Kihuapimikoa Grammar
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A complete outline of the language
This public article was written by [Deactivated User], and last updated on 10 May 2016, 02:42.
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This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
The basic syllable structure is CV or CVN. C is any initial consonant: /k/, /h/, /j/, /m/, /p/, /w/, /t/, /t͡s/, /ʃ/, or /s/. V is any vowel or polypthong. N is any final consonant: /θ/, /s/, or /ʔ/.
The basic rule of stress is that the penultimate syllable of a word is stressed. Noun case markers do not count in this rule.
Kihuapimikoa words are divided into animate and inanimate genders based on their consonant initials, with pronomials splitting into further genders. The consonant inventory of Kihuapimikoa can be divided into four groups:
| Consonants | Category |
|---|---|
| /k/, /h/, /j/ | animate |
| /m/, /p/, /w/ | inanimate |
| /t/, /t͡s/, /ʃ/, /s/ | both |
| /θ/, /s/, /ʔ/ | syllable coda |
Kihuapimikoa is written using a top to bottom, right to left, semi-logographic alphasyllabary. This script is derived from earlier logographic runes written from left to right. Here is an example of the UDHR article one:
The default word order of a sentence in Kihuapimikoa is VSO, however, constituent dislocation is possible with nouns to express different meanings.
The verb conjugates for mood, tense/aspect, transivity, and evidentiality, and also agrees with the subject and all objects. The verb template does not need to be followed to the letter in vernacular speech, but is generally followed in literature and formal/polite speech. The verb template is as follows with the example of the verb wumááyutaihushohéhuatakoapiéyaḥšaos, IPA: /wumɒ:jutaihushohehuatakoapiejaθʃaos/, which means 'is it said that for him/her you spoke to me with tongue?' :
| Mood | There are severalVerb Root | Voice | Trans. Circumfix | Subject | Direct Object | Indirect Object | Trans. Circumfix | Oblique Object(s) | Tense/Aspect | Evidential |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| wu | máá | yu | ha | hus(hua) | ho(hua) | héhua | me | koapié | yaḥ | šaos |
| interrogative | speak to | benefactive | transitive | you (human animate) | I (human animate) | he/she (human animate) | transitive | tongue-instrumental | past perfective | reportative |
Gerunds can be derived by changing the transivity circumfix to the infinitive/impersonal form and removing everything else but the verb root from the verb template.
There are five mood prefixes in Kihuapimikoa. Some can be combined with others.
| Mood | Prefix | Function |
|---|---|---|
| indicative | none | marks a statement |
| imperative | pas- | marks a command |
| interrogative | wu- | marks a question |
| conditional | šá- | marks something that requires the fulfillment of a conditional |
| subjunctive | ṣi- | marks a relative clause |
There are several voice suffixes which are used to promote and demote words. This is commonly used to place focus on a word, and also to make the highest ranking person in the sentence the subject. It is possible to combine suffixes for multiple promotions/demotions. Failure to master this system may result in one being labeled 'uncouth' and an 'ill mannered barbarian'.
| Voice | Suffix | Function |
|---|---|---|
| passive | -ṣa | promotes the direct object to subject; the subject is deleted or demoted to indirect object; valency -1 |
| circumstantial | -wio | promotes the indirect object to subject; the subject is deleted or demoted to indirect object; valency +0 |
| applicative | -ṣéi | promotes the indirect object to direct object; the direct object (if any) is deleted or demoted to indirect object; valency +1/+0 |
| causative | -wos | creates a new argument making the causer the subject; the old subject becomes the direct object; valency +1 |
| benefactive | -yu | creates a new argument making the benefactor the subject; the old subject becomes the direct object; valency +1 |
| cooperative | -keai | creates a new argument making the cooperator the subject; the old subject becomes the direct object; valency +1 |
| reciprocal | -téá | creates a new argument making the subject the object; the subject does the action unto itself; valency +1/+0 |
| reflexive | -tu' | if there is more than one subject, they do the action unto each other; valency +1/+0 |
Transivity is marked by a circumfix around the pronomial affixes that are not oblique arguments in the verb template. The transivity circumfix does not change when valency increasing/decreasing voices are applied.
| Transivity | Circumfix |
|---|---|
| infinitive/impersonal | su |
| intransitive | si-me |
| transitive | ha-me |
| ditransitive | tai-ta |
| tritransitive1 | yéa-he |
1there are very few inherently tritransitive verb roots, so this circumfix is found mostly in literature and the ditransitive circumfix is usually used in vernacular speech when this occurs.
The pronomial affixes are used in the verb template to agree with the gender of the nouns of a sentence, or to act as pronouns in their own right. The animate and inanimate genders are further differentiated into Animate Human, Animate Animal, Animate Other, Inanimate Plant, Inanimate Abstract, and Inanimate Other genders. There are person prefixes added to each of these gender indicators to make pronouns. The person prefixes are not required for agreement, and the first and second person gender indicators are often omitted. Only one agreement affix is required for verbs with reciprocal or reflexive voice. The general gender indicator for something that has an unknown gender is te, IPA: /tə/.
-hua | -hi | -háḥ | -moa | -muas | -méḥ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ho- |
hohua | hohi | hoháḥ | homoa | homuas | homéḥ |
hus- |
hushua | hushi | husháḥ | husmoa | husmuas | husméḥ |
hé- |
héhua | héhi | héháḥ | hémoa | hémuas | héméḥ |
ke- |
kehua | kehi | keháḥ | kemoa | kemuas | keméḥ |
ki- |
kihua | kihi | kiháḥ | kimoa | kimuas | kiméḥ |
kio- |
kiohua | kiohi | kioháḥ | kiomoa | kiomuas | kioméḥ |
wa- |
wahua | wahi | waháḥ | wamoa | wamuas | waméḥ |
There are two plural pronomial suffixes: inclusive plural -pé, IPA: /pe/, and exclusive plural -pi, IPA: /pi/. The exclusive plural suffix is used as the default plural suffix for pronouns that are not in first person. Pronomial affixes may be replaced by kinship terms in the verb template.
There are case suffixes that can be added to pronouns, which either transform them into determiner prefixes, oblique objects, or interjections. Interjections are usually placed at the very beginning of a sentence.
| Case | Suffix | Syntactical Function | Grammatical Function |
|---|---|---|---|
| genitive I (inalienable possession)1 | -mi | marks the possessor of an inalienable possession | determiner prefix |
| genitive II (alienable possession)2 | -méi | marks the possessor of an alienable possession | determiner prefix |
| genitive III (composition)2 | -meéa | marks what the modified noun is composed of | determiner prefix |
| genitive IV (origin)2 | -muu | marks the origin of the modified noun | determiner prefix |
| genitive V (description)2 | -méá | marks the descriptor of the modified noun | determiner prefix |
| dative3 | -pe | marks the recipient | oblique object |
| locative | -pao | marks the location | oblique object |
| ablative | -kéḥ | marks motion away from | oblique object |
| allative | -kuḥ | marks motion to | oblique object |
| instrumental | -pié | marks the means used | oblique object |
| comitative | -wai | marks accompaniment | oblique object |
| vocative (general) | -sais | marks the addressee | interjection |
| vocative (to subordinate) | -pu | marks the addressee | interjection |
| vocative (to equal) | -poḥ | marks the addressee | interjection |
| vocative (intimate) | -mii | marks the addressee | interjection |
| vocative (to superior) | -káá | marks the addressee | interjection |
| vocative (to divine) | -seaéḥ | marks the addressee | interjection |
1the genitive I is used as a general genitive case in regular speech.
2the other genitive cases are only used in literature and sometimes in extremely formal speech.
3archaic in most cases, as ditransitive verb roots commonly encode actions of giving.
Tense and aspect are expressed together in the Tense/Aspect suffix in the verb template.
| Perfective | Imperfective | |
|---|---|---|
| Nonpast | none | -yo' |
| Past | -yaḥ | -yoo |
The nonpast imperfective is often omitted in copula compounds of an imperfective nature.
The evidentiality system is a type B1 three-term system expressed through verb conjugation.
| Evidential | Suffix |
|---|---|
| visual sensory | -tus |
| inferential | -wiés |
| reportative (hearsay) | -šaos |
There are many different copulas used to link subject and predicate. These copulas can also be prefixed onto a verb root in order to elaborate on the aspect.
| Perfective | Inceptive/Inchoative | Cessative | Habitual | Continuous | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dynamic | haé | še | šiu | téiḥ | tuuḥ |
| Stative | yé | ša | šiá' | yés | ṣao |
In writing all determiners are rendered as prefixes attached to the word they modify. The combining morphology of these words allows for especially specific determiners. Determiners prepended to pronomial affixes transform the construction into a pronoun.
Definite and indefinite articles are differentiated by animate and inanimate gender, and can be further modified with a special set of suffixes detailing the state of the modified noun.
| Animate | Inanimate | |
|---|---|---|
| Definite | ké- | mé- |
| Indefinite | mé- | má- |
| Suffix | State |
|---|---|
| -mo' | standing |
| -pi' | sitting |
| -ti | lying down/at rest |
| -haé' | moving away |
| -kaḥ | moving towards |
| -kus | fighting |
| -šo | bound |
| -kaés | distressed |
Demonstrative pronouns are created by adding a deictic prefix to an article. The demonstrative pronouns can be easily transformed into demonstrative adverbs by appending adverb classifiers.
| Prefix | Deixis | English Example |
|---|---|---|
| pá- | proximal | this |
| su- | mesioproximal | that (near you) |
| tas- | mesiodistal | yon (away from both but near) |
| wéé- | distal | yon (far away) |
The adverb classifiers also can be appended to regular adjectives and nouns to derive adverb phrases. These phrases are similar in the function to postpositional phrases, albeit restricted to modifying verbs.
| Adverb Classifier | Function |
|---|---|
| -pao | location (locative) |
| -pés | source |
| -paa | goal |
| -piá' | time |
| -peias | manner |
| -paás | reason |
The numeral system is quaternary, originating from the counting of limbs on humans and animals. In order to be used as a determiner, the numeral with classifier must be appended as a determiner to the modified noun. Ordinal numbers have a separate origin and thus are not related lexically to the cardinal numbers.
| Numeral | Cardinal | Ordinal |
|---|---|---|
| one | huu | ma' |
| two | soo | šéu' |
| three | waá | kiás |
| four | taa | suas |
These classifiers differ from other languages in that the use of them with determiners other than numerals is optional. Classifiers can be combined; usually the classifiers specifying amounts will be first. Some pronomial gender suffixes are reused in this category.
| Classifier | Category |
|---|---|
| te | general classifier |
| hua | humans |
| hi | animals |
| moa | plants; bundle of crops |
| pes | books; bound objects |
| wi | solid roundish objects |
| me | packs; burdens |
| sé | slender flexible objects |
| pai | slender stiff objects |
| ši | sheafs; flat objects |
| muu | mushy objects |
| ṣao | plural objects; uncountable objects |
| moo | contained liquids |
| ti' | droplets |
There is a limited set of general quantifiers.
| Quantifier | Function |
|---|---|
| kahau | some |
| kuhi | many |
| ma'hi | any |
| méi | every |
| kai | no |
| siseia | another |
Nouns are relatively simple in declension, with three unique cases of agentive, patientive, and oblique. The agentive and patientive cases are in agreement with either animate or inanimate gender. Being a fluid-S language, the agentive and patientive act like nominative and accusative cases in transitive sentences. In intransitive sentences, the default case is agentive. If one chooses to use the patientive case in an intransitive sentence, it would then encode a lack of volition for the event. These cases are appended to the end of the noun or noun phrase.
| Agentive | Patientive | Oblique | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Animate | -se | -sau | -saḥ |
| Inanimate | -mo | -mau | -saḥ |
There are comparatively few commonly used derivational affixes in Kihuapimikoa, for the case markings and conjugations usually denote a noun or verb.
| Affix | Position | Function |
|---|---|---|
| mai- | prefix | negation |
| kié- | prefix | opposition |
| -ti' | suffix | diminutive |
| -taa | suffix | augmentative |
| -kuus | suffix | agent |
| -hii | suffix | patient |
| -mu' | suffix | logical result of |
There is a complex inventory of honourific suffixes used in certain situations.
Kihuapimikoa uses a Sudanese/Chinese type kinship system with a separate designation for each kinsman. The descent is ambilineal, with both lineages represented in the surname. The kinship terms can be used as nouns/adjectives or pronomial affixes.
Adjectives may be inserted into the verb template to modify pronouns. The adjectives are further derived using the diminutive and augmentative suffixes in the function of 'less than' and 'more than'. A superlative is formed by reduplicating the augmentative suffix.
Most conjunctions are made up of adverb and verb roots.
| Conjunction | Function | Etymology |
|---|---|---|
| to | and (listing) | archaic adverb 'together with' |
| toméi | and also (listing) | archaic adverb 'together with' with quantifier 'every' |
| taa' | and (clause) | unknown |
| siátuuḥ | although (clause) | adverb 'spitefully' with dynamic continuous copula |
| táayé | but (clause) | archaic adverb 'not' with stative perfective copula |
| wá'ṣéá | or (general) | verb 'to ceasefire' |
| káá | in that case (clause) | archaic conditional mood marker |
| siki | because (clause) | unknown |
| kááyé | therefore (clause) | archaic conditional mood marker with stative perfective copula |
| šéo | if (clause) | unknown |
| siákáá | still (clause) | adverb 'spitefully' with archaic conditional mood marker |
| sua' | also (clause) | unknown |
| máaki' | even though; even if (clause) | verb 'to come' with verb 'to finish' |
| ṣu | like; similar to (general) | unknown |
There are many sentence final particles used to modify the meaning of sentences. They are not bound by the phonotactics of other words. The following are those in accepted use in literary Kihuapimikoa; different dialects have unique sentence final particles.
| Particle | Function |
|---|---|
| aa | used to soften the tone of an affirmative sentence |
| oo | used to express reservation or doubt |
| ei? | uttered with rising intonation; used to express puzzlement |
| ṣi' | uttered with a high intonation; used to ask whether or not an action has been done (yet) |
| kia | used to express impatience |
| ii | used to place emphasis on an action to do first; do this before this |
| è (IPA: /ə̂/) | used to convey an entreaty; please |
| maa | used to express additional agreement; as well |
There are several basic sentence templates of Kihuapimikoa from the theory of generative syntax.
Relative phrases are formed with the subjunctive mood, with special rules if the head noun is not the subject in the relative phrase.
Either-or construction uses a repetition of the subject in the second clause, while a regular or construction omits repetition of the subject.
In the court dialect vernacular, the verb agreements have morphed into indicators of the topic of the sentence. The various agreements are omitted based on context to hasten speech. ✎ Edit Article ✖ Delete Article
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