Af Mexee

From Linguifex
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Af Mexee is a Lowland East Cushitic language.

Introduction

Af Mexee dhehti (or Af Mexee for short) is a Somali condialect. The term Mexee dhehti means "What did you say?" and is used to differentiate Af Mexee from dialects such as Af Maxaa (tiri) (regular Somali) and Af Maay. However, since it is a Somali dialect, Af Mexee speakers refer to their language simply as Af Soomaali.

Phonology

Orthography

Consonants

' b p t j ch x kh d th r s sh dh c g gh f q k l m n ny w h y

Vowels

a e i o u

aa ee ii oo uu

Diphthongs

ay aw ey oy ow

aay aaw eey ooy oow

Consonants

Af Mexee consonant phonemes
Labial Dental/
Alveolar
Postalveolar Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyngeal Glottal
Nasal m n ny /ɲ/
Stop consonant voiceless (p) t /t̪/ k q ' /ʔ/
voiced b d /d̪/ dh /ɖ/ ɡ
Affricate voiceless ch /tʃ/
voiced j /dʒ/
Fricative voiceless f s sh /ʃ/ kh /x̠~χ/ x /ħ/ h
voiced p /β/ th /ð/ gh /ɣ/ (gh) /ɣ̠~ʁ/ c /ʕ/
Approximant l y /j/ w
Trill r /r~ɾ/

Vowels

Af Mexee has five vowel articulations that all contrast frontness/backness and vowel length. There is little change in vowel quality when the vowel is lengthened.

There are five diphthongs that also occur in front and back, long and short versions.

Af Mexee monophthongs
Front series Back series Orthography
short long short long short long
Close front unrounded /
Near-close near-front unrounded
i ɪ ɪː i ii
Close-mid front unrounded /
Open-mid front unrounded
e ɛ ɛː e ee
Near-open front unrounded /
Open back unrounded
æ æː ɑ ɑː a aa
Open-mid central rounded /
Open-mid back rounded
ɞ ɞː ɔ ɔː o oo
Close central rounded /
Close back rounded
ʉ ʉː u u uu
Af Mexee diphthongs
First element is front First element is back Orthography
short long short long short long
æi æːi ɑɪ ɑːɪ ay aay
æʉ æːʉ ɑu ɑːu aw aaw
ei eːi ɛɪ ɛːɪ ey eey
ɞi ɞːi ɔɪ ɔːɪ oy ooy
ɞʉ ɞːʉ ɔu ɔːu ow oow

Prosody

Stress

Intonation

Phonotactics

Syllable structure is (C)V(C), where V is any vowel or diphthong.

The consonants that can be geminated at syllable boundaries are: m, n, l, and r.

The consonants ', b, x, kh, d, r, s, sh, c, g, f, q, l, n, and h occur syllable-finally. The consonants p, ch, t, th, gh, k, m and ny cannot occur syllable-finally (although there are exceptions for t, k, and m). They undergo the following neutralizations:

pb (or, in some cases, w)

t, thd

k, ghg

nyyn, sometimes y

non-geminated mn (m before b)

J and dh may occur in coda in a loanwords, although they are usually replaced with sh and r respectively. For example, xaj "Hajj", ogsaydh "oxide". T, k, and m may also occur in a few words, mostly of Arabic origin. In amany cases, variants with the expected d, g, or n exist. For example, xikmad "wisdom" (also xigmad), fitno "trial, temptation" (also fidno), muslim "Muslim" (also muslin), amni "safety, security" (NOT *anni).

The consonants p, th, gh, and ch do not occur word-initially in native words. They come from intervocalic -b-, -d/t-, -g/k-, and -lt- respectively (the modern intervocalic b, d/t, and g/k come from geminated consonants). When word-initial in loanwords, p and gh are pronounced /p/ and /ɣ̠~ʁ/ instead of the regular /β/ and /ɣ/.

Vowels cannot occur in hiatus. Instead, epithetic consonants such as ', y, and w are inserted in between.

Morphophonology

Sandhi

At morpheme boundaries, the following changes occur (for endings beginning in a consonant, these changes apply after syllable-final neutralizations):

t (2nd person/feminine endings, middle voice, definite article/modifiers):

  • dropped after -d, dh – Exception: -d assimilates to -t- of the middle voice to form -t- (instead of the expected -d-)
  • l + t → ch
  • t → th after underlying -a, aa, e, ee, o, oo (note that -o and -e become a before th)
  • t of the middle voice, if it occurs between vowels after any applicable reductions, is softened to -th-
  • t (of middle voice) + t, nt, nn

k (definite article/modifiers):

  • dropped after -', x, kh, c, g, q, h
  • k → h after final -a, e, o (which then assimilate to the following vowel)

s (middle causative)

  • l + s → sh

Vowels

  • An a, e, or final -o followed by one of the "guttural" consonants (', x, c, or h) assimilates to the following vowel. If the following vowel is o, they can either become a or o. e.g.ma dhoho or ma dhaho "he does not say"
  • Unstressed vowels are often dropped before vowel-initial endings if it will not violate phonotactics.
e.g. gacan (stem: gacam-) + -ooyngacmooyn "hands" (not *gacamooyn)
Sometimes metathesis is involved.
e.g. culus "(he/she is) heavy" + -aancuslaan "(they are) heavy" (not *culsaan)

Morphology

Pronouns

Personal Pronouns

Af Mexee personal pronouns
Independent Clitic Possessive3 With locative particles
Stressed Unstressed Subject1 Object2 + ún + ká + kú + lá
1S
aní
an(i)
an
i
key
íin
iká
ikú
ilá
2S
athí
ad/athi
ad
ku
kaa
kúun
kuká
kukú
kulá
3SM
usú
us(u)
us
(su)
kiis
súun
suká
sukú
sulá
3SF
ishí
ish(i)
ish
(shi)
kishi
shíin
shiká
shikú
shilá
1P
unú
un(u)
an/un
nu
keen
núun
nuká
nukú
nulá
2P
isín
isin
ad/isin
sin
kiin
síin
sinká
sinkú
sinlá
3P
ishó
isho
ish/isho
(sho)
kisho
shóon
shoká
shokú
sholá
IMP4
la
lóon
laká
lakú
lalá

1 Clitic subject pronouns are optional and are often dropped unless needed for clarity or emphasis. For further emphasis, the independent forms may be used. In the plural, the clitic forms un, isin, and isho are formal; the more commonly used forms are an, ad, and ish respectively.

2 Third person object pronouns are only used for humans and (anthropomorphized) animals.

3 Masculine forms are shown (the corresponding feminine forms begin in t-). Possessives may be used as modifiers, in which case they attach to the noun, or independently as possessive pronouns.

4 Used for impersonal passive. Although it is technically a subject pronoun, it behaves as an object pronoun (but always comes before any true object pronouns).

K/T Pronouns

The k/t determiners (including possessives and the definite article) can be used independently as pronouns. They pluralize by inserting the infix -uw- after the k of the masculine singular.

e.g. kan "this (one), m.", tan "this (one), f.", kuwan "these (ones)"
ki "the one, m.", ti "the one, f.", kuwi "the ones"

There is an additional k/t pronoun with no determiner equivalent:

  • ko, to, kuwo: one/ones (indefinite) - e.g. ko kale "another one"

Nouns

Plural is formed with -ooyn (definite: -ooyki) or -yaal (definite: -yaalki). The ending -yaal is used for nouns (mostly masculine) ending in -e or -i, e.g. tuke "crow" → tukeyaal. All other nouns take the ending -ooyn. For feminine nouns ending in -o, the -o becomes a and an epithetic th is added before the ending. For example, maghaalo "city" + -ooynmaghaalathooyn "cities". Masculine nouns assimilate the -o to the ending.

Some words (mostly body parts) have a "short" plural in -o (definite: -ihi) in addition to the "long" plural in -ooyn/yaal. In the case of body parts, the short plural is when they belong to one person.

e.g. Gacantisho taagheen. = They raised their hand (i.e. each person raised a hand; hand is in singular).

Gacmihisho taagheen. = They raised their hands (i.e. each person raised both hands; hand is in short plural).
Gacmihi la taaghi. = The hands (of a single person; hand is in short plural) were raised.
Gacmooyki la taaghi. = The hands (of multiple people; hand is in long plural) were raised.

For other words, the short plural is used as a pseudo-collective noun.

Particles

K/T Determiners

The definite article attaches to the noun and is subject to sandhi rules.

  • Masculine/Plural: -ki
  • Feminine: -ti

There is also a remote definite article.

  • Masculine/Plural: -kíi
  • Feminine: -tíi
    • Does not affect tonation of the word.

Other determiners that behave similarly to the definite article:

  • Possessives (see Personal Pronouns)
  • Demonstratives:
    • -kan/tan: this, these
    • -kaas/taas: that, those
  • Interrogative:
    • -kée/tée: which
      • Causes any high tones in the word to be dropped.

Negation Particles

The negation particles are ma, an, ha, and ya. Each of these serves a different function.

  • ma is the default negation particle in main clauses and is used with the indicative. e.g. ma qapi "I do not have".It can combine to clitic subject pronouns:
    • ma + an(an)maan(an) (for (an), see the next point)
    • ma + ad/athanmaad/maathan
    • ma + us(an)maws(an)
    • ma + ish(an)maysh(an)
    • ma + un(an)mawn(an)
    • ma + isin(an)maysin(an)
    • ma + isho(n)maysho(n)
  • an has two functions:
    • It is used to form negative subject pronouns, which replace clitic subjects in negative clauses. e.g. ma anan qapin "I did not have", compare an qapi "I had". In this usage, an is optional and may be dropped - e.g. ma an qapin. It combines to clitic subjects:
      • ad + anathan
      • isho + anishon
      • The rest simply add -an - i.e. anan, usan, ishan, unan, isinan
    • It is also used as the sole negation particle in subordinate clauses. Since negation is shown on the verb, it is also optional here. e.g. ninkii (an) af soomaali aqiin "the man who does not know Somali". Note that in this usage, an prefers clause-initial position (although something like ninkii af soomaali an aqiin would not be incorrect).
  • ha is used in the negative imperative. e.g. ha bixin "don't leave".
  • ya is used to negate the jussive. e.g. ya usan bixin "don't let him leave". Like ma, ya can combine with clitic subjects. e.g. yawsan bixin.

Focus Particles

Focus particles are used with main clause verbs. They are wáa, waxa, aa, and their interrogative equivalents (more may be added later).

  • waa optionally precedes a main affirmative verb. It is used to indicate that the verb is NOT being used adjectivally and puts emphasis on the verb.
e.g. ninki bixi "the man left" OR "the man who left"; ninki wáa bixi "the man left" or "the man left"
minki cad "the house is white" OR "the white house"; minki wáa cad "the house is white" or "the house is white"
  • The interrogative equivalent of waa is maa.
e.g. ninki maa bixi? "did the man leave?"
  • waa and maa can combine to clitic subjects as follows:
  • waa + anwaan
  • waa + adwaad
  • waa + uswoos
  • waa + ishweesh
  • waa + unwoon
  • waa + isinweesin
  • waa + ishoweesho
  • waxa is used before a main verb when the object follows the verb, allowing for a SVO word order. It literally means the thing. It places emphasis on the object.
e.g. ninki waxa qaathi qalin "the man took a pen" (literally: "the thing the man took (was) a pen")
  • The interrogative equivalent of waxa is maxa.
e.g. ninki maxa qaathi qalin? "did the man take a pen?"
  • waxa and maxa can combine to clitic subjects as follows:
  • waxa + anwaxan
  • waxa + adwaxad
  • waxa + uswuxus
  • waxa + ishwixish
  • waxa + unwuxun
  • waxa + isinwixisin
  • waxa + ishowixisho
  • aa put emphasis on a noun (either subject or object). It follows the noun being emphasized.
e.g. ninki aa qalinki qaathi/qalinki ninki aa qaathi "the man took the pen" (or "the pen took the man")
  • The interrogative equivalent of aa is ma - aa (i.e. aa is kept and the noun is preceded by ma).
e.g. ma ninki aa qalinki qaathi? "did the man take the pen?" (or "did the pen take the man?)
  • aa can combine to clitic subjects in the same way as waa.
  • waxa can be combined with aa to form waxaa, which is used when the subject follows the verb. It places emphasis on the subject.
e.g. qalinki waxaa qaathi ninki "the man took the pen" (literally: what took the pen (was) the man")
  • The interrogative equivalent of waxaa is maxaa.
e.g. qalinki maxaa qaathi ninki? "did the man take the pen?"

Adjectives

Adjectives are not declined for gender. However, they may optionally be conjugated for time (following the stative conjugation).

e.g. min yar "a small house", min yaraay "a house that was small"

Adjectives can be reduplicated or take stative endings to show plurality, or the singular forms may be used.

e.g. minooyn yaryar/yaraan "small houses" (also minooyn yar)

Verbs

There are three main classes of verbs: the suffix, prefix, and stative conjugations.

Class I: Suffix Conjugation

The suffix conjugation is the most common and productive verb class. It can be divided into 5 conjugation groups:

  1. Conjugation 1: Root verbs
  2. Conjugation 2: -am- (passive) verbs
  3. Conjugation 3 (A, B): -ish- (causative) verbs
  4. Conjugation 4 (A, B, C): -at- (middle) verbs
  5. Conjugation 5 (A, B): -w/p- verbs
Conjugation 1

Root verbs with no extra affixes. e.g. keeni "to bring" (stem: keen-)

(Note: –́ = penultimate high tone; ˊ– = initial high tone)

Class I Conjugation 1
Infinitive
-i
keeni
Verbal Noun (f.)
-íd (-íth-)
keeníd
Present Affirmative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmative Past Negative Imperative Affirmative Imperative Negative
1S
-a
keena
keení
-i
keeni
-ín
keenín
2S
-ta
keenta
-tí
keen
-ti
keenti
ˊ–
kéen
ˊ–in
kéenin
3SM
-a
keena
keenó
-i
keeni
3SF
-ta
keenta
-tó
keen
-ti
keenti
1P
-na
keenna
-nó
keen
-ni
keenni
2P
-tíin
keentíin
-tiín
keentiín
-téen
keentéen
–́ a
keéna
-ína
keenína
3P
-áan
keenáan
-aán
keenaán
-éen
keenéen
Conjugation 2

Passive verbs derived from lexically causative verbs with the passive affix -am-. When derived from a Conjugation 3 verb, the -sh- becomes a -s-, giving the combined affix -isam-. There are two competing paradigms for Conjugation 2 verbs: the first treats them as a Conjugation 1 verb, with the -am affix behaving as a part of the stem, while the second is a hybrid of Conjugations 1 and 4.

e.g. xirmi "to close (INTR), get closed" (stem: xir-am-)

Class I Conjugation 2 - Paradigm 1
Infinitive
-mi
xirmi
Verbal Noun (f.)
-míd (-míth-)
xirmíd
Present Affirmative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmative Past Negative Imperative Affirmative Imperative Negative
1S
-ma
xirma
-mí
xir
-mi
xirmi
-mín
xirmín
2S
-anta
xiranta
-antí
xirantí
-anti
xiranti
ˊ–an
xíran
ˊ–min
xírmin
3SM
-ma
xirma
-mó
xir
-mi
xirmi
3SF
-anta
xiranta
-antó
xirantó
-anti
xiranti
1P
-anna
xiranna
-annó
xirannó
-anni
xiranni
2P
-antíin
xirantíin
-antiín
xirantiín
-antéen
xirantéen
–́ ma
xírma
-mína
xirmína
3P
-máan
xirmáan
-maán
xirmaán
-méen
xirméen
Class I Conjugation 2 - Paradigm 2
Infinitive
-mi
xirmi
Verbal Noun (f.)
-míd (-míth-)
xirmíd
Present Affirmative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmative Past Negative Imperative Affirmative Imperative Negative
1S
-ma
xirma
-mí
xir
-mi
xirmi
-mín
xirmín
2S
-mata
xirmata
-matí
xirmatí
-mati
xirmati
–mó
xir
ˊ–min
xírmin
3SM
-ma
xirma
-mó
xir
-mi
xirmi
3SF
-mata
xirmata
-mató
xirmató
-mati
xirmati
1P
-manna
xirmanna
-mannó
xirmannó
-manni
xirmanni
2P
-matíin
xirmatíin
-matiín
xirmatiín
-matéen
xirmatéen
–́ ma
xírma
-mína
xirmína
3P
-máan
xirmáan
-maán
xirmaán
-méen
xirméen
Conjugision 3A

Verbs derived from root verbs with the causisive affix -ish-. The sh combines with t and n to form s and nn respectively. e.g. karín "to cook" (stem: kar-ish-).

Class I Conjugation 3A
Infinitive
-ín
karín
Verbal Noun (f.)
-ís
karís
Present Affirmative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmative Past Negative Imperative Affirmative Imperative Negative
1S
-(i)sha
kar(i)sha
-(i)shí
kar(i)shí
-(i)shi
kar(i)shi
-inín
karinín
2S
-isa
karisa
-isí
karisí
-isi
karisi
ˊ–ish
kárish
–ínin
karínin
3SM
-(i)sha
kar(i)sha
-(i)shó
kar(i)shó
-(i)shi
kar(i)shi
3SF
-isa
karisa
-isó
karisó
-isi
karisi
1P
-inna
karinna
-innó
karinnó
-inni
karinni
2P
-isíin
karisíin
-isiín
karisiín
-iséen
kariséen
–ísha/-́sha
karísha/kársha
-inína
karinína
3P
-(i)sháan
kar(i)sháan
-(i)shaán
kar(i)shaán
-(i)shéen
kar(i)shéen
Conjugation 3B

Verbs derived from nouns/adjectives with the causative affix -aash- (from -aa- + -(i)sh-).

Conjugation 4A

Verbs with the middle affix -o/at-. When derived from Conjugation 3 verbs, the -sh- becomes -s-, giving the combined affix -so/sat-. Depending on the stem, there may or may not be reductions. e.g. xirán "to put on" (stem: xir-at-), karsán "to cook for oneself" (stem: kar-s-at-).

Class I Conjugation 4A - With reductions
Infinitive
-án
xirán
Verbal Noun (f.)
-ashó (-ashá-)
xirashó
Present Affirmative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmative Past Negative Imperative Affirmative Imperative Negative
1S
-ta
xirta
-tí
xir
-ti
xirti
-anín
xiranín
2S
-ata
xirata
-atí
xiratí
-ati
xirati
–ó
xiró
–ánin
xiránin
3SM
-ta
xirta
-tó
xir
-ti
xirti
3SF
-ata
xirata
-ató
xirató
-ati
xirati
1P
-anna
xiranna
-annó
xirannó
-anni
xiranni
2P
-atíin
xiratíin
-atiín
xiratiín
-atéen
xiratéen
–́ ta
xírta
-anína
xiranína
3P
-táan
xirtáan
-taán
xirtaán
-téen
xirtéen
Class I Conjugation 4A - Without reductions
Infinitive
-án
karsán
Verbal Noun (f.)
-ashó (-ashá-)
karsashó
Present Affirmative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmative Past Negative Imperative Affirmative Imperative Negative
1S
-atha
karsatha
-athí
karsathí
-athi
karsathi
-anín
karsanín
2S
-ata
karsata
-atí
karsatí
-ati
karsati
–ó
karsó
–ánin
karsánin
3SM
-atha
karsatha
-athó
karsathó
-athi
karsathi
3SF
-ata
karsata
-ató
karsató
-ati
karsati
1P
-anna
karsanna
-annó
karsannó
-anni
karsanni
2P
-atíin
karsatíin
-atiín
karsatiín
-atéen
karsatéen
–átha
karsátha
-anína
karsanína
3P
-atháan
karsatháan
-athaán
karsathaán
-athéen
karsathéen
Conjugation 4B

Verbs derived from nouns/adjectives (generally adjectives) with the affix -oow/aaath- (from -aa- + -aat-). Class III verbs all have a Conjugaation 4B counterpart, which is used inchoaatively or continuaatively. They share infinitive and imperaative forms. e.g. ahaan "to be" (Class III) or "to become/remain" (Conjugaation 4B).

Class I Conjugaation 4B
Infinitive
-aán
ahaán
Verbal Noun (f.)
-aanshó (-aanshá-)
ahaanshó
Present Affirmaative Present Subjunctive Past Affirmaative Past Negaative Imperaative Affirmaative Imperaative Negaative
1S
-aatha
ahaatha
-aathí
ahaathí
-aathi
ahaathi
-aanín
ahaanín
2S
-aata
ahaata
-aatí
ahaatí
-aati
ahaati
–oów
ahoów
–aánin
ahaánin
3SM
-aatha
ahaatha
-aathó
ahaathó
-aathi
ahaathi
3SF
-aata
ahaata
-aató
ahaató
-aati
ahaati
1P
-aana
ahaana
-aanó
ahaanó
-aani
ahaani
2P
-aatíin
ahaatíin
-aatiín
ahaatiín
-aatéen
ahaatéen
–aátha
ahaátha
-aanína
ahaanína
3P
-aatháan
ahaatháan
-aathaán
ahaathaán
-aathéen
ahaathéen
Conjugation 4C

Verbs derived from nouns/adjectives (generally nouns ending in -o) with the affix -oow/ooth- (from -o + -oo- + -at-). e.g. caroón "to become angry" (from caro "anger").

Class I Conjugootion 4B
Infinitive
-oón
caroón
Verbal Noun (f.)
-oonshó (-oonshá-)
caroonshó
Present Affirmootive Present Subjunctive Past Affirmootive Past Negootive Imperootive Affirmootive Imperootive Negootive
1S
-ootha
carootha
-oothí
caroothí
-oothi
caroothi
-oonín
caroonín
2S
-oota
caroota
-ootí
carootí
-ooti
carooti
–oów
caroów
–oónin
caroónin
3SM
-ootha
carootha
-oothó
caroothó
-oothi
caroothi
3SF
-oota
caroota
-ootó
carootó
-ooti
carooti
1P
-oona
caroona
-oonó
caroonó
-ooni
carooni
2P
-ootíin
carootíin
-ootiín
carootiín
-ootéen
carootéen
–oótha
caroótha
-oonína
caroonína
3P
-oothóon
caroothóon
-oothoón
caroothoón
-oothéen
caroothéen
Conjugation 5A

Verbs derived from nouns/adjectives (generally nouns) with the affix -oow/oop-.

Conjugation 5B

Verbs derived from nouns/adjectives (generally nouns) with the affix -oow/aap-.

Class II: Prefix Conjugation

Class III: Stative Conjugation

Tense, Aspect, Mood, and Voice

Syntax

Constituent order

The most common (and underlying) word-order is SOV.

Noun phrase

  • Cardinal numbers come before the noun. If a cardinal number is present, the singular form of the noun is used.
nimooyn "men" BUT afar nin "four men" (afar nimooyn is also acceptable)
  • Adjectives and determiners other than cardinal numbers come after the noun.
  • The definite article and other suffixed determiners attach to the noun unless it is preceded by a cardinal number, in which case they attach to the number.
nimooyki "the men" BUT afarti nin "the four men"
  • Possessive phrases can be formed in two ways:
a) Genitive construction
minki Shariif = Shariif's house (lit. the house (of) Shariif)
b) Possessive determiner
Shariif minkiis = Shariif's house (lit. Shariif his house)

Verb phrase

(Subject Pronoun) + Object Pronoun + Locative Particle + Negation (+ Clitic Subject Pronoun) + Relational Particle + Verb

Clitic subject pronouns come after the negation particle if present. Otherwise, they go at the beginning (in which case either the clitic or non-clitic forms may be used).

Sentence phrase

Dependent clauses

Example texts

Other resources