Object Subject Verb

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Object Subject Verb (OSV) is one of the permutations of expression used in Linguistic typology. OSV denotes the sequence "Object Subject Verb" in neutral expressions: Oranges Sam ate. It is a notation used when classifying languages according to the dominant sequence of these constitutents.

This sequence is rare. One example of a language that uses it is Xavante. It is also found in some other languages of Brazil, including Jamamadi, Apurinã, Kayabí and Nadëb. Sardinians very often use OSV while speaking in Italian. Many non-Sardinian speakers in Italy find this "Sardinian Italian Accent" very funny. This structure may on occasion be seen in English, usually in the future tense or with the conjunction "but", such as in the following examples: "To Rome I shall go!", "I hate oranges, but apples I'll eat!"

This word order appears in a number of constructed languages, such as Teonaht, as it is often chosen by language inventors for its exotic sound. The Star Wars character Yoda speaks in a modified form of this word order. This word order is also used in the game Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars by Bowyer.

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Wikipedia:Object Subject Verb

This article is part of a series on Grammar and Syntax. (Click to View) Grammar: Accusative absolute * Animacy Hierarchy * Aspect * Degrees of volition * Dual * Fluid-S * Mood * Nouns * Number * Person * Pro-Drop * Pronouns * Suffixaufnahme * Tense * Word order Syntax: Morphology * Morphological type * Morphosyntactic alignment * Nominative absolute * OSV * OVS * SOV * SVO * VOS * VSO