Re: infix

> Mefistofeles wrote:
>
> Hi.
> I was wondering about the use of infix in languages. Prefix and suffix
> are common in western languages, but I do not understand the use of
> infix. Is it in German when you change a to ä is that an infix or
> could you give me an example of infix being used in a natural
> languages?
The German vowel changes are not infixion, but ablaut, which is very
common in IE langs. English sets like 'sing, sang, sung' (as well as
German ones like 'denken, dachte, gedacht') and other strong verbs are
surviving examples of Proto-IE verbal inflections. Finnish and Hungarian
do quite a bit of infixion to do things like complex verb tenses and
whatnot. I can't give you any specific examples, because my knowledge of
Finno-Ugric langs is sketchy at best. There are some other list members
who can give you real examples. For some really crazy infixion and
agglutination, check out the Inuit langs.

> /David :-P
> _______________________________________
> Mister Order, he runs at very good pace
> But old Mother Chaos is winning the race
> -- Lord Omar Khayaam Ravenhurst, K.S.C.,
> "The Book of Advice," The Honest Book ofTruth
--
Daniel Seriff
microtonal@sericap.com
http://members.tripod.com/microtonal

Si me iterum insanum appelles, oculum alterum tuum edem.
Wenn du mich nochmal verrückt nennst, werde ich deine andere Auge essen.

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