Re: Inmediateness

-----Mensaje original-----
De: Nik Taylor <fortytwo@...>
Para: Multiple recipients of list CONLANG <CONLANG@...>
Fecha: Domingo 20 de Septiembre de 1998 15:26
Asunto: Re: Inmediateness


>Carlos Thompson wrote:
>
>> Question: how is used in other languages (conlangs and natlangs) tense in
>> orther to mean urgency.
>
>I don't know about _urgency_, but as far as immediacy, Wa^nsansanu (my
>conlang) has an immediate past, l(i)-, and an immediate future qai-.  I
>don't know how to indicate urgency.
>
>Some natlangs have multiple future tenses, for example ChiBemba has the
>following tenses:
>
>Remote Past (before yesterday)
>ba-a`li'-bomb-ele = they worked
>Removed Past (yesterday)
>ba-a`li'i'-bomba = they worked
>Near Past (earlier today)
>ba-a`ci'-bomba = they worked
>Immediate Past (just happened)
>ba-a'-bomba = they worked
>Immediate Future (very soon)
>ba-a'la'a'-bomba = they'll work
>Near Future (later today)
>ba-le'e'-bomba = they'll work
>Removed Future (tomorrow)
>ba-ka`-bomba = they'll work
>Remote Future (after tomorrow)
>ba-ka'-bomba = they'll work
>
>graves and apostrophes indicate graves and acutes on the previous vowel
>(indicating tone)
>
>--
>"God is dead" -- Nietzsche
>"Nietzsche is dead" -- God
>ICQ #: 18656696
>AOL screen-name: NikTailor
>
Well.  The question was about using the incorrect tense (for example present
or past instead of future) meaning desire or urgency.  (maybe the subject
line was not appropiate).  Like:
  I'm out of here.
in English or
  Ya me fui.
in Spanish.

By the way, Both Spanish and English use present for future (present
progresive in English) like
  I'm getting soon out of here.
  Ya casi me voy. ('voy' first person present fo 'ir', go; 'casi'=almost,
here: 'casi'=soon)

But this is another case, because they are recognizable as future using
present tense.

- Carlos