Mhakh Thandim

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To Be Continued...
CatDoom is still working on this article. The contents are incomplete and likely to undergo changes.
Rob wí Mhakh Thandim
[rɔp wi m̥əx θənˈdɪm]
Period c. 1 YP
Spoken in central Kè mountains
Total speakers unknown
Writing system none
Classification Ronquian
 Mhakh Thandim
Typology
Basic word order SVO
Morphology mostly isolating
Alignment NOM-ACC
Credits
Created by CatDoom

Rob wí Mhakh Thandim ("Language of the First Tribe"), hereafter Mhakh Thandim, is a Ronquian dialect cluster spoken amidst the foothills and alpine valleys of the central Kè mountains (MT. P’ungk'a nikh Kbán) in northwest Tuysáfa around 1 YP.

Phonology

Consonants

Although the nature of Mhakh Thandim consonant clusters (see below) makes it somewhat difficult to analyze the underlying phonemes found in syllable onsets, the more conservative dialects are generally described as having the following inventory of 27 consonants.

 labial   coronal   palatal   dorsal   glottal 
plosives p' · pʰ · p t' · tʰ · t k' · kʰ · k ʔ
fricatives ɸ · f θ · s x · χ h
nasals m̥ · m n̥ · n ŋ̊ · ŋ
approximants w l · r j

It is possible to analyze Mhakh Thandim's aspirated and ejective stops and voiceless nasals as underlying consonant clusters, but due to the frequency with which they are attested relative to ejective fricatives and voicless or glottalized approximants they will be treated as unitary phonemes for the purposes of this document.

Mhakh Thandim has an unusual inventory of fricatives, which may be divided into two groups: /f/, /s/ and /χ/ are termed "strident", while /ɸ/, /θ/, /x/, and /h/ are termed "spirant". The spirant fricatives have a more limited distribution than their strident counterparts, and the two series contrast only in single-consonant syllable onsets. In this position, the place contrast between the two series is enhanced by an additional tense/lax distinction, with the strident fricatives being pronounced longer and more forcefully than their spirant counterparts.

The consonants are romanized as follows:

  • /p' pʰ p t' tʰ t k' kʰ k ʔ/ p' p b t' t d k' k g c
  • /f ɸ s θ χ x h/ f ph s th x kh h
  • /m m̥ n n̥ ŋ ŋ̊/ m mh n nh ng ngh
  • /w l r j/ w l r y

Vowels

Mhakh Thandim has a large inventory of 10 contrasting vowel qualities, which may be grouped into five tense/lax pairs.

 front   central   back 
high i · ɪ u · ʊ
mid e · ɛ ə o · ɔ
low a

The mid-central vowel /ə/ is generally regarded as the lax counterpart of the low-central vowel /a/.

In addition, most dialects of Mhakh Thandim have two diphthongs, both of them closing and falling: /aɪ̯ aʊ̯/. These are treated as tense vowels for the purpose of determining stress.

The vowel qualities are written as follows:

  • /ɪ ɛ ə ɔ ʊ/ i e a o u
  • /i e a o u/ í é á ó ú
  • /aɪ̯ aʊ̯/ ai au

Register

All vowels in Mhakh Thandim may be contrastively realized with modal or breathy voice, and breathy-voiced vowels are additionally pronounced longer than the corresponding modally-voiced vowels, and at a notably lower pitch. Breathy-voiced vowels make up a relatively small percentage of lexical vowels, but a shift from modal to breathy voice also serves as the primary method of marking the plural number in nouns. Orthographically, breathy-voiced lax are marked with a macron, and breathy-voiced tense vowels with a circumflex; for instance, /ə̤/ would be represented as <ā>, and /a̤/ as <â>. Only the first component of a diphthong is marked in this manner, as in <âi>.

Phonotactics

Syllables in Mhakh Thandim have the basic structure (C)(C)V(X), where X may be any nasal, plain stop (including /ʔ/), or spirant fricative. Additionally, the approximants /w/, /l/, and /r/ may appear as coda consonants in intervocalic consonant clusters, but never word-finally. A syllable onset may consist of any of the following:

  • No consonant
  • Any single consonant
  • A plain stop, strident fricative, voiced nasal, or /h/ followed by an approximant
  • A plain stop followed by a strident fricative
  • An aspirated stop followed by a non-homorganic plain stop, voiceless nasal, or approximant (which becomes voiceless)
  • A strident fricative, nasal, or approximant and /ʔ/ (realized as an ejective fricative or glottalized sonorant)
  • A strident fricative followed by a plain stop or non-identical strident fricative
  • A nasal followed by a homorganic plain stop (which becomes voiced)
  • Any two non-identical approximants in any order

Intervocalic consonant clusters may consist of up to three segments, in cases where a syllable with a coda consonant is followed by one with an onset cluster.

Allophony and Phonetic Detail

  • With the exception of the interdental /θ/, “coronal” consonants may be freely realized as dental or alveolar.
  • Ejectives in Mhakh Thandim are relatively "weak", being distinguished from plain stops and fricatives primarily by a longer voice-onset time followed by a short interval of creaky phonation.
  • Vowels are likewise partly glottalized adjacent to glottal stops, and complete glottal closure may not be achieved at all during rapid speech.
  • Glottalized sonorants may be preglottalized or pronounced with creaky voice throughout their duration, and in either case the glottal constriction extends onto any preceding vowel.
  • "Voiceless" nasals in Mhakh Thandim are only partially devoiced, with a voice onset time longer than that of a plain nasal but shorter than that of a plain stop.
  • Not all dialects preserve the distinction between /f/ and /ɸ/ and between /x/ and /χ/. In some one or both of these pairs have merged, while in others one or more of the spirant fricatives have been debuccalized to /h/. /θ/, which is an unusually common phoneme in Mhakh Thandim, is usually exempt from these mergers, though in a few villages it has merged with the plain stop /t/ word-initially.
  • /r/ is more or less consistently realized as a trilled [r] initially and in clusters (though it is devoiced to [r̥] following aspirated stops) and as a flapped [ɾ] intervocalically.
  • /l/ is generally in free variation with velarized /ɫ/, though the distribution of the latter varies significantly by dialect. In some varieties /l/ is never velarized, while in others it is entirely replaced by /ɫ/, and in some there is a regular alternation between /l/ and /ɫ/ before front and back vowels, respectively.
  • In most dialects the lax vowel /ə/ is in roughly free variation with /ɐ/, with the latter realization being particularly common in stressed syllables and adjacent to dorsal consonants.
  • Mhakh Thandim's breathy register is realized differently depending on the phonetic environment:
    • In syllables beginning with a vowel, approximant, plain nasal, spirant fricative, or plain stop, the onset of breathy phonation usually corresponds closely with the beginning of the syllable, coloring the pronunciation of the onset consonant.
    • Strident fricatives and aspirated stops are always voiceless, and the onset of breathy phonation following one of these sounds is the same as the regular voice onset time of a modal register syllable. Likewise, in a syllable beginning with a "voiceless" nasal, the initial voicelessness of the onset transitions directly into breathy voice.
    • Because the glottal constriction in ejectives, glottal stops, and glottalized sonorants influences the phonation of surrounding vowels, these consonants can delay the onset of breathy voice or cause it to end prematurely. In rapid speach, no perceptible breathiness may be achieved at all, and breathy-register syllables in the vicinity of glottalized consonants may be distinguished solely by length and/or tone.

Stress

Mhakh Thandim has a non-phonemic dynamic accent which always falls on the first syllable in a word that has a tense vowel, or on the final syllable of a word with only lax vowels.

Types of Words

Verbs

Mhakh Thandim grammar relies heavily on word order and anylytic serial verb constructions, and has no regular inflectional verbal morphology. Verbs are distinguished as inherently transitive or intransitive, and an intransitive verb cannot behave as a trasitive verb (or vice-versa) without the aid of an auxiliary verb or explicit derivational marker.

Nouns

Nouns in Mhakh Thandim are marked only for number.

A fundamental distinction is also made between animate and inanimate nouns, though animacy is not explicitly marked on the noun. Inanimate nouns may additionally be distinguished as count nouns or mass nouns.

Number

Animate nouns are always considered singular in their least-marked form, and are regularly marked for the plural number by shifting the first syllable from the modal register to the breathy register.

  • thim "person, individual" → thīm "people, individuals"
  • p’olóm "lion" → p’ōlóm "lions"

A number of animate nouns have irregular or suppletive plural forms:

  • thin "ewe, sheep (less marked) → tná "ewes, sheep (less marked)"
  • nakh "mare, horse (less marked) → kad "mares, horses (less marked)"

A few animate nouns begin in a breathy syllable in their singular form and remain unchanged in the plural.

  • î "fish, fishes"
  • īnīn "daughter, daughters"

In addition to the simple plural, animate nouns have a collective plural, marked with the infix ⟨and⟩, which follows the onset consonant(s) of the first syllable. In nouns beginning with a vowel, this becomes the prefix d-.

  • nin "nannygoat, goat (less marked)" → nandin "herd of goats"
  • thim "person" → thandim "tribe, people, ethnic group"

Some collective animate nouns, mostly generic kinship terms, are not derived from any productive root, however.

  • k'andath "grandparents"
  • handú "siblings"

Inanimate count nouns are not morphologically marked for number, but may be modified by numerals and quantifiers. Inanimate mass nouns, however, may take the paucal infix ⟨iy⟩, which expresses that the noun is present in a small or insufficient quantity. With nouns beginning in a vowel, this becomes the prefix y-.

  • ti "food" → tiyi "a little food, not enough food"
  • phid "oak woodland" → phiyid "oak grove, a few oaks"

The paucal infix is also sometimes used with collective animate nouns, but this is less common.

  • niyandin "a small herd of goats"

Pronouns and Determiners

Personal Pronouns

Pronouns in Mhakh Thandim mark three grammatical numbers: the singular, used to refer to exactly one referent, the paucal, used to refer to a relatively small number of referents, and the plural, used to refer to a relatively large number of referents. There are no strict rules governing when the paucal number should be used as opposed to the plural, and the frequency with which each is used varies considerably depending on the dialect and the individual speaker.

The third person pronouns also distinguish between animate and inanimate referents, and number is handled somewhat differently for the latter. The inanimate plural is used to refer to uncountable masses and collective groups, in addition to groups of multiple countable objects. Likewise, the paucal may be interpreted as referring to a small quantity of a substance or a small group of creatures, depending on the referent.

animate inanimate
singular paucal plural singular paucal plural
1 na tna hai 1
2 mung tmung wí 2
3 ki tgi gli 3 mro tro to

Indefinite Determiners

Mhakh Thandim lacks simple indefinite pronouns (such as the English "someone" or "something"), instead making use of two indefinite determiners: ísó (used with animate referents) and esó (used with inanimate referents). These are used in conjunction with nouns, most commonly generic “dummy nouns" like thim, "person" and thú, "thing," but more specific nouns may be used as well.

  • ísó thim "somebody"
  • ísó sakh "some creature"
  • ísó hókh "some woman"
  • esó thú "something"
  • esó hong "some place"
  • esó sambá "some plant"

etc.

Demonstratives

Makh Thandim makes use of three demonstratives, which distinguish only a single degree of spatial deixis. The demonstratives ka and fi can both be translated as "this" or "that," referring to animate and inanimate referents respectively, while nhu is best translated as "the other". These may only be used adnominally, but demonstrative pronouns can be created by pairing them with generic nouns, as with the indefinite determiners.

Interrogative Determiners

Rather than interrogative pronouns, Makh Thandim makes use of the interrogative determiners khau and khén, both best translated as "what?", which, like other determiners, may be used pronominally by combining them with a noun. Khau is used with animate referents, while khén is used with inanimates:

  • khau thim "what person? who?"
  • khau sakh "what creature?"
  • khén thú "what thing? what?"

etc.

Indefinite Quantifiers

  • se "no, none"; sdoth "neither (of two)"; tre "none of the three"
  • t’e "any (of many)"; t’oth "either (of two)"; tat’oth "any of the three"
  • cí "some, few, a few"; ngai "a little, a small amount (of an uncountable mass)"
  • ni "many"; ndé "a lot, much, a large amount (of an uncountable mass)"
  • de "every (of a countable number)"; nath "both"; tna "all three"; nā "all (of a countable number)"
  • hath "each (of a collective group)"; wath "all (of an uncountable mass), the entire, every (of a collective group)"

Numerals

Mhakh Thandim uses a mixed base-6/base-24 counting system similar to that found in the nearby Ronc Tyu language. The basic numerals are:

cardinal multiplier ordinal
1 p’ikh bikh mhakh
2 hí cí gso
3 t’uc duc ndoc
4 phau pau
5 fang wang
6 sa la
12 sath
18 hú
24 thám

Prepositions

Many grammatical relationships marked with preposition in English are handled in Mhakh Thandim using serial verb constructions (see below). However, there are a small number of prepositions used for marking spatial and genitive relationships between noun phrases.

Locative Prepositions

The most common locative prepositions are:

  • kath "near, next to"
  • nge "across from, facing"
  • ngu "east of"
  • nikh "at"
  • nwed "south of"
  • pom "above, at the top of"
  • pú "north of"
  • rú "around, surrounding"
  • tá "below, under, on the bottom of"
  • taph "left of"
  • ti "behind, at the back of"
  • twa "west of"
  • wí "outside of, at a distance from"
  • wōb "on, on top of, on the surface of"
  • ya "in, inside"
  • yith "right of"
  • yuth "through, between"

Genitive Prepositions

The preposition mú is used to mark the possessor of an inanimate object. Other kinds of genitive relationships use formed using locative prepositions.

ūnggín
bow
mú
of
fafa
brother
Brother's bow

wōb, "on," indicates the possessor of body parts and other things which are physically attached, as well as items currently being worn.

bú
hand
wōm
on
na
1S
my hand
ârsí
tip
wōm
on
t’ing
claw
tip of a/the claw
núngú
shirt
wōm
on
mung
2S
your shirt (specifically the one you're wearing)

ya, "in," is used to indicate the possessor of an emotion, idea, or state, as well as for internal organs and other things normally thought of as being ‘inside’ their possessor.

dāth
anger
ya
in
danda
mother
mother's anger
kwau
illness
ya
in
Táng
Táng
Táng's illness
pdékh
soul
ya
in
Ping
Ping
Ping's soul

wí, here best interpreted as meaning "out of," may be used to indicate the origin or composition of a noun referent.

tû
man
wí
outside
ngu
east
a/the man from the east
kiyong
hall
wí
outside
ac
stone
a/the stone hall

"Possession" of kin and other living beings is handled without the use of a preposition, with the possessed term simply preceding the possessor.

danda
mother
Ping
Ping
Ping's mother
khath
dog
Táng
Táng
Táng's dog

It is worth noting that possessives are used less frequently in Mhakh Thandim than in English. For instance, one wouldn't typically say Táng hub ti mú ki, "Táng eats his food." In a statement like Táng hub ti, "Táng eats food," it is assumed that the food eaten belonged to Táng at the time, although context may indicate otherwise. Likewise, one would usually say danda ngi, "mother is kind" rather than danda na ngi, "my mother is kind," as unmarked kinship terms are typically assumed to refer to referents related to the speaker (though, again, this depends on context).

Adjectives and Adverbs

Adjectives and adverbs constitute relatively small, closed classes in Mhakh Thandim. Adverbs serve mostly to mark spacial and temporal deixis and certain types of modality. Examples include tíd, "here," sō, "there," hri, "now," and the emphatic du, "really, indeed." Other meanings expressed using adverbs in English, such as the manner in which an action is carried out, are instead expressed using serial verb constructions in Mhakh Thandim. Adjectives are mostly limited to basic vocabulary terms such a ró, "big," ban, "small," lán, "new, young," and bum, "good," while stative verbs are used to express a much broader range of meanings.

Basic Syntax

Simple Sentences

Intransitive Clauses

Intransitive clauses in Mhakh Thandim minimally consist of a subject noun followed by an intransitive verb, giving SV word order:

Bombo
baby
yeg.
sleep
The baby sleeps.
Fu
wind
ríkh.
blow
The wind blows.

Transitive Clauses

Clauses with transitive verbs follow a SVO pattern.

Bamba
father
bundum
fix
bwau.
roof
Father fixes the roof.
Gókh
hunter
ngangú
notice
tath.
rabbit
The hunter spots a rabbit.

Inanimate subjects of transitive verbs must be marked with the coverb wo "use":

Wo
use
p’andí
spear
sí
pierce
rócau.
shield
The spear pierces the shield.

Sentences with directional verbs look a lot like ordinary transitives if there is an overt source or destination, but they are in fact intransitive: directional verbs cannot be passivized, and inanimate subjects in such constructions do not take wo:

Gín
arrow
lo
come.to.3
mí.
deer
The arrow approaches the deer.

While the above sentence is perfectly grammatical, directional motion verbs are more much more commonly used as part of a serial verb construction:

Gín
arrow
srau
fly
lo
come.to.3
mí.
deer
The arrow flies toward the deer.

Predication

The verb só, "stand," is used as a general copula in Mhakh Thandim, behaving as a transitive verb in that context:

Hókh
woman
só
stand
p’un
tall
thim.
person
The woman is tall.
Sakh
creature
só
stand
asakh.
wolf
The creature is a wolf.

When used to express a locative meaning, the exact type of spatial relation is indicated with a preposition:

Fafa
brother
só
stand
ya
in
báth.
house
My brother is in the house.
Danda
mother
só
stand
pom
above
sáng.
coniferous.tree
Mother is at the top of the tree.

In most cases, an individual's profession is described using the verb describing the activity associated with that profession, rather than a copular clause.

Fafa
brother
gókh.
hunt
My brother hunts/my brother is a hunter.
Pwa
maternal.uncle
t’únda
make
yai.
boat
My maternal uncle makes a boat/my maternal uncle is a boat-builder.

The Passive Voice

Transitive verbs may be made passive using the particle ta, which immediately follows the verb. In a passive clause, the object of the transitive verb precedes the verb itself, occupying the position normally filled by the subject:

Sawong
song
fong
sing
ta.
PASS
The song is sung.

A subject may optionally be included after the verb and the passive voice particle, in the position normally occupied by the object of the verb. As normal, the coverb wo must be used before an inanimate subject. When a subject is included in this manner, passive constructions usually serve to mark the perfective aspect in addition to emphasizing the role of the object in the clause.

Sawong
song
fong
sing
ta
PASS
danda.
mother
The song has been sung by mother.
Anggó
vase
hu
break
ta
PASS
wo
use
ac.
rock
The vase has been broken with a rock.

Oblique Participants

Mhakh Thandim has only one object slot in the verb phrase. As a result, the recipient of a ditransitive clause needs to be introduced with the help of a coverb. The same strategy is also used to introduce other participants in oblique roles.

Dative and Benefactive

Dative participants are marked with the coverb so, "get":

Tû
man
soth
give
k’ad
meat
so
get
ndá.
tiger
The man gives meat to the tiger.

Benefactive participants are marked with the coverb ung, "help":

Danda
mother
ngôth
pick
músandai
strawberries
ung
help
pakh
sick
īnīn.
daughter
The mother picks strawberries for her sick daughter.

Antibenefactive participants are marked using the coverb āg, "hurt":

Danda
mother
pwekh
deny
ti
food
āg
hurt
fífí.
son
The mother denies food to her son.

Benefactive and antibenefactive constructions are often used in cases where English would instead indicate possession:

Sasa
sister
hun
sew
bundum
fix
núngú
shirt
ung
help
na.
1S
My sister mends my shirt.
Turim
hostile.tribe
klu
destory
bāth
village
āg
hurt
kírû.
husband
A hostile tribe destroys my husband's village.

Instrumental

Instrumental participants are marked using the coverb wo, "use":

Danda
1S
phem
bake
gsac
bread
wo
use
yoth.
oven
Mother bakes bread in the oven.

In passive clauses, a demoted subject must immediately follow the passivized verb, with the instrumental falling at the end of the sentence:

K’ad
meat
tau
cut
ta
PASS
mung
2S
wo
use
frau.
knife
The meat has been cut by you, using a knife.

Comitative

Comitative participants are marked with the coverb fundau "be with, bring", while anticomitative participants are marked with the coverb re "lack, be without":

Na
1S
gak’ókh
hunt
mí
deer
fundau
be.with
fafa.
brother
I hunt deer with my brother.
Sasa
sister
keng
go.from.1
lo
come.to.3
gê
home
re
lack
na.
1S
My sister goes home without me.

Locative

Locative participants are usually marked using the coverb só, "stand," though other verbs such as nghau, "sit" or lin, "lie, recline" may be used to give additional information about the posture or position of the subject. In any case, the position of the subject relative to the locative participant is indicated using a preposition:

Hókh
woman
fong
sing
sawong
song
só
stand
kath
near
ngêleth.
hearth
The woman sings a song near the hearth.
Kau
bear
yeg
sleep
lin
lie
ya
in
cō.
cave
The bear sleeps lying in a cave.

If the subject is in motion but the action still takes place at a single location, the coverb thekh "move around, wander" is used instead of a positional verb:

Hai
1P
tí
dance (v.)
sasí
dance (n.)
thekh
wander
rú
around
ngêleth.
hearth
We dance (a dance) around the hearth.

Negation

Sentences are negated with the auxiliary verb pekh "not, be not", which is placed before the rest of the verb phrase:

Fafa
brother
pekh
NEG
takh
steal
thú!
thing
My brother doesn't steal things/my brother isn't a thief!

In general, contiguous serial verb constructions can only be negated as a whole. Negating one or more of the verbs in the construction separately is ungrammatical.

Na
1S
pekh
NEG
akh
return
má
come.to.2
hum.
eat
I'm not coming home for dinner
  • *Na akh má pekh hum.
    (ungrammatical; intended meaning: "I’m coming home but I won’t eat")

However, if there is a modal auxiliary, negation may either take scope over the modal (and thus over the whole clause), or alternatively only over the non-modal part of the SVC:

Mung
2S
pekh
NEG
so
get
keng.
go.from.1
You don’t have to leave.
Mung
2SG
so
get
pekh
NEG
keng.
go.from.1
You’re not allowed to leave.

In ECM constructions (see below), each verb phrase can be negated separately:

Na
1S
pekh
NEG
ca
request
mung
2S
keng.
go.from.1
I'm not asking you to leave.
Na
1S
ca
request
mung
2S
pekh
NEG
keng.
go.from.1
I'm asking you not to leave.

Individual noun phrases can be negated with the quantifier se "no, none". Negating the object of a transitive clause in this way is often logically equivalent to negating the verb, but it has slightly different semantic connotations:

Se
no
k’ad
meat
so
get
ta
PASS
sácau.
dog
The dog hasn't gotten any meat. (Lit. "No meat has been gotten by the dog.")

If only the subject is negated, the resulting meaning is often partitive, especially if the subject appears in a non-singular number:

K’ad
meat
so
get
ta
PASS
se
no
sâcau.
PL/dog
None of the dogs have gotten any meat.


A typical case in which both the subject and the object may be simultaneously negated is when two different subjects are contrasted with one another:

Se
no
k’ad
meat
so
get
ta
PASS
se
no
khath,
male.dog
to
3P.IN
so
get
ta
PASS
sácau.
female.dog
It's not the male dog who hasn't gotten any meat, it's the female one.

Interrogatives

Polar Questions

Polar questions in Mhakh Thandim are regularly formed by shifting the verb to the beginning of the clause, giving the word order VS(O), or VO(S) in passive constructions:

T’i
come.to.1
mung?
2S
Are you coming?
Pau
find
ta
PASS
mandú
grove.of.apple.trees
mung?
2S
Have you found the grove of apple trees. (lit. Has the grove of apple trees been found by you?)

Copular predicates are questioned with a special interrogative copula sô, in addition to the regular shift in word order:

Sô
Q.COP
ki
3S.AN
bum
good
tû?
man
Is he a good man?

Content Questions

Questions that give a list of possible answers are formed like polar questions, with the coverb ro "choose, select" introducing each alternative (which must appear in the form of a noun phrase):

Ai
want
kith
drink
mung
2S
ro
choose
pe
beer
ro
choose
ú?
water
Do you want to drink beer or water?

In order to ask about a particular noun phrase in a sentence, this noun phrase is marked with the interrogative determiners khau (referring to animate nouns) and khén (referring to inanimate nouns). Non-subject NPs are moved to the beginning of the sentence, along with the associated coverb in the case of oblique NPs, with all other elements remaining in their usual positions:

Khau
what
thim
person
hu
break
p’andí
spear
mú
of
na?
1S
Who broke my spear?
Khén
what
k’an
meat
înggókh
PL/hunter
dāph
take
cath
carry
t’i
come.to.1
pai
go.from.3
sāng?
coniferous.forest
What kind of meat did the hunters bring home from the forest?

These determiners combine with nouns like hong "place, area, region", sad "time", cí "manner, method" or t’ai "reason, motive, explanation" to create various adverbial interrogatives:

Khén
what
hong
place
rólí
king
só?
stand
Where is the king?
Wo
use
khén
what
cí
method
mung
2S
rama
kill
asakh?
wolf
How did you kill the wolf?

Open content questions are formed in a similar manner using the copula só, with the interrogative determiner taking a generic "dummy" noun as its referent:

Khau
what
thim
person
mung
2S
só?
stand
Who are you?
Khén
what
thú
thing
só
stand
sō?
there
What's that over there?

Reflexives and Reciprocals

Since Mhakh Thandim does not have dedicated reflexive pronouns, statements where the subject acts upon itself simply use a normal personal pronoun co-referential with the subject in the object position of a transitive clause:

Na
1S
fai
fall
āg
hurt
na.
1S
I fall down and hurt myself.

When a paucal or plural pronoun is used in this way, the resulting clause is often interpreted as reciprocal:

Gandath
parents
pwing
love
tgi.
3Pa
My parents love each other.

In situations where ambiguity with a non-reflexive reading might arise, reflexive or reciprocal semantics can optionally be made explicit by reduplicating the object pronoun:

Feth
warrior
tau
cut
ki.
3S
The warrior cuts him/her/it.
Feth
warrior
tau
cut
ki
3S
ki.
3S
The warrior cuts himself.

Complex Sentences

Clause Coordination

Clause-level conjunctions such as o "and", e "or", or k’e "but, however" are placed clause-initially. Note that these conjunctions cannot be used to connect noun phrases:

Reph
boy
myid
be.brave
o
and
nonnong
girl
dag.
be.intelligent
The boy is brave and the girl is intelligent.
Hri
now
baulā
weather
ú,
be.calm
k’e
but
na
1s
ngú
see
thí
black
lîlā
PL/cloud
só
stand
nikh
at
twa.
west
Now the weather is calm, but I see dark clouds in the west.

Coordination of Noun Phrases

Non-subject noun phrases are coordinated using the conjunction na "and, with":

Na
1S
ngú
see
khag
cat
na
and
sácau.
dog
I see a cat and a dog.
Danda
mother
phem
bake
gsac
bread
wo
use
mháth
egg
na
and
nga.
milk
Mother makes bread with egg and milk.

This conjunction cannot be used for sentence subjects though, so subject noun phrases are instead coordinated with the coverb fundau "be with, bring". The fundau-phrase can appear either directly after the subject or after the main verb phrase, but it refers to the subject in both situations:

Danda
mother
fundau
be.with
bamba
father
yen
have.sex
tgi.
3pa
Mother and father have sex [with each other].
Fafa
brother
wiróph
be.hungry
mad
be.tired
fundau
be.with
na.
1s
My brother and I are hungry and tired.

Noun phrases can be presented as alternatives to each other with the coverb ro "choose, select", which is repeated before each NP. This conjunction can be used with both subjects and non-subjects:

Mung
2S
dá
be.able
dāph
take
ro
choose
múwong
apple
ro
choose
nhāwong.
pear
You may have some apple or some pear.

Contrastive coordination of noun phrases ("but") is achieved with the coverb re "be without" if the noun phrases appear in subject position, or with the conjunction na "and, with" and the quantifier se "no, none" otherwise. Note that in both cases the negated NP must follow the non-negated one.

Khath
male.dog
re
be.without
sácau
female.dog
so
get
k’ad.
meat
The male dog receives meat but the female dog doesn't.
Na
1S
ndai
know
ka
this
tû
man
na
and
se
no
ka
this
hókh.
woman
I know this man but not this woman.

Relative Clauses

Relative clauses, i.e. subordinated clauses acting as an attribute to a noun phrase, are introduced with the relativizer kambum. A pronoun referring to the relativized noun is retained within the relative clause:

Sasa
sister
hum
eat
wath
all
músandai
strawberries
kambum
REL
na
1S
ngôth
pick
to.
3PL
My sister eats all of the strawberries that I pick.

If a pronoun itself is being relativized, it appears only in the relative clause:

Kambum
REL
tna
1PA
myid
be.courageous
lo
come.to.3
nec.
win
We courageous few will be victorious.

If both subject and object of a transitive relative clause are represented by the same pronoun, the relativized noun will be assumed to be the subject of the subclause. In order to relativize the object in such a situation, the subject must be represented by one of the special logophoric pronouns ídon (for animate referents) or ekhdon (for inanimate referents) instead, which explicitly refer back to the subject of the matrix clause:

Feth
warrior
rama
kill
tû
man
kambum
REL
ki
3S
raríth
attack
ki.
3S
The warrior killed the man who attached him.
Feth
warrior
rama
kill
tû
man
kambum
REL
ídon
same.AN
raríth
attack
ki.
3S
The warrior killed the man whom he attacked.

Compliment Clauses

Complement clauses, i.e. subordinated clauses acting as a noun (most importantly as the subject or object of a sentence), are formed much like relative clauses, being introduced with a noun related to the type of action or event described in the clause followed by the complimentizer kbau. Common nouns used in this manner include theb, "event," used to complimentize wide range of real and hypothetical events, xúlin, "task," used to complimentize occupations and activities, tī, "idea," used to complimentize plans and abstract concepts, and sai, "word," used to complimentize reported speech:

Theb
event
kbau
SUB
nonnong
girl
takh
steal
nakh
horse
dá.
be.possible
The girl could have stolen the horse.
Rócókh
queen
nghō
dislike
tī
idea
kbau
SUB
hai
1PL
raríth
attack
turim.
enemy.tribe
The queen dislikes the idea of us attacking the enemy tribe.

Complement clauses can also act as the objects of coverbs:

Mung
2S
pekh
NEG
dá
be.able
gak’ókh
hunt
ālam
PL/salmon
re
be.without
xúlin
task
kbau
SUB
mung
2S
cai
go.from.2
lo
come.to.3
fád.
river
You can't catch salmon without going to the river.

Serial Verb Constructions (SVC)

Sequential Events

One of the most obvious uses of serial verb constructions is for expressing sequences of closely connected actions that are understood to form a single event. Verbs in a series of this type have equal status within the construction (i.e. there is no clear ‘head’), are ordered according to the actual temporal sequence, and usually have a shared subject.

Sometimes all components of a sequential SVC are intransitive:

Danda
mother
ca
clap
ya.
hail
Mother claps her hands and waves goodbye.

Sometimes all of the verbs are transitive. In this case, the SVC as a whole is transitive too, and both subject and object are shared by all verbs:

P’olóm
lion
t’ā
bite
yí
chew
au
swallow
k’ad.
meat
The lion bites, chews, and swallows the meat.

If a transitive and an intransitive verb are used together, the intransitive verb must come first because it may not intervene between the transitive verb and its object:

Ndá
tiger
hau
shout
raríth
attack
ínggókh.
hunter
The tiger roars and attacks the hunter.
  • *Ndá raríth hau ínggókh.
    (ungrammatical)

Sequential SVC often contain one or more passivized verbs. If the first verb in the series is passivized, the passive-marking particle ta is moved to the end of the SCV:

Ínggókh
hunter
t’ā
bite
ma
die
ta
PASS
ndá.
tiger
The hunter died after being bitten by the tiger.

Since passives are normally interpreted as perfective, an additional serialized verb is generally used to make such a sentence imperfective, usually só, "stand," which comes before the the main SCV:

Ínggókh
hunter
só
stand
t’ā
bite
ma
die
ta
PASS
ndá.
tiger
The hunter is being bitten to death by the tiger.

If the semantics and transitivity values of the verbs do not permit iconic order (for example because the verb that happens last is intransitive), or if two or more transitive verbs have different objects, it is not possible to use a sequential SVC. Instead, the event can be described as a sequence of independent clauses, with the shared subject being referred to with the logophoric pronouns ídon (animate) or ekhdon (inanimate) in all but the first of these chained clauses:

Ndá
tiger
raríth
attack
ínggókh
hunter
ídon
same.AN
hau.
shout
The tiger attacks the hunter and roars.

Lexicalized Sequential Serials

Many combinations of sequential serial verbs are lexicalized, usually referring to common, culturally recognized activities. As a guideline, the longer a SVC, the more likely it is to have acquired a specialized and often idiomatic meaning:

Sasa
sister
ngú
see
ndai
know
fafa
brother.
Sister recognizes her brother.
Ít’ukh
priest
dāph
take
fi
wrap.around
yo
wear
rwilí.
mask
The priest puts on a mask.
Bí
PL/man
ya
in
bāth
village
tai
say
uph
hear
yeth
think
pó
reply
thú
thing
kambum
REL
mō.
be.important
The men in the village discuss important matters.

Grammatical Use of Serial Verbs

Causation

The simplest method of forming causative statements in Mhakh Thandim is through the use of the auxiliary verb rú, "cause", before the verb being causativized. This effectively increases the valency of intransitive verbs, and the clause is structured as if they were transitive:

Fafa
brother
rú
cause
fai
fall
na.
1S
My brother made me fall.

The verb rú can only be used as an auxiliary verb (except in a few fossilized sequential serial verb constructions such as li rú ... soth nga "milk (an animal)" (lit. "pull cause … give milk")), so it never appears as the first element in an ECM construction. In its place, the verb soth "give" can function as a generic causative verb. Causatives which involve movement of some sort often use sóndo "put, place" instead:

Danda
mother
soth
give
bamba
father
dāph
take
cath
carry
t’i
come.to.1
kdarokh
firewood
pai
go.from.3
sāng.
coniferous.forest
Mother made father bring in firewood from the forest.
Feth
warrior
sóndo
put
ûnggín
bow
lin
lie
wōb
on
xó.
table
The warrior laid his bow on the table.

In addition, many semantically causative statements can be formed as ECM constructions without the use of an explicit causative marker:

P’olóm
lion
t’ā
bite
ínggókh
hunter
ma.
die
The lion bites the hunter to death.

Intransitive verbs may act as the first verb in a causative ECM construction if serialized with a generic causative verb:

pándad
children.COLL
lau
laugh
soth
give
na
1S
núb.
wake
I'm woken up by the laughter of my children.

Finally, in many cases a sequential serial verb construction may be interpreted as a cause-and-effect statement in which the event described by the second verb is a direct consequence of the action described by the first verb:

Ít’ukh
priest
tau
cut
thac
remove
nhig.
beard
The priest shaves off his beard. (lit. the priest cuts his beard, removing it).

Comparison

Comparative statements are made with serial verb constructions using the verb ná "exceed, surpass", which is simply added after the verb(s) expressing the compared quality:

Ping
Ping
myid
be.brave
ná
exceed
fafa.
brother
Ping is braver than her brother.

Superlatives are formed by using a totality of referents as the object of the clause:

Táng
Táng
myid
be.brave
ná
exceed
de
every
thim.
person
Táng is the bravest (lit. Táng is braver than every person).

If the compared quality is expressed with an adjective, the serial verb construction is introduced by a copular phrase that predicates the adjective to the subject. Unlike other adjectival predicates, no dummy noun is used:

Táng
Táng
ná
exceed
fafa
brother
pwing
love
danda.
mother
Táng loves his mother more than his brother does.
Theb
event
kbau
SUB
Táng
Táng
pwing
love
danda
mother
ná
exceed
theb
event
kbau
SUB
Táng
Táng
pwing
love
fafa.
brother
Táng loves his mother more than he loves his mother.

In cases like the second example, it’s common to leave out the subject of the second clause and replace the second verb with the particle ta:

Theb
event
kbau
SUB
Táng
Táng
pwing
love
danda
mother
ná
exceed
theb
event
kbau
SUB
ta
do.same
fafa.
brother
Táng loves his mother more than he does his brother.

Motion Verbs

Direction and deixis

Mhakh Thandim has a set of seven deictic motion verbs marking not only origin/destination, but also the grammatical person of the reference point:

Origin (go away from) Destination (come towards) No direction (move)
1st person keng "go away from speaker" t’i "come towards speaker"
2nd person cai "go away from listener" má "come towards listener"
3rd person pai "go away from a third person point of origin" lo "come towards a third person destination" thekh ‘go nowhere in particular,
move around, roam, wander’

All of these deictic motion verbs are technically intransitive:

Na
1S
cai.
go.from.2
I’m leaving [you].


However, the origin and destination verbs may also take a nominal complement. This is especially common with the third person motion verbs. With first and second person motion verbs, an overt complement that is not a matching pronoun will be interpreted to be possessed or accompanied by the given person:

Ki
3S.AN
lo
come.to.3
báth.
house
He/she goes towards the house.
Ki
3S.AN
má
come.to.2
báth.
SGV/village
He/she goes towards your house.


While deictic motion verbs may be used on their own, they are much more frequently encountered in serial verb constructions, generally ordered according to the iconic sequence of events (i.e. cause → motion away from → motion towards → result):

Na
1S
huc
kick
má
come.to.2
loth.
ball
I kick the ball to you.
Mung
2S
cai
go.from.2
lo
come.to.3
cuk’a.
hills
You go toward the hills.

Although somewhat contrived, the following example is grammatical:

Bamba
father
pei
go.from.3
má
come.to.2
cai
go.from.2
t’i
come.to.1
keng
go.from.1
má
come.to.2
cai
go.from.2
lo
come.to.3
gê.
home
Our father left his house and came to yours, left yours and came to mine, then went back to yours and left it to return to his house.

(Note that each destination is explicitly left by the father before moving on to the next one. Stringing together several origin verbs or several destination verbs immediately after one another would be ungrammatical.)

Manner of Motion

Verbs indicating the manner of motion in Mhakh Thandim usually do not specify a direction, and so are often combined with directional verbs. Manner-of-motion verbs are placed between origin and destination verb if both are present; otherwise they appear before the directional verb:

P’amba
grandfather
cam
walk
thekh.
move.around
Grandfather goes for a stroll.
Na
1S
keng
go.from.1
hém
be.quick
lo
come.to.3
kdónâi.
riverbank
I run toward the riverbank.

(Compare to p'amba cam "grandfather is on foot" and na hém "I am fast.")

This strategy is also used to convert verbs of posture or stationary movement to verbs of motion:

Feth
warrior
lin
lie
cam
walk
t’i.
come.to.1
The warrior crawls toward me.
Hai
1PL
keng
go.from.1
pí
jump
lo
come.to.3
am.
lake
We jump toward the lake.

There are a number of non-deictic motion verbs which do specify a direction (e.g. dú "go downhill, go downstream" or siph "go through"). These may be used as manner-of-motion verbs too:

Ndá
tiger
fai
fall
dú
go.downhill
The tiger tumbles downhill.

Source and Target

The origin and destination verbs can also be used as coverbs to add an argument in the role of source or target respectively, increasing the valency of the main VP:

Ínggókh
hunter
srundau
throw
gín
arrow
lo
come.to.3
mí.
deer
The hunter shoots an arrow at the deer.

Posture and orientation

Posture can be expressed by means of serializing the copula só with one of the positional verbs só "stand," nghau "sit," or lin "lie." This means that the reduplicated sequence só só has the meaning "stand upright," and can be used to disambiguate locative/positional ‘stand’ from the grammaticalized use of ‘stand’ as a non-locative copula:

Táng
Táng
só
stand
só.
stand
Táng stands upright.

In this type of construction the positional verbs may take a complement NP describing the location of the subject. An overt preposition is only necessary in order to specify more detailed spatial relationships than a generic "at," or "on":

Phéd
oak.tree
kambum
REL
mro
3S.IN
fai
fall
só
stand
lin
lie
hé.
ground
A fallen oak tree lies on the ground.
Frau
knife
só
stand
lin
lie
wōb
on
xó.
table
The knife lies on top of the table.


Posture constructions can be extended with the coverb sú "watch, look at, face," which introduces an additional directional complement. Other verbs of orientation like p’ub "be parallel to," hū "be perpendicular to," and p’ang "be diagonal to" may also be used in this manner:

Táng
Táng
só
stand
só
stand
pom
above
ac
rock
sú
look.at
na.
1S
Táng is standing on top of the rock, facing me.

Note how the coverb phrase in the example above semantically relates to the subject of the posture predicate (so it is Táng who is facing the speaker), in contrast to the following sentence, where the preposition nge "across from, facing" is used instead, and relates to the immediately preceding noun phrase (so it is the rock which is facing the speaker):

Táng
Táng
só
stand
só
stand
pom
above
ac
rock
nge
facing
na.
1S
Táng stands on top of the rock, which is facing me.


In order to describe a change of posture and/or orientation, the copula só is replaced by an appropriate movement verb such as fai "fall," syan "rise," ho "touch, get in contact with," mikh "turn around," or similar:

Phéd
oak.tree
fai
fall
ta
PASS
lin
lie
hé
ground
hū
be.perpendicular
fáph.
path
The oak tree has fallen so that it lies on the ground, blocking the path.
Táng
Táng
mikh
turn.around
só
stand
sú
look.at
p’ungk’a.
mountains
Táng turns around to stand facing the mountains.


Descriptions of posture and/or orientation can also be used as part of a larger predicate. In this case, the positional verb (series) appears as the second part of an ECM construction, with any additional complements following it. If causation is involved, sóndo "put, place" is added to the first part of the ECM construction:

Gli
3P.AN
sóndo
put
t’únda
make
báth
house
nghau
sit
kath
near
sug.
pond
They build a house next to the pond.

Aspect

By default, active verbs in Mhakh Thandim are also imperfective, while passive verbs are perfective. Additional aspectual distinctions may be made using serial verb constructions.


The progressive aspect is expressed by using só, "stand", as an auxiliary verb:

Nonnong
girl
só
stand
fong
sing
sawong.
song
The girl is singing a song.


The inceptive aspect is expressed with the verbs lo "come" (preferred for states) or tú "start, begin" (preferred for events), used in auxiliary position. Similar semantics may also be achieved with causative or factitive formations resulting in a stative predicate:

Nonnong
girl
tú
begin
fong
sing
sawong.
song
The girl is starting to sing a song.
p’olóm
lion
lo
come.to.3
wiróph.
be.hungry
The lion is becoming hungry.


The habitual or iterative aspect can be formed by repeating a verb (effectively: serializing it with itself):

Nonnong
girl
fong
sing
fong
sing
sawong.
song
The girl is always singing songs.


In certain contexts, a resumptive interpretation is more appropriate:

Danda
mother
hai
then.PST
hun
sew
hun
sew
sawi.
cloak
Then his mother resumed sewing the cloak.
[said after describing how she stopped sewing for a while, e.g. in order to talk to someone]


When applying the habitual/iterative aspect to serial verb constructions, normally only the first non-auxiliary verb is repeated:

Na
1SG
cam
walk
cam
walk
lo
come.to.3
khá
arrive
bāth
village
mú
of
gli.
3PL.AN
I walked on and on until I reached their village.


However, relatively short verb series that describe a conventional sequence of events are often repeated as a whole:

Táng
Táng
mikh
turn.around
mén
look
mikh
turn_around
mén
look
pai
go.from.3
t’ai
reason
kbau
SUB
ki
3S
langgú.
be.afraid
Táng keeps turning and looking around because he is afraid.


In ECM constructions, both parts of the construction may be repeated individually:

Ping
Ping
twí
allow
twí
allow
sasa
sister
ngôth
pick
músandai.
strawberries
Ping keeps allowing her sister to pick strawberries.
Ping
Ping
twí
allow
sasa
sister
ngôth
pick
ngôth
pick
músandai.
strawberries
Ping allows her sister to keep picking strawberries.


An experiential aspect, which indicates that the subject has been involved in an event of this type before, can be formed by using t’ukh "know how to do sth." as an auxiliary verb:

Táng
Táng
t’ukh
know
rama
kill
p’olóm.
lion
Táng has killed a lion before. / Táng knows how to kill a lion.


A completive aspect, which indicates that an event has been successfully completed, is marked with the verb sec "finish, complete" in series-final position. With directional motion verbs and lexically atelic verbs, khá, "reach, arrive at" is used instead, again in series-final position:

Danda
mother
hun
sew
bundum
fix
sec
finish
mane.
sleeve
Mother has finished mending the sleeve.
Na
1SG
lo
come.to.3
khá
arrive
bāth
village
fáth
happen
ya
previous
sag.
night
I arrived at the village last night.


A cessative aspect, which indicates that an event stopped before being completed (and thus carries an implication of failure when used with telic verbs), may be formed with bab "stop, cease" in series-final position:

Danda
mother
hun
sew
bundum
fix
bab
stop
mane.
sleeve
Mother stopped mending the sleeve.
P’amba
grandfather
cam
walk
thekh
move.around
bab.
stop
Grandfather has stopped walking around.


An interruptive aspect, which indicates that an event was interrupted through outside influence, may be formed with wí, "lose, misplace", in series-final position. When used with telic verbs, the interruptive aspect implies failure but emphasizes that the fault lies with events outside of the subject's control:

Ping
Ping
fong
sing
wí
lose
sawong.
song
Ping had to stop singing (because something else happened).

Sample text

Why people speak different languages

Mwi yeg, o wath uwōndum só ya xob. Se mhath nggim só wōb kā hai. Mhakh thandim hu cad ta lán, o ídon pekh t’ukh cí kbau xwi keth thi. Gli thá iríph ríwau.

Mummug só fai kambum nuth Wekh. Ki swo sáng o ídon ngú nggim wí cu keth, o ídon pai hém tú xúlin kbau ki lalú nggim. Fáth theb kbau mummug akh khá, ki dāph cath lo kanggí tiyíyā, kambum ki sóndo mro só lin nikh salú ya báth kambum thandim kê mro. Au ganggen fâi dāph cath lo sóndo kí sandai na kdarokh, ngú ngú theb kbau nggim thundam báth o thīm trau bab. Mhakh Thandim tanggang lau fong sawong ídon tí sasí thekh rú keth.

Hai Ndá lo khá ya báth, o ídon li rú lo xúsalú wōb ró mí kambum ídon rama ki. Ndá sóndo nglau mí lin ya ngêleth, k’e k’ad lo mho keth pekh dac ta hu. Báth lo só tau hong, o xob mho de ge. Thīm kambum gli nghau cu wí keth trau du, khá sayec kbau ídon thá t’íth nath sa o ídon pekh dá tai sai bum. Thīm langgú mi sac li rú lo thīm kath gli, khá sayec kbau thandim t’é ta o ídon lo só ni niyandi. De nandi tú tai ganggen sai o rob wí Mhakh Thandim t’é ta wo cí kbau fi theb o ídon lo só ni rōb kambum hai uph gli hri.

Interlinear gloss

Mwi
Sun
yeg,
sleep
o
and
wath
entire
uwōndum
world
só
stand
ya
in
xob.
darkness
Sun slept, and all the world was dark.
Se
no
mhath
stars
nggim
shine
só
stand
wōb
on
kā
sky
hai.
then.PST
No stars shone in the sky at that time.
Mhakh
first
thandim
tribe
hu
only
cad
give.birth
ta
PASS
lán,
new
o
and
ídon
same.AN
pekh
not
t’ukh
know
cí
manner
kbau
SUB
xwi
ignite
keth
fire
thi.
already
The Mhakh Thandim were newly born into the world, and they did not yet know how to make a fire.
Gli
3PL.AN
thá
shiver
iríph
complain.of
ríwau.
freezing.cold
They shivered and complained that they were cold.


Mummug
squirrel
só
stand
fai
spirit
kambum
REL
nuth
serve
Wekh.
Wekh
Squirrel was one of the spirits who served Wekh.
Ki
3S.AN
swo
climb
sáng,
coniferous.tree
o
and
ídon
same.AN
ngú
see
nggim
light
wí
outside
cu
distant
keth,
fire
o
and
ídon
same.AN
pai
go.from.3
hém
be.quick
tú
start
xúlin
task
kbau
SUB
ki
3S.AN
lalú
examine
nggim.
light
He climbed a tree and saw the light of a distant fire, and so he hurried away to investigate the light.
Fáth
happen
theb
event
kbau
SUB
mummug
squirrel
akh
return
khá,
arrive
ki
3S.AN
dāph
take
cath
carry
lo
come.to.3
kanggí
red
tiyíyā,
PAU/coal
kambum
REL
ki
3S.AN
sóndo
put
mro
3S.IN
só
stand
lin
lie
nikh
at
salú
middle
ya
in
báth
house
kambum
REL
thandim
tribe
kê
dwell
mro.
3S.AN
When Squirrel returned, he brought a small quantity of glowing coals, which he set down in the center of the house where the tribe lived.
Au
also
ganggen
other
fâi
PL/spirit
dāph
take
cath
carry
lo
come.to.3
sóndo
put
kí
dry
sandai
grass
na
and
kdarokh,
firewood
ngú
see
ngú
see
theb
event
kbau
SUB
nggim
light
thundam
fill
báth
house
o
and
thīm
PL/person
trau
feel.cold
bab.
stop
Other spirits came and added dry grass and firewood, until the house was filled with light and the people were no longer cold.
Mhakh
first
Thandim
tribe
tanggang
AP/talk
lau
laugh
fong
sing
sawong
song
ídon
same.AN
tí
dance[v]
sasí
dance[n]
thekh
wander
rú
around
keth.
fire
The Mhakh Thandim talked and laughed and sang and danced around the fire.


Hai
then.PST
Ndá
Tiger
lo
come.to.3
khá
arrive
ya
in
báth,
house
o
and
ídon
same.AN
li
pull
rú
cause
lo
come.to.3
xúsalú
body
wōb
on
ró
big
mí
deer
kambum
REL
ídon
same
rama
kill
ki.
3S.AN
Then Tiger came in, dragging the body of a huge deer he had killed.
Ndá
Tiger
sóndo
put
nglau
cook
mí
deer
lin
lie
ya
in
ngêleth,
hearth
k’e
but
k’ad
meat
lo
come.to.3
mho
cover
keth
fire
pekh
not
dac
extinguish
ta
PASS
hu.
barely
He put the deer in the hearth to cook it, but the meat ended up covering the fire and almost putting it out.
Báth
house
lo
come.to.3
só
stand
tau
cold
hong,
place
o
and
xob
darkness
mho
cover
de
every
ge.
eye
The house became cold, and it was too dark to see.
Thīm
PL/person
kambum
REL
gli
3PL.AN
nghau
sit
cu
far
wí
outside
keth
fire
trau
feel.cold
du,
really
khá
reach
sayec
end
kbau
SUB
ídon
same.AN
thá
shiver
t’íth
shake
nath
teeth
sa
rattle
o
and
ídon
same.AN
pekh
not
dá
be.able
tai
say
sai
words
bum.
good
The people sitting far from the fire felt so cold that their teeth chattered and they could not speak well.
Thīm
PL/person
langgú
be.afraid
mi
grasp
sac
hold.onto
li
pull
rú
cause
lo
come.to.3
thīm
PL/person
kath
near
gli,
3PL.AN
khá
reach
sayec
end
kbau
SUB
thandim
tribe
t’é
split
ta
PASS
o
and
ídon
same.AN
lo
come.to.3
só
stand
ni
many
niyandi.
PAU/group
The people were frightened and took ahold of those nearby, pulling them close, and so they became divided into many small groups.
De
every
nandi
group
tú
begin
tai
say
ganggen
different
sai,
words
o
and
rob
language
wí
outside
Mhakh
first
Thandim
tribe
t’é
split
ta
PASS
wo
use
cí
manner
kbau
SUB
fi
this.IN
theb
event
o
and
ídon
same.AN
lo
come.to.3
só
stand
ni
many
rōb
PL/language
kambum
SUB
hai
1PL
uph
hear
gli
3PL.AN
hri.
now
Each group began to speak differently from the others, and in this way the tongue of the Mhakh Thandim became divided into the many languages that we hear today.

Lexicon

Mhakh Thandim Lexicon

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