Sep14 –  A Constructed Language

Sep14 Basic Syntax

Legend: Definitions, Terms, <Text>, [IPA], -Tags-, and "Glosses".

Syntax Overview

Verb agreement uses a 2 > 1 > 3 hierarchy. Sentences are constructed using clause chains, in which tense is determined by the last clause of the chain. Whenever possible, 3rd person coreferences are represented by anaphoric null pronouns.

Phrases

A phrase is either a noun phrase or a pronoun. The constituents of a basic noun phrase are a determiner, a quantity word, any number of participles, and a head noun, normally in that order. The head noun is marked for case with the participles taking the non-final form ending. However, the head noun can be omitted, in which case, the last participle (or the quantity word) takes the case ending. Also, the phrase may contain appositive nouns with non-final forms.

Determiners

The following table show the determiners; the 2nd column is for specifying kinds:

Determiners
Words Tag Description
di dira Prox proximal demonstrative
do dora Medi medial demonstrative
la lara Dist distal demonstrative
cha chara CQ content question
- fara Sat satisfactive
hanto hantora other, rest
e era Ind indefinite
- definite
yo - NR non-referential
si - Rel relative

Possession and Partitives

Instead of containing a determiner, a noun phrase may be preceded by a genitive phrase specifying the possessor.

If the modified phrase consists of a quantity word, the genitive phrase represents the whole form which a part, whose cardinality is specified by the quantity word, is selected.

Quantities

The enclitic plural marker -s(u) -P preempts any other quantity word. It isn't used with definite or non-referential phrases (the latter don't distinguish number and for the former, number has already been specified). However, it may be appended to the genitive head word of a possessor phrase.

Clauses

A clause consists of, at minimum, a verb. The verb may be followed by a conjunction and preceded by argument phrases and/or adverbs.

There may be up to 3 argument phrases:

Each argument has one of the semantic roles:

A 3rd role phrase always takes the genitive case; otherwise, the arguments are matched to the roles depending on the grammatical voice of the verb.

A genitive phrase specifying the theme may be followed only by the verb or by certain adverbs; otherwise, the arguments may appear in either order.

Verb Agreement Classes

The following table primarily shows 2 things for each verb class: the semantic values for the 3 roles and which participle corresponds to each role.

Verb Agreement Classes
Class Argument Roles Corresponding
Participles
Examples
1st Role 2nd Role 3rd Role
1 - (target) - - Rcp/Thm - rain
2 subject - - Rcp/Thm - - here
3 descriptee (perceiver) - Rcp/Thm Don - hot
4 actor (target) - Don Rcp/Thm - run, hungry
5 agent patient - Don Rcp/Thm - eat, see, in
6 donor (recipient) (theme) Don Rcp Thm sing
7 donor recipient theme Don Rcp Thm give, tell

Grammatical Voice Usage

The grammatical voice determines which argument is assigned to each role. The 3rd argument, where possible, is always assigned to the 3rd role.

Grammatical Voice Usage
Tag Name 1st Role 2nd Role
Dir Direct 1st Arg. 2nd Arg.
Ant Antipassive 1st Arg. -
Inv Inverse 2nd Arg. 1st Arg.
Pas Passive - 1st Arg.
Rfx Reflexive 1st Argument

Clause Chains and Sentences

A clause chain consists of a final clause preceded by any number of coordinate clauses; each final or coordinate clause may be preceded by subordinate clauses, of which the final or coordinate clause is the host.

A final clause is either a conditional clause terminated by the conjunction chu If or a basic clause, which may be a statement, command, polar question, or content question.

A basic sentence consists of a clause chain terminated by a basic clause. A conditional sentence consists of a clause chain terminated by a conditional clause followed by a basic sentence representing the conclusion.

Questions and Commands

A polar question is indicated by the particle chi PQ terminating a basic clause. A content question is indicated by the presence of one of the content question words, such as the determiner cha CQ. A command is indicated by the basic clause verb in the imperative mood.

Aspect Usage

In a final clause, the aspects are interpreted as tenses. The aoristic aspect becomes a past tense and the prospective aspect becomes a future tense. The perfect, durative, and habitual aspects have present tense.

In a coordinate clause, only the aoristic aspect, with relative tense, appears.

In a subordinate clause, the aspects have relative tense.

Coordinate Clauses

A coordinate clause is terminated by one of the coordinating conjunctions, shown in the following table, to which the contrast morpheme ? may be appended:

Coordinating Conjunctions
Word Tag Description
? Seq sequential conjunction
? Sim simultaneous conjunction
? Dis disjunction

Subordinate Clauses

Subordinate clauses are used as relative clauses, complement clauses, and adjunct clauses. Many types of adjunct clauses are terminated by subordinating conjunctions, but some, along with relative and complement clauses, lack conjunctions.

Adjunct Clauses

Subordinating Conjunctions
Word Tag Description
tau Tmp temporal adjunct

The aspect of a temporal adjunct clause determines the temporal relation between the adjunct situation and the host situation.

Temporal Relations
Tag Aspect Description
Prf Perfect host after adjunct
Pro Prospective host before adjunct
Dur Durative host during adjunct
Aor Aoristic adjunct during host
Hab Habitual host whenever adjunct

Relative Clauses

A relative clause is a clause modifying a head noun phrase. Relative clauses are internally headed with the head phrase containing the relative determiner si Rel and the host clause containing a form of the correlative pronoun j·i Cor. The case of the head phrase specifies its usage within the relative clause while the case of the correlative pronoun specifies its usage within the host clause.

Complement Clauses

A complement clause replaces an argument of the host clause. The replaced clause represents the theme if the verb requires one; if the verb is univalent, it represents the subject and otherwise the patient.

Compound Tenses and Contrafactuals

Compound tenses may occur in combinations of complement clauses and final clauses. The complement clause verb has the perfect, prospective, habitual, or progressive (i.e. -i durative) aspect and the final clause has an existential verb with past (aoristic) or future (prospective) form. The existential verb may be positive (hú·) or negative (pá·); the complement clause verb is always positive.

Contrafactual clause chains, which are used mainly in conditions and conclusions, also use compound tenses where the final clause verb is the positive or negative contrafactual (pen· and shau·, respectively). The durative form pen is postposed to the positive content verb, which is unchanged, while a negative content verb becomes positive with shau postposed instead. However, if the verb is already an existence verb, the existence verb is replaced by the corresponding contrafactual verb form:

Corresponding Auxiliary Forms
Existence Contrafactual Description
hiwa pena positive, past tense
hule penle positive, future tense
pawa shewa negative, past tense
pale shaule negative, future tense

page started: 2016.Sep.16 Fri
current date: 2016.Sep.25 Sun
content and form originated by qiihoskeh

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