Conlang Relay 19/Buruya Nzaysa

by Jan Strasser

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Buruya Nzaysa text

Nzɔ yɛski əye o dəxa menavo kwə, nah natsu ada lu dɛñəsa oskə. Nah o ɔ təñú ñavra o kunə məlu, rɔma mɛsu xə u sose nabaña ronɛ. Na ada kənu: "Xɛwa sa lo la tavlɛ sade lu dɛñəsa nzo ño rɛtsə mvunɛ? Maña mvuga nzɔ tsexɛ owa tselu nə ena." Ŋkena lo mɔrɛ mɛsu lo mvɔ ñawe, o na mve: "Usa! Ewa so’ɔwa nəbe?" Na lo nabaña ada lu əye loya: "Seya nzo rudi sewe owa lu la sade lu dɛñəsa nəbe. Maña matsu xə rudi nə ena, ləh lo ɔtse rɔmah mɛsu tse nzɔ ronɛ. Esə ɔyənɔ! Ese me’ɛxe!"

Ŋkena lo kañɛ mɛsu lo mvɔ ñawe, o na ada ivri: "Neya lu la sade lu dɛñəsa lolmu, o ɔdeya tsɔve rɛ sah nte’a o tselu u rudi roni." Na lo nabaña ada lu kañɛ kənu: "Dəña’o, pɔ’ɔxə dediga ada lu əmo ah lo dɛñə solvo, pɔ’oh?" Na lo kañɛ mve: "Pexa nzo nzɛ, ni ɔdɔ’ɔ ɔ yɔsko?" O na lo mɔrɛ mpaskale: "We ɔ kalɛste. Pɔ’ɔ o lu boña axe mvəbo lu tɛde mpɛ, ese’o ada lu əmo ah lo dɛñə solvo." O ntɛga, ɔdɔwa lu mvɔ ni lu səlu la’e.

Translation

English

A black bird and an invisible spirit came to the hills one day. They arrived at a large and solid rock, near which lived a tiny mouse. He asked them: "What kind of things are characteristic of the distant land behind the hills? I have not seen any things from that place so far." The bird (lit. the dark one) placed himself near the mouse (lit. the small one) and said: "Hello! Which things do you have in mind?" The mouse (lit. the tiny one) answered to the bird (lit. the black one): "I am thinking about the tall giants from the land behind the hills. I have never seen these giants, nor the river near which they live. This is unfair! I am not satisfied!"

The spirit (lit. the hidden one) placed himself near the mouse (lit. the small one) and told him: "I have visited the land behind the hills, and I have observed that giants are indeed living there." The mouse (lit. the tiny one) asked the spirit (lit. the hidden one): "Please, maybe you could carry me to the head of the hill, could you?" The spirit (lit. the hidden one) said: "If we did that, would you be happy?" And the bird (lit. the dark one) announced: "I will take charge of this. If you sit on my back between the wings, I can carry you to the head of the hill." And then he lifted the mouse (lit. the small one) up into the sky.

Translation of previous text

(Mev Pailom, by Logan Kearsley)

Once upon a time, two living things - both a dark thing of the air and an invisible thing of the air - moved to high places. There was a solid tool-for-placing, near which a small animal lived. He said, "Which things are typical at the high place?" "I have not seen anything which is typical," said the small one to him. The dark one placed himself near the small one and said, "Hello, what are you saying?" The small one said towards the dark one, "I'm talking about the high thing of the high place." He said, "I see no high thing with moving water. I am not satisfied."

The invisible living thing placed himself near the small one and said, "I have gone to the high thing. I have seen it, and there are high living things at the high thing." The small one said to the invisible living thing, "Could you move me to the high flat place?" The invisible living thing said to the small one, "If I do this, would you be satisfied?" The dark one said, "I will do it! You would place yourself at my wings (lit. tools for moving in the air), and then you place yourself at the flat thing!" And he moved into the air.

(This doesn't make all that much sense without context. Mev Pailom has an extremely vague way of referencing objects, and although all nouns in the text are characterized fairly well, there is absolutely no indication what they are. The choices I've made in resolving this are probably slightly contaminated by the fact that I knew a very-close-to-original version of the relay text from my early turn in Ring 2, but I think they work rather well in the Buruya Nzaysa version.)

Interlinear gloss

Nzɔ

TOP.NOM

yɛski

bird

əye

black

o

and

dəxa

spirit

menavo

invisible

kwə,

with.3,

nah

PFV.AUX-3PL

natsu

someday

ada

to.3

lu

DEF.ACC

dɛñəsa

hill-COLL

oskə.

come

A black bird and an invisible spirit came to the hills one day.

Nah

PFV.AUX-3PL

o

at.3

ɔ

INDEF.ACC

təñú

stone

ñavra

large

o

and

kunə

solid

məlu,

arrive,

They arrived at a large and solid rock,

rɔma

REL.AUX-3SG

mɛsu

near.3

xə

this.NOM

u

INDEF.NOM

sose

mouse

nabaña

tiny

ronɛ.

dwell.VN

near which lived a tiny mouse.

Na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

ada

to.3

kənu:

ask:

He asked them:

"Xɛwa

what.ACC

sa

NULL.AUX-3SG>3

lo

DEF.NOM

la

land

tavlɛ

far

sade

behind.3

lu

DEF.ACC

dɛñəsa

hill-COLL

nzo

TOP.ACC

ño

as.3

rɛtsə

characteristic

mvunɛ?"

hold?

"What kind of things are characteristic of the distant land behind the hills?"

"Maña

NEG.AUX-1SG<3

mvuga

already

nzɔ

TOP.NOM

tsexɛ

that.thing

owa

from.3

tselu

that.place

nə

PFV.AUX

ena."

see

"I have not seen any things from that place so far."

Ŋkena

PFV.AUX-3.REFL

lo

DEF.NOM

mɔrɛ

dark

mɛsu

near.3

lo

DEF.NOM

mvɔ

small

ñawe,

put,

o

and

na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

mve:

say:

The bird (lit. the dark one) placed himself near the mouse (lit. the small one) and said:

"Usa!

hello!

Ewa

which.ACC

so’ɔwa

NULL.AUX-2SG>3

nəbe?"

have_in_mind?

"Hello! Which things do you have in mind?"

Na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

lo

DEF.NOM

nabaña

tiny

ada

to.3

lu

DEF.ACC

əye

black

loya:

answer:

The mouse (lit. the tiny one) answered to the bird (lit. the black one):

"Seya

NULL.AUX-1SG>3

nzo

TOP.ACC

rudi

giant

sewe

tall

owa

from.3

lu

DEF.ACC

la

land

sade

behind.3

lu

DEF.ACC

dɛñəsa

hill-COLL

nəbe."

have_in_mind

"I am thinking about the tall giants from the land behind the hills."

"Maña

NEG.AUX-1SG<3

matsu

never

xə

this.NOM

rudi

giant

nə

PFV.AUX

ena,"

see,

"I have never seen these giants,"

"ləh

neither/nor

lo

DEF.NOM

ɔtse

river

rɔmah

REL.AUX-3PL

mɛsu

near.3

tse

that.NOM

nzɔ

TOP.NOM

ronɛ."

dwell.VN

"nor the river near which they live."

"Esə

EMPH.AUX-3SG

ɔyənɔ!

be_unfair!

Ese

EMPH.AUX-1SG

me’ɛxe!"

feel_wronged!

"This is unfair! I am not satisfied!"

Ŋkena

PFV.AUX-3.REFL

lo

DEF.NOM

kañɛ

hidden

mɛsu

near.3

lo

DEF.NOM

mvɔ

small

ñawe,

put,

o

and

na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

ada

to.3

ivri:

tell:

The spirit (lit. the hidden one) placed himself near the mouse (lit. the small one) and told him:

"Neya

PFV.AUX-1SG>3

lu

DEF.ACC

la

land

sade

behind.3

lu

DEF.ACC

dɛñəsa

hill-COLL

lolmu,"

visit,

"I have visited the land behind the hills,"

"o

and

ɔdeya

RES.AUX-1SG>3

tsɔve

observe

rɛ

SUB.ACC

sah

NULL.AUX-3PL

nte’a

truly

o

at.3

tselu

that.place

u

INDEF.NOM

rudi

giant

roni."

dwell

"and I have observed that giants are indeed living there."

Na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

lo

DEF.NOM

nabaña

tiny

ada

to.3

lu

DEF.ACC

kañɛ

hidden

kənu:

ask:

The mouse (lit. the tiny one) asked the spirit (lit. the hidden one):

"Dəña’o,

please,

pɔ’ɔxə

COND.AUX-2PL>1

dediga

maybe

ada

to.3

lu

DEF.ACC

əmo

head

ah

of.3

lo

DEF.NOM

dɛñə

hill

solvo,

carry,

pɔ’oh?"

COND.AUX-2PL?

"Please, maybe you could carry me to the head of the hill, could you?"

Na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

lo

DEF.NOM

kañɛ

hidden

mve:

say:

The spirit (lit. the hidden one) said:

"Pexa

COND.AUX-1PL>3

nzo

TOP.ACC

nzɛ,

do,

ni

if/then

ɔdɔ’ɔ

RES.COP-2SG

ɔ

INDEF.ACC

yɔsko?"

happy?

"If we did that, would you be happy?"

O

and

na

PFV.AUX-3SG>3

lo

DEF.NOM

mɔrɛ

dark

mpaskale:

declare:

And the bird (lit. the dark one) announced:

"We

FUT.COP-1SG

ɔ

INDEF.ACC

kalɛste."

one_who_takes_charge.

"I will take charge of this (lit. I will be one who takes charge)."

"Pɔ’ɔ

COND.AUX-2SG

o

at.3

lu

DEF.ACC

boña

back

axe

of.1

mvəbo

between.3

lu

DEF.ACC

tɛde

wing

mpɛ,"

sit,

"If you sit on my back between the wings,"

"ese’o

EMPH.AUX-1SG>2

ada

to.3

lu

DEF.ACC

əmo

head

ah

of.3

lo

DEF.NOM

dɛñə

hill

solvo."

carry

"I can carry you to the head of the hill."

O

and

ntɛga,

next,

ɔdɔwa

RES.AUX-3SG>3

lu

DEF.ACC

mvɔ

small

ni

into.3

lu

DEF.ACC

səlu

sky

la’e.

lift.

And then he lifted the mouse (lit. the small one) up into the sky.

Vocabulary

morpheme	type	meaning
ada	pp. +ACC	to, towards
ah	pp. +NOM	of, belonging to, with regard to
axe	(pp.)	(1st person object form of ah: "of me")
boña	n.	backside
dɛñə	n.	mountain, hill
dɛñəsa	n.	a range of mountains or hills (collective)
dediga	adv.	maybe, possibly
dəña’o	interj.	please
dəxa	n.	spirit, ghost, ancestor, supernatural being
ena	v.erg	see, notice
esə-	aux.	(emphatic/abilitative auxiliary: "do indeed, can indeed")
ewa	pron.	(selective interrogative pronoun, accusative: "which one?")
əmo	n.	head, roof, peak, tip
əye	n.	black
ivri	v.	tell, narrate, inform
kalɛste	n.	active person; one who takes charge of things
kañɛ	n.	secret, hidden, taboo
kənu	v.	ask, inquire, demand
kunə	n.	hard, solid, sturdy; (of people) muscular, tough
kwə	pp. +NOM	with (comitative)
la	n.	land, region, area
la’e	v.	lift, raise, hold up (physically)
ləh	cj.	neither/nor
lo	det.	(definite article, nominative)
lolmu	v.	visit, attend; meet
loya	v.	answer, reply
lu	det.	(definite article, accusative)
ma-	aux.	(negative auxiliary: "do not")
matsu	adv./pron.	never
mɛsu	pp. +NOM	near, next to
menavo	n.	invisible, out of sight
me’ɛxe	v.	feel wronged by someone
məlu	v.	arrive, achieve, accomplish
mɔrɛ	n.	dark
mpaskale	v.	announce, declare, say publicly
mpɛ	v.erg	sit
mve	v.	say, speak
mvəbo	pp. +ACC	between, among
mvɔ	n.	short, small
mvuga	adv.	already, so far; (in negated clauses) not yet
mvunɛ	v.	have, own, hold
nabaña	n.	little, tiny, dwarf-sized
natsu	adv./pron.	someday; at an unspecified time
nə-	aux.	(perfective auxiliary: "have done")
nəbe	v.	intend, mean, have in mind, refer to
ni	cj.	if/then
ni	pp. +ACC	in, into
ntɛga	cj.	then, next, subsequently
nte’a	adv.	really, truly, indeed
nzɛ	v.	do, tackle
nzɔ	det./pron.	(topic marker, nominative)
nzo	det./pron.	(topic marker, accusative)
ñavra	n.	broad, wide, large
ñawe	v.	put, place, arrange; (reflexive) settle down
ño	pp. +NOM	as, like
ɔ	det.	(indefinite article, accusative)
ɔdɔ(w)-	aux.	(resultative auxiliary: "have become")
ɔtse	n.	river
ɔyənɔ	v.	be unfair
o	cj.	and
o	pp. +ACC	at, on
oskə	v.	come; move towards the focus point
owa	pp. +ACC	from
pɔ(w)-	aux.	(conditional auxiliary: "might, would, could")
rɛ	cj.	(complementizer, accusative)
rɛtsə	n.	nature, characteristic attribute
rɔma-	aux.	(relative clause auxiliary; relativized noun is topic but not necessarily subject of subclause)
roni	v.	dwell, live (at a place) (VN ronɛ)
rudi	n.	giant; very tall person
sade	pp. +ACC	outside of, behind, beyond
sewe	n.	high, tall
səlu	n.	sky, air
so-	aux.	(null auxiliary: "do")
solvo	v.	bring, carry
sose	n.	mouse, rat
tavlɛ	n.	far away, outside one's own home region
tɛde	n.	wing
təñú	n.	stone, rock, boulder
tse	det./pron.	(distal deictic, nominative: "that, those")
tselu	pron.	there, that place
tsexɛ	pron.	that thing, those things (mentioned earlier)
tsɔve	v.	watch, observe, supervise
u	det.	(indefinite article, nominative)
usa	interj.	hello! (casual)
wə-	aux.	(predictive/future auxiliary: "will do")
xɛwa	pron.	(open interrogative pronoun, accusative: "what?")
xə	det./pron.	(proximal deictic, nominative: "this, these")
yɛski	n.	bird
yɔsko	n.	glad, happy, joyous, fortunate

Auxiliary suffixes:

morpheme	type	meaning
-a	suffix	3rd person singular subject, 3rd person object
-ah	suffix	3rd person plural intransitive
-aña	suffix	1st person singular subject, 3rd person agent/source (used with ergative verbs)
-e	suffix	1st person singular intransitive
-exa	suffix	1st person plural subject, 3rd person object
-eya	suffix	1st person singular subject, 3rd person object
-e’o	suffix	1st person singular subject, 2nd person object
-ə	suffix	3rd person singular intransitive
-xena	suffix	3rd person reflexive
-’oh	suffix	2nd person plural intransitive
-’ɔ	suffix	2nd person singular intransitive
-’ɔwa	suffix	2nd person singular subject, 3rd person object
-’ɔxə	suffix	2nd person plural subject, 1st person object

• Note: Vowel-initial auxiliary suffixes usually delete a preceding vowel, with the exception that -ə is itself deleted after /a/ (which results in homophonous 3sg intransitive and 3sg>3 transitive forms of auxiliaries whose stem ends in /a/). Suffixes beginning in /x/ delete a preceding /ə/, with the suffix-initial consonant fortifying to /k/.

Grammar

Typology

• mostly isolating
• head-initial
• basic word order: AuxSOV with occasional topic fronting and subclause postposing
• basic morphosyntactic alignment: NOM-ACC
• pro-drop

Nominals

• no distinction between nouns and adjectives
• nouns/adjectives do not inflect at all
• determiners are mandatory in all full (i.e. non-pronominal) noun phrases
• nouns without a determiner usually have adjectivial function
• most determiners are marked for case
• nominal number is unmarked

Prepositions

• prepositions inflect for the person of their object (almost all instances in the text are 3rd person)
• each preposition governs a specific case for their object
• objects of prepositions can be omitted if clear from context

Verbs

• content verbs do not inflect at all (except that they are nominalised in relative clauses, which is typically indicated by using a different word-final vowel)
• auxiliary verbs are mandatory in all clauses
• auxiliary verbs inflect for person and number of the subject AND person of the object
• there is a small class of "ergative verbs" whose subjects are marked with the accusative case, and which require a special set of transitive person markers on the auxiliary
• aspect and mood are indicated by the choice of the auxiliary
• no tense marking
• additional distinctions may be made by adding a second, uninflected auxiliary right before the content verb
• in clauses which have no content verb but contain an accusative-marked noun phrase, the auxiliary functions as a copula

Links

• Buruya Nzaysa grammar sketch