usage of the SP baa and its variants Lamberti explains by the absence from the preverbal particles of the short objective pronouns of the 3rd person singular and plural. In the dialects which have the full set of these pronouns there is no SP baa.
Indeed, examples of the usage of a) the SP waa with, let us say, the short subjective pronoun uu – ‘he’ and b) the short objective pronouns which fulfil the function of the direct and indirect objects, result in the following meanings:
(20) Wuu i arkay – He saw me;
Wuu i siiyey – He gave (it) to me;
(21) Wuu ku arkay – He saw you (sing.);
Wuu ku siiyey – He gave (it) to you (sing.);
(22) Wuu arkay – He saw (it/ him/ her/ them);
Wuu siiyey – He gave (it) to (him/ her/ them);
(23) Wuu na arkay – He saw us (excl.);
Wuu na siiyey – He gave (it) to us (excl.);
(24) Wuu ina arkay – He saw us (incl.);
Wuu ina siiyey – He gave (it) to us (incl.);
(25) Wuu idin arkay – He saw you (pl.);