Scellan/Syntax

A mostly-analytic language, Eevo is strongly head-initial (with exceptions in poetry). It usually uses VSO word order; the focused constituent is fronted.

Eevo is split-ergative, the split being conditioned by aspect.

Negation

The usual negative particle is twm, which is placed before the verb. hov 'don't!' is used for the negative imperative. In literary or poetic language, ni (indicative) and daw (irrealis) can also be found.

Negative pronouns

• twm satn (lit. not a thing) = nothing
• twm lias (lit. not a soul) = no one

On double negation

Double negation usually resolves to a positive, since litotes involving negative pronouns are commonly used for emphasis. For example:

Twm satn a twm roféelin.

NEG thing DET NEG change-PRET

'Everything changed.' (literally 'Nothing did not change.')

Noun phrase

a (að before a vowel or after a) is used as a determiner before the noun phrase (like Lushootseed ti and kʷi). Determiners are not used with prepositions or when the noun is used as a predicate.

There is a genitive particle ry, but it is optional.

Determiners can be omitted in elevated language.

Predicates are fronted

Eevo has no copula. Instead, the "predicate" or the focused constituent is fronted:

e.g. Dy eehl naw ee. = I love her; Ee a (fa) dy eehl ren. = It's her that I love

When fronting of a noun occurs, the remaining verb phrase becomes a noun phrase, thus a determiner must be used.

Twm øráð syrŋ toxroréginan a go þarcǿma að smøøh sbenopatsyn.

NEG only new evolve-PASS.PART-CLV DET PST.IPFV inhabit DET world dinosaur-CLV

The world of the dinosaurs was not solely occupied by the newly-evolved.

In some tenses (progressive, perfect) the particle fa can be used after the a when fronting.

Dy iant a duvwŋ.

The teacher is sleeping.

Duvwŋ a (fa) dy iant.

It's the teacher who is sleeping.

Ergativity

Eevo is split-ergative, with imperfective tenses using accusative morphosyntax and perfective tenses using ergative morphosyntax. The ergative preposition is rw.

It's conflated with the possessive pronouns in some dialects, where it is used even outside ergative tenses to mark an ergative subject in clauses with fronting, and the possessive pronouns are also used ergatively. Some even argue that a(ð) is on its way to becoming an absolutive case marker.

Clause types

Conjunctions

• as = and
  • Informally or poetically, 's
• halin = emphatic word for "and"; both X and Y
  • It can be used like X halin Y or halin X halin Y.
• Twm havl... llysáin niaŋt... = not only... but also...
• dw = or
• lu = xor
• ah = but
• llysáin = but (rather)
• ry = that (relativizer)
• i = if
• oos i = even if
  • oos (archaic) = even if
• oos ah = even though
• coþ = then
• ŋyþ = therefore, thus
• seþ = when
  • ceeda = therefore
  • afle = therefore (literary)
• cwin = because
  • eer = for (literary)
• gor = if (counterfactual)
• emb = that (complementizer)
• sohnúvi = X and Y, respectively (like German bzw.)

Relative clauses

• no relativizer is used when the head is the subject in the relative clause
• ry is used otherwise, possibly with a resumptive pronoun
• resumptive pronouns are optional - hence relative clauses can end in a preposition as in English.
  • This state of affairs came about because the older pronominal affixes on prepositions elided and the emphatic pronoun remained optional.
• for places, cah 'there' can be used as a resumptive pronoun
• in formal writing, the head may be repeated instead of using a resumptive pronoun to eliminate ambiguity (cf. mathematical writing in English)

dlïahar ry twm go sovl awv ber (awr)

event-PLV REL NEG IPFV hear 1EX about (3PL)

events that we did not hear of

• For relativizing sentences or statements, taw 'what' is used

... taw þuþmoŋéed emb vyðár a tyþ.

what confirm COMP equal DET two

...which confirms that the two are equal.

Complement clauses

The complementizer is emb.

Eevo provides other syntaxes for complement clauses which are non-finite...

Conditional clauses

Generally true statement:

I tøøh a barah, (coþ) gias a cnoo. [also found in high register: Tøøhor a barah, ...]

If it rains, (then) the grass is wet.

Conditional on a possible future event:

I tøøht a barah, faht gias a cnoo.

If it rains [lit. if it will rain] the grass will be wet.

Hypothetical supposition/a less likely "if":

If it rained, the grass would be wet.

Counterfactual supposition:

Had it rained, the grass would have been wet.

Time clauses (when, while, before, after) work similarly.

Modal expressions

• Ŋiwð naw = I want to
• Beð ryn a... = I have to (lit. it is my part to)
• Cwlli llyn a... = I can (lit. it is open for me to)
• Orr llyn a... = I should...
• Dewm ryn a... = I may... (lit. it is my right to)
  • The possessive pronoun can be omitted in casual speech.
• Ulyn naw... = I might... (probabilistic)

Topicalization

Sometimes used; the topicalized phrase is set off by a strong comma in the native script.

Dy otsón, tŋiv aversfits a teþ zydóŋa twm hugmasgen.

in plane, always intersect DET two line-PL not parallel

In a plane, two nonparallel lines always intersect.

Infinitive absolute

In an infinitive absolute construction, the verb is repeated once before being "conjugated" for TAM. This is found in literary usage.

Fyŋg hly fyŋg av hree cia.

die FUT.PERF die 3SG.M day one

Die he will one day.