Senjecas Inflection

3.0 Part II – INFLECTION - pűlo b - sų̋a

• Senjecas is a combination of both an analytic or isolating language and an inflected language. Inflection is a change in the form of a word which is made to express its relation to other words. It includes the declension of nouns, adjectives, participles, and pronouns, and the conjugation of verbs. In the process of inflection, suffixes are added to a root which conveys the fundamental idea underlying the word.

3.1 Verbs - ką̋tos

• 3.1.1 Verbs are words that convey an action (e.g., bring, read, walk, run, learn) or a state of being (e.g., be, exist, stand). Senjecas is primarily a language of verbs, the verb being considered the most important part of a sentence. A major portion of the Senjecan vocabulary is based on verbal roots.
• 3.1.2 The root of a verb is the verb minus the mood suffix. As this root is never found alone, in the dictionary the indicative form is used, e.g., ɱe̋na. This form is the lemma for verbs.
• 3.1.3 A finite verb is marked only for mood. The verb has four moods: the indicative, the subjunctive, the imperative, and the relative. In the indicative, a statement of fact is made. In the subjunctive, a statement of unreality or uncertainty is made. In the imperative, a command is given. In the relative, a statement dependent on another is made. These moods are called finite moods. The subjunctive and the relative are also called dependent moods. To the root is added <-a> for the indicative mood, <-o> for the subjunctive mood, <-e> for the imperative mood, and <–i> for the relative mood. There is no infinitive.
• 3.1.4 Verbs are not marked for tense. A preverb particle is used to indicate time when necessary. <e-> is used to indicate past time. <u-> is used to indicate future time. They are joined to the verb by a hyphen, e.g. , pe̋ua, seek; e-pe̋ua, sought.
• 3.1.5 The verb has only one voice, the active. In the active voice, the subject is the doer or agent of the action of the verb. A periphrastic middle voice, in which the subject acts upon himself, is formed by using the reflexive adjectival prefix mi- (self) as the direct object of the verb. A periphrastic passive voice, in which the grammatical subject is the recipient of the action of the verb, is formed by using the verb ı̋la (become) with the patient participle. An accusative sentence, e.g., "sheep slaughter easily," is not possible in Senjecas. It must be rendered as the periphrastic passive, "sheep are (become) slaughtered easily".
• 3.1.6 The verb has two aspects, the imperfective and the perfective. The imperfective aspect denotes a verb that expresses its meaning without regard to its beginning or completion. The perfective aspect denotes a completed action. The imperfective aspect is unmarked, being simply the root of the verb, plus the mood suffix. The perfective aspect is indicated by a reduplication of the initial consonant or by a lengthening of the initial vowel. If the initial vowel is already long, nothing further need be done. In the case of labialized and palatalized consonants, the weak vowel is not retained in the reduplication, e.g., ṭǫ̋ra, tÿṭǫ̋ra. The reduplicated syllable is always pronounced on the basal pitch.
• 3.1.7 The weak vowel connecting the reduplicated vowel to the verb is determined by a process known as vowel harmony. Weak i <ï> is used when the vowel of the verb is one of the front vowels: <i, e>, and <a>, e.g., ɱe̋na, ɱïɱe̋na. Weak u <ÿ> is used when the vowel of the verb is one of the back vowels: <o, ɔ>, and <u>, e.g., vűda, vÿvűda.
• 3.1.8 The verbal noun is known as the supine (kąþfę̋to). It is formed by adding -u to the verb root, e.g., tőla, determine; tőlu, (to) determine. It is not to be confused with the deverbative noun, e.g., determination, which is a noun of the -a class, e.g., tőla, determination.
• 3.1.9 Senjecan verbs are divided into two classes:
• Class I verbs are those with an initial consonant, e.g., tőla, determine.

	imperfective	perfective
indicative active	tőla	tÿtőla
subjunctive active	tőlo	tÿtőlo
relative active	tőli	tÿtőli
imperative active	tőle
indicative agent participle	tőlanti	tÿtőlanti
subjunctive agent participle	tőlonti	tÿtőlonti
relative agent participle	tőlinti	tÿtőlinti
indicative patient participle	tőlanti	tÿtőlanti
subjunctive patient participle	tőlonti	tÿtőlonti
relative patient participle	tőlinti	tÿtőlinti

• Class II verbs are those which begin with a vowel, e.g. , űða, own.

	imperfective	perfective
indicative active	űða	ų̋ða
subjunctive active	űðo	ų̋ðo
relative active	űði	ų̋ði
imperative active	űðe
indicative agent participle	űðanti	ų̋ðanti
subjunctive agent participle	űðonti	ų̋ðonti
relative agent participle	űðinti	ų̋ðinti
indicative patient participle	űðaþi	ų̋ðaþi
subjunctive patient participle	űðoþi	ų̋ðoþi
relative patient participle	űðiþi	ų̋ðiþi

3.2 Nouns - fęþɱe̋ros

• 3.2.1 Nouns are words that designate a person, a thing, a place or an abstraction.
• 3.2.2 Nouns and adjectives have but one root, which is the word minus the declensional ending, e.g., cı̋n-o, cradle. This root plus the nominative singular declensional ending is the lemma for nouns.
• 3.2.3 There are two numbers, singular and plural. The singular denotes a single item. The plural denotes more than one item.
• 3.2.4 There are four cases, nominative, stative, motive, and vocative.
• 3.2.5 There are six classes of nouns, one for each of the vowels.
• 3.2.6 The -i class contains animate nouns that name plants, and nouns in -t̬i, which are, for the most part, vegetable in origin, e.g., a̋spi, aspen.
• 3.2.7 The –e class contains animate nouns that name animals, e.g., ca̋se, hare.
• 3.2.8 The –a class contains inanimate abstract nouns, e.g., vűga, flight.
• 3.2.9 The –o class contains inanimate concrete nouns, e.g., ta̋ino, stone.
• 3.2.10 The –ɔ class contains animate nouns that name aberrant creatures, e.g., k̬e̋rɔ, afreet.
• 3.2.11 The –u class contains animate nouns that name loquent beings, e.g., a̋npu, mother-in-law.

	-i	-e	-a	-ɔ	-o	-u
Nom. sg.	a̋spi	ca̋se	vűga	k̬e̋rɔ	ta̋ino	a̋npu
Nom. pl.	a̋spis	ca̋ses		k̬e̋rɔs	ta̋inos	a̋npus
Sta. sg.	aspı̋s	case̋s	vuga̋s	k̬erɔ̋s	tainős	anpűs
Sta. pl.	aspı̋m	casem		k̬erɔ̋m	tainőm	anpűm
Mot. sg.	a̋spim	ca̋sem	vűgam	k̬e̋rɔm	ta̋inom	a̋npum
Mot. pl.	a̋spin	ca̋sen		k̬e̋rɔn	ta̋inon	a̋npun
Voc. sg.	aspı̋	case̋	vuga̋	k̬erɔ̋	tainő	anpű
Voc. pl.	aspı̋s	case̋s		k̬erɔ̋s	tainős	anpűs

• 3.2.12 mą̋ma, mother, and tą̋ta, father, and their compounds, are declined like regular <-a> nouns.

3.3 Adjectives - fęþgansa̋ɱos

• 3.3.1 Adjectives are words that in some way qualify nouns and pronouns. They occur in two broad categories, determinate and indeterminate.
• 3.3.2 Determinate adjectives are those which single out the noun qualified, rather than describe it. In Senjecas the determinate adjectives include the interrogative adjectives and the cardinal numerals.
• 3.3.3 There is no definite article.
• 3.3.4 There is no indefinite article.
• 3.3.5 The place of the demonstrative adjectives is taken by pre-adjectival particles, <i-> for “this”, <e-> for “that”, and <o-> for “yon”. When used as adjectives, si means “the latter” and ni, “the former”. They are also used as the demonstrative pronouns.
• 3.3.6 The demonstrative particle may be emphasized by following the noun with the emphatic particle ce: e-ta̋ino, that stone; e-ta̋ino-ce, that stone right there; o–se̋ro, yon table; o–se̋ro-ce, yon table way over there.
• 3.3.7 The interrogative adjectives are xi, which, and xőti, how-, -much, -many.
• 3.3.8 Non-determinate adjectives are those which describe a noun or pronoun. When used attributively they agree with the nouns they qualify in class only, e.g. ,

gőbu	ɱı̋r-u
handsome	man-NOM.SG

gőbu	ɱir-űs	o
handsome	man-STA.SG	for

• When used in the predicate they agree in class, case and number, e.g.,

i-ɱı̋r-us	gőb-us	vų̋-a
this-man-NOM.SG	handsome-NOM.SG	be-IND

o-ǧą̋r-os	ǫ̋n-os	e̋s-a
yon-mountain-NOM.PL	high-NOM.PL	be-IND

• 3.3.9 Participles are non-determinate adjectives. There is a participle for each time, aspect and mood of the verb. v. 3.1.9.
• 3.3.10 The agent participles are formed by suffixing <-nt-> to the modal root of the verb, e.g., ɱe̋na, love, ɱe̋nanti, loving. The primary accent remains on the root vowel.
• 3.3.11 The patient participles are formed by suffixing <-þ-> to the modal root of the verb, e.g. , ɱe̋na, love, ɱe̋naþi, loved. The primary accent remains on the root vowel.
• 3.3.12 A characteristic of non-determinate adjectives (and adverbs) is that they can be compared.
• 3.3.13 There is only one degree of comparison which is used for both the comparative and the superlative. The comparative degree is formed by reduplicating the first consonant of the word. This is then linked to the word by vowel harmony. If the root vowel is a front vowel (<i>, <e>, <a>), then the linking vowel is <ï>. If the root vowel is a back vowel (<ɔ>, <o>, <u>), then the linking vowel is <ÿ>.
• If the first letter of the word is a vowel, then the first syllable is reduplicated and the root vowel is lengthened: a̋sti, cunning; asą̋sti, more/most cunning. If the initial root vowel is long, the vowel of the reduplicated syllable is shortened: ę̋di, silly; edę̋di, sillier/silliest.
• There are no suppletive forms as in English, e.g., "good/better".
• 3.3.14 The noun or pronoun of comparison is in the stative case followed by the postposition sóma, in comparison to. Because the stative singular ends in –s, the –s is elided in front of the postposition.

The father is wiser than the son.

tą̋ta sųnű’ sóma sïsą̋cu e̋sa:

tą̋t-a	sųn-ű-’	sóma	sï~są̋c-u	e̋s-a
father-NOM.SG	son-STA.SG-ELIS	than	REDUP-wise-NOM.SG	be-IND

• 3.3.15 Adjectives form the equative degree (as...as) by adding the suffix -sta̋li to the class root of the adjective. The noun or pronoun of comparison is in the stative case followed by the postposition sóma, in comparison to.

This butterfly is as blue as that one.

i-pąpe̋le móðresta̋le né’ sóma e̋sa:

i=pąpe̋l-e	kǫ́xe-sta̋l-e	n-é-’	sóma	e̋s-a
this-butterfly-NOM.SG	blue-EQUA-NOM.SG	3-STA.SG-ELIS	than	be-IND

• 3.3.16 When a noun is modified attributively by an equative adjective, a compound adjective is formed.

He is as strong as a bear.

nu verɱa̋lu vűa:

n-u	ver-ɱa̋l-u	vű-a
3-NOM.SG	bear-strong-NOM.SG	be-IND

• 3.3.17 Negative comparative adjectives are formed by modifying the adjective with the adverb lísu, less. The noun or pronoun of comparison is in the stative case followed by the postposition sóma, in comparison to.

This river is less swift than that one.

i-dą̋e lísu őce né’ sóma e̋sa:

i=dą̋-e	lís-’	őc-e	n-é-‘	sóma	e̋s-a
this-river-NOM.SG	less-ELIS	swift-NOM.SG	3-STA.SG-ELIS	than	be-IND

• 3.3.18 Negative equative adjectives are formed by using the negative adverb ne to negate the verb. The noun or pronoun of comparison is in the stative case followed by the postposition sóma, in comparison to.

This river is not so swift as that one.

i-dą̋e lís’ ǫ̋ce né’ sóma e̋sa ne:

i=dą̋-e	lís-’	őc-e	n-é-’	sóma	e̋s-a	ne
this-river-NOM.SG	less-ELIS	swift-NOM.SG	3-STA.SG-ELIS	than	be-IND	not

3.4 Numerals - lűkos

• 3.4.1 The Sefdaanian numerical system uses base 12. A table of these numbers may be found in the appendix.
• 3.4.2 However, the numerical system has been adapted for use with base 10, although there are individual numbers for the numbers 1-20. The table at 3.4.16 gives the names for all the numbers.
• 3.4.3 The cardinal numerals for 100 and above are nouns. They are plural in form when used in compound numerals.
• 3.4.4 The numbers for the decades are formed by multiplying 20, ẋűr, as needed, and adding 10, fǫ̋n, as needed, e.g., tı̋r ẋur, 60; tir ẋűr fǫn, 70.
• 3.4.5 In a similar way, the hundreds after 100 are formed by placing the required cardinal before sa̋tos, e.g., tir sa̋tos, 300; bun sa̋tos, 800.
• 3.4.6 in a similar way, the thousands after 1,000 are formed by placing the required cardinal before ṭűmos, e.g., tir ṭűmos, 3,000; sef ṭűmos, 7,000.
• 3.4.7 This process is continued with the numeric nouns beyond 1,000, e.g., run űl̬os, six trillion.
• 3.4.8 The cardinal numerals are formed by juxtaposing the numbers.
  • 22, ẋűr d̬o
  • 49, d̬o ẋűr num
  • 458, nál sat d̬ó ẋur fǫ̋n bin
  • 7,628, séf ṭum rún sat ẋűr bin
• 3.4.9 A discrete number is treated as a compound noun with respect to intonation. E.g., in the number 458 given above, note that the primary accent is on the penultimate syllable, i.e., fǫ̋n. A secondary accent is place on the alternate syllables, counting backwards. (v. 2.6.8)
• 3.4.10 When counting, only the stem, not the noun form, is used for 100, etc.

There are four hundred cows.

ɱake̋m na̋l sa̋tes vų̋la:

ɱak-e̋m	na̋l	sa̋t-es	vų̋l-a
cow-STA.PL	four	hundred-NOM.PL	there.be-IND

• But,

There are four hundred one cows.

nal sa̋t sem ɱa̋kes vų̋la

nal	sa̋t	sem	ɱak-e̋m	vų̋l-a
four	hundred	one	cow-STA.PL	there.be-IND

• 3.4.11 The ordinal numerals beyond twentieth are formed by juxtaposing the required ordinals, the smaller placed last, and the last element of the number taking the ordinal ending, e.g., ẋűrti, twentieth; se̋mti, first; ẋur se̋mti, twenty-first.
• 3.4.12 The adverbial numbers expressing “how many times” are formed by adding the suffix –s to the cardinal number, e.g., d̬ő, two; d̬ós, twice. Note the accent change from primary to secondary, since the adjective has become an adverb.
• 3.4.13 Multiplicative numbers expressing “how many times as many” are formed by adding the suffix -k̬őti to the cardinal number, e.g., d̬ok̬őti, twice as many. What is being compared is in the stative case with the postposition sóma.

He has twice as many horse as me.

nu mú’ sóma d̬ok̬őte mőren űða:

n-u	m-ú-’	sóma	d̬o-k̬őt-e	mőr-en	űð-a
3-NOM.SG	1-STA.SG-ELIS	than	two-as.many-MOT.SG	horse-MOT.SG	possess-IND

• 3.4.14 Distributive numbers expressing “at a time” are formed by suffixing -úru to the required number.

The men crossed the bridge two at a time.

ɱı̋rus d̬oúru þőlom e-ta̋ra:

ɱı̋r-us	d̬o-úru	þől-om	e=ta̋r-a
man-NOM.PL	two-at.a.time	bridge-MOT.SG	PST=cross-IND

• 3.4.15 Distributive numbers expressing “each” are formed by adding the adjective nı̨̋gi, each, to the cardinal number.

We split into groups of three each.

ɱus tirnı̨̋go le̋ƶon éna e-pűla:

ɱ-us	tir-nı̨̋go	le̋ƶ-on	éna	e=pűl-a
1-NOM.PL	three-each	group-MOT.PL	into	PST=split-IND

• 3..4.16 As with the ordinals, the compound numbers are repeated with the proper ending suffixed to the last element, e.g., ẋúr d̬os, twenty-two times; ẋur fón tirpe̋li, thirty-three-fold; d̬o ẋúr penk̬őti, forty-five times as many; d̬ó ẋur fǫ́n numúru, fifty-nine at a time.
• 3.4.17 Table of numerals.

#	cardinal	ordinal	multiple	adverbial	collective	fraction	distributive
1	se̋m	se̋mti	sempe̋li	séms	se̋mȝo	-	se̋mësni
2	d̬ő	d̬őti	d̬ope̋li	d̬ós	d̬őȝo	d̬one̋mo	d̬ősni
3	tı̋r	tı̋rti	tirpe̋li	tírs	tı̋rȝo	tirne̋mo	tı̋rësni
4	ną̋l	ną̋lti	nąlpe̋li	ną́ls	ną̋lȝo	nąlne̋mo	ną̋lësni
5	pe̋n	pe̋nti	penpe̋li	péns	pe̋nȝo	pene̋mo	pe̋nësni

3.5 Pronouns - ðę́fęþsa̋ɱos

• 3.5.1 Pronouns are words that can be substituted for nouns. The following types of pronouns may be found in Senjecas: personal, intensive, reciprocal, demonstrative, interrogative, indefinite, and reflexive.
• 3.5.2 The personal pronouns are mu, I; tu, you; ɱus, we; and ȝus, you. The third person pronouns are su (proximal), nu (medial), and þu (distal), he, she, and it; and sus, nus, and þus, they. These pronouns are put into the appropriate class and case of the noun for which they are substituting, e.g., ną̋ȝe, ne, [the] dog, it; ı̨̋ɱi, ni, [the] yew tree, it; ta̋ino, no, [the] rock, it. If a human is talking about himself, he says mu. If a satyr is talking about himself, he says mɔ.

	1st singular	1st plural	2nd singular	2nd plural
Nominative	mu	ɱus	tu	ȝus
Stative	mús	ɱúm	tús	ȝúm
Motive	mum	ɱun	tum	ȝun
Vocative	-	-	tú	ȝú

	3rd singular proximal	3rd plural proximal	3rd singular medial	3rd plural medial	4th singular distal	4th plural distal
Nominative	su	sus	nu	nus	þu	þus
Stative	sús	súm	nús	núm	þús	þúm
Motive	sum	sun	num	nun	þum	þun

• 3.5.3 There is no implication of gender in the third person pronouns. To specify the gender, the gender-marking prefixes must be used, urnu, he; įnu, she. These are enclitics and the tone remains on the pronoun.
• 3.5.4 The third singular medial pronoun nu is used in ordinary discourse to translate he, she, or it. The third singular proximal pronoun is used only in statements of direct address to a sovereign.

Is his Majesty ready to eat?

su mı̨̋ðtu e̋du fa̋ru vűame:

s-u	mı̨̋ðt-u	e̋d-u	fa̋r-u	vű-a-me
this-NOM.SG	Majesty-NOM.SG	eat-SUP	ready-NOM.SG	be-IND-Q

• 3.5.5 The intensive pronoun is formed by suffixing -va, to the personal pronouns, e.g., mu e-a̋ta, I went; muva u-a̋ta, I myself will go. -va is an enclitic and the tone remains on the pronoun: ɱúmva o, to us ourselves.
• 3.5.6 The reciprocal pronoun is formed by prefixing f̣u-, other, to the personal pronouns which are then declined in the usual way (v. 3.5.2).

They love each other.

nus f̣únun ɱe̋na:

n-us	f̣ú-n-un	e=ɱe̋n-a
3-NOM.PL	other-3-MOT.PL	PST=see-IND

• 3.5.7 The demonstrative pronouns are si, this, referring to what is near in place, time or thought; ni, that, referring to what is more remote; and ólni, that over there, referring to what is even more remote. They are declined in the same way as the personal pronouns (v. 3.5.2).
• 3.5.8 The unemphatic demonstrative, which is often used in English as the antecedent of a relative, is not expressed in Senjecas. Instead a participle is used.

I saw those who are going.

mu a-a̋tantun e-na̋ka:

m-u	a-a̋t-ant-un	e=na̋k-a
1-NOM.SG	that=go-IND.ACT.PTCP-MOT.PL	PST=see-IND

I saw those who had gone.

mu a-ą̋tantun e-na̋ka:

m-u	a=a̋~a̋t-a-nt-un	e=na̋k-a
1-NOM.SG	that=PRF~go-IND-ACT.PTCP-MOT.PL	PST=see-IND

• 3.5.9 The interrogative pronoun is xu. It is declined in the same way as the personal pronouns (3.5.2).

Who is calling/paying a call?

xu nı̋ma:

x-u	nı̋m-a
who-NOM.SG	pay a call-IND

Whom have you chosen?

tu xum ǫ̋pa:

t-u	x-um	e=ǫ̋p-a
2-NOM.SG	who-MOT.SG	PST=wound-IND

• 3.5.10 There is also a dual interrogative pronoun xutéru, who/which of two. It is declined in the same way as the personal pronouns (v. 3.5.2).
• 3.5.11 The indefinite pronouns are tı̨̋ðu, someone, and tı̨̋ðo, something. The negative indefinite pronouns are netı̨̋ðu, no one, nobody, and netı̨̋ðo, nothing. It is declined in the same way as the personal pronouns (v. 3.5.2).
• 3.5.12 The reflexive pronoun is formed by prefixing the proclitic mi- to the required personal pronoun.

He wounded himself.

nu minum e-ɱą̋a:

n-u	mi=n-um	e=ɱą̋-a
3-NOM.SG	self=3-MOT.SG	PST=wound-IND

I gave myself a black eye.

mu mimús o kisı̨̋rom e-dǫ̋a:

m-u	mi=m-ús	o	kis-ı̨̋r-om	e=dǫ̋-a
1-NOM.SG	self=1-STA.SG	to	bruise-eye-MOT.SG	PST=give-IND

3.6 Adverbs - ką́þgansa̋ɱos

• 3.6.1. Adverbs stand in the same relationship to verbs (and adjectives) as adjectives do to nouns, i.e., in some way they qualify the verb (or adjective).
• 3.6.2. Certain words are, of their nature, adverbs, e.g., íðu, here. Adverbs of this type end in -u.
• 3.6.3 Any non-determinate adjective may be used as an adverb. When used in this way, the enclitic -(ë)vi is added to the root of the adjective. The primary accent of the adjective is reduced to a secondary accent on the adverb.

These brave men fought.

ze̋gu i-ɱı̋rus e-ca̋ta:

ze̋gu	i=ɱı̋r-us	e=ca̋t-a
brave	this=man-NOM.PL	PST=fight-IND

These men fought bravely.

i-ɱĩrus zéᵹvi e-cãta:

i=ɱı̋r-us	zéᵹ=vi	e=ca̋t-a
this=man-NOM.PL	brave=ADV	PST=fight-IND

• 3.6.4 Adverbial numerals are formed by suffixing –s, to the ordinal number, e.g., se̋m, one; séms, once; sa̋to, hundred; sáþs, a hundred times.
• 3.6.5 Adverbs of nominal location are formed by adding the proper suffix to the root of the noun, common or proper, e.g., nőmo, home; nómþi, at home; nómþis, from home; nómþim, (to) home.
• 3.6.6 Adverbs form their comparatives and superlatives by duplicating the initial consonant of the adverb. Those which begin with a vowel lengthen the vowel.

These men fought more bravely than those.

i-ɱı̋rus núm sóma zïzéᵹvi e-ca̋ta:

i=ɱı̋r-us	this=man-NOM.PL
n-úm	3-STA.PL
sóma	than
zï~zéᵹ=vi	CMP~brave=ADV
e=ca̋t-a	PST=fight-ADV