Liturgical Heláin: Syntax II
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This public article was written by [Deactivated User], and last updated on 2 Sep 2021, 20:37.
[comments] hln
2. Bits and Pieces
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10. The Letter of Amainta
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?FYI...
This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
gramuary:
Heláin is an ergative, generally verb-initial language. A relative clause comes after its head, is followed by a form of the relative demonstrative ever (’ver after a vowel) modifying the head, and usually contains a resumptive demonstrative (RD) agreeing with the head in number/gender. If the head is a demonstrative, the RD is a form of the same demonstrative; if the head is a noun, the RD is a form of the indefinite demonstrative er. The RD is omitted if (and only if) it’s a form of er other than absolutive but in a case with the same ending as the relative demonstrative.I’ve altered the sentences to show more grammar and turned (some of?) them into mini-lessons.
▼ 1. the man who is: RDs in action
1a. feint arre tea eon sedenire ’ve sor.see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male be a-REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male my-father-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I see the lord who is my father.
1b. feint tu tea tun sedenire ’ve sor.
see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing that-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male be that-REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male my-father-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I see that [man] who is my father.
Here, eon ‘one’ is the RD with a head noun, but tun ‘that’ is the RD with the head demonstrative tu ‘that’.
▼ 2. the man whom I see: agent-sharing
2a. elai’ arre feint e ’ve sor.speak.to lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord whom I see.
In this sentence, both verbs have the same agent (sor ‘I’), so it appears only once. If the subordinate clause were adverbial, it would fall between the clauses (a construction called deva ‘bridging’), but because the relative clause always follows its head directly, the agent comes after the relative demonstrative. This placement is in fact ambiguous: literally, it reads ‘I speak to the lord who is seen’, and context adds ‘by me’. In the following sentence, though, each clause has its own agent.
2b. elai’ arre feint e sobrenéid eve sor.
speak.to lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male my-brother.VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]' which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord whom my brother sees.
▼ 3. the man who sees me: the participle option
3a. elai’ arre feint so er eve sor.speak.to lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male a-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord who sees me.
The four demonstratives so er eve sor make this a train-wreck of a sentence; generally one doesn’t want more than two together. A native speaker might rephrase using a participle:
3b. elai’ arre sofinire sor.
speak.to lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male my-see-ACTActive voice (valency, volition)
the subject acts, voluntarily.PTCPParticiple
adjectival form of a verb-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord my seer. = I speak to the lord who sees me.
The participle has less information (and takes complements less easily) than a finite verb, so most of the time a relative clause would be preferred. However, it can give a nice backup option if a relative clause would go horribly wrong.
▼ 4. the man your brother gave a book to: scratch that, RD omission example
The syntax of this sentence in Heláin would best be represented by the translation ‘I speak to the man whom your brother endowed with a book’, because the receiver is the patient of a so-called dative verb, and the thing given is in the instrumental case. Since we already did a similar sentence (2b), I’ll do one with a structure not covered in the example sentences.4a. elaia so arir feint e sor ever.
speak.to 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord.VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
The lord whom I see speaks to me.
(Not a train-wreck: e directly following a verb doesn’t count for the ‘do we have too many demonstratives in a row?’ tally.)
4b. elaia so arir feint so ever.
speak.to 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord.VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male see-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
The lord who sees me speaks to me.
Here we see a sentence in which the RD is omitted. It would be the vocative er, but it’s absorbed, as it were, into ever, which is also vocative.
▼ 5. the man that was given: clefting
5a. elai’ arre ŋeŋunnen e heidhis mebrenéid eve sor.speak.to lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-give-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male book-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female your-brother.VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord to whom your brother gave a book.
This sentence, like most so far, starts with the main verb and ends with the main agent; but the longer the relative clause, the farther that main clause is stretched. If it’s preferable to keep the main clause together, the agent can come first (sor elai’ arre ... ), or there can be a patient-cleft:
5b. elaia e sor arre ŋeŋunnen e heidhis mebrenéid eve.
speak.to a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-give-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male book-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female your-brother.VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord to whom your brother gave a book.
Literally, ‘I speak to him, the lord ...’
▼ 6. the man your sister talks about: unabsolutives and RDs
6a. elai’ arre coraia e mesidrian eve sor.speak.to lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male speak.about a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male your-sister which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord about whom your sister speaks.
The functions that in English are done by prepositions are in Heláin often done by verbs with adverbial prefixes, e.g., el-aia ‘on[to]-speak’ = ‘speak to’, cor-aia ‘under-speak’ = ‘speak about’, so this sentence is structurally uninteresting. The goal of the test sentence, though, is to move further down the accessibility hierarchy, so I’ll do that with something more like a prepositional phrase.
6b. elaia e sor arre sarc e mesidrian belis eos eve.
speak.to a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male work-PERFPerfect (aspect/tense)
have verb-ed a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male your-sister help-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object a.POSSPossessive (case)
owns, has.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord for whose benefit your sister has worked.
Clefting keeps the long relative clause from splitting up the main clause. The unabsolutive sar e ‘do a [thing]’ = ‘work’ introduces a slight ambiguity, because the listener is expecting a form of er (which e is) as the RD, but the RD is in fact the later eos ‘of one’. Here, context (and good sense) says that she’s doing something for his benefit, not making him (?) for the benefit of someone/something, but if it were truly ambiguous, another demonstrative could be added for him, as here, ‘that lord’ and ‘the benefit of that [man]’:
6c. elaia e sor arre tu sarc e mesidrian belis tus eve.
speak.to a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male that.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male work-PERFPerfect (aspect/tense)
have verb-ed a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male your-sister help-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object that-POSSPossessive (case)
owns, has.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to that lord for whose benefit your sister has worked.
▼ 7. the man whose son is a soldier: a new clitic
7a. elaia e sor arre tea llemuseon thennor eve.speak.to a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male be their-son-REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male guardsman which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord whose son is a guardsman.
(I’ve always wanted a third-person clitic to match se- ‘my/our’ and me- ‘your’, so now we have lle-, the only word beginning with a double nasal or liquid besides the archaic rrea ‘war’. It’s related to the verb hel ‘be gotten’, whence hella ‘self’, and generally refers to the nearest noun.)
This sentence was rather boring otherwise, so let’s try a harder one:
7b. elaia e sor arre heoleisfe curi thenneráin sereis eos eve.
speak.to a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-be.saved-POTPotential (mood)
likely events, ability town-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female guardsman.PLPlural (number)
more than one/few be.done-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object a-POSSPossessive (case)
owns, has.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I speak to the lord by whose work the guardsmen were able to save the town.
Easier than it looked. Here we have eos rather than lle- because sereis + gen. is a set idiom ‘by [person]’s work, by’ (and also because lle- would refer to the nearest noun, the guardsmen).
▼ 8. the girl you went to school with: resumptive inversion
8a. corfalal i sor seri lelinin e mun aspinis il ivra evi.ask.about-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male maiden-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-be.heard-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female girls’.school-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female a-LOCLocative (case)
'in, on, at' etc.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female a-COMComitative (case)
'together with'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
I am asking about the girl with whom you went to school (lit. listened in school).
Demonstrative train-wreck and potentially-ambiguous RD.
8b. sor corfalal dhi lelinin aspini mun seris dhivra evi.
1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male ask.about-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing this-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-be.heard-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing girls’.school-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female 2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female maiden-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female this-COMComitative (case)
'together with'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
I am asking about the girl with whom you went to school (lit. listened to school).
A few changes: the agent comes before the verb (to avoid clefting, which is clunky); a different idiom for going to school is used (listening to vs. in school) to eliminate the demonstrative il; and the head noun appears inside the relative clause, a construction I just
▼ 9. the man who[m] I was seen by: more resumptive inversion and RD omission
9a. dholol e sor ec fefinnen so arir evec.strike-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male a.ABLAblative (case)
away from.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-be.seen-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABLAblative (case)
away from.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I am running from the lord who saw me.
Another train-wreck averted, by resumptive inversion. (dhol e ‘strike it’ is the ordinary idiom for running.) Let’s try another variant:
9b. sor dholol e arres dhollen e seu talam’ adenora evec.
1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male strike-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male strike-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male even most strong-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.PLPlural (number)
more than one/few which-ABLAblative (case)
away from.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I am running from the lord from whom even the strongest [men] run.
Demonstratives have extra cases that in nouns are bundled as the oblique, so a noun often needs a modifying demonstrative to tell whether that oblique has the sense of, say, an ablative or an allative or a comitative. Here, though, the expected abl. ec after arres is omitted, letting evec do that job. Also because the RD would be ec (same ending as evec), it’s omitted as well.
▼ 10. the man I am taller than: less tricky than it looks
10. undorren so arir thennen so nete talama etir ever.not-fear-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male lord-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male stand-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male tall-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male more a.RELRelative.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
The lord than whom I stand taller does not frighten me.
▼ 11. know where: complement clauses
Indirect statement uses the postpositive conjunction av (probably related to ever ‘which’), and direct questions use normal word-order with various question-words like fier ‘who? what? which?’ or fiuna ‘or not?’ (e.g., ‘do you want it or not?’). So let’s keep indirect questions simple by combining those constructions.11. unarren e sor etesihwe av dhe fiel.
not-know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male OPTOptative (mood)
'wish, hope'-sit-OPTOptative (mood)
'wish, hope' for this-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male what?-LOCLocative (case)
'in, on, at' etc.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I don’t know where this should be set.
In main clauses, the optative and imperative are often interchangeable (the opt. being more polite), but the imper. can’t be used in subordinate clauses or questions.
▼ 12. say why: the problem of complement clauses and indirect questions
12a. unaián i eilienaleinn av i fiera. (?)not-say-PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female weep-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing for a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female why?
She did not say why she was weeping.
This sentence is potentially ambiguous. How does one tell the difference between speaking the question (why is she weeping?) and speaking the answer (why she’s weeping)? One way would be different main verbs, e.g., ‘said’ or ‘asked’. But I’d prefer different constructions. Heláin dictive verbs can have the speaker as either the agent or the patient. Quasi-parallel with the distinction between ar elle ‘know him[self]’ and ar e’lles ‘know about him[self]’ (a notable textual variant in the Sacred Laws), indirect speech will have the speaker as patient and the thing said as an av-clause:
12b. unaián dhi eilienaleinn av tu fiera.
not-say-PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech this-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female weep-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing for that-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument why?
This [woman] did not ask (lit. say) why he/she is/was weeping.
(The abs. tu ‘that’ could be either gender, and eilienalen ‘weep’, beginning with ei-, could be either nonpast or past.)
And a sentence with a complement clause will have an unabsolutive verb (that is, with a dummy patient) with the speaker as agent and the complement clause as an av-clause:
12c. unaián e dhian eilienaleinn av dhi fiera.
not-say-PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male this-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female weep-IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing for this-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female why?
This [woman] did not say something [as to] why she is/was weeping.
For good measure, dictives without clauses (thing said as patient, speaker as agent, like ind. speech):
12d. aián isthén dhian. aián crei dhian.
speak-PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech being-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female this-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female // speak-PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech prayer-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female this-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
She spoke the truth. She said a prayer.
▼ 13-14. tell me when, wrote about how: more complement clauses
13. aiá e soëllin teteliniannen av mu fiel.speak.IMPImperative (mood)
command a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-ALLAllative (case)
'to, onto'.SGSingular (number)
one countable entity PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-come.home-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past for 2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male what?-LOCLocative (case)
'in, on, at' etc.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
Tell me when you came home.
14. teteinnen e dher eillet av e fiera.
PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-write-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male this-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-happen.PERFPerfect (aspect/tense)
have verb-ed for a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male how?
This [man] wrote [about] how/why it had happened.
▼ 15. to make money: a brief foray into fie dha clauses
Clauses of cause, effect, and purpose are all handled by the conjunctive phrase fie dha, lit. ‘and the thus’ or ‘what thus?’ followed by il a-LOCLocative (case)'in, on, at' etc.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female ‘in’ or ic a-ABLAblative (case)
away from.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female ‘from’ and an av-clause. This sentence shows purpose, so the av-clause needs an optative (or inchoative) verb.
15a. sesarren e sor fie dha’l emainihwe av so dhis.
PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-do-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male CONJConjunction
links two arguments or clauses together CONJConjunction
links two arguments or clauses together OPTOptative (mood)
'wish, hope'-pay-OPTOptative (mood)
'wish, hope' for 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male money-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
I did it in order that I might be paid money.
But there’s an alternate construction with an infinitive:
15b. sesarren e sor fie dha mainis il.
PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-do-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male CONJConjunction
links two arguments or clauses together CONJConjunction
links two arguments or clauses together pay-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female a-LOCLocative (case)
'in, on, at' etc.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
I did it [in order] to be paid.
It could also mean ‘I did it in such a way that I was or would be paid’ (result) but purpose makes more sense.
▼ 16-18. know that: more complement clauses?
Hard to tell whether this is closer in sense to a complement clause or an indirect statement, but with the verb ar ‘know’ there shouldn’t be a difference anyway. In no. 16, the agent comes first because if it fell between the clauses, it would apply to both, i.e., ‘he doesn’t know that he caused a mishap’. Ending with e or i is avoided; a final adverb (like iŋ ‘now, today’) can help.16a. dher unarren e arcillet av e iŋ.
this-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male not-know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male happen.badly.PERFPerfect (aspect/tense)
have verb-ed for a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male today
He doesn’t know that there’s been a mishap today.
17a. arren e sor te’ av sos venthe.
know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male be for 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.SGSingular (number)
one countable entity aged-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I know that I am aged.
18a. arren e sor empulc av sos.
know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male fail.PERFPerfect (aspect/tense)
have verb-ed for 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I know that I’ve failed.
All of these sentences could be rephrased with nouns, and work much more nicely in Heláin than in English:
16b. unarren e dher arcilledis.
not-know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male this-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male happen.badly-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
He doesn’t know about the mishap.
17b. arren sehwelli sor.
know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past my-old.age-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I know my old age.
18b. arren s’empuli sor.
know-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past my-fail-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female 1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
I know my failure.
▼ 19-26: more av-clauses etc.
Translating all of these would be tiresome. They mostly use variations on av: coráv ‘before’, taláv ‘after’, hiváv ‘when’, filáv ‘while’, iŋáv ‘as soon as’, aveisfe ‘although’. For verbs, ‘and’ is fi if they share patient and agent, otherwise u, or fiu for great emphasis.No. 22 (‘because she hit me’) would use a fie dha clause, this time with ic. No. 24 (‘unless you try harder’) would use a condition -- another kettle of fish!
▼ 27-30: the tricky ones
I’m repeating the prompt questions because they have to be reworded.27. He isn’t someone to do that. --> relative clause (with resumptive inversion)
untea dheon e ’sereisfe tu elféid eve.
not-be this-REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male POTPotential (mood)
likely events, ability-do-POTPotential (mood)
likely events, ability that-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male person.of.a.kind.VOCVocative (case)
'O [addressee]'.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male which-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male
He isn’t the kind of person who might/could do that.
28. That’s no reason to shout. --> infinitive
untalveil besi.
not-need.IPRFImperfect (aspect/tense)
was verb-ing shout-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
Shouting isn’t needed. (We might say, ‘It doesn’t call for shouting.’)
29. Him buying the house was a surprise. --> complement clause
untetalfint e memainnen av dhe telinis.
not-PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-await.PERFPerfect (aspect/tense)
have verb-ed a.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male PASPast
action occurred before moment of speech-buy-AORAorist (tense/aspect)
usually the simple past for this-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.MMasculine gender (gender)
masculine or male house-OBLOblique (argument)
indirect or demoted object.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
It had not been awaited (i.e. it came as a surprise) that he bought the house.
30. You’re a hard man to predict. --> infinitive with significant rewording
untea m’anitalestean bridi.
not-be your-path.ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument-foretell-INFInfinitive (TAM)
non-tensed verb.REFLReflexive (valency)
argument acts on itself.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female easy-ABSAbsolutive (case)
TRANS object, INTR argument.FFeminine gender (gender)
feminine or female
Foretelling your path isn’t easy.
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