Siye Nominal Morphology

Cases

Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Nominative	1, 1a	-0
Absolutive	1, 1b	-0
Accusative	2	-a, -ha, -0	from Tide -ŋa
Ergative	3	-ya, -na	from Tide -ɲa, Thide -sa
Vocative	20	-hi, -0	alleged from restored Tide -ŋi (the lost Case 4.); actually an adoption of Rural Ye -i from Early Siye Equative -pu
Genitive	4	-ne, (etym.) -e	from Tide -ŋë, Thide -kë
Possessive	5	-me	possibly from Tide definite pronoun /me/, Thide /me/
Ablative	6	-sum	from Tide -suŋ
Locative	7	-kem	from Tide -këŋ
Allative-Dative	8	-su	from Tide -su
Dative-Benefactive	9	-tu	from Tide -tu
Instrumental	10	-ki	from Thide -gi
Comitative	13	-ni	from Tide -ŋë, Thide -kë
Adverbial	11	-ku	from Tide -ku, Thide -ku
Equative	12	-pu	from Tide -bu
Animate Instrumental	14	-neki	from Siye -ne + eki, instrumental postposition from instrumental case of inanimate pronoun 'e'
Elative	15	-nemsum	from Siye -ne + emsum, analogical ablative of emtu 'inner' from emtu 'innards'
Inessive	16	-nemkim	from Siye -ne + emkim, analogical locative of emtu 'inner' from emtu 'innards'
Illative	17	-nemtu	from Siye -ne + emtu, locative postposition 'inner' from emtu "innards"
Abessive	18	-neto	from Siye -ne + to "without", from Thide tʰo "absence"
Causal	19	-neya	from -ne + eya, analogical causal of clause-final causal -ya

Core Cases

Core Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Nominative	1, 1a	-0	subject of intransitive verb
			subject of transitive verb
			subject of ditransitive verb
			direct address (pre-2229)
Absolutive	1, 1b	-0	subject of intransitive verb
			direct object of transitive verb
			direct object of ditransitive verb
			direct address (pre-2229)
			direct object of causee in ditransitive causative perfective verb
			indirect object of recipient in ditransitive causative imperfective verb
Accusative	2	-a, -ha, -0	direct object of transitive verb
			direct object of causee in ditransitive causative perfective verb
			indirect object of recipient in ditransitive causative imperfective verb
Ergative	3	-ya, -na	subject of transitive verb
			subject of ditransitive verb
Vocative	20	-hi, -0	direct address (post-2229)

1a. NOMINATIVE (NOM): -0 NOM: Pronouns, Personal Names

The Nominative Case in Standard Siye is used for the subject of an intransitive clause and the subject of a transitive clause, provided that the noun is either a pronoun or a personal name. Where a particular Siye dialect draws the line between Nominative/Accusative and Absolutive/Ergative, in other words, where the split of the split-ergative occurs, is the primary isogloss between Siye dialects.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
mu	Mu	someone, something

1b. ABSOLUTIVE (ABS): -0 ABS: Everything Except Pronouns and Personal Names

The Absolutive Case is used for the subject of an intransitive clause and the object of a transitive clause, provided that the noun is neither a pronoun nor a personal name. Many Scholars believe that the existence of zero-marked surface forms for both Absolutive and Accusative Cases is the cause of the 'slippery slope' of confusion over which core cases to use.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
oya	O.ya	eagle

2. ACCUSATIVE (ACC): -a, -0, -ha ACC: Pronouns, Personal Names

The Accusative Case is used for the object of a transitive clause, provided that the noun is either a pronoun or personal name. -ha occurs after syllables containing a nasal vowel. The Accusative Case is vulnerable to vowel dominance, and therefore has a -0 surface form identical to the Nominative and Absolutive.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
Kumayamha	Ku.ma.yam.a	Chief(ACC)
Kutu	Ku.tu(a)	Chief (NOM/ACC) (archaic)

3. ERGATIVE (ERG): -ya, -na

The Ergative Case is used for the subject of a transitive clause, provided that the noun is neither a pronoun nor a personal name. -na follows a syllable containing a nasal consonant or a nasal vowel; -ya follows otherwise. This is a remnant of the period in which the Siye-speakers were a conquered people under the rule of a tribe that spoke a different but related dialect.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
kumayamna	Ku.ma.yam.na	the chief
kutuya	Ku.tu.ya	the chief (archaic)

Cases authorized 2229

20. VOCATIVE (VOC): -hi, -0

The Vocative Case is used for direct address. -hi follows a nasal syllable, while -0 follows an oral syllable. In Early Siye, Vocative was the fourth case. In the transition from Early Siye to Modern Siye, the Vocative Case was lost via vowel dominance after oral syllables and by analogy after nasal syllables. From then to 2229, the vocative usage was covered by Nominative and Absolutive Cases. The post-2229 use is allegedly a restoration of the case, but in truth is an adoption of the Rural Ye Vocative Case -i derived from the Siye Equative Case -pu, via [i] < [y] < [hy] < [ɸy] < [ɸu]

Example	Transliteration	Translation
kutumhi	Ku.tum.i	o priest!
leyake	Le.ya.ke(i)	o boy!

Peripheral Cases

Genitive Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Genitive	4	-ne, (etym.) -e	alienable possession
			accidental characteristic
			origin
			postpositional case
			postpositional animate direct object (with 'eki') of ditransitive causative imperfective verb
			postpositional animate instrument (with 'eki')
Possessive	5	-me	inalienable possession
			essential characteristic
			origin
			postpositional case
			postpositional animate instrument (with 'eki')

4. GENITIVE (GEN): -ne

The Genitive Case is used to describe alienable possession or an accidental characteristic of a object. There is an archaic form -e, which is found in place names such as Luse and is the origin of the adjectival ending -(h)e and the "daughter" (e).

Example	Transliteration	Translation
siline	si.li.ne	of the house
silisone	si.li.so.ne	of the two houses
pene summe	Pe.ne sum.me	because of you

5. POSSESSIVE (POSS): -me

The Possessive Case is used to describe inalienable possession or an essential characteristic of an object. until recently the Possessive Case, unlike the other Cases, preceded rather than followed the grammatical number suffix. The reason for this anomaly is not clear, and many a scholar of the Guild has written his first professional linguistic essay on this topic. With the development and authorization of the post-2192 cases, however, the inverse possessive has developed a derivational rather than syntactic role, and the order has normalized to match the other cases.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
silime	si.li.me	of the house
silisome	si.li.me	of the two houses (post-2192)
silimeso	si.li.me.so	of the two houses (pre-2192)

Locative Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Ablative	6	-sum	motion away from
			motion out of (pre-2192)
			origin of a person
			reason (pre-2217)
Locative	7	-kem	location
			inside (pre-2192)
			transferred object
			price of transferred object
			postpositional case
Allative-Dative	8	-su	towards
			into (pre-2192)
			inanimate indirect object of transitive clause
			inanimate indirect object of ditransitive causative perfective verb
Dative-Benefactive	9	-tu	benefactive
			animate or intimate possession
			animate indirect object of transitive clause
			animate indirect object of ditransitive causative perfective verb

6. ABLATIVE (ABL): -sum

The Ablative Case is used to describe motion away from a point or (pre-2192) origin from a particular location. It is also used to describe the origin of a person (although the Genitive and Possessive are also used for this) or (pre-2217) reason of a condition. It is not used for origin from a person. The authorization in 2192 of the Elative Case 15. -nesum has narrowed the domain of the Ablative, as has the authorization in 2217 of the Causative Case -neya.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
sakikemhusum	sa.ki.kem.sum	away from the river

7. LOCATIVE (LOC): -kem

The Locative Case is used to describe a location, or, in ditransitive clauses, the object being transferred or the price of the object in the Absolutive Case (more rarely, Accusative Case). The authorization in 2192 of the Inessive Case 16. -nemkim has narrowed the domain of the Locative. Some postpositions take the Locative rather than the Genitive.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
neme lusilinekem		at the border (end) of the city
lupatekem pempesum	Lu.pa.te.kem pem.pe.sum	from beyond the mountain
lupatekem pempetu	Lu.pa.te.kem pem.pe.tu	to beyond the mountain
lupatekem pempekim	Lu.pa.te.kem pem.pe.kim	beyond the mountain

8. (AL)LATIVE/DATIVE (ALL): -su

The Allative Case is used for the inanimate indirect object of a main clause, direction towards, direction into (pre-2192), and the inanimate direct object of a Causative Construction clause when the verb is perfective aspect. The authorization in 2192 of the Illative Case 17. -nemtu has narrowed the domain of the Allative-Dative.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
lusilikesu	Lu.si.li.ke.su	towards the village

9. DATIVE-BENEFACTIVE (DAT): -tu

The Dative Case is used for the animate indirect object of a main clause, direction towards, direction into (pre-2192), and the animate direct object of a Causative Construction clause when the verb is perfective aspect. The authorization in 2192 of the Illative Case 17. -nemtu has narrowed the domain of the Dative-Benefactive.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
layeke lemetu	La.ye.ke le.me.tu	for my sister

Comitative Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Instrumental	10	-ki	inanimate instrument
			inanimate direct object of ditransitive causative imperfective verb
			adverbial elaboration
Comitative	13	-ni	accompaniment 'with'
			nominal 'and'

10. INSTRUMENTAL (INS): -ki

The Instrumental Case is used to describe the means by which something is done. This case is only used with Inanimate nouns in Standard Siye; it is rude to use the Instrumental Case with an Animate nouns. The Instrumental Case is used for the inanimate direct object of a Causative Construction Clause when the verb is perfective aspect. Prior to 2192, the postposition /eki/ (e+INS) plus an animate noun in the Genitive Case was used for the animate equivalent. In 2192, the Animate Instrumental case (14. -neki) was authorized to replace this construction.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
koki	Ko.ki	by hand; manually

13. COMITATIVE (COM): -ni

The Comitative Case is used to describe accompaniment. It also serves as the primary nominal form of 'and', thus contrasting with the primarily verbal form -(h)(a)m. When used as 'and', the grammatical number of the verb is governed by the noun in the Nominative or Absolutive.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
leyake layekeni isuputuma	Le.ya.ke.La.ye.ke.ni.I.su.pu.tu.me(a)	the boy walks with the girl

Adverbial Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Adverbial	11	-ku	forms adverbs
Equative	12	-pu	predicate
			direct address (very rare)

11. ADVERBIAL (ADV): -ku

The Adverbial Case converts roots into adverbs. The Guild of Scholars treats this as a case rather than a derivational affix. This suffix is used to adverbialize secondary adverbial suffixes excluded from their usual placement by a primary adverbial suffix.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
um miku isuputuma	Um.Mi.ku.I.su.pu.tu.me(a)	the man hops/hobbles forward (on one foot)
um misoku isuputuma	Um.Mi.so.ku.I.su.pu.tu.me(a)	the man walks forward (on two feet)
kewim mikeku isuputuma	Ke.wim.Mi.ke.ku.I.su.pu.tu.me(a)	the Martian lion walks forward (on four feet)
umo miloku isuputuma	U.mo.Mi.lo.ku.I.su.pu.tu.me(a)	the spider walks forward (on many feet)

12. EQUATIVE (EQ): -pu

The Equative Case is used to describe the second noun or adjective in a predicate statement. In Early (pre-vowel dominance) Siye, it was sometimes used as a Vocative Case. In the earliest stage of vowel dominance, it served as a replacement for the elided 20. (Classic) Vocative following an oral vowel. Contemporary Standard Siye elected to eliminate the Vocative entirely, but contemporary Rural Ye, having collapsed the Adverbial, Equative, and Allative into [-hu] or [hy], chose to regularize the Vocative usage.

Example	Transliteration	Translation
um me kutumpu ikimpukima	Um.Me.Ku.tum.pu.I.Kim.pu.ki.me(a)	that man is a hudzu-priest

Cases Authorized 2192

As of 2192,the following cases were declared legal for formal writing. All of them are the result of contractions between the Genitive Case and postpositions that began with e-.

New Locative Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Animate Instrumental	14	-neki	animate direct object of ditransitive causative imperfective verb (post-2192)
Elative	15	-nemsum	out of a location (post-2192)
Inessive	16	-nemkim	inside a location (post-2192)
Illative	17	-nemtu	into a location (post-2192)

14. ANIMATE INSTRUMENTAL (ANS): -neki

The Animate Instrumental Case is used for the demoted animate agent of the subordinate clause in imperfective aspect in a Causative Construction. See INSTRUMENTAL (INS) (10.) above and Causative Construction under Siye Sytax.

	Le ineki liyo elelipunama.
	Le.I.ne(e).ki.Li.yo.E.le.Li.pu.na.me(a)
	le-0 i-neki liyo-0 e-le-li-pu-sum-na-ma
	1-NOM 3-ANS food-ABS 4-1-eat.IMPFV-SG-CAUS-D1-P1
	I will feed him (=I will cause him to eat the food)

15. ELATIVE (ELA): -nemsum

The Elative Case is used for motion out of a location, superceding this use of 6. ABL.

	Laye silinemsum itupusuna.
	La.ye.si.li.ne(e)m.sum.I.Tu.pu.su.ne(a)
	laye-0 sili-nemsum i-tu-pu-tu-na
	woman-ABS house-ELA 3-go.PFV-SG-D5-P2		The woman exited the house.

16. INESSIVE (INE): -nemkim

The Inessive Case is used for position inside of a location, superceding this use of 7. LOC.

	Laye silinemkim ikupununa.
	La.ye.si.li.ne(e)m.kim.I.Ku.pu.nu.ne(a)
	laye-0 sili-nemkim i-ku-pu-nu-ma
	woman-ABS house-INE 3-sleep.IMPFV-SG-D3-P1
	The woman is sleeping in the house.

17. ILLATIVE (ILL): -nemtu

The Illative Case is used for motion into a location, superceding this use of 8. ALL and 9. DAT.

	Laye silinemtu itupusuna.
	La.ye.si.li.ne(e)m.tu.I.Tu.pu.su.ne(a)
	laye-0 sili-nemtu i-tu-pu-su-na
	woman-ABS house-ILL 3-go.PFV-SG-D4-P2
	The woman entered the house.

Cases Authorized 2200

As of 2200,the following case was authorized to replace -ne to.

New Comitative Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Abessive	18	-neto	without (post-2200)

18. ABESSIVE (ABE): -neto

The Abessive Case is used to describe lack. A counterpart to the Comitative case, the authorization of the Abessive Case was proposed in 2192, but some members of the Guild of Scholars felt that the conflation of the Genitive Case with the postposition /to/ was not as strong as that of situations such as inessive /-nemtu/ from /-ne emtu/, since there was no natural contraction. A minority of Scholars lobbied for /-nito/ on the analogy of Comitative /-ni/.

	Liyoneto lelilulunuma.
	Li.yo.ne.to.Le.Li.lo.u(lu).nu.me(a)
	liyo-neto le-li-lo-ulu-nu-ma
	food-ABE 1-die.IMPFV-PL-TNS-D3-P1
	Without food, we will die.

Cases Authorized 2217

As of 2217, the following case was declared legal for formal writing.

Comitative Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Notes
Causal	19	-neya	because of (post-2217)

19. CAUSAL (CAUS): -neya

The Causal Case is used to describe the cause of something when the cause is expressed as a noun. Although the causative has long been expressed formally either by -sum, the Ablative Case or by -ne summe, that is, the noun 'cause' in the Possessive Case preceded by the causative object in the Genitive Case, the postposition 'eya' has long been used informally with the Genitive Case. The recent conflations of postposition using the dummy noun 'e' with preceding Genitive Case -ne have created many new informal case endings, all of which the Gulld of Scholars are examining in order to determine whether and when such neologisms should be accepted as part of Standard Siye.

	Neponeya susumsuyamloya Simayamke yitukesumnuna.
	Ne.po.ne.ya.su.sum.su.yam.lo.ya.si.m(e)a.yam.ke.I(i).Tu.ke.sum.nu.ne(a)
	nepo-neya susumsuyam-lo-ya Simayam-ke-0 i-i-tu-ke-sum-nu-na
	money-CAUS missionary-PL-ERG Siye-speaker-PAUC-ABS 3-3-move.PFV-PAUC-CAUS-D3-P2
	The missionaries drowned (baptized?) the few Siye-speakers because of (their) money.

Complex cases

Complex cases occur when Suffixaufnahme places an Accusative -a after another case suffix which ends in a vowel. These are not official cases, and therefore illegitimate and immoral; furthermore, their illegitimacy means that the crude names herein given are descriptive rather than prescriptive. It is necessary, however, to recognize these forms when in the the western provinces or handling a document from that region. It is difficult to purify immoral grammar if you do not know what the author intended.

Complex Cases	Case Number	Case Suffix	Contraction of	Transliteration
Accusi-genitive (AGEN)	1	-na	-ne-a	ne(a)
Accusi-possessive (APOSS)	2	-ma	-me-a	me(a)
Accusi-ablative (AABL)	3	-sumha	-sum-ha	sum.a
Accusi-locative (ALOC)	4	-kemha	-kem-a	kem.a
Accusi-allative (AALL)	5	-su, -sa	-su-a	su(a), sa
Accusi-dative (ADAT)	6	-tu, -sa, -ta	-tu-a	tu(a), sa, ta
Accusi-instrumental (AINS)	7	-ki, -sa	-ki-a, sa	ki(a)
Accusi-adverbial (AADV)	8	-ku	-ku-a	ku(a)
Accusi-equative (AEQ)	9	-pu	-pu-a	pu(a)
Accusi-comitative (ACOM)	10	-na	-ni-a	ni(a)

Notes

AGEN & APOSS: When noun phrases which are used in the Western Provinces are authorized as composite nouns, there is often a choice between the AGEN ending -na < ne(a) > and the APOSS ending -ma < me(a) > as the correct syllable. In general, the Guild of Scholars follows Standard Siye guidelines and therefore chooses -na < na > to follow nasal syllables and act as a case ending, and -ma < ma > to follow oral syllables and act as the new final syllable of the word. If, however, there is a substantial semantic difference between the meaning of the noun phrase using the Genitive Case and that using the Possessive Case, the Guild of Scholars may authorize an otherwise illegal use of -na following an oral syllable as a new final syllable.

ACOM: If a noun phrase which is used in the Western Provinces uses the ACOM ending -na < ni(a) > and is authorized as a composite noun, the Guild of Scholars requires that the -na < na > become the case ending if the now ultimate syllable contains a nasal vowel; otherwise, -na < na > becomes the final syllable of the word.

AALL & ADAT: When the AALL OR ADAT 'cases' are used in a sentence with a transitive verb, it seems as though there is no grammatical direct object. If the Accusative suffix is absorbed, the verb remains transitive and is treated as though it had a covert applicative suffix.

-sa <sa >: The various 'cases' of -sa < sa > (AALL, ADAT, AINS) form a contentious issue for the Guild of Scholars. There is a proposal, originally brought forth at the same time as the proposals for the cases authorized in 2192, to replace the Animate Instrumental (ANS) case -neki with -sa. The "Saists" or "Eastern Saists" are part of the Animacist faction which strongly believes in maintaining the distinction between animate and inanimate nouns. These Saists support (unofficially, of course) the use of AALL and ADAT endings. This group should not be confused with the group who call themselves Saists or Western Saists. The latter group is comprised of Scholars from the Far Western Province who advocate the adotion of -sa as an animacy-neutral form of the Dative and Allative Cases in order to prevent the commercial exploitation of Far Westerners who have difficulty with animacy distinctions. As of the current date (2229 AD), the Eastern Saists have diminished in power, but the Western Saists have fared better, although they have not yet received official recognition.

Grammatical Number

Grammatical Number	Abbreviation	Ending	Transliteration
Null	NL	-ku, -hu, -u	ku
Singular	SG	-0	N/A
Dual	DU	-so	so
Paucal	PAUC	-ke	ke
Plural	PL	-lo	lo
Pantic	PAN	-ka	ka

The Null Number refers to the absence of a particular thing. As of the current date (2229 A.D.), the null number is primarily poetic. /hu/ appears after nasal syllables.

Example	Translation	Literary Source
tupiku sakike mekem imikukima.	No birds swim in this pond.
yetamku etamkukima.	No stones remain.	"Lament of the Fall of the Third Moon"

The Singular Number is used with singular nouns, some abstract nouns, and mass nouns. It is also the citation form of a Standard Siye word.

Example	Translation	Literary Source
uku sakike mekem imipukima.	A fish swims in this pond.
kamna	piece of cloth

The Dual Number is used to refer to exactly two things. Although pairs of items, such as eyes, are normally in the Dual Number, the Dual Number does not inherently indicate a pair.

Example	Translation	Literary Source
layekeso sakikem imisokima.	A pair of girls walk by this pond.
wapomso	the two merchants

The Paucal Number refers to a group which is smaller than that of Plural Number but more than the Dual Number. This is a culturally determined distinction.

Example	Translation	Literary Source
kekeke tupime sakike mekem imikekima.	A few fledglings swim in this pond.
olake	the few eagles

It is true that Paucal suffix -ke and the Diminutive suffix -ke are homophonous (but different etymologically). Context and greater familiarity with the language will allow the Sinammayam (learner of Siye) to distinguish between the two.

The Plural Number refers to a group, larger than that of Paucal Number. This is the generic plural in Siye.

Example	Translation	Literary Source
kekelo tupime sakike mekem imilokima.	Many fledglings swim in this pond.
kewimlo	the many lions

The Pantic Number refers to all of a certain thing. It is also used as an ethnic or group designation.

Example	Translation	Literary Source
kekeka tupime ileyempuyamtumame sakike mekem imikakima.	All of the fledgings whom I espy are swimming in this pond.
Simayamka	(all) Siye-speakers

Structure: ROOT-NUMBER-CASE, except (until 2192) for the Possessive Case, in which case the order is ROOT-CASE-NUMBER.

Definiteness and Numeral Placement

Definiteness and Numeral Placement
Siye nouns are inherently definite.	tupiya	tupi-ya	bird-ERG	the bird
An indefinite noun requires a following /tum/.	tupi tumna	tupi tum-na	bird INDEF-ERG	a bird
Adjectives follow the noun.	tupi tukiya	tupi tuki-ya	bird white-ERG	the white bird
Adjectives follow the noun.	tupi tuki tumna	tupi tuki tum-na	bird white INDEF-ERG	a white bird
The demonstrative /me/ provides further definition	tupi tuki mena	tupi tuki me-na	bird white DEF-ERG	this/that white bird
Numerals precede the verb. They are definite.	tum tupiya	tum tupi-ya	one bird-ERG	one bird
	so tupisoya	so tupi-so-ya	two bird-DU-ERG	two birds
	ko tupiloya	ko tupi-lo-ya	five bird-PL-ERG	five birds
	ko tupilo mena	ko tupi-lo me-na	five bird-PL DEF-ERG	those five birds

Pronouns

Personal Pronouns	Nominative	Accusative	Transliteration	Transliteration	Notes
1st	le	la	Le, le	Le(a)	/le/ derives from Thide first person pronoun /de/
2nd	pe	sa	Pe, pe	Sa, sa	/pe/ and /sa/ derive from different Thide pronominal roots, /be/ and /ša/ respectively
3rd animate	i	ya	I	Ya, ya	/i/ and /e/ both derive from Thide third person pronoun /ŋë/
3rd inanimate (aka 4th)	e	a	E, e	E(a), e(a)	/i/ and /e/ both derive from Thide third person pronoun /ŋë/.
3rd person indefinite (INDEF)	mu	mu	mu	mu(a)	/mu/ is both Nominative and Accusative, animate and inanimate.

In Standard Siye, all the pronouns have a nominative-accusative contrast rather than an ergative-absolutive one. The accusative form is used exclusively for the Accusative case; peripheral cases use the same form as the nominative. Most accusative forms end in /a/. In most cases this is derived from vowel dominance contraction with the Early Siye Accusative suffix /-a/ (Tide -ŋa, Thide -ŋa), but /a/ in /sa/ is original to Thide.

Isoglosses

The Valley in which Siye is spoken stretches halfway across the Martian equator, so there are variations in speech along its length. The primary isogloss is the boundary line between nouns that use the Nominative and Accusative and those that use the Ergative and Absolutive. In Standard Siye, the dialect of the City in the Central Province and the variety on which this article is based, only pronouns and personal names can use Nominative and Accusative forms. As one travels east the range of the Nominative decreases; as one travels west towards the Mountain, the opposite occurs. Thus, all varieties of Siye use /le, la/ for the first person pronouns. All but the Far Eastern Province and the Lake use /pe, sa/ for the second person pronoun. The Mid-Eastern Province and points west place all pronouns, regardless of number, in the Nominative category. Standard Siye, from the Central Province, adds personal names to the Nominative category. The Near Western Province requires that nouns denoting humans must be in the Nominative category, reducing the number of complex cases in the spoken version of the western dialects. The Mid-Western Province treats all animate nouns as Nominative, and the Far Western Province is full nominative under the "contamination" of Ulok.

Non-standard pronouns

The non-standard pronouns presented here (with one exception) are the ergative-absolutive forms used in the eastern provinces in lieu of the nominative-accusative ones. In documents other than contracts and academic works, non-standard pronouns may appear. The Valley is large, and the combination of vowel dominance and suffixation produce more forms than can be presented here.

Personal Pronouns	Subject	Object	Where Used	Other Notes
2nd person	peya	pe	Far Eastern Province, Lake	/pe/ (absolutive) is identical to standard /pe/ (nominative)
3rd person animate	iya	i	Eastern Provinces, Lake	/i/ (absolutive) is identical to standard /i/ (nominative). /iya/ appears frequently in folk songs, even those composed by speakers of Standard Siye, as a strengthened form of /i/, which is monosyllabic, a lone vowel, and lowest on the vowel dominance hierarchy.
3rd person inanimate	eya	e	Far Eastern Province, Mid-Eastern Province, Lake	Non-standard /e/ (absolutive) is identical to standard /e/ (nominative). /eya/ appears outside of the eastern dialects much less frequently than /iya/.
3rd person inanimate	aya	a	Central Province innovation	Originally an extremely vulgar usage, most common in the seedier parts of the City starting in the late 22nd century A.D., but it spreadi rapidly and now (2250) is heard in lower middle class contexts.
3rd person indefinite	muna	mu	Far Eastern Province, Mid-Eastern Province, Lake	Note that in those dialects the ergative and absolutive forms of the 3rd person indefinite are distinct. Since the emergence of vowel dominance, there has been a small but vocal faction in the Guild of Scholars (the "Munayamlo") which advocates the use of /muna/~/mu/ to resolve ambiguities in current Standard Siye. The syllabary distinguishes between the two using a modified form of the basic < mu > character. The advocated use of of 'muna' is only as an independent pronoun, not as a verb suffix. As of the current date (2229), the Munayamlo have been gaining ground. But they have also been complaining for a millennium.

Portmanteau Pronouns

Portmanteau Pronouns	Accusative	Instrumental	Allative
Verb Valence	Transitive	Ditransitive (Causative)	Ditransitive (Causative)
Verb Aspect	Imperfective	Imperfective	Perfective
Not Expressed By Noun	Subject, Direct Object	Causee, Recipient	Causee, Recipient
3rd Person Inanimate	Direct Object	Causee	Recipient
Number Suffix on Pronoun Refers To	Direct Object	Causee	Recipient
Number Suffix on Verb Refers To	Direct Object	Causor	Causee

Portmanteau Pronouns	Accusative	Notes
1st & Inanimate	la
2nd & Inanimate	pa
3rd & Inanimate	ya
Definite & Inanimate	ma	Analogical

Accusative Portmanteau Pronouns

The accusative portmanteau pronouns are /la/, /pa/, /ya/, and /ma/. The first three are the result of a contraction of single nominative pronouns /le/, /pe/, and /i/ with the fourth person accusative pronoun /a/. Note that /la/ and /ya/ are homophonous with the simple accusative pronouns /la/ and /ya/. The accusative portmanteau pronoun /ma/ is derived analogically from the definite pronominal prefix /ma-/. The nominative pronouns /e/ and /mu/ do not have accusative portmanteau pronominal forms. The interrogative pronoun /pala/ has nothing to do the portmanteau process.

Accusative portmanteau pronouns can occur under the following conditions: the verb of the clause is transitive; the verbal aspect is imperfective; neither the subject nor the direct object is expressed by a noun; the direct object is fourth person; the number suffix on the portmanteau pronoun refers to the number of the direct object, not the number of the subject; the number suffix on the verb refers to the number of the subject, not the number of the direct object.

	Palo epekosoyammumo?
	palo-a epekosoyammumo
	pa-lo-a e-pe-ko-so-yam-ma-umo
	2>4-PL-ACC 4-2-see.IPFV-DU-INCPTV-P1-Q
	Can you two see them?

	Yaka elipulunama.
	palo-a epekosoyammumo
	ya-ka-a e-i-li-pu-ulu-na-ma
	3>4-PAN-ACC 4-3-eat.IMPFV-TNS-D2-P1
	He won't eat them all.

Accusative portmanteau pronouns can occur with a perfective verb, but the permissible range is limited to subjects in the singular number and sentences where the number suffix on the verb refers to the number of the direct object rather than the subject.

	Yaka eyokalunanu.
	ya-ka-a e-i-yo-ka-ulu-na-nu
	3>4-PAN-ACC 4-3-eat.PFV-PAN-TNS-D3-P6
	He did not eat them all.

	Yakaka eyokalunamu
	ya-ke-a-ka-a e-i-yo-ka-ulu-na-mu
	3>4-PAUC-4-PAN-ACC 4-3-eat.IMPFV-PAN-TNS-D3-P1
	The few of them won't eat all of them.

Portmanteau Pronouns in Causative Construction (Instrumental and Allative)

Instrumental portmanteau pronouns can occur in Causative Constructions with an imperfective verb under the following conditions: the verb of the clause is ditransitive; the aspect of the verb is imperfective; neither the causee nor the recipient are expressed by nouns; the causee is fourth person; the number suffix on the portmanteau pronoun refers to the number of the causee, not the number of the recipient; the number suffix on the verb refers to the number of the causor, not the number of the recipient.

Allative portmanteau pronouns can occur in Causative Constructions with a perfective verb under the following conditions: the verb of the clause is ditransitive; the aspect of the verb is perfective; neither the causee nor the recipient are expressed by nouns; the recipient is fourth person; the number suffix on the portmanteau pronoun refers to the number of the recipent, not the number of the causee; the number suffix on the verb refers to the number of the causee, not the number of the causor.

The number of the causor is singular.

Post-2192 and post-2200 Derivational Suffixes

The authorization of the new cases derived from -ne and postpositions has yielded new derivational suffixes for nouns. Whereas previously there was contrast between Genitive -ne and Possessive -me in these postpositional phrases, where the Genitive indicated alienable possession and the Possessive inalienable possession, the new case suffixes with -n- are perceived as cases, while the suffixes with -m- are perceived as suffixes which create new nouns.

Derivative Suffixes	Animacy	Meaning	Transliteration	Example	Translation	Notes
-memtu	Animate	Indicates someone who is striving towards a goal	me(m).tu	kutummemtu	apprentice of a hutsung-priest
-memsum	Inanimate	Indicates a lineage	me(e)m.sum	Kikamemsum	from the lineage of Chika, Mr. or Mrs. Chikamengsung (surnames in the Western tradition are a recent borrowing from Terrestrial missionaries)
-memkim	Inanimate	Indicates the interior of a place	me(e)m.kim	silimemkim	room
-meki	Animate	Indicates an animate agent	me(e).ki	a(tom)meki	merchant
-meto	Animate Adjective	Indicates a living being lacking something expected	me.to	isometo	blind	The older word for 'blind person' /ule/, which has an unfortunate homophone /ule/ 'idiot', is currently losing ground to the new formation /isometo/ 'blind, blind person', from /iso-/ 'a pair of eyes' and /-meto/ 'without', just as /ule/ has peviously replaced /wule/ and mostly displaced /nule/, both in turn derived from /ung-ure/. The dual number suffix in /iso-/, although still recognizable, has been reanalyzed as part of the root; thus 'many blind people' is /isometolo/, with the plural suffix /-lo/.
			imeto	one-eye