Re: Re : Mandatory possession

On Thu, 7 Oct 1999, From Http://Members.Aol.Com/Lassailly/Tunuframe.Html wrote:

> ku- is 1st. pers. for so-called "intransitive" verbs
> while a- is 1st. pers. for "transitive" verbs.
>
> now something funny :
>
> a-maci = "my wife".
> ku-nupe = "my brother".
>
> i guess it means ku- is used as possessive with intransitive verb
> and a- with transitive verbs, but Shibatani does not explain that
> - does he ? anybody with his "Languages of Japan" ?
>
Why, yes, I try to obtain all Cambridge Language Surveys (and, dash
it, they tend to get out of print rather quickly, or are published
only in hardback - they told me vol. II of Holm, Pidgins and Creoles,
which I ordered in August, was to be reprinted in September, and I still
haven't got it!).

I think the relevant pages are 25 and 28, and if I think it would be
best just to reproduce the tables, since I'm not entirely sure how to
interpret them:

p. 25.

3.1 Classical Ainu intransitive subject marking
     s     p
1    -an   -an
2    e-    eci-
3    0     0

3.2 Classical Ainu transitive subject marking

    s      p
1   a-     a-
2   e-     eci-
3   0      0

p. 28.

3.4 Colloquial Ainu intransitive subject marking

   s       p
1  ku-     -as (excl)
           -an (incl)
2  e-      eci- (es-) (sic!)
3  0       0


3.5 Colloquial Ainu transitive subject marking

   s       p
1  ku-     ci- (excl)
           a- (an-) (incl)
2  e-      eci- (-es)  <---- sic! this suffix is strange. Typo? Compare above!
3  0       0

3.6 Colloquial Ainu object marking

   s       p
1  en-     uni (excl) <---- Strange too! isn't this an affix?
           i-  (incl)
2  e-      eci- (es-)
3  0       0

(Forms in parentheses are exclusive to the Ishikari dialect)


Boudewijn Rempt  | http://denden.conlang.org/~bsarempt