Βaβar morphology
- Main article: Βaβar
This page gives an extensive description of Βaβar morphological features.
Nouns
Nouns in Βaβar language can end either in a vowel or in a consonant in their basic form.
Nouns are grouped into two declension classes: vocalic and consonantal class. As a rule, we can sketch out the following scheme:
- vocalic class: includes every noun ending in a vowel
- consonantal class: includes every noun ending in a consonant
Nouns display no gender distinction. There are two morphological numbers for almost all nouns, singular and plural, and a modest case system.
Cases
Βaβar nouns do decline, according to a nominative-accusative system with 5 cases:
| Nominative | This case marks the subject of a verb. It is regarded as the base form of the noun, and it is used as the vocative form. |
| Accusative | This case marks the direct object of a verb. It is also used with many postpositions. |
| Genitive-Dative | This case marks possession and belonging, either intentional, unintentional, or indirect, and the indirect object. These meanings are distinguished by the context of the sentence or by using specific postpositions. It is also used with many postpositions. |
| Instrumental | This case marks the tool or the instrument which are used to perform an action or to be in a certain state. |
| 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. |
The cases are usually classified in 2 groups:
- Main cases: nominative, accusative
- Oblique cases: genitive-dative, instrumental, locative
Other types of clause complements are conveyed using various postpositions, which can select one or more cases.
Numerals
The numeral system relies on a mixed system of decimal base and a vigesimal base.
The first ten cardinal numbers are noun-like forms on their own:
| īɴ | |
| gaɸ | |
| zgū | |
| dāk | |
| atsʼ | |
| trikxʼ | |
| rməq | |
| dākr | |
| īɴɸə | |
| ɸək |
Numerals from 11 to 19 are built with the construction NUM + i + ɸək. If the numeral ends in a vowel, the -i turns into -j:
| īɴiɸək | |
| gaɸiɸək | |
| zgūjɸək | |
| dākiɸək | |
| atsʼiɸək | |
| trikxʼiɸək | |
| rməqiɸək | |
| dākriɸək | |
| īɴɸəjɸək |
The numeral for tens is built with the construction NUM + ī:
| ɸəkī |
The numerals for 20 is a noun-like form on their own:
| gāɸī |
Numerals for 30, 50, 70 and 90 are built with the construction NUM + ɸəkī:
| zgūɸəkī | |
| atsʼɸəkī | |
| rməqɸəkī | |
| īɴɸəɸəkī |
Numerals for 40, 60 and 80 are built with the construction 2 / 3 / 4 + gāɸī:
| gaɸgāɸī | |
| zgūgāɸī | |
| dākgāɸī |
The numerals for (one) hundred and (one) thousand are noun-like forms on their own:
| žaβ | |
| kx‘ruç |
The numerals for the multiples of hundreds and thousands are built with the construction NUM + (i) + žaβī / kx‘ruçī:
| gaɸžaβī | gaɸkx‘ruçī | |
| zgūžaβī | zgūkx‘ruçī | |
| dākžaβī | dākikx‘ruçī | |
| atsʼižaβī | atsʼkx‘ruçī | |
| trikxiʼžaβī | trikxʼikx‘ruçī | |
| rməqižaβī | rməqikx‘ruçī | |
| dākrižaβī | dākrikx‘ruçī | |
| īɴɸəžaβī | īɴɸəkx‘ruçī |
Composite numbers are built by just putting them beside, without any conjunction, in descending order:
- 1985: kx‘ruç īɴɸəžaβī dākgāɸī atsʼ
All cardinal numerals up to these forms are treated as adjective-like forms. They decline according to their adjoining nouns in case, but they do not agree in number. Numerals do decline only in singular number.
The numerals for “million” and “billion” are nominal forms on their own (the latter is an adapted loanword from modern Figo language):
| ʈʂʼamʈʂʼam (reduplicated from ʈʂʼam, great amount) | |
| mišurintu (from m. F. mešurentur) |
These forms are treated as regularly declinable nouns. If these numerals are used as simple count forms, they are declined in the nominative case. Inside of a structured sentence, they are declined according the case required by their syntactical role. Nouns adjoining such numerals are declined in the genitive-dative case and are followed by the postposition ɣm:
βaraɟ ɣm īɴ ʈʂʼamʈʂʼam one million people
βaraɟ ɣm gaɸ mišurintūɟ ɟn to two billions people
In the latest texts, however, nouns adjoining these numerals arenot followed by any postposition:
βaraɟ gaɸ mišurintūɟ ɟn to two billions people
In the earlier modern period the idea of “zero” is introduced from Iðâɣ language. This numeral is however usually limited to mathematics:
| xisū (from I. xesú) |
Ordinal numerals are formed by adding the ordinal ending -ð, sometimes preceded by -i-, to the cardinal numeral form, with an irregular suppletive form:
| rārm | |
| gaɸið | |
| zgūð | |
| dākið | |
| atsʼið | |
| trikxʼið | |
| rməqið | |
| dākrið | |
| īɴɸəð | |
| ɸəkið | |
| īɴiɸəkið | |
| gaɸiɸəkið | |
| gāɸīð | |
| zgūgāɸīð |
Ordinal numerals for “millionth” and “billionth” are regularly formed from their corresponding cardinal forms, while their multiples are formed by unifying the separated forms in an only adjectival word:
| ʈʂʼamʈʂʼamð | |
| mišurintuð | |
| zgūmišurintuð |
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25th: gāɸī atsʼið
