Iðâɣ morphology
- Main article: Iðâɣ
This page gives an extensive description of Iðâɣ morphological features.
Nouns
Nouns in Iðâɣ language can end either in a vowel or in a consonant, although there is a marked tendency for the vocalic ending. Nouns ending in a consonant usually add a euphonic vowel before the normal declension endings.
Nouns are grouped into two declension classes: animate nouns or first class and inanimate nouns or second class. The first class generally includes nouns indicating animate beings, namely capable of intentional motion or action, while the second class includes inanimate objects or entities. As a rule, we can sketch out the following scheme:
- 1st class: human beings, animals, deities
- 2nd class: plants, objects, ideas, feelings, senses, perceptions
A noun is not irreversibly included in one of the two classes, as nouns lack clear morphological marks for each class. There is, thus, a certain amount of exceptions to this general rule.
Despite the general lack of morphological markers in the basic forms, being thus unable to distinguish the two classes, the declension patterns depend on which class a noun belongs to.
There are two morphological numbers for almost all nouns, singular and plural.
Cases
Iðâɣ nouns do decline, according to a nominative-accusative system with 4 cases:
| Direct | This case marks both the subject and the direct object of a verb. It is regarded as the base form of the noun, and it is used as the vocative form. |
| Genitive-Dative | This case marks possession and belonging, either intentional, unintentional, or indirect, and the indirect object. These meanings are distinguished by the presence of the prepositive article. |
| Instrumental | This case marks the tool or the instrument which are used to perform an action or to be in a certain state. It can be used only with nouns belonging to the 2nd class. |
| 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 can be used only with nouns belonging to the 2nd class. |
The cases are usually classified in 4 groups:
- Primary cases: direct, genitive-dative
- Secondary cases: instrumental, locative
Other types of clause complements are conveyed using various prepositions, which can select one or more cases.
Noun declension
Nouns are declined in case and number by adding the following endings to the base form of the noun:
| - | -nə | - | -nə | |
| -re | -nore | -re | -nore | |
| -xa | -noxa | |||
| -sah | -nosah | |||
Some examples are shown below: a 1st class noun, paβu, father, and a 2nd class noun, sóɣə, house.
| paβu | paβunə | sóɣə | sóɣənə | |
| paβure | paβunore | sóɣəre | sóɣənore | |
| sóɣəxa | sóɣənoxa | |||
| sóɣəsah | sóɣənosah | |||
As for the rules, the endings for the secondary oblique cases cannot be added to a 1st class noun.
Nouns ending in a consonant in the singular direct case usually add a euphonic vowel before the endings of the other cases. This vowel is generally -ə-, but other vowels are also possible.
dir. piɣ → g.d. piɣəre, ... dir. šóneh → g.d. šónehare, ...
Some irregular nouns, conversely, change their last vowel in the root before adding other endings. The commonest changes are e → a, or ə → o. A lot of these nouns display both irregular and regular forms, especially in earlier texts. In modern texts the amount of irregular forms is increasingly limited.
dir. soβe → g.d. soβere or soβare, ... dir. sanə → g.d. sanəre or sanore, ...
Adjectives and pronouns
Adjectives closely resemble the noun form, while displaying a greater variety. Pronouns, instead, may exhibit different forms in the root form.
Adjectives
Both attributive and predicative adjectives are always placed after the nouns they specify, with a few exceptions.
îrə ô jóβé the young man
îrə án (ô) jóβé the man is young
All adjectives are usually deemed as indeclinable words, but they do agree in case and number with the noun they specify through the prepositive article. Attributive adjectives are always used with the prepositive article, while its usage with predicative adjectives is optional.
Declension of qualifying adjectives
Example: šúri, big, with sóɣə, house
| sóɣə ô šúri | sóɣənə ôn šúri | sóɣə šô šúri | sóɣənə šôn šúri | |
| sóɣəre ôr šúri | sóɣənore ônər šúri | sóɣəre šôr šúri | sóɣənore šônər šúri | |
| sóɣəxa ôx šúri | sóɣənoxa ônəx šúri | sóɣəxa šôx šúri | sóɣənoxa šônəx šúri | |
| sóɣəsah ôs šúri | sóɣənosah ônəs šúri | sóɣəsah šôs šúri | sóɣənosah šônəs šúri | |
Numerals
The numeral system relies on a decimal base.
Cardinal numerals
The first ten cardinal numbers are noun-like forms on their own:
| šâ | |
| áɣi | |
| miɣò | |
| gô | |
| pâ | |
| hû | |
| áša | |
| kù | |
| sô | |
| çê |
Numerals from 11 to 19 are built with the construction NUM + ɣi (derived form of gu, over) + çê:
| šâɣiçê | |
| áɣiɣiçê | |
| miɣòɣiçê | |
| gôɣiçê | |
| pâɣiçê | |
| hûɣiçê | |
| ášaɣiçê | |
| kùɣiçê | |
| sôɣiçê |
The numerals for (one) hundred and (one) thousand are noun-like forms on their own:
| náðu | |
| ěn |
The numerals for the multiples of tens and hundreds are built with the construction NUM + rə + ɸê / náðu: The nouns for the multiples of thousands are built with the construction NUM + rêntu instead:
| áɣirəɸê | áɣirənáðu | áɣirêntu | |
| miɣòrəɸê | miɣòrənáðu | miɣòrêntu | |
| gôrəɸê | gôrənáðu | gôrêntu | |
| pârəɸê | pârənáðu | pârêntu | |
| hûrəɸê | hûrənáðu | hûrêntu | |
| ášarəɸê | ášarənáðu | ášarêntu | |
| kùrəɸê | kùrənáðu | kùrêntu | |
| sôrəɸê | sôrənáðu | sôrêntu |
Composite numbers are built by just putting them beside, without any conjunction, in descending order:
- 1985: ěn sôrənáðu kùrəɸê pâ
All cardinal numerals up to these forms are meant as invariable. They can however be used without an adjoining noun by putting the definite prepositive articles before them:
ôn ěn the one thousand
Numerals for “million” and “billion” are formed from the word ěntu (an archaich form for thousand).
| šúrěntu (from šúri ěntu) | |
| mêšúrěntu (from mê šúri ěntu) |
These forms are treated as regularly declinable nouns:
| miɣò mêšúrěntunə |
Nouns adjoining such numerals are not preceded by any preposition and are declined in the case required by their syntactical role in the sentence, as the numerals themselves:
áɣi šúrěntunore çuɣenore to two millions people
In the earlier modern period the idea of “zero” is introduced from Cärähə language, while borrowing the digit form. This numeral is however usually limited to mathematics:
| xesú (from C. xesü) |
Ordinal numerals
Ordinal numerals are formed by adding the adjectival ending -ɣə to the cardinal numeral form:
| šâɣə | |
| áɣiɣə | |
| miɣòɣə | |
| gôɣə | |
| pâɣə | |
| hûɣə | |
| ášaɣə | |
| kùɣə | |
| sôɣə | |
| çêɣə |
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:
| šúrěntuɣə | |
| mêšúrěntuɣə | |
| miɣòmêšúrěntuɣə |
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25th: áɣirəɸê pâɣə
Fractional numerals
Fractional numerals are formed by adding the derivative ending -gū́ to the cardinal numeral form, with the exceptions of the numerals zero, one, and an irregular suppletive form:
| - | |
| kúɸə | |
| miɣòɣú | |
| gôɣú | |
| pâɣú | |
| hûɣú | |
| ášaɣú | |
| kùɣú | |
| sôɣú | |
| çêɣú | |
| šâɣiçêɣú | |
| áɣiɣiçêɣú | |
| áɣirəɸêɣú | |
| hûrəɸêɣú | |
| miɣòrənáðuɣú | |
| sôrêntuɣú |
Fractional 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 word:
| šúrěntuɣú | |
| mêšúrěntuɣú | |
| miɣòmêšúrěntuɣú |
If the numeral form is composite, the ending is added only to the last numeral form:
- 25: áɣirəɸê pâɣú
Verbs
The verbal system of Iðâɣ language displays the following features:
- tense:
- simple tenses: present, imperfect
- compound tenses: preterite, plusquamperfect, future, anterior future, future in the past
- mood:
- definite moods: indicative, subjunctive, conditional
- indefinite moods: infinitive, active participle, passive participle
- diathesis: active, passive
Past tenses are mostly marked by the prefix á-, known as augment, while non-past forms are unmarked. Conversely, the augment can be found also in the anterior future and in the future in the past tenses.
The citation form of verbs is the present infinitive, marked by the ending -am. From such form the verbal root can be inferred and can be changed in every other verbal form.
In simple tenses the following personal endings are added to the verbal root. In this way, verbs show their agreement with the clause subject in person and number:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
Compound tenses are usually formed through an auxiliary verb (tòram, to have, or kiɣam, to come) with the forms of the participles or the infinitive. The different moods are formed by adding the following infixes to the verbal root, before the personal endings:
- indicative: Ø
- subjunctive: -in-
- conditional: -as-
The non-finite verbal forms are meant as nominal/adjectival forms of the same verbs. They do not add the personal endings, but they are declined as nouns or adjectives with the nominal declension endings.
As verbal forms can, however, take the augment. They can also add the modal infixes before their typical endings.
The non-finite endings are:
- infinitive: -am
- agentive participle: -íðə
- passive participle: -uɣi
The infinitival form is meant as a 2nd class noun.
Conjugation of a regular verb (with examples of auxiliary and irregular verbs)
Sample verb: ránosam, to breastfeed, to nurse, to give suckle
Active diathesis
Indicative mood
Present tense
The present is a simple tense. The personal endings are added to the verbal roots:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
In the 3rd singular person, which features the null ending, irregularities may often occur, like dropping or altering the last root consonant:
íméham → ímé to go → he/she/it goes
namíɣam → namík to bite → he/she/it bites
There are, however, a sizeable amount of irregular verbs. Among these verbs the conjugation of the auxiliary verbs tòram, to have, and kiɣam, to come, is shown:
| 1st sing. | ||
| 2nd sing. | ||
| 3rd sing. | ||
| 1st plur. | ||
| 2nd plur. | ||
| 3rd plur. |
The present tense conveys ongoing, habitual or gnomic actions or states.
Imperfect tense
The imperfect is a simple tense. The personal endings and the augment, -á-,are added to the verbal roots:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
In the 3rd singular person, which features the null ending, irregularities may often occur, like dropping or altering the last root consonant:
íméham → ěmé to go → he/she/it was going
namíɣam → ánamík to bite → he/she/it was biting
However, most irregularities occur in the verbal root, due to the augment. The augment prefix can merge with the verbal root, with possible prominent alterations, resulting in a sort of a past root, different from the basic verbal root. As an example, the verbs íméham, to go, and lîβam, to see:
| 1st sing. | ||
| 2nd sing. | ||
| 3rd sing. | ||
| 1st plur. | ||
| 2nd plur. | ||
| 3rd plur. |
Among the irregulatr verbs the conjugation of the auxiliary verbs tòram, to have, and kiɣam, to come, is shown:
| 1st sing. | ||
| 2nd sing. | ||
| 3rd sing. | ||
| 1st plur. | ||
| 2nd plur. | ||
| 3rd plur. |
The 3rd singular person in the imperfect tense usually display both the typical irregularities of the null ending and the typical irregularities of the augmen merging. Thus it is normally cited in dictionary to exemplify the irregularities of the verbs:
lîβam (êp) to see
The imperfect tense conveys ongoing or habitual actions or states in the past.
Preterite tense
The preterite is a compound tense. It is built with the indicative present forms of the verb tòram, to have, with the active past participle of the conjugated verb:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
This tense in regarded as essentially regular, being the only irregularities in the participial formation.
The preterite tense conveys completed actions or states in the past.
Plusquamperfect tense
The plusquamperfect is a compound tense. It is built with the indicative imperfect forms of the verb tòram, to have, with the active past participle of the conjugated verb:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
This tense in regarded as essentially regular, being the only irregularities in the participial formation.
The plusquamperfect tense conveys completed actions or states before another past action or state.
Future tense
The future is a compound tense. It is built with the indicative present forms of the verb kiɣam, to come, with the present infinitive of the conjugated verb:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
This tense in regarded as essentially regular.
The future tense conveys actions or states which will be completed or ongoing in the future.
Anterior future tense
The anterior future is a compound tense. It is built with the indicative present forms of the verb kiɣam, to come, with the imperfect infinitive of the conjugated verb:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
This tense in regarded as essentially regular.
The anterior future tense conveys completed conveys actions or states which will be completed before another future action or state.
Future in the past tense
The future in the past is a compound tense. It is built with the indicative imperfect forms of the verb kiɣam, to come, with the present infinitive of the conjugated verb:
| 1st sing. | |
| 2nd sing. | |
| 3rd sing. | |
| 1st plur. | |
| 2nd plur. | |
| 3rd plur. |
This tense in regarded as essentially regular.
The future tense conveys completed conveys actions or states which would be completed after another past action or state.
