Linguifex

Old Shalaian/Syntax

Prose Shalaian

Constituent order

Finite clauses have unmarked word order SV, OAV and use ergative syntax: 

preverb dir_obj subj ind_obj verb place manner time.

Infinitive clauses are VSO and accusative; the preposition mi must be used before a direct object in infinitive clauses.

Mi-infinitive clauses lack the ergative argument when using transitive verbs, and use OV order and accusative syntax

An example of a clause with a transitive verb: 

Ingánakh              tładméen       wa fígħdri       u shaanf.
3SG.A.ERG-PST-3PL.ABS plant-PST.PTCP DEF.PL flower-PL DEF.SG.A woman
Aux                   V              O                S
The woman planted the flowers.

Noun phrase

The structure of a Old Shalaian/Syntax noun phrase is maximally 

article numeral NOUN adjective demonstrative genitive relative_clause.

Genitive noun phrases use possessive affixes on the possessed noun:

lašý Ráičal = Rachel's hand (inalienable possession)

Nominal sentences

Old Shalaian/Syntax is zero-copula for nominal sentences and for predicative adjuncts such as għar roft 'at home'. Nominal sentences in the present tense are negated with the preverb thoor.

Am shaanft Għánameen swid?
Q.PRES woman-3SG.AN Għánameen 2SG
Are you Għánameen's wife/girlfriend?
Thoor, sháanfalna fin.
not.COP, woman-1SG-EMPH 3SG.A
No, she's *my* girlfriend.
Am għar roft Inthar? Thoor.
Is Inthar home? No, they're not.

Questions

Yes-no questions

Yes-no questions are answered using preverbs.

Wh-questions

The interrogative word always comes first in the sentence.

Predicative wh-questions are simpler:

Yakh swid?
who 2SG
Who are you?
Għaib lōkh swid?
where PST 2SG
Where have you been?

Verbal wh-questions are always cleft sentences: The material after the wh-word becomes a relative clause with the wh-word as the head. The relative clause can be a cha-clause vs. a vi-clause:

Yan vi u shaanf inágħdi?
yan vi in-għád-i u shaanf
what VI.PRES 3SG.A-see-INF DEF.SG.A woman
What does the woman see? (lit. What is that which the woman sees?)
Yakh għan do'ch agħd vikh rṓjas?
yakh għan do'ch a-għád-0 vikh rōj-as
who here CHA.NEG.PRES 3SG.A-see-3SG.I VI.PST do.INF-3SG.H
Who here does not see what she (hon.) has done? (lit. Who here is it that does not see that which she has done?)

'There is' and 'have'

'There is' clauses use the word whid at the beginning of the word, and have-possessives use the structure whid + the thing possessed + the preposition għar + possessor. The negative of whid is yaan'ch 'there is not' (etymologically from an interrogative *yan cha' whid "where is..."), and the negative interrogative form is maand.

Yaan'ch għar áifer vojlid.
There is no justice in this (fact or situation).

Transitivity

Finite verbs index the arguments ergatively: the absolutive personal affixes are suffixes and the ergative affixes are prefixes.

Intransitives

Transitives

Transitive verbs (such as 'to hit') mark both persons on the verb. Passive verbs formed from transitives behave like intransitives and take the absolutive argument for the "patient" just like the active counterpart does. The antipassive turns the agent into the absolutive argument and uses għar with the patient.

Ditransitives

Ditransitives use tripersonal agreement:

  • Causer: Ergative
  • Agent: Ergative
  • Patient: Absolutive

Relative clauses

Shalaian uses two different types of relative clauses, depending on the syntactic position of the head in the relative clause.

vi-clauses

Forms of the preverb vi are used when the head of the relative clause is absolutive or when relativizing a non-verbal predicate.

Headless relative clauses (indicated by that which or what in English) can be formed simply by omitting the head.

A verbal vi-clause has the form 

(when intransitive) vi-preverb + other constituents verb.INF

or 

(when transitive) vi-preverb + POSSESSIVE_i-verb.INF + ergative noun_i + other constituents.

Note that:

  • The infinitive form of the verb is used.
  • When there is an ergative noun phrase, the strong possessive affix is used and agrees with the ergative noun phrase.

A non-verbal predicate vi-clause has a simpler form: 

vi-preverb predicate.

če-clauses

Forms of če are used when the head of the relative clause is NOT absolutive. Unlike vi-clauses, če-clauses use finite verbs and are more syntactically straightforward. Resumptive pronouns (referring back to the head) are usually used in a če-clause, either on the verb or on other constituents.

Complement clauses

Like many other clause types in Shalian, complement clauses have two possible syntaxes: either finite, using forms of the preverb ith, or an infinitive construction, formed with the preposition mi + infinitive. With infinitive complement clauses, the tense is usually assumed to be the same tense as the main clause.

Conditional

Conditional clauses that indicate a general truth use the present form of the "if" preverb. A preverb need not be used in the apodosis.

Sher syukh ładéem, ħónath ni chalm sikht.
if.PRES fall_precipitation snow, become DEF road cold
If it snows, the road becomes cold.

Conditional clauses that are conditioned on a possible future event use the future form of the "if" preverb:

Wher't syukh ładéem, kháiral roftas.
if.FUT fall_precipitation snow, go-1SG to_home
If it snows, I'll go home.

Time clauses

There are conjunctions for time clauses.

However, the infinitive construction għar + infinitive is more commonly used:

  • Għar shá'unal, vor shafiħée, għar wáirjan mi shontái. = When I awake, she begins to play the violin.
  • Għar sháfiħal, as kaléer mi wair, lōkh shafiħée mi shontái. = When I began singing the song, she began playing.
  • Łar't lidanjáis shṓlriv, chōns għar khairée. (FUT 1SG-follow-3SG.A together every LOC go-3SG.A = Whenever she goes, I'm going together with her.)

In infinitive clauses, the possessor of the infinitive is the absolutive noun, and mi is used in front of the ergative noun.

todo: "while", "as soon as", "before", "after", "until"

Comparison clauses

The syntax vair + form of cha is used when comparing clauses:

Ashfíl'ajal, lōkh tirṓj thogħs vair chakh lidanrú'k.
Congrats, you did [it] better than I expected.

The syntax vair + possessed form of the infinitive is used for clauses of the form "too ADJ for NOUN to VERB".

Khom u għōv lirwhágħan vair shéerishawh thóogħa.
be_at.3SG.I DEF.SG.I death COMP-evil than neglect-INF-1PL from-3SG.I
Death is too evil for us to neglect. (lit. more evil than our neglecting it)

Method clauses

inst + inf + abs

Purpose clauses

ben + inf + abs

Result clauses

"result" + inf + abs

Reason clauses

from/because + inf + abs

Topicalization

Topicalization involves placing the topic after the comment clause.

Cleft constructions

In cleft sentences, the present tense preverb is used before the fronted constituent.

Vor sowh vikh għanór'ads.
PRES 1PL VI.PST choose.INF-2SG.H
It's us whom you have chosen.

Modal expressions

The modal expressions are the following:

  • kórtha mi X = X wants
  • idréen mi X = X needs
  • fangán għar X = X must
  • għai't mi X = X likes
  • tłákht għar X = X can (lit. X has a method)
    • 'can't' is usually expressed by using the word rōn in front of a finite verb.
  • khuméen mi X = X is permitted to

All modal expressions use mi-infinitive clauses for their complements:

Kórth mi Máiri, whádi mi hoshan.
desire to Mary, milk to drink
Mary wants to drink milk.
Idréen mi Máiri, whádi mi hoshan.
necessary to Mary, milk to drink
Mary needs to drink milk.
Għai't mi Máiri, whádi mi hoshan.
pleasure to Mary milk to drink
Mary likes drinking milk.
Tłákht għar Máiri, whádi mi hoshan.
method at Mary, milk to drink
Mary can drink milk.
Rōn inhóshan Máiri whádi. / Yand tłákhter għar Máiri, whádi mi hoshan.
NEG.POT 3SG.A-drink-3SG.I Mary milk / exists_no method at Mary, milk to drink
Mary can't drink milk.
Khuméen mi Máiri, whádi mi hoshan.
permit-PASS_PTCP DAT Mary, milk to drink
It's okay for Mary to drink milk.

Alternatively, the possessed infinitive construction can be used:

Khuméen hoshnée Máiri mi whádi.
It's okay for Mary to drink milk. (lit. Mary's drinking of milk is okay)

Poetic Shalaian

Topicalization used more often, preverbs and articles often omitted, word order freer

e.g. wairdí'nal laħchái't = I shall praise her with my song

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