IE Langs with unusual case systems

I was thinking the other day about making a language using IE* roots
and an IE-derived case system.  But I'd like to fiddle with the cases
so that they end up being used for functions other than one would
expect.

That is, I'd like to have some system where somehow the language
ends up using the genitive for the subject of sentences and the
dative for direct objects. Something like

        "My hitting is to you" -> "Hitting my is to you"
        hit.participle 1.s.genitive be.1.s you.dat
        for
        "I hit you".
        Allowing for a language with VSO structure and Nominative
        and genitive cases becoming identical. That sort of thing
        or something similar....

Does anyone know of any real languages that do something similar?
Does anyone have any comments (+ or -) in genereal?


Andy

adchaney@louisiana.edu
http://www.ucs.louisiana.edu/~adc7593/

* Possibly even Germanic, Romance, or etc. derived...

Reply