Qatama grammar

This article is one of many about Qatama

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Intro

Qatama grammar is relatively straightforward.

Qatama
Alternative Names	Qatam / Q`tam
Author	Qang
Type	personal language
Year began	~1998
Demographics
Population	~80 million
Spoken in	The Qatama Empire
Genetic Classification	Humanoid
Grammar
Most Common Word-Order	OVS
Morphological Typology	Isolating
Morpho-syntactic Alignment	Nom-Acc

• There are no verb conjugations; plurals are marked by a particle, articles that can be disregarded in speech, and only three genders.
• The language lacks conjugation, declension, or any inflection at all (there are minor exceptions).
• Concepts like plural or past tense are expressed in a syntactical way.
• Due to the nature of Qatama, most words are not limited to one word class, but can in fact work as verbs, nouns or adjectives. In fact, quite a number of them even can work as adpositions or linked verbs (whatever we wish to analyze them as - the usual difference being that linked verbs can occur as postpositions).
• There are no visible morphological signs that would give away what function a specific word has in a sentence - syntax and intonation convey this information.

Phonology

• Vowels

a = /a/ o = /o/ u = /u/ ` = /?/ Between vowels and [@] between consonants

• Plosives

t = /t/ d = /d/ k = /k/ g = /g/ q = /q/ (or [X] as a final)

• Affricates

j = [tS] or [dZ] or /Z/ (These variations are dialectal, /Z/ being most common)

• Nasals

m = /m/ n = /n/ ng = /N/

• Trills

r = /r/ or the Approximant [r\]

• Fricatives

h = /h/ tl = /t_K/

• Approximants

l = /l/ y = /j/ and u = [w] before /a/

Phonotactics

Qatama phonotactics are very easy because all of the words are formed by predictable syllables.

• Only an o syllable can precede another o syllable, so where omoq is correct, amoq would be incorrect.
• Note that o can not immediately precede an l, so where mal and mul are correct, mol is not.

Dialects

The most recognizable dialect is Tam`q.

Described by Qatama scholar Nor

Syntax

Word order

Unlike English, word order in Qatama is object-verb-subject.

• object -- verb -- subject

tamu kojra al mung

"[the] house love the woman" = The woman loves the house.

• Questions are formed by adding the interrogative particle qa to the end of declarative statements.
  • object -- verb -- subject -- qa

tamu kojra al mung qa

"[the] house love the woman INT-PART" = Does the woman loves the house?

• particles -- noun -- adjectives

al tamu taha

"the house big" = The big house.

• adverbs -- auxiliaries -- verb

noj muna kuj gun ta

"with care must walk I" = I must walk carefully.

Dependent Clauses

• Dependent clauses are handled by placing the particle ruq before the clause and ra after.

• I met a man and a woman yesterday. The woman, who had a thick black hair, was very pretty.
  • kang ma mung ngumaq ko`oga ta | al mung ruq unuq ohada ma oga kura na ra ung t`ha aya
    • man and woman yesterday to-meet 1SG | ART woman general-clause-particle-initial hair thick and black to-have 3SG general-clause-particle-final PAST very pretty/beautiful

• I met two women yesterday, one with thick black hair and one with soft brown hair. The woman who had a thick black hair was very pretty.
  • mung to ngumaq ko`oga ta ruq noj unuq ohada ma oga ong ma noj unuq ayuha ma myoga ong ra | al mung ruq unuq ohada ma oga kura na ra ung t`ha aya
    • woman two yesterday to-meet 1SG general-clause-particle-initial with hair thick and black one an with hair soft and brown one general-clause-particle-final | ART woman general-clause-particle-initial hair thick and black to-have 3SG general-clause-particle-final PAST very pretty/beautiful

Plurals

• The particle uj is placed in front of nouns to mark plurality.
• When uj is present there is no other particle/article used.
• Adjectives are not pluralized.

• kama -- village | al kama -- the village | uj kama -- the villages

Demonstratives

• Qatama demonstratives do change depending on number, but not gender.

As pronouns

• • this -- kun
    • I like this. -- kun koj ta
  • that -- nuq
    • Is that yours? -- nuq m`ga qa
  • these -- qunju
    • Where are these from? -- moq qunju aj qa
  • those -- nuja
    • My father gave me those. -- nuja naj ta ung kura kangha m`ta
  • that which -- nuda
    • I have what he wanted. -- ung nung nada nuda kura ta
  • those which -- nujada
    • She will give you what [those things] you want. -- nujada nung ga uq gaya na

As subordinators

He hopes you proceed with the speech

muaha ga noj al mutara kanuj nada

He hopes that you proceed with the speech

muaha ga nuq noj al mutara kanuj nada

Adjectives

Adjective always follow the word they modify in Qatama.

• al tamu taha -- The big house.

Articles

Qatama makes use of several articles that could be analyzed as particles.

• al - This is used as both definite and indefinite, but could also be thought of as particle that marks words as nouns.

m`ja -- n. blood, v. to bleed | m`ja ongo ta = I see bleeding | al m`ja ongo ta = I see (the) blood.

• o - This is an honorific article used to show respect for the concept or topic being referred to.

al kang -- The man. | o kang The (honorable/respected) man.

• oyo - This is a diminutive article used to show a lack of importance, disdain or malice toward the concept or topic being referred to, often accompanied by profanity or vulgarity.

oyo tamu q`na -- The[that] shitty shack.

• um - This is an emphatic article is used to show immediacy or importance of the concept or topic being referred to. It is often used in imperatives.

goku al tamu -- The house burns./The house is burning. | goku um tamu -- The house is burning!

kya mada naj um kama -- Come (back) to the village!

Questions

• Questions are asked using the interrogatory particle qa, always placed at the end of a phrase.
• Qatama does not ask questions the same way as English.
• The syntax of a question is exactly the same as a declarative statement.
• There are no interrogatives such as who, what, or when in Qatama.
• Questions are asked by placing the desired result as the object and placing qa at the end of what would normally be a statement.

• tamu kojra al mung | "[the] house love the woman" = The woman loves the house.

tamu kojra al mung qa | "[the] house love the woman [interrogative]" = Does the woman loves the house?

uj kuja aj Qatama

Tense

There are five basic tenses in Qatama. The tense particle is always placed immediately before the verb it modifies.

• Negative Past

ungla - al tajala ungla gaq taka - We did not eat the sauce.

• Past

ung - al tamu ung qal nara - They built the home.

• Simple Present

The simple present tense isn't marked. naj al daq gun nada - He is walking toward the mountain.

• Negative Future

uqla - ga uqla ongo naya - She will not see you.

• Future

uq - m`ta uq muq na - It will be mine.

The tense need not be marked if it is clearly indicated by another word in the same phrase: kumaq kuda na, He cooks(prepare food) (will cook) tomorrow.

Pronouns

Qatama pronouns (uj uta) are fairly straightforward.

• Note that the polite form of the 2nd person is used in both singular and plural.
• The 3PLM and 3PLF do not have possessive forms.
• It is important to use the correct form of the 1PL, inclusive and exclusive.
• The reflexive of any pronoun is formed by placing ayu after it.

I built it myself. -- na ung qal ta ayu | Will you prepare it yourself? -- na uq udaq gahan ayu qa

Imperatives

There are four distinct imperatives in Qatama.

• kya -- general imperative, always placed in front of the verb phrase

kya naj tamu m`ga mua -- Go to your home!

kya muta -- Speak [to me]!

• gya -- used specifically for the demand of an item, i.e. to give

gya al ujla -- Give the knife [up / to me]!

• kyo -- used specifically to demand silence

kyo -- Quiet!

kyo muq -- Stand quietly!

• kyala -- general negative imperative, always placed in front of the verb phrase

kyala naj ta muta -- Do not talk to me!

• Where kyo or gya are used kya is not.

Semantic Morphology

• Semantic Morphology is not as prevalent in Qatama as it is in other languages, but there is a semi-constant them that runs throughout a portion of the lexicon.
• What is important to remember is that not every time you see one of these particular syllables does it change the word in a consistent, predictable way.

-ha

• Appended to;

• m - often indicates the augmentative

• n - often used to create an obscure relation

• ng - often indicates the augmentative

• l - often used to create a related lexical entry

• r - often used to create a related lexical entry

-la

• Appended to;

• q - often indicates negation or opposition

• m - often used to create an obscure relation

• ng - often indicates negation or opposition

• j - often used to create a related lexical entry

-ra

• Appended to;

• q - often indicates a close semantic relation

• m - often used to create an obscure relation

• ng - often indicates an extreme relation to the base root

• j - often used to create a related lexical entry