Re: theory

Joerg wrote:

>The reason that Nur-ellen doesn't have a passive construction is not
>that
>"active languages never have a passive construction", but because I
>found out
>that it didn't feel "right".
Well, I was a bit too strong in my statement.  I don't *know* that they never
have passives, but every active language I've looked didn't.  Chickasaw and
Choctaw have lexical passives -- suppletive verbs, one with an active meaning
and one with a passive meaning.  But this is not productive at all.
Basically,
one is a transitive, the other is a stative intransitive.

Daniel, you've looked at more active languages than I have.  Do you know of
any
active langs with passives?







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Marcus Smith
AIM:  Anaakoot
"When you lose a language, it's like
dropping a bomb on a museum."
  -- Kenneth Hale
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