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Kandi: Difference between revisions
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|imagesize = 100px | |imagesize = 100px | ||
|name = Tsan | |name = Tsan | ||
|nativename = '' | |nativename = ''Kándi tsúyi'' | ||
|pronunciation = [ | |pronunciation = [kaŋni t͡suβ̞ʝɪ] | ||
|region = West Africa | |region = West Africa | ||
|states = Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso | |states = Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso | ||
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|dia1 = Western Tsan | |dia1 = Western Tsan | ||
|dia2 = Eastern Tsan | |dia2 = Eastern Tsan | ||
|iso1 = ts | |iso1 = ts | ||
|iso2 = ts | |iso2 = ts | ||
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}} | }} | ||
'''Tsan''' ('' | '''Kandi''', or '''Tsan''' (''kándi tsúyi'' or ''tsani tsúyi'') is a language spoken by the Tsan people in Western Africa. It belongs to the Tanisi language family and is thus distantly related to the [[Ris]] language. Tsani is a heavily [[w:agglutinative language|agglutinating]] with a complex verbal morphology. The language has repeatedly been analysed as lacking [[w:nouns|nouns]] and [[w:adjectives|adjectives]] altogether, in favour of [[w:verb|verb]]s. Phonologically it exhibits [[w:ejective consonants|ejective consonants]], which are also realised as voiced stops in some dialects. | ||
==Phonology== | ==Phonology== | ||
The Tsani inventory has been documented and assessed repeatedly since the 19<sup>th</sup> century, the foremost people in the field being the Belgian linguist Émile d'Ivoire and the Scottish linguist John Glenn Crossing, an expert on Jivan languages. This page uses a standard notation where C is a consonant, N a nasal consonant, and V is a vowel. Features are indicated by square brackets [ ] and plus or minus signs, ±. | The Tsani inventory has been documented and assessed repeatedly since the 19<sup>th</sup> century, the foremost people in the field being the Belgian linguist Émile d'Ivoire and the Scottish linguist John Glenn Crossing, an expert on Jivan languages. This page uses a standard notation where C is a consonant, N a nasal consonant, and V is a vowel. Features are indicated by square brackets [ ] and plus or minus signs, ±. | ||
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==Grammar== | ==Grammar== | ||
Kandi exhibits what’s called [[Tsan#Predicate/argument flexibility|predicate/argument flexibility]]; all content words equivalent to English verbs, nouns and adjectives, can fill the role as predicate or as argument of a clause. The flexibility is due to that the lemma form of all content words corresponds to a predicative expression. All content words have a subject, which in the default is the third person: For example, the word for "dog" is ''kshawí'', but it is also equivalent to "it is a dog". | |||
In essence, the distinction between noun and verb is blurred. All content words may be conjugated and form verbal phrases, they may modify each other, and they all have one of three [[w:grammatical gender|grammatical gender]]s. | In essence, the distinction between noun and verb is blurred. All content words may be conjugated and form verbal phrases, they may modify each other, and they all have one of three [[w:grammatical gender|grammatical gender]]s. | ||
The | The Kandi grammar consists of a variety of grammatical prefixes and suffixes, all of which fit in a strict affixation template. The Tsan affixation template looks as follows: | ||
:{{sc|genitive}}–{{sc|mood}}–{{sc|plural}}–[Content word]–{{sc|applicative}}–{{sc|case}}–[[Tsan#Grammatical gender|{{sc|gender}}]]–[[Tsan#Core affixes|{{sc|core}}]]–{{sc|specifier}} | :{{sc|genitive}}–{{sc|mood}}–{{sc|plural}}–[Content word]–{{sc|applicative}}–{{sc|case}}–[[Tsan#Grammatical gender|{{sc|gender}}]]–[[Tsan#Core affixes|{{sc|core}}]]–{{sc|specifier}} | ||
===Core affixes=== | ===Core affixes=== | ||
The | The Kandi conjugation is rather a form of affixation of relevant arguments, aspects, cases, and moods. The core affixes are the main reason behind the Tsan predicate/argument flexibility, and they consist of a ''gender part'' and a ''stative'' or ''dynamic part''. | ||
The stative affixes convey a state of being, or function as a copula. The dynamic affixes transform a word into a more verb-like construction, and insinuates some sort of action. These two core affixes are mutually exclusive, and a word can only be affixed with one of them at a time. | The stative affixes convey a state of being, or function as a copula. The dynamic affixes transform a word into a more verb-like construction, and insinuates some sort of action. These two core affixes are mutually exclusive, and a word can only be affixed with one of them at a time. | ||
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====Grammatical gender==== | ====Grammatical gender==== | ||
Kandi has a peculiar system of grammatical gender. The genders are purely natural: Women are feminine {{sc|f}}, men and males are masculine {{sc|m}}, and everything else is neuter {{sc|n}}. | |||
Do note, however, that the grammatical gender is not marked. Rather, there is a form of ''dual marking''. The gender of the subject of a content word is marked as either the "same" or "different" to that of the speaker. If the subject gender is the same as that of the speaker, it is marked as the ''same'' {{sc|sam}}, whereas if the subject gender is different to that of the speaker, it is marked as "different" {{sc|diff}}. | Do note, however, that the grammatical gender is not marked. Rather, there is a form of ''dual marking''. The gender of the subject of a content word is marked as either the "same" or "different" to that of the speaker. If the subject gender is the same as that of the speaker, it is marked as the ''same'' {{sc|sam}}, whereas if the subject gender is different to that of the speaker, it is marked as "different" {{sc|diff}}. | ||
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====Predicative complements==== | ====Predicative complements==== | ||
=====Simple predicative expressions===== | =====Simple predicative expressions===== | ||
In | In Kandi, the predicative complement of an expression is equivalent to the predicate itself. All content words are predicates in their own right, due to a copula suffix. This copula is a null suffix in the third person proximate, but it congruates with the subject. The subject does not need to be independent, and is only marked on the predicate. | ||
{{gloss/indexable | {{gloss/indexable | ||
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=====Predicative accusatives===== | =====Predicative accusatives===== | ||
Kandi has one copula, and one copula only. In English you may find a variety of related verbs with similar function to the main copula ''to be''; for example ''to feel'', ''to seem'' and ''to become''. In Tsan, the semantics of these verbs are all conveyed by means of modifying the copula with evidentials, mood markers, applicatives and other constructions. | |||
Typically, what may be percieved as an increase in valency is marked with the copula and an appropriate applicative-like affix. The former subject is always demoted to the object or patient. | Typically, what may be percieved as an increase in valency is marked with the copula and an appropriate applicative-like affix. The former subject is always demoted to the object or patient. | ||