Proto-Piti morphology
- Main article: Proto-Piti
This page gives an extensive description of Proto-Piti morphological features.
Nouns
Cases
Proto-Piti nouns do decline, according to an active-stative system with 9 cases:
| Agentive | This case marks primarily the subject of a transitive verb. It is also used to mark the subject of an intransitive verb, which displays a certain degree of activity, will or intention in performing the said action or in being in a certain state. It is generally used only with animate nouns. |
| Passive | This case marks primarily the direct object of a transitive verb. It is also used to mark the subject of an intransitive verb, which displays no degree of activity, will or intention in performing the said action or in being in a certain state. It is regarded as the base form of the noun, and it is used as the vocative form. |
| Ablative | This case marks primarily a natural and unintentional belonging (for example, body parts), without any sign of will of possession, or an inverse belonging. It also marks the point of origin of a movement (motion from a place). It is also used to mark the direct object of an infinitival form of a verb, marking thus the direct object of the negated form of a transitive verb. |
| Genitive | This case marks an intentional possession, from subjects with a clear and active will. It is generally used only with animate nouns. |
| Terminative | This case marks primarily the final point of a movement (motion toward a place). It can also mark the indirect object, and, in a broad sense, the final purpose of an action or a state. |
| Causative | This case marks the reason or the cause, which are the source of an action or a state. |
| Instrumental | This case marks the tool or the instrument which are used to perform an action or to be in a certain state. It is generally used only with inanimate nouns. |
| Abessive | This case marks the tool or the instrument which are absent while performing an action or being in a certain state. It is generally used only with inanimate nouns. |
| Locative | This case marks the place where an action is performed, or a certain state exist (stative location). It can also have a temporal value. It is generally used only with inanimate nouns. |
The cases are usually classified in 4 groups:
- Primary main cases: agentive, genitive
- Secondary main cases: passive, ablative
- Primary oblique cases: terminative, causative
- Secondary oblique cases: instrumental, abessive, locative
Noun declension
As already mentioned, the nominal root has a CVCV structure. This structure can be derivatively and semantically expanded by other syllables, while still preserving its vowel-ending structure.
Nouns do decline, according to their role in the sentence for case. They also distinguish three morphological numbers, singular, dual, and plural.
A nominal root is thus declined for case and number by adding the following morphemes:
| Case morphemes | |
| -li | |
| - | |
| -ra | |
| -ʂu | |
| -χæ | |
| -kʰu | |
| -kʰæ | |
| -ŋil | |
| -ʈar | |
| Numeral morphemes | |
| - | |
| -no | |
| -ʔi | |
In the pre-diasporic period, these morphemes are added to the root without a fixed pattern. Numeral morphemes can, indeed, be freely placed before or after the case morphemes.
Some examples are shown below: a typical active or animate noun, papu, father, and a typical inactive or inanimate noun, soːŋo, house.
| papuli | - | |
| papu | soːŋo | |
| papura | - | |
| papuʂu | soːŋoʂu | |
| papuχæ | soːŋoχæ | |
| papukʰu | soːŋokʰu | |
| - | soːŋokʰæ | |
| - | soːŋoŋil | |
| - | soːŋoʈar | |
The endings for the secondary oblique cases are not usually added to a semantically animate noun, while the endings for the primary main cases are not usually added to a semantically inanimate noun.
| precasual pattern | postcasual pattern | precasual pattern | postcasual pattern | |
| papunoli | papulino | - | - | |
| papuno | papuno | soːŋono | soːŋono | |
| papunora | papurano | - | - | |
| papunoʂu | papuʂuno | soːŋonoʂu | soːŋoʂuno | |
| papunoχæ | papuχæno | soːŋonoχæ | soːŋoχæno | |
| papunokʰu | papukʰuno | soːŋonokʰu | soːŋokʰuno | |
| - | - | soːŋonokʰæ | soːŋokʰæno | |
| - | - | soːŋonoŋil | soːŋoŋilno | |
| - | - | soːŋonoʈar | soːŋoʈarno | |
As in the singular declension, the endings for the secondary oblique cases are not usually added to a semantically animate noun, while the endings for the primary main cases are not usually added to a semantically inanimate noun. The plural morpheme, -no, can be placed either before or after the case morphemes, without a fixed pattern. In the pre-diasporic period the numeral morpheme position is essentially free and optional.
| precasual pattern | postcasual pattern | precasual pattern | postcasual pattern | |
| papuʔili | papuliʔi | - | - | |
| papuʔi | papuʔi | soːŋoʔi | soːŋoʔi | |
| papuʔira | papuraʔi | - | - | |
| papuʔiʂu | papuʂuʔi | soːŋoʔiʂu | soːŋoʂuʔi | |
| papuʔiχæ | papuχæʔi | soːŋoʔiχæ | soːŋoχæʔi | |
| papuʔikʰu | papukʰuʔi | soːŋoʔikʰu | soːŋokʰuʔi | |
| - | - | soːŋoʔikʰæ | soːŋokʰæʔi | |
| - | - | soːŋoʔiŋil | soːŋoŋilʔi | |
| - | - | soːŋoʔiʈar | soːŋoʈarʔi | |
As in the singular declension, the endings for the secondary oblique cases are not usually added to a semantically animate noun, while the endings for the primary main cases are not usually added to a semantically inanimate noun. The dual morpheme, -ʔi, can be placed either before or after the case morphemes, without a fixed pattern. In the pre-diasporic period the numeral morpheme position is essentially free and optional.
Adjectives
Adjectival roots have the same structure as the nominal roots, namely CVCV. Attributive adjectives are always placed before the nouns they specify, while predicative adjectives are always placed after them.
The agreement of adjectives in case and number with the noun they specify is not clear. This feature seems to have spread in the proto-language before the diasporic period, but unsystematically, since some adjectival types do not agree with the nouns even in the later period.
Adjectives can be morphologically derived from nominal roots by adding the morpheme -ko.
Numerals
Numeral roots are meant as adjective-like roots, with a CVCV structure. They are, however, usually treated as indeclinable roots.
The numeral system relies on a decimal base.
Cardinal numerals
The first ten cardinal numbers are forms on their own:
| ʂaːʔo | |
| ʔaki | |
| mikoː | |
| ŋoːɬe | |
| ṕaːŋe | |
| tʰuːɬa | |
| χaʂæ | |
| ḱuʔe | |
| ʈoːju | |
| pʰeːʔo |
The numerals for (one) hundred and (one) thousand are forms on their own:
| ɳaːt́u | |
| ɬiʔaː |
Other numerals do not have indipendent roots. Their forms are built by combining quite freely the already existing roots. There are no fixed construction patterns, as it is noticeable from the different results in daughter languages.
Numerals from 11 to 19 can be built:
- With the construction NUM + pʰeːʔo:
| ʂaːʔopʰeːʔo |
- With the construction NUM + pʰeːʔo + na:
| ʂaːʔopʰeːʔona |
The numerals for the multiples of tens, hundreds and thousands can be built:
- With the construction NUM + re + pʰeːʔo / ɳaːt́u / ɬiʔaː:
| mikoːrepʰeːʔo | |
| tʰuːɬareɳaːt́u | |
| ʈoːjureɬiʔaː |
- With the construction NUM + re + pʰeːʔonu / ɳaːt́unu / ɬiʔaːnu:
| mikoːrepʰeːʔonu | |
| tʰuːɬareɳaːt́unu | |
| ʈoːjureɬiʔaːnu |
- With the construction NUM + re + pʰeːʔotu(nu) / ɳaːt́utu(nu) / ɬiʔaːtu(nu):
| mikoːrepʰeːʔotu(nu) | |
| tʰuːɬareɳaːt́utu(nu) | |
| ʈoːjureɬiʔaːtu(nu) |
- With the construction NUM + re + pʰeːʔot́u(nu) / ɳaːt́ut́u(nu) / ɬiʔaːt́u(nu):
| mikoːrepʰeːʔot́u(nu) | |
| tʰuːɬareɳaːt́ut́u(nu) | |
| ʈoːjureɬiʔaːt́u(nu) |
Numbers above the multiples of thousands have no name and are specified by the lesser numerals.
Composite numbers are built by just putting them beside, without any conjunction, in descending order:
- 1985: ɬiʔaː ʈoːjureɳaːt́u ḱuʔerepʰeːʔo ṕaːŋe
All cardinal numerals are meant as invariable forms.
Ordinal numerals
Ordinal numerals can be formed:
- by adding the adjectival ending -ko to the cardinal numeral form:
ʂaːʔo → ʂaːʔoko one → first
- by adding the comparative ending -roː to the cardinal numeral form:
tʰuːɬa → tʰuːɬaroː six → sixth
- by adding the comparative ending -tu to the cardinal numeral form:
ŋoːɬe → ŋoːɬetu four → fourth
- by adding the comparative ending -lo to the cardinal numeral form:
ḱuʔe → ḱuʔelo eight → eighth
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25th: ʔakirepʰeːʔo ṕaːŋeko
Fractional numerals
Fractional numerals are formed by adding the derivative ending -ŋuː to the cardinal numeral form, with the exceptions of the numeral one:
χaʂæ → χaʂæŋuː seven → seventh
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25th: ʔakirepʰeːʔo ṕaːŋeŋuː
There is, however, one irregular suppletive form:
| ḱuːpho |
Distributive numerals
Distributive numerals can be formed:
- by adding the adjectival ending -jeː to the cardinal numeral form:
mikoː → mikoːjeː three → three each
- by adding the comparative ending -rejeː to the cardinal numeral form:
ʈoːju → ʈoːjurejeː nine → nine each
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25: ʔakirepʰeːʔo ṕaːŋejeː
Multiplier numerals
Multiplier numerals can be formed:
- by adding the adjectival ending -re to the cardinal numeral form:
ʂaːʔo → ʂaːʔore one → single, once
- by adding the comparative ending -reko to the cardinal numeral form:
ʔaki → ʔakireko two → double, twice, twofold
- by adding the comparative ending -renæ to the cardinal numeral form:
pʰeːʔo → pʰeːʔorenæ ten → tenfold, ten times
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25: ʔakirepʰeːʔo ṕaːŋere
