Shtasa/Štoso [ˈʃtɒː.sɒː]
Period	c. -600 YP to -300 YP
Spoken in	Tjakori and Northern Xšalad
Total speakers	unknown
Writing system	Variant of the Xšali script
Classification	Western languages Lake languages (Wañelinic) Shtåså
Typology
Basic word order	SVO
Morphology	Agglutinating
Alignment	ERG-ABS
Credits
Created by	Arzena

History

Štoso, Štåså or Anješnaloksaby moš is a descendant of Çetázó in the Western language family (the etymology of Štoso is Çetázó). It was spoken by the Anheshnalak tribes who descended from the original speakers of Çetázó. For uncertain reasons, the Anheshnalaks migrated eastward, away from the homeland of the Wañelinic peoples: Haišin (Çet. Γañeɬina). The tribes dithered around the highlands and the steppes of western Peilaš for a few centuries. The Anheshnalaks fell into repute as mercenaries - deadly on horseback - traders, hardy folk: the kind content to sleep with nothing but a saddle, a blanket, and the stars overhead. During this time they came to learn of the existence of a mighty, wealthy empire, just over the horizon, decadent, and prime for the taking...

The epic songs tell us that this empire held the epithet "Sunrise", hinting at the realm of the Ndak. However, the Anheshnalak tribes never got close to Lasomo and the Ndak heartland, invading Tjakori (Cakonj) by -900 YP. To the nomads, the Tjakori and the Gezoro - with their smithies, mountain redoubts, and urban life - must have seemed an empire. The invasion of Tjakori displacd the Westerners already inhabiting the region, the Tjakori and Gezoro people (Sht. Gesolo) who did not fall to enslavement under the Ndak emperors. During these years, the Gezoro language left a deep impression on Shtasa. Both belonged to the same language family, and after the initial rush of conquest, Anheshnalak and Gezoro intermarried. The newcomers assumed mastery of the plains around Lake Tjakori and the north-south trade routes between the Rathedan and the south; the Gezoro tended to their mines and mountain-hugging gardens. A state of bilinguality emerged (though with Shtasa as the dominant partner).

Indeed, by -750 YP, the Xšali histories indicate that a group of nomadic peoples had moved south from the mountains and settled in the periphery regions of northern Xšalad. The reports we have tell us that these people were partially settled and partially nomadic herders. The few farmers were consentrated along the main north-south trade routes from Xšalad to the Rathedān.

The Anheshnalaks and the Empire of Xšalad (Cikšaljo) have an antagonistic history. The Westerners arrived during one of the intermediate periods of civil war and turmoil that rocked the Empire once every three centuries. The imperial house held figurative authority beyond the walls of Haisdeya, its capital (Sht. 'Great-City'), deferring to rival princelings and warlords who were more like to fight one another than administer the realm. In this context, the Anheshnalaks first offered their services as mercenaries, only to turn on their employers when payment (read, booty) was not forthcoming. By -600 YP, the date of this grammar, the Anheshnalaks had established a sizable domain along the imperial frontier due to domestic turmoil in Xšalad.

The Anheshnalaks could out-maneuver the Xšali with their archery and horsemanship. They used this skill to pillage, burn, and rape, but that was the extent of the mercenaries-turned-rulers. Holding territory and extracting tribute on the sparsely populated frontier was one thing, the management of agricultural society was another. Furthermore, superior numbers of the Xšali and a hot, unpleasant climate prevented the Anheshnalaks from advancing any further into southern Xšalad. So the Westerners carved out their stomping grounds along the borders of the Empire on the Yima, from where they mounted raids into the lands of the agriculturalists. The zenith of Anheshnalak strength was during the 5th century before the death of the Prophet Zārakātias. Over and beyond the eastern bank of the Yima River, that was nomad country... This time saw the capture of the holy city of Tetsikå (-471 YP), and the conquests of Habvanðyhanj (Habvam the Great or Hawansihan the Butcher to the Xšali) from -435 YP to his death in -420 YP.

Terminology

The word Štoso is simply the continuation of the word Çetázó.

The other phrase to name the language is Anješnaloksaby moš, which means 'language of the Anheshnalaks'.

The word Anješnaloks, which designates the ethnic group that speaks Štoso, is composed of the word Anješnalo and the collective suffix -ks.

For ease of typing and suggesting proper pronunciation in English (and due to our earliest attestation of the word in English as such), the singular of Anješnalo will be transcribed as Anheshnalak with the regular plural of Anheshnalaks. For meta-discussion of the language in Akaran discourse, Shtasa is the preferred term.

Phonology

Phonemic Inventory

Shtåså has 24 consonantal phonemes

	labial	dental	sibilant	alveolar	palatal	velar	glottal
voiceless stops	p	t	tθ	tʃ		k
voiced stops	b	d	dð			g
voiceless fricatives	f	θ	s	ʃ			h
voiced fricatives	v	ð
nasals	m	n			ɲ
laterals		l			ʎ
approximants					j	w

/θ ð tθ dð tʃ ʃ j ɲ ʎ/ will be transcribed as <þ ð tþ dð c š j nj lj>, older sources have <th, dh, tth, ddh, č, sj/sh, j, ñ/nh, lh>. For a transcription using only ASCII characters, <tz, dz, ttz, ddz, x> transcribe /θ ð tθ dð ʃ/.

One analysis of Shtasa's vowels yields 8 phonemes:

	Front	Central	Back
High	i	ɨ ʉ	u
Mid	e		o
Low		a	ɒ

/ɨ, ʉ, ɒ/ are written <y, uy, o>.

The distinction between /ɨ/ and /ʉ/ is a marginal one. The latter barely occurs in native roots; it is encountered most frequently in morphologically-triggered vowel shifts of /ɨ/ next to labial consonants and within frequent morphemes like the past tense prefix /sʉ/ and the noun class marker /hʉ/, plural /kʉ/. Some analyses of Shtasa treat /ʉ/ as a allophone of /ɨ/.

Most speakers merge /o/ with /ɒ/ due to the former's rare occurrence in native roots. In response /a/ shifts towards [æ]. When a distinction between the two vowels is absolutely necessary, lexologists indicate /o/ with <ô> or <oo> in word lists.

Another analysis yields the following, revised vowel chart:

	Front	Central	Back
High	i	ɨ ʉ	u
Mid	e
Low	æ		ɒ

Syllable Structure

For a Western language, Shtasa tolerates large clusters of obstruents. Its maximal syllable structure is (C)(C)(C)(C)V(C)(C)(C).

Examples: /æb/ 'rain'; /ʃeln/ 'horn'; /ʃɲæθ/ 'to build'; /ʃtʃɨts/ 'to leave', /jɨstsvn̩/ 'coming'

/n/ and /v/ can become a syllabic consonants, most visibly in the experiential evidential /v/ and the verbal noun suffix realized as [vn̩] or [v̩n] depending on context.

Shtasa as a language tends towards monosyllables of (C)V(C) or disyllabic (C)VCV(C) words in its native roots. Loanwords into the language often collapse three syllable words to two: eg. Early Adata dizhaka 'ruler' > Sht. dišak

Stress

Sound change and analogy from Çetázó has moved the stress to the penultimate syllable

Allophony

A sequence of consecutive vowels is realized as [VʔV].

šeo 'star' ['ʃe.ʔɒː]

hemeoi 'bad-NC1-ERG' [he.me.'ʔɒː.ʔi]

If, in combing morphemes, there is a cluster of voiced and unvoiced stops and/or fricatives, the voiced one becomes voiceless.

i.e. acbanašd 'fear-EVID2-2sg.ERG-NC2' /atʃ.ba.naʃd/>>[atʃ.pa.r̃aʃt]

/ŋ/ only occurs before a velar, and so should be considered an allophone of /n/.

Intervocalic /n/ is realized as a nasalized trill [r̃]

/s/ assimilates to [ʃ] when it is next to /ʃ/ as a result of verb morphology and in quick speech, when a final /s/ is followed by an initial /ʃ/.

ciwejsšo
/tʃi.wejs.ʃɒː/
[cwejʃ.ʃɒː]
Kill him.

Some speakers fortify /tʃ/ to [c] (hence the transcription <c>)

/tʃi/ 'want' > [ci]

Unstressed /i/ drops when it does not come word-finally, especially when preceded by a palatal consonant. This is most noticeable with the imperative prefix /tʃi-/.

Sound Changes from Çetázó

The following sound changes are believed to have taken place berween Çetázó (-2000 YP) and Shtasa (-600 YP)

C=any consonant F=i e First Stage

Pitch accent becomes fixed stress
Unstressed /a o/>[ə]: /mo.dza/>[mo.dzə]
Unstressed /i e/ palatalize preceding consonant: /ba.xe/>[baxʲ], /da.dɬe/>[dadɬʲ]
/æ/>[e] open syllable; >[a] closed syllable: /ɬæ.nji/>[ɬenʲ], /næl.çi/>[nalsʲ]
- CCʲ, CʲC> CʲCʲ: /dadɬʲ/>[dadʲɬʲ], /nælçi/>[nalsʲ/>[nalʲsʲ]
Unstressed /u/>[ɨ], [ʉ] next to labials or labiovelars: /kwu.'ɬu/>[kwʉ.ɬu], /u.'da.spa/>[ɨ.da.spə]
- /iw uj/>[ʉ]: /çiw.ka/>[sʲʉ.kə]
/ç/>[sʲ]: /nælçi/>[nalʲsʲ], /çe.ta:zo:/>[sʲtʲa:zo:]

Second Stage

/c ɟ/>[tʃ dʒ]: /ɟøm.ɬi/>[dʒwemʲ.sʲ]
/tɬ dɬ ɬ/>[ts dz s]: /dɬun/>[dzun], /o.ɬu/>[o.sɨ], /tɬufj/>[tsufʲ] > *[tsujf > tsʉf]
/ø y/>[we wi]: /ɟøm.ɬi/>[dʒwemʲsʲ], /cy.fi/>[tʃwifj]
/a: o:/>[ɑ ɒ]: sʲtʲa:zo:/>[sʲtʲɑ.zɒ]
/e: i:/>[i:]: /sʲelne:/>[sʲel.ni], /dzʲe:/>[dzʲi]
/aw awa/>[ɒ]: /la.wa/>[lɒ], /tsu.wa/>['tsu.wə]
/jF-stress/>[j]: /'a.jen/>[ajn]
/ŋ/>[ŋk] V_V: /mo.ŋu/>[moŋ.kɨ]
/nn/>[nd] /θu.nən/>/θunn/>[θund]
/bj tj dj kj gj hj mj nj lj/>[v tʃ tʃ h h ʃ ɲ ɲ ʎ]:
All labiovelars except /w/ shift to labials: /kw.aðu/>[pa.ðɨ], /xa.xwa/>[xa.fə], /γwi.da/>[vi.də]
/ə/ is dropped: /tudzə/>[tudz], /ksamə/>[ksam]
/w/ > [ɣ] _# /u.wə/ > /uw/ > [uɣ]
velar fricatives become [h]: /xa.fə/>[haf], /uɣ] > /uh/

Third Stage This stage of sound changes separates the standardized form of Shtåså from its dialects: cf. Standard tudð vs Eastern tud and Southern tuz. After the labiovelar shift and the great palatalization in the ending stages of phase 2, and throughout stage 3, loanwords from Gezoro begin to enter Shtasa.

Vowel quality dropping: /i/, /u/, /e/ drop to [e], [o], [æ] in the form /$Vzd_(Vzd)$/
/ts dz/>[tθ dð]: /tsa/>[tθa], /tudz/>[todð]
- >/tʃ/ _F: /dzʲi/>[tʃe]
/z/>[s]
/dʒ/>[tʃ]: /dʒwemʲsʲ/ > [tʃwæɲʃ]
/sʲ/>[ʃ]
/sʲtʲ/>[ʃt]: /sjtjɑ.zɒ/>[ʃtɒ.sɒ]
any unstressed vowel in a syllable that ends in a nasal consonant becomes a syllabic nasal: /ji.stsvn/ > [ji.stsvnˌ]
/ɲ/ > [j] _C /'haɲ.ʃin/ > ['haj.ʃnˌ]
/ʎ/>[j] _C: /naʎʃ/>[najʃ]
- /ʎ/>[j] /V_'V/: /a.'ʎɒ.nə/>[a.jæwn]
/ɑ ɒ/>[ɒ:]: /sʲtʲɑ.zɒ/>[ʃtɒ.sɒ]
/w/ > [null] _ɒ; /'gwɒ.nɒ.ðen/ > [gɒ.næw.ðnˌ]
/w/ > [null] /$tʃ_V/: /tʃweɲʃ/ > [tʃæjʃ]; /tʃwifj/ > [tʃifj]
/ɒ/>[æw] in non-final stressed syllables: Gez. /xeːsɔzɔ/ > /he.'sɒ.ðə/ > [he.sæwð] but /'ʃtɒ.sɒ/ > ['ʃtɒ.sɒ]
/o/ > [ɒ]
/i/ > [ɨ] C_C#: /fiθ/ > [fɨθ]; /fis/ > [fɨs]
/a/ > /ɒ/ _(k, g)#
/$ʉCɨ_$/ > [$ʉCʉ_$]: /pʉ.sɨ/ > [pʉ.sʉ]
/oi/ > [ʉ]: /ˈjɒ.moi/ > [ˈjæw.mʉ]

Morphology

Noun Classes

Shtåså has inherited seven noun classes from Çetázó. Some changes that have occurred since Çetázó are:

Regular plural equivalents of the singular noun class suffixes.
The fifth noun class (NC) marks collective groupings. i.e. seeds, families, tribes, leafs, herds, forests, etc.
The third NC has taken all inedible objects, solid or otherwise
Edible fluids moved to noun class two
NC7 took the role of NC8
NC7, being the noun class for intangible things, is used to create abstract words by verbal cross-referencing. I.e. fire>hope, eyes>sight etc.
Fire has moved to NC2, because of its relation to cooking food
NC4 contains weapons, sharp sticks or rocks and by metaphoric extension things that cause trouble or difficulty

The noun classes are used as markers on adjectives and as absolutive markers in the third person on verbs.

The noun classes with their characteristic suffix are listed below:

Noun class	Contains	Singular suffix	Plural suffix
I	Humans/Spirits	-o	-ko
II	Animals, fire, food, drink	-d	-kt
III	Inedible solids	-dð	-kþ
IV	Sharp long objects	-hyn	-kyn
V	Collective groupings	-s	-ks
VI	tangible fluids	-huy	-kuy
VII	Intangible concepts	-š	-kš

Nouns

Shtasa, like its sister-language Šetâmol, relies on heavy inflection of nouns like its parent language. Shtasa has preserved the seven original cases of Çetázó. It lost the dual number except for naturally occurring pairs and in poetic language.

Sound change and analogy have produced four noun declensions in Shtasa. That terminology, though, is quite loose because the variations between the declensions are small, only found in the final root vowel and stem changes triggered by the ergative case. An important note: a root vowel of u is centralized outside of the absolutive and case. The third declension noun pusy is a good example of this.

As a further note, many first declension nouns have an irregular ergative in the singular due to palatalization caused by the ergative morphene -i. A rule of thumb is that nasals>nj, -l to -lj, -s to -š, and stops to their corresponding fricative. The alveolar series shifts to /tš/. Examples: *tþubi 'fruit' > tþuv, *lai>lji, *weni>wenj, *tabdi > tabc and *plami>planj.

The first noun declension ends consonants except for the 'palatal' ones: c,š,nj,j, and lj
The second noun declension ends in palatal consonents, historically palatalized consonants, and front vowels
The third noun declension ends in -y
The fourth noun declension is reserved for nouns ending in any vowel other than -y.

Singular

singular	1st 'horn'	2nd 'water'	3rd 'wolf'	4th 'blood'
absolutive	šeln	cwifj	puysuy	þuo
ergative	šeiñ	cwifi	puysu	þyoy
oblique	šelno	cwifio	puysuo	þyo
instrumental	šelnonk	cwifink	puysunk	þyonk
locative	šelnom	cwifim	puysum	þyom
allative	šelnoc	cwific	puysuc	þyoc
ablative	šelnos	cwifis	puysus	þyos

Dual

The dual has been relegated to nouns that come in natural pairs and poetic language

dual	1st 'horn'	2nd 'water'	3rd 'wolf'	4th 'blood'
absolutive	šelnos	cwifes	pusys	þuos
ergative	šelnoš	cwifeš	pysuš	þyoš
oblique	šelnosy	cwifesy	pysusy	þyosy
instrumental	šelnosunk	cwifšunk	pysysunk	þyosunk
locative	šelnosum	cwifšum	pysysum	þyosum
allative	šelnosuch	cwifšuc	pysysuc	þyosuc
ablative	šelnosus	cwifšus	pysysus	þyosus

Plural

plural	1st 'horn'	2nd 'water'	3rd 'wolf'	4th 'blood'
absolutive	šelnok	cwifik	puysuyk	þuok
ergative	šelnav	cwifiv	puysuv	þyov
oblique	šelnaby	cwifiby	puysuby	þyoby
instrumental	šelnabunk	cwifibunk	puysuybunk	þyobunk
locative	šelnabum	cwifibum	puysubym	þyobum
allative	šelnabuc	cwifibuc	puysuybuc	þyobuc
ablative	šelnabus	cwifibus	puysuybus	þyobus

Possession

Shtoso has lost the alienable vs. inalienable distinction of its ancestor. The oblique case now handles all possession.

No senj '1sg.OBL horse' My horse
Vej so tudð? 'Q 1pl.OBL house' Is that our house?
To þuo ašahuy cig '2sg.OBL blood COPULA-NC6 yellow' Your blood is cowardly

Shtoso also has verbalized the postposition am to fill the semantic space for 'to have' The possessum is the subject in the absolutive case; the possessor is in the locative case.

Senj amd nom.
horse.ABS with-NC2 1sg.LOC
A horse is with me ~ I have a horse

The negative of am is jim *Cetazo jéma<<je ama

Haša jimš nom
fire.ABS NEG.with-NC7 1sg.LOC
I have no fire (i.e. hope).

Prenominals

Within the Western languages, it has always been better to consider nominals that modify other nominals as 'prenominals' that modify a nominal. The prenominal often takes markers for the class, number, and case of its head nominal. In Shtasa we see the Western system at place for most prenominals. However, for a closed class of prenominals - prototypically in relation to physical attributes like size, color, quantity or shape - the prenominal modifies its head noun without class, case, number or case attribution. This practice may be attributed to contact with Gezoro, a fellow Western language that similarly contains a category of prenominals that does not inflect.

A nominal transforms into a prenominal in one of several ways:

Through a null derivation: šyps- 'dry (NOM) -> šyps- 'dry PreNOM
Through derivation via suffix: tuc 'house' -> tuclanj 'safe, reliable, comfortable'; hok 'stone' -> hakam 'hard, difficult, stoney'

Adjective case suffixes, which follow the noun class are ABS: -Ø ERG: -i OBL: -y INST: -unk LOC: -um ALL: -uc ABL: -us

First declension adjectives end in any consonant except palatal ones. An emphatic vowel -[@] is added before any noun class suffixes except NC1.

Ja šypsadðus cys / ja xypsaddzus cys
ja šypsa-dð-us ci-s
3sg.ABS dry-NC3-ABL land-ABL
He is from a dry land

Second declension adjectives end in -j -nj -c -lj or -sj. They add an emphatic -i- before any suffix

To nacio tþemf jeþaþamo no dða, Habvam / to nacio ttzemf jetzatzamo no ddza, Habvamno
to naci-o tþemf je-þaþam-o no dða, Habvam
2sg.OBL tame-NC1(ABS) daughter not-useful-NC1 1sg.OBL DAT Habvam
Your unexciting daughter is useless to me, Habvam

Third declension adjectives end in -y. No emphatic vowels are added

So vegyd senj syþamyd damyhym šinom / so vegyd senj sytzamuyd damuyhuym xinom
so vegy-d senj sy-þamy-d damy-hy-m šin-om
1pl.OBL quick-NC2 horse.ABS PAST-fall-NC2 thick-NC6-LOC lake-LOC
Our quick horse fell in the deep lake.

Adjectives proceed their head and agree in number, case, and noun class.

Cenjelakþ plamak dušamakþ / cenjelaktz plamak duxamaktz
ce-njela-kþ plam-ak dušam-akþ
this-pale-NC3.pl flower-ABS.pl null blue-NC3.pl
These pale flowers are blue.

Adjectives can also follow their heads. This produces a more figurative meaning.

No bonj sunoi cikwejsgad hug / no bonj sunoi cikwejsgad hug
no bom-i sun-o-i cik-wejs-ga-d hug
1sg.OBL brother-ERG green-NC1-ERG PROG-kill-3ERG-NC2 pig.ABS
My young brother is killing the pig

To sþob dðamaš sojbanš / to stzob ddzamax sojbanx
to sþob dðam-aš sojb-an-š
2sg.OBL love red-NC7 PAST-die-EVD3-NC7
It's said your passionate love has died.

Deixis and Articles

The four-way demonstrative adjectives of Çetázó has been simplified to:

dô 'proximal'
þa 'distal'

Dialects of Shtasa that came into the least amount with Gezoro preserved ce, another of Çetázó's deictic particles to produce the following system:

ce proximal'
da 'midal'
þa 'distal'

(Note that da has not merged with ce in this system under influence of Gezoro dɔ-.)

A definite article has developed in Shtasa using the construction ce dô-:

ce dô-duh fuðok andok 'the good foreign chiefs'

They are prefixed directly onto their head element of the noun phrase, cliticizing to any prenominal or quantifier ahead of the head noun:

þa-jas gonicnyd that tasty meat
dô-ils this hand

Numerals

Shtåså uses a base octal system much like its ancestor Çetázó.

Decimal	Octal	Cardinal	Ordinal
1	1	tab	tabðy
2	2	ši	šiðy
3	3	nasty	nastuðy
4	4	njedð	njedðy
5	5	us	ysþy
6	6	mec	mecþy
7	7	naiš	naišþy
8	10	njab	njabðy
64	100	mol	molðy
512	1000	hammol	hammolðy

Numerals no longer inflect for number or case but still mark noun class.

Special numbers

njojaum, 16, from dialectal Gezoro *njo:silo:m 'second eight'

In addition numerals are placed directly before the noun phrase.

syintzynunjed: sy-intzuny-nje-d; PRT-cook-1sg.ERG-NC2.ABS; I cooked

jas: jas; meat.ABS; the meat

usd: us-d; five-NC2; with five

ddzamaktunk: ddzam-kt-unk; red-NC2.pl-INST; red

ksamabunk: ksam-bunk; berry-INST.pl; berries

I cooked the meat with five red berries

Multiples of 8, 64 and 512 are expressed by combining the ordinal of the multiple with the cardinal of the power of 8, e.g. šimol '200'.

Pronouns

Shtåså has pronouns for the first, second, and third person in singular, dual, and plural numbers.

The third person pronoun ja comes from the anaphoric pronoun.

singular	1sg	2sg	3sg	1du	2du	3du	1pl	2pl	3pl
absolutive	na	ta	ja	nas	tas	jas	sak	tak	jak
ergative	nji	ci	ji	nesj	tesj	jesj	sji	tev	jev
oblique	no	to	jo	nasy	tasy	jasy	so	taby	jaby
instrumental	nonk	tonk	jonk	nasunk	tasunk	jasunk	sabunk	tabunk	jabunk
locative	nom	tom	jom	nasum	tasum	jasum	sabum	tabum	jabum
allative	noc	toc	joc	nasuc	tasuc	jasuc	sabuc	tabuc	jabuc
ablative	nos	tos	jos	nasus	tasus	jasus	sabus	tabus	jabus

Verbs

The Shtasa verb expands upon the aggluntive verb complex of its ancestor; the verb complex indicates mood, aspect, tense, evidentiality, and it indicates the subject and the object of a transitive sentence.

Agreement

The verbal agreement markers operate ergatively: the marker for the intransitive subject is the same as the one for the transitive object. The markers are suffixed to the verb in the order VERB ROOT-ERG-ABS. Since the days of Cetazo, the third person ergative marker now distinguishes number. The appropriate noun class marker is still used for the third person absolutive. Dual forms are referenced by the singular. The first and third person singulars lose the final vowel of the suffix in the absence of any other suffix.

	Ergative	Absolutive
1sg/du	-nj(e)	-an [ar̃]
2sg/du	-š	-tz
3sg/du	-g(a)	noun class
1pl	-anjen	-and [ar̃d]
2pl	-ašn	-atzn
3pl	-gav	noun class plural

Tense

The present tense is unmarked. The past and future tenses are marked with suy- and syl- respectively. A widespread feature of more colloquial language is the new future suffix fen- (pronounced always as [fn_] and derived from fan 'then'). Younger speakers are also inclined to omit ergative markers on the verb, substituting instead the verbal noun marker -vn after the appropriate noun class.

Oc kyt sylckjegynjed of.
oc kyt syl-cik-jegy-nje-d of
day.after.tomorrow NARR FUT-PROG-eat-1ERG-NC2 bean(ABS)
I will be eating the beans, like, the day after tomorrow.

Jo jegydvn dôsenj
jo jegy-d-vn dô-senj
3sg.ERG eat-NC2-VNoun PROX-horse
He's eating the horse

Tzynjonj suyvivgaš jesusa.
tzynjonj sy-viv-ga-š jesusa
uncle.ERG PAST-drink-3ERG-NC7 love.ABS
Uncle lived for love.

Kšaljiv sa fenvjeacgavand.
kšaljiv sa fen-vje-ac-gav-and
Xšali-ERGpl. 1pl.ABS FUT-fear-3ERG-1.ABS.pl
The Xšali will begin to fear us.

Mood

Shtasa has developed an imperative mood by prefixing ci- (derived of 'want') to other verbs; it reduces to c- in front of vowel initial stems. The appropriate absolutive suffix is added to the verb.

Cihafan!
ci-haf-an
IMP-laugh-1sg.ABS
Let me laugh!

Dô centz no'ddz.
dô c-en-tz no ddza
PROX.ABS IMP-give-2sg.ABS 1sg.OBL DAT
Give that to me.

Commands can be made more polite by putting the verb in the future tense.

Je sylcijegytz no ktzalo.
je syl-jegy-tz no ktzalo
NEG FUT-eat-2sg.ABS 1sg.OBL brother.OBL
Please don't eat my brother.

Verbs are negated by adding the particle je before the verb.

Senjoks je ašaks jehinošam.
senj-oks je aša-ks jehinošam
horse-NC5 not COPULA-NC5 cowardly
Horses are not cowardly animals.

Aspect

Progressive forms of each tense can be created with the addition of cik- before the verb root. This suffix reduces to -ck- after the past and future prefixes. Reductions of verbs of motion - vje- from veje 'to go'; jis- from jists 'come'; štos- 'leave'; šig- 'stand' from šign - are prefixed before the verb root to indicate inchoative, habitual and other aspects.

no: no; 1sg.OBL

senj: senj; horse.ABS

vjejistsdv: vje-jists-d-v; go-come-NC2-EXP

My horse is going to come, eventually

Evidentiality

Evidentiality marking is optional in Shtåså. It serves as a way for a speaker to encode more information about an action. They are placed after the stem, before the agreement markers. More than one can be used to add subtleties to meaning; however, it is considered bad style to use both š and byn simultaneously; v should be used instead.

Suffix	Meaning
-š-	Audio/visual experience
-byn-	Taste/smell experience
-ban-	Hearsay
-lu-	Emphatic
-y-	General knowledge
-v-	Past experience

This are glossed as EVD1, EVD2, etc.

EVD1 š has the allomorph t after /s/ or /S/

Sentence Particles

The following particles affect the entire clause as a whole. The negative and interrogative particles are placed before the verb, but can be placed at the end of a sentence, too.

  ej if
  je negative  
  vej, guyl interrogative 
  ttzos 'also' 
  ddzan 'but' 
  ddzel 'because'  
  duk 'therefore' 
  ttza 'and' 
  fan 'then' 
  hec 'instead'
  cet 'however'
  kyt 'narrative particle', frequent near-excessive use

Syntax

Shtåså's syntax is largely head final: in the noun phrase, modifiers precede the head noun, adpositions follow the NP. Basic word order in Shtåså is SVO.

Noun Phrase

The noun phrase consists of a noun preceded by zero or more modifiers (adjectives, genitives, nouns in apposition, relative clauses). Example:

No bonj suylapgad damecio ddzamakt ksamak.
No bom-i suy-lap-ga-d da-mec-io dðama-kt ksam-ak.
1sg.OBL brother-ERG PAST-steal-3ERG-NC2 bear-OBL red-NC2.pl berries-(ABS)
My brother stole that bear's red berries.

Postpositions follow the NP and govern the oblique case.

ddzunado jeho njeln
ddzyna-d-o jeh-o njeln
long-NC2-OBL river-OBL along
along the long river

Intransitive clauses

An intransitive clause has a subject in the absolutive case. Adverbial clauses precede the verb.

Monv no tyddzam kydvnd.
monv nå tudð-am kud-vn-d
puppy 1sg.OBL house-LOC sleep-NV-NC2
The puppy is sleeping in my house.

Transitive clauses

A transitive clause has two arguments: subject and object. The subject is in the ergative case and the object is in the absolutive case. The object usually follows the verb

Pusy ddzunado jeho njeln sylpadygad ksefn.
pusy ddzyna-d-o jeh-o njeln syl-pad-y-ga-d ksefn
wolf-ERG long-NC2-OBL river-OBL along FUT-find-EVD5-3sg.ERG-NC2 animal.ABS
The wolf will find its prey along the long river.

Indirect objects are marked in the oblique case by the postpositional marker ddza (elided to [dð] after a vowel).

Hašo sab tzatzaš to'dð.
hašo sab tza-tzaš to dða
fire-OBL near yonder-milk 2sg.OBL DAT
That milk over there near the fire is for you

Nominal Predicates

The third basic type of clause does not contain a verb; instead, it has a nominal predicate. In the present tense, the predicate is a noun or adjective in the absolutive case. The subject is also in the absolutive case and precedes the predicate.

Na to tzund.
na to thund
1sg.ABS 2sg.OBL father
I am your father.

Predicate adjectives take a class marker

Nom to tzjalok tzanakš.
nom to tzjalo-k tzana-kš
1sg.LOC 2sg.OBL secret-(ABS).pl cold-NC7.pl(ABS)
Your secrets are safe with me.

For the past and future tenses, Shtåså has developed a copula verb aša from Cetazo's -aja suffix. It takes the class marker of the subject; the predicate adjective is unmarked for noun class.

Cekšaljio ašaluo jehinošam kyt, je cwejso.
ce-kšalj-io aša-lu-o jehinošam kyt je ci-wejs-o
this-Xšali COPULA-EMPH-NC1 spineless NARR not IMP-kill-2sg.ERG-NC1(ABS)
This Xšali was really spineless, don't kill him.

Complex clauses

Complement clauses

Clauses may be used as arguments of verbs. A complement clause consists of a clause followed by the particle ješ.

Syceldasand ješ syjistsþ
sy-celdas-and ješ sy-jists-þ
PAST-think-1pl.ABS SUB PAST-come-2sg.ABS
We thought that you were coming

Relative Clauses

A relative clause modifies a noun. The clause precedes the head noun - which is marked by the particle fi- with the head noun's associated noun class - when it is a subject and follows it when the head noun is an object:

Fio suyojbano ajnin to mina.
fi-o suy-oj-ban-o ajnin to mina
REL-NC1 PAST-die-EVID2-NC1 woman 2sg.OBL mother
The woman who died is your mother

Fastgavddz tuddz fidz tuddzispan.
fas-š-gav-ddz tuddz fi-dz tuddzisp-an
mock-EVD1-3pl.ERG-NC3 house.ABS REL-NC3 reside-1sg.ABS
They are mocking the house where I live.

Adverbial Clause

Shtåså continues Çetázó's formation of adverbial clauses with the verbal noun suffix -vn glossed as VN. The core arguments are in the absolutive case.

To jistsvn fenjisyand.
to jists-vn fen-jisy-and
2sg.OBJ come-VN FUT-leave-1pl.ABS
We will leave when you will arrive.

To ajukovn suyolddznjetz.
to ajuko-vn suy-olddz-nje-tz
2sg.OBJ PAST-deceive-VN PAST-hit-1sg.ERG-2sg.ABS
After your deceiving, I hit you.

Coordinating Clauses

Clauses can be coordinated with ttza 'and' and so 'or'. Coordinated verbs are moved to the end of the phrase.

N ttza N ttza, where N is a noun, is glossed as: both N and N.

Similarly, N so N so is glossed: either N or N.

Bonj mec suyhulpgad ttza suywejsgad.
bom-i mec sy-hulp-ga-d ttza sy-wejs-ga-d
brother.ERG bear.ABS PAST-hunt-3sg.ERG-NC2 and PAST-kill-3sg.ERG-NC2

Brother hunted the bear and killed it.

Similarly, noun phrases can be coordinated. In analogy to coordinated verbs, coordinated noun phrases are moved to the end of the phrase.

suyšnjatzgaddz tuddz ttza šešasyn ttza.
suy-šnjatz-y-ga-ddza tuddh ttza šešasyn ttza
PAST-build-EVID5-3.ERG-NC3 house.ABS and wall.ABS and
He built both the house and the wall.

If the noun classes conflict, the resulting noun class is NC7:

Suypadbangaš cnih so plamak.
suy-pad-ban-ga-š cnih so plam-ak
PAST-find-EVD3-3ERG-NC7 honey.ABS or flower-ABS.pl
He may have found honey or flowers.

Deemphasis

To deemphasize a topical element, speakers move the lexeme to the end of the utterance and suffix it with -je 'not'. The transformed element retains case markings from the previous utterance. This functions akin to passive voice constructions in other languages:

Pysu suytzatzudgo la.
pys-u sy-tzatzud-ga-o la
wolf-ERG PAST-bite-3ERG-NC1 man
The wolf bit the man

becomes

suytzatzudgo la pysuje
suy-tzatzud-ga-o la pysu-je
PAST-bite-3ERG-NC1 man pysu.ERG-not
the man was not bitten by a wolf.

Another way is to omit the agent

Kšaljiv olddzlugavko so bontzuomak!
kšalj-iv olddz-lu-gav-ko so bonþuom-ak
Xšali-ERG.pl strike-EVID3-3ERG.pl-NC1.pl 1pl.OBL ally-ABS.pl
The Xšali attack our brothers!

becomes this; the result is an indefinite subject.

Olddzlugavko so bonþuomak!
olddz-lu-gav-ko so bonþuom-ak
strike-EVID3-3ERG.pl-NC1.pl 1pl.OBL ally-ABS.pl
Someone attacks our brothers!

Topicalization

Fronting clauses and rearranging word order is one means of topicalization:

Cecek je jegygako jo minak
ce-cek je jegy-ga-ko jo minak
PRX-tribe NEG eat-3sg.ERG-NC1.pl 1.pl.OBL mother-ABS.pl
We do not eat our mothers in this tribe.