So its like a Pl-Singular system? Its an assumed pluralization. I
like the idea, perhaps in my next language I will use that.
Patrick
At Friday, 29 December 2000, you wrote:
>I've been wondering about numbers, lately, too. My ideas didn't
considered
>nullar; my thoughts were more linked to marked-ness of numbers.
Greenberg
>says that the singular number is the less marked, while the plural,
the dual
>and the paucal are more marked. This happens almost everywhere -
well, to
>tell the truth, in Lombard dialects the singular form of female
nouns in -a
>is the marked one... but this is due to sound change (pR CLESIA > gesa,
>CLESIAS/CLESIAE > gees).
>
>But if, in a language as Chinese, i.e., where there is no sing-pl
>distinction, the numeral 'one' begins to be suffixed to nouns to
mark their
>sing. form we'd have a marked sing. versus an unmarked plur. Here's an
>exemple with a Chinese-like made up numeral (don't remember the
word for
>'one'):
>
>yün = one
>ren = man
>
>renyün = man versus ren = men
>
>What do you think?
>
>Luca
>
>> Thanks a lot, that clears a lot up.
>>
>> I was pondering for my language and had an interesting idea... All
>> the languages which I know use Singular and Plural. What if we used
>> another number, zero. Zero you ask? Right, like none.
>>
>> I have no pencils.
>> no pencils would be the zero number.
>>
>> So this would give me another set of endings for the zero number.
>>
>> A) Has this been done before?
>> B) CAN ANYONE THINK OF A BETTER NAME??? ;]
>>
>> Thanks all
>> Patrick
>>
>> At Wednesday, 27 December 2000, you wrote:
>>
>> >Patrick Jarret wrote:
>> >
>> >> >the locative or in the allative case only the last membre of
>> the phrase
>> >> >inflects, this because these cases come from pospositional
>construction
>> >> >taking the absolutive case:
>> >>
>> >> Pardon my naivete but what is the allative case's purpose? Or the
>> >> absolutive? Is there a good web site covering different cases and
>> >> their purposes? I know Latin ones, Locative, Ablative, Nominative
>> >> etc... but these are unknown to me.
>> >
>> >Well, the allative (lat.: ad-lativus, from the supine of the verb
>> ad-ferre,
>> >'bring to') case's purpose is marking movement toward someone/something.
>>
>> >I'll give you an exemple in Vaiysi:
>> >
>> >yegam talut
>> >go.1s home.all
>> >I go home
>> >
>> >The ablative (lat. ab-lativus, from ab-ferre) denotes movement
*from*
>> >someone/something. Vaiysi lacks ablative; Latin uses it more as an
>> >instrumental case when it isn't used with prepositions. In the
sentence
>> >'otio exultas nimiumque gestis' (Catullus, carmen LI b, line 2)
>> the ablative
>> >has an instrumental function: 'with idleness'; 'because of idleness'
>> can be
>> >another translation which retains a stronger ablative meaning.
In the
>> >sentence 'Varus me meus ad suos amores / visum duxerat e foro
otiosum'
>> >(Catullus, carmen X, lines 1-2) the ablative is used with the
preposition
>> >_e(x)_, and retains its original meaning.
>> >
>> >On to absolutive...
>> >
>> >Languages can have different case systems. Latin uses a system
called
>> >accusative: the subject of a sentence takes the nominative case
and the
>> >object takes the accusative. If the verb doesn't take two arguments
>> (i.e. it
>> >is intransitive), the lone argument it has takes the nominative.
>> >
>> >ego eo
>> >1s.nom go.1s
>> >I go
>> >
>> >ego te amo
>> >1s.nom thou.acc love.1s
>> >I love thee
>> >
>> >Latin verbs always agree with the nominative case (there is always a
>> >nominative in the sentence), so you'll probably find simply 'eo',
>> or 'te
>> >amo'.
>> >
>> >My conlang Vaiysi uses a system called ergative: the subject of an
>> >intransitive verb and the object of a transitive verb take the
absolutive
>> >case. The subject of a transitive verb takes the ergative case.
>> If the verb
>> >takes only one argument, this is in the absolutive case.
>> >
>> >vyea yegam
>> >1s.abs go.1s
>> >I go
>> >
>> >ves loudad et
>> >1s.erg love.2s thou.abs
>> >I love thee
>> >
>> >Vaiysi verbs, otoh, always agree with the absolutive case (there
>> is always
>> >an absolutive in the sentence); this means you'll probably find
simply
>> >'yegam' or 'ves loudad'.
>> >
>> >There are, finally, languages which use active systems. The cases'
>> purposes
>> >are based on semantics: agentive is the case used for agents of
>> normally
>> >volitional verbs (break, push...) when it is the subject of the
>> sentence;
>> >patientive is the case used for objects of an action or a state,
which
>> >suffer its consequences - in other words the object of volitional
>> verbs;
>> >'recipient' case is the case used for subject of perception verbs
>> (hear,
>> >see, smell), non volitional intransitive verbs (sleep) or indirect
>> objects
>> >(dative); 'oblique' is the case used for objects of non volitional
>> verbs.
>> >
>> >If you want to read a list of 30 useful cases, visit this page:
>> >
http://www.valdyas.org/andal/languages/denden/grammar/cases.html>> >explains the cases system of Boudewijn Rempt's Denden.
>> >
>> >> Thanks for the patience
>> >
>> >That's nothing.
>> >
>> >> Patrick
>> >>
>> >
>> >Luca
>> >
>> >>
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