Gezoro

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Gezoro
[ˈɡe.zo.ro]
Period c. -2000 YP
Spoken in Rathedān
Total speakers unknown
Writing system Tjakori script
Classification Western languages
  Gezoro
Typology
Basic word order SVO
Morphology lightly agglutinating
Alignment NOM-ACC
Credits
Created by basics by kodé;
more detail added by Cedh

Gezoro is a language of the Western family, spoken in the Rathedān highlands around -2000 YP.

History and context

Genealogy

Historical background

The Gezoro were the first people in Peilaš to develop serious metallurgy. For centuries they had better weapons and better armor than anyone else, which combined with their mountain strongholds kept them quite secure despite a long-lasting rivalry with the Ndak Empire. Finally the Ndak emperor Terakan, father of Tsinakan, succeeded in cutting off all their trade routes, gradually weakening them. Tsinakan himself, early in his reign, fought the Gezoro in a series of massive campaigns. The final result of these was 60,000 Gezoro marched to Kasadgad in chains, where they remained enslaved for generations (cf. the Hebrews in Egypt). Over time, those Gezoro who had remained at home also became absorbed into the Ndak world, though not without deeply influencing the Ndak Ta dialects spoken in the Rathedān, which later gave rise to the classical Adāta language. By the end of Tsinakan's reign, the former mountain home of the Gezoro had become a mining region of utmost importance to the Ndak empire.

Dialects

Diachronically, Gezoro can be divided into two main periods: Early Gezoro (c. -2300 to -2000 YP) and Late Gezoro (c. -2000 to -1500 YP). Late Gezoro was divided into four dialects, which were fairly similar grammatically but exhibited significant phonological differences, especially in the quality of different vowel phonemes. Adāta words borrowed from Gezoro came from several of these different dialects.

  • Western Rathedān Gezoro (spoken in the valleys of Hiphago and Zophīs) was characterised by monophthongisation of all Early Gezoro diphthongs, by fronting of Early Gezoro /a aː ɔ ɔː/ to /ɛ ɛː a aː/ in most environments along with backing of original unstressed short /ɛ/ to /ɤ~o/, by retention of Early Gezoro's nasalised vowels /ɜ̃ ɜ̃ː/, by nasal mutation of approximants when preceded by one of these nasalised vowels, by widespread deletion of /x j w/, and by epenthesis of word-final vowels after resonants when preceded by a stressed short vowel.
  • Southern Rathedān Gezoro (spoken in the valley of Radias, Mezaras and Nitazē) was characterised by denasalisation of Early Gezoro /ɜ̃ ɜ̃ː/ and a vowel system with only two front vowel height levels, by vocalisation of coda liquids, by lengthening of stressed vowels before originally voiced consonants, and by deletion of /ɡ/ and lenition of the unaspirated plosive series to voiced plosives in many unstressed positions.
  • Central Rathedān Gezoro (spoken in the region around Athalē and Thāras) tended to be quite similar to the southern dialect in many respects, but it did not have voicing of unaspirated plosives and was additionally characterised by widespread diphthongisation of mid vowels, by apocope of many word-final vowels, and by deaffrication of Early Gezoro /ts/ to /tʰ/.
  • Kasadgad Gezoro (spoken by the descendants of those Gezoro who were deported to Kasadgad as slaves by Tsinakan) had undergone noticeable phonological influence from Ndak Ta and was characterised by deaspiration of all aspirated plosives, by a shift of /x/ to /ɡ/ and of word-final /l/ to /r/, and by a loss of the vowel length distinction in all unstressed syllables.

Some sample words:

Proto-Western   >   Early Gezoro   >   Western Southern Central Kasadgad
*ʔũtaʔału- ‘smell with tooth’ [ɜ̃ˈtoːru-] ‘cook’ [onˈtʰaːru-] [enˈtʰuːru-] [anˈtʰoːru-] [ˈẽtoru-]
*łãšičeka- ‘sit on a horse’ [ˈrɜ̃ːlɛkɔ-] ‘ride’ [ˈroːnoka-] [ˈreːleɡo-] [ˈraːlko-] [ˈrẽːleko-]
*yama ‘sun’ [jɔm] [ˈjama] [joːm] [jaum] [jom]
*tuca ‘house’ [tuts] [tuts] [tuts] [tutʰ] [tuts]
*dzaldayã ‘bird’ [ˈzɔrdeɜ̃] [ˈzardɜ̃ː] [ˈzuːdoi] [ˈzordoi] [ˈzordãi]
*dzamałaγa ‘red eye’ [ˈzɔmrɔː] ‘copper’ [ˈzɛmraː] [ˈzomroː] [ˈzamroː] [ˈzãro]
*kʰãʔakʰeyakwi ‘black sand’ [kɔˈkʰeɔk] ‘ore’ [kaˈkʰɛːk] [ɡeˈkʰoiɡ] [koˈkʰaːk] [koˈkauk]
*γãdželawe ‘big people’ [ˈɡɜ̃zrɔu] ‘Gezoro’ [ˈɡɜ̃zoroː] [ˈɡezoroː] [ˈɡezorau] [ˈɡẽzarau]

Kasadgad Gezoro died out around -1500 YP, but descendants of the three Rathedān dialects were still spoken in pockets more than a millennium later, when most of the Rathedān had already been Adāta-speaking for several generations.

This grammar sketch focuses on Early Gezoro.

Phonology

Consonants

labial alveolar   palatal   velar
plosive   pʰ · p · b     tʰ · t · d     kʰ · k · ɡ  
affricate ʦ
fricative s · z x
nasal m n ɲ
  approximant w l j
tap ɾ
  • /ʦ ɡ ɲ ɾ/ are transcribed as ts g ñ r.

Vowels

  front     central     back  
    high i · iː u · uː
mid-high e · eː
mid-low ɛ · ɛː ɜ̃ · ɜ̃ː ɔ · ɔː
low a · aː

There are also numerous diphthongs on the phonetic level, e.g. in words like kʰɔe [kʰɔɪ] ‘fire’, but these are better analysed as sequences of two independent vowel phonemes.

Phonotactics

The maximal syllable structure is (C)(w,l,r,j)V(ː)(C). Consonant clusters within a syllable are rather rare though, so that the majority of syllables follow a simple (C)V(ː)(C) pattern.

A syllable onset may consist of:

  • Nothing.
  • Any single consonant.
  • A plosive or /s/ followed by one of /l ɾ/.
  • An obstruent or a nasal followed by one of /w j/.

A syllable rime (i.e. nucleus plus coda) may consist of:

  • A vowel (short or long).
  • A vowel (short or long) followed by any single consonant except /w j/.

Word-medial clusters across a syllable break are limited to two consonants, usually in one of the following shapes:

  • An obstruent other than /ts/ or a nasal followed by one of /w l ɾ j/.
  • An obstruent other than /ts/ followed by a nasal.
  • A nasal followed by a plosive or /ts/.
  • One of /l ɾ/ followed by a nasal or a plosive or one of /ts l ɾ/ (but not followed by a copy of itself).

Stress

Gezoro has a predictable weight-based dynamic stress accent, which is placed according to the following rules:

  1. The accent usually falls on the first syllable in words with one or two syllables, and on the antepenultimate syllable in words with three or more syllables.
  2. Overriding the above, the penultimate syllable attracts stress if it is heavy, that is, if it contains a coda consonant, a long vowel, or any diphthong.
  3. Overriding the above, the final syllable attracts stress if it is superheavy, that is, if it contains either a long diphthong or both a long vowel and a coda consonant.

Note that long diphthongs (i.e. sequences like /eɔː/) count as one syllable for the purposes of stress assignment, although they are actually pronounced as two syllables by many speakers.

Morphophonology

Vowel ablaut

In many situations, vowels alternate in quality depending on the following consonant. The alternation is fully productive for stem-final short vowels, but applies to long vowels and diphthongs only on a lexical basis. In diphthongal vowel sequences, usually only the sequence-final vowel is affected. The changes in the last row of the following table (deletion and shortening of unstressed vowels in word-final position) happen only when preceded by a single underlyingly intervocalic consonant.

short long
_[+approximant] i e ɜ̃ ɔ u iː eː ɜ̃ː ɔː uː
_[+nasal] i e a ɔ u iː eː aː ɔː uː
_[+obstruent] e ɛ a a ɔ eː ɛː aː aː ɔː
V(ː)C_# Ø Ø a Ø Ø i e ɜ̃ ɔ u

Stem-internal vowels usually do not change, but may occasionally be affected when certain derivational affixes (marked with ‹+› at the morpheme boundary) are added. However, while it is clear which affixes may trigger stem-internal vowel ablaut, it is synchronically unpredictable whether or not a given vowel in the stem will in fact change, so that the resulting derived words are best learned as individual lexical items.

  • jɜ̃s ‘meat’ → jasɔtʰ ‘slaughter, kill (of animals)’
  • nɔːt ‘three’ → naːtud ‘third’

Deaspiration

A productive consonant alternation deaspirates /pʰ tʰ kʰ/ when the onset of the following syllable (or a directly following word-final coda) also contains an aspirated plosive. Notable environments for this process are the verbal 2nd person suffix -tʰ, the derivational verbalising suffixes +tʰ and -tʰeɔ, and the derivational nominalising suffixes -kʰ and -kʰɛd.

  • jupʰɔ- ‘stay, remain’ → jupatʰ ‘you're staying’
  • pʰuː ‘blow’ → puːkʰɛd ‘flute’
  • kɜ̃kʰ ‘finger’ → kakɔtʰ ‘show, point at’

Deaffrication

Another productive alternation occurs when the affricate /ts/ is immediately followed by a consonant, in which case it is deaffricated to /s/.

  • tuts ‘house, home’ → tusrañ ‘safe, reliable, comfortable’
  • wetiːts ‘meet, greet, welcome’ → wetiːsnɜ̃u jɔːk ‘I greet them’

Lenition

Gezoro also exhibits a limited amount of yet another type of consonant mutation, which affects some instances of stem-initial /s x d l w w j/ and turns them into /l ːr ːr ːj ːl b z/ when a vowel-final prefix is added (note that /w/ can become either /ːl/ or /b/). This process occurs on a few nouns with the addition of possessive prefixes and in compounding, as well as on a few verbs in certain derivational contexts, but it is not synchronically productive.

  • sepa ‘younger brother’ → nalepa ‘my younger brother’
  • xuː ‘leg’ → seːruː ‘your leg’
  • jɜ̃ːli ‘breast’ → ɛzɜ̃ːlir ‘her breasts (du)’
  • lɔka ‘hear’ → keːjɔka ‘eavesdrop, listen in on sb.’

Sound changes

Proto-Western to Early Gezoro


Early Gezoro to Late Gezoro dialects

Early Gezoro to Western Rathedān Gezoro


Early Gezoro to Southern Rathedān Gezoro


Early Gezoro to Central Rathedān Gezoro


Early Gezoro to Kasadgad Gezoro


Nominal morphology

Gezoro has lost the Proto-Western case endings; the role of nominal elements in a clause is now indicated solely by word order. The remaining inflectional categories for nominals are number (applies to all nominals), possession (applies to nouns only; marks person and number of the possessor on all possessed nouns), and noun class (which is an inherent property of nouns and triggers agreement in pronouns, numerals, and verbs).

Nouns

Number

Nouns in Gezoro inflect for three numbers: singular (sg, unmarked), dual (du, marked with the suffix -r), and plural (pl, marked with the suffix -k). Depending on the word, these suffixes may cause various stem alternations, which are described below.

Nouns which end in a short vowel exhibit vowel ablaut, with final short /a/ shifting to /ɜ̃/ in the dual and final short /i e ɜ̃ ɔ u/ shifting to /e ɛ a a ɔ/ in the plural:

  • mɔːri ‘bear’ → du mɔːrir, pl mɔːrek
  • ɔla ‘woman’ → du ɔlɜ̃r, pl ɔlak
  • riːnɔ ‘valley’ → du riːnɔr, pl riːnak
  • tʰuːru ‘coat, tunic’ → du tʰuːrur, pl tʰuːrɔk

Nouns which end in a long vowel usually do not undergo vowel ablaut if they are monosyllabic:

  • rɔː ‘man’ → du rɔːr, pl rɔːk
  • jɜ̃ː ‘bee’ → du jɜ̃ːr, pl jɜ̃ːk

Polysyllabic nouns ending in a long vowel do exhibit ablaut though:

  • numliː ‘beard’ → du numliːr, pl numleːk
  • mɔkuː ‘(set of) armor’ → du mɔkuːr, pl mɔkɔːk


Nouns which end in a consonant add an ablauting thematic vowel between the stem and the suffix. The quality of this vowel is not predictable and must be learned for each noun. Again, the ablaut pattern is du /i e ɜ̃ ɔ u/ :: pl /e ɛ a a ɔ/.

  • nɔlrɜ̃l ‘horse’ → du nɔlrɜ̃lir, pl nɔlrɜ̃lek
  • gil ‘day’ → du giler, pl gilɛk
  • tuts ‘house, home’ → du tutsɔr, pl tutsak
  • jɜ̃z ‘bag’ → du jɜ̃zur, pl jɜ̃zɔk


Nouns which end in a diphthong may behave in one of four different ways. Sometimes the diphthong is immutable:

  • dea ‘land, region, area’ → du dear, pl deak
  • jɜ̃u ‘hole’ → du jɜ̃ur, pl jɜ̃uk

Sometimes only the final element of the diphthong is affected by vowel ablaut:

  • wesɔɜ̃ ‘sword’ → du wesɔɜ̃r, pl wesɔak
  • sleu ‘star’ → du sleur, pl sleɔk

Sometimes the diphthong becomes an ablauting long vowel when a suffix is added.:

  • kʰeirou ‘farmer’ → du kʰeiruːr, pl kʰeirɔːk
  • rɜ̃xadei ‘merchant, trader’ → du rɜ̃xadiːr, pl rɜ̃xadeːk

Lastly, in some words the final element of the diphthong behaves like a consonant, and a lexically determined ablauting stem vowel is added:

  • kʰɔe ‘fire’ → du kʰɔjɔr, pl kʰɔjak
  • gwei ‘mountain’ → du gwejer, pl gwejɛk
  • nɜ̃u ‘brooch, fibula’ → du nɜ̃wir, pl nɜ̃wek

Possession

Due to the loss of case, the possessive prefixes that were used with inalienably possessed nouns in Proto-Western have been extended to all nouns. They indicate that a noun is possessed, and mark the person and number of its possessor. They do not inflect for the number of the possessed nominal.

singular dual plural
   _C       _V       _C       _V       _C       _V   
1st person na- n-ː ra- r-ː aka- ak-ː
2nd person sɛ- s-ː trɛ- tr-ː eːkɛ- eːk-ː
3rd person ɛ- Ø-ː rɛ- r-ː kɛ- k-ː
  • Before stem-initial /m n ɲ w l ɾ j/, prefix-final /a ɛ/ shift to /ɔ e/.
  • Short stem-initial /i e ɛ/ are lengthened after all second and third person prefixes, and become /ɔi ɔe ɔe/ after all first person prefixes.
  • Short stem-initial /u ɔ/ are lengthened after all first person prefixes, and become /eu eɔ/ after all second and third person prefixes.
  • Short stem-initial /a ɜ̃/ are lengthened after all possessive prefixes.
  • Before originally long stem-initial vowels other than /iː/, the 3rd person singular possessive prefix surfaces as j- instead of zero.

Classifiers

Like all early Western languages, Gezoro has a robust system of noun classes, which are not marked on the noun itself but trigger agreement in pronouns, numerals, and verbs. Compared to Proto-Western, the semantic content of the classifier morphemes has shifted somewhat: For instance, the classifier -t (originally *-ta-, used for solid edible objects) has lost its association with edibility and now refers primarily to animals; the classifier -l (originally *-ši-, used for intangible things and geographical features) has been generalised to refer to all kinds of large objects while the territory of abstract ideas is now instead covered by the "liquids" classifier -i (originally *-ye-), and the classifier -ːx (originally *-łki-, used only for granular masses) has come to refer to other soft objects as well, motivated by a phonetic near-merger with *-kʰiw- (originally used for soft inedible objects).

The following table presents an overview of the seven classifiers that exist in Gezoro:

class    basic      extended   verbal meaning
animate I -u -wɔ- -u humans, gods, spirits, demons, ancestors etc.
II -t -tɔ- / -ta- -t animals, animal products, meat, body parts etc.
inanimate III -l -li- / -le- -l large objects: houses and settlements, trees, geographical features etc.
IV -ts -tsɔ- / -tsa- -ts relatively small bulky objects: stones, furniture, baskets, bowls, vegetarian food etc.
V -ga -gɜ̃- / -ga- del-ug / -g / -m long objects: sticks, weapons, most types of tools etc.
VI -ːx -ːxi- / -ːxe- -ːx soft objects and granular masses: clothes, rope, soil, sand, grain, berries etc.
VII -i -je- / -eː- -i / -e liquids, weather, air, fire, colours, ideas, actions etc.
  • The "basic" column lists the form that the classifiers take in pronouns with singular referents, where they appear word-finally. This form is als used as a citation form.
  • The "extended" column lists the forms that the classifiers take in pronouns when they are followed by the dual and plural suffixes -r and -k respectively. Several classifiers (most notably -u and -i) may appear with further morphological irregularities; this is noted where relevant.
  • The "verbal" column lists the forms as they appear in verbal participant marking. The use of the variant forms for classes V and VII is described in the verbal morphology section.
  • The class V classifier -ga always appears in the alternative form -m (extended -mɜ̃- / -ma-) after a nasalised vowel, with the preceding /ɜ̃ ɜ̃ː/ shifting to /a aː/.
  • All forms of the class VI classifier -ːx trigger lengthening of a preceding short vowel.

Pronouns and determiners

Personal pronouns

  singular      dual      plural  
1st person exclusive nɔ nɔr nɔk
inclusive sɔ sɔr sɔk
2nd person tɔ tɔr tɔk
3rd person
(animate) 		human (I) jɔu juːr jɔːk
animal (II) jɔt jɔtɔr jɔtak
3rd person
(inanimate) 		large object (III) jel jelir jelek
small object (IV) jets jetsɔr jetsak
long object (V) jega jegɜ̃r jegak
soft object (VI) jeːx jeːxir jeːxek
liquid (VII) jei jeːr jɛːk
  • For 1st person inclusive, the number category indicates the number of listeners included; i.e. sɔ = me & one of you, sɔr = me & two of you, sɔk = me & more than two of you.
  • The 3rd person pronouns for humans and animals are derived from the anaphoric stem *ya-, while the 3rd person pronouns for the five inanimate noun classes are derived from the proximal deictic stem *dže-.

Demonstratives

Gezoro distinguishes three degrees of deixis: proximal dɔ-, medial tse-, and distal tʰɔ-. All of these stems combine with the appropriate classifiers and number suffixes to form demonstratives which can appear both as determiners and as free-standing pronouns. For reference, all the forms are given in full here, although only the class I demonstratives are slightly irregular.

proximal ("here")
singular    dual      plural  
animate human (I) dɔu duːr doːk
animal (II) dɔt dɔtɔr dɔtak
inanimate large object (III) dɔl dɔlir dɔlek
small object (IV) dɔts dɔtsɔr dɔtsak
long object (V) dɔga dɔgɜ̃r dɔgak
soft object (VI) dɔːx dɔːxir dɔːxek
liquid (VII) dɔe dɔer dɔek
medial ("there, visible")
singular    dual      plural  
animate human (I) tsɔu tsuːr tsoːk
animal (II) tset tsetɔr tsetak
inanimate large object (III) tsel tselir tselek
small object (IV) tsets tsetsɔr tsetsak
long object (V) tsega tsegɜ̃r tsegak
soft object (VI) tseːx tseːxir tseːxek
liquid (VII) tsei tseːr tsɛːk
distal ("there, not visible")
singular    dual      plural  
animate human (I) tʰɔu tʰuːr tʰoːk
animal (II) tʰɔt tʰɔtɔr tʰɔtak
inanimate large object (III) tʰɔl tʰɔlir tʰɔlek
small object (IV) tʰɔts tʰɔtsɔr tʰɔtsak
long object (V) tʰɔga tʰɔgɜ̃r tʰɔgak
soft object (VI) tʰɔːx tʰɔːxir tʰɔːxek
liquid (VII) tʰɔe tʰɔer tʰɔek

Indefinite deictics

Indefinite deictics are built exactly like demonstratives, using the stem pʰɔ-. They typically occur as pronouns, but they may also be used as determiners in a function not unlike that of indefinite articles.

  singular      dual      plural  
animate human (I) pʰɔu pʰuːr pʰoːk
animal (II) pʰɔt pʰɔtɔr pʰɔtak
inanimate large object (III) pʰɔl pʰɔlir pʰɔlek
small object (IV) pʰɔts pʰɔtsɔr pʰɔtsak
long object (V) pʰɔga pʰɔgɜ̃r pʰɔgak
soft object (VI) pʰɔːx pʰɔːxir pʰɔːxek
liquid (VII) pʰɔe pʰɔer pʰɔek

Interrogative deictics

Interrogative deictics use the stem gwi- followed by classifiers and number suffixes, with some irregularities in the class I series. Like demonstratives and indefinite deictics, they may be used both as determiners and as free-standing pronouns.

  singular      dual      plural  
animate human (I) guː guːr gwɔːk
animal (II) gwit gwitɔr gwitak
inanimate large object (III) gwil gwilir gwilek
small object (IV) gwits gwitsɔr gwitsak
long object (V) gwiga gwigɜ̃r gwigak
soft object (VI) gwiːx gwiːxir gwiːxek
liquid (VII) gwiː gwiːr gweːk

Relative pronouns

Relative pronouns cannot be used as determiners, although they are built in the same way using the stem ki-, again inflected with classifiers and number suffixes. In this paradigm, both the class I and class VII pronouns are slightly irregular.

  singular      dual      plural  
animate human (I) kuː kuːr kɔːk
animal (II) kit kitɔr kitak
inanimate large object (III) kil kilir kilek
small object (IV) kits kitsɔr kitsak
long object (V) kiga kigɜ̃r kigak
soft object (VI) kiːx kiːxir kiːxek
liquid (VII) kiː kiːr keːk

Possessive pronouns

Possessive pronouns are formed by using the possessive prefixes as pronominal stems, inflected in the usual way with classifiers and number suffixes (with a few minor irregularities). As a result, possessive pronouns are marked both for person and number of the possessor and for noun class and number of the possessed nominal, e.g. nɔtɔr ‘my two [horses]’ or kel ‘their [house]’.

possessed animate nominal
human (I) animal (II)
singular dual plural singular dual plural
possessor 1sg nɔu nuːr nɔːk nɔt nɔtɔr nɔtak
1du rɔu ruːr rɔːk rɔt rɔtɔr rɔtak
1pl akɔu akuːr akɔːk akɔt akɔtɔr akɔtak
2sg seu swɔr swɔk set setɔr setak
2du treu trewɔr trewɔk tret tretɔr tretak
2pl eːkeu eːkwɔr eːkwɔk eːket eːketɔr eːketak
3sg eu wɔr wɔk et etor etak
3du reu rewɔr rewɔk ret retɔr retak
3pl keu kwɔr kwɔk ket ketɔr ketak
   possessed inanimate nominal
large object (III) small object (IV) long object (V) soft object (VI) liquid (VII)
singular dual plural singular dual plural singular dual plural singular dual plural singular dual plural
possessor 1sg nɔl nɔlir nɔlek nɔts nɔtsɔr nɔtsak nɔga nɔgɜ̃r nɔgak nɔːx nɔːxir nɔːxek nɔe nɔer nɔek
1du rɔl rɔlir rɔlek rɔts rɔtsɔr rɔtsak rɔga rɔgɜ̃r rɔgak rɔːx rɔːxir rɔːxek rɔe rɔer rɔek
1pl akɔl akɔlir akɔlek akɔts akɔtsir akɔtsak akɔga akɔgɜ̃r akɔgak akɔːx akɔːxir akɔːxek akɔe akɔer akɔek
2sg sel selir selek sets setsɔr setsak sega segɜ̃r segak seːx seːxir seːxek sei seːr sɛːk
2du trel trelir trelek trets tretsɔr tretsak trega tregɜ̃r tregak treːx treːxir treːxek trei treːr trɛːk
2pl eːkel eːkelir eːkelek eːkets eːketsɔr eːketsak eːkega eːkegɜ̃r eːkegak eːkeːx eːkeːxir eːkeːxek eːkei eːkeːr eːkɛːk
3sg el elir elek ets etsɔr etsak ega egɜ̃r egak eːx eːxir eːxek ei eːr ɛːk
3du rel relir relek rets retsɔr retsak rega regɜ̃r regak reːx reːxir reːxek rei reːr rɛːk
3pl kel kelir kelek kets ketsɔr ketsak kega kegɜ̃r kegak kseːx keːxir keːxek kei keːr kɛːk

Numerals and quantifiers

Like its relatives, Gezoro has the base-8 number system typical of the Western language family. The number "2" derives from a reduplicated form *šiši-. Ordinal numerals are formed from the cardinals with a suffix +d, which causes irregular vowel alternations in several stems.

particle cardinal ordinal
1 tɔk tɔkɔ- takɔd
2 sil sili- silid
3 nɔːt nɔːtu- naːtud
4 mɜ̃ts mɜ̃tsɔ- matsɔd
5 uz uzɔ- ɔzɔd
6 mɜ̃l mɜ̃li- mɜ̃lid
7 nɔːz nɔːzi- nɔːzid
10₈ (8) ñɔg ñɔgɔ- ñugɔd
100₈ (64) dɜ̃umɔ dɜ̃umɔ- dɜ̃umad
  • Particle numerals are invariant; they are used for counting and calculations.
  • The cardinal numeral stem is used attributively with a suffixed classifier, and as a base for compounding and derivation (most notably for predicative use). The stem vowels /i ɔ u/ alternate regularly with /e a ɔ/ before obstruents.
  • The ordinal numerals do not take a classifier when used attributively, but a classifier suffix may be added in order to convert them into free-standing pronouns. All ordinals have a stem in /u/~/ɔ/.

Multiples of 10₈ are formed with an ordinal followed by a cardinal:

silid
sili+d
two-ORD
ñɔgɔu
ñɔgɔ-u
eight-CL:I
sabeɔrak
sabeɔrɔ-k
warrior-PL
sixteen warriors (lit. ‘second eight’)

Other complex numbers can be formed by simply listing the component numerals and adding the enclitic =ɔːm ‘and’ to the classifier:

ñɔg
ñɔgɔ
eight
siletɔːm
sili-t
two-CL:II
 
=ɔːm
=and
mezak
mezɔ-k
dog-PL
ten dogs (lit. ‘eight and two’)


There are also several other quantifiers, which do not have ordinal forms but behave very much like numerals otherwise:

  • je- ‘no, none’
  • gipɔ- ‘a few’
  • rɜ̃tsɔ- ‘many’
  • mupʰɔ- ‘all, every’

Adjectives

Adjectives in Gezoro fall in two morphologically distinct subclasses: Strong adjectives do not inflect at all in attributive position, whereas weak adjectives are mandatorily marked with a classifier suffix which agrees with the adjective's head noun. The class of weak adjectives is closed; all new derived or borrowed adjectives entering the language behave as strong ones.

kɔtsuːm
kɔtsuːmɔ
strong
rɔː
rɔː
man
a strong man (strong adjective)
reːu
reː-u
tall-CL.I
rɔː
rɔː
man
a tall man (weak adjective)

In predicative use, both kinds of adjectives are transformed into morphological verbs with the verbalising suffix -ːjV-:

Rɔː
rɔː
man
kɔtsuːmɔːjɔu.
kɔtsuːmɔ-ːjV-Ø-u
strong-VBLZ-DIR-3.I
The man is strong.
Rɔː
rɔː
man
reːjeu.
reː-ːjV-Ø-u
tall-VBLZ-DIR-3.I
The man is tall.

Verbal morphology

Participant marking

Although Gezoro has become a mostly nominative-accusative language, its verbal participant agreement morphology still exhibits clear traces of the earlier ergative-absolutive alignment. Both the agent and the patient are cross-referenced on transitive verbs, in such a manner that transitive patients are marked in the same way as intransitive subjects, whereas transitive agents are marked with specialised but much more generic morphemes which completely collapse the noun class distinction in the 3rd person.

object
none
(intransitive) 		1st person 2nd person 3rd person
   human   
(I)		   animal  
(II)		 large object
(III)		 small object
(IV)		 long object
(V)		 soft object
(VI)		    liquid   
(VII)
subject 1st person -n -ːna -natʰ -nɜ̃u -nɛt -nel -nɛts -nug -nɛːx -nei
2nd person -tʰ -tsen -tsatʰ -tsɜ̃u -tsɛt -tsel -tsɛts -tsug -tsɛːx -tsei
3rd person
(animate) 		human (I) -u -kɔn -katʰ -kɔu -kat -kɔl -kats -kug -kaːx -kɔe
animal (II) -t
3rd person
(inanimate) 		large object (III) -l
small object (IV) -ts
long object (V) del-ug / -g / -m
soft object (VI) -ːx
liquid (VII) -i / -e
  • The ending for intransitive subjects of class V ("long object") deletes any preceding short oral vowel and replaces it with -ug. After diphthongs and long vowels, the ending is simply -g. After a nasalised vowel the suffix appears as -m, with the preceding /ɜ̃ ɜ̃ː/ shifting to /a aː/.
  • The ending for intransitive subjects of class VII ("liquid") appears as -i after consonants other than /j/, combines with preceding /i iː e ɛ eː/ into iː iː ei ei eːi, and appears as -e elsewhere.
  • The transitive 3rd-person-subject forms are listed only for animate subjects in the above table (due to legibility concerns), but they are also used with inanimate subjects. It should be noted though that such sentences are rather rare because Gezoro tends to avoid portraying inanimate nouns as subjects of transitive verbs.

Evidentiality

Gezoro has four evidential suffixes which provide details about the source of the information presented in a statement. They appear between the verb stem and the participant suffixes. Although verbs need not have an overt evidential marker, evidentiality is best described as a mandatory inflectional category because verbs without an overt evidential suffix are usually interpreted to mean that the speaker has first-hand evidence for the information, either by being directly involved in the situation or by witnessing it.

The first two overtly marked evidentials can be grouped together as marking second-hand information. They differ by reliability of the source: The morpheme -ːzi-/-ːze- (glossed as src) indicates that the information has been reported by a trustworthy person and can be expected to be true, whereas the morpheme -bɜ̃-/-ba- (glossed as hsy) indicates that the information has been gathered via hearsay and might be false.

The remaining two evidential suffixes mark propositions which are based neither on first-hand experience nor on second-hand reports, but on evaluation of situational circumstances. The morpheme del-rɔː(k)- (glossed as infer) indicates that the information has been inferred from physical evidence (for instance footprints, a resulting new situation, or a person’s reaction to an event), and the morpheme del-uː- (glossed as assum) indicates that the information is assumed based on reasoning, past experience of similar situations, or general knowledge.

The evidential system as a whole is summarised in the table below:

direct evidence indirect evidence
first-hand second-hand inferential
certain -Ø-
dir
(involved directly or witnessed) 		-ːzi- / -ːze-
src
(reported by trusted source) 		del-rɔː(k)-
infer
(physical evidence available)
uncertain -bɜ̃- / -ba-
hsy
(hearsay) 		del-uː-
assum
(assumption or reasoning)
  • The trusted source evidential appears as -ːzi- before vowels and resonants, and as -ːze- before obstruents.
  • The hearsay evidential appears as -bɜ̃- before vowels and approximants, and as -ba- before obstruents and nasals.
  • The physical evidence evidential appears as -rɔːk- before vowels and as -rɔː- elsewhere.
  • Both of the inferential evidentials usually cause deletion of a preceding short vowel.

All evidentials usually (i.e. in all declarative sentences) deal with information source from the point of view of the speaker. However, if they appear in an interrogative clause, they refer to how the listener acquired the relevant information. If an evidential appears in an imperative statement, it indicates the source of the command.

Non-finite forms

The gerund (glossed as ger) refers to a specific instance of the action, can be formed with the suffix -ga (or del-ama- after nasalised vowels) plus a possessive prefix indicating the subject of the verb. If there is an object, it will be referenced on the gerund by a normal intransitive agreement marker, and the gerund suffix will appear as del-uga if the object is first person, second person, or third person of classes II, IV, or VI, as -ga if the object is third person of classes I, III, or VII, and as del-ama if the object is third person of class V. A gerund may optionally be marked for evidentiality, but this is rather rare. (← *-γʷĩ)

Derivation

Gezoro has a rich system of mostly suffixing derivational morphology.

Verbal reduplication

CV~
v → v
Derives intensive or frequentative verbs describing actions or states which are characterised by an extraordinary amount of effort or intensity, which have an exceptionally strong impact, or which are repeated several times within a comparatively short period of time. The prefix surfaces as reduplication of the first consonant and the first vowel of the stem, with vowel ablaut as necessary when the reduplicated consonant belongs to a different type than the consonant following the original root vowel. In stems beginning with a consonant cluster, the second consonant is ignored. In stems beginning with a vowel, the reduplicative prefix appears in the shape VC~.
  • jujupʰɔ- ‘survive, be resilient’ ← jupʰɔ- ‘stay, remain’
  • rɔrɔñɔ- ‘cultivate, farm’ ← rɔñɔ- ‘dig’
  • dadɔgɔ- ‘scream’ ← dɔgɔ- ‘shout’

Verbalising suffixes

-zɔ-
v → v
Increases the valency of both transitive and intransitive verbs by one by introducing a new causative agent. The original agent of a transitive verb gets demoted to direct object. Appears as -za- before obstruents. (← *-dza-)
  • zukazɔ- ‘calm, soothe, console’ ← zukɔ- ‘be silent’
  • tatʰɜ̃uzɔ- ‘fell, chop down’ ← tatʰɜ̃u- ‘fall’
-ːmɜ̃-
v → v
Reduces the valency of transitive verbs by removing the agent and promoting the original direct object to subject position. The resulting verbs are somewhat variable in semantics between anticausative, reflexive, reciprocal, and fully passive interpretations. Appears as -ːma- before obstruents and nasals. (← *numẽ ‘face’)
  • jɜ̃suːmɜ̃- ‘be popular, be respected’ ← jɜ̃su- ‘love, like’
  • ripʰɔːmɜ̃- ‘be clean, be tidy’ ← ripʰɔ- ‘rub, scrub, polish’
-ki-
v → v
Reduces the valency of transitive verbs by removing the direct object. Appears as -ke- before obstruents. (← *kʷi, an incorporated cataphoric pronoun, cf. the Iŋomœ́ antipassive formation)
  • meːseki- ‘be curious’ ← meːsi- ‘try (said of new things)’
  • wɜ̃zaki- ‘be knowledgeable, be an expert, have experience’ ← wɜ̃zɔ- ‘know, be familiar with’
del-iːtsɔ-
v/n/pp → v
Indicates that the verb involves motion towards the focus point (with verbal stems this is often, but not always, the speaker; with nominal stems this is usually the referent of the stem). Appears as del-iːtsa- before obstruents. (← *-ʔiłca-)
  • mɔliːtsɔ- ‘light up, illuminate’ ← mɔle- ‘shine, glow’
  • kɔniːtsɔ- ‘join (a group)’ ← kɔn ‘group (of people)’
del-ɔːzu-
v/n/pp → v
Indicates that the verb involves motion away from the focus point. Appears as del-ɔːzɔ- before obstruents. (← *-ʔadzu-)
  • plɔwɔːzu- ‘leave, go away’ ← plɔu- ‘walk’
  • pɜ̃tɔːzu- ‘escape, flee’ ← pɜ̃tɔ- ‘run’
del-ugɔːpe- / del-amɔːpe-
v → v
Creates inceptive verbs which refer to the beginning of the action denoted by the base. Appears as del-ugɔːpɛ- before obstruents. After nasalised vowels, the suffix appears as del-amɔːpe-/del-amɔːpɛ- instead. (← *γuʔpe ‘begin’)
  • wɜ̃zugɔːpe- ‘learn, study’ ← wɜ̃zɔ- ‘know, be familiar with’
-ːjV-
n/adj/pp → v
Derives intransitive stative verbs, which describe having the characteristics denoted by the base. "V" denotes a copy of the original stem vowel. (← *-ʔayV-)
  • kuruːju- ‘take the initiative, show courage’ ← kur ‘wolf’
  • iːmɔːjɔ- ‘lack’ ← iːmɔ ‘without, except for’
-ːpɔ-
n → v
Derives dynamic verbs, which describe actions that the referent of the base is characteristically involved in. Appears as -ːpa- before obstruents. (← *-łpa-)
  • kʰɔjaːpɔ- ‘burn, set on fire’ ← kʰɔe ‘fire’
  • keleːpɔ- ‘support, hold up (physically)’ ← kel ‘back (body part)’
del-wɛkɜ̃-
n → v
Derives instrumental verbs, which describe actions done with the help of the referent of the base. Appears as del-wɛka- before obstruents and nasals. (← *wekʷĩ ‘carry’)
  • jɜ̃zwɛkɜ̃- ‘gather, collect’ ← jɜ̃z ‘bag’
+tʰɔ-
n/adj → v
Derives instrumental and factitive verbs, which describe actions done with the help of the referent of the base (if the base is nominal), the process of creating the referent of the base (if the base is nominal), or the process of bringing about the quality denoted by the base (if the base is adjectival). Appears as +tʰa- before obstruents. Triggers deaspiration of an aspirated plosive in the preceding syllable onset, and often also causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *tʰa ‘do’)
  • kakɔtʰɔ- ‘show, point at’ ← kɜ̃kʰ ‘finger’
  • pazitʰɔ- ‘braid, plait’ ← pɜ̃z ‘basket’
del-ɜ̃dɔ-
n → v
Derives factitive and ornative verbs, which describe the process of creating or adding the referent of the base. Appears as del-ɜ̃da- before obstruents. (← *ʔẽda ‘give’)
  • kʰigɜ̃dɔ- ‘pour’ ← kʰig ‘water’
  • jɜ̃ːkʰɜ̃dɔ- ‘flirt with’ ← jɜ̃ːkʰ ‘honey’
del-eapɜ̃-
n/adj → v
Derives privative verbs, which describe the process of removing the referent of the base (if the base is nominal) or removing the quality described by the base (if the base is adjectival). Appears as del-eapa- before obstruents and nasals. After a diphthong or a long vowel, the morpheme appears as -japɜ̃-/-japa-. (← *γlapẽ ‘remove’)
  • nɜ̃pʰeapɜ̃- ‘undress’ ← nɜ̃pʰ ‘belt’

Nominalising suffixes

-dei- /
-deɜ̃-
n/v → n
Derives animate nouns of classes I or II describing people or animals which are habitual subjects of the base verb (if the base is verbal) or which are characterised by the base (if the base is nominal). Appears as -dei- after oral stem vowels and as -deɜ̃- after nasalised stem vowels; original short stem vowels are syncopated after one of /l r/. When further suffixes are added, the morpheme appears as -diː-/-deɜ̃- before vowels and approximants, as -diː-/-dea- before nasals, and as -deː-/-dea- before obstruents. (← *-dayV-)
  • rɜ̃xadei ‘merchant, trader’ ← rɜ̃xɔ- ‘trade, exchange’
  • nɔdadeɜ̃ ‘left-handed person’ ← nɔda ‘left side’
del-eVː-
n → n
Derives animate nouns of classes I or II describing people or animals which are descendants or offspring of the base. Appears as del-eiː- after i-stems, as del-eː- after e-stems, as del-eɔː- after ɔ-stems, as del-euː- after u-stems, and as del-eɜ̃ː- after ɜ̃-stems, but does not vary with different following consonants. (← *-yaʔV-)
  • jɔmeɔː ‘person’ ← jɔm ‘sun’
  • tʰuneɜ̃ː ‘elder brother’ ← tʰuna ‘father’
del-rɔu- /
del-ruɜ̃-
n/v → n
Derives nouns of class I describing people which characteristically have a connection to the base. Appears as del-rɔu- after oral stem vowels and as del-ruɜ̃- after nasalised stem vowels. When further suffixes are added, the morpheme appears as -ruː-/-ruɜ̃- before vowels and approximants, as -ruː-/-rɔa- before nasals, and as -rɔː-/-rɔa- before obstruents. (← *-lawV-)
  • mamrɔu ‘shepherd’ ← mam ‘sheep’
  • rɜ̃ːsurɔu ‘enemy’ ← rɜ̃ːsu- ‘hate, punish’
-zɜ̃-
v/adj → n
Creates inanimate nouns of classes IV or V which describe a tool by which the base process is carried out (if the base is verbal) or which has the quality denoted by the abse (if the base is adjectival). Appears as -za- before obstruents. In verb stems whose last consonant is /z/, the underlying sequence |V₁zV₂zɜ̃| is simplified to /V₁ːzɜ̃/. (← *-dzũ-)
  • mɔːxazɜ̃ ‘knife’ ← mɔːx ‘sharp’
  • gwɔraːzɜ̃ ‘abacus’ ← gwɔrazɔ- ‘count, calculate’
-t-
n/v → n
Creates abstract nouns of class VII from other nouns or from stative verbs. Appears as -tu- before vowels and resonants, and as -tɔ- before obstruents. (← *-tu-)
  • suːrat ‘the future’ ← suːrɔ ‘soon’
  • jelilet ‘speed, swiftness, agility’ ← jelil ‘quick, swift, agile’
-kʰ-
n/v → n
Creates inanimate nouns of classes III to VII which characteristically have a connection to the base. Appears as -kʰɔ- before vowels and resonants, and as -kʰa- before obstruents. Triggers deaspiration of an aspirated plosive in the preceding syllable onset. (← *-kʰa-)
  • kɜ̃dukʰ ‘hat, helmet’ ← kɜ̃d ‘head’
  • plɔukʰ ‘shoe’ ← plɔu- ‘walk’
-kʰɛd-
n/v/adj → n
Creates inanimate nouns of classes III to VI which characteristically have a connection to the base. Appears as -kʰɛdɔ- before vowels and resonants, and as -kʰɛda- before obstruents. Triggers deaspiration of an aspirated plosive in the preceding syllable onset. (← *kʰeda ‘thing, item’)
  • jaːnɛkʰɛd ‘paintbrush’ ← jaːne- ‘draw, paint’
  • puːkʰɛd ‘flute’ ← pʰuː- ‘blow’
del-eɜ̃- / del-añɜ̃-
n/v/adj → n
Derives inanimate nominals of classes III or IV which indicate a location associated with the base. Appears as del-eɜ̃- after short oral stem vowels, as del-añɜ̃- after short nasalised stem vowels, and as -jɜ̃- or -ñɜ̃- after long vowels and diphthongs. Before an obstruent, the morpheme appears as -ea-/-ja-/-(a)ña-. (← *-γẽ-)
  • rɔñeɜ̃ ‘field’ ← rɔñɔ- ‘dig’
  • saːnedeɜ̃ ‘village’ ← saːnedu- ‘dwell (at)’
-m-
n/adj → n
Derives inanimate nominals of class III which indicate a location associated with the base. Appears as -mɔ- before vowels and resonants, and as -ma- before obstruents. (← *ma ‘place, location’)
  • pɜ̃zim ‘storehouse’ ← pɜ̃z ‘basket’
  • kʰɔjɔm ‘furnace, smelting oven’ ← kʰɔe ‘fire’
+ːre-
n/v/adj → n
Derives inanimate nominals of class III which indicate a region or territory associated with the base. Appears as +ːrɛ- before obstruents. Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *dłeʔa ‘land’)
  • takɔːre ‘the Tjakori plateau’ ← tɔk ‘grass’
+d-
n/adj → n
Derives augmentative or honorific nouns which denote an especially large or respected referent characterised by the base. Appears as +du- before vowels and resonants, and as +dɔ- before obstruents. Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-du-)
  • kʰernɔd ‘ibex, mountain goat’ ← kʰernɔ ‘horn’
  • ñepɜ̃d ‘main gate (of a city or castle)’ ← ñipa ‘door’
+k-
n/v/adj → n
Derives diminutive nouns which denote an especially small or familiar referent characterised by the base. Appears as +ki- before vowels and resonants, and as +ke- before obstruents. Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-kʷi-)
  • namuk ‘toe’ ← nam ‘foot’
  • sarɔk ‘ring’ ← sɜ̃r ‘round’
+ːrɔ-
n/v → n
Derives collective nominals which refer to a group of referents of the base, often with slightly abstract semantics. Appears as +ːra- before obstruents. Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-la- ~ *-ʔla-)
  • kaduːrɔ ‘army’ ← kɜ̃d ‘head’
+r-
v → n
Derives inanimate nominals which indicate the result of the process described the base. Appears as +rɔ- before resonants and as +ra- before obstruents. Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-ła-)
  • tseːtɔr ‘skill, knowledge’ ← tsiːtɔ- ‘teach’
  • waːzɔr ‘death’ ← wɔːzɔ- ‘kill’
+ːru-
n → n
Derives inanimate nominals of classes III to VI which are made from the referent of the base. Appears as +ːrɔ- before obstruents. Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-słu-)
  • tʰɔjɔːru ‘yoghurt’ ← tʰɔe ‘milk’
  • ramiːru ‘jam, jelly, stewed fruit’ ← ram ‘fruit’
+g- /
del+añ-
n/v/adj → n
Derives nominals of classes II, IV, VI or VII which refer to an edible object or substance associated with the base. Appears as del+añ- after nasalised stem vowels and as +gV-/del+añɜ̃- before a consonant (where "V" denotes a copy of the original stem vowel). Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-γ-)
  • zɔpʰug ‘game, prey’ ← zupʰu- ‘hunt’
  • sɛsañ ‘beer’ ← sɛsɜ̃- ‘drink’

Adjectivising suffixes

del-rañ
n/v → adj
Derives adjectives referring to a quality associated with the base. When further suffixes are added, the morpheme appears as del-rañɔ- before vowels and resonants, and as del-raña- before obstruents. (← *łãγa ‘spirit’)
  • tusrañ ‘safe, reliable, comfortable’ ← tuts ‘house, home’
  • gulrañ ‘nervous, agitated, fidgety, erratic, unpredictable, tentative, preliminary’ ← gul ‘fish’
+l / +s
n/v/adj → adj
Derives adjectives referring to a quality associated with the base, often with intensive semantics. The suffix consonant is /l/ with i- and e-stems, and /s/ with other stem vowels. When further suffixes are added, the morpheme appears as +sV-/+lV- (where "V" denotes a copy of the original stem vowel). Often causes irregular vowel alternations in the base. (← *-sV-)
  • jelil ‘quick, swift, agile’ ← jel ‘arrow’
  • wɔmɔs ‘long (in duration)’ ← wɔmɔ- ‘wait’
del-uːm
n → adj
Derives adjectives referring to the state of having or possessing the referent of the base. When further suffixes are added, the morpheme appears as del-uːmɔ- before vowels and resonants, and as del-uːma- before obstruents. (← *-ʔu ʔama ‘with X’)
  • ɔluːm ‘married’ ← ɔla ‘woman, wife’
  • jɜ̃ːkʰuːm ‘sweet’ ← jɜ̃ːkʰ ‘honey’
del-iːm
n → adj
Derives adjectives referring to the state of lacking or missing the referent of the base. When further suffixes are added, the morpheme appears as del-iːmɔ- before vowels and resonants, and as del-iːma- before obstruents. (← *-ʔu ʔiłma ‘without X’)
  • teɔliːm ‘bald’ ← teɔl ‘hair, fur’

Syntax

Noun phrases

Noun phrases in Gezoro are mostly head-final. A noun phrase minimally consists of a head noun, which may optionally be accompanied by one or more modifiers. Permissible modifiers are demonstratives, quantifiers, adjectives, possessive noun phrases, postpositional phrases, or relative clauses. All but the last of these precede the head noun:

nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
a horse
dɔt
dɔt
PROX.II.SG
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
this horse
silet
sili-t
two-CL.II
nɔlrɜ̃lir
nɔlrɜ̃li-r
horse-DU
two horses
gweːt
gwiː-t
big-CL.II
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
a big horse
sabeɔr
sabeɔrɔ
warrior
enɔlrɜ̃l
e-nɔlrɜ̃li
3SG.POSS-horse
the warrior's horse
guram
guramɔ
hill
riːm
riːm
on
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
a horse on a hill


Relative clauses may be placed either before or after the head noun. The former is preferred if the head noun appears in subject position in the matrix clause, if it serves as the complement of a postposition, if it is semantically definite, or if the relative clause is intransitive. The latter is preferred if the head noun appears in object position in the matrix clause, if it is semantically indefinite, or if the relative clause is either transitive or very long.

If a relative clause precedes its referent, the head noun is often preceded by an additional demonstrative, which is in fact obligatory if the preposed relative clause is transitive.

kit
kit
REL.II.SG
jelilets
jelili-ts
quick-ADV
pɜ̃tat
pɜ̃tɔ-Ø-t
run-DIR-3.II
(dɔt)
(dɔt)
(PROX.II.SG)
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
(this) horse which runs quickly
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
kit
kit
REL.II.SG
kɔmɜ̃rɔːkɔe
kɔmɜ̃-rɔːk-kɔe
fear-INFER-3>3.VII
sei
sei
night
a horse that is afraid of the dark


In noun phrases which contain several modifiers, the usual order is as follows:

(relative clause) - (postpositional phrase) - (possessive NP) - (demonstrative) - (adjective) - (quantifier) - head noun - (relative clause)

guram
guramɔ
hill
riːm
riːm
on
sabeɔr
sabeɔrɔ
warrior
dɔtɔr
dɔtɔr
PROX.II.DU
gweːt
gwiː-t
big-CL.II
silet
sili-t
two-CL.II
enɔlrɜ̃lir
e-nɔlrɜ̃li-r
3SG.POSS-horse-DU
kitɔr
kitɔr
REL.II.DU
kɔmɜ̃rɔːkɔe
kɔmɜ̃-rɔːk-kɔe
fear-INFER-3>3.VII
sei
sei
night
these two big warrior's horses on the hill which are afraid of the dark

The above example is ambiguous as to whether the horse or the warrior is standing on the hill. This ambiguity can be resolved by moving the possessor into an additional postpositional phrase, which would precede the locative PP if the locative pertains to the horse. Note that the head noun still retains its possessive prefix (which prevents the following example from being read as "these two big horses on the warrior's hill [...]").

sabeɔr
sabeɔrɔ
warrior
iːzu
iːzu
GEN
guram
guramɔ
hill
riːm
riːm
on
dɔtɔr
dɔtɔr
PROX.II.DU
gweːt
gwiː-t
big-CL.II
silet
sili-t
two-CL.II
enɔlrɜ̃lir
e-nɔlrɜ̃li-r
3SG.POSS-horse-DU
kitɔr
kitɔr
REL.II.DU
kɔmɜ̃rɔːkɔe
kɔmɜ̃-rɔːk-kɔe
fear-INFER-3>3.VII
sei
sei
night
these two big horses on the hill, belonging to the warrior, which are afraid of the dark


The order of demonstrative and quantifier may be reversed in order to convey a partitive meaning. (Technically, the preposed quantifier acts as a separate noun phrase here, which is evident from the fact that it inflects for number in this situation like a noun, something that quantifiers usually don't do.)

gipatak
gipɔ-tɔ-k
few-CL.II-PL
tsetak
tsetak
MED.II.PL
nɔlrɜ̃lek
nɔlrɜ̃li-k
horse-PL
some of those horses

Conjunction of noun phrases

Two or more nouns can be conjoined within a single noun phrase with the enclitic conjunction =ɔːm ‘and, with’. Note that no other word may intervene between the linked nouns, not even a single short modifier. All modifiers preceding the linked nouns will be interpreted as referring to all of them together as a group, and inflect accordingly with regard to number and noun class agreement. If the noun classes are different, the resulting phrase will behave like its highest-ranking component noun with regards to noun class agreement.

dɔtɔr
dɔtɔr
PROX.II.DU
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
mamɔːm
mamu
sheep
 
=ɔːm
=and
this horse and this sheep

The same conjunction can also be used to connect two or more different modifiers of the same type:

gweːt
gwiː-t
big-CL.II
jelilɔːm
jelili
quick
 
=ɔːm
=and
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
a big and fast horse

Another prominent use for this conjunction is the formation of complex numerals (see above), which is arguably a subtype of the modifier-combining construction.


In order to link two distinct noun phrases to each other, the free-standing conjunctions tsɔ ‘and’ or sɔu ‘or’ can be used. Each noun phrase retains all its modifiers.

dɔt
dɔt
PROX.II.SG
kʰɜːt
kʰɜ̃ː-t
black-CL.II
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
tset
tset
MED.II.SG
weːlet
weːli-t
white-CL.II
mam
mamu
sheep
this black horse and that white sheep

Nominal predicates

Nominal predicates are formed with a zero copula, optionally augmented with the narrative particle kut (which is glossed as pred for "predicative" in this situation):

Nɔ
nɔ
1SG
(kut)
(kut)
(PRED)
sɛtʰuna.
se-tʰunɜ̃
2SG.POSS-father
I am your father.

Clauses

Subject and object

The basic word order of Gezoro has shifted to SVO, likely motivated at least in part by the loss of morphological case. Accordingly, intransitive clauses typically consist of a subject noun phrase followed by a verb, and transitive clauses typically consist of a subject noun phrase followed by a verb followed by an object noun phrase.

Nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
pɜ̃tat.
pɜ̃tɔ-Ø-t
run-DIR-3.II
The horse runs.
Mam
mamu
sheep
wetsɔkaːx
wetsu-Ø-kaːx
eat_vegetables-DIR-3>3.VI
tɔk.
tɔkɔ
grass
The sheep eats grass.

Because the core participants of a verb are tracked by agreement morphology, both the subject and the object noun phrase may be omitted if they are easily recoverable from context, which is especially common if at least one of the referents is a speech act participant. As a result, a clause can minimally consist of only an inflected verb:

Jasɔtʰɔnɛt.
jasɔtʰɔ-Ø-nɛt
kill-DIR-1>3.II
I killed it (an animal).

Oblique arguments

Gezoro has no true ditransitive verbs, although it has a few verbs which require implicit reference to at least three noun phrases. For most of these verbs, the indirect object is expressed as a mandatory postpositional phrase. The unmarked position for this phrase is immediately before the verb, although it may switch places with the direct object in order to receive pragmatic focus. It should be noted that clauses with three participants almost always contain a conjunction or adverb in Wackernagel position directly after the subject, which renders the syntactic boundary between the two preverbal constituents more explicit.

Min
minɔ
mother
kut
kut
NARR
enɔrɔːla
e-nɔrɔːlɜ̃
3SG.POSS-girl
dɔ
dɔ
for
uːlɔːzekats
uːlɔ-ːzi-kats
give-SRC-3>3.IV
nɜ̃u.
nɜ̃wi
brooch
The mother gave her daughter a brooch.
Min
minɔ
mother
kut
kut
NARR
nɜ̃u
nɜ̃wi
brooch
uːlɔːzekats
uːlɔ-ːzi-kats
give-SRC-3>3.IV
enɔrɔːla
e-nɔrɔːlɜ̃
3SG.POSS-girl
dɔ.
dɔ
for
The mother gave a brooch to her daughter [and not to someone else].

Other postpositional phrases relating to the clause as a whole usually follow the same distribution rules, even if they are not mandatory and/or if there is no (overt) direct object.

Nɔ
nɔ
1SG
suːrɔ
suːrɔ
soon
sɛkʰuːru
sɛkʰuːru
forest
merɜ̃i
merɜ̃i
between
plɔun.
plɔu-Ø-n
walk-DIR-1
I'm going to walk in the forest.
Mam
mamu
sheep
guram
guramɔ
hill
riːm
riːm
on
wetsɔkaːx
wetsu-Ø-kaːx
eat_vegetables-DIR-3>3.VI
tɔk.
tɔkɔ
grass
The sheep eats grass on the hill.
Mam
mamu
sheep
wetsɔkaːx
wetsu-Ø-kaːx
eat_vegetables-DIR-3>3.VI
tɔk
tɔkɔ
grass
guram
guramɔ
hill
riːm.
riːm
on
The sheep eats grass on the hill [and not somewhere else].

However, only a single constituent (postpositional phrase or direct object) may be placed immediately before the verb. If there are two or more clause-level postpositional phrases, a PP which refers to an animate beneficiary, recipient, or experiencer is most likely to appear in preverbal position. All other clause-level PPs are placed clause-finally, or clause-initially if they are topicalised.

Nɔk
nɔk
1PL.EXCL
niː
niː
thus
juːr
juːr
3DU.I
mɔ
mɔ
with
plɔun
plɔu-Ø-n
walk-DIR-1
riːnɔ
riːnɔ
valley
gɔwaz
gɔwaz
from
gwejɛk
gweje-k
mountain-PL
kɜ̃ːts.
kɜ̃ːts
towards
So we walked from the valley to the mountains together with the two of them.

Adverbs

One-word adverbs are usually placed in Wackernagel position immediately after the first constituent in the clause (typically the subject). This is extremely common; it is estimated that more than 50% of all sentences in Gezoro contain at least one adverb. As a result, many adverbs have undergone semantic bleaching to some extent, so that e.g. the narrative particle kut means little more than "this sentence says something about some kind of event".

Nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
jelilets
jelili-ts
quick-ADV
rɔñeɜ̃
rɔñeɜ̃
field
mera
mera
along
pɜ̃tat.
pɜ̃tɔ-Ø-t
run-DIR-3.II
The horse quickly ran across the field.
Mam
mamu
sheep
kut
kut
NARR
wetsɔkaːx
wetsu-Ø-kaːx
eat_vegetables-DIR-3>3.VI
tɔk.
tɔkɔ
grass
The sheep ate some grass.

The Wackernagel position may be filled by several adverbs at once:

Jɔːk
jɔːk
3PL.I
suːrɔ
suːrɔ
soon
mu
mu
EMPH
trupʰuːkats
trupʰe-uː-kats
find-ASSUM-3>3.IV
sɛsarɔk.
se-sarɔki
2SG.POSS-ring
They will surely find your ring soon.

Some words that would be conjunctions in other languages appear in the adverb slot in Gezoro:

Rɜ̃ːsurɔu
rɜ̃ːsuruː
enemy
wɔːzakɔu
wɔːzɔ-Ø-kɔu
kill-DIR-3>3.I
nɔmin,
nɔ-minɔ
1SG.POSS-mother
nɔtʰuna
nɔ-tʰunɜ̃
1SG.POSS-father
kʰel
kʰel
however
wɔːzakɔu
wɔːzɔ-Ø-kɔu
kill-DIR-3>3.I
tsɔu.
tsɔu
MED.I.SG
The enemy killed my mother, but my father killed him.

Rarely, certain adverbs may also appear at the beginning or at the end of a sentence. The former usually indicates that the adverb is topicalised, and the latter mostly functions as a kind of afterthought.

Miñuːm,
miñuːm
once_upon_a_time
lɔːjɔek
lɔːjɔe-k
god-PL
kut
kut
NARR
kʰiñɔtʰabakɔl
kʰiñɔtʰɔ-bɜ̃-kɔl
build-HSY-3>3.III
gwiːjɜ̃.
gwiːjɜ̃
world
Once upon a time, the gods created the world.
Sɔk
sɔk
1PL.INCL
mu
mu
EMPH
kʰɛːzɔnɜ̃u
kʰɛːzɔ-Ø-nɜ̃u
destroy-DIR-1>3.I
rɜ̃ːsurɔːk
rɜ̃ːsuruː-k
enemy-PL
...
gɜ̃s!
gɜ̃s
finally
We will defeat the enemies ... eventually!

Negation

In order to negate a whole clause, the word jekɔt ‘not’ is placed in the adverb slot:

Kur
kuru
wolf
jekɔt
jekɔt
NEG
jasɔtʰrɔːkat
jasɔtʰɔ-rɔːk-kat
kill-INFER-3>3.II
mam.
mamu
sheep
The wolf did not kill the sheep.

Individual constituents can be negated with the quantifier je- ‘no, none’:

Kur
kuru
wolf
jasɔtʰrɔːkat
jasɔtʰɔ-rɔːk-kat
kill-INFER-3>3.II
jet
je-t
none-CL.II
mam.
mamu
sheep
The wolf did not kill the sheep [but it killed something else].
(lit. The wolf killed no sheep)
Jet
je-t
none-CL.II
kur
kuru
wolf
jasɔtʰrɔːkat
jasɔtʰɔ-rɔːk-kat
kill-INFER-3>3.II
mam.
mamu
sheep
It was not the wolf who killed the sheep [but something else did].
(lit. No wolf killed the sheep)

Questions

Polar yes-no-questions are formed by adding the interrogative particle gwei at the end of the sentence:

Tɔ
tɔ
2SG
jɜ̃sɔtsɜ̃u
jɜ̃su-Ø-tsɜ̃u
love-DIR-2>3.I
tʰɔu
tʰɔu
DIST.I.SG
ɔla
ɔlɜ̃
woman
gwei?
gwei
Q
Do you like that woman?

They are usually answered with one of the adverbs mu ‘really, indeed’, niː ‘so, thus, in this way’, pʰeːts ‘maybe, possibly’ or jekɔt ‘not’. A clausal answer is also possible, often consisting only of an inflected verb with a fairly generic meaning, for instance tʰɔu- ‘do, make’.


Content questions typically use a noun phrase with an interrogative determiner in order to inquire about that constituent, which is often topic-fronted (especially if it is expressed as a postpositional phrase).

Tɔ
tɔ
2SG
jɜ̃sɔtsɜ̃u
jɜ̃su-Ø-tsɜ̃u
love-DIR-2>3.I
guː
guː
which.I.SG
ɔla?
ɔlɜ̃
woman
Which woman do you like?
Gwil
gwil
which.III.SG
dea
dea
place
tɔb
tɔb
at
nɔrɔk
nɔ-rɔki
1SG.POSS-boy
sikɜ̃u?
sikɜ̃-Ø-u
stand-DIR-3.I
Where is my son?
Gwiː
gwiː
which.VII.SG
ruːmɜ̃
ruːmɜ̃
method
mek
mek
by_means_of
trɜ̃
trɜ̃
again
trupʰenatʰ?
trupʰe-Ø-natʰ
find-DIR-1>2
How will I find you?
Gwiː
gwiː
which.VII.SG
ert
ert
reason
mɔ
mɔ
with
tɔk
tɔk
2PL
tsuːra
tsuːrɜ̃
mountain_range
gɔu
gɔu
near
tuts
tutsɔ
house
kɜ̃ːts
kɜ̃ːts
towards
plɔutʰ?
plɔu-Ø-tʰ
walk-DIR-2
Why did you go to the house in the mountains?

If the referent is recoverable from context, it is often also possible to use the interrogative word on its own, as a pronoun:

Guː
guː
which.I.SG
weːzɔrɔːkatʰ?
weːzɔ-rɔːk-katʰ
hurt-INFER-3>2
Who hurt you?
Kur
kuru
wolf
jasɔtʰrɔːkat
jasɔtʰɔ-rɔːk-kat
kill-INFER-3>3.II
gwit?
gwit
which.II.SG
What kind of animal did the wolf kill?

Complex sentences

Coordination

Clauses can be coordinated with the conjunctions tsɔ ‘and’ or sɔu ‘or’, which are simply placed between the two clauses.

Nɔ
nɔ
1SG
jɜ̃sunɛt
jɜ̃su-Ø-nɛt
love-DIR-1>3.I
nɔlrɜ̃lek
nɔlrɜ̃li-k
horse-PL
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
natʰɜ̃ːp
nɔ-tʰɜ̃ːpi
1SG.POSS-sister
jɜ̃sɔːzekat
jɜ̃su-ːzi-kat
love-SRC-3>3.I
mamɔk.
mamu-k
sheep-PL
I like horses and my sister likes sheep.
Sɔr
sɔr
1DU.INCL
mu
mu
EMPH
zukɔn
zukɔ-Ø-n
be_quiet-DIR-1
sɔu
sɔu
or
jɔːk
jɔːk
3PL.I
trupʰuːkɔn!
trupʰe-uː-kɔn
find-ASSUM-3>1
Either we're quiet or they'll find us!

Arguments which are shared between two coordinated clauses may be gapped if they appear in the same role in both clauses (i.e. if both are subjects or if both are direct objects). However, arguments which appear as the subject in one clause and as the object in the other may not be gapped.

Jɔu
jɔu
3SG.I
guram
guramɔ
hill
ɛgrid
e-gridu
3SG.POSS-summit
kɜ̃ːts
kɜ̃ːts
towards
plɔubɜ̃u
plɔu-bɜ̃-u
walk-HSY-3.I
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
[...]
[...]
[...]
tseːre
tseːre
there
kʰiñɔtʰabakɔl
kʰiñɔtʰɔ-bɜ̃-kɔl
build-HSY-3>3.III
tuts.
tutsɔ
house
They say he went up the hill and built a house there.
(gapped subject)
Rɔːk
rɔː-k
man-PL
kut
kut
NARR
zupʰrɔːkat
zupʰu-rɔːk-kat
hunt-INFER-3>3.II
neikad
neikadu
deer
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
ɔlak
ɔlɜ̃-k
woman-PL
ɜ̃tɔːrurɔːkat
ɜ̃tɔːru-rɔːk-kat
cook-INFER-3>3.II
[...].
[...]
[...]
The men hunted the deer and the women cooked it.
(gapped object)
Ker
kerɔ
child
kʰɛːzɔrɔːkug
kʰɛːzɔ-rɔːk-kug
destroy-INFER-3>3.V
jel
jeli
arrow
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
ɛtʰuna
e-tʰunɜ̃
3SG.POSS-father
duk
duk
therefore
xeːzɔlekɔu
xeːzɔli-Ø-kɔu
scold-DIR-3>3.I
jɔu.
jɔu
3SG.I
The child broke the arrow and his father scolded him.
(ker ‘child’ is subject in the first clause and object in the second clause, so the resumptive pronoun jɔu cannot be omitted.)

Complement clauses

In order to use a clause as the subject or object of a verb, the subordinating conjunction jɔl is added at the end of the clause, effectively turning into a class VII noun. Since complement clauses must always precede the matrix verb in Gezoro, they are mandatorily topic-fronted when they appear in an object role.

Weːzrɔːtsɜ̃u
weːzɔ-rɔːk-tsɜ̃u
hurt-INFER-2>3.I
dɔu
dɔu
PROX.I.SG
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
mu
mu
EMPH
mɜ̃rilezakɔn
mɜ̃rili-zɔ-Ø-kɔn
angry-CAUS-DIR-3>1
nɔ.
nɔ
1SG
That you injured him made me angry.
Xeːsɔːzetʰ
xeːsu-ːzi-tʰ
arrive-SRC-2
dɔːre
dɔːre
here
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
nɔr
nɔr
1DU.EXCL
nɜ̃unei.
nɜ̃u-Ø-nei
believe-DIR-1>3.VII
We thought that you were coming.
Giːlɛkɔtʰ
giːlɛkɔ-Ø-tʰ
listen-DIR-2
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
nɔ
nɔ
1SG
siːnei.
siː-Ø-nei
want-DIR-1>3.VII
I want you to listen to me.

Adverbial clauses

There are two types of adverbial clauses in Gezoro, both formed as subtypes of postpositional phrases.

The first variant is formally identical to a complement clause but subordinated to a (mandatorily topic-fronted) postposition:

Mɔːri
mɔːri
bear
wetsɔkɔe
wetsu-Ø-kɔe
eat_vegetables-DIR-3>3.VII
jɜ̃ːkʰ
jɜ̃ːkʰɔ
honey
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
mɔ,
mɔ
with
nɔr
nɔr
1DU.EXCL
pɜ̃tɔːzunɛt.
pɜ̃tɔːzu-Ø-nɛt
escape-DIR-1>3.II
We sneaked away from the bear while it was eating honey.

The second type of adverbial clause uses a gerund form of the verb as the complement of a postposition, optionally preceded by any overt arguments in a XSOV structure (i.e. topicalised oblique, subject, direct object, verb).

Nɔk
nɔk
1PL.EXCL
saːnedeɜ̃
saːnedeɜ̃
village
gɔwaz
gɔwaz
from
plɔwɔːzun
plɔwɔːzu-Ø-n
leave-DIR-1
sɛxeːsuga
se-xeːsu-ga
2SG.POSS-arrive-GER
numu.
numu
before
We left the village before you arrived.
Kʰɔjɔm
kʰɔjɔmɔ
furnace
suː
suː
inside
mɔkʰɔd
mɔkʰɔdu
metal
eramɔtʰugama
e-ramɔtʰɔ-ugɜ̃-ga
3SG.POSS-heat_up-3.V-GER
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
xeːzɜ̃
xeːzɜ̃
hammer
weːnɜ̃u
weːnɜ̃u
using
jeːzugama
e-eːzi-ugɜ̃-ga
3SG.POSS-sculpt-3.V-GER
mek,
mek
by_means_of
mɔkʰɔːrɔu
mɔkʰɔːruː
smith
niː
niː
thus
iseːzekug
iseːzi-Ø-kug
forge-DIR-3>3.V
wesɔɜ̃.
wesɔɜ̃
sword
By means of heating up metal within a furnace and shaping it with a hammer, the smith forges a sword.

Sample text

The horse and the sheep

Nɔlrɜ̃l mamɔkɔːm.

Miñuːm nɔlrɜ̃l kut guram ɛgrid riːm sikaːzet tsɔ gɜ̃pɔːzekat gipat mamɔk. Ɔla dɔːre tʰurbɛsɔkat takɔd mam, ker tseːre tʰɔːjaːtakat silidɔt, tsɔ rɔː tʰɔːre jasɔtʰakat naːtudɔt. Jɔmeɔːk kɛkʰɔe nɔnat, matsɔd mam tsatsɔr ɜ̃tɔːruːmat.

Nɔlrɜ̃l kut tɔkat tset mamɔk kɜ̃ːts naːmeːzekɔe: "Jɔmeɔːk niː mamɔk iːzaːpɔrɔːkat jɔl weːzakɔn."

Mam kʰel pʰɜ̃reːzekɔeː "Giːlɛkɔtʰ jɔl nɔ siːnei. Jɔmeɔːk kɛna zupʰrɔːkat tsɔ jɜ̃saːpɔrɔːkat nɔlrɜ̃l kit jelilets pɜ̃tuːt jɔl, dɔe mu weːzakɔn nɔ! Jɔːk jekɔt wɜ̃zrɔːkɔe ruːmɜ̃ kiː jɔːk mɛkiːzaːpuːkɔe sejelilet. Jɔːk kʰel suːrɔ wɜ̃zugɔːpuːkɔe jei. Tsei gil mɔ, tɔ tsɔr mu tʰiːjuːtsɜ̃u jɔmeɔːk kɛgweːbu!"

Lɔkaːzeːkɔe dɔe jɔl tʰeu, nɔlrɜ̃l kut jelilets pɜ̃tɔːzɔːzet kʰiːleɜ̃ kɜ̃ːts.

Interlinear gloss

Nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
mamɔkɔːm.
mamu-k
sheep-PL
 
=ɔːm
=and
The horse and the sheep.


Miñuːm
miñuːm
once_upon_a_time
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
kut
kut
NARR
guram
guramɔ
hill
ɛgrid
e-gridu
3SG.POSS-summit
riːm
riːm
on
sikaːzet
sikɜ̃-ːzi-t
stand-SRC-3.II
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
gɜ̃pɔːzekat
gɜ̃pu-ːzi-kat
watch-SRC-3>3.II
gipat
gipɔ-t
some-II
mamɔk.
mamu-k
sheep-PL
One day, a horse was standing on top of a hill and watching some sheep.
Ɔla
ɔla
woman
dɔːre
dɔːre
here
tʰurbɛsɔkat
tʰurbɛsɔ-Ø-kat
shear-DIR-3>3.II
takɔd
tɔkɔ+du
one-ORD
mam,
mamu
sheep
Here a woman was shearing the first sheep,
ker
kerɔ
child
tseːre
tseːre
there
tʰɔːjaːtakat
tʰɔːjaːtɔ-Ø-kat
milk-DIR-3>3.II
silidɔt,
sili+du-t
two-ORD-II
there a child was milking a second one,
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
rɔː
rɔː
man
tʰɔːre
tʰɔːre
yonder
jasɔtʰakat
jasɔtʰɔ-Ø-kat
slaughter-DIR-3>3.II
naːtudɔt.
nɔːtu+du-t
three-ORD-II
and over there a man was slaughtering a third one.
Jɔmeɔːk
jɔmeɔː-k
person-PL
kɛkʰɔe
ke-kʰɔe
3PL.POSS-fire
nɔnat,
nɔnat,
above,
matsɔd
mɜ̃tsɔ+du
four-ORD
mam
mamu
sheep
tsatsɔr
tsatsɔr
moreover
ɜ̃tɔːruːmat.
ɜ̃tɔːru-ːmɜ̃-Ø-t
cook-PASS-DIR-3.II
Over the people's fire, a fourth sheep was being cooked.


Nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
kut
kut
NARR
tɔkat
tɔkɔ-t
one-II
tset
tset
MED.II
mamɔk
mamu-k
sheep-PL
kɜ̃ːts
kɜ̃ːts
towards
naːmeːzekɔe:
naːmi-ːzi-kɔe
say-SRC-3>3.VII
The horse said to one of the sheepː
"Jɔmeɔːk
jɔmeɔː-k
person-PL
niː
niː
thus
mamɔk
mamu-k
sheep-PL
iːzaːpɔrɔːkat
iːzaːpɔ-rɔːk-kat
touch-INFER-3>3.II
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
weːzakɔn."
weːzɔ-Ø-kɔn
hurt-DIR-3>1
"It hurts me to see humans using sheep like this."


Mam
mamu
sheep
kʰel
kʰel
however
pʰɜ̃reːzekɔeː
pʰɜ̃ri-ːzi-kɔe
answer-SRC-3>3.VII
But the sheep repliedː
"Giːlɛkɔtʰ
giːlɛkɔ-Ø-tʰ
listen-DIR-2
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
nɔ
nɔ
1SG
siːnei."
siː-Ø-nei
want-DIR-1>3.VII
"I want you to listen to me."
"Jɔmeɔːk
jɔmeɔː-k
person-PL
kɛna
kɛna
in_fact
zupʰrɔːkat
zupʰu-rɔːk-kat
hunt-INFER-3>3.II
tsɔ
tsɔ
and
jɜ̃saːpɔrɔːkat
jɜ̃saːpɔ-rɔːk-kat
eat_meat-INFER-3>3.II
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
kit
kit
REL.II.SG
jelilets
jelili-ts
quick-ADV
pɜ̃tuːt
pɜ̃tɔ-uː-t
run-ASSUM-3.II
jɔl,"
jɔl
SUB
"That humans actually hunt and eat the horse who runs swiftly,"
"dɔe
dɔe
PROX.VII.SG
mu
mu
EMPH
weːzakɔn
weːzɔ-Ø-kɔn
hurt-DIR-3>1
nɔ!"
nɔ
1SG
"this is what hurts me!"
"Jɔːk
jɔːk
3PL.I
jekɔt
jekɔt
NEG
wɜ̃zrɔːkɔe
wɜ̃zɔ-rɔːk-kɔe
know-INFER-3>3.VII
ruːmɜ̃
ruːmɜ̃
method
kiː
kiː
REL.VII.SG
jɔːk
jɔːk
3PL.I
mɛkiːzaːpuːkɔe
mɛk-iːzaːpɔ-uː-kɔe
INSTR.APPL-touch-ASSUM-3>3.VI
sejelilet."
se-jelili-t
2SG.POSS-quick-NMLZ
"They do not know how to use your swiftness."
"Jɔːk
jɔːk
3PL.I
kʰel
kʰel
however
suːrɔ
suːrɔ
soon
wɜ̃zugɔːpuːkɔe
wɜ̃zugɔːpe-uː-kɔe
learn-ASSUM-3>3.VII
jei."
jei
3SG.VII
"But they will soon learn it."
"Tsei
tsei
MED.VII
gil
gile
day
mɔ,
mɔ,
with,
tɔ
tɔ
2SG
tsɔr
tsɔr
also
mu
mu
EMPH
tʰiːjuːtsɜ̃u
tʰiː-uː-tsɜ̃u
become-ASSUM-2>3.I
jɔmeɔːk
jɔmeɔː-k
person-PL
kɛgweːbu!"
ke-gweːbu
3PL.POSS-servant
"On that day, you will also become a servant of the humans!"


Lɔkaːzeːkɔe
lɔkɜ̃-ːzi-kɔe
hear-SRC-3>3.VII
dɔe
dɔe
PROX.VII.SG
jɔl
jɔl
SUB
tʰeu,
tʰeu
after,
nɔlrɜ̃l
nɔlrɜ̃li
horse
kut
kut
NARR
jelilets
jelili-ts
quick-ADV
pɜ̃tɔːzɔːzet
pɜ̃tɔːzu-ːzi-t
escape-SRC-3.II
kʰiːleɜ̃
kʰiːleɜ̃
steppe
kɜ̃ːts.
kɜ̃ːts
towards
After hearing this, the horse quickly fled into the plain.

See also

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