> On Wed, 28 Apr 2004 07:10:22 +0100, Tamas Racsko <tracsko@...>
> wrote:
>
>> The "orginal" past marker was the indefinite _-a/e_ ~ definite
>>_-a'/e'_ (_olvasa_ - he/she read [past], _olvasa'_ - he/she read
>>[past] it), it had the same characteristics as the present-day past
>>tense. [Now extinct]
>
> Where did this "original" past marker derive from?
>
>> Present form + particle _vala_: it's first usage was "possible
>>past", then it was allocated for the translation of the Latin
>>imperfect. [Now extinct]
>
> What does the "vala" particle mean?
>
"was", sorta...
>>> 'olvasva lesz'
>>
>> It's not a tense, it's a verbal construction to express both the
>>perfect tense and the passive voice.
>
> Where did the -va suffix come from? What does "lesz" mean?
-va is present participle. 'Lesz' is 3p sg of 'to be in the future'