Ronc Tyu/Advanced syntax

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Advanced syntax

Adverbial constructions

Time

The simplest way to locate a statement in time is to add a lexical time adverb such as htsí ‘now’, tèin ‘then (in the future)’, or yéi ‘then (in the past)’. However, there are only very few of these adverbs in Ronc Tyu. They typically appear right before the verb(s), but may also be placed clause-initially or clause-finally.

Myè
father
tèin
then.FUT
dán
teach_skills
sro
pursue
síec
PL\animal
wonc
BEN
mun.
2SG
Father will teach you how to hunt animals.
Ne
1SG
ngóu
COP
pei
boy
mìn
ATTR\small
yéi,
then.PST
kè
but
htsí
now
ne
1SG
ngóu
COP
tao.
man
I used to be a little boy in the past, but now I am a man.


Noun phrases referring to time can be added to a sentence with the coverb fyec ‘happen, occur’:

Hei
1PL
tsa
work
suo
LOC.STAT
dróu
field
fyec
happen
púo,
midday
o
and
hei
1PL
té
sit
ron
recite
twáe
PL\legend
fyec
happen
ngónc.
evening
We work on the field during the day, and we sit down and tell stories in the evening.

A few very common temporal phrases such as ya man ‘yesterday’, yen man ‘tomorrow’, ya zàe ‘last year’, or yen zàe ‘next year’ may appear without a coverb:

Ne
1SG
syu
meet
Gèn
Gèn
yen
next
man.
day
I will meet Gèn tomorrow.

In order to refer to times a specific distance away in the past or future, ordinal numerals are used:

Kác
dog
pec
NEG
mi
receive
kànc
meat
fyec
happen
gzo
second
ya
previous
man.
day
The dog didn't get any meat two days ago.
Hei
1PL
do
come_to.3I
kyá
arrive
nóa
cliff
fyec
happen
yen
next
man
day
nic
at
pyáo.
four
We will reach the cliff four days from now.

Indefinite time references use the indefinite quantifier tè ‘any’:

Mun
2SG
ndèin
about_to
dwá
understand
hśinc
SGV\mind[POSS]
ne
1SG
fyec
happen
tè
any
man.
day
Someday you will understand what I mean.


Timespans (indicating the duration of events) are given using the coverb fou ‘pass’.

Blóun
lion
tśoc
ATTR\hungry
xù
shout
xù
shout
fou
pass
lánc
time
kwò.
ATTR\big
The hungry lion kept roaring for a long time.
Htsíe
PL\visitor
bra
stay
té
sit
nya
home[POSS]
dźé
1PC
fou
pass
yé
six
śenc.
night
The guests stayed in our house for six nights.

The coverb may be combined with nwa ‘exceed, surpass’ to indicate that the duration of the main event is longer than the specified timeframe, or with psòn ‘be less than’ to indicate that it is shorter.

Wì
rain
fyao
pour
kwá
descend
fou
pass
nwa
exceed
tòc
three
man.
day
It's been raining for more than three days.
Ne
1SG
tśa
dwell
ki
this
màc
village
fou
pass
psòn
less_than
pìc
one
zàe.
year
I’ve been living in this village for less than a year.


Timeframes (indicating the period of time during which an event occurs) can also be given with fou ‘pass’, typically in combination with a completive aspect marker in the main clause. Alternatively, the prepositions htlanc ‘during (a short timeframe)’ or hpi ‘during (a longer timeframe)’ can be used.

Pei
boy
nàc
take
kàc
carry
tsì
come_to.1
ec
return
kyá
arrive
be
news
fou
pass
pìc
one
man.
day
The boy was back with the message in one day.
(lit. the boy had [already] finished bringing back the message when one day had passed)
Ne
1SG
maenc
like
láo
watch
myòu
sky
gèi
ATTR\red
htlanc
during_situation
hmào.
twilight
I like watching the red sky during dawn.
Hei
1PL
do
come_to.3I
kyá
arrive
nóa
cliff
hpi
during_period
pyáo
four
yen
next
man.
day
We will reach the cliff within four days.
(cf. above)


Relative tense (indicating whether an event occurs before or after a specific point in time, often that of an anchor event) is expressed with the coverb ndźei ‘know, be acquainted with’ (in the sense of French connaître) for the relative past (‘after’), and nyu ‘see’ for the relative future (‘before’).

Hnròc
PL\hunter
ec
return
tsì
come_to.1
ndźei
know
mà.
sundown
The hunters returned after dark.
Dlò
possible
nù
really
tenc
SUB
Záe
Záe
ngànc
give_birth
mbò
baby
nyu
see
yàc
end[POSS]
ndàe.
summer
Záe's baby is likely to be born before the end of summer.


Habitual versions of all kinds of temporal phrases can be formed by reduplicating the coverb or preposition:

fyec fyec ‘always at ..., every ...’
fou fou ’always for the duration of’
htlanc htlanc ‘always during (a short timeframe)’
hpi hpi ‘always during (a longer timeframe)’
ndźei ndźei ‘(keep happening) since’
nyu nyu ‘(keep happening) until’
Hei
1PL
faen
sing
śin
song
fyec
happen
fyec
happen
ngónc.
evening
We always sing songs in the evening.
Trùc
shaman
yo
wear
rigéi
mask
na
and
mbóun
headgear
fou
pass
fou
pass
binc.
ritual
The shaman always wears a mask and headgear for the duration of a ritual.
Nonc
girl
san
related_to
ne
1SG
ao
want
tyòu
eat
myuo
SGV\apples
htlanc
during_situation
htlanc
during_situation
śi
meal[POSS]
eman.
morning
My daughter always wants to eat an apple for breakfast.
Myòu
sky
kwéi
hot
hpi
during_period
hpi
during_period
ndàe.
summer
It always gets hot during the summer.
Wì
rain
fyao
pour
kwá
descend
ndźei
know
ndźei
know
yàc-ntrae.
fall_equinox
It's been raining since the fall equinox.
Dźé
1PC
ló
must
zúc
walk
zúc
walk
nyu
see
nyu
see
púo,
midday
o
and
tèin
then.FUT
dźé
1PC
nrà
be_able
śoc.
rest
We need to keep walking until noon, and then we may rest.


Of course, the time, duration, or timeframe of an event can also be specified with a full temporal subclause. Ronc Tyu possesses several dedicated temporal conjunctions that can be used for this purpose:

htséi ‘when (in the past)’
htèin ‘when (in the future)’
hpan ‘when (during the day)’
htrenc ‘when (during the night)’
htlinc ‘when finally; as soon as’
htlanc ‘while (within a short timeframe)’ ← also used as a preposition ‘during (a short timeframe)’
hpi ‘while (within a longer timeframe)’ ← also used as a preposition ‘during (a longer timeframe)’
hmi ‘for as long as’
Nà
mother
lo
become
yonc
happy
htséi
when.PST
Gèn
Gèn
móc
kill
blóun.
lion
Gèn's mother was happy when he killed the lion.
Dźé
1PC
bźec
greet
hnròc
PL\hunter
htèin
when.FUT
ndźí
3A.PL
ec
return
kyá.
arrive
We'll welcome the hunters when they return.
Swéc
PL\shooting_star
źùn
shine
ntào
dance[v]
źwi
dance[n]
xònc
on
myòu
sky
htrenc
when_at_night
ngèc
parents
san
related_to
ne
1SG
wín
marry
kuc.
3A.DU
There were shooting stars in the sky during the night when my parents got married.
Ugei
chieftain
tèin
then.FUT
tei
say
me
tell
hei
1PL
htlinc
when_finally
tśi
3A.SG
kenc
decide
kén.
task
The chieftain will let us know as soon as he has decided what to do.
Ta
IMP
pec
NEG
tei
say
sei
words
htlanc
during_situation
nonc
girl
faen
sing
śin!
song
Don't talk while the girl is singing!
Záe
Záe
té
sit
sruo
wait
hmi
as_long_as
Gèn
Gèn
nàc
take
fi
wrap
yo
wear
nóc.
pants
Záe waited for as long as it took Gèn to put on his pants.


Other types of temporal subclauses are introduced with combinations of one or more coverbs plus the complementizer tenc:

pyec tenc ‘always when, every time, whenever’
ndźei tenc ‘after’
ndźei ndźei tenc ‘since’
nyu tenc ‘before’
nyu nyu tenc ‘until’
fou nwa tenc ‘for a longer time than’
fou psòn tenc ‘for a shorter time than’
Nà
mother
faen
sing
śin
song
wonc
BEN
mbò
baby
pyec
continue
tenc
SUB
tśi
3A.SG
manc.
tired
The mother always sings a song for the baby when it is tired.
Myè
father
ec
return
tsì
come_to.1
ndźei
know
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
syéi
already
kein
go_from.1
myèc.
SGV\village
Father came back after you had left the house.
Kuc
3A.DU
pec
NEG
ngóu
COP
fwáo
PL\friend[POSS]
kuc
3A.DU
ndźei
know
ndźei
know
tenc
SUB
zwì
family
san
related_to
Gèn
Gèn
tei
say
ndè
keep
màonc.
stop
They haven't been friends since Gen's family broke their promise.
Hei
1PL
ló
must
ndzu
rise
pou
find
kàc
carry
tsì
come_to.1
glà
firewood
nyu
see
tenc
SUB
kec
fire
ma.
die
We need to go and get some wood before the fire goes out.
Ne
1SG
té
sit
sruo
wait
nyu
see
nyu
see
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
zò
put
nàc
take
kàc
carry
dzac
finish
ndáo
PL\thing
yu
of
mun.
2SG
I'll wait until you have finished packing your things.
Ki
this
dźea
willow_trees
pùn
stand
pùn
stand
twinc
here
fou
pass
nwa
exceed
tenc
SUB
hei
1PL
tśa
dwell
ki
this
màc.
village
These willow trees have been standing here longer than we have lived in this village.


Time adverbials can be combined in various ways to give a more complete account as to how an event is located in time. In the simplest case, two unrelated time adverbials may be placed next to each other:

Gèn
Gèn
sruo
wait
[nyu
[see
nyu
see
ngónc]
evening]
[nyu
[see
tenc
SUB
tśi
3A.SG
ngko
kindle
nggwi
ignite
kec.]
fire]
Gèn waited [until dark] [before he lit up the fire.]

Time adverbials may also be nested within other time adverbials. For example, a temporal subclause indicating the relation to an anchor event may appear inside a temporal phrase specifying temporal distance (as in the first of the following sentences), or a temporal phrase indicating duration may appear inside a temporal subclause which describes an anchor timeframe (as in the second of the following sentences):

Kànc
PASS\give_birth
ne
1SG
[fyec
[happen
ntòc
third
yen
next
zàe
year
[ndźei
[know
tenc
SUB
kànc
PASS\give_birth
sa.]]
sister]]
I was born [three years [after my sister was born.]]
Na
all
twín
PL\person
bra
stay
té
sit
suo
LOC.STAT
ngoun
inside
nya
home[POSS]
ndźí
3A.PL
[hmi
[as_long_as
wù
storm
wic
blow
guo
angry
[fou
[pass
nwa
exceed
pìc
one
man
day
dùn.]]
ATTR\whole]]
Everyone stayed inside their houses [while the storm raged [for longer than a whole day.]]

Place

Adverbial subclauses describing a place are typically introduced with the conjunction saen ‘where’.

Ndzì
3A.PC
śoc
rest
té
sit
tyòu
eat
gonc
food
saen
where.STAT
fwenc
river
nòu
go_downstream
ko
touch
yaon.
lake
They rested and ate their food where the river enters the lake.


If the event in the matrix clause is characterized by directional movement, a different, dynamic conjunction tyaen is used instead:

Dźé
1PC
yéi
then.PST
kein
go_from.1
sro
pursue
síec
PL\animal
tyaen
where.DYN
ne
1SG
syéi
already
nyu
see
nggá.
elephant
We went hunting at the place where I had seen the elephant.

There is no formal distinction between locative and directional semantics within the subclause; both types of meanings can be expressed with both of the above conjunctions.


More specific spatial configurations can be expressed with the help of relative clauses:

Fwéc
PL\warrior
do
come_to.3I
kyá
arrive
lenc
deciduous_forest
gyào
REL.I
dyao
enemies
tswi
jump
raon
quick
do
come_to.3I
ngoun
inside
to.
3I.COLL
The warriors arrived at the forest into which the enemies had fled.


If the locative expression is rendered as a noun phrase, it can be introduced with the adverbial prepositions suo ‘at, on’ (for stative situations) or téc ‘near, around’ (for dynamic situations) as described above.

Ta
IMP
pec
NEG
bù
float
kòun
move_around
téc
LOC.DYN
tséc!
rapids
Don't go swimming near the rapids!


Directional noun phrases are introduced with a deictic motion verb in the role of a coverb instead, with adnominal prepositions added as necessary in order to provide semantic detail.

Dànc
PL\child
nàc
take
tào
throw
ròc
gravel
do
come_to.3I
(tra)
(under)
sun.
water
The children are throwing pebbles into the water.

Reason

Reason subclauses are typically introduced with the conjunction pyu ‘because’. In more formal registers of the language, bzèi ‘due to the fact that’ is also seen.

Nè
every
tsyún
person
bwín
love
nonc
girl
pyu
because
tśi
3A.SG
ngwi.
gentle
Everybody likes the girl because she is friendly.
Gèn
Gèn
ngóu
COP
tśa
dwell
nya
home[POSS]
tlu
aunt
pyu
because
myèc
SGV\village
yu
of
tśi
3A.SG
fwi
burn
dwá.
PASS\destroy
Gèn is living with his aunt because his own house burned down.
Dźéc
desired
tenc
SUB
hei
1PL
yic
worship
ufwéc
PL\god
bzèi
due_to
ndźí
3A.PL
lá
build
lei
decorate
udou
world
wonc
BEN
hei.
1PL
We need to praise the gods because they created the world for us.


bzèi can also be used as a preposition, taking a noun phrase as its complement. In this function it does not indicate a formal register.

Ndźí
3A.PL
blo
go_from.3I
lenc
deciduous_forest
bzèi
due_to
blóun.
lion
They left the forest because of the lion.


In some situations (especially when no directional motion is involved and thus no ambiguity occurs), it is also possible to introduce a reason noun phrase with a motion verb expressing origin, used as a coverb. Note that the first and second person origin verbs kein and kèi require an overt complement pronoun in this usage, and that the third person origin verbs pei (animate) and blo (inanimate) must agree in animacy with their reference noun.

Trá
Q
sruo
wait
mun
2SG
nù
really
kein
go_from.1
ne?
1SG
Did you really wait here because of me?
Yéi
then.PST
dyá
required
tenc
SUB
nac
1DU
zò
put
ridźèin
CAUS-hang
rurùo
CAUS-dry
màonc
stop
nu
clothes
pei
go_from.3
wì.
rain
We had to stop drying our clothes because of rain.


Reason subclauses, prepositional phrases, and coverb phrases are frequently topic-fronted:

Pei
go_from.3
wì,
rain
yéi
then.PST
dyá
required
tenc
SUB
nac
1DU
zò
put
ridźèin
CAUS-hang
rurùo
CAUS-dry
màonc
stop
nu.
clothes
Because of rain, we had to stop drying our clothes.


Reasons for an event may also be given as the first part of an ECM construction. This is not easy to distinguish from causative or resultative sentences though:

Fye
brother
kèa
hit
pei
boy
li
pull
tsyú
hair
yu
of
fye.
brother
The boy pulls his brother's hair because his brother hit him.
(lit. the brother hits the boy and the boy pulls his brother's hair)
Ne
1SG
nggóa
dislike
an
amphora
hkào.
PASS\offer
I traded away the amphora because I disliked it.
(lit. I disliked the amphora, so it was traded away)

Purpose

Purpose subclauses are usually introduced with the conjunctions dyen ‘so that’ or rao ‘in order to’. If a particularly strong emotional commitment is involved, zea ‘with the goal that’ can also be used.

Dźé
1PC
ndzu
rise
kein
go_from.1
tyòu
eat
yenc
sleep
do
come_to.3I
nùn
ocean
rao
in_order_to
dźé
1PC
kào
offer
paec
acquire
ndáo.
PL\thing
We're traveling to the ocean in order to trade things.
Hlá
PASS\build
tàc
PASS\take
ki
this
tlú
axe
ta
by
myè
father
dyen
so_that
tśi
3A.SG
hec
hew
twè
split
glà.
firewood
This axe was made by father in order to chop wood.
Tráe
preferable
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
lin
lie
rao
in_order_to
ròun
back
nrà
be_able
śoc.
rest
You should lie down so that your back can rest.
Hóu
call
me
tell
tśi
3A.SG
zea
with_goal
hei
1PL
tonc
talk_to
tśi.
3A.SG
Call him over so we can talk to him.


If the purpose is expressed as a noun phrase, it may be introduced by the verb pwì ‘try, attempt, strive’ in the role of a coverb, or by the benefactive preposition wonc ‘for the benefit of’:

Fwéc
PL\warrior
ngóu
COP
ndzu
rise
nggùn
get_ready
nàc
take
nggoun
PL\weapon
pwì
try
sen.
war
The warriors are taking up arms and preparing for battle.
Hlá
PASS\build
dye
boat
wonc
BEN
swín
marriage[POSS]
ugwac.
queen
The boat was built for the queen's wedding.


Another common way of expressing purposes is to turn them into the final part of a sequential SVC (if the main verb is intransitive or has the same object as the purpose verb) or of an ECM construction (if the main verb is transitive and the object of the main verb is the subject of the purpose verb):

Tśi
3A.SG
kein
go_from.1
sro
pursue
mae.
deer
He has gone away in order to hunt deer.
Sao-wa
shepherd
tou
begin
lá
build
dlu
fence
kan
resist
hsac.
PL\wolf
The shepherd has started to build a fence to keep away the wolves.

Result

The most idiomatic way to express results employs serial verb constructions:

Mwì
PL\man
tsa
work
tsa
work
lo
become
manc.
tired
The men work hard, so they become tired.
Ugei
chieftain
kenc
judge
nggà
approve
hśinc
SGV\mind[POSS]
sran.
experienced_person
The chieftain judged the elder's idea as appropriate.
Wì
rain
fyao
pour
kwá
descend
do
come_to.3I
kwé
ground
lo
become
bou.
wet
It's raining, so the ground gets wet.
Mun
2SG
tei
say
me
tell
ne
1SG
htroa
fail
dwá.
understand
I don't understand you.
(lit. you tell me something and I fail to understand)
Ne
1SG
hóu
call
hóu
call
trìc
shake
rinc
rouse
tśi
3A.SG
pec
NEG
lo
become
yunc.
awake
I can't wake him up however hard I try.
(lit. I keep calling and shaking him and he doesn't wake up)


If the result can be expressed as a noun phrase, it may be introduced by the coverb lá ‘build, create’:

Hei
1PL
zò
put
lú
tie
rugo
CAUS-touch
ngào
branches
lá
build
mwòu.
roof
We tied the branches together to make a roof.
Ngèc
parents
nàc
take
nànc
name
hsoc
PASS\give
nonc
girl
lá
build
Záe.
Záe
The parents called their daughter Záe.


If the result is given in the form of a full subclause, the conjunctions drenc ‘so, therefore’ or grac ‘with the result that’ can be used. The former is more likely to be used for the result of a punctual event, while the latter is preferred for the result of a gradual process.

Ne
1SG
mònc
lazy
ravae
CAUS-fall
kéi
shovel
bra
stay
lin
lie
dróu
field
drenc
therefore
nà
mother
guo.
angry
I forgot the shovel on the field, so my mother was angry.
Ngwèi
PL\woman
idric
complain
idric
complain
ndáo
PL\thing
mìn
ATTR\small
grac
resulting_in
mwì
PL\man
ndzu
rise
zúc
walk
pei
go_from.3A
ndźí.
3A.PL
The women kept complaining about trifles, so the men got up and walked away from them.


Yet another strategy for expressing results employs clause coordination instead of subordination, usually indicating the relationship between the clauses with an adverbial prepositional phrase such as wo ki méc ‘by these events’.

Fwéc
PL\warrior
ndźác
defeat
móc
kill
dyao,
enemies
o
and
wo
INSTR
ki
this
méc
events
hei
1PL
nyac
win
mi
receive
hsoc
PASS\give
xèanc.
peace
The warriors defeated and killed the enemies, and by these events we were victorious and gained peace.


See also the section on causatives.

Manner

The simplest way to express the manner of an action is by verb serialization: a suitable manner verb is added to the main predicate, either before the other verb(s) (if the VP as a whole is transitive) or after them (if the VP is intransitive, or if the manner verb is transitive but the initial verb of the VP is not).

Gèn
Gèn
mic
turn_around
sruc.
slow
Gèn turns around slowly.
Blóun
lion
ráon
quick
tyòu
eat
kànc.
meat
The lion eats the meat quickly.

If a manner verb describes a motion of which both starting point and end point are expressed within a SVC, the manner verb must be placed between the origin verb and the target verb.

Wo
INSTR
dye
boat
kein
go_from.1
pèin
diagonal
do
come_to.3I
nú
other
syáe
SGV\shore
yu
of
fwenc.
river
The boat went diagonally to the other bank of the river.

These placement rules also apply if the manner verb is added to a more complex SVC.


A serialized intransitive manner verb can be intensified by adding nyac ‘win, be victorious’ (for desirable qualities) or htroa ‘lose, fail’ (for undesirable qualities) right after it. Note that using this construction does not imply anything about the actual success of the action, which is evident in the following example:

Mae
deer
pei
go_from.3A
ráon
quick
nyac
win
do
come_to.3I
lenc,
deciduous_forest
kè
but
nròc
hunter
móc
kill
tśi.
3A.SG
The deer ran away very quickly towards the forest, but the hunter still killed it.


If the manner of the action is expressed as a noun phrase, it can be added to the sentence with the prepositions pa ‘as, like’ or hkwì ‘in the manner of’.

Nonc
girl
nrà
be_able
faen
sing
śin
song
pa
like
no.
bird
The girl can sing like a bird.


Manner subclauses can be introduced with a variety of conjunctions: hkwì ‘in the manner that, in such a way that’, bonc ‘under the circumstance that’, or byen ‘by doing’.

Ne
1SG
ndźáo
cook
gonc
food
hśac
ready
hkwì
manner_of
mun
2SG
me
tell
ne.
1SG
I have cooked the food like you told me to.
Záe
Záe
rò
embrace
tà
grandmother
bonc
CIRC
tśi
3A.SG
dwenc.
grateful
Záe gratefully embraced her grandmother.
Mun
2SG
twè
split
bao
edge
yu
of
byo,
stick
o
and
mun
2SG
lóc
hold
rabra
CAUS-stay
mahtsao
blade
byen
by_doing
mun
2SG
zò
put
ribí
CAUS-go_between
lú
tie
to
3I.SG
wo
INSTR
śu.
sinew
You split the head of the stick, and then you attach the blade by putting it in between and tying it with a sinew.

Measure, distance and value

Measure adverbials (answering questions like ‘(by) how much?’) are expressed with the verb fou ‘pass’ as a coverb, similar to timespan adverbials.

Wo
INSTR
traen
room
mbàn
long
fou
pass
lác
twelve
trac.
PL\arm
The room is twelve cubits long.
Myè
father
tác
possess
zèc
herd
vei
from
dźá
PL\sheep
fou
pass
tróun
twenty-four
pyáo
four
síec.
PL\animal
My father owns a herd of sheep consisting of twenty-eight animals.


Values are expressed by describing a (real or hypothetical) trade situation, formed as an ECM structure:

Ne
1SG
tèin
then.FUT
kào
offer
ki
this
tlú
axe
mbàc
replace_with
tòc
three
ndwí.
PL\spear
This axe is worth three spears.
(lit. I will exchange this axe for three spears)

Frequency

In order to indicate how many times an event occurs, a multiplicative verb can be added to the verb phrase, positioned like a manner verb (i.e. before the other verb(s) if the VP is transitive, or after them if the VP is intransitive). There are five multiplicative verbs in Ronc Tyu: bìc ‘do once’, drae ‘do twice’, dròc ‘do three times’, dwao ‘do several times, do every now and then’, and tre ‘do never’.

Tśi
3A.SG
drae
do_twice
mbíc
turn
lú
tie
pàn
rope
téc
LOC.DYN
rie
around
yenc.
SGV\deciduous_forest
He wound the rope around the tree twice.
Nonc
girl
gidyáe
ATTR\polite
tre
do_never
twíc
argue_with
nà.
mother
A good girl never argues with her mother.


Frequencies not covered by the above multiplicative verbs can be expressed with śac ‘do’ as a coverb, followed by an appropriate numeral or indefinite quantifier, the abstract noun méc ‘events, instances, occurrences, repetitions’, and a resumptive pronoun referring back to the subject (in the role of the possessor of méc).

Ne
1SG
syéc
already
tei
say
ki
this
sei
words
śac
do
ni
many
ni
many
méc
events[POSS]
ne.
1SG
I’ve said this many times already.

Particular instances of repetition can be emphasized with the same construction, using the singulative form of the noun in combination with an ordinal numeral.

Tśi
3A.SG
mbíc
turn
lú
tie
pàn
rope
téc
LOC.DYN
rie
around
yenc
SGV\deciduous_forest
śac
do
ntòc
third
myéc
SGV\events[POSS]
tśi.
3A.SG
He wound the rope around the tree a third time.

Combinations of frequency and time use the coverb pyec ‘keep happening, continue’ together with an indefinite quantifier and a temporal noun phrase:

Záe
Záe
li
pull
hmi
squeeze
tsín
ewe
hka
lactate
pyec
continue
nè
every
emàn.
morning
Záe milks the ewe every morning.

Conditionals

Conditional clauses are most commonly introduced with the conjunction mao ‘if’.

In implicative conditionals, which present situations where the result of the condition is always true, the conditional clause usually includes the adverb htsí ‘now’.

Mao
if
ne
1SG
htsí
now
ndźáo
cook
sun,
water
nou
steam
tsì
come_to.1
nyú.
PASS\see
If I boil water, there will be steam. (lit. steam comes and is seen)


Predictive conditionals, which present situations that depend on a hypothetical but possible future event, typically contain either the adverb tèin ‘then (in the future)’ or another temporal adverbial referring to the future. The consequence is usually also a statement about the future, but it may also refer to the present or even to the past.

Mao
if
tśi
3A.SG
tèin
then.FUT
wín
marry
ne,
1SG
ne
1SG
ngóu
COP
ugei.
chieftain
If she marries me, I will be chieftain.
Mao
if
wì
rain
fyao
pour
kwá
descend
yen
next
man,
day
trùc
shaman
mbyo.
err
If it rains tomorrow, the shaman was wrong.

A predictive conditional may also be used with commands or questions. In the latter case, the interrogative main clause is typically placed before the conditional clause:

Mao
if
wae
2PL
nyu
see
dyao,
enemies
ta
IMP
li
pull
tào
throw
nrìn!
arrows
If you see the enemy, shoot your arrows!
Trén
which.I
táo
thing
mun
2SG
śac
do
mao
if
tśi
3A.SG
tèin
then.FUT
hláo
request
minc
2DU
wín
marry
minc?
2DU
What will you do if he asks you to marry him?

Of course, the consequence of a condition may still not be certain even if the condition is true. This can be expressed by subordinating the consequence clause to an appropriate epistemic modality verb such as dlò ‘it is possible’:

Mao
if
dźé
1PC
kein
go_from.1
sro
pursue
síec
PL\animal
yen
next
man,
day
dlò
possible
tenc
SUB
hei
1PL
pou
find
móc
kill
nggá.
elephant
If we go hunting tomorrow, we might find and kill an elephant.


Counterfactual conditionals, which describe a situation as dependent on a condition that is expected or known to be false, typically contain the adverb yéi ‘then (in the past)’ or another temporal adverbial referring to the past.

Mao
if
mun
2SG
yéi
then.PST
ngwae
do_properly
fyao
pour
bwìn
wash
soc
give
gónc
nourish
dànc,
PL\child
ndźí
3A.PL
ngwi
gentle
dyáe
polite
reanc
CAUS-happy
mun.
2SG
If you had taken good care of your children, they'd be well behaved and make you happy.

If the condition might still be fulfilled (however small the chance may be), the conjunction mao ‘if’ is often replaced by hihtsea ‘in the unlikely event that’.

Hihtsea
if_unlikely
ndźìc
snow
kwá
descend
kyá
arrive
hpi
during_period
ndàe,
summer
hei
1PL
ló
must
nàc
take
fi
wrap
yo
wear
nu
clothes
gźáo.
ATTR\warm
In the unlikely event that there should be snow in summer, we'll need to wear warm clothes.


In some situations, the condition can also be expressed as a noun phrase, introduced with the coverb syu ‘meet’.

Syu
meet
kun
thunder
na
and
hra-tra,
lightning
dyá
required
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
myen
look
mic
turn_around
ndźù
search
pou
find
tsou
SGV\land
dźe.
ATTR\safe
In case of a thunderstorm, you should look for shelter.

Concessives

Concessive clauses are formed with the conjunction tí ‘although, even if’.

Tí
although
tśi
3A.SG
źù,
afraid
pei
boy
zúc
walk
zúc
walk
lea
enter
ngàoc.
network_of_caves
Although he was afraid, the boy walked on and entered the caves.
Tí
although
dźé
1PC
yéi
then.PST
hrào
participate
byao
help
ndźí,
3A.PL
mwì
PL\man
pec
NEG
nrà
be_able
srae
reap
dzac
finish
mèi
grain
nyu
see
ngónc.
evening
Even though we helped them, the men were not able to finish harvesting the grain before dark.


Concessive clauses can be predictive or counterfactual like conditionals. Predictive concessives use the normal conjunction tí, and they usually also contain the adverb tèin ‘then (in the future)’ in the concessive clause plus the emphatic particle nù ‘really, indeed’ or a modal verb such as dlò ‘it is possible’ in the main clause.

Tí
although
húnc
elders
tèin
then.FUT
xo
refuse
dandáen
reject
vòc-swín,
brideprice
ne
1SG
wín
marry
ki
this
kwac
woman
nù!
really
Even if the elders refuse my brideprice, I will still marry this woman!


Counterfactual concessives are formed with the special conjunction ksea ‘despite’. They often also contain the adverb yéi ‘then (in the past)’ and/or the emphatic particle nù ‘really, indeed’.

Ksea
despite
dźé
1PC
yéi
then.PST
hrào
participate
byao
help
ndźí,
3A.PL
mwì
PL\man
nù
really
pec
NEG
nrà
be_able
srae
reap
dzac
finish
mèi
grain
nyu
see
ngónc.
evening
Even if we had helped them, the men would not have been able to finish harvesting the grain before dark.


If the concessive element is expressed as a noun phrase, it is introduced with the coverb kan ‘resist’.

Ne
1SG
nrà
be_able
nyu
see
kè
mountains
kan
resist
tléi.
fog
I can see the mountains in spite of the fog.

Modality

Epistemic possibility, probability, and necessity are expressed with the impersonal verbs dlò ‘it is possible’, hae ‘it is likely, it is probable’ or tyein ‘it must be the case, it is logically necessary’ respectively, followed by a complement clause.

Dlò
possible
tenc
SUB
dyào
enemies
tèin
then.FUT
dric
attack
màc
village
ló
DAT
hei.
1PL
The enemies might attack our village.
Hae
likely
tenc
SUB
wo
INSTR
ki
this
lenc
deciduous_forest
pì
grow
dzùn
contain
ligyèc.
birch
It's likely that there are birch trees growing in this forest.
Tyein
necessary
tenc
SUB
tśi
3A.SG
ngóu
COP
ugei.
chieftain
He must be the chieftain.

Similar meanings may sometimes also be expressed with evidential constructions.


A number of other impersonal verbs indicate various types of deontic modality (táo ‘it is planned; it has been decided; shall; will’, dyá ‘it is required; should’, dźéc ‘it is desired; may...!’, táe ‘it is preferable; would rather’). These are used in the same way, with the main predicate formed as a complement clause:

Dźéc
desired
tenc
SUB
dyao
enemies
ma.
die
May the enemy die!
Dyá
required
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
guo.
angry
You should be angry.


Transitive epistemic verbs such as táen ‘doubt’, śae ‘ask, question’ and fwinc ‘think, assume’ also appear with a complement clause. Unlike intransitive modals, these verbs have an overt subject (which must be an animate noun or pronoun):

Nà
mother
san
related_to
Gèn
Gèn
táen
doubt
tenc
SUB
tśi
3A.SG
móc
kill
blóun.
lion
Gèn's mother doubts that he killed the lion.


Transitive deontic verbs with a subject focus (i.e. verbs referring to the desires, wishes, intentions, capabilities, or obligations of a subject, for instance ao ‘want’, ràe ‘wish, hope’, hláo ‘request’, nrà ‘can, be able’ or ló ‘must, should’) are typically used in serial verb constructions. If the subject of the modal verb is coreferential with the subject of the main verb, the modal verb appears in auxiliary position, preceding the rest of the verb phrase.

Ne
1SG
ao
want
kèi
go_from.2
tsì
come_to.1
nya.
home[POSS]
I want to go home.
Pwanc
child
nrà
be_able
faen
sing
śin.
song
The child can sing [songs].

If the subjects of the modal verb and the main verb are different, the modal verb appears in the first slot of an ECM construction:

Ne
1SG
ràe
wish
ndzì
3A.PC
kein.
go_from.1
I wish they would leave.
Rúon
spouse[POSS]
ne
1SG
hláo
request
mun
2SG
tsì
come_to.1
syu
meet
nac.
1DU
My wife thinks you should come and visit the two of us.


A specific construction exists for the imperative mood, which is formed simply by omitting the subject (which is understood to be the addressee), and optionally reinforcing the command with the imperative particle ta immediately before the verb(s):

(Ta)
(IMP)
pàc
kiss
ne!
1SG
Kiss me!

A more polite version of the imperative can be formed by including both an overt second person pronoun and the imperative particle:

Mun
2SG
ta
IMP
pàc
kiss
ne.
1SG
I expect you to kiss me.

Yet another polite way to give orders involves switching the word order to VOS and circumfixing the whole sentence with rao ... dro. This construction can also be used for first person imperatives (hortatives) and third person imperatives (jussives).

Rao
in_order_to
myei
pray_to
ufwéc
PL\god
nac
1DU
dro.
do_the_same
Let's pray to the gods!
(lit. in order to pray to the gods, we do so)

Evidentiality

Ronc Tyu offers two main strategies for expressing evidential information (i.e. information about the source of knowledge regarding a statement). The first of these is not very specialized at all and consists simply of the main statement as a regular complement clause, embedded within a clause that describes the source of information:

Ne
1SG
wuc
hear
tenc
SUB
nà
mother
twíc
argue_with
myè.
father
I heard that mother had an argument with father.


The second construction, however, is more prevalent in speech, and it is used specifically for statements of evidential value. It employs a special kind of complement clause, which is subordinated to the impersonal verb trà ‘exist’ and introduced by one of several specialized complementizers that indicate different levels of evidentiality:

Trà
exist
nrù
SENS
ki
this
pei
boy
ha
step_on
kú
destroy
twí
spear
yu
of
mun.
2SG
This boy stepped on your spear and broke it [he was seen doing it]. (sensory evidence)
Trà
exist
nèi
PHYS
mae
deer
zúc
walk
fou
pass
dzic
go_through
twinc.
here
A deer must have passed by here [there are traces on the ground]. (physical evidence)
Trà
exist
rei
QUOT
ugei
chieftain
ma.
die
The chieftain has died [people say so]. (communicative evidence, hearsay)
Trà
exist
zrin
HYP
nrèn
foreigner
brinc
be_secret
kóan
seize
tóc
remove
taoc.
horse
The stranger might have stolen the horse [it is suspected]. (no concrete evidence, speculation)

It is worth noting that none of the evidentials distinguish between direct and indirect evidence, i.e. they only assert that the relevant knowledge was indeed acquired in the specified way, but not necessarily by the speaker himself. By whom exactly can only be deduced from context.


The more modal semantics of two additional special complementizers do not quite fit in with the canonical definition of evidentiality, having to do more with the attitude of the speaker towards the proposition, but they function in the same way syntactically and are thus included here:

Trà
exist
yu
AFF
dyao
enemies
tèin
then.FUT
dric
attack
màc
village
lò
DAT
hei.
1PL
The enemies will attack our village [I'm sure of this]. (affirmative)
Trà
exist
mè
MIR
Gèn
Gèn
móc
kill
blóun
lion
nù!
really
Gèn really killed a lion! [I didn't expect him to] (mirative)


Evidential complementizers can also be used in polar questions of the ‘is it true that...’ type with the impersonal auxiliary verb hrec. In such a situation, it is not the truth value of the proposition as such that is being asked for, but the information status expressed by the evidential complementizer:

Hréc
Q.AUX
nrù
SENS
pei
boy
fwei
hit
nonc?
girl
Did you witness the boy hitting the girl [or did you get that information from somewhere else]?
Hréc
Q.AUX
yu
AFF
ugei
chieftain
ma
die
nù?
really
Are you sure that the chieftain has died [or might he still be alive after all]?

Volition

Sentences with animate subjects and active verbs are generally interpreted as volitional. In order to suggest a non-volitional meaning instead, animate subjects may optionally be marked like oblique arguments.

Accidental or involuntary states (intransitive only, with the subject in the role of experiencer) take the dative preposition ló ‘for, to’.

Ló
DAT
ne
1SG
tou
begin
yenc.
sleep
I fell asleep [although I didn't want to].

Accidental or involuntary actions (both transitive or intransitive) are indicated with the instrumental preposition wo ‘with, by, using’, effectively treating the animate subject as inanimate with regard to syntax (but note that pronouns referring back to such a subject still exhibit animate agreement).

Wo
INSTR
ki
this
pei
boy
ha
step_on
kú
destroy
twí
spear
yu
of
mun,
2SG
kè
but
tśi
3A.SG
bronc
regret
kù
that
myéc
SGV\events
nù.
really
This boy accidentally stepped on your spear and caused it to break, but he's very sorry for it.

Actions performed by the subject but controlled by someone else (both transitive or intransitive; these are basically causatives without an overt causer) are marked with the preposition ta ‘by’.

Ta
by
kwac
woman
pya
exit
blo
go_from.3I
traen.
room
The woman reluctantly left the room [because she had been told to leave].


Strong emotional involvement on the part of the subject (i.e. exceptionally high volition) can be expressed by serialization with dráo ‘be eager, be motivated’ or piec ‘be wild, be fierce’.

Ne
1SG
dráo
eager
ec
return
tsì
come_to.1
kyá
arrive
nya
home[POSS]
nyu
see
mà.
sundown
I'm determined to arrive back home before it gets dark.
Fwéc
PL\warrior
piec
wild
sro
pursue
dyao
enemies
bùn
REL.A
ndzì
3A.COLL
dric
attack
màc,
village
o
and
dzó
same.A
guc
take_revenge
móc
kill
ndzì.
3A.COLL
The warriors relentlessly pursued the enemies who had attacked the village and killed them in revenge.

Reported speech

Quotations

Direct quotations typically use a directional verb of communication such as me ‘tell, say towards’, twíc ‘disagree, protest, argue with’, or śae ‘ask (sb.)’, all of which take the person spoken to as their object. These verbs appear in an ECM construction whose second part consists of a quotative verb such as wuc ‘hear, listen’ or mé ‘be told’ (the passive of me), with the latter often implying some kind of obligation for the addressee. The reported utterance is subordinated to the special quotative complementizer rei and generally rendered unchanged, with no person shift in pronouns.

Trùc
shaman
twíc
argue_with
ne
1SG
mé
PASS\tell
rei,
QUOT
‘mun
2SG
ló
must
myei
pray_to
ufwéc!’
PL\god
The shaman argued with me, “You must pray to the gods!”
Gèn
Gèn
me
tell
mwì
PL\man
rei,
QUOT
‘ne
1SG
ban
today
pec
NEG
hrào
participate
źec
group[POSS]
nròc.’
hunter
Gèn told the men, “Today I will not join the hunting party.”


Non-directional verbs of communication like tei ‘say, speak’, dzéi ‘declare, announce’, hláo ‘ask, plead, request’, or pwo ‘reply, answer’, which take the content of the utterance as their object, can also be used for quotations. In this case, the addressee of the reported speech event is not mentioned.

Záe
Záe
pwo
answer
rei,
QUOT
‘ne
1SG
ao
want
pyec
continue
tsao
cut
lei
decorate
toc.’
wood
Záe answered, “I would like to continue carving wood.”
Sran
elder
tei
say
rei,
QUOT
‘minc
2DU
ló
must
ndúc
obey
gwae!’
rules
The elder said, “The two of you have to follow the rules!”

Indirect speech

Indirect speech in Ronc Tyu can be encountered in two distinct construction types. The first of these is the more general one, but it occurs only with non-directional verbs of communication. It is similar to a quotative construction with the same verb, but differs from the latter in that nouns and pronouns in the reported utterance are adjusted to reflect the point of view of the matrix clause:

Sran
elder
tei
say
rei
QUOT
nac
1DU
ló
must
ndúc
obey
gwae.
rules
The elder said that the two of us had to follow the rules.
Gèn
Gèn
dzéi
declare
rei
QUOT
dzó
same.A
pec
NEG
hrào
participate
źec
group[POSS]
nròc.
hunter
Gèn announced that he would not join the hunting party.


If the addressee of the indirect speech event is not obvious from context, it may optionally be reintroduced using wuc ‘hear, listen’ or mé ‘be told’ as a coverb. This phrase typically appears at the end of the clause:

Nonc
girl
twic
whisper
rei
QUOT
nà
mother
ndźei
know
vìc
secret
(wuc
(hear
tao
man
kún).
ATTR\old)
The girl whispered (to the old man) that her mother knew the secret.

The addressee phrase is sometimes moved before the content of the speech event for stylistic reasons and ease of parsing:

Ugwac
queen
dzéi
declare
(mé
(PASS\tell
twín)
PL\person)
rei
QUOT
rúon
spouse[POSS]
tśi
3A.SG
ma
die
o
and
tśi
3A.SG
pec
NEG
wín
marry
wín
marry
tao
man
gèn.
ATTR\different
The queen announced (to the people) that her husband was dead and she would not marry again.


The verb of communication may also appear in passivized form without a syntactic subject. This affects only the shape of the matrix clause though; the indirect speech event itself is rendered in the same way as if the verb was active:

Rón
PASS\recite
rei
QUOT
swéc
PL\shooting_star
ngóu
COP
fwó
PL\omen
mùn
ATTR\good
dźac.
ATTR\win
It is said that shooting stars are a very good omen.


If the subject of the reported speech event is coreferential with the addressee and the reported speech event is formulated using a single verb phrase, a further option for indirect speech is available, which does not contain any quotative complementizer and is compatible with both directional and non-directional matrix verbs. It consists of an ECM construction using the speech verb as the first part of the structure and the verb of the reported utterance as the second part. Nouns and pronouns in the reported utterance are adjusted so that its subject can simultaneously function as the object of the speech verb.

Nà
mother
me
tell
dànc
PL\child
tò.
silent
The mother tells the children to be quiet.
Záe
Záe
pwo
answer
dzó
same.A
ao
want
pyec
continue
tsao
cut
lei
decorate
toc.
wood
Záe answered that she would like to continue carving wood.

Indirect questions

Indirect questions work in much the same way as reported speech, typically using one of the verbs śae ‘ask (sb.)’, which has the addressee of the question as its object, or hláo ‘ask, plead, request (sth.)’, which has the content of the question as its object. Of these, only hláo can be used to form indirect questions where the addressee is not obligatorily mentioned.

The most common type of indirect polar questions is formed simply by putting the question inside a reported speech frame, introduced by the interrogative particle as in a direct question. In the quotative construction, the question is rendered literally with no shift in pronouns:

Nà
mother
śae
ask
Záe
Záe
wuc
hear
rei,
QUOT
‘trá
Q
bra
stay
mun?’
2SG
The mother asks Záe, “Will you stay?”
Nà
mother
hláo
request
rei,
QUOT
‘trá
Q
bra
stay
mun?’
2SG
The mother asks, “Will you stay?”

In the indirect construction, which is only possible with verbs like hláo which have the content of the question as their object, the person of pronouns in the question shifts to the point of view of the matrix clause. The addressee must either be inferred from context, or may be reintroduced using the coverbs wuc ‘hear, listen’ or mé ‘be told’ as in reported speech:

Nà
mother
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
trá
Q
bra
stay
Záe.
2SG
The mother asks whether Záe will stay.
Nà
mother
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
trá
Q
bra
stay
tśi
3A.SG
wuc
hear
Záe.
Záe
The mother asks Záe whether she will stay.

The third option, which is the shortest one and therefore very common in speech, is a simplified ECM construction without the quotative complementizer. It works with either type of verb, but it can only be used if the question does not contain more than one verb phrase and if the subject of the question is also coreferential with the addressee:

Nà
mother
śae
ask
Záe
Záe
trá
Q
bra.
stay
The mother asks Záe whether she will stay.


All of these options can also be used with indirect polar questions based on the interrogative copula sró:

Tao
man
kún
ATTR\old
śae
ask
pwanc
child
wuc
hear
rei,
QUOT
‘sró
Q.COP
mun
2SG
nonc
girl
san
related_to
ugwac?’
queen
The old man asks the child, “Are you the queen's daughter?” (quotative)
Tao
man
kún
ATTR\old
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
sró
Q.COP
pwanc
child
nonc
girl
san
related_to
ugwac.
queen
The old man asks whether the child is the queen's daughter. (indirect, no addressee given)
Tao
man
kún
ATTR\old
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
sró
Q.COP
tśi
3A.SG
nonc
girl
san
related_to
ugwac
queen
wuc
hear
pwanc.
child
The old man asks the child whether she is the queen's daughter. (indirect, addressee given in coverb phrase)
Tao
man
kún
ATTR\old
śae
ask
pwanc
child
sró
Q.COP
nonc
girl
san
related_to
ugwac.
queen
The old man asks the child whether she is the queen's daughter. (simplified ECM)


Indirect polar questions based on the construction hrec tenc...? ‘is it true that..?’ also follow the same model, but the simplified ECM structure is not available, even if the distribution of participant roles would suggest so:

Záe
Záe
śae
ask
Gèn
Gèn
wuc
hear
rei,
QUOT
‘hrec
Q.AUX
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
móc
kill
blóun
lion
nù?’
really
Záe asks Gèn, “Is it true that you really killed a lion?” (quotative)
Záe
Záe
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
hrec
Q.AUX
tenc
SUB
Gèn
Gèn
móc
kill
blóun
lion
nù.
really
Záe asks whether it is true that Gèn really killed a lion. (indirect, no addressee given)
Záe
Záe
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
hrec
Q.AUX
tenc
SUB
tśi
3A.SG
móc
kill
blóun
lion
nù
really
wuc
hear
Gèn.
Gèn
Záe asks Gèn whether it is true that he really killed a lion. (indirect, addressee given in coverb phrase)
  • *Záe śae Gèn hrec tenc tśi móc blóun nù.
    (simplified ECM; ungrammatical)


Tag questions can be quoted verbatim, but they must be replaced by one of the other question strategies in order to appear in indirect form:

Trùc
shaman
śae
ask
pei
boy
mé
PASS\tell
rei,
QUOT
‘mun
2SG
byao
help
ne,
1SG
hréc?’
Q.AUX
The shaman asks the boy, “You're going to help me, right?” (quotative)
  • *Trùc hláo rei tśi byao tśi hréc wuc pei.
    (indirect question with addressee given in coverb phrase; ungrammatical)
Trùc
shaman
śae
ask
pei
boy
trá
Q
byao
help
tśi.
3A.SG
The shaman asks the boy whether he would help him.
(re-worded as a simplified ECM structure based on the particle trá)


Indirect content questions, where one of the interrogative verbs róu ‘be who’ and rén ‘be what’ is the main verb of the embedded question, work exactly like indirect polar questions and allow all of the mentioned strategies:

Gèn
Gèn
śae
ask
nrèn
stranger
mé
PASS\tell
rei,
QUOT
‘róu
be_who
mun?’
2SG
Gèn asks the stranger, “Who are you?” (quotative)
Gèn
Gèn
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
róu
be_who
nrèn.
stranger
Gèn asks who the stranger is. (indirect, no addressee given)
Gèn
Gèn
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
róu
be_who
tśi
3A.SG
wuc
hear
nrèn.
stranger
Gèn asks the stranger who he is. (indirect, addressee given in coverb phrase)
Gèn
Gèn
śae
ask
nrèn
stranger
róu.
be_who
Gèn asks the stranger who he is. (simplified ECM)


Indirect adverbial questions, which ask for a particular constituent of the embedded question, are a bit more complicated. In the quotative pattern, the question is rendered literally as usual:

Nà
mother
śae
ask
Záe
Záe
wuc
hear
rei,
QUOT
‘trén
which.I
tsou
SGV\land
mun
2SG
ao
want
do?’
come_to.3I
The mother asks Záe, “Where do you want to go?”

In the indirect pattern there are two options, both of which involve syntactic restructuring of the embedded question into a relative clause headed by the questioned constituent. In the first construction, the constituent itself appears within a predicative clause subordinated to the quotative complementizer. Note that the subject of the predication is accompanied by an interrogative determiner, which mandates the use of the normal copula ngóu (and not the interrogative copula sró).

Nà
mother
hláo
request
rei
QUOT
trén
which.I
tsou
SGV\land
ngóu
COP
tsou
SGV\land
gyào
REL.I
Záe
Záe
ao
want
do
come_to.3I
to.
3I.COLL
The mother asks which place it is that Záe wants to go to.

The second construction is syntactically simpler and uses the questioned constituent as the object of the matrix verb phrase directly (which is often extended by serialization with ndźei ‘know, be acquainted with’), omitting both the quotative complementizer and the copula. It is not fully equivalent in meaning though, carrying the connotation that the embedded question should be interpreted as a forceful demand rather than a friendly inquiry.

Nà
mother
hláo
request
ndźei
know
trén
which.I
tsou
SGV\land
gyào
REL.I
Záe
Záe
ao
want
do
come_to.3I
to.
3I.COLL
The mother demands to know the place that Záe wants to go to.

A simplified ECM pattern is also available for adverbial content questions. Here, it is notable that the questioned constituent with its interrogative determiner is not fronted within the embedded question, but simply stays in the position it would occupy in a declarative sentence, so that the subject of the question can simultaneously be used as the object of the matrix verb (but remember that this is only possible if the question contains only one verb phrase and if the subject of the question is also coreferential with the addressee):

Nà
mother
śae
ask
Záe
Záe
ao
want
do
come_to.3I
trén
which.I
tsou.
SGV\land
The mother asks Záe where she wants to go.


It should also be mentioned that indirect questions do not only appear with verbs of asking, but also as interrogative content clauses with a number of other verbs such as ndźei ‘know, be acquainted with’, fwinc ‘think, reflect, consider, assume’, kenc ‘decide, judge’, prei ‘guess’, or lexicalized serial verb constructions such as ko drá ‘check, test’, yec pou ‘remember’, or tyuc pyec pwo ‘discuss, negotiate’. In these situations, the quotative complementizer rei is sometimes replaced by the normal complementizer tenc or an appropriate evidential complementizer such as sensory nrù.

Ne
1SG
pec
NEG
ndźei
know
nrèn
stranger
róu.
be_who
I don't know who the stranger is.
Tráe
preferable
tenc
SUB
mun
2SG
do
come_to.3I
ko
touch
drá
poke
nrù
SENS
trá
Q
póu
closed
nyù.
door
It would be good if you could go and check [with your own senses] whether the door is closed.
Ne
1SG
htroa
fail
kenc
decide
trén
which.I
kén
task
gyào
REL.I
ne
1SG
ao
want
tou
begin
śac
do
to.
3I.COLL
I can't decide what I want to do.
Záe
Záe
pwì
try
prei
guess
trén
which.I
mba
SGV
grec
jewellery
tsáo
PASS\cut
hlá
PASS\build
léi
PASS\decorate
ta
by
Gèn.
Gèn
Záe tries to guess which piece of jewellery was made by Gèn.
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