Expressions of Time: view article

Shikathi Term	Literal Translation	English Approximation
kaea	rotation / time	hour (= 100 Shikathi minutes)
kaen (older: kaeyn)	small rotation / small time	minute (= 100 Shikathi seconds)
kaenys (older: kaeinys)	mini-rotation / mini-time	second = (100 Shikathi centiseconds)
nekaenys (older: nēkaeinys)	micro-rotation / micro-time	centisecond

[top]Asking for and telling the time

To ask what the time is, use the word kaea and the question marker -pa. Because of phonetic rules as outlined here, kaea will change to keā-.

What time is it?
keāpa.
time-QInterrogative
question

To say the time, use the same word (minus the question marker) along with an ordinal core class number. For a review of the ordinal numbers please go here.

It is two o’clock.
kaea firthī.
time two-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

It is two thirty. (lit: It’s 2½ o’clock)
kaea firgyghimthī.
time two-half-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

If you’re at the top of the hour, you may hear the lower class number being used instead of the core number. Remember that, when used by themselves, lower class numbers get attached to the word.

It is two o’clock.
keāvyk.
time-two

[top]Asking for and telling the time at which something occurs

To talk about when something occurs, use the word kaea in the instrumental case (kēn). All other rules mentioned above will still apply.

(At) What time is the meeting?
trōvn kēnpa.
Meeting time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

The meeting is at two o’clock.
trōvn kēn firthī.
Meeting time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using' two-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

(At) What time will we arrive?
thän ūmkīakāmky kēnpa.
Arrival VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument-PLPlural (number)
more than one/few time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

We will arrive at 2:30.
thän ūmkīakāmky kēn firgyghimthī.
Arrival VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJAdjectival
syntactic etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument-PLPlural (number)
more than one/few time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using' two-half-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

And again on the top of the hour, one could say...

We will arrive at 2:00.
thän ūmkīakāmky kēnvyk.
Arrival VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument-PLPlural (number)
more than one/few time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-two

[top]Basic terms of the calendar

Days, months, years...

Shikathi Term	Literal Translation	English Approximation
gorrāzhia	sun-moon-time	day (sunrise to sunrise)
gorzhaea	sun-time	day (sunrise to sunset)
razhaea	moon-time	night
dymgorzhia	nine-sun-times	week (9 Shikathi days)
dymrāzhia	nine-moon-times	month (9 Shikathi weeks)
keākn	multiple-small-times	year (18 Shikathi months)
dimkeākn	nine-multiple-small-times	Shikathi Decade (9 Shikathi years)
gorzhytraea	shadow-time	Shikathi Millennium ( 900 Shikathi years)
dymgorzhytraea	Nine-shadow-times	No English equivalent (8,100 Shikathi years)
kaesh	grand-time	eon / eons (unspecified period of time / this word is always singular)

Days of the week

When saying the days of the week, use the word dimgor (week.. literally: nine-suns) followed by the number of the day. There are 9 days in a Shikathi week. One can use the adjectival form of the core class numerals to represent the number of the day, or one can use the lower class numerals. It just depends on preference and/or regional dialects. In many areas, using the core class numerals may be viewed as more formal than using the lower class numerals.

Shikathi Term (with core class numerals)	Shikathi Term (with lower class numerals)	Literal Translation
dimgorzenthī	dymgortn	first of the nine-suns
dimgorfirthī	dymgorvk	second of the nine-suns
dimgorlorthī	dymgorve	third of the nine-suns
dimgorbēðī	dymgorky	fourth of the nine-suns
dimgorghimthī	dymgorghm	fifth of the nine-suns
dimgortaeðī	dymgormn	sixth of the nine-suns
dimgoriāðī	dymgorvn	seventh of the nine-suns
dimgorlāðī	dymgor /dɪmˈgoɹ/ (not to be confused with 'dimgor' /ˈdɪm gɔɹ/)	eighth of the nine-suns
dimgordimthī	dymgorzm	ninth of the nine-suns

Months of the year

When saying the months of the year, use the word dimrazh (month.. literally: nine-moons) followed by the number of the month. A Shikathi year is 18 months (9 months that are cycled through twice to complete a year). Just like with the weeks, one can use the adjectival form of the core class numerals to represent the number of the day, or one can use the lower class numerals.

Shikathi Term (with core class numerals)	Shikathi Term (with lower class numerals)	Literal Translation
dimrazhenthī	dymrātn	first of the nine-moons
dimrafirthī	dymrāvyk	second of the nine-moons
dimralorthī	dymrāve	third of the nine-moons
dimrabēðī	dymrāky	fourth of the nine-moons
dimraghimthī	dymrāghm	fifth of the nine-moons
dimrataeðī	dymrāmn	sixth of the nine-moons
dimreāðī	dymrāvn	seventh of the nine-moons
dimralāðī	dimrar	eighth of the nine-moons
dimradimthī	dymrāzm	ninth of the nine-moons

Seasons of the year

The Shikathi divide their year into eight seasons ranging from extremely hot to extremely cold. Each season lasts for two months exept for Rānath and Ranātryth, which last for 3.

Shikathi Term (formal)	Shikathi Term (colloquial)	English Approximation
kaeākysh pyshtrīnthī	Pyshtrīnyth	The Season of Planting
kaeākysh gorzhāðī	Gorzhath	Season of the Dawn / Awakening
kaeākysh orāðī	Orath	Season of Fire
kaeākysh ranāðī	Rānath	Season of Light
kaeākysh onōðī	Onoth	Season of Gifts
kaeākysh razhāðī	Rāzhath	Season of Nightfall
kaeākysh oratorthī	Orātryth	Season of the Cold
kaeākysh ranatorthī	Ranātryth	Season of Darkness

[top]Asking for and telling the date

Asking for the day/date

Just like with time, use the question marker -pa attached to the calendar term you wish to ask about. Some examples:

What day is it? / What is the date?
gorrāzhiāpa.

What week is it?
dymgorzhiāpa.

What month is it?
dymrāzhiāpa.

What year is it?
kaeakinpa

When saying the day, Shikathi tends to focus only on two measurements at a time, day/week, week/month, or month/year. Use the genitive marker -shpa for the larger of the two units. Here are some examples:

The first day of the first week.
dymgortn dymgorzhiāshpa.

The first week of the first month.
dymgorzhiātn dimratunshpa.

The first month of the year.
dymrātn kaeakinshpa.

etc...

other combinations are possible (day/month, week/year, day/year):

The first day of the month.
dymgortn dymrāzhiāshpa.

The first week of the year.
dymgorzhiātn kaeakinshpa.

etc...

Giving the date

Before diving into dates, it's important to note that even though Shikathi has only 9 names for months, there are 18 months in a year. The Shikathi year is broken into two halves: tundimra (the first half) and vekdimra (the second half). The nine months repeat themselves in the second half.

When giving the date, Shikathi uses its numeric system comprising of core, lower, and upper class numbers. The core numbers represent the day, the lower class numbers represent the week, and the upper class numbers represent the month. For a more detailed explanation of the classes of numbers and how they work together, please go here.

If we had to give the following date: The sixth day of the third week of the first month in the second half of the year.
One could say: dymgormn dymgorzhiavēshpa dimrazhenthī vekdymrāshpa. but that's a mouth full!

Instead just use the numeric convention: tevēbara vekdymrāshpa.
te = day number 6 + vē = week number 3 + bara = month number 1 + vekdymrāshpa = of the second half of the year.

If we were to convert July 24th into a Shikathi convention, we would get something approximately like:

The sixth day of the third week in the seventh month of the first half of the year.
tevēsera tundymrāshpa.

Here is another example of a converted Terran date...

Terran date: March 21, 1976.
Shikathi conversion: The third day of the third week of the third month of (the year) one thousand nine hundred seventy six.
Shikathi translation: lorvēmara tundimra zen iamīnerāshpa.
lor = day #3; vē = week #3; mara = month #3; tundimra = first half of the year; zen = 1*1000; ia = 7*10; mīn = 6*1; era = 9*100; shpa = genitive case

[top]Asking for and telling the date on which something occurs

To talk about the date on which something occurs, use the instrumental case -īn of the appropriate calender term. (Note: if -aeīn or -eīn occurs, the ending becomes -ēn.

What day are you arriving?
thän ilakām gorzhēnpa. (Note: gorzhaea > gorzhaeīn > gorzhēn)
arrival VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

I'm arriving on the 2nd day of the week.
thän ūmakām dymgorvykīn.
arrival VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument weekday-two-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'.

What date is the meeting on?
trōvn gorzhēnpa.
meeting day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

The meeting is on the 14th. (In Shikathi terminology: Day 5 of the 2nd week)
trōvn dymgorghymīn dymgorzhiavekshpa.
meeting weekday-five-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using' week-two-GENGenitive (case)
possessive.

When giving a specific date when something occurs, you can use the numeric convention as described in the previous section(i.e. core, lower, and upper class numeric system). The date will go in the instrumental case.

I was born on March 21, 1976.
shorāsh ūmtrekrō lorvēmarīn tundimra zen iamīnerāshpa.
essence VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INCHInchoative (aspect)
'beginning, becoming' three-three-three-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using' first-nine.months thousand nine.hundred.seventy.six-GENGenitive (case)
possessive

To ask when something occurs generically without specifying the time or date, use the question word pkae (when / what time). In a case of hypercorrection, you might hear the word pkēn, or even pkēnpa. This is technically incorrect as pkae has evolved into being an adverb and as such, should not be put into the instrumental case. The answer to the question pkae , however, should be put into the instrumental case.

When is the party?
kartīk pkae. (colloquially: kartīk pkēn.)
party QInterrogative
question-time. (colloquially: party QInterrogative
question-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using')

The party is during the Season of Gifts.
kartīk Onothīn.
party Season.of.Gifts-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'

[top]Additional Time expressions

The following are additional expressions of time that are common. You'll see three variants to the expression: The base expression, the expression in the instrumental case, and the adjectival form of the expression. The differences between these will be explained in the next section.

Shikathi Term (Base)	Shikathi Term (Instrumental)	Shikathi Term (Adjectival)	Translation
tōdragorzha	tōdrāgyrzhīn	tōdrāgyrzhāðī	the day before yesterday
tgorzha (tygorzha)	togyrzhīn	togyrzhāðī	yesterday
mngorzha	mingyrzhīn	mingyrzhāðī	today
shngorzha	shingyrzhīn	shingyrzhāðī	tomorrow
shinsagorzha	shynsāgyrzhīn	shynsāgyrzhāðī	the day after tomorrow
trāzhn	trāzhnīn	trazhinthī	last night
mnrāzhn	minrazhīn	minrazhinthī	tonight / this evening
shnrāzhn	shinrazhīn	shinrazhinthī	tomorrow night / tomorrow evening
gorzhn	gorzhnīn	gorzhenthī	tomorrow / in the morning / this morning
hāzhn	hazhnīn	hazhenthī	afternoon / in the afternoon / this afternoon
razhaeym	razhaeamīn	rāzheāmthī	evening / in the evening / (at) sunset / (at) moonrise
razhaea	razhēn	rāzhiāðī	night / at night
gorzhn togyrzhāðī	gorzhnīn togyrzhāðī	---	yesterday morning
hāzhn togyrzhāðī	hazhnīn togyrzhāðī	---	yesterday afternoon
razhaea togyrzhāðī	razhēn togyrzhāðī	---	yesterday evening
gorzhn shingyrzhāðī	gorzhnīn shingyrzhāðī	---	tomorrow morning
hāzhn shingyrzhāðī	hazhnīn shingyrzhāðī	---	tomorrow afternoon
tokdimgorrāzhia	tokdimgorrazhīn	tokdimgorrāzhiāðī	last week
tokdymrāzhia	tokdimrazhīn	tokdymrāzhiāðī	last month
tykaeakn	tykaeaknīn	tykaeakinthī	last year
dimgorrāzhia	dimgorrazhīn	dimgorrāzhiāðī	this week
dymrāzhia	dimrazhīn	dymrāzhiāðī	this month
mynaeakn	mynaeaknīn	mynaeakinthī	this year
shyndimgorrāzhia	shyndimgorrazhīn	shyndimgorrāzhiāðī	next week
shyndymrāzhia	shyndimrazhīn	shyndymrāzhiāðī	next month
shynaeakn	shynaeaknīn	shynaeakinthī	next year

[top]Base word vs Instrumental case vs. Adjective: When to use which

Base word

Use the base form of the time expression if it is the subject or object of a sentence.

The Dark Season is long.
Ranātryth häthor.
dark.season long

I await the Dark Season.
Ranātryth sheb ūmlātr.
dark.season probability VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments

The Planting Season is after the Season of Darkness.
Pystrīnyth Ranātrythsao.
planting.season dark.season-after

Also use the base form of the time expression if it is tied to a verbalizer.

I spend the Dark Season sleeping.
ranātryth ūmlātr razhatīkāmthī.
dark.season VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments sleep-GERGerund
verbal noun-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments-ADVAdverbial
e.g. English '-ly'

Instrumental Case

As mentioned earlier, use the Instrumental case of a time expression if you're wanting to say "in", "at", "on" or "during" a certain time.

People sleep during the Dark Season.
razhatīk senkākam Ranātrythīn.
sleep VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.5Fifth person (person)
indefinite or generic; one, "they" say that-IPFVImperfective (aspect)
'interrupted or incomplete'-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument dark.season-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'

*** In English, sometimes the preposition is not needed or the original preposition has become fused to its object and lost its meaning, but if you can put one in without changing the meaning of the sentence too much, then still use the Instrumental case in Shikathi. ***

I will sleep tomorrow. (I will sleep on the next day)
razhatīk ūmkīakām shingyrzhīn.
sleep VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument tomorrow-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'

I slept yesterday. ( I slept on the day before)
razhatīk ūmtorakām togyrzhīn.
sleep VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument yesterday-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'

Adjectival / Adverbial

Use the Adjectival / Adverbial form of the time expression to indicate that an object or action has the quality of that time expression. In many cases, the meaning in English would be that of possession/ownership. It could also be translated as "of the..." or "for the..."

This is a gift for the Season of Gifts. (Lit: This is a Season-of-Gifts gift.)
ämdra onō Onothī.
thing-here gift Gift.Season-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

Yesterday's weather was terrible. (Lit: The weather of the past day)
hōketekaea togorzhāðī nedōnghemaemthī.
weather today-ADJAdjectival
syntactic SUPSuperlative (comparison)
English 'most', '-est'-undesirable-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

It is a nocturnal creature. (Lit: It is a creature of the night. / It is a night-creature)
vlākū saefnaet rāzheāðī.
NOMNominative (case)
TRANS subject, INTR argument-3IThird person inanimate (person)
it, not he/she/they beast night-ADJAdjectival
syntactic

As an adverb...

The creature comes out nightly.
saefnaet benghin sekākam rāzheāðī.
beast movement outward-IPFVImperfective (aspect)
'interrupted or incomplete'-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument night-ADVAdverbial
e.g. English '-ly'

[top]Temporal affixes

Shikathi has three affixes that signify the timeframe one is trying to communicate. These are vestiges of a language predating Old-Shikathi and share some commonalities with other languages found in the galaxy. They may show up as prefixes or suffixes depending on the ancient Zh'Kaarian classification of animate (prefix) or inanimate (suffix).

tok / tyk / tk / ty

Use this affix to signify the past or to indicate that something has been affected by the passage of time.

kaea = time / rotation
tykaea (lit: past-time / past-rotation)

dimgorrāzhia= the week
tokdimgorrāzhia = last week

skenō= fat / blubber
skentok= the fermented meat of a whale-like creature

säzaryth = milk
säzartok = a type of cream / not so thick sour cream

min / myn / mn / my

Use this affix to signify the present or to indicate that something is currently being affected by the passage of time.

kaea = time
mynaea = the present

dimgorrāzhia = the week
myndimgorrāzhia = the current week / this week

(The original root has been lost or never existed)
āmn = truth (derived from the Zh'Khaarian philosophy... the only thing that's "real" in the universe is the thing that occurs in the moment)

myn (conjunction) = now that

shil / shyl / shl / shy

Use this affix to signify the future or to indicate that something will be affected by the passage of time. Over time, this has also come to mean "again" or "newness"

kaea = time
shylaea = the future

dimgorrāzhia = the week
shyldimgorrāzhia = next week

(The original root has been lost or never existed)
shlozhn = path / course (derived from the original meaning "where one will end up after the passage of time")

fämza = location
shilfämza = a new location / a relocation / a location in the future

[top]Idioms (Statements)

Here are some basic idioms for time:

X time ago

For this idiom, use the tok- / tyk- / tk- / ty- / to- affix along with the unit of time in the instrumental case. Here are some examples:

kaenys = a second
tykaenysīn = a second ago
tykaensīnkū = 5 seconds ago

kaea = an hour
tykēn = an hour ago
tokēnkū = 5 hours ago

dymgorzhia = a week
tokdymgorazhīn = a week ago

dymrāzhia = month
tokdimrazhīn = a month ago

Sample sentence:

I walked three days ago.
shlozhn ūmakām tygorrazhīnkā.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument past-day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-TRITrial (number)
three of something, number "three"

*** notice that the past tense marker for the verb (-tor-) is not used. When using temporal affixes, often times the tense marker is dropped. It may be put back in for emphasis or in response to a negative statement. ***

Person A:
You didn't walk three days ago.
shlozhn ilakām tygorrazhīnkā.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument past-day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-TRITrial (number)
three of something, number "three"

Person B:
I did walk three days ago!
shlozhn ūmtorakām tygorrazhīnkā!
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument past-day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-TRITrial (number)
three of something, number "three"

For X time

For this idiom, use the min- / myn- / mn- / affix along with the unit of time in the instrumental case. Here are some examples:

kaenys = a second
mynkaenysīn = for one second
mynkaensīnkū = for 5 seconds

kaea = an hour
mynkēn = for one hour
minkēnkū = for 5 hours

dymgorzhia = a week
mindymgorazhīn = for one week

dymrāzhia = month
myndimrazhīn = for one month

Sample sentence:

I've been walking for three days.
shlozhn ūmakām myngorrazhīnkā.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument present-day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-TRITrial (number)
three of something, number "three"

*** Notice that while English tends to use the present perfect tense, Shikathi will just use the present tense. ***

In X time

For this idiom, use the shil- / shyl- / shl- affix along with the unit of time in the instrumental case. Here are some examples:

kaenys = a second
shylkaenysīn = In one second
shylkaensīnkū = In 5 seconds

kaea = an hour
shylkēn = In one hour
shilkēnkū = for 5 hours

dymgorzhia = a week
shildymgorazhīn = In one week

dymrāzhia = month
shyldimrazhīn = In one month

Sample sentence:

I will walk in three days.
shlozhn ūmakām shylgorrazhīnkā.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-day-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-TRITrial (number)
three of something, number "three"

*** Again, the future tense marker is not normally used unless for emphasis or clarification ***

Temporal Adjectives

In addition to the possibility of using the temporal affixes mentioned earlier, you can also use the temporal adjectives:

tykethī (Last X / The previous X)

Last season...
keākysh tykethī...

mynaeathī (The current X)

The current season...
keākysh mynaeathī...

shylaeathī (Next X / The following X)

The following season...
keākysh shylaeathī...

Temporal Adverbs

Remember that normal Shikathi Adjectives can also be Adverbs. The same is true with the Temporal Adjectives:

tykethī (previously / before)

I have seen you before.
shil trash ūmlātrion tykethī

tykaeðysh (afterwards: when referring to past actions)

I saw you afterwards.
shil trash ūmtorlātr tykaeðysh.

mynaeathī (currently / now)

I see you now.
shil trash ūmlātr mynaeathī.

shylaeathī (sequentially / next) (later / afterwards: when referring to future actions)

I'll see you later
shil trash ūmkīlātr shylaeathī.

[top]Idioms (Questions)

How long?

To ask the question "how long...", use the Instrumental Case for "mynkaea" (mynkēn) followed by the question marker -pa. Remember that "kaea" means "time itself" as well as "hour" and so "mynkēnpa" can mean "for how long" or "for how many hours".

How long have you been walking?/ How many hours have you been walking?
shlozhn ilakām mynkēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument present-time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question.

*** Notice: while English will use the present perfect tense, Shikathi will use the present. ***

Use this word even when referring to past events. The verb will then be in the past tense and may or may not have the imperfective marker.

How long were you walking? (imperfective past)
shlozhn ilkatorakām mynkēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-IPFVImperfective (aspect)
'interrupted or incomplete'-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument present-time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question.

(For) How many hours did you walk? (perfective past)
shlozhn iltorakām mynkēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument present-time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question.

Use this word even when referring to future events. The verb will then be in the future tense.

How long will you be walking? / (For) How many hours will you be walking?
shlozhn ilkīakām mynkēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument present-time-INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question.

How long ago?

To ask the question "how long ago...", use the Instrumental Case for "tykaea" (tykēn) followed by the question marker -pa.

How long ago did you walk?
shlozhn ilakām tykēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument past-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question
or
shlozhn iltorakām tykēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument past-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

How long ago were you walking?
shlozhn ilkatorakām tykēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-HABHabitual (aspect)
done often or out of habit-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument past-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

How long until?

To ask the question "how long until...", use the Instrumental Case for "shykaea" (shykēn) followed by the question marker -pa.

How long until you go walking?
shlozhn ilakām shykēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument future-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question
or
shlozhn ilkīakām shykēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-FUTFuture (tense)
action occurring after the moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument future-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

*** Just like with "mynkaea", use this word regardless if you're talking about the past or future. Use the verb tense to clarify. ***

How long (was it) until you went walking?
shlozhn iltorakām shynkēnpa.
path VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument future-time.INSInstrumental (case)
'with', 'using'-QInterrogative
question

[top]Idioms (Time Expression + Transitive Verbalizer)

Use the formula Time + Lator to indicate one spending time, or an amount of time doing something. To specify the action that is being done, use the participle (Gerund + ADV marker) of the action.

I spent hours studying.
keāky ūmtorlator tōgnāmthī
hour-PLPlural (number)
more than one/few VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-PSTPast (tense)
action occurred before moment of speech-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments study-GERGerund
verbal noun-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument-ADVAdverbial
e.g. English '-ly'

How many hours do you spend studying?
pāvm keāky ilkalātr tōgnāmthī.
QInterrogative
question-number hour-PLPlural (number)
more than one/few VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.2Second person (person)
addressee (you)-HABHabitual (aspect)
done often or out of habit-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments study-GERGerund
verbal noun-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments-ADVAdverbial
e.g. English '-ly'

I usually spend three hours studying.
kaeakā ūmkalātr tōgnāmthī.
hour-TRITrial (number)
three of something, number "three" VBZVerbaliser
converts N, ADJ etc into verb.1First person (person)
speaker, signer, etc; I-HABHabitual (aspect)
done often or out of habit-TRTransitive (valency)
has two arguments study-GERGerund
verbal noun-INTRIntransitive (valency)
has one argument-ADVAdverbial
e.g. English '-ly'

Comments

[link] [quote] 21-Mar-18 00:27 [Deactivated User]

@Aaqqaliska Thanks so much! I appreciate that!!

[link] [quote] [move] [edit] [del] 21-Mar-18 00:21 [Deactivated User]

WOW! This is really extensive and beautiful work on your language. Great job! Keep up the good work! SO cool.