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<p>DigitalResources</p><p>®</p><p>SIL eBook 30</p><p>A Grammar Sketch and Lexicon</p><p>of Arawak (Lokono Dian)</p><p>Willem J. A. Pet</p><p>A Grammar Sketch and Lexicon of</p><p>Arawak (Lokono Dian)</p><p>Willem J. A. Pet</p><p>SIL e-Books</p><p>30</p><p>©2011 SIL International®</p><p>ISBN: 978-1-55671-288-3</p><p>ISSN: 1934-2470</p><p>Fair Use Policy</p><p>Books published in the SIL e-Books (SILEB) series are intended for scholarly</p><p>research and educational use. You may make copies of these publications for</p><p>research or instructional purposes free of charge (within fair use guidelines)</p><p>and without further permission. Republication or commercial use of SILEB or</p><p>the documents contained therein is expressly prohibited without the written</p><p>consent of the copyright holder(s).</p><p>Series Editor</p><p>George Huttar</p><p>Volume Editor</p><p>Mary Ruth Wise</p><p>Copy Editor</p><p>Eugene Burnham</p><p>Compositor</p><p>Judy Benjamin</p><p>Abstract</p><p>A Grammar Sketch and Lexicon of</p><p>Arawak (Lokono Dian)</p><p>Willem J. A. Pet</p><p>Arawak (Lokono Dian), an Amerindian language in the Arawakan language family, is rel-</p><p>atively undescribed. The purpose of this study is to give a general, bottom-up sketch of</p><p>Arawak. It starts with comments on the phonology, then discusses morphology and syntax,</p><p>and ends with comments about discourse.</p><p>Typologically, Arawak is primarily a right-branching SVO language with postpositions.</p><p>Most noun modifiers precede their heads, though heavy relative clauses follow. Question</p><p>words, relative pronouns, and focused constituents appear at the left periphery of the</p><p>clause.</p><p>Of particular interest is an asymmetry involving the distribution of a dummy verb in</p><p>WH-movement constructions. Subjects, direct objects, time phrases, and locative phrases</p><p>may be moved without otherwise affecting the structure of a sentence. Focusing or ques-</p><p>tioning a manner adverbial, or fronting of a negative verb, however, involves the obliga-</p><p>tory insertion of a semantically empty dummy verb as the main verb.</p><p>This book is a revision of Lokono Dian: The Arawak Language of Suriname: A Sketch of its</p><p>Grammatical Structure and Lexicon, the author’s Ph.D. dissertation, Cornell University, 1987.</p><p>iii</p><p>Contents</p><p>List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii</p><p>Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix</p><p>Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x</p><p>Part 1: Grammar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1</p><p>1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2</p><p>1.1 General Comments about Arawak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4</p><p>1.2 Previous Studies of Arawak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4</p><p>1.3 Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5</p><p>1.4 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5</p><p>2 Phonology and Morphology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7</p><p>2.1 Phonology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7</p><p>2.1.1 Segmentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7</p><p>2.1.2 Prefixes and Vowel Cluster Reduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9</p><p>2.1.3 Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9</p><p>2.1.4 Orthographic and Other Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9</p><p>2.2 Lexical Classes and Morphology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10</p><p>2.3 Nominals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11</p><p>2.3.1 Personal Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11</p><p>2.3.1.1 Morphological Forms of Personal Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . 12</p><p>2.3.1.2 Gender, Number, and Humanness in Arawak . . . . . . . . . . . 13</p><p>2.3.2 Demonstrative Pronouns and Adjectives, and Articles . . . . . . . . . 14</p><p>2.3.3 Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16</p><p>2.3.3.1 Inalienable and Alienable Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17</p><p>2.3.3.2 Gender in Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18</p><p>2.3.3.3 Number in Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18</p><p>2.3.3.4 Shape Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20</p><p>2.3.4 Derived Nouns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21</p><p>2.3.4.1 Event Verb + -koana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22</p><p>2.3.4.2 Stative Verb + -bero . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23</p><p>2.3.4.3 Event Verb + -lhin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22</p><p>2.3.4.4 Noun Quantifier + -li, -ro, -ninon, -be . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22</p><p>iv</p><p>2.3.4.5 Verb + -n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22</p><p>2.3.4.6 Verb + -thi, -tho, or -sia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22</p><p>2.3.4.7 Complex Derived Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24</p><p>2.4 Verbs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24</p><p>2.4.1 Event Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24</p><p>2.4.1.1 Event Verb Stem Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24</p><p>2.4.1.2 Event Verb Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30</p><p>2.4.1.3 Event Verb Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31</p><p>2.4.1.4 Derived Event Verbs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37</p><p>2.4.2 Stative Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38</p><p>2.4.2.1 Stative Verb Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39</p><p>2.4.2.2 Derived Stative Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41</p><p>2.4.3 Other Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42</p><p>2.4.3.1 The Dummy Verb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42</p><p>2.4.3.2 The Copula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43</p><p>2.5 Postpositions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44</p><p>2.5.1 The Lexical Status of Postpositions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44</p><p>2.5.2 Kinds of Postpositions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45</p><p>2.5.3 Abbreviations, Compounds, and Suffixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45</p><p>2.6 Functors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48</p><p>2.6.1 Question Words and Relative Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48</p><p>2.6.2 Conjunctions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48</p><p>2.6.3 Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49</p><p>2.6.4 Adverbial and Tense Particles, and Time Words . . . . . . . . . . . 50</p><p>3 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52</p><p>3.1 Noun Phrase Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52</p><p>3.1.1 The Determiner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52</p><p>3.1.2 The Quantifier Phrase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53</p><p>3.1.3 Possessive Noun Phrases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53</p><p>3.1.4 Pre-Head Relative Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54</p><p>3.1.5 The Head of the Noun Phrase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57</p><p>3.1.6 Post-Head Relative Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60</p><p>3.2.1 Event Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61</p><p>3.2.1.1 The ‘COMP’ Position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63</p><p>3.2.1.2 The TOPIC Position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66</p><p>3.2.1.3 Event Sentence Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67</p><p>3.2.2 Dummy Verb Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67</p><p>‘They will laugh about me.’</p><p>c. To hiaro kanaba-fa to kodibio-be khonan.</p><p>the woman listen-FUT the bird-PL about/on</p><p>‘The woman will listen to the birds.’</p><p>However, these postpositional phrases can be used with nearly any event verb, regardless</p><p>of its stem type. They are not restricted to a-stem forms.</p><p>(41) Li fary-fa aba kabadaro de oma.</p><p>he kill-FUT one jaguar me with</p><p>‘He and I will kill a jaguar.’</p><p>This seems to indicate that the a-stems of transitive verbs are really intransitive.32 The</p><p>only mechanism available by which to add another NP into an a-stem clause is the</p><p>same means by which one is added to other intransitive clauses—namely, by using it</p><p>in a postpositional phrase.</p><p>As already mentioned, one of the characteristics of the a-stem is that the actions it ex-</p><p>presses seem to be less bounded and more general. One additional characteristic is that the</p><p>a-stem form of some basic-stem forms can take on an iterative meaning. This is particularly</p><p>true of actions which cannot be easily viewed as stretched in time, such as ‘hit’.</p><p>(42) a. Thy-fatady-fa to kalhina adadyna abo.</p><p>she-hit-FUT the chicken branch with</p><p>‘She will hit the chicken with a branch.’</p><p>2.4 Verbs 27</p><p>32If one accepts Foley and Van Valin’s language typology (1984:107ff.), Arawak is a Pragmatic-Pivot language.</p><p>This can be demonstrated by the fact that the choice of which NP is the subject of a clause is not strictly</p><p>determined by the semantic case role of that NP. The intransitivizing effect seen in a-stems then seems to be</p><p>similar to Foley and Van Valin’s (pp.168ff.) notion of “backgrounding antipassives [which] put the undergoer</p><p>outside the core” (p. 173). That is, just as a passive demotes the subject (usually agent) of a clause to a peripheral</p><p>role, an antipassive demotes the object (usually undergoer). Although antipassives are often associated with</p><p>ergative languages, Arawak is an accusative language. Nevertheless other accusative languages also have been</p><p>shown to have antipassives (e.g. Foley and Van Valin mention (pp. 173ff.) Tzotzil).</p><p>b. Thy-fatada-fa to kalhina khonan adadyna abo.</p><p>she-hit-FUT the chicken on/about branch with</p><p>‘She will go about hitting the chicken with a branch.’</p><p>Although the meaning correspondence between basic-stem and a-stem forms is usually</p><p>predictable, some a-stems differ considerably from their basic-stem counterparts.</p><p>(45) andyn ‘to arrive’ andan ‘to touch or feel’</p><p>thimin ‘to swim’ thiman ‘to cross’</p><p>2.4.1.1.2 “Oa-stem” Forms: Passives and Reflexives</p><p>As its name implies, an “oa-stem” ends in oa. Verbs consisting of a single syllable derive</p><p>this form by adding -noa. Verbs having two or more syllables in their stem may either re-</p><p>place the vowel of the final syllable with -oa or add -noa. No difference in meaning has</p><p>been found between the oa-stem forms using -noa or -oa.33 Oa-stems can be derived only</p><p>from transitive verbs, and function in Arawak both as passives and as reflexives (or</p><p>middles).</p><p>(46) a. Ly-farynoa-bo. (from faryn ‘to kill’)</p><p>he-kill-CONT</p><p>‘He is being killed / he is killing himself.’</p><p>b. Ly-fatadoa-bo. (from fatadyn ‘to hit’)</p><p>he-hit-CONT</p><p>‘He is being hit / he is hitting himself.’</p><p>c. Tho-bokonoa-bo. (from bokon ‘to cook’)</p><p>she/it-boil-CONT</p><p>‘It is being cooked / it is boiling.’</p><p>d. Da-sokoa. (from sokon ‘to chop’)</p><p>I-chop</p><p>‘I was chopped / chopped myself (e.g. cut myself with a machete or ax).’</p><p>In each of the above sentences, the NP which is subject would have been direct object if</p><p>that sentence had had a basic-stem form verb.34 This is very much like the English passive.</p><p>For Arawak, however, the NP which would be in subject position if the clause had a basic-</p><p>stem form verb is completely outside the picture, and cannot be brought back in except in</p><p>a very indirect fashion. Thus in example (47b) below, doma ‘because’ conveys no specific</p><p>information as to the semantic relationship (e.g. agent) between the NP with which it is as-</p><p>sociated and the verb of the sentence.</p><p>(47) a. Li fatada de.</p><p>he hit me</p><p>‘He hit me.’</p><p>28 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>33Forming the oa-stem with -noa does seem to be a bit more common in very explicit speech.</p><p>34This corresponds to Foley and van Valin’s (1984:149ff.) “foregrounding passive” which “permits non-actor</p><p>arguments to occur as pivot [in this case subject] of a clause.”</p><p>b. Li doma da-fatadoa.</p><p>him because I-got.hit</p><p>‘Because of him I got hit.’ or</p><p>‘Because of him I hit myself.’</p><p>c. Ly-dykhonoa.</p><p>he-appear</p><p>‘He appeared.’</p><p>‘He was seen.’</p><p>*‘He saw himself.’</p><p>d. Thy-kanaboa.</p><p>she-get.heard</p><p>‘she was heard.’</p><p>*‘She heard herself.’</p><p>Although the passive interpretation is possible for all sentences with oa-stem forms, the</p><p>reflexive one is not. For example, the oa-stem forms of dykhyn ‘to see’ (47c) and kanabyn</p><p>‘to hear’ (47d) have only the passive reading, and not the reflexive one. If the reflexive</p><p>reading is desired, it can only be obtained by circumlocution or paraphrase.</p><p>(48) a. Ly-dykha l-yja.</p><p>he-see his-image</p><p>‘He saw himself.’</p><p>b. Thy-kanaba thy-kanakyn.</p><p>she-hear her-sound</p><p>‘She heard herself.’</p><p>The unavailability of the reflexive reading for sentences using kanaboan ‘to be heard’ and dykoan</p><p>‘to be seen’ seems to have to do with the fact that the direct objects of their basic-stem forms are not</p><p>affected by the action of the verb. Semantically, the direct object of most transitive verbs is the re-</p><p>cipient or patient35 of the action of the verb. However, the direct object of ‘to hear’ or ‘to see’ does</p><p>not participate in the action of the verb at all—either as patient or agent. In Grimes’ (1975) and</p><p>Longacre’s (1976) terms, it has more the role of “range.” This non-involvement seems to preclude</p><p>the reflexive reading when such noun phrases are made the subject of a sentence.</p><p>Arawak currently seems to be under pressure from surrounding languages to replace the use</p><p>of oa-stems to express the reflexive. Many younger people do not use the oa-stem at all for the</p><p>reflexive, but instead apply the suffix -waja ‘by.self’ or ‘alone’ to a direct object pronoun.</p><p>(49) Ly-soka ly-waja.</p><p>he-chop him-self</p><p>‘He chopped himself (e.g. with a machete).’</p><p>This use of waja to create a reflexive pronoun follows the pattern of Dutch, the national</p><p>language of Suriname, and also the pattern of Sranan Tongo, a creole language almost all</p><p>Arawaks in Suriname know and use daily. However, older speakers totally reject reflexive</p><p>constructions of this sort. They insist the above sentence means:</p><p>2.4 Verbs 29</p><p>35Grimes (1975:116ff.); Longacre (1976:28).</p><p>(50) ‘He is chopping by himself (i.e. he is chopping open a new planting ground by himself).’</p><p>2.4.1.1.3 Interactions of Stem Forms and Tense/Aspect Suffixes</p><p>The morphological differences between the three stem forms of event verbs is not mani-</p><p>fested in many of their occurrences. In particular, the difference between the basic and</p><p>a-stem forms is manifested only when the stem immediately precedes the following suf-</p><p>fixes:36 -n ‘SUB’, -thi ‘WH.SUBJ’, -tho ‘WH.SUBJ’, -sia ‘WH.OBJ’, -fa ‘FUT’, and -(n)bia</p><p>‘INCH’. In all other circumstances, the basic-stem form also appears with an a. For exam-</p><p>ple, the morphological difference between simakyn ‘to call (someone)’ and simakan ‘to yell</p><p>or cry out’ is lost when the present continuative suffix -bo is added. Thus one finds:</p><p>(51) a. Da-simaka-bo no.</p><p>I-call-CONT her</p><p>‘I am calling her.’</p><p>b. Da-simaka-bo.</p><p>I-yell-CONT</p><p>‘I am yelling.’</p><p>Here the difference between “yell” and “call” must be obtained from the context—in this</p><p>case, the presence of an object (which is obligatory for transitive verbs).</p><p>Similarly, the difference between the a-stem form and the oa-stem form is lost preceding the</p><p>future suffix -fa (-ha in some dialects). Thus, tho-boko-fa in isolation can mean either ‘she will</p><p>cook (i.e. make a meal)’ or ‘it will boil’. Context, however, can disambiguate the meanings:</p><p>(52) Tho-boko-fa to khotaha khonan.</p><p>she-cook-FUT the meat about/on</p><p>‘She will cook a meal of meat’.</p><p>2.4.1.2 Event Verb Classes</p><p>Event verbs can be divided into two major subclasses: transitive verbs and intransitive</p><p>verbs. Transitive</p><p>verbs have obligatory surface objects when they are used in clauses, while</p><p>intransitive ones do not.37 Thus, andyn ‘to arrive’ is an intransitive verb, while kanabyn ‘to</p><p>hear’ is transitive. There are also verbs such as ‘give’, which seem to be ditransitive (i.e.</p><p>they can have a direct and an indirect object). The indirect object of such a verb is optional</p><p>in surface structure. If it is expressed, it is in the form of a benefactive postpositional</p><p>phrase with the postposition myn.</p><p>(53) a. Da-siki-fa no.</p><p>I-give-FUT it</p><p>‘I will give it (away).’</p><p>b. Da-siki-fa no ly-myn.</p><p>I-give-FUT it him-BEN</p><p>‘I will give it to him.’</p><p>30 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>36See Section 2.4.1.3 for a discussion of event verb suffixes.</p><p>37Sentence syntax is discussed in Chapter 3.</p><p>The benefactive phrase of a ditransitive verb is somehow more central to the meaning of</p><p>the sentence than a benefactive that can occur with other verbs.38 Furthermore, the more</p><p>usual benefactive phrase can co-occur with the indirect object one. When this happens, the</p><p>benefactive phrase which is not the indirect object follows the indirect object one:</p><p>(54) a. Transitive verb with benefactive:</p><p>Da-soka to ada ly-myn.</p><p>I-chop the tree him-BEN</p><p>‘I chopped the tree for him.’</p><p>b. Ditransitive with indirect object and benefactive:</p><p>Da-siki-fa no ly-myn by-myn.</p><p>I-give-FUT it him-BEN you-BEN</p><p>‘I will give it to him for you’</p><p>2.4.1.3 Event Verb Structure</p><p>The total Arawak event verb word is composed of the verb stem (either simple or derived) and its</p><p>affixes. There is one prefix position preceding the stem, and there are eight suffix positions follow-</p><p>ing it. The affixes and their order relative to the verb stem may be found in Figure 7. Numbers rep-</p><p>resent position classes. A negative numbered class is a prefix; positive ones are suffixes. Absolute</p><p>value indicates distance from stem. Affixes in the same order class cannot co-occur. Other co-</p><p>occurrence restrictions are discussed in the text.</p><p>–1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5 +6 +7 +8</p><p>pron stem -n -thi -ra -ma -bo -ba -the pron</p><p>SUB WH.S EXPECT HABIL CONT AWAY COME</p><p>-tho -na -thi -ka</p><p>WH.S UNEXP DESID PERF</p><p>-sia -li -fa</p><p>WH.O NESS FUT</p><p>-ja</p><p>PAST.CONT</p><p>-(n)bia</p><p>INCH</p><p>-›</p><p>PAST</p><p>Figure 7. Event Verb Structure</p><p>2.4 Verbs 31</p><p>38See Section 4.4.4.2 for a discussion of relativization where postposition stranding facts seem to indicate the</p><p>indirect object is also syntactically more closely bound to the verb than other benefactive postpositional phrases.</p><p>At the peripheries of the event verb word (order classes –1 and +8) are the personal</p><p>pronoun prefixes and suffixes which were previously discussed. A morphologically bound</p><p>pronoun occurring in position –1 of an event verb is the subject of that verb; one occurring</p><p>in position +8 is the direct object (of course intransitive verbs cannot take a direct ob-</p><p>ject).39 Order classes +1 to +7 consist of various aspect, mood, and directional suffixes. A</p><p>brief discussion of each order class and the suffixes in it follows.</p><p>2.4.1.3.1 Subordinator (Class +1)</p><p>In the first position, +1, following the stem, only the suffix -n occurs. It is the subordi-</p><p>nating morpheme (SUB), used whenever a verb is in a subordinate clause, and can co-occur</p><p>with any of the other suffixes. For example:</p><p>(55) To d-osy-n-bo jon, abali anda-the ...</p><p>the I-go-SUB-CONT there one.man arrive-COME</p><p>‘Concerning what happened while I was going there, a man arrived ...’</p><p>The suffix -n, if it is the only affix on a verb, yields the verb’s citation form—that is, the</p><p>form used by Arawaks to talk about a particular verb. It is roughly equivalent to an English</p><p>gerund or infinitive. For example:</p><p>(56) andy-n ‘to arrive/arriving’</p><p>anda-n ‘to touch/touching’</p><p>osy-n ‘to go/going’</p><p>salabady-n ‘to make a square post from a log’</p><p>2.4.1.3.2 Relativizers (Class +2)</p><p>The second position after the verb stem consists of three relativizing suffixes -thi, -tho,</p><p>and -sia, one of which must be used whenever an event verb’s subject or direct object has</p><p>been relativized.</p><p>(57) a. -thi ‘WH.SUBJ’ (relativized [+human +male] subject):</p><p>Li wadili [› dykha-THI-bo d-arakabosan khonan] andy-fa th-abo mothi.</p><p>The man [› look.after-WH.SUBJ-CONT my-gun on] arrive-FUT it-with tomorrow</p><p>‘The man who is looking after my gun will arrive with it tomorrow.’</p><p>b. -tho ‘WH.SUBJ’ (relativized [+human –male] or [–human] subject)</p><p>Da-wada-bo to pero [› rydy-THO de].</p><p>I-search-CONT the dog [› bite-WH.SUBJ me]</p><p>‘I am looking for the dog that bit me.’</p><p>c. -sia ‘WH.OBJ’ (relativized direct object)</p><p>D-othika to kharasy-n [by-mikodo-SIA › da-myn.]</p><p>I-receive the write-SUB [you-send-WH.OBJ › me-BEN]</p><p>‘I received the writing (=letter) you sent me.’</p><p>32 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>39See Section 2.3.1 for further discussion on pronouns.</p><p>The relativization suffixes are discussed in some detail in other sections of this study (see</p><p>Chapter 4 on relative clauses), and consequently are not dealt with further here.</p><p>2.4.1.3.3 Expectation (Class +3)</p><p>The third order position after the stem consists of two suffixes having to do with expectancy:</p><p>(58) -ra ‘EXPECT’ (expected action or result)</p><p>-na ‘UNEXP’ (unexpected action or result)</p><p>The suffix -ra added to the verb indicates that the action or event described is somehow expected</p><p>because of the preceding linguistic context or the situational context. Thus, a man who had previously</p><p>asked if he could go to a party with a neighbor meets that neighbor again when that neighbor stops by</p><p>to pick him up. The neighbor asks the man whether he is going to the party, and the man answers:</p><p>(59) D-osy-ra-fa.</p><p>I-go-EXPECT-FUT</p><p>‘(Of course) I will go’.</p><p>The suffix -na is the opposite of -ra. It indicates that the action or event is unexpected. Thus,</p><p>in a story about playing with an unexploded bomb that later explodes, the story teller says:</p><p>(60) W-etha-na kho oda-ha khona to wa-birabirady-n-bo.</p><p>we-know-UNEXP not dead-NGEN on the we-play.around-SUB-CONT</p><p>‘We didn’t know (but should have) we were playing around with death.’</p><p>2.4.1.3.4 Modality (Class +4)</p><p>The fourth order class after the stem consists of three suffixes which have to do with de-</p><p>sire, potentiality or ability, and necessity:</p><p>(61) -ma ‘HABIL’ habilitative</p><p>-thi ‘DESID’ desiderative</p><p>-li ‘NESS’ necessitative</p><p>The suffix -ma ‘habilitative’ is used to express potentiality in the sense of either ability or</p><p>permission. Thus,</p><p>(62) Tho-khota-ma no.</p><p>she-eat-HABIL it</p><p>‘She can eat it.’</p><p>is similar to its English gloss and can mean either ‘she is able to eat it’ or ‘she is allowed to</p><p>eat it’. In contexts where the distinction between the two is important and only the ‘ability’</p><p>interpretation is desired, the verb wadilin ‘to be able to’ is used.</p><p>The suffix -thi ‘desiderative’ indicates desire or intention.</p><p>2.4 Verbs 33</p><p>(63) B-osa-thi-ka.</p><p>you-go-DESID-PERF</p><p>‘Do you want/intend to go?’</p><p>This suffix is never found without one of the tense/aspect suffixes in the next order class.</p><p>The suffix -li ‘necessitative’ indicates obligation or necessity. This suffix not only does not</p><p>co-occur with the habilitative or desiderative suffixes but also does not co-occur with the</p><p>tense/aspect suffixes of the next class, +5. This may be because the meaning of this suffix</p><p>seems to have a temporally forward-looking component.</p><p>(64) By-malhikhotoa-li no.</p><p>you-learn-NESS it</p><p>‘You should learn it.’</p><p>The suffix -li leaves some doubt as to the outcome of the situation. If certainty of the out-</p><p>come (as in the English ‘must’) needs to be expressed, the future suffix -fa must be used</p><p>(see the discussion below).</p><p>2.4.1.3.5 Tense/Aspect (Class +5)</p><p>The fifth position after the stem consists of five tense/aspect suffixes. In addition, the ab-</p><p>sence of all of these suffixes has its own meaning, normally past. However, the past tense</p><p>interpretation, when none of the five tense/aspect suffixes is present, does not occur when</p><p>-li ‘necessitative’ or -ma ‘habilitative’ are present.</p><p>(65) -bo ‘CONT’ present continuative</p><p>-ka ‘PERF’ perfect</p><p>-fa ‘FUT’ future</p><p>-ja ‘PAST.CONT’ past continuative</p><p>-bia ‘INCH’ inchoative</p><p>-› ‘PAST’ simple past</p><p>The suffixes in</p><p>this class are analyzed in more detail in Chapter 5 and consequently are dealt</p><p>with only briefly here. The meanings in (65) for the suffixes apply to their use in isolated utter-</p><p>ances. They all represent combinations of tense and aspect, and the tense component of their</p><p>meanings is actually what Comrie (1985) calls “relative tense” (see Chapter 5). This implies</p><p>that their temporal reference is affected by the discourse context in which they are found.</p><p>The suffix -bo ‘present continuative’ indicates a continuing or progressing action—</p><p>normally in the present.</p><p>(66) a. Ama b-ani-bo?</p><p>what you-do-CONT</p><p>‘What are you doing?’</p><p>b. Ly-dalhida-ra-bo-the.</p><p>he-run-EXPECT-CONT-BACK</p><p>‘He is running back (of course).’</p><p>34 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>The suffix -ka ‘perfect’ is used to indicate a completed action where the effects of that ac-</p><p>tion extend into the present. For example, if one says</p><p>(67) Da-sokosa-ka.</p><p>I-wash.clothes-PERF</p><p>‘I have washed the clothes.’</p><p>then the clothes have been washed and are now clean. Similarly, the question</p><p>(68) By-ka-ka?</p><p>you-bathe-PERF</p><p>‘Did you bathe?’ or ‘Have you bathed?’</p><p>not only asks whether a bath has been taken, but also asks whether its effects are still pres-</p><p>ent. Thus the question could not be answered in the affirmative if one has bathed but is</p><p>now dirty again.</p><p>The future suffix -fa (-ha in some dialects) generally indicates future certainty.</p><p>(69) a. L-osy-fa.</p><p>he-go-FUT</p><p>‘He will go.’</p><p>b. Lo-khota-thi-fa.</p><p>he-eat-DESID-FUT</p><p>‘He will want to eat.’</p><p>When this suffix is used in an imperative sentence,40 it is best translated by the English</p><p>word ‘must.’</p><p>(70) B-osy-fa!</p><p>you-go-FUT</p><p>‘You must go!’</p><p>The suffix -ja ‘past continuative’ is used to express events which had a duration in the</p><p>past. The action expressed by the verb is not on-going in the present and the hearer does</p><p>not know if the event ran to completion.</p><p>(71) Tho-boka-ja.</p><p>she-cook-PAST.CONT</p><p>‘She was cooking (a meal).’</p><p>The suffix -(n)bia ‘inchoative’ generally indicates that a change of state has begun or will</p><p>begin.</p><p>(72) To ada iwi bikhidi-nbia.</p><p>the tree fruit grow-INCH</p><p>‘The fruit is ripening.’</p><p>2.4 Verbs 35</p><p>40Imperative sentences can occur only with second-person singular and plural subjects, and with first-person</p><p>plural ones. They are distinguished from corresponding indicative sentences solely by their intonation.</p><p>This suffix is also used where ‘in order to’ would be used in English.</p><p>(73) Li-sika-bo to polata da-myn da-jonta-bia amathali ly-myn.</p><p>he-give-CONT the money me-BEN I-buy-INCH something him-BEN</p><p>‘He gave me the money to buy something for him.’</p><p>When the inchoative is added to the basic-stem form of a verb, which is the case in ex-</p><p>ample (72), it always has the form -nbia. When it is used on an a-stem, as in (73), the n is</p><p>often dropped, and the suffix is just -bia. The precise explanation for the dropping of the n</p><p>has not been determined.</p><p>If a verb in an isolated utterance does not have one of the five aspect/tense suffixes men-</p><p>tioned in this section, nor -li ‘necessitative’ nor -ma ‘habilitative’, it is always taken to be</p><p>equivalent to the simple past tense.</p><p>(74) a. D-osa.</p><p>I-go</p><p>‘I went.’</p><p>b. Da-fara aba dodole.</p><p>I-kill one peccary.</p><p>‘I killed a peccary.’</p><p>c. Miaka d-osa forto-nro.</p><p>yesterday I-go town-to</p><p>‘Yesterday I went to town.’</p><p>As might be expected if the lack of a tense/aspect suffix is a “significant zero” with a past</p><p>tense meaning, this -› is unacceptable with a future time adverbial.</p><p>(75) *Mothi d-osa forto-nro.</p><p>*tomorrow I-go town-to</p><p>*‘Tomorrow I went to town.’</p><p>2.4.1.3.6 Directionals (Classes +6 and +7)</p><p>The sixth and seventh order positions after the stem consist of two directional suffixes:</p><p>(76) -ba ‘AWAY’ (motion away, going)</p><p>-the ‘BACK’ (motion back, coming)</p><p>The suffix -ba (in the +6 position) indicates that the action of the verb involves physical</p><p>or psychological motion away from the speaker’s reference point (i.e. away from the</p><p>speaker at the moment of the utterance, or away from his habitual place or state, or away</p><p>from where he should be). Thus,</p><p>(77) L-osa-ba</p><p>he-go-AWAY</p><p>‘He went away.’</p><p>36 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>The suffix -the (in the +7 position) is the converse of the preceding suffix and therefore</p><p>indicates physical or psychological motion toward the speaker’s reference point:</p><p>(78) B-anda-li-the d-amyn.</p><p>you-arrive-NESS-BACK me-by</p><p>‘You must come to me (e.g. at my house)’.</p><p>As might be inferred from the fact that the directional suffixes are listed in different or-</p><p>der classes, these suffixes can co-occur, and when they co-occur, they do so in a specific or-</p><p>der: -ba-the. Thus, it is possible to say:</p><p>(79) L-osa-ba-the.</p><p>he-go-AWAY-BACK</p><p>‘He went and came back.’</p><p>2.4.1.4 Derived Event Verbs</p><p>In the following sections several ways of deriving event verb stems from various lexical</p><p>classes are discussed.</p><p>2.4.1.4.1 Causatives: Event Verb + -kyty</p><p>Causative event verb stems may be derived from event verbs with the causative (CAUS)</p><p>suffix -kyty (where the first y becomes o if the vowel in the preceding syllable is a). These</p><p>derived verbs are always transitive. When they are derived from originally transitive verbs,</p><p>the causer of the action replaces the normal agent of the verb, and this original agent can-</p><p>not be re-introduced into the sentence.</p><p>(80) wa-dylhydy-kyty-nbia to kojalha</p><p>we-pull-CAUS-INCH the canoe</p><p>‘in order that we cause/have the canoe to be pulled’</p><p>When the original verb is intransitive, the causative suffix introduces a new agent as sub-</p><p>ject, and the original agent becomes the object:41</p><p>(81) Ly-fara-kota no.</p><p>he-fight-CAUS it</p><p>‘He caused it to fight.’</p><p>2.4.1.4.2 Stative Verb + -ty</p><p>Transitive event verb stems may be derived from some stative ones by the addition of the</p><p>derivational suffix -ty (where the y is subject to the stem derivations given previously in</p><p>2.4.1.1):</p><p>2.4 Verbs 37</p><p>41This example also illustrates the fact that the stem formed by the addition of the causative suffix (to either a</p><p>basic-stem or a-stem can in turn be used to derive an a-stem form by replacing the final vowel of the complex with</p><p>a. No examples have been found where -kyty was added to an oa-stem.</p><p>(82) a. D-alekhebe-ty-fa no.</p><p>I-be.happy-verbalizer-FUT her</p><p>‘I will cheer her up.’</p><p>b. Da-there-ta no.</p><p>I-be.hot-verbalizer it</p><p>‘I heated it.’</p><p>c. Da-there-toa-bo.</p><p>I-hot-verbalizer.pass/refl-CONT</p><p>‘I am warming (myself) up.’ or</p><p>‘I am getting warm.’</p><p>2.4.1.4.3 Noun + -da</p><p>Intransitive event verbs may be derived from many nouns with the suffix -da:</p><p>(83) a. Da-bode-da-bo.</p><p>I-fishhook-verbalizer-CONT</p><p>‘I am fishing (with a line and hook).’</p><p>b. L-itotolhi-da-bo.</p><p>he-nail-verbalizer-CONT</p><p>‘He is nailing.’</p><p>These constructions are very similar to English ones such as:</p><p>(84) a. He is hammering.</p><p>b. He is building.</p><p>2.4.2 Stative Verbs</p><p>Stative verbs are the second large class of verbs in Arawak. Unlike Arawak event verbs,</p><p>stative verbs connote a state of being or an attribute of the subject. They never involve</p><p>physical motion, or physical or mental activities. Syntactically, they are clearly distinct</p><p>from event verbs. Whereas event verbs occur in SVO and SV sentences, stative verbs occur</p><p>in VS sentences.42</p><p>(85) a. Seme-ka to kasiri.</p><p>sweet-PERF the cassava.beer</p><p>‘The cassava beer is sweet (unfermented).’</p><p>38 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>42The syntax of stative sentences is discussed in sections dealing with stative clauses (3.2.3). Also discussed</p><p>there is some evidence for assuming that the noun phrase following the stative verb is truly the subject of the</p><p>sentence. This evidence rests in part on the observation that the subject-relativization suffixes -thi and -tho appear</p><p>when such a noun phrase is relativized.</p><p>b. Fonasia-ka de.</p><p>hungry-PERF I</p><p>‘I am hungry.’</p><p>Almost all words which are non-derived stative verbs in Arawak would, in English, tend</p><p>to be adjectives. For example, note the words in the following list:43</p><p>(86) sa-n be.good-SUB ‘to be good’</p><p>hehe-n be.yellow-SUB ‘to be yellow’</p><p>firo-n be.big-SUB ‘to be big’</p><p>mimi-n be.cold-SUB ‘to be cold’</p><p>nykamy-n be.sad-SUB ‘to be sad’</p><p>thonolisia-n have.a.cold-SUB</p><p>‘to have a cold’</p><p>kawa-n be.absent-SUB ‘to be absent’</p><p>alokosia-n be.thirsty-SUB ‘to be thirsty’</p><p>However, in Arawak, these words cannot be used as noun modifiers in a noun phrase unless they</p><p>receive one of the subject-relativizing suffixes (see Section 3.1 on noun phrase structure).</p><p>(87) a. *aba sioko kakosiro</p><p>*one small deer</p><p>*‘a small deer’</p><p>b. aba sioko-tho kakosiro</p><p>one small-WH.SUBJ deer</p><p>‘a small deer’</p><p>(88) a. *aba somole wadili</p><p>*one drunken man</p><p>*‘a drunk man’</p><p>b. aba somole-thi wadili</p><p>one drunken-WH.SUBJ man</p><p>‘a drunk man’</p><p>2.4.2.1 Stative Verb Structure</p><p>Stative verbs are less richly inflected than event verbs. In particular, stative verbs cannot</p><p>receive modality or directional suffixes. This may be because these notions seem to apply</p><p>to events and are therefore semantically incompatible with stative verbs. One other differ-</p><p>ence between stative verbs and event verbs is that, because they occur in Verb-Subject sen-</p><p>tences, stative verbs cannot receive pronoun prefixes,44 and the pronoun suffixes which</p><p>occur on them correspond to subjects rather than objects.</p><p>2.4 Verbs 39</p><p>43As was the case with event verbs, the citation forms for stative verbs receive the subordinating or</p><p>nominalizing suffix -n.</p><p>44Pronoun prefixes and suffixes always occur in the same position relative to the verb that their corresponding</p><p>morphologically free forms do.</p><p>(89) a. Tabysia-ka-i.</p><p>sleepy-PERF-he</p><p>‘He is sleepy.’</p><p>b. Bora-ka-n.</p><p>sour-PERF-it</p><p>‘It is sour.’</p><p>Other than these differences, the structure of a stative verb word is the same as an event</p><p>verb word. Specific affixes and their ordering may be found in Figure 8. Affixes in the same</p><p>order class cannot co-occur.</p><p>0 +1 +2 +3 +4 +5</p><p>stem -n -thi -ra -bo pron</p><p>SUB WH.SUBJ EXPECT CONT</p><p>-tho -na -ka</p><p>WH.SUBJ UNEXP PERF</p><p>-ja</p><p>PAST.CONT</p><p>-fa</p><p>FUT</p><p>-(n)bia</p><p>INCH</p><p>-›</p><p>PAST</p><p>Figure 8. Stative Verb Structure</p><p>The meanings of the verb affixes when they are applied to stative verbs are much the same</p><p>as their meanings when applied to event verbs (see Figure 7). There are some subtle differ-</p><p>ences due to the interactions between the tense and aspect components of the suffixes and</p><p>the semantics of stative verbs. These differences are discussed in Chapter 5.</p><p>(90) -n ‘SUB’ subordinate</p><p>-thi ‘WH.SUBJ’ male subject relativizer</p><p>-tho ‘WH.SUBJ’ non-male subject relativizer</p><p>-ra ‘EXPECT’ expected state</p><p>-na ‘UNEXP’ unexpected state</p><p>-bo ‘CONT’ present state which is intensifying or has duration</p><p>-ka ‘PERF’ present state</p><p>-fa ‘FUT’ future state</p><p>-ja ‘PAST.CONT’ past state with duration</p><p>-(n)bia ‘INCH’ an inceptive state</p><p>-› ‘PAST’ past state</p><p>40 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>Some examples of clauses with stative verbs using some of the various affixes are as follows:</p><p>(91) a. Nykamy-ka-i.</p><p>sad-PERF-he</p><p>‘He is sad.’</p><p>b. Hebe-fa-n.</p><p>full-FUT-it</p><p>‘It will be full.’</p><p>c. Hebe-bo to keke.</p><p>full-CONT the basket</p><p>‘The basket is now full and getting fuller.’</p><p>d. Hebe-bia no.</p><p>full-INCH it</p><p>‘It is becoming full.’ or ‘It will become full.’</p><p>e. Hebe-ra-fa no.</p><p>full-EXPECT-FUT it</p><p>‘The basket will be full, of course.’</p><p>f. Fonasia-› de.</p><p>hungry-PAST I</p><p>‘I was hungry.’</p><p>2.4.2.2 Derived Stative Verbs</p><p>There are several means by which stative verbs may be derived from words in other lexi-</p><p>cal classes.</p><p>2.4.2.2.1 Noun + ka- or ma-</p><p>Stative verb stems can be derived from simple or derived nouns with the attributive prefixes</p><p>ka- ‘attributive (to have or be)’ and ma- ‘privative (to not have or not be)’. The stative verb</p><p>which results can then receive any of the suffixes normally associated with stative verbs.</p><p>(92) a. ka-sikoa-n</p><p>ATTR-house-SUB</p><p>‘to have a house’ (i.e. opposite of houseless)’</p><p>b. Ka-balha-ka-i.</p><p>ATTR-hair-PERF-he</p><p>‘He is hairy.’</p><p>c. Ma-balha-ka no.</p><p>PRIV-hair-PERF she</p><p>‘She is hairless/bald.’</p><p>2.4 Verbs 41</p><p>d. ka-polata-n</p><p>ATTR-money-SUB</p><p>‘to be rich’</p><p>2.4.2.2.2 Postpositions as Stative Verbs</p><p>Arawak postpositions may be used as two-argument stative verbs.45</p><p>(93) a. Bahy loko-ka no.</p><p>house in-PERF it</p><p>‘It is in the house.’</p><p>b. Hala diako-fa-i</p><p>bench on-FUT-he</p><p>‘He will be on the bench.’</p><p>Unlike other stative verbs, however, for a postposition to occur as the main verb of a</p><p>stative sentence, it must receive one of the stative tense/aspect suffixes.</p><p>(94) *Bahy loko no.</p><p>*house in it</p><p>*‘It is in the house.’</p><p>When postpositions are used as the main verb of a sentence, the noun phrase preceding</p><p>the postposition is its object, and the one following is the subject.46</p><p>2.4.3 Other Verbs</p><p>There are two other verbs in Arawak which deserve special attention. One of these is a</p><p>semantically empty verb a which I gloss as ‘dummy’. The other is the copula to ‘is’, used in</p><p>equative sentences.</p><p>2.4.3.1 The Dummy Verb</p><p>The semantically empty dummy verb (i.e. pro-verb) in Arawak behaves in some ways</p><p>like the English AUX.47 It is found in sentences with preposed manner-adverbials or pre-</p><p>posed verbs with the privative prefix m(a)- ‘not be, not have.’</p><p>(95) a. Abare l-a simaka-n li d-orebithi.</p><p>suddenly he-dummy yell-SUB the my-brother.in.law</p><p>‘Suddenly my brother-in-law yelled.’</p><p>42 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>45See sections on postpositions (2.5), and discussions of stative verb structure (2.4.2.1) and postposition</p><p>stranding (4.4.4.1, 4.4.4.2) for more details.</p><p>46See sections on stative sentence structure (3.2.3) and relativization of objects of postpositions (4.4.4.1,</p><p>4.4.4.2) in support of this claim.</p><p>47See the discussion on dummy verb sentences (3.2.2) where this topic is treated in detail.</p><p>b. M-andy-n l-a-bo akharoho.</p><p>PRIV-arrive-SUB he-dummy-CONT now</p><p>‘Isn’t he arriving now?’ or ‘He isn’t arriving now.’</p><p>As can be seen in the above examples, the dummy verb is the main verb of the sentence.</p><p>It carries most of the verb affixes, and all other verbs in the sentence receive the subordi-</p><p>nation suffix -n.</p><p>The dummy verb behaves morphologically like an event verb, taking subject pronoun</p><p>prefixes and event verb suffixes. Semantically, the sentences in which it is found relate</p><p>events occurring at some specific time and place. Like other event verbs, it has two stem</p><p>forms: o (basic-stem form), and a (a-stem form).</p><p>(96) M-osy-n th-o-fa forto-nro mothi.</p><p>PRIV-go-SUB she-dummy-FUT town-to tomorrow</p><p>‘She isn’t going to town tomorrow.’ or ‘Isn’t she going to town tomorrow?’</p><p>2.4.3.2 The Copula</p><p>The second verb that needs to be mentioned is the copular verb to ‘to be’. It is used only</p><p>in equative constructions connecting two noun phrases.48</p><p>(97) a. Ama to to toho?</p><p>what is the this</p><p>‘What is this?’</p><p>b. Toho to aba kakosiro.</p><p>this is one deer</p><p>‘This is a deer.’</p><p>c. Tora hiaro to da-retho.</p><p>that female is my-wife</p><p>‘That woman is my wife.’</p><p>Although the verb to ‘to be’ is identical in form to the definite article to ‘the’, the verb is</p><p>not the same as the article. They can co-occur in the same sentence (see example 97a), and</p><p>the verb does not change form according to the gender of the referents in the rest of the</p><p>sentence, whereas the article does.</p><p>(98) a. Lira wadili to da-rethi.</p><p>that man is my-husband</p><p>‘That man is my husband.’</p><p>b. Li da-rethi andy-fa mothi.</p><p>the my-husband arrive-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘My husband will arrive tomorrow.’</p><p>2.4 Verbs 43</p><p>48See also sections on equative sentence structure (3.2.3.1).</p><p>The equative verb is sometimes, under as yet unknown circumstances, deleted; and simi-</p><p>larly, the articles are sometimes deleted. This means that at times it is impossible to know</p><p>for sure whether a particular to is an article or a verb. For example,</p><p>(99) Ama to toho?</p><p>(what the/is this)</p><p>‘What is this?’</p><p>2.5 Postpositions</p><p>Arawak postpositions represent a large class of words which function in most situations very simi-</p><p>larly to English prepositions, except that they follow, rather than precede, their object NP.49</p><p>(100) a.Na-bina-bo to kasiri sikoa LOKHODI.</p><p>they-dance-CONT the cassava.beer house in</p><p>‘They are dancing in the cassava-beer house.’</p><p>b.To kodibio balyta ada dyna DIAKO.</p><p>the bird sit tree arm on</p><p>‘The bird sat on a branch.’</p><p>c. Kia BENA n-osa kaboja NINRO.</p><p>that after they-go planting.ground to</p><p>‘After that, they went to their planting ground.’</p><p>2.5.1</p><p>The Lexical Status of Postpositions</p><p>It is not entirely clear that postpositions should be considered as a separate lexical class</p><p>apart from nouns or verbs. One possible alternative might be to assume that postpositions</p><p>should be considered verbs—that is, locative stative verbs. This proposal is attractive be-</p><p>cause, in fact, locative postpositions50 can serve as the main verb of a sentence if they are</p><p>inflected with stative verb suffixes (see also sections on stative sentences 3.2.3).</p><p>(101) a.Ada dyna diako-ka no, to kodibio.</p><p>tree arm on-PERF it the bird</p><p>‘It, the bird, is on a branch.’</p><p>b.Tho-loko-ka no.</p><p>it-in-PERF it</p><p>‘It is in it (e.g. the cassava beer is in a gourd).’</p><p>However, unlike verbs, postpositions can occur without the subordinating morpheme -n, even</p><p>when they are not the main verb of a sentence. For example, notice that neither of the postposi-</p><p>tions in the following examples is subordinated (i.e. receives the suffix -n), whereas the word</p><p>moroda-n ‘fly’ in the last example is subordinated, thus receiving the suffix -n.</p><p>44 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>49See also de Goeje (1928), Hickerson (1953), and Taylor (1970a and 1970b).</p><p>50This is not to say that only locative postpositions can be used as verbs; however, these are the only ones for</p><p>which I have clear evidence.</p><p>(102) a.Na-dykha to kama kalhao-bana diako.</p><p>they-see the tapir grass-place on</p><p>‘They saw the tapir on the savannah.’</p><p>b.Ly-dykha to kodibio moroda-n ly-waria.</p><p>he-saw the bird fly-SUB him-away.from</p><p>‘He saw the bird fly away from him.’</p><p>Postpositions also differ from verbs in that they cannot easily be said in isolation. For ex-</p><p>ample, although event verbs and stative verbs have citation forms (stem+SUB), there</p><p>seems to be no citation form for postpositions.51 This has led some (e.g. Hickerson 1953) to</p><p>list all postpositions as suffixes.</p><p>Another alternative classification of postpositions is alluded to by Taylor (1970b:31)—to</p><p>consider them nouns. Taylor points out that, in fact, there are several nouns which are</p><p>homophonous, or nearly homophonous, with semantically similar postpositions. For</p><p>example, he mentions:</p><p>(103) ly-sibo ‘his face’ ly-sibon ‘in front of him’</p><p>da-khona ‘my body’ da-khonan ‘about me’</p><p>da-dike ‘my tracks’ da-dike ‘after me’</p><p>However, these correspondences are very sporadic; and in general, postpositions cannot be</p><p>used as nouns, nor do they enter into the kinds of derivational processes other nouns do.</p><p>Although the arguments for or against treating postpositions as separate from verbs and</p><p>nominals are not conclusive, postpositions are treated separately in the remainder of this study.</p><p>2.5.2 Kinds of Postpositions</p><p>Arawak postpositions may be roughly divided into several groups. The largest of these</p><p>groups consists of postpositions having to do with locations. A smaller group consists of ba-</p><p>sically temporal postpositions. In addition, there is a group of postpositions with more spe-</p><p>cialized functions. Figure 9 gives a sampling.52</p><p>2.5.3 Abbreviations, Compounds, and Suffixes</p><p>Two of the locational postpositions in Figure 9, nin ‘at’ and ninro ‘toward’, can be phono-</p><p>logically reduced to -n and -nro, respectively, and often occur as suffixes53 on nouns or on</p><p>other postpositions.</p><p>(104) a.bahy nin bahy-n ‘at home’</p><p>kaboja nin kaboja-n ‘at the planting ground’</p><p>2.5 Postpositions 45</p><p>51Postposition stems are used in this study when referring to postpositions. Most Arawak speakers find this</p><p>puzzling and prefer to add an appropriate pronoun prefix to them (e.g. tho-loko ‘in it’).</p><p>52See also the discussion of noun shape classes (2.3.3.4) regarding the use of the various Arawak postpositions</p><p>corresponding to the English preposition ‘in’.</p><p>53That these are suffixes can be deduced from the fact that they cannot receive word stress, and they cannot</p><p>receive pronoun prefixes as other postpositions can.</p><p>b. bahy ninro bahy-nro ‘toward home’</p><p>kaboja ninro kaboja-nro ‘to the planting ground’</p><p>Another of the locational postpositions, waria ‘away from’, can also be reduced (to -aria); but as a</p><p>suffix, it only seems to occur as a directional on other postpositions (see below), not on nouns.</p><p>LOCATIONAL POSTPOSITIONS</p><p>abon ‘under’</p><p>amyn ‘by, at’</p><p>boloko ‘at the side, end’</p><p>diako ‘on the surface of’</p><p>dikhi ‘behind, following’</p><p>inabo ‘behind, following’</p><p>khiradi ‘near, next to’</p><p>khona ‘on (not on top of)’</p><p>koboroko ‘among, in a living body’</p><p>koloko ‘in (fire, sunshine, etc.)’</p><p>kosan ‘next to’</p><p>loko ‘in (in a hollow or solid object)’</p><p>maja, maria ‘general vicinity, to the side of’</p><p>makhana ‘between’</p><p>nakanrokon ‘in the midst of’</p><p>nin ‘at (any location), belonging to’</p><p>ninro ‘toward’</p><p>olaboan ‘opposite side’</p><p>rakon ‘in (in a fluid)’</p><p>rokon ‘in (on the inside surface of)’</p><p>waria ‘away from’</p><p>TEMPORAL POSTPOSITIONS</p><p>bena ‘after’</p><p>bora ‘before’</p><p>kha ‘while’</p><p>OTHER POSTPOSITIONS</p><p>abo ‘with (instrumental)’</p><p>adi ‘greater than, above’</p><p>doma ‘because, on account of’</p><p>farokha ‘if’ (some dialects: harokha)</p><p>khonan ‘about, concerning’</p><p>myn ‘to, for (benefactive, IO)’</p><p>oma ‘with (accompaniment)’</p><p>Figure 9. Selected Arawak Postpositions</p><p>46 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>Most of the locational postpositions in Figure 9 are generally concerned with static situa-</p><p>tions. If motion is involved, they are combined with either -nro ‘toward’ (105c) or -aria</p><p>‘away from’ (105d). If the location is one in which an activity is occurring (i.e. an adver-</p><p>bial), the postposition receives the suffix -di ‘ADV’ (105b).54 This means that, if one disre-</p><p>gards their internal structure, most locational postpositions have four forms: the basic one</p><p>and three others, with -di, -nro, and -aria (see Figure 10).</p><p>(105) a.Da-dykha no hala diako.</p><p>I-see it bench on</p><p>‘I saw it on a bench.’</p><p>b. Da-bina-bo hala diakho-di.</p><p>I-dance-CONT bench on-ADV</p><p>‘I am dancing on a bench.’</p><p>c. D-osa bahy loko-nro.</p><p>I-go house in-to</p><p>‘I went into the house.’</p><p>d. Da-dalhida bahy loko-aria.</p><p>I-run house in-away.from</p><p>‘I ran out of the house.’</p><p>STATIC ACTION MOTION TO MOTION FROM</p><p>loko lokhodi lokonro lokoaria</p><p>‘in’ ‘in’ ‘into’ ‘out of’</p><p>diako diakhodi diakonro diakoaria</p><p>‘on’ ‘on’ ‘onto’ ‘off of’</p><p>kosan kosadi kosanro kosaria</p><p>‘next to’ ‘next to’ ‘toward’ ‘away from’</p><p>Figure 10. Forms of Locational Postpositions</p><p>The benefactive postposition myn55 is used with any person or thing (other than the grammatical</p><p>subject or object) which is a recipient or benefits from an action.56 It is also used to indicate the in-</p><p>direct object of ditransitive verbs and may therefore occur more than once in a sentence.</p><p>(106) Bi-sika no tho-myn da-myn.</p><p>you-give it her-BEN me-BEN</p><p>‘Give it to her for me.’</p><p>In reporting direct quotations, the person being spoken to is also indicated with this postposition.</p><p>2.5 Postpositions 47</p><p>54Postpositions ending in ko change that ko to kho before -di.</p><p>55When pronoun prefixes are added to this postposition, the forms are sometimes contracted: da-myn becomes</p><p>dan ‘for me’, by-myn becomes bon ‘for you’, thy-myn becomes thon ‘for her’, ly-myn becomes lon ‘for him’, and</p><p>wa-myn becomes wan ‘for us’. I have not found contracted forms of na-myn ‘for them’ or hy-myn ‘for you-PL’.</p><p>56It cannot be used as a malefactive.</p><p>(107) “Ehe” l-a tha da-myn.</p><p>“Yes” he-dummy reportative me-BEN</p><p>‘"Yes", he (said) to me.’</p><p>2.6 Functors</p><p>The label “Functors” is used here purely as a means of grouping together a number of small,</p><p>miscellaneous lexical classes. This is a diverse group; and, syntactically, its members have in</p><p>common only that they cannot take pronominal affixes (which verbs, nominals, and postposi-</p><p>tions all can take). With the exception of the numbers, the functor classes are all closed.</p><p>2.6.1 Question Words and Relative Pronouns</p><p>Arawak has a number of question words, many of which also serve as relative pronouns.57</p><p>(108) ama ‘what’</p><p>amabia ‘why (for what purpose)’</p><p>amadoma ‘why (what is the cause)’</p><p>(h)alika ‘how’</p><p>(h)alikan ‘who’</p><p>(h)alikadin ‘in what manner exactly’</p><p>(h)alo(n), ano(n) ‘where’</p><p>(h)alikha ‘when’</p><p>fata ‘how many’</p><p>Both relative pronouns and question words occur at the left periphery</p><p>of their clauses (see</p><p>Chapter 4).</p><p>(109) a.Alo-nro b-osa-bo?</p><p>where-toward you-go-CONT</p><p>‘Where are you going?’</p><p>b. Ama b-ani-bo?</p><p>what you-do-CONT</p><p>‘What are you doing?’</p><p>c. M-eithi-n d-a alo-nro d-osa-bo.</p><p>PRIV-know-SUB I-dummy where-toward I-go-CONT</p><p>‘I don’t know where I’m going to.’</p><p>2.6.2 Conjunctions</p><p>Arawak conjunctions consist of three words for ‘and’ and one word for ‘or’. The most</p><p>general form used for the coordinating conjunction ‘and’ is ken. It is used to join both inde-</p><p>pendent clauses and constituents within clauses.</p><p>48 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>57It is possible to decompose these question words. For example, amadoma consists of ama ‘what’ plus the</p><p>postposition doma ‘because’, and amabia consists of ama ‘what’ plus the inchoative suffix -bia. However, these</p><p>combinations have become so conventionalized that they are, for all practical purposes, single lexemes.</p><p>(110) a.Ly-kanaba to firobero ken ly-dykha no dimana-n.</p><p>he-hear the tapir and he-see it stand-SUB</p><p>‘He heard the tapir and he saw it standing.’</p><p>b. De ken da-retho osy-fa.</p><p>I and my-wife go-FUT</p><p>‘I and my wife will go.’</p><p>Unlike ken, the conjunctions mathi ‘and/with’ and matho ‘and/with’ are used only to con-</p><p>join nominal constituents. Mathi is used when the constituent following it has the feature</p><p>[+male] (see the discussion of gender features in Section 2.3.1.2), and matho is used when</p><p>the following constituent is [–human] or [+human –male]. Both of these words are proba-</p><p>bly derived from oma ‘with’ plus the relativization suffixes -thi and -tho (see discussion of</p><p>event verb suffixes in Section 2.4.1.3).</p><p>(111) a.De matho da-retho osy-fa.</p><p>I and/with my-wife go-FUT</p><p>‘My wife and I will go.’</p><p>b. Balhin da-retho mathi th-aithi osy-n foto-nro ...</p><p>although my-wife and her-son go-SUB town-toward</p><p>‘Although my wife and her son went to town ...’</p><p>Manthan ‘or’ may be used only to join clauses and usually precedes each of the clauses conjoined.</p><p>(112) Manthan l-osy-n manthan th-osy-n, kia kho d-eitha.</p><p>or he-go-SUB or she-go-SUB, that not I-know</p><p>‘Whether he or she is going, that I don’t know.’</p><p>2.6.3 Numerals</p><p>The traditional Arawak counting system in Suriname uses a combination of base-five,</p><p>base-ten, and base-twenty numbers. The numbers one through four, aba, bian, kabyn,</p><p>and bithi, are primitives. ‘Five’ (a)badakhabo is a combination of aba ‘one’ and da-khabo</p><p>‘my hand.’ ‘Six’ through ‘nine’ are built using the first four numbers plus thian (no</p><p>known meaning). ‘Ten’ is bian-da-khabo ‘two-my-hand’.58 ‘Twenty’ is aba loko ‘one</p><p>man’. All other numbers are composed of combinations of these terms (see Figure 11).</p><p>Although this counting system exists, it is used mostly for the numbers one through</p><p>nineteen, at least in Suriname; the Dutch numbers are rapidly replacing the Arawak</p><p>numbers for counting beyond nineteen.59</p><p>2.6 Functors 49</p><p>58De Goeje (1928:188) and Hickerson (1953:185) document another system for counting from ten to twenty</p><p>using a morpheme kotibana meaning “on the surface of the foot” (which I assume is kothi-bana ‘foot-expanse’).</p><p>None of the Arawaks I have questioned about this counting system have heard of it or accept it. It may be that this</p><p>system is or was in use in Guyana.</p><p>59Older speakers take great delight in quizzing young people on whether they know how to count in Arawak.</p><p>Most young people do not know the numbers above nineteen, and many do not know them above ten.</p><p>0 amakho</p><p>1 aba</p><p>2 bian</p><p>3 kabyn</p><p>4 bithi</p><p>5 (a)badakhabo (aba-da-khabo ‘one-my-hand’)</p><p>6 (a)bathian</p><p>7 bianthian</p><p>8 kabynthian</p><p>9 bithithian</p><p>10 biandakhabo (bian-da-khabo ‘two-my-hand’)</p><p>11 biandakhabo diako abaro (‘two-my-hand on one’)</p><p>14 biandakhabo diako bithi</p><p>15 biandakhabo diako badakhabo</p><p>19 biandakhabo diako bithithian</p><p>20 aba loko (‘one man’)</p><p>21 aba loko diako abaro (‘one man on one’)</p><p>24 aba loko diako bithi</p><p>25 aba loko diako abadakhabo</p><p>29 aba loko diako bithithian</p><p>30 aba loko diako biandakhabo</p><p>31 aba loko diako biandakhabo diako abaro</p><p>40 bian loko</p><p>41 bian loko diako abaro</p><p>50 bian loko diako biandakhabo</p><p>99 bithi loko diako biandakhabo diako bithithian</p><p>100 (a)badakhabo loko</p><p>Figure 11. Arawak Numbers</p><p>2.6.4 Adverbial and Tense Particles, and Time Words</p><p>Some of the more common adverbial particles in Arawak are as follows: hibin already’,</p><p>hibibo ‘almost’, and koan ‘still/yet’:</p><p>(113) a.B-osa-bo hibin?</p><p>you-go-CONT already</p><p>‘Are you going already?’</p><p>b. Bo-khota-bo koan?</p><p>you-eat-CONT still</p><p>‘Are you still eating?’</p><p>50 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>There are several tense particles in Arawak, in addition to the tense/aspect affixes men-</p><p>tioned in the discussion of verb structure. These particles all establish times relative to the</p><p>time of speaking; and therefore they seem to indicate absolute tense (Comrie 1985).60</p><p>(114) bi ‘immediate past (the last 6 hours or so)’</p><p>bona ‘intermediate past (two or three days ago)’</p><p>koba ‘distant past (years ago)’</p><p>There are also a number of other time words available in the language. These, however</p><p>seem to be more noun-like.</p><p>(115) wakhili ‘ancient times (time of forefathers)’</p><p>abahan ‘once (past or future)’</p><p>(w)akharo ‘nowadays, at this moment’</p><p>ykha ‘now’</p><p>tano ‘today’</p><p>miaka ‘yesterday’</p><p>miakaboan ‘day before yesterday’</p><p>mothi ‘tomorrow’</p><p>motheboan ‘day after tomorrow’</p><p>The following example is the introductory sentence of a story, and illustrates the use of</p><p>some of the above time words.</p><p>(116) Abahan koba, wakharo sabo kho to, d-osa da-koba-n soka-nro.</p><p>once dist.past, nowadays more not is, I-go my-planting.ground-POSS chop-toward</p><p>‘Once, a long time ago, I went to cut open my planting ground (i.e. cut down the</p><p>jungle trees to clear a field).’</p><p>2.6 Functors 51</p><p>60See also the discussion of tense and aspect in discourse (Chapter 5).</p><p>Chapter 3</p><p>Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>3.1 Noun Phrase Structure</p><p>Noun phrases serve as the subject or object of a clause, as the object of a postpositional</p><p>phrase, or as appositives. Their structure (see Figure 12) consists of an optional determiner</p><p>(DET), an optional quantifier phrase (QP), an optional possessor noun phrase (NP) or rela-</p><p>tive clause (Sø), a head noun (N), and an optional relative clause (Sø).1</p><p>NP ® (DET) (QP) (Sø) N (Sø)</p><p>(NP)</p><p>Figure 12. Arawak Noun Phrase Structure</p><p>Each of the constituents of the noun phrase is discussed in some detail below. The discus-</p><p>sion on relative clauses here is limited to how they function as constituents of a noun</p><p>phrase; fuller discussion of their internal structure is deferred to Chapter 4 which deals</p><p>specifically with relative clauses.</p><p>3.1.1 The Determiner</p><p>The determiner (DET) of the noun phrase may be an article or a demonstrative adjective. Its</p><p>presence seems to be obligatory when mentioning any referent already introduced into the dis-</p><p>course. This means that for Arawak, determiners are even used with proper names.</p><p>(117) a. li falhetho</p><p>the white.man</p><p>b. toho hiaro</p><p>that woman</p><p>52</p><p>1Arawak does not seem to allow noun phrase complements equivalent to English “a story about John.” Such</p><p>concepts in Arawak are expressed by a relative clause based on a postposition used as stative verb for example:</p><p>aba diahy li Jan khonan-tho</p><p>one story the John be.about-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘a story which is about John’</p><p>c. li Wim</p><p>Bill</p><p>3.1.2 The Quantifier Phrase</p><p>A quantifier phrase (QP) may consist of a number or a phrase such as minkho johon ‘very</p><p>many’. Only one quantifier phrase is allowed in a noun phrase.</p><p>(118) a. to kabynthian kodibio</p><p>the thirteen bird</p><p>‘the thirteen birds’</p><p>b. minkho johon kodibio-be</p><p>very many bird-PL</p><p>‘very many birds’</p><p>A quantifier phrase rarely co-occurs with a determiner. When it does, the noun phrase</p><p>containing it is in a topicalized, sentence-initial position before the subject of the main</p><p>clause, or is a subject or object appositive following the nucleus of the sentence. In both of</p><p>these cases, a determiner is obligatory.</p><p>(119). To na-dykha-n to kabadaro, na-dalhida bahy-nro, to bian da-mathia-be.</p><p>the they-see-SUB the jaguar they-run home-toward the two my-friend-PL</p><p>‘Concerning their seeing the jaguar, they ran home, both of</p><p>my friends.’</p><p>3.1.3 Possessive Noun Phrases</p><p>A single embedded noun phrase can precede the head noun of a noun phrase.2</p><p>(120) a. to firobero yda</p><p>the tapir skin</p><p>‘the tapir’s skin’</p><p>b. to falhetho bejokha</p><p>the white.man musical.instrument</p><p>‘the white man’s instrument (i.e. radio, record player, etc.)’</p><p>As might be inferred from the ‘tapir skin’ example (120a), when a noun phrase occurs</p><p>before the head of the noun phrase, it is understood as the possessor of the head noun.</p><p>Only one such possessive noun phrase can modify the head noun. If more than one noun</p><p>phrase occurs, each is understood as the possessor of the following one.</p><p>(121) a. to de lhyky-koana</p><p>the my cut-instrument</p><p>‘my scissors’</p><p>3.1 Noun Phrase Structure 53</p><p>2This embedded noun phrase may, however, be internally complex.</p><p>b. to da-thi sikoa</p><p>the my-father house</p><p>‘my father’s house’</p><p>c. to da-thi sikoa lheroko</p><p>the my-father house mouth.</p><p>‘the door of my father’s house’</p><p>3.1.4 Pre-Head Relative Clauses</p><p>Relative clauses3 occurring immediately before the head of a noun phrase predicate</p><p>something about that head. These relative clauses may be based on either stative or active</p><p>verbs. As mentioned previously under the discussion of stative verbs (2.4.2), concepts</p><p>which would be expressed with attributive adjectives in English are expressed with relative</p><p>clauses in Arawak.</p><p>(122) a.biandakhabo [kydy-tho] ada</p><p>ten [heavy-WH.SUBJ] wood/tree</p><p>‘ten heavy trees’</p><p>b. aba [minkho wadi-tho] waboroko</p><p>one [very wide-WH.SUBJ] road</p><p>‘a very wide road’</p><p>c. li [sioko-sabo-tho] ly-lykynthi</p><p>the [small-more-WH.SUBJ] his-grandson</p><p>‘his youngest grandson’</p><p>d. bian [firo-tho] [kaima-tho] kabadaro</p><p>two [big] [angry-WH.SUBJ] jaguar</p><p>‘two big, angry jaguars’</p><p>(123) a. to [da-dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>the [I-roast-WH.OBJ] flesh-NGEN</p><p>‘the meat I roasted’</p><p>b. ne [dalhidi-thi] ibili-non</p><p>the [run-WH.SUBJ] small-PL</p><p>‘the running children’</p><p>Although more than one relative clause may occur before the head of a noun phrase, each</p><p>must be of a different semantic type (e.g. size, color, weight). As is the case in English, there</p><p>seems to be a usual order for the semantic categories expressed: size - weight - shape - color.</p><p>(124) a. to [firo-tho] [kydy-tho] [wadi-tho] [hehe-tho] ori</p><p>the [big-WH.SUBJ] [heavy-WH.SUBJ] [long-WH.SUBJ] [yellow-WH.SUBJ] snake</p><p>‘the big heavy long yellow snake’</p><p>54 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>3In relative clauses, the verb is marked with -tho or -thi when its grammatical subject is relativized, and with -sia</p><p>when its direct object is relativized. See Chapter 4 for further discussion of these and other relativized constituents.</p><p>b. *to [hehe-tho] [firo-tho] ori</p><p>*the [yellow-WH.SUBJ] [big-WH.SUBJ] snake</p><p>*‘the yellow big snake’</p><p>There is a limit on the complexity of the relative clauses that may appear before the head</p><p>of a noun phrase. The only constituents in these relative clauses that seem to be allowed,</p><p>other than the verb with appropriate relativizing morphology, are morphologically bound</p><p>subject prefixes and pre-verbal adverbial particles of extent, intensification, and negation.</p><p>If any additional constituents such as objects or locatives are added to such a clause, it ap-</p><p>pears to become too “heavy” and is placed after the head.</p><p>(125) to [da-dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>the [I-roast-WH.OBJ] meat-NGEN</p><p>‘the meat I roasted’</p><p>(126) a.*to [da-dibaleda-sia ikhihi diako] khota-ha</p><p>*the [I-roast-WH.OBJ fire on] meat-NGEN</p><p>*‘the meat I roasted over fire’</p><p>b. to khota-ha [da-dibaleda-sia ikhihi diako]</p><p>the meat-NGEN [I-roast-WH.OBJ fire on]</p><p>‘the meat I roasted over fire’</p><p>(127) a.*to [Ka-balha dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>*the [ATTR-hair roast-WH.OBJ] meat-NGEN</p><p>*‘the meat Hairy roasted’4</p><p>b. to khotaha [Ka-balha dibaleda-sia]</p><p>the meat-NGEN [ATTR-hair roast-WH.OBJ]</p><p>‘the meat Hairy roasted’</p><p>(128) a.*li [dibaleda-thi to khota-ha] wadili</p><p>*the [roast-WH.SUBJ the meat-NGEN] man</p><p>*‘the man who roasted the meat’</p><p>b. li wadili [dibaleda-thi to khoda-ha]</p><p>the man [roast-WH.SUBJ the meat-NGEN]</p><p>‘the man who roasted the meat’</p><p>The question of what makes a relative clause “heavy” in Arawak remains open at the mo-</p><p>ment. It is interesting to note, however, that English has similar phenomena. For example,</p><p>although it is acceptable to have more than a bare participial before the head of a noun</p><p>phrase,</p><p>(129) the seldom spoken word</p><p>his very frequently broken nose</p><p>3.1 Noun Phrase Structure 55</p><p>4Kabalha is a nickname. Arawaks normally refer to each other using kinship terms or nicknames, and the use of</p><p>a person’s given name is traditionally avoided. (See de Goeje 1928 regarding an explanation based on former</p><p>shamanistic practices.)</p><p>adding an agent phrase is unacceptable:</p><p>(130) *the by the man spoken word</p><p>*the spoken by the man word</p><p>*his broken by me nose</p><p>The unacceptability of the first of the bad phrases could be due to the fact that in English sen-</p><p>tences, an agent phrase follows the passive verb. This seems to be true also in participial clauses,</p><p>as in (131).</p><p>(131) the word spoken by the man</p><p>English also seems to have a requirement that the head of a participial relative con-</p><p>struction must be adjacent to the head of the relative construction itself (i.e. in final</p><p>position in the relative clause). This explains the unacceptability of the second and</p><p>third bad phrases given above. Since the requirement for the position of the agent</p><p>phrase conflicts with the requirement that the head of the participial construction must</p><p>be adjacent to the head of the NP, the participial modifier can only follow the head in</p><p>such cases.</p><p>Similar principles may be operating in Arawak. For example, an adjacency principle like</p><p>the one mentioned for English would explain the unacceptability of pre-head relative</p><p>clauses with explicit objects or postpositional phrases between the verb of the relative</p><p>clause and the head of the entire relative clause (examples repeated from above).</p><p>(132) a.*to [da-dibaleda-sia ikhihi diako] khota-ha</p><p>*the [I-roast-WH.OBJ fire on] meat-NGEN</p><p>*‘the meat I roasted over fire’</p><p>b. *li [dibaleda-thi to khota-ha] wadili</p><p>*the [roast-WH.SUBJ the meat-NGEN] man</p><p>*‘the man who roasted the meat’</p><p>The unacceptability of full nominal subjects in pre-head relative clauses with relativized</p><p>objects is not as easy to explain since both morphologically bound and morphologically</p><p>free pronouns in the same position are acceptable. Presumably at least the morphologically</p><p>free pronouns are under the subject NP node just like full nominal subjects.</p><p>(133) a.*to [Ka-balha dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>*the [ATTR-hair roast-WH.OBJ] meat-NGEN</p><p>*‘the meat Hairy roasted’</p><p>b. to [ly-dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>the [he-roast-WH.OBJ] meat-NGEN</p><p>‘the meat he roasted’</p><p>c. to [li dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>the [he roast-WH.OBJ] meat-NGEN</p><p>‘the meat he roasted’</p><p>56 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>Whatever the syntactic explanation for this is,5 perceptually, the ungrammatical example</p><p>above is the start of a “garden path” sentence. The hearer assumes the article to is the de-</p><p>terminer of an NP with Ka-balha ‘Hairy’ as head and that this noun phrase is the subject of</p><p>an independent clause. The hearer then proceeds to ignore the relativizing suffix and as-</p><p>sumes khotaha ‘meat’ is inside the VP of this clause. When the hearer then attempts to pro-</p><p>cess anything following the relative clause, this following material then sounds to him like</p><p>a run-on sentence.</p><p>A possessor NP and a relative clause cannot co-occur before the head of a noun phrase in</p><p>such a way that both modify that head. If both do occur in this position, the construction is</p><p>interpreted to mean that the relative clause modifies the possessor NP, not the head of the</p><p>noun phrase or the combination of the head and possessor.</p><p>(134) a.[bian [kabadaro [dike]]]</p><p>[two [jaguar [footprint]]])</p><p>‘two jaguar footprints’</p><p>b. [[bian [firo-tho [kabadaro]]] [dike]]</p><p>[[two [big-WH.SUBJ [jaguar]]] [footprint]])</p><p>‘footprints of two big jaguars’</p><p>*‘two big footprints of a jaguar’</p><p>*‘two footprints of a big jaguar’</p><p>In Arawak, to express concepts such as the two unacceptable translations above, one</p><p>must</p><p>use a post-head relative clause6 with the stative verb nin.7</p><p>(135) a.bian firo-tho dike, kabadaro nin-tho</p><p>two big-WH.SUBJ footprint jaguar belong-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘two big footprints of a jaguar’</p><p>b. bian dike, aba firo-tho kabadaro nin-tho</p><p>two footprint one big-WH.SUBJ jaguar belong-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘two footprints of a big jaguar’</p><p>3.1.5 The Head of the Noun Phrase</p><p>As can be seen in many of the above examples, the head of the noun phrase may be sin-</p><p>gular or plural, simple or derived.8</p><p>3.1 Noun Phrase Structure 57</p><p>5One possibility might be that a subject NP would have no source for case if pre-head relative clauses are</p><p>non-finite. However, it is unclear how to prove they are non-finite, since it is possible for these clauses to receive</p><p>tense marking and they do not receive the subordinating suffix -n. For example,</p><p>to [ly-dibaleda-sia-bo] khota-ha</p><p>(the [he-roast-WH.OBJ-CONT] meat-NGEN)</p><p>‘the meat he is roasting’</p><p>555</p><p>6See Section 3.1.6 on post-head relative clauses.</p><p>7Nin is actually the generalized location postposition, but like other postpositions, it can be used as a</p><p>two-argument stative verb. See Section 3.2.3.</p><p>8The use of the plural suffix is optional for [–human] nouns. See Section 2.3.3.3 for a discussion on number in nouns.</p><p>(136) a.aba kodibio</p><p>one bird</p><p>‘a bird’</p><p>b. bian kodibio-be</p><p>two bird-PL</p><p>‘two birds’</p><p>c. johon kalyn-tho falhetho-dalhidi-koana-be</p><p>many fast-WH.SUBJ white.man-run-THING-PL</p><p>‘many fast cars’</p><p>If the head of the NP is a pronoun, no other constituents may precede it. For example, in the</p><p>following noun phrases, the relative clause ‘who ran’ can precede the head of a noun phrase</p><p>when that head is a noun. However, it must follow the head when the head is a pronoun.</p><p>(137) a. li dalhidi-thi-fa wadili</p><p>the run-WH.SUBJ-FUT man</p><p>‘the man who will run’</p><p>b. lirabo</p><p>he.distant</p><p>‘he (over there)’</p><p>c. lirabo dalhidi-thi</p><p>he.distant run-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘the one (over there) who ran’</p><p>d. *dalhidi-thi lirabo9</p><p>*run-WH.SUBJ he.distant</p><p>*‘the one (over there) who ran’</p><p>If the head of a noun phrase is not a pronoun, it may be modified either by a possessor</p><p>NP (see Section 3.1.3) or by a morphologically bound possessive pronoun. Morphologically</p><p>bound pronouns do not have the same co-occurrence restrictions that possessor NPs have.</p><p>As has already been mentioned, possessor NPs cannot co-occur with pre-head relative</p><p>clauses. This means that when a morphologically free pronoun functions as the head of a</p><p>possessor NP, it cannot also co-occur with a pre-head relative clause. However, a morpho-</p><p>logically bound possessive pronoun can. This contrast can be explained by assuming that</p><p>morphologically bound pronouns are, in fact, part of the head noun of the matrix NP and</p><p>do not function syntactically as possessor NPs.10 They then fall outside of the co-occurrence</p><p>restriction. For example, notice the use of ‘her’ in the following examples:</p><p>58 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>9Example (137d) is ungrammatical only if it is taken as a single noun phrase. It is grammatical as an equative</p><p>sentence meaning: ‘He (over there) is the one who is running.’</p><p>10This assumes a structure something like the following:</p><p>N</p><p>clitic N</p><p>(138) a. thora hala-n</p><p>her bench-POSS</p><p>‘her bench’</p><p>b. to sioko-tho th-ala-n</p><p>the small-WH.SUBJ her-bench-POSS</p><p>‘her small bench’</p><p>c. *to sioko-tho thora hala-n</p><p>*the small-WH.SUBJ her bench-POSS</p><p>*‘her small bench’</p><p>The word sioko-tho ‘small-WH.SUBJ’ in the latter of these examples would have to be</p><p>taken as modifying thora ‘her’, a pronoun. Since this is not allowed, the phrase is</p><p>ungrammatical.</p><p>When a quantifier phrase and a morphologically bound possessive pronoun both occur in</p><p>the same noun phrase, the phrase seems to receive a partitive interpretation.</p><p>(138) a.aba da-sikoa</p><p>one my-house</p><p>‘one of my houses’</p><p>b. aba firo-tho da-sikoa</p><p>one big-WH.SUBJ my-house</p><p>‘one of my bigger houses’</p><p>3.1.6 Post-Head Relative Clauses</p><p>A relative clause can also occur after the head of the noun phrase. At first glance, the</p><p>kinds of relative clauses that appear here seem to be in complementary distribution with</p><p>those that appear before the head. That is, after the head, one finds relative clauses which</p><p>are too heavy to appear before the head, and others which cannot appear there due to the</p><p>presence of a possessor NP in that position.</p><p>(140) a. to khota-ha [l-eretho dibaleda-sia miaka]</p><p>the meat-NGEN [his-wife roast-WH.OBJ yesterday]</p><p>‘the meat his wife roasted yesterday’</p><p>b. bian dalhidi-koana [na-jonto-sia forto-n miaka]</p><p>two run-THING [they-buy-WH.OBJ town-LOC yesterday]</p><p>‘two cars they bought in town yesterday’</p><p>c. li wadili [kansin-thi to toho]</p><p>the man [like-WH.SUBJ the this]</p><p>‘the man who likes this (referential)’</p><p>However, this complementarity is not complete. Short relative clauses based on stative</p><p>verbs (i.e. relative clauses consisting of just a stative verb with relativizing morphology,</p><p>3.1 Noun Phrase Structure 59</p><p>but no other constituents) can not appear after the head of the NP, even if they are disal-</p><p>lowed before the head due to the presence of a possessor NP.11</p><p>(141) a. to [mamanaja-tho] kasipara</p><p>the [dull-WH.SUBJ] machete</p><p>‘the dull machete’</p><p>b. *to kasipara [mamanaja-tho]</p><p>*the machete [dull-WH.SUBJ]</p><p>*‘the dull machete’</p><p>c. *to de kasiparan [mamanaja-tho]</p><p>*the my machete [dull-WH.SUBJ]</p><p>*‘my dull machete’</p><p>Also, short relative clauses based on event verbs can appear after the head, even when</p><p>there is no possessor NP in the phrase which would force them to appear there.</p><p>(142) a. to khota-ha [da-dibaleda-sia]</p><p>the meat-NGEN [I-roast-WH.OBJ]</p><p>‘the meat I roasted’</p><p>b. to [da-dibaleda-sia] khota-ha</p><p>the [I-roast-WH.OBJ] meat</p><p>‘the meat I roasted’</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure</p><p>Corresponding to the major verb types,12 there are two major sentence types: event sen-</p><p>tences and stative sentences. In addition, there are other types, such as event sentences</p><p>based on the dummy verb a, and equative sentences with the copular verb to.</p><p>In the following sections, it should be kept in mind that there is no structural or morpho-</p><p>logical difference between statements and yes-no questions. When sentences are simple</p><p>statements, they are spoken with a sentence-final falling intonation. Speaking them with a</p><p>sentence-final rising intonation can change any sentence13 into a yes-no question.</p><p>60 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>11The unacceptable phrases are acceptable as independent attributive sentences: ‘The machete is dull.’ ‘My</p><p>machete is dull.’ See section 3.2.3.1 on attributive sentences.</p><p>12See discussion of verbs in Section 2.4.</p><p>13Sentences with second-person subjects or objects can be interpreted as questions, even without question</p><p>intonation. Sentences with first person subjects or objects are rarely interpreted as questions. Word order is not a</p><p>significant factor in determining whether a sentence is interpreted as a statement or question.</p><p>3.2.1 Event Sentences</p><p>Event sentences describe actions or processes. These sentences consist primarily of a sub-</p><p>ject noun phrase, and a verb phrase containing an event verb and those constituents for</p><p>which it is subcategorized such as its direct object (NP),14 indirect object postpositional</p><p>phrase (PP), or locational postpositional phrase (PP). In addition, event sentences may con-</p><p>tain sentence modifiers such as adverbials (ADV), other postpositional phrases, a single</p><p>fronted constituent whose position is tentatively labeled (COMP),15 and subject or object</p><p>appositives (APP). A rough formulation giving some idea of the major constituents and</p><p>their relative ordering may be found in Figure 13.</p><p>[COMP [NP [V (NP) (PP) (ADV)] (PP) (ADV) (APP)] ]</p><p>Sø S VP</p><p>Figure 13. Event Sentence Structure</p><p>Below are some examples of various kinds of event sentences with this general structure.</p><p>(143) a. Intransitive:</p><p>L-osa bahy-nro mothia sabo khan, li wadili.</p><p>he-go house-to morning more diminutive the man</p><p>‘He, the man, went home very early in the morning.’</p><p>b. Aba adaja sabo-thi ly-lykynthi dalhida l-inabo.</p><p>one old more-WH.SUBJ his-grandson run him-behind</p><p>‘One of his older grandsons ran after him.’</p><p>(144) a.Transitive:</p><p>Mothi na-lhyky-fa sikalho.</p><p>tomorrow they-cut-FUT sugarcane</p><p>‘Tomorrow they will cut sugarcane.’</p><p>b. Siokhanin khi wa-kanaba ly-molhidi-n-da no.</p><p>little.later thus we-hear he-lure-SUB-EPEN it</p><p>‘A little later we heard him luring it (the animal).’</p><p>(145) Transitive with an indirect object PP:</p><p>Kia bena, thy-sika ama l-ansi-sia ly-myn.</p><p>that after she-give what he-want-WH.OBJ him-to</p><p>‘After that, she gave him what he wanted.’</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 61</p><p>14Sentential complements are analyzed as being dominated by an NP since the main verb of such a complement</p><p>always receives the subordinating or nominalizing suffix -n. When such complements occur as an appositive, they</p><p>generally occur with the article to ‘the’. For example,</p><p>D-aka no ly-myn, to d-andy-n-ta mothi.</p><p>I-tell it him-BEN, the I-arrive-SUB-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘I told it to him, (that) I will arrive tomorrow.’</p><p>15This position bears a superficial resemblance to the base generated COMP position in English and other languages</p><p>in that it is the landing site for movement of constituents, such as question words and relative pronouns, to the left</p><p>periphery of the clause.</p><p>The last two examples each contain an embedded transitive clause which seems to func-</p><p>tion as the object of the verbs kanabyn ‘to hear’ and sikin ‘to give’, respectively.16 The form</p><p>of these subordinate clauses is the same as that of independent clauses, except that the</p><p>verb in the subordinate clause contains the subordinating or nominalizing morpheme -n in</p><p>the first case and a WH-suffix in the second. Subordinate clauses of these types are dis-</p><p>cussed in later sections.</p><p>Some of the above examples also contain adverbial time words. Adverbs and</p><p>postpositional phrases can appear in a number of places, but they never occur between the</p><p>verb and the subject of the clause nor between the verb and the constituents for which it is</p><p>subcategorized—for example, between a transitive verb and its objects, or between a mo-</p><p>tion verb like osyn ‘to go’ and its directive complement.17</p><p>(146) a.Miaka aba wadili sika khali da-myn.</p><p>yesterday one man give cassava.bread me-to</p><p>‘Yesterday a man gave me cassava bread.’</p><p>b. Aba wadili sika khali da-myn miaka.</p><p>one man give cassava.bread me-to yesterday</p><p>‘A man gave me cassava bread yesterday.’</p><p>*Aba wadili miaka sika khali da-myn.</p><p>*Aba wadili sika miaka khali da-myn.</p><p>*Aba wadili sika khali miaka da-myn.</p><p>c. Li wadili osa bahy-nro miaka.</p><p>the man go home-to yesterday</p><p>‘The man went home yesterday.’</p><p>*Li wadili osa miaka bahy-nro.</p><p>*the man go yesterday home-to</p><p>‘The man went home yesterday.’</p><p>As can be seen in several of the preceding examples, indirect objects are almost always</p><p>expressed with postpositional phrases that use the benefactive postposition myn, and occur</p><p>immediately following the direct object of the clause. I have observed a few instances18</p><p>where the indirect object of sikin ‘to give’ occurred without a postposition. In these cases, it</p><p>always occurred between the verb and the direct object, much as it does in English and</p><p>Dutch, and it consisted of a pronoun rather than a full noun phrase.</p><p>(147) Li-sika koba no to khota-ha.</p><p>he-give past her the meat-NGEN</p><p>‘He gave her the meat.’</p><p>62 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>16Sikin ‘to give’ generally takes an NP as its complement; thus the embedded clause is probably best analyzed as a</p><p>noun phrase. The question of the status of these free relative constructions is discussed in Section 4.2 on relative clauses.</p><p>17However, sentences like the one in example (146c) do become acceptable if there is an intonation break</p><p>between ‘yesterday’ and ‘home-to’. Such an intonation break makes ‘home-to’ sound like an afterthought.</p><p>18In texts transcribed from tapes over a period of more than five years, I have recorded about fifteen instances</p><p>of bare indirect objects. Of these, only three remained in the texts when the speakers themselves edited the</p><p>transcriptions.</p><p>Since the use of bare indirect objects seems to be so rare, and since it seems to be re-</p><p>stricted to the verb ‘give’, it is unclear to me whether examples of the use of bare indirect</p><p>objects are due to influence from from the other languages with which Arawaks are con-</p><p>stantly in contact (e.g. Dutch, the national language of Suriname), or whether dative move-</p><p>ment is a feature of Arawak itself. When questioned about the grammaticality of sentences</p><p>like the above, Arawaks react to them as acceptable. Yet when editing their own written</p><p>texts, they almost always replace the bare indirect object with one in a postpositional</p><p>phrase.</p><p>3.2.1.1 The ‘COMP’ Position</p><p>The position tentatively labeled ‘COMP’ in Arawak is not entirely similar to the COMP of</p><p>English. As in English, the COMP position serves as a landing site for fronted constituents.</p><p>These fronted constituents bear a grammatical relationship to the clause and correspond to</p><p>a gap elsewhere in the clause. They include question words and relative pronouns,19 as</p><p>well as other phrases such as object NPs, postpositional phrases, and time phrases. For ex-</p><p>ample, in each of the (b) and (c) examples of (148–150), the first constituent of the sen-</p><p>tence corresponds to a gap (›) in the position where that constituent would normally be</p><p>found.</p><p>(148) a.Da-malhita aba bahy.</p><p>I-make one house</p><p>‘I made a house.’</p><p>b. Ama by-malhita ›?</p><p>what you-make ›</p><p>‘What did you make?’</p><p>c. Aba bahy da-malhita ›.</p><p>one house I-make ›</p><p>‘A house is what I made.’</p><p>(149) a.L-osy-fa mothi.</p><p>he-go-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘He will go tomorrow’</p><p>b. Alikha l-osy-fa ›?</p><p>When he-go-FUT ›</p><p>‘When will he go?’</p><p>c. Mothi l-osy-fa ›.</p><p>tomorrow he-go-FUT ›</p><p>‘Tomorrow he will go.’</p><p>(150) a.Li-siki-fa halhan ly-polatania l-eretho myn.</p><p>he-give-FUT all his-money his-wife to</p><p>‘He will give all of his money to his wife.’</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 63</p><p>19See subsections of Section 3.2 and Chapter 4.</p><p>b. Fata ly-polatania li-siki-fa › -eretho myn?</p><p>How.much his-money he-give-FUT › his-wife to</p><p>‘How much of his money will he give his wife?’</p><p>c. Halhan ly-polatania li-siki-fa › l-eretho myn.</p><p>all his-money he-give-FUT › his-wife to</p><p>‘All of his money he will give to his wife.’</p><p>(151) a.Alikan myn li-siki-fa halhan ly-polatania ›?</p><p>who to he-give-FUT all his-money ›</p><p>‘Who will he give all his money to?’</p><p>b. L-eretho myn li-siki-fa halhan ly-polatania ›.</p><p>his-wife to he-give-FUT all his-money ›</p><p>‘To his wife he will give all of his money.’</p><p>Unlike English, however, Arawak does not have lexical complementizers such as ‘that’ or</p><p>‘for ... to’ which can occupy the COMP position. Instead, the language marks the verb of</p><p>the subordinate clause with the subordination suffix -n.</p><p>(152) Na-dykha to firobero dalhidi-n-bo konoko-nro.</p><p>they-see the tapir run-SUB-CONT forest-toward</p><p>‘They saw that the tapir was running toward the jungle.’</p><p>Also unlike English, Arawak does not allow COMP-to-COMP movement of question</p><p>words or relative pronouns. All movements to the position labeled COMP in Arawak seem</p><p>to be clause bounded.</p><p>(153) a.Alikan by-dykha ›?</p><p>who you-see ›</p><p>‘Who did you see?’</p><p>b. *Alikan by-dykha › soko-thi Jan?</p><p>*who you-see › hit-WH.SUBJ John</p><p>*‘Who did you see hit John?’</p><p>c. *Alikan by-dykha › soko-n Jan?</p><p>*who you-see › hit-SUB John</p><p>*‘Who did you see hit John?’</p><p>d. *Alikan by-dykha Jan soko-sia ›?</p><p>*who you-see John hit-WH.OBJ ›</p><p>*’Who did you see John hit?’</p><p>e. *Alikan by-dykha Jan soko-n ›?</p><p>*who you-see John hit-SUB ›</p><p>*’Who did you see John hit?’</p><p>64 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>(154) a.Wa-dykha li wadili li Jan soko-sia ›.</p><p>we-see the man the John hit-WH.OBJ ›</p><p>‘We saw the man who John hit.’</p><p>b. *B-eitha li wadili wa-dykhy-sia › Jan soko-sia ›?</p><p>*you-know the man we-see-WH.OBJ › John hit-WH.OBJ ›</p><p>*‘Do you know the man (who) we saw John hit?’</p><p>c. *B-eitha li wadili wa-dykhy-sia › soko-thi Jan?</p><p>*you-know the man we-see-WH.OBJ › hit-WH.OBJ John</p><p>*‘Do you know the man (who) we saw hit John?’</p><p>The apparent COMP position of the sentence in Arawak can contain only a single constit-</p><p>uent. For example, in the above examples, when a time word or phrase like miaka ‘yester-</p><p>day’ occurs at the beginning of the sentence, it</p><p>occupies this position, and no other</p><p>constituents of the sentence can be fronted.20</p><p>(155) a.D-othiki-fa tho-jona mothi.</p><p>I-receive-FUT its-price tomorrow</p><p>‘I will get paid tomorrow.’</p><p>b. Mothi d-othiki-fa tho-jona.</p><p>tomorrow I-receive-FUT its-price</p><p>‘Tomorrow I will get paid.’</p><p>c. Tho-jona d-othiki-fa mothi.</p><p>its-price I-receive-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘I will get paid for it tomorrow.’</p><p>d. *Mothi tho-jona d-othiki-fa.</p><p>*tomorrow its-price I-receive-FUT</p><p>*‘Tomorrow I will get paid for it.’</p><p>e. *Tho-jona mothi d-othiki-fa.</p><p>*its-price tomorrow I-receive-FUT its-price</p><p>*‘Tomorrow I will get paid for it.’</p><p>Constituents in what I have labeled the COMP position seem to represent highlighted</p><p>new information and, if present, generally receive the center of intonation of the clause.21</p><p>In this respect they seem to represent a type of ‘focus movement’ (Prince 1981). Though</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 65</p><p>20It is possible, however, for a time phrase to occur in TOPIC position (see Section 3.2.1.2), in which case the</p><p>sentence has a major intonational break between the TOPIC and the rest of the sentence. For example,</p><p>Mothi, tho-jona d-othiki-fa.</p><p>tomorrow its-price I-receive-FUT</p><p>‘Concerning tomorrow: that is when I will get paid for it.’</p><p>21Constituents such as relative pronouns in the COMP position of a subordinate clause do not receive the center</p><p>of intonation. Question words in the COMP position of independent clauses sometimes do and sometimes do not.</p><p>their use is frequent, it is most common in discourse contexts such as asking questions, or</p><p>answering them, and when presenting unexpected or contrastive information.</p><p>3.2.1.2 The TOPIC Position</p><p>In addition to the focused element but distinguished from it, a sentence may contain a</p><p>TOPIC phrase. This phrase may be of almost any sort, including an entire nominalized sub-</p><p>ordinate clause.22 Unlike the COMP, the TOPIC phrase bears no grammatical relation to the</p><p>rest of the sentence; it is not associated with a gap and therefore should be considered base</p><p>generated in its leftward position. There is always an intonation break between the constit-</p><p>uent in TOPIC position and the rest of the sentence.</p><p>(156) a.To l-andy-n bahy-n, l-eretho donka-bo hibin.</p><p>the he-arrive-SUB house-at his-wife sleep-CONT already</p><p>‘Concerning his arriving home, his wife was already sleeping.’</p><p>b. To boado-tho hala, by-thikida-ma.</p><p>the rotten-WH.SUBJ bench, you-fall-HABIL</p><p>‘Concerning the rotten bench, you may fall.’</p><p>That the TOPIC and ‘focus’ (COMP) positions are distinct can be shown by the fact that</p><p>the positions can both be filled at the same time.</p><p>(157) a.To w-osy-n-fa forto-nro, miakaboani w-osy-fa jon ›i.</p><p>the we-go-SUB-FUT town-to day.after.tomorrowi we-go-FUT there ›i</p><p>‘Concerning our going to town, the day after tomorrow we will go there.’</p><p>b. To w-andyn jon, minkho johon himei w-othika ›i.</p><p>the we-arrive there very many fishi we-get ›i</p><p>‘Concerning arriving there, we caught lots of fish.’</p><p>Also, since the phrase in the position labeled COMP always corresponds to a gap and the</p><p>TOPIC position does not, the distribution of what can occur in the two positions is differ-</p><p>ent. For example, it is possible to have a time word in TOPIC position, and a direct object</p><p>NP in the COMP position, because the time word does not necessarily imply a later gap.</p><p>That is, the verbs do not typically select time phrases.</p><p>(158) Miaka, to sikalho wa-lhyka.</p><p>yesterday the sugarcane we-cut</p><p>‘Concerning yesterday: we cut the sugarcane.’</p><p>However, the converse is not possible. That is, it is not possible to place a direct object NP</p><p>in TOPIC position and leave a gap. If one wishes to topicalize a direct object, a resumptive</p><p>pronoun must also be used in the normal position for the direct object.</p><p>(159) a.*To sikalho, miaka wa-lhyka.</p><p>*the sugarcane yesterday we-cut</p><p>*‘It was sugarcane we cut yesterday.’</p><p>66 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>22Nominalized clauses in this position typically begin with to. Their main verb receives the subordinating suffix -n.</p><p>b. To sikalho, miaka wa-lhyka no.</p><p>the sugarcane yesterday we-cut it</p><p>‘Concerning the sugarcane, yesterday we cut it.’</p><p>Unlike the phrases in COMP, the phrases in the TOPIC position always seem to be old,</p><p>given, or presupposed information, and they in some sense set the stage for the following</p><p>information. They set forth what the sentence will be about.</p><p>3.2.1.3 Event Sentence Structure</p><p>Taking the preceding discussion of the COMP and TOPIC positions into account and ignoring, for</p><p>the moment, the internal structure of the core of the sentence, the structure of the sentence including</p><p>the TOPIC and COMP positions might be something like that found in Figure 14. This structure per-</p><p>haps needs to be modified somewhat to account for the “dummy verb” sentences discussed below.</p><p>[XP [COMP [S] ] ]</p><p>S" Sø S</p><p>Figure 14. Sentence Structure with TOPIC and COMP</p><p>3.2.2 Dummy Verb Sentences</p><p>In addition to event sentences like those discussed above which have an SVO structure,</p><p>Arawak has others which, at first glance, seem to have a different structure and which con-</p><p>tain a semantically empty dummy verb.</p><p>(160) a.Abare l-a simaka-n, li d-aithi.</p><p>suddenly he-dummy shout-SUB the my-son</p><p>‘Suddenly, he, my son, shouted.’</p><p>b. M-osy-n b-a forto-nro ?/.</p><p>PRIV-go-SUB you-dummy town-toward</p><p>‘Aren’t you going to town?’ or ‘You aren’t going to town.’</p><p>These sentences are, semantically, event sentences in that they describe events or pro-</p><p>cesses. Like other event sentences, their main verb (the dummy verb) can receive the</p><p>tense/aspect suffixes normally found on event verbs.</p><p>(161) Basadare l-a-bo kona-n forto-nro.</p><p>slowly he-dummy-CONT walk-SUB town-toward</p><p>‘Slowly he walked to town.’</p><p>Dummy verb sentences have a consistent surface structure (see Figure 15). The first part of</p><p>such sentences consists of a manner adverbial or a subordinate event verb which usually has</p><p>the privative or negative prefix ma-.23 The second part is the main verb of the clause. It is a</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 67</p><p>23Although I have no examples of spontaneous occurrences of a dummy verb sentence starting with a</p><p>non-negative verb, when questioned some speakers do accept a sentence like the following as grammatical:</p><p>?Osy-n l-a-bo forto-nro?</p><p>?go-SUB he-dummy-CONT town-toward</p><p>?‘Is he on his way to town?’</p><p>single word which consists of a morphologically bound subject pronoun, a meaningless</p><p>morpheme a,24 and optional event verb suffixes (see Section 2.4.1.3 for suffixes). Following</p><p>the dummy verb are subordinate verbs, complements, and other constituents.</p><p>manner adverb dummy.verb verb+SUB …</p><p>PRIV+verb+SUB dummy.verb …</p><p>Figure 15. Surface Constituent Order in Dummy Verb Sentences</p><p>(162) Ma-siki-n l-a iniabo by-myn ?/.</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB he-dummy water you-to</p><p>‘Didn’t he give water to you?’ or ‘He didn’t give water to you.’</p><p>3.2.2.1 The result of fronting</p><p>There are a number of factors that make it look as if dummy verb sentences are, in</p><p>some sense, derived from previously discussed event sentences. That is, dummy verb sen-</p><p>tences are probably best analyzed as event sentences with fronted manner adverbials or</p><p>fronted negated verbs, and when such elements are fronted, the dummy verb a appears.</p><p>One of the factors that leads one to this conclusion is that the discourse contexts in which</p><p>these sentences are used are similar to those in which elements such as direct objects are</p><p>moved to the position labeled ‘COMP’ in other event sentences. As mentioned previously when</p><p>discussing event sentences (3.2.1.1), fronting to the COMP position seems to highlight new in-</p><p>formation. The contexts in which one finds dummy verb sentences are compatible with this</p><p>notion. Furthermore, as in other sentences where a constituent is fronted to the COMP posi-</p><p>tion, the fronted element in dummy verb sentences receives the center of intonation for the</p><p>sentence. For example, dummy verb sentences starting with negative verbs tend to occur as</p><p>questions25 or as answers to questions. When used in this way, it is the negated verb which is</p><p>being questioned or affirmed, or, perhaps, the</p><p>3.2.2.1 The Result of Fronting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68</p><p>3.2.2.2 Manner Adverbials Versus Time and Locative Phrases. . . . . . . 71</p><p>3.2.2.3 Dummy Verbs in Quotation Citations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75</p><p>3.2.2.4 The Subject of Dummy Verb Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77</p><p>3.2.3 Stative Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78</p><p>3.2.3.1 Equative and Attributive Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78</p><p>3.2.3.2 Stative Sentences with Stative Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79</p><p>4 Relative Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83</p><p>4.1 Differences in Pre- and Post-Head Relative Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83</p><p>4.2 Free Relative Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87</p><p>Contents v</p><p>4.3 Embedded Questions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90</p><p>4.4.1 Subject Relativization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90</p><p>4.4.2 Direct Object Relativization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91</p><p>4.4.3 Indirect Object Relativization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92</p><p>4.4.4 Relativization of Objects of Postpositions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92</p><p>4.4.4.1 Postposition Stranding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93</p><p>4.4.4.2 Strategies to Avoid Postposition Stranding . . . . . . . . . . . . 95</p><p>5 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax . . . . . 100</p><p>5.1 Tense/Aspect Suffixes and Particles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102</p><p>5.1.1 Tense, Aspect, or Both? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102</p><p>5.2 Tense/Aspect in Narrative Discourse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106</p><p>5.2.1 Foreground and Background Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108</p><p>5.2.2 Other Kinds of Information in a Discourse . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109</p><p>5.2.3 Tension in a Narrative and Tense/Aspect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110</p><p>6 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114</p><p>6.1 Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114</p><p>6.2 Areas Needing Further Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115</p><p>Part 2: Lexicon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118</p><p>English Index for Lexicon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167</p><p>Appendix: Arawak Narrative Texts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204</p><p>The Bus Trip Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204</p><p>The Jaguar Story. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207</p><p>The Bomb Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212</p><p>The Tapir Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216</p><p>The Metamorphosis Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223</p><p>Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228</p><p>vi Contents</p><p>List of Figures</p><p>Figure 1. Internal Classification of Arawakan Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3</p><p>Figure 2. Phonological System of Arawak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8</p><p>Figure 3. Distinctive Features of Arawak Vowels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8</p><p>Figure 4. Arawak Personal Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12</p><p>Figure 5. Arawak Number and Gender Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13</p><p>Figure 6. Demonstrative Pronouns and Adjectives, and Articles . . . . . . . . . . . 15</p><p>Figure 7. Event Verb Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31</p><p>Figure 8. Stative Verb Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40</p><p>Figure 9. Selected Arawak Postpositions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46</p><p>Figure 10. Forms of Locational Postpositions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47</p><p>Figure 11. Arawak Numbers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50</p><p>Figure 12. Arawak Noun Phrase Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52</p><p>Figure 13. Event Sentence Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61</p><p>Figure 14. Sentence Structure with TOPIC and COMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67</p><p>Figure 15. Surface Constituent Order in Dummy Verb Sentences . . . . . . . . . . 68</p><p>Figure 16. Typical Arawak Event Sentence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71</p><p>Figure 17: Positions Requiring the Dummy Verb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73</p><p>Figure 18. Sentence with Fronted Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74</p><p>Figure 19. Sentence with Fronted Verb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74</p><p>Figure 20. Sentence with Fronted Manner Adverbial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75</p><p>Figure 21. Structural Features of Relative-Clause-Like Constructions . . . . . . . . 90</p><p>Figure 22. Object Relativization in Stative Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97</p><p>Figure 23. Deep Structure Genres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101</p><p>vii</p><p>Figure 24. Tense/Aspect Suffixes and Particles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102</p><p>Figure 25. Representation of Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103</p><p>Figure 26. Relative Present in the Past . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103</p><p>Figure 27. Tense and Aspect of Verb Suffixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104</p><p>viii List of Figures</p><p>Acknowledgements</p><p>It is difficult to know how to adequately acknowledge all those who helped me along the</p><p>way in my doctoral studies. Although the types and amounts of help given differed, each</p><p>bit of help, regardless of the amount or type, was indispensable.</p><p>Certainly the task would have been impossible without the help of the members of my</p><p>Special Committee. Joseph Grimes, committee chairman, and Wayne Harbert, who worked</p><p>most closely with me in the final nine months revising and re-revising, both put in untold</p><p>hours in editing, consulting, and encouraging. Also, the other committee members, James</p><p>Gair, Gerald Kelley, and Wayles Browne (serving as proxy for Joseph Grimes during the fi-</p><p>nal stages of writing) deserve my thanks.</p><p>A special note of appreciation goes to Marcia Pet, who spent many hours working with</p><p>me in editing and revising various drafts. Many of the insights into Arawak are hers or are</p><p>due to her probing questions.</p><p>None of what is written in these pages would have been possible without the cooperation</p><p>and help of Arawak friends in the villages of Cassipora and Powakka, Suriname. In particu-</p><p>lar I want to thank Willem Ebesilio, the former captain of Powakka, and Adolf Sabajo, the</p><p>captain of Cassipora, for allowing my family to become part of their respective villages. I</p><p>also want to thank all the other Arawak friends who not only provided the materials incor-</p><p>porated in this study, but also took us under their wings as part of their extended family:</p><p>Hank Sabajo, W. F. Makosi and family, Nelis Biswane and family, Hans Jubithana and fam-</p><p>ily, and many more, too numerous to mention.</p><p>A large number of individuals contributed in less direct ways. Without the support, en-</p><p>couragement, and prayers of family members, many friends, and colleagues in the Summer</p><p>Institute of Linguistics and Wycliffe Bible Translators, I would have given up the job as im-</p><p>possible. Donald Solá and James Noblitt, faculty members of the Linguistics Department of</p><p>Cornell University with whom I worked on various computer projects, also refused to let</p><p>me give up before completion of the dissertation.</p><p>This revised version would not have been possible without the help of Mary Ruth Wise,</p><p>volume editor, and Judy Benjamin, compositor.</p><p>ix</p><p>Abbreviations</p><p>ACCMP accompaniment</p><p>ADJ adjective</p><p>ADV</p><p>art</p><p>adverb</p><p>article</p><p>ATTR attributive</p><p>AWAY directional: away</p><p>AUX auxiliary</p><p>BACK directional: back</p><p>BEN benefactive</p><p>CAUS causative</p><p>COMP</p><p>conj</p><p>complementizer</p><p>negation itself is being emphasized.</p><p>(163) a.Ma-siki-n th-a hime by-myn tanoho?</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy fish you-to today</p><p>‘Didn’t she give you (any) fish today?’</p><p>68 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>No firm conclusion has been reached to explain why negation should be related to the appearance of the dummy</p><p>verb and the fronting of the main verb. I can only mention in this connection that languages like English also do</p><p>unusual things with sentences when they are negated, and that, in the case of English, these things involve ‘do</p><p>support’ in both statements and questions.</p><p>John walks to town.</p><p>John does not walk to town.</p><p>*John not walks to town?</p><p>Doesn’t John walk to town?</p><p>24Like most other event verbs, the dummy verb has a basic-stem form and an a-stem form (see Section 2.4.1.1</p><p>on verb stem forms). Almost all contexts in which the dummy verb occurs are ones where the morphological</p><p>difference between the two is not manifested, and therefore a is used (see Section 2.4.1.1.1 on basic and a-stem</p><p>forms). However, the basic-stem form, -o-, does show up with the future suffix -fa as in:</p><p>Ma-mykydy-n-i-ma l-o-fa to ibihi?</p><p>PRIV-swallow-SUB-EPEN-HABIL he-dummy-FUT the medicine</p><p>‘Won’t he be able to swallow the medicine?’</p><p>242424</p><p>25As is the case for other sentences, rising sentence-final intonation changes a statement into a yes-no question.</p><p>b. Ma-siki-n th-a no.</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy it</p><p>‘She didn’t give it’</p><p>c. Thy-jokara no da-myn.</p><p>She-sell it me-to</p><p>‘She sold it to me.’</p><p>(164) a.M-andy-n l-a jokha waria?</p><p>PRIV-arrive-SUB he-dummy hunt from</p><p>‘Hasn’t he come back from hunting? (I thought he had.)’</p><p>b. M-andy-n l-a koan.</p><p>PRIV-arrive-SUB he-dummy yet</p><p>‘(No,) he hasn’t arrived yet.’</p><p>Similarly, dummy verb sentences starting with adverbials can also be used to answer questions,</p><p>especially when the adverbial in some way contrasts with presuppositions in the question.</p><p>(165) a.Ly-dalhida konoko loko-nro?</p><p>he-fun forest in-toward</p><p>‘He ran into the jungle?’</p><p>b. Manin, basadare l-a kona-n tho-loko-nro.</p><p>no slowly he-dummy walk-SUB it-in-toward</p><p>‘No, SLOWLY he walked into it.’</p><p>In addition to occurring in question-answer environments, dummy verb sentences</p><p>starting with adverbials tend to occur near the climax of a narrative, or in vivid accounts of</p><p>events where the adverbial is the new, important, or startling information.</p><p>For example, in a story about an adventure with a jaguar (see the appendix), the narrator</p><p>of the story relates that he was quietly working in his planting ground cutting trees. His</p><p>brother-in-law had a sugarcane field nearby, and had come there with his grandchildren to</p><p>work. Unknown to the narrator at the time, a jaguar attempted to attack his brother-in-law. At</p><p>the point in the story where the narrator gets his first inkling that something is wrong, he in-</p><p>troduces his listeners to that fact with the following sentence:</p><p>(166) Abare la-a simaky-n!</p><p>suddenly he-dummy shout/yell-SUB</p><p>‘Suddenly he screamed!’</p><p>This contrasts with the neutral form for this sentence where the adverb follows the verb.26</p><p>(167) Ly-simaka abaren.</p><p>he-shout suddenly</p><p>‘He screamed suddenly.’</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 69</p><p>26When manner adverbials occur in their unmarked position (after the verb and the constituents for which the</p><p>verb is subcategorized) they end in n. When they are fronted, this disappears. Presumably this is the same</p><p>subordinating morpheme -n ‘SUB’ found on verbs in subordinate clauses.</p><p>In addition to discourse contexts, there are also several structural peculiarities in dummy</p><p>verb sentences that support the idea of a fronted verbal or adverbial element. As can be</p><p>seen in the previous examples, two of which are repeated below, if the sentence starts with</p><p>a negative event verb, and if that verb is transitive, its subject precedes the dummy verb</p><p>and its object or objects follow the dummy verb, not the lexical verb Any locative</p><p>postpositional phrases associated with the fronted verb also follow the dummy verb.</p><p>(168) a.Ma-siki-n l-a iniabo by-myn ?/.</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB you-dummy water you-to</p><p>‘Didn’t he give water to you?’ or ‘He didn’t give water to you.’</p><p>b. M-osy-n b-a forto-nro ?/.</p><p>PRIV-go-SUB you-dummy town-toward</p><p>‘Aren’t you going to town?’ or ‘You aren’t going to town.’</p><p>This is unusual, since, except when a constituent such as the direct object of the verb is</p><p>fronted, nothing other than a negative particle ever seems to separate a verb in Arawak</p><p>from its arguments. Arawak verbs, apparently, cannot carry their NP arguments or their</p><p>tense suffixes with them when they are fronted.</p><p>The previously mentioned discourse contexts in which dummy verb sentences occur</p><p>all argue for the landing site being the COMP position. This is further supported by the fact</p><p>that the COMP position in these sentences cannot be filled by another element. For exam-</p><p>ple, sentence constituents which one can normally front to the COMP position, cannot be</p><p>moved there in dummy verb sentences.27</p><p>(169) a.Ma-siki-n th-a iniabo by-myn tanoho ?/.</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy water you-to today</p><p>‘Didn’t she give water to you today?’ or ‘She didn’t give water to you today.’</p><p>b. *By-myn ma-siki-n th-a iniabo › tanoho ?/.</p><p>*you-to PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy water › today</p><p>*Iniabo ma-siki-n th-a › by-myn tanoho ?/.</p><p>*water PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy › you-to today</p><p>*Tanoho ma-siki-n th-a iniabo by-myn › ?/.</p><p>*today PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy water you-to ›</p><p>‘Didn’t she give water to you today?’ or</p><p>‘She didn’t give water to you today.’</p><p>70 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>27However, just as is the case with other event sentences in which the COMP position is filled, the phrase in</p><p>COMP position can be preceded by a TOPIC phrase. Again, if this phrase in the TOPIC position happens to be a</p><p>direct object, a resumptive pronoun is required.</p><p>To iniabo, ma-siki-n th-a no by-myn?</p><p>the water PRIV-give-SUB she-dummy it you-to</p><p>‘Concerning the water, didn’t she give it to you?’</p><p>3.2.2.2 Manner adverbials versus time and locative phrases</p><p>If one compares non-subcategorized time and locative phrases with manner adver-</p><p>bial phrases like “well” and “slowly,” the manner adverbials seem more closely tied to</p><p>the verb semantically than time and locative ones are. Time and location adverbials set</p><p>up the general temporal and spatial framework for the whole of the sentence, while</p><p>manner adverbs directly modify the action denoted by the verb. Further support of this</p><p>semantic argument is provided by the fact that, in Arawak, if both manner adverbials</p><p>and non-subcategorized locative or time phrases are present, manner adverbials occur</p><p>closer to the verb than non-subcategorized time and locative ones do.</p><p>(170) a.Ly-jentoa san li-sikoa lokhodi.</p><p>he-sing well his-house in</p><p>‘He sings well inside his house.’</p><p>b. *Ly-jentoa li-sikoa lokhodi san.</p><p>*he-sing his-house in well</p><p>*‘He sings inside his house well.’</p><p>This being the case, we may suppose that Arawak has a level of structure between the</p><p>verb and VP—call it Vø. Subcategorized phrases, including direct objects, are daughters of</p><p>Vø under standard assumptions (XP3 in Figure 16). Manner phrases, as modifiers in VP, can</p><p>be viewed as daughters of VP (XP2 in Figure 16). Finally, locative and time phrases can be</p><p>viewed as daughters of S (XP1 in Figure 16).</p><p>S</p><p>NP INFL VP XP1</p><p>(time, location)</p><p>Vø XP2*</p><p>(manner)</p><p>V* NP PP XP3</p><p>(DO) (IO) (subcategorized for by verb)</p><p>*Constituents marked with ‘*’ require dummy verb when fronted.</p><p>Figure 16. Typical Arawak Event Sentence</p><p>If one now considers the effect of fronting the various constituents in relation to</p><p>this proposed structure, one sees that some trigger the use of the dummy verb, and oth-</p><p>ers do not. As has already been discussed, time (P1), location phrases (XP1 and XP3),</p><p>direct objects, and indirect object postpositional phrases can all be fronted without the</p><p>addition of the dummy verb. Only the fronting of verbs and manner adverbials (XP2)</p><p>requires the use of a dummy verb construction.</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 71</p><p>In the case of manner adverbials,28 this shows up not just in focus movement, but also</p><p>in content</p><p>questions and free relative clauses.29</p><p>(171) a.Halika b-o-fa doro-n to oro?</p><p>how you-dummy-FUT weave-SUB the cassava.squeezer</p><p>‘How will you weave the cassava squeezer?’</p><p>b. *Halika bo-doro-fa to joro?</p><p>*how you-weave-FUT the cassava.squeezer</p><p>*‘How will you weave the cassava squeezer?’</p><p>(172) a.De koborokoa-ka koan [alika th-a-n aba kabadaro hibin bokoto-n de.]</p><p>I remember-INDIC still [how it-dummy-SUB one jaguar almost grab-SUB me]</p><p>‘I still remember how a jaguar almost grabbed me.’</p><p>b. *…[alika aba kabadaro hibin bokoto-n de.]</p><p>*…[how one jaguar almost grab-SUB me]</p><p>*‘…how a jaguar almost grabbed me.’</p><p>In Arawak, sentences like</p><p>(173) a.Alikan › andy-fa?</p><p>who › come-FUT</p><p>‘Who will arrive/come?’</p><p>b. Alikan by-dykha ›?</p><p>who you-see ›</p><p>‘Who did you see?’</p><p>are grammatical. One might conclude therefore, that antecedent-government can satisfy</p><p>the Empty Category Principle (ECP) in Arawak. If one did so, however, then one would not</p><p>be able to explain the necessity for the dummy verb in manner questions (such as in 174b).</p><p>(174) a.*Alika by-malhithi-fa no?</p><p>*how you-make-FUT it</p><p>*‘How will you make/build it?’</p><p>b. Alika b-o-fa malhithi-n no?</p><p>how you-dummy-FUT make-SUB it</p><p>‘How will you make it?’</p><p>72 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>28Content questions for verbs are constructed by recasting the sentence so that the questioned constituent is the</p><p>complement of the verb ‘do’.</p><p>Ama b-ani-bo?</p><p>what you-do-CONT</p><p>‘What are you doing?’</p><p>29There is some question as to the exact structure of apparent free relative clauses in Arawak. See the discussion</p><p>in Section 4.2.</p><p>If the landing site for fronted constituents is not COMP, but is a position adjoined to S (XP in</p><p>Figure 17), then antecedent-government would not function in Arawak. This would provide an ex-</p><p>planation for the lack of leftward generalized complementizers, the lack of COMP-to-COMP move-</p><p>ment, and the lack of proper government of a trace in the position of the verb. This solution would</p><p>also correctly predict that manner adverbials (XP2 in Figure 17) could not be properly governed.</p><p>S</p><p>XP S</p><p>NP INFL VP XP1</p><p>(time, location)</p><p>Vø XP2*</p><p>(manner)</p><p>V* NP PP XP3</p><p>(DO) (IO) (subcategorized for by verb)</p><p>*Constituents marked with ‘*’ require dummy verb when fronted and adjoined to S.</p><p>Figure 17: Positions Requiring the Dummy Verb</p><p>There is a potential problem with the solution, however. As already noted, the subject posi-</p><p>tion, and the adjunct position which is a daughter of S (XP1 in Figure 17) in Arawak, do seem to</p><p>be properly governed. Arawak does not require a resumptive pronoun in sentences like:30</p><p>(175) Alikan › malhithi-fa no?</p><p>who › make-FUT it</p><p>‘Who will make/build it?’</p><p>Nor do any adjustments have to be made in order to question non-subcategorized time or</p><p>location phrases:</p><p>(174) a. Alon by-dykha to kodibio?</p><p>where you-see the bird</p><p>‘Where did you see the bird?’</p><p>b. Alikha by-dykha to kodibio?</p><p>when you-see the bird)</p><p>‘When did you see the bird?’</p><p>Figures 18, 19, and 20 illustrate the proposed analysis in sentences with a fronted ob-</p><p>ject, verb, and manner adverbial, respectively.</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 73</p><p>30That the subject in the example has, in fact, been moved can be shown by the fact that other constituents,</p><p>such as time words, cannot be fronted in such a sentence.</p><p>Sø</p><p>TOPIC S</p><p>LSAP S</p><p>NP INFL VP</p><p>Vø</p><p>V NP PP</p><p>husband machetei she FUT give ti to him</p><p>To the-erethi, aba kasipara thy-siki-fa lo-myn.</p><p>the her-husband one machete she-give-future him-to</p><p>‘Concerning her husband, she will give a machete to him.’</p><p>Figure 18. Sentence with Fronted Object</p><p>Sø</p><p>TOPIC S</p><p>LSAP S</p><p>NP INFL VP</p><p>Vø XP</p><p>V NP</p><p>arriving receivei he FUT ti machete immediate</p><p>dummy</p><p>To l-andy-n-fa jon, m-othiki-n l-o-fa aba kasipara abaren?</p><p>the he-arrive-SUB-FUT there PRIV-receive-SUB he-dummy-FUT one machete immediate</p><p>‘Concerning him arriving there, won’t he receive a machete immediately?’</p><p>Figure 19. Sentence with Fronted Verb</p><p>74 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>Sø</p><p>TOPIC S</p><p>LSAP S</p><p>NP INFL VP</p><p>Vø XP</p><p>V NP</p><p>arriving immediatei he FUT receive machete ti</p><p>dummy</p><p>To l-andy-n-fa jon abare l-o-fa othiki-n aba kasipara?</p><p>the he-arrive-SUB-FUT there immediate he-dummy-FUT receive-SUB one machete</p><p>‘Concerning his arriving there, immediately he will receive a machete.’</p><p>Figure 20. Sentence with Fronted Manner Adverbial</p><p>3.2.2.3 Dummy verbs in quotation citations</p><p>In addition to the cases mentioned in the previous sections, there is one other common</p><p>situation in Arawak where the dummy verb is used—in certain quotations. When the</p><p>clause which attributes a quotation to a particular participant follows the quotation, a</p><p>dummy verb is required. When it precedes the quotation, a dummy verb is unacceptable.</p><p>(177) a.“Hehe!” l-a onaba-n.</p><p>yes.emphatic he-dummy answer-SUB</p><p>‘“Yes!” he answered.’</p><p>b. *L-a onaba-n “Hehe!”</p><p>*he-dummy.verb answer-SUB yes.emphatic</p><p>*‘He answered, “Yes!”’</p><p>(178) a. L-onaba “Hehe!”</p><p>he-answer yes.emphatic</p><p>‘He answered: “Yes!”’</p><p>b. *“Hehe!” l-onaba.</p><p>*yes.emphatic he-answer</p><p>*‘“Yes!” he answered.’</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 75</p><p>Quotation citations with the dummy verb are even possible without any other overt lexical verb.</p><p>In these cases, the context determines how best to translate the sentences into English.</p><p>(179) a.“B-eithoa!” l-a.</p><p>you-know.self he-dummy</p><p>‘“Be careful!” he said/thought/shouted.’</p><p>b. *L-a “B-eithoa!”</p><p>*he-dummy you-know.self</p><p>*‘He said/thought/shouted, “Be careful!”’</p><p>From the above evidence, the dummy verb, again, seems to be needed when some sort of</p><p>fronting has occurred. It is not immediately obvious, however, that the quoted part of a cita-</p><p>tion can be related to the moved verbs or adverbials discussed in the previous section. One</p><p>might think that a quotation should be the subcategorized sentential complement of a verb of</p><p>saying, and therefore a sister to the verb. If this were the case, dummy verb insertion would</p><p>not be required by the ECP. For Arawak, however, verbs of saying like dain ‘to say/talk,’</p><p>onaban ‘answer,’ or simakan ‘to scream’ can be simple intransitive verbs and are therefore not</p><p>necessarily subcategorized for a direct object NP or for a sentential complement.</p><p>(180) Ly-dia-bo</p><p>he-speak-CONT</p><p>‘He is speaking/talking’</p><p>This may mean that the language treats the content of what is being said as somehow ad-</p><p>verbial in nature.31 One bit of evidence for such a hypothesis is that there are two types of</p><p>appropriate answers to the question.32</p><p>(181) Halika b-a dia-n tho-myn?</p><p>how you-dummy speak-SUB her-to</p><p>‘How did you speak to her?’</p><p>One can either reply with a manner adverbial, giving the manner of speaking, or with the</p><p>content of what was said.</p><p>(182) a.Ma-kanakyre d-a tho-myn.</p><p>PRIV-loudly I-dummy her-to</p><p>‘Softly I (spoke) to her.’</p><p>b. “W-osa-the,” d-a tho-myn.</p><p>we-go-BACK I-dummy her-to</p><p>‘“Let’s go back,” I (said) to her.’</p><p>76 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>31There is evidence in other languages also, such as modern German, that direct quotations do not exhibit the</p><p>behavior normally associated with complement clauses. Cf. Emonds (1976).</p><p>32It is actually more common to question the content of a quotation with the question word ama ‘what’.</p><p>However, even in this case, the dummy verb is required to frame the question.</p><p>Ama l-a dia-n?</p><p>what he-dummy speak-SUB)</p><p>‘What did he say?’</p><p>323232</p><p>In other words, it is possible to ask a question that elicits a quotation in the response by us-</p><p>ing the same question word, as well as the same construction, that is used for asking a</p><p>manner question.</p><p>3.2.2.4 The subject of dummy verb sentences</p><p>The subject of dummy verb sentences in Arawak is restricted to being a morphologi-</p><p>cally bound pronoun. Neither morphologically free pronouns nor full noun phrases with</p><p>lexical noun heads are acceptable. If the context in which the sentence is spoken makes the</p><p>referent of the pronoun unclear, the only way to disambiguate the sentence is to use an ap-</p><p>positive NP at the end of the sentence.</p><p>(183) a.Ma-siki-n l-a-bo iniabo by-myn?</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB he-dummy-CONT water you-to</p><p>‘Isn’t he giving you any water?’</p><p>b. *Ma-siki-n li a-bo iniabo by-myn?</p><p>*PRIV-give-SUB</p><p>he dummy-CONT water you-to</p><p>*‘Isn’t he giving you any water?’</p><p>c. *M-siki-n li wadili a-bo iniabo by-myn?</p><p>*PRIV-give-SUB the man dummy-CONT water you-to</p><p>*‘Isn’t the man giving you any water?’</p><p>d. Ma-sikii-n l-a-bo iniabo by-myn, li wadili?</p><p>PRIV-give-SUB he-dummy-CONT water you-to the man</p><p>‘Isn’t he, the man, giving you any water?’</p><p>This restriction is reminiscent of a general discourse restriction in Arawak on the use</p><p>of full noun phrases. It seems to be the case, generally, that a full noun phrase in subject</p><p>position can only be used to introduce participants or inanimate referents into a discourse;</p><p>all subsequent references to the same participant have to be made with a pronoun or a pro-</p><p>noun with an appositive phrase following the VP. Since the Left sentential adjunction posi-</p><p>tion (LSAP) position seems to be used to highlight new information, then if the LSAP is</p><p>present, the subject of a dummy verb sentence is probably old information and therefore</p><p>must be in the form of a pronoun.</p><p>This argument is not sufficient, however. It explains why full NP subjects are not ac-</p><p>ceptable in dummy verb sentences, but does not explain why morphologically free pro-</p><p>nouns are not acceptable. The general discourse restriction mentioned above covers only</p><p>the use of full NPs with lexical nouns as heads. In non dummy verb sentences, both free</p><p>and morphologically bound pronouns can be used to get around it. However, free pronouns</p><p>cannot be used as subjects in dummy verb sentences.</p><p>An explanation for the unacceptability of morphologically free pronoun subjects for</p><p>the dummy verb may lie in the nature of the dummy verb itself. In sentences without</p><p>dummy verbs, INFL is expressed as suffixes on the verb. As was mentioned in the discus-</p><p>sion on basic- and a-stem verbs, the last vowel of a verb stem affects the aspect of the verb.</p><p>Since this alternation is also present in the dummy verb, it is not unreasonable to postulate</p><p>that INFL, whether or not it has any tense affixes, contains at least an aspect marker. The</p><p>dummy verb might then be a lexicalization of the affix marker along with any other tense</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 77</p><p>affixes in INFL. However, all the material in INFL seems to be morphologically depend-</p><p>ent—perhaps including the dummy verb. If the dummy verb is morphologically dependent,</p><p>it must attach to something. Fully specified NP’s are not available33 because of the dis-</p><p>course considerations mentioned above. Morphologically free pronouns are not available</p><p>because they can never receive verbal suffixes. The only class of nominals available is that</p><p>of morphologically bound pronouns.</p><p>Alternatively, there may be an explanation for the above phenomena based on Case</p><p>Theory. In the theory of Government and Binding, Chomsky (1982) proposed that the pro-</p><p>hibition of lexical NPs in, for example, the subject position of an infinitive construction is</p><p>based on a case filter which says that every NP with a phonetic matrix must have Case. Put</p><p>negatively, this means that a lexical NP is prohibited if it does not receive Case.</p><p>(184). Case Filter (Chomsky 1982:49)</p><p>*NP if NP has phonetic content and no Case</p><p>If one argues backward from this principle, one might suppose that the reason lexical NPs</p><p>are prohibited from being the subject of the dummy verb is that the dummy verb (or INFL)</p><p>does not assign Case to its subject in a dummy verb sentence. However, there is no evident</p><p>reason why the dummy verb should not assign Case to its subject, so a stipulation would</p><p>apparently be required.</p><p>3.2.3 Stative sentences</p><p>Arawak stative sentences are those sentences which do not describe an event. They</p><p>seem to fall into three groups. The first two each contain two noun phrases in an equative</p><p>or attributive relation, respectively, and the third has a stative verb with a single noun</p><p>phrase as subject.</p><p>3.2.3.1 Equative and attributive sentences</p><p>Equative sentences consist of a noun phrase followed by the copular verb to, followed</p><p>by another noun phrase.</p><p>(185) a.Nederland khondo to de ojo.</p><p>Netherlands inhabitant is my mother</p><p>‘My mother is Dutch.’</p><p>b. Bylhyta-alhin ron to da-thi.</p><p>scratch-one.who.habitually.does only is my-father</p><p>‘My father is only a writer (i.e. has no other profession).’</p><p>c. De to bylhyta-alhin.</p><p>I am write-one.who.habitually.does</p><p>‘I am a writer.’</p><p>Attributive sentences are like the above in that they contain two noun phrases, but are un-</p><p>like them in two ways: the noun phrases are associated by simple juxtaposition without a verb;</p><p>78 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>33Nouns sometimes appear to be able to receive some verbal suffixes. However, when they do, they are</p><p>behaving as stative verbs.</p><p>and one of the noun phrases, generally the first,34 consists of a free relative clause. It could be</p><p>argued that such a clause has a true relative clause construction with an empty head position,</p><p>since its head would, in all cases, be identical to the second NP of the sentence.</p><p>(186) a.Kydy-tho to.</p><p>heavy-WH.SUBJ it</p><p>‘It is heavy.’</p><p>b. Kydy-tho to siba.</p><p>heavy-WH.SUBJ the stone</p><p>‘The stone is heavy.’</p><p>c. Firo-thi li wadili.</p><p>big-WH.SUBJ the man</p><p>‘The man is big.’</p><p>d. Wakhai-tho kho to hala.</p><p>bad-WH.SUBJ not the bench</p><p>‘The bench is very good.’</p><p>Although several of the above attributive sentences contain the form to, this to is the</p><p>article ‘the’ and is not the same as the copular verb to found in equative sentences. Unlike</p><p>the copular verb, the article must agree with the gender and number of the head of the</p><p>noun phrase, i.e. to ‘the (non-masculine)’, li ‘the (masculine singular)’ na ‘the (human plu-</p><p>ral)’. Furthermore, equative sentences are divided into three intonational units, with poten-</p><p>tial hesitation points before and after the copula. Attributive sentences are usually spoken</p><p>with a single intonation contour, and one cannot pause between the article and the rest of</p><p>the noun phrase.</p><p>3.2.3.2 Stative sentences with stative verbs</p><p>Stative sentences can also be constructed with a stative verb as their main verb (see</p><p>Section 2.4.2 on stative verbs) followed by a subject noun phrase.</p><p>(187). Alekhebe-ka li wadili.</p><p>happy-INDIC the man</p><p>‘The man is/was happy.’</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 79</p><p>34I have recorded several instances where the order of the NPs is reversed. However, in these cases the first NP</p><p>seems to behave as if it is in the TOPIC position of the sentence. It has to be old information, and is usually</p><p>separated intonationally and rhythmically from the rest. Furthermore, when editing their own texts, Arawaks</p><p>often add a sentence final pronoun to such sentences, making the last part of the sentence, again, into an</p><p>attributive sentence starting with a relative clause and ending with an NP.</p><p>To siba, kydy-tho.</p><p>the stone heavy-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘The stone is heavy.’</p><p>‘Concerning the stone, (it) is heavy.’</p><p>To siba, kydy-tho to.</p><p>the stone heavy-WH-SUBJ it</p><p>‘Concerning the stone, it is heavy.’</p><p>These sentences differ both from the other stative sentences and from event sentences. Un-</p><p>like other stative sentences which have, at most, a bare copula for a verb, the verb in</p><p>stative verb sentences can receive a rather full set of tense, affix, and pronoun affixes.35</p><p>(188) a.Jara-ka bo.</p><p>here-INDIC you</p><p>‘You are here.’</p><p>b. Hebe-fa to dalhidi-koana.</p><p>full-FUT the run-thing</p><p>‘The car/bus will be full.’</p><p>c. Seme-ka to sikalho.</p><p>sweet-INDIC the sugarcane</p><p>‘The sugarcane is sweet.’</p><p>d. Somole-ka-i hibin.</p><p>drunk-INDIC-he already</p><p>‘He is already drunk.’</p><p>As can be seen in the above examples, this type of sentence also differs from other types</p><p>in its word order. This is the only type of sentence in Arawak where the subject clearly</p><p>seems to follow the verb.36</p><p>(189) a.Stative sentence:</p><p>Fonasia-fa lirabo.</p><p>hungry-FUT he.over.there</p><p>‘He will be hungry.’</p><p>b. Simple intransitive event sentence:</p><p>Lirabo osy-fa.</p><p>he.over.there go-FUT</p><p>‘He will go.’</p><p>In addition to the basic verb-subject ordering for these stative sentences, one occasion-</p><p>ally does find subject-first ones. However, such sentences seem to be the result of subject</p><p>fronting. As is the case with event sentences,</p><p>in stative sentences it is also possible to front</p><p>various constituents to the LSAP position.</p><p>80 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>35See Figure 8 in Section 2.4.2.1 for a summary of stative verb affixes.</p><p>36Semantically, the second NP in attributive sentences seems more subject-like than the first. However, there is</p><p>always some uncertainty created by the fact that the first constituent in attributive sentences seems to be an NP</p><p>also, and therefore might be the subject.</p><p>In event sentences, I have no clear examples of a subject, other than a relative pronoun</p><p>or question word, moving to the LSAP position.37 This may simply be because subject posi-</p><p>tion is adjacent to the LSAP and therefore such movement is undetectable.</p><p>In stative verb sentences, however, the subject can be fronted to LSAP, and the results of</p><p>this fronting are visible. The fronting creates stative verb sentences with what appears to</p><p>be a surface subject-verb constituent order. That this subject has landed in the LSAP posi-</p><p>tion can be shown by the fact that in stative sentences with fronted subjects, no other con-</p><p>stituents can be fronted to the LSAP.</p><p>(190) a.Hebe-fa to dalhidi-koana mothi.</p><p>full-FUT the run-thing tomorrow</p><p>‘The car will be full tomorrow.’</p><p>b. Mothi hebe-fa to dalhidi-koana.</p><p>tomorrow full-FUT the run-thing</p><p>‘Tomorrow the car will be full.</p><p>c. To dalhidi-koana hebe-fa mothi.</p><p>the run-thing full-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘The car will be full tomorrow.’</p><p>d. *Mothi to dalhidi-koana hebe-fa.</p><p>*tomorrow the run-thing full-FUT</p><p>*‘Tomorrow the car will be full.’</p><p>That the nominal following stative verbs is, in fact, the subject can be shown by the fact</p><p>that when it is relativized, the subject-relativization suffix -thi/-tho WH.SUBJ appears.</p><p>(191) a.aba hebe-tho kekere</p><p>a full-WH.SUBJ basket</p><p>‘a full basket / a basket which is full’</p><p>b. to hehe-tho ada-yda</p><p>the yellow-WH.SUBJ tree-skin</p><p>‘the yellow bark’</p><p>It is possible to use postpositions in Arawak as stative verbs (see also Section 2.4.2.2</p><p>on derived stative verbs) by simply placing them in the verb position in the clause. When</p><p>used in this way, they can receive tense and aspect suffixes as well as the pronominal pre-</p><p>fixes and suffixes normally used with stative verbs. Interestingly, sentences of this type</p><p>have two NP arguments and could be regarded as stative analogues to transitive event sen-</p><p>tences. As in other stative sentences, the subject in these sentences also follows the verb.</p><p>3.2 Sentence Structure 81</p><p>37That a question word or relative pronoun is in the LSAP position can be shown by the fact that it cannot be</p><p>preceded by another fronted constituent (unless that constituent is in TOPIC position). Thus the following</p><p>sentence, spoken without an intonation break between ‘tomorrow’ and the rest of the sentence, is unacceptable:</p><p>*Mothi alikan fonasia-fa?</p><p>*tomorrow who hungry-FUT</p><p>*‘Tomorrow who will be hungry?’</p><p>(192) a.Mothi bahy loko-fa no.</p><p>tomorrow house in-FUT she</p><p>‘Tomorrow she will be in the house.’</p><p>b. Lo-jono koboroko-ka da-mathia.</p><p>his-extended.family among-INDIC my-friend</p><p>‘My friend is (e.g. sitting there) with his family.’</p><p>c. Tho-loko-ka-i.</p><p>it-in-INDIC-he</p><p>‘He is in it (e.g. the house).’</p><p>Again, the grammatical roles of the nominals in question can be identified through the</p><p>test of relativization. Arawak seems to treat the noun phrase preceding such a</p><p>postpositional verb as an object, and the one following as a subject. As is the case with</p><p>both event and stative clauses, when the subject, in this case the nominal following the</p><p>verb, is relativized, the subject relativization suffix -tho/-thi (WH.SUBJ) appears.</p><p>(193) a.Bahy oko-ka li wadili.</p><p>house in-INDIC the man</p><p>‘The man is in the house.’</p><p>b. li wadili bahy loko-thi</p><p>the man house in-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘the man in the house’</p><p>c. Li wadili [da-sikoa loko-thi koba] anda.</p><p>the man [my-house in-WH.SUBJ past] arrive</p><p>‘The man, who used to be in my house, came.’</p><p>When the nominal preceding the verb in these sentences is relativized, it is treated the</p><p>same as an object of transitive event sentence, and the object-relativization suffix -sia</p><p>(WH.OBJ) appears (see also Chapter 4 on relative clauses).</p><p>(194) to sikoa ama loko-sia-ka li wadili…</p><p>the house what in-WH.OBJ-INDIC the man…</p><p>‘the house in which the man is/was…’</p><p>82 Noun Phrase and Sentence Syntax</p><p>Chapter 4</p><p>Relative Clauses</p><p>Several of the preceding sections have dealt in some detail with relative clauses. In par-</p><p>ticular, sections on the structure of the noun phrase discussed their distribution, and sec-</p><p>tions dealing with the LSAP (Left Sentential Adjunct Position) of the sentence and the</p><p>structure of dummy verb sentences started to give some idea of the internal structure of</p><p>relative clauses. The picture presented so far, however, has been sketchy and simplified.</p><p>For example, almost none of the relative clauses treated in the above sections contained</p><p>relative pronouns.</p><p>The structure of relative clauses and relative-clause-like constructions in Arawak exhibits</p><p>a fair range of complexity. Relative pronouns are optional in many cases and required in</p><p>others; the subject- and object-relativizing verb suffixes sometimes seem to be optional; the</p><p>verb-subordinating suffix is sometimes present and other times not. Postpositions may or</p><p>may not be stranded by relative pronoun fronting, depending on the postposition. The fol-</p><p>lowing sections attempt to develop an analysis of these facts.</p><p>A number of necessarily interconnected issues need to be discussed in this context. In or-</p><p>der to do this in an organized fashion, it will be useful to begin with a general character-</p><p>ization of Arawak relative clauses, and then to discuss problems with, or issues arising out</p><p>of, this characterization in more detail later. In general, the following statements hold for</p><p>Arawak relative clauses:</p><p>1.A number of constituents in Arawak are accessible to relativization.</p><p>2.Relative clauses have the same structure as non-relative event and stative clauses</p><p>with the following exceptions:</p><p>a) They contain a gap.</p><p>b) They may have a relative pronoun in the clause-initial LSAP which corre-</p><p>sponds to the gap.</p><p>c) In the case of subject and object relativization, the verb is marked by special</p><p>suffixes: -thi/-tho, or -sia, respectively. Relativization of other constituents is</p><p>not indicated on the verb.</p><p>4.1 Differences in Pre- and Post-Head Relative Clauses</p><p>One of the distinctions already made with regard to Arawak relative clauses is between</p><p>those that precede their head and those that follow it. Previous sections on the constitu-</p><p>ents of the noun phrase (3.1) dealt chiefly with the kinds, or complexity, of relative clauses</p><p>83</p><p>which can appear in these two positions—“heavy” relative clauses occur after the head</p><p>while “light” ones may either precede or follow it—and with the interaction between the</p><p>possessor NP position of the matrix noun phrase and pre-head relative clauses. The distinc-</p><p>tion between pre-head and post-head relative clauses, in turn, correlates with the accept-</p><p>ability of an overt WH-word in the LSAP of the relative clause. An explicit WH-word is</p><p>never acceptable in a pre-head relative clause but is generally optional in a post-head one.</p><p>(195) a.Da-malhiti-fa to bahy tho-myn.</p><p>I-make-FUT the house her-for</p><p>‘I will make the house for her.’</p><p>b. to bahy [da-malhiti-sia-fa › tho-myn]</p><p>the house [I-make-WH.OBJ-FUT › her-for]</p><p>‘the house I will make for her’</p><p>c. to bahy [ama da-malhiti-sia-fa › tho-myn]</p><p>the house [what I-make-WH.OBJ-FUT › her-for]</p><p>‘the house which I will make for her’</p><p>d. to [da-malhiti-sia-fa ›] bahy</p><p>the [I-make-WH.OBJ-FUT ›] house</p><p>‘the house I will make’</p><p>e. *to [ama da-malhiti-sia-fa ›] bahy</p><p>*the [what I-make-WH.OBJ-FUT ›] house</p><p>*‘the house which I will make’</p><p>(196) a.Na ibili-non dalhida bahy-nro.</p><p>the little-HUMAN.PL run house-toward</p><p>‘The children ran home.’</p><p>b. na ibili-non [› dalhidi-thi bahy-nro]</p><p>the little-HUMAN.PL [› run-WH.SUBJ house-toward]</p><p>‘the children who ran home’</p><p>c. na ibili-non [alikan › dalhidi-thi bahy-nro]</p><p>the little-HUMAN.PL [who › run-WH.SUBJ house-toward]</p><p>‘the children</p><p>who ran home’</p><p>d. na [› dalhidi-thi] ibili-non</p><p>the [› run-WH.SUBJ] little-HUMAN.PL</p><p>‘the children who ran’</p><p>e. *na [alikan › dalhidi-thi] ibili-non</p><p>*the [who › run-WH.SUBJ] little-HUMAN.PL</p><p>*‘the children who ran’</p><p>Other than modifications made to the above relative clauses to make them heavy or light</p><p>enough to appear in their respective positions, the clauses are similar in all other respects:</p><p>84 Relative Clauses</p><p>each has a gap, and each has an obligatory relativizer suffix appropriate to the grammati-</p><p>cal role of the gap attached to its main verb. Note also that neither type of relative clause</p><p>has the subordinating suffix -n, characteristic of other embedded clauses types, attached to</p><p>the its verb.1</p><p>(197) a.No relativizing suffix:</p><p>*to bahy [ama da-malhiti-fa › tho-myn]</p><p>*the house [what I-make-FUT › her-for]</p><p>*‘the house which I will make for her’</p><p>b. *to [da-malhiti-fa ›] bahy</p><p>*the [I-make-WH.OBJ-FUT ›] house</p><p>*‘the house I will make’</p><p>(198) a.With subordinating suffix:</p><p>*to bahy [ama da-malhiti-n-sia-fa › tho-myn]</p><p>*the house [what I-make-SUB-WH.OBJ-FUT › her-for]</p><p>*‘the house which I will make for her’</p><p>b. *to [da-malhiti-n-sia-fa ›] bahy</p><p>*the [I-make-SUB-WH.OBJ-FUT ›] house</p><p>*‘the house I will make’</p><p>It therefore seems to be just the linear position of the relative clause with respect to the</p><p>noun phrase head which determines whether an explicit relative pronoun is acceptable or</p><p>not in Arawak.</p><p>A possible explanation for this linear order effect may lie in the fact that conflicting prin-</p><p>ciples are applying to pre-head relative clauses. That is, it is a general fact of Arawak that</p><p>relative pronoun movement is to the COMP-like position I have labeled “LSAP” and that</p><p>this position is to the left of the rest of the clause. Yet there seems to be a preference</p><p>across languages for nothing to intervene between a relative pronoun and the head of the</p><p>noun phrase. Assuming that the latter is true of Arawak also, pre-head relative clauses can</p><p>satisfy both principles only if they do not have an explicit relative pronoun in LSAP, since</p><p>their LSAP is not adjacent to the head of the noun phrase. On the other hand, Arawak</p><p>post-head relative clauses allow both principles to be satisfied whether or not they have an</p><p>explicit relative pronoun.</p><p>The presence or absence of a relative pronoun in the LSAP position of a post-head relative</p><p>clause is not without semantic consequences. Relative clauses with relative pronouns tend to</p><p>be non-restrictive relative clauses,2 while those without seem to be restrictive ones. For in-</p><p>stance, the relative clauses in the sentences in the first set of examples below (199) are all</p><p>4.1 Differences in Pre- and Post-Head Relative Clauses 85</p><p>1The unacceptability of the subordinating suffix in these clauses is not due to an incompatibility between it and</p><p>the relativizing suffixes. Both can co-occur in free relative clauses (see sections below).</p><p>2Although the majority of post-head relative clauses with explicit relative pronouns seem to receive a</p><p>non-restrictive interpretation, a few seem to be restrictive. For example:</p><p>Jan papada to kabajaha [ama › rydy-tho-i].</p><p>John squash the tick [what › bite-WH.SUBJ-him</p><p>‘John squashed the tick which bit him’</p><p>non-restrictive. The relative clauses in them provide additional information about the noun</p><p>phrases they modify, rather than limiting the range of possible referents of those noun phrases.</p><p>The relative clauses in the second set of examples (200), on the other hand, are restrictive.</p><p>They provide information which the speaker assumes will help the hearer identify a particular</p><p>referent out of a larger group of possible referents. The contrast, which is quite subtle in most</p><p>cases, becomes clearer when the head being modified is a proper noun (e.g. 200c.) In this</p><p>case, the proper name apparently is assumed to be sufficient identification to single out this in-</p><p>dividual from any others. Adding a restrictive relative clause is unacceptable unless there are</p><p>several persons named John from which to choose.3</p><p>(199) a.Non-restrictive with indefinite NP:</p><p>Aba wadili alikan siki-thi-fa no da-myn andy-fa jon.</p><p>one man who give-WH.SUBJ-FUT it me-to arrive-FUT here</p><p>‘A man, who will give it to me, will arrive here.’</p><p>b. Non-restrictive with definite NP:</p><p>Li wadili alikan siki-thi-fa no da-myn andy-fa jon.</p><p>the man who give-WH.SUBJ-FUT it me-to arrive-FUT here</p><p>‘The man, who will give it to me, will arrive here.’</p><p>c. Non-restrictive with proper name:</p><p>Li Jan alikan siki-thi-fa no da-myn andy-fa jon.</p><p>the John who give-WH.SUBJ-FUT it me-to arrive-FUT here</p><p>‘John, who will give it to me, will arrive here.’</p><p>(200) a.Restrictive with indefinite NP:</p><p>Aba wadili siki-thi-fa no da-myn andy-fa jon.</p><p>one man give-WH.SUBJ-FUT it me-to arrive-FUT here</p><p>‘A man who will give it to me will arrive here.’</p><p>b. Restrictive with definite NP:</p><p>Li wadili siki-thi-fa no da-myn andy-fa jon.</p><p>the man give-WH.SUBJ-FUT it me-to arrive-FUT here</p><p>‘The man who will give it to me will arrive here.’</p><p>c. Restrictive with proper name:</p><p>??Li Jan siki-thi-fa no da-myn andy-fa jon.</p><p>??the John give-WH.SUBJ-FUT it me-to arrive-FUT here</p><p>??‘John who will give it to me will arrive here.’</p><p>86 Relative Clauses</p><p>3As was mentioned in the discussion on noun phrases (3.1), Arawak often uses definite articles with proper</p><p>names. The presence of the definite article in example 200c has no influence on its unacceptability. If it is left out,</p><p>the clause is still unacceptable.</p><p>That the presence of an overt relative pronoun should influence a restrictive or non-</p><p>restrictive interpretation of a relative clause is not unique to Arawak. An overt relative</p><p>pronoun in English seems to allow either a restrictive or non-restrictive reading.</p><p>(201) a.Restrictive:</p><p>the man whom you met ...</p><p>b. Non-restrictive:</p><p>John, whom you met ...</p><p>However, if a relative clause in English lacks a relative pronoun, or contains the complementizer</p><p>‘that’ in its COMP position, only the restrictive reading seems to be possible.</p><p>(202) a.Restrictive:</p><p>the man I met yesterday...</p><p>the man that I met yesterday...</p><p>b. Non-restrictive:</p><p>*John I met yesterday...</p><p>*John that I met yesterday...</p><p>4.2 Free Relative Clauses</p><p>In addition to the relative clauses mentioned in the preceding section, Arawak has what</p><p>appear to be free relative clauses—that is, relative clauses without overt lexical heads. No-</p><p>tice, for example, the similarity in structure between the free relative clause in the English</p><p>sentence below, and an equivalent one in an Arawak sentence.</p><p>(203) a. I sold what he gave me yesterday.</p><p>b. Da-jokara ama li-siki-n-sia miaka.</p><p>I-sell what he-give-SUB-WH.OBJ yesterday</p><p>‘I sold what he gave me yesterday.’</p><p>As in English, free relative clauses in Arawak have a structure almost identical to that of</p><p>other relative clauses, and they do not seem to be associated with the head of any particu-</p><p>lar noun phrase. Instead, they seem to function in the place of whole noun phrases. Like</p><p>other relative clauses, they contain appropriate subject- and object-relativizing suffixes</p><p>and, optionally, may have an explicit relative pronoun.</p><p>4.2 Free Relative Clauses 87</p><p>(204) a.As subject:</p><p>[Li moty-n-thi] mithada-bo we.</p><p>[the win-SUB-WH.SUBJ] laugh.transitive-CONT us</p><p>‘The winner laughed at us.’</p><p>b. As direct object:</p><p>N-othi-ka [ama n-ansi-n-sia].</p><p>they-receive-INDIC [what they-want-SUB-WH.OBJ]</p><p>‘They received/got what they wanted.’</p><p>c. As direct object:</p><p>Thy-dykha [aba diadiady-n-tho].</p><p>she-see [one chat/gossip-SUB-WH.SUBJ]</p><p>‘She saw a gossip.’</p><p>d. As object of a postposition:</p><p>N-obada-bo [li jady-n-thi] boran.</p><p>they-wait-CONT [the travel-SUB-WH.SUBJ] before</p><p>‘They are waiting for the traveler.’</p><p>Whether these relative clauses are, in fact, free or lexically headed is not certain. Every</p><p>clause in Arawak which appears to be a free relative clause starts with a word which</p><p>might, in fact, be interpreted as a pronominal head. That is, as in the above examples, the</p><p>apparent free relative clauses all start with a relative pronoun, a number, or an article.</p><p>The latter two might be</p><p>taken to be the determiners of noun phrases. However, this is not</p><p>necessarily the case. The Arawak definite articles are all morphologically identical with</p><p>pronouns of the same number and gender (see Sections 2.3.1 and 2.3.2), and numerals can</p><p>also function as heads of noun phrases.</p><p>(205)a. li wadili aba wadili</p><p>the man one man</p><p>‘the man’ ‘a man’</p><p>b. Li osa-bo. Aba osa-bo.</p><p>he go-CONT one go-CONT</p><p>‘He is going.’ ‘One of them is going.’</p><p>A further bit of evidence that the determiners of free relative clauses may, in fact, be pro-</p><p>nominal heads is that the presence of the initial relative pronoun, article, or number is</p><p>obligatory. This contrasts with the fact that indefinite (non-mass) noun phrases in Arawak</p><p>are acceptable without an indefinite article or a number when the exact number of items</p><p>or referents is not relevant or when a plural suffix is used on the head noun.</p><p>88 Relative Clauses</p><p>(206) a.Wa-dykha aba hime.</p><p>we-see one fish</p><p>‘We saw a fish.’</p><p>b. Wa-dykha hime.</p><p>We-see fish</p><p>‘We saw fish.’</p><p>(206) a.Wa-dykha aba andy-n-thi.</p><p>we-see one arrive-SUB-WH.SUBJ</p><p>‘We saw the arriver / one who arrived.’</p><p>b. *Wa-dykha andy-n-thi.</p><p>*we-see arrive-SUB-WH.SUBJ</p><p>*‘We saw the arriver.’</p><p>Although the above facts make it seem possible that these free relative clauses are simply</p><p>normal relative clauses with pronominal heads, this may not be the best analysis. It is also</p><p>possible to analyze them as nominalized clauses. All of the above ‘free’ relative clauses</p><p>contain an element not found in other relative clauses—the subordinating suffix -n (glossed</p><p>‘SUB’ in all the preceding examples), and it may be that this suffix should be viewed as a</p><p>nominalizer. This same suffix appears on the verb in non-relative complement clauses and</p><p>also whenever a clause appears in the TOPIC position of a sentence. Furthermore, when a</p><p>clause appears in the TOPIC position of a sentence, it is preceded by an article (see Section</p><p>3.2.1.2 on sentence structure).</p><p>(208) a.D-eitha l-osy-n-fa.</p><p>I-know he-go-SUB-FUT</p><p>‘I know he went.’</p><p>b. To n-andy-n jon, n-akoba bania.</p><p>the they-arrive-SUB there they-breathe short.time</p><p>‘(Concerning) them arriving there, they took a short breather.’</p><p>4.3 Embedded Questions</p><p>Embedded questions look like relative clauses, except that they do not have any of the sub-</p><p>ject- or object-relativizing suffixes, characteristic of relative and free relative clauses, on their</p><p>main verb. Furthermore, this lack of a relativization suffix correlates with the obligatory pres-</p><p>ence of a question word or phrase in these same clauses. Like the free relative clauses in the</p><p>previous section, these clauses all contain verbs with the subordinating suffix -n.</p><p>(209) a.D-eitha ama li-siki-n da-myn.</p><p>I-know what he-give-SUB me-to</p><p>‘I know what he gave to me.’</p><p>b. D-eitha alikan wakydy-n to kodo</p><p>I-know who break-SUB the gourd</p><p>‘I know who broke the gourd.’</p><p>4.3 Embedded Questions 89</p><p>c. Da-aka bo hibin alikan fary-n to kalhina.</p><p>I-tell you already who kill-SUB the chicken</p><p>‘I already told you who killed the chicken.’</p><p>In spite of the similarity in appearance to relative clauses and free relative clauses, the</p><p>above clauses should not be analyzed as belonging to either group. These clauses occur</p><p>only as sentential complements for verbs of saying and thinking like eithin ‘to know’, akan</p><p>‘to tell’, and onabyn ‘to answer’. Furthermore, except for the presence of the subordinating</p><p>suffix,4 their form is identical to that of independent content question clauses.</p><p>Figure 21 summarizes the occurrence of the subject- and object-relativizer suffixes, the</p><p>subordinator suffix, and WH-words in the various constructions discussed in the previous pages.</p><p>RELATIVIZER SUBORDINATOR WH-</p><p>SUFFIX SUFFIX WORD</p><p>PRE-HEAD RELATIVE + – –</p><p>POST-HEAD RELATIVE + – +/–</p><p>FREE RELATIVE + + +/–</p><p>EMBEDDED QUESTION – + +</p><p>NON-EMBEDDED QUESTION – – +/–</p><p>Figure 21. Structural Features of Relative-Clause-Like Constructions</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization</p><p>Preceding sections have given a number of examples of relativized subjects and direct</p><p>objects, but there has been no discussion of exactly which constituents are accessible to</p><p>relativization. As is the case with most languages, Arawak places restrictions on what con-</p><p>stituents can be relativized with a given strategy. The following sections briefly discuss</p><p>how Arawak functions in this regard.</p><p>4.4.1 Subject Relativization</p><p>When the subject of a clause is relativized, the main verb of the clause is marked with</p><p>the subject-relativizing suffix -thi (WH.SUBJ) if that subject is masculine, or with the</p><p>non-masculine suffix -tho (WH.SUBJ) if it is non-masculine.5 This is true for both event</p><p>verbs and stative verbs. For example, in (210a), wadili ‘man’ is masculine and requires -thi</p><p>on the verb, whereas kabajaha ‘tick’ is classified as non-masculine and therefore requires</p><p>-tho (in 210b). Simularly, in (210c) a masculine suffix is required, while in (210d) the ref-</p><p>erent is non-masculine.</p><p>(210) a.Masculine:</p><p>Li wadili [› siki-thi to hala da-myn] andy-fa mothi.</p><p>the man [› give-WH.SUBJ the bench me-to] arrive-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘The man who gave the bench to me will arrive tomorrow.’</p><p>90 Relative Clauses</p><p>4The presence of the subordinating suffix also causes some adjustments in the last vowel of the verb stem. See</p><p>Section 2.4.1.1 on basic- and a- stem verbs.</p><p>5See Sections 2.3.1.2 and 2.3.3.2 for a discussion of noun gender classes.</p><p>b. Non-masculine:</p><p>Jan papada to kabajaha [› rydy-tho-i].</p><p>John squash the tick [› bite-WH.SUBJ-him]</p><p>‘John squashed the tick that bit him.’</p><p>c. Masculine:</p><p>Li [› tojo-thi] anda.</p><p>He [› mature-WH.SUBJ] arrive</p><p>‘The old, respected man arrived.’</p><p>d. Non-masculine:</p><p>To [› tojo-tho] anda</p><p>it/she [› mature-WH.SUBJ] arrive</p><p>‘The old, respected woman arrived.’</p><p>The relative pronoun corresponding to the subject of the relative clause may or may not</p><p>be present if the clause is in the post-head position of the noun phrase.6</p><p>(211) a.Li wadili [alikan › siki-thi to hala da-myn] andy-fa mothi.</p><p>the man [who › give-WH.SUBJ the bench me-to] arrive-FUT tomorrow</p><p>‘The man who gave the bench to me will arrive tomorrow.’</p><p>b. Jan papada to kabajaha [ama › rydy-tho-i].</p><p>John squash the tick [what › bite-WH.SUBJ-him]</p><p>‘John squashed the tick which bit him.’</p><p>4.4.2 Direct Object Relativization</p><p>When the direct object of a clause is relativized in Arawak, the main verb of the clause</p><p>receives the suffix -sia (WH.OBJ). Unlike the subject-relativizer suffixes, the object-</p><p>relativizing suffix is not differentiated as to the grammatical gender of the referent.</p><p>(212) a.Li wadili [da-soko-sia › miaka] wada-bo da-boran.</p><p>the man [I-hit-WH.OBJ › yesterday] search-CONT me-for</p><p>‘The man I hit yesterday is searching for me.’</p><p>b. To hiaro [da-dykhy-sia › to mothia] obada-bo da-bora.</p><p>the female [I-see-WH.OBJ › the morning] wait-cont. me-for</p><p>‘The girl I saw this morning is waiting for me.’</p><p>c. To khota-ha [l-ojo boko-sia › lo-myn] minkakho semen.</p><p>the animal-NGEN [his-mother cook-WH.OBJ › him-for] very sweet</p><p>‘The meat his mother cooked for him was delicious.’</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization 91</p><p>6See Sections 3.1.4 and 3.1.6 for the discussion of pre- and post-head relative clauses.</p><p>Again, whenever any of the above relative clauses occurs in a post-head position, an</p><p>overt relative pronoun may be optionally present.</p><p>(213) Li wadili [alikan da-soko-sia › miaka] wada-bo da-boran.</p><p>the man [who I-hit-WH.OBJ › yesterday] search-CONT me-for</p><p>‘The man who I hit yesterday is searching for me.’</p><p>4.4.3 Indirect Object Relativization</p><p>As mentioned in the discussion of event sentence structure (Section 3.2.1) the indirect</p><p>object of a clause is almost always found in a postpositional phrase with the benefactive</p><p>postposition myn ‘to/for’. Such indirect objects can be relativized by simply omitting the</p><p>noun phrase from its position as the object of the postposition myn, thus stranding the</p><p>postposition.</p><p>(214) a.Jan sika to hala li wadili myn miakaboan.</p><p>John give the bench the man to day.before.yesterday</p><p>‘John gave the bench to the man the day before</p><p>yesterday.’</p><p>b. Li wadili [Jan sika to hala › myn miakaboan] osa jada-nro miaka.</p><p>the man [John give the bench › to day.before.yesterday]go trip-toward yesterday</p><p>‘The man John gave the bench to the day before yesterday went on a trip yesterday.’</p><p>Relative clauses like the above are also acceptable with an overt relative pronoun.</p><p>(215) Li wadili [alikan Jan sika to hala › myn]...</p><p>the man [who John give the bench › to]...</p><p>‘The man whom John gave the bench to...’</p><p>As mentioned earlier (Section 3.2.1), Arawak seems to sometimes allow bare indirect ob-</p><p>jects without a postposition. Indirect objects in such constructions cannot be relativized.</p><p>(216) *Li wadili [Jan sika › to hala miakaboan] osa jada-nro miaka.</p><p>*the man [Johngive › the bench day.before.yesterday] go trip-toward yesterday)</p><p>*‘The man John gave the bench to the day before yesterday went on a trip yesterday.’</p><p>4.4.4 Relativization of Objects of Postpositions</p><p>Relativizing the NP in an indirect object postpositional phrase (see above) is the only in-</p><p>stance where the object of a postpositional phrase can be relativized with stranding of the</p><p>postposition. Objects of other postpositions cannot be directly relativized.</p><p>(217) a.Jan balyta to hala diako.</p><p>John sit the bench on</p><p>‘John sat on the bench.’</p><p>b. *Adiakema siokon to hala [(ama) Jan balyta › diako.]</p><p>*very small is bench [what John sit › on]</p><p>*‘The bench John sat on is very small.’</p><p>92 Relative Clauses</p><p>(218) a.Lo-soka sikalho ly-kasiparan abo.</p><p>he-chop sugarcane his-machete with</p><p>‘He chopped sugarcane with his machete.’</p><p>b. *Ly-wada-bo ly-kasiparan [lo-soka sikalho › abo].</p><p>*he-search-PRES his-machete he-chop sugarcane › with</p><p>*‘He is looking for his machete that he chops sugarcane with.’</p><p>4.4.4.1 Postposition stranding</p><p>The contrast between the acceptability of relativizing the noun phrase in an indirect ob-</p><p>ject postpositional phrase and its unacceptability in other postpositional phrases shows up</p><p>even more clearly when one considers examples of the benefactive use of the postposition</p><p>myn. In addition to being used to indicate an indirect object, myn is also used in the sort of</p><p>benefactive phrases that can be added to almost any event clause.</p><p>(219) a.Na-reke-bo to koban to hiaro myn.</p><p>they-weed-PRES the planting.ground the woman for</p><p>‘They are weeding the planting ground for the woman.’</p><p>b. To hiaro andy-fa kasiri abo na-myn.</p><p>the woman arrive-FUT cassava.beer with them-for</p><p>‘The woman will come with cassava beer for them.’</p><p>When myn is used as a benefactive in this way, rather than to indicate the indirect object,</p><p>then it acts like any other postposition and cannot be stranded.</p><p>(220). *To hiaro na-reke-bo to koban › myn andy-fa kasiri abo</p><p>*the woman they-weed-PRES the planting.ground › for arrive-FUT cassava.beer with</p><p>*‘The woman they are clearing the planting ground for will come with cassava beer.’</p><p>The locative postpositional phrases associated with verbs of motion such as osyn ‘to go’</p><p>and andyn ‘to arrive’ also seem to be part of the VP,7 and yet the postpositions of those</p><p>phrases cannot be stranded, either.</p><p>(221) a.L-osa to sikoa loko-nro.</p><p>he-go the house in-toward</p><p>‘He went into the house.’</p><p>b. *Da-dykha to sikoa [ama l-osa › loko-nro].</p><p>*I-see the house [what he-go › in-toward]</p><p>*I saw the house he went into.</p><p>(222) a.L-anda to onikhan amyn.</p><p>he-arrive the creek at/by</p><p>‘He arrived at the creek.’</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization 93</p><p>7As is the case with direct and indirect objects, nothing other than certain aspect words can come between a</p><p>motion verb and the locative for which it subcategorizes. See Sections 3.2.1.3 for a discussion of event sentence</p><p>structure.</p><p>b. *D-eikasia to onikhan ama l-anda › amyn.</p><p>*I-forget the creek what he-arrive › at/by</p><p>*‘I have forgotten the creek which he arrived at.’</p><p>c. *D-eikasia to onikhan alon l-anda › amyn.</p><p>*I-forget the creek where he-arrive › at/by</p><p>*‘I have forgotten the creek where he arrived at.’</p><p>Perhaps what is of concern is how closely a postpositional phrase is associated with the</p><p>verb. Arawak appears to only allow stranding of the postposition of the postpositional</p><p>phrase most closely tied to the verb—the indirect object postposition myn. One piece of ev-</p><p>idence in Arawak that the indirect object is more closely tied to the verb is that Arawak</p><p>verbs of motion subcategorize for, but do not absolutely require, the presence of a locative</p><p>postpositional phrase. The subcategorization of the verb seems to be stronger for the indi-</p><p>rect object than for a locative phrase. For example, sentences such as</p><p>(223) a.L-osa.</p><p>he-go</p><p>‘He went/left.’</p><p>b. L-anda.</p><p>he-arrive</p><p>‘He arrived.’</p><p>without locative phrases are acceptable even without a discourse context.8 Verbs like sikin</p><p>‘to give’, on the other hand, can omit mention of their indirect object only if the previous</p><p>discourse context makes it perfectly clear who the recipient (indirect object) is. Thus, the</p><p>sentence</p><p>(224) Li-sika athaha.</p><p>he-give alcoholic.drink</p><p>‘He gave drink.’</p><p>is acceptable only in a context such as one where it is preceded by a question like:</p><p>(225) Ama li-sika na-myn?</p><p>what he-give them-to</p><p>‘What did he give to them?’</p><p>One other related possibility for explaining the acceptability of stranding the indirect ob-</p><p>ject postposition, but not locative ones within the VP, is to consider exactly what is being</p><p>subcategorized for by the verb. Motion verbs subcategorize for an entire locative phrase,</p><p>postposition and all. The specific locative information given by the postposition is crucial</p><p>to the meaning of the clause. In the case of ditransitive verbs, however, the indirect object</p><p>postposition seems to add nothing to the meaning of the sentence. It is only the object of</p><p>that postposition which is important.</p><p>Perhaps one way to represent these facts syntactically is to propose that the indirect ob-</p><p>ject NP is a semantic complement of the ditransitive verb and therefore directly governed</p><p>94 Relative Clauses</p><p>8However, semantically, a very generic locative notion like ‘here’ or ‘there’ is still present.</p><p>by it—in spite of the presence of the postposition myn. For motion verbs, on the other</p><p>hand, it is the entire postpositional phrase which is the complement, and the verb governs</p><p>that entire phrase.9</p><p>4.4.4.2 Strategies to avoid postposition stranding</p><p>Arawak has at its disposal several strategies that can be employed to avoid stranding of</p><p>postpositions. One of these strategies seems equivalent to what, in English, has been called</p><p>“Pied Piping” (Ross 1967). That is, instead of stranding the postposition, the whole</p><p>postpositional phrase can be fronted to the LSAP position of a clause. In all such cases in</p><p>Arawak, the relative pronoun representing the object of the postposition (e.g. ama ‘what’,</p><p>alikan ‘who’, alon ‘where’) must be used and is found in the normal position for that object,</p><p>i.e. immediately preceding the postposition.</p><p>(226) a.Adiakema siokon to hala [[ama diako] Jan balyta ›].</p><p>very small is/the bench [[what on] John sit ›]</p><p>‘The bench on which John sat was very small.’</p><p>b. To kodo [[ama loko] th-othika to polata ›], kawa-ka.</p><p>the gourd [[what in] she-find the money ›] absent-indicative</p><p>‘The gourd in which she had found the money is/was gone.’</p><p>c. B-itha na wadili-be [[alikan oma] wa-diadiadyn ›]?</p><p>you-know the man-PL [[who with] we-chat ›]</p><p>‘Do you know the men we were chatting with?’</p><p>Pied Piping can also occur with indirect object postpositional phrases, even though the</p><p>indirect object postposition myn can be stranded (see discussion in 4.4.4.1).</p><p>(227) To hiaro [alikan myn li-sika ly-polatania ›], kia to ly-dike-fary-koana.</p><p>the female [who to he-give his-money ›] that.one is his-footprint-kill-thing</p><p>‘Concerning the woman to whom he gave his money, that is his wife (one who wipes</p><p>out footprints perhaps so spell can’t be cast on husband).’</p><p>Another strategy for not stranding a postposition is to turn the postpositional phrase into a</p><p>stative verb phrase. As mentioned previously,10 postpositions may be used as stative verbs.</p><p>This kind of verb can be used as the main verb of</p><p>a two-argument stative clause. The object of</p><p>this stative clause can then be relativized in much the same way as the direct object of a transi-</p><p>tive event clause—basically, by moving it and adding the suffix -sia ‘WH.OBJ’ to the verb. The</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization 95</p><p>9Thus one finds locative words which are equivalent to whole locative phrases, for example:</p><p>L-osa malhikhotoa-sikoa ninro.</p><p>he-go learn-house to</p><p>‘He went to school.’</p><p>L-osa jon.</p><p>he-go there</p><p>‘He went there.</p><p>10See Section 2.4.2.2 on derived stative verbs and Section 3.2.3.2 on stative clause structure.</p><p>relevant relative pronoun (ama ‘what’, alon ‘where’, or alikan ‘who’) must appear in the LSAP</p><p>position of this relative clause unless other adjustments are made to the clause (see below).</p><p>(228) a.Jan balyta to hala diako.</p><p>John sit the bench on</p><p>‘John sat on the bench.’</p><p>b. To hala [ama diako-sia Jan balyty-n]...</p><p>the bench [what on-WH.OBJ John sit-SUB]</p><p>‘The bench on which John is sitting...’</p><p>(229) a.Li wadili jolhida koba to sikoa lokhodi.</p><p>the man smoke.tobacco PAST the house in</p><p>‘The man smoked in the house.’</p><p>b. To sikoa [ama lokhodi-sia koba li wadili jolhida-n]...</p><p>The house [what in-WH.OBJ PAST the man smoke-SUB]</p><p>‘The house in which the man smoked ...’</p><p>It is possible to omit the relative pronoun in the LSAP position of the above relative</p><p>clauses only if one adds a ka- ‘ATTR’ or ma- ‘PRIV’ prefix11 to the verb, i.e. the verb formed</p><p>from the postposition. Significantly, no such requirement holds for relative pronoun omis-</p><p>sion in the case of non-derived stative clauses.</p><p>(230) a.To hala [ka-diako-sia Jan balyty-n]...</p><p>the bench [ATTR-on-WH.OBJ John sit-SUB]</p><p>‘The bench on which John is sitting...’</p><p>b. To kodo [ka-loko-sia to kasiri]...</p><p>the gourd [ATTR-in-WH.OBJ the cassava.beer]</p><p>‘The gourd the cassava beer is in ...’</p><p>c. To kodo [ma-loko-sia to kasiri]...</p><p>the gourd [PRIV-in-WH.OBJ the cassava.beer]</p><p>‘The gourd the cassava beer is not in ...’</p><p>Why this ka- or ma- is required in the above clauses when the relative pronoun is omitted</p><p>and what it is syntactically is a bit of a puzzle.</p><p>96 Relative Clauses</p><p>11These prefixes are labeled attributive and privative because they appear to be similar in function to the ka-</p><p>and ma- which can be used to derive an attributive or privative stative verb from many nouns. In the case of</p><p>stative verbs derived from nouns, they signal that the subject of the clause is in the affirmative or negative state of</p><p>having or possessing whatever the prefix ka- or ma- is attached to. See Section 2.4.2.2 on derived stative verbs.</p><p>For example,</p><p>Ka-sikoa-ka-i.</p><p>ATTR-house-INDIC-he</p><p>‘He is with house (i.e. he is in the state of having a house).’</p><p>Ma-sikoa-ka-i.</p><p>PRIV-house-INDIC-he</p><p>‘He is not with house (i.e. he is in the state of not having a house).</p><p>111111</p><p>The most likely possibility is that the ka- and ma- prefixes act like personless, genderless</p><p>resumptive pronouns. In general, the only prefixes which occur in Arawak are the mor-</p><p>phologically bound pronouns and the privative and attributive prefixes ka- and ma-, respec-</p><p>tively. Ka- and ma- always occur in the same position as the morphologically bound</p><p>pronouns occur and are mutually exclusive with them. Furthermore, both in these stative</p><p>relative clauses, and when they are used with stative verbs derived from nouns, the head of</p><p>the relative clause is always coreferential with the pronoun which would occur in the posi-</p><p>tion of ka- or ma- if these prefixes were not present. Thus, in the preceding examples, ka-</p><p>and ma- are located exactly where the pronouns representing ‘gourd’ and ‘bench’ would oc-</p><p>cur if the objects of these clauses were not relativized, and ‘gourd’ and ‘bench’ are the</p><p>heads for these relative clauses.</p><p>Even assuming the prefixes in question are resumptive pronouns, the question remains</p><p>why they should be obligatory in these relative clauses. The facts (summarized in Figure</p><p>22), again, are these: The object of a stative clause based on a postposition may be</p><p>relativized by leaving a trace in the position of the object and using a relative pronoun in</p><p>LSAP (example 231a). It is also possible to omit the relative pronoun in LSAP if one adds a</p><p>‘resumptive pronoun’ prefix to the verb (example 231b). It is unacceptable either to use</p><p>the relative pronoun with a resumptive pronoun (example 231c) or to use neither (example</p><p>231d).</p><p>(231) a.To hala [ama [› diako-sia li Jan]]...</p><p>the bench [what [› on-WH.OBJ the John]]</p><p>‘The bench on which John is...’</p><p>b. To hala [› [ka-diako-sia li Jan]]...</p><p>the bench [› [ATTR-on-WH.OBJ the John]]</p><p>‘The bench on which John is...’</p><p>c. *To hala [ama [ka-diako-sia li Jan]]...</p><p>*the bench [what [ATTR-on-WH.OBJ the John]]</p><p>*‘The bench on which John is...’</p><p>d. *To hala [› [› diako-sia li Jan]]...</p><p>*the bench [› [› on-WH.OBJ the John]]</p><p>*‘The bench on which John is...’</p><p>[ N [ LSAP [ [ NP V ] NP ]]]</p><p>NP S S VP</p><p>(a) bench › ka-</p><p>(b) bench WH ›</p><p>(c) *bench WH ka-</p><p>(d) *bench › ›</p><p>Figure 22. Object Relativization in Stative Clauses</p><p>It is possible to explain the unacceptability of clauses with both a relative pronoun in</p><p>LSAP position and a resumptive pronoun in object position (example 231c) if one assumes</p><p>that the “Bijection Principle” holds for Arawak. This principle states that “each operator</p><p>must bind one and only one variable” (Chomsky 1982:12). If the resumptive pronoun is</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization 97</p><p>present, there is no trace available for the relative pronoun in LSAP to bind, and therefore</p><p>the clause is unacceptable. Since I know of no data in Arawak which contradict this princi-</p><p>ple, it is not unreasonable to assume something like it applies.</p><p>The problem remains, however, why clauses (e.g. 231d) that have neither a relative pro-</p><p>noun in LSAP nor a resumptive pronoun in object position are bad. It does seem to be the</p><p>case that the lack of both the relative pronoun and the resumptive pronoun presents a</p><p>problem in perception. That is, hearers of such sentences miss the head-modifier interpre-</p><p>tation and apparently assume the NP head is actually in the object position of the sentence.</p><p>This is true in spite of the presence of the object-relativizer suffix -sia on the verb. Why</p><p>this should occur in these clauses is not clear. In event sentences, traces in object and sub-</p><p>ject position are properly governed by the verb and INFL, respectively, and both subjects</p><p>and objects can be properly governed without the presence of a relative pronoun.12 How-</p><p>ever, a trace in object position in these stative sentences based on postpositions is unac-</p><p>ceptable unless there is an explicit relative pronoun present.</p><p>There is yet another strategy employed in Arawak to avoid stranding a postposition.</p><p>This is to incorporate the postpositional phrase into a pre-head relative clause.13</p><p>(232) Sioko-ka [to [Jan balyty-sia diako] hala].</p><p>small-INDIC [the [John sit-WH.OBJ on] bench]</p><p>‘The John-sat-on bench is small (i.e. The bench John sat on is small).’</p><p>The exact composition of this pre-head clause is not immediately obvious. Balytyn ‘to sit’</p><p>is an intransitive verb and therefore cannot normally receive the object-relativizer suffix</p><p>-sia. Furthermore, the relativized NP is the word for ‘bench’ and, at least at first glance, one</p><p>would expect its trace to be in the object position of the postposition diako ‘on’.</p><p>(233) Expected structure:</p><p>[the [John [sits [ti. on ]]] benchi ]</p><p>NP S VP PP</p><p>The only explanation which seems plausible is that re-analysis of some sort has taken place</p><p>making hala ‘bench’ the object of balyta ‘sit’.</p><p>Applying this type of analysis to Arawak would both explain the presence of the object-</p><p>relativizer suffix on the verb and ensure that the trace of the object is properly governed</p><p>(as defined previously). However, this analysis is not quite as clean as it would be in a</p><p>prepositional language. Arawak has postpositions rather than prepositions, and therefore</p><p>the postposition is not adjacent to the verb at the time of re-analysis. This means the</p><p>postposition cannot simply be incorporated into the verb.</p><p>98</p><p>Relative Clauses</p><p>12See discussion on the ECP in Arawak (3.2.2.3), and sections on subject- and object-relativization (4.4.1,</p><p>4.4.2).</p><p>13Strangely enough, the post-head version of this relative clause is only marginally acceptable:</p><p>?to hala [Jan balyty-sia diako]</p><p>?the bench [John sit-WH.OBJ on]</p><p>?‘the bench John is sitting on’</p><p>(232)a. [sits [the bench on]</p><p>VP PP</p><p>b. [sits [the bench] on]</p><p>VP NP ?</p><p>c. [to [Jan [balyty-sia [ti ] diako]] halai]</p><p>[the [John [sit-WH.OBJ [ ti ] on ]] benchi ]</p><p>NP S VP NP ?</p><p>‘the bench John sat on’</p><p>4.4 Constituents Accessible to Relativization 99</p><p>Chapter 5</p><p>Aspectual Particles and the Contribution</p><p>of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>Introduction</p><p>An adequate description of some aspects of Arawak syntax seems to require reference to levels of</p><p>the language above that of the sentence. One such case has already been alluded to: full NPs may</p><p>be used as subjects only when introducing an entity into the discourse for the first time. Thereafter,</p><p>a morphologically free or bound pronoun must be used, linked to an appositive full noun phrase</p><p>where disambiguation is required. Although an exhaustive treatment of the contribution of</p><p>text-level syntax would far exceed the scope of this description of Arawak, in the following sections</p><p>I will exemplify its contribution by concentrating on the use of tense/aspect suffixes and particles.</p><p>Throughout the following sections, frequent reference is made to several Arawak narrative texts.</p><p>Those most frequently cited may be found in their entirety in the appendix, and will be referred to as The</p><p>Bus Trip Story, The Jaguar Story, The Bomb Story, The Tapir Story, and The Metamorphosis Story.</p><p>The narrative is one of several monologue genres in Arawak. In the present study, I will adopt the</p><p>typology of texts developed by Longacre (1976). He (pp. 195–210) classifies monologues into four</p><p>“deep structure genres,” as he calls them, based on the intersection of the features [+/– Succession]</p><p>and [+/–Projected]: narrative discourses, procedural discourses, expository discourses, and horta-</p><p>tory discourses1 (Figure 23). Succession refers to the fact that certain discourses are built around a</p><p>chronological succession, while others are not. Thus he lists narrative and procedural monologues</p><p>as having the property [+ Succession], while expository and hortatory have the feature [–Succes-</p><p>sion]. The feature [+/– Projected] also has to do with time—not temporal sequence, however, but</p><p>whether the discourse is “rooted in real time.”</p><p>We may then form the proportion: procedural is to narrative as hortatory is to</p><p>expository. Narrative discourse is rooted in real time; it recounts events sup-</p><p>posed to have happened somewhere, whether in the real or in an imaginary</p><p>world... Procedural discourse tells us how something would be done whenever it</p><p>happens to be done. It is in projected rather than accomplished time. Likewise,</p><p>while expository discourse simply explains a body of subject matter, hortatory</p><p>discourse tells us how we are to act in regard to a certain body of subject matter.</p><p>100</p><p>1Longacre has since revised and amplified this classification system (Longacre 1983:4–14). He now includes</p><p>“agent orientation” as an additional feature which gives him eight genres. This revised classification does not</p><p>substantially affect the discussions herein.</p><p>–PROJECTED +PROJECTED</p><p>NARRATIVE PROCEDURAL</p><p>+SUCCESSION 1. 1/3 person 1. non-specific person</p><p>2. agent oriented 2. patient oriented</p><p>3. accomplished time 3. projected time</p><p>4. chronological linkage 4. chronological linkage</p><p>EXPOSITORY HORTATORY</p><p>–SUCCESSION 1. no necessary person reference 1. 2 person</p><p>2. (subject matter oriented) 2. Addressee oriented</p><p>3. time not focal 3. (Mode, not time)</p><p>4. logical linkage 4. logical linkage</p><p>Figure 23. Deep Structure Genres (Longacre 1976:200)</p><p>As mentioned above, the stories cited most often in the following sections are all narra-</p><p>tives. To avoid having to continually restate the general contexts of the stories, below is a</p><p>brief synopsis of each. (See the appendix for the complete stories.)</p><p>1.The Bus Trip Story: This story was written by an Arawak about an unsuccessful</p><p>bus trip he took with his wife and several other villagers. The story is true, and</p><p>took place less than a week before it was written. This is what the author relates:</p><p>Someone in the village bought an old bus. A number of friends, including the</p><p>story’s author, piled into the bus and went on a test ride. After several break-</p><p>downs, the bus finally quit completely, and the author and his wife had to walk</p><p>home.</p><p>2.The Jaguar Story: This story was written by an Arawak about a time when a jag-</p><p>uar almost “grabbed” the author’s brother-in-law. The story is true and took place</p><p>a number of years before it was written. In it, the author tells of going to his field</p><p>to work. His brother-in-law and the brother-in-law’s grandchildren were working</p><p>in a nearby field. A jaguar tried to attack the brother-in-law. Neither the</p><p>brother-in-law nor the author had his gun along, so one of the grandchildren</p><p>fetched his father (the brother-in-law’s son) who finally lured and shot the jaguar.</p><p>3.The Bomb Story: This story was written by an Arawak about true events a number</p><p>of years after World War II. During the War, the U.S. military had a base and a</p><p>practice range in Suriname near the author’s village. The story begins some years</p><p>after the military left. The author and a friend went on a fishing trip and came</p><p>across a strange, heavy object with handles. They took it along with them, but it</p><p>got too heavy to carry. Leaving it behind, they went fishing. On the way home af-</p><p>ter fishing, they picked up the object and carried it a ways. When it again got too</p><p>heavy for them, they tossed it aside, and it exploded. No one was hurt, but it did</p><p>scare them.</p><p>4.The Tapir Story: This story is an oral story transcribed from tape by me, and later</p><p>slightly edited by an Arawak to remove some false starts. The teller of the story</p><p>was the oldest man of the village Powakka, who tells the village captain (highest</p><p>figure in the village hierarchy) about how he shot a tapir. The story is very vividly</p><p>told and includes various sound effects. The captain frequently interjects comments</p><p>and questions during the telling of the story.</p><p>Introduction 101</p><p>5.The Metamorphosis Story: This story was written by an Arawak and is a traditional</p><p>tale of the origin of one of the Arawak clans, the Biswana clan. In the story, a man</p><p>is living alone in the forests with his dog. Whenever he goes hunting, the dog re-</p><p>moves its skin and becomes a beautiful young woman who prepares food and drink</p><p>for him. Before he returns, she again becomes a dog. After several episodes of go-</p><p>ing hunting and returning to find food, the hunter decides to find out who is mak-</p><p>ing it. He pretends to leave again, but returns early to see the dog taking off its</p><p>skin. Sneaking into the house, the hunter throws the skin into the fire and takes</p><p>the woman as wife. The word for metamorphosis in Arawak is besonoan which is</p><p>said to be the word behind the clan name Biswana.</p><p>5.1 Tense/Aspect Suffixes and Particles</p><p>Previous sections dealing with the morphology of the verb listed, without much discus-</p><p>sion, the meaning and order of the various verb affixes. In the section on “functors”</p><p>(2.6.2.2), several tense-like particles were mentioned and their meanings given. Of these,</p><p>the ones which are of concern here are just those suffixes and particles relevant to time,</p><p>tense, and aspect as listed in Figure 24.2 The glosses associated with the particles and af-</p><p>fixes in the figure apply when the items are used in isolated utterances; a more detailed</p><p>analysis is presented in later sections.</p><p>VERB SUFFIXES</p><p>-› ‘past’ da-ka ‘I bathed’</p><p>-ja ‘past continuative’ da-ka-ja ‘I bathed/was bathing’</p><p>-bo ‘continuative’ da-ka-bo ‘I am bathing’</p><p>-ka ‘perfect’ da-ka-ka ‘I have bathed’</p><p>-fa ‘future’ da-ka-fa ‘I will bathe’</p><p>-bia ‘inchoative’ da-ka-bia ‘in order that I bathe’</p><p>PARTICLES</p><p>bi ‘immediate past’ by-ka bi ‘you just bathed’</p><p>bona ‘intermediate</p><p>past’ by-ka bona ‘you bathed a while ago’</p><p>koba ‘distant past’ by-ka koba ‘you bathed long ago’</p><p>Figure 24. Tense/Aspect Suffixes and Particles</p><p>5.1.1 Tense, Aspect, or Both?</p><p>Up to this point, in all the discussions dealing with verb affixes, I have not separated nor</p><p>really discussed the categories of tense and aspect. Even the glosses given to the suffixes in</p><p>Figure 24 combine elements of what are traditionally treated separately as tense and as-</p><p>pect. This was not done because the difference between tense and aspect is insignificant, or</p><p>102 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>2The tense/aspect verb suffixes are integral parts of the verb word. They occur in a fixed order with respect to</p><p>other verb suffixes. Particles, on the other hand, have a freer distribution, and occur outside the complex of</p><p>morphemes comprising the verb word.</p><p>because it is insignificant in Arawak, but because the morphemes in Arawak used to en-</p><p>code tense and aspect seem to represent combinations of both.</p><p>As is done by Comrie (1985) and others (cf. Grimes 1975; Reichenbach 1947), for the</p><p>purposes of this discussion I will assume that time can be represented as a straight line. On</p><p>this line is a point labeled “S” which represents the moment of speech (the present). The</p><p>portion of the line to the left of the moment of speech represents the past, and the portion</p><p>to the right represents the future (Figure 25).</p><p>past S future</p><p>present</p><p>Figure 25. Representation of Time</p><p>Following Comrie (and many others), I will also assume there are basically two ways one</p><p>can relate a situation (generic for state, action, event, etc.) to the time line. One can speak</p><p>of locating a situation somewhere on the time line with respect to some other point on the</p><p>time line, such as the moment of speech, or one can speak of the internal temporal contour</p><p>of the situation, apart from its location on the time line. Comrie refers to the former as</p><p>“tense” and the latter as “aspect.” Tense, then, always has to do with whether a situation</p><p>is before, simultaneous with, or after some point on the line. Aspect, on the other hand,</p><p>has to do with questions such as duration, completion, or non-completion.</p><p>Many utterances place the “situation” they are about somewhere on the time line with</p><p>respect to the moment of speech (S).</p><p>In Arawak, the tense particles bi ‘immediate past’, bona ‘intermediate past’, and koba ‘distant past’</p><p>do exactly that. They place the situation on the time line with respect to the moment of speech.</p><p>Other utterances, however, seem to place situations on the time line with respect to some</p><p>other point or span on the line specified by the context of the utterance.</p><p>Comrie (following others such as Reichenbach 1947) therefore proposes that a second</p><p>point is needed on the time line which he calls “reference point” and labels ‘R’. Utterances</p><p>which position themselves on the time line with respect to the moment of speech (S) are</p><p>said to have “absolute tense,” whereas those which position themselves with respect to a</p><p>reference point (R) are said to have “relative tense” with respect to the event (E).</p><p>(235) relative present: E simul R</p><p>R S</p><p>E</p><p>Figure 26. Relative Present in the Past</p><p>Even in English, relative tense does not function just among clauses within a single sen-</p><p>tence. For example, Grimes (1975:76) points out that a sentence in the English historical</p><p>present such as</p><p>(236) First he goes and finds the girl, then he shows her the ring.</p><p>can either be a blow-by-blow description of something happening at the time of speaking,</p><p>or of something that happened in the past but “told so as to create an air of immediacy.”</p><p>5.1 Tense/Aspect Suffixes and Particles 103</p><p>As will be shown in later sections, the Arawak verb suffixes all indicate relative tense ac-</p><p>cording to the above definition. That is, in Arawak the context established by the discourse</p><p>sets up a reference point on the time line, and the suffixes locate a situation (E) with re-</p><p>spect to that point (R), not with respect to the point of speech (S). The tense particles, on</p><p>the other hand, are absolute tense particles, and locate events with regard to ‘S’.</p><p>Relative tense necessitates having to deal with the discourse context in which an utter-</p><p>ance is found and therefore complicates trying to isolate the components of meaning in</p><p>these suffixes. Fortunately, it is possible to skirt this problem to some extent. Isolated ut-</p><p>terances in Arawak seem to assume that the reference point on the time line for the utter-</p><p>ance is in the same location as the point of speech. This means that in isolated utterances</p><p>the distinction between relative and absolute tense disappears.</p><p>Assuming that tense and aspect are distinguishable from each other (and neutralizing for the mo-</p><p>ment the distinction between absolute and relative tense), it is possible to investigate the compo-</p><p>nents of meaning in the Arawak verb suffixes in Figure 24. Although there are additional overtones</p><p>in the meanings of the affixes, it appears that they can all be characterized by the intersection of a</p><p>set of tense features and aspect features (Figure 27). Each of the affixes says something about the lo-</p><p>cation of a situation with respect to a point on the time line. Each of the affixes also views the situa-</p><p>tion either from the outside as a whole, with no indication of internal composition, or from inside as</p><p>a situation which is in some sense in progress. This difference in the way of looking at the situation</p><p>corresponds quite well with the aspects Comrie (1976) labels the perfective and the imperfective.</p><p>With regard to the perfective aspect, he says:</p><p>The whole of the situation is presented as a single unanalyzable whole, with begin-</p><p>ning, middle, and end rolled into one; no attempt is made to divide this situation</p><p>up into the various individual phases that make up the action. (Comrie 1976:3)</p><p>With regard to the imperfective aspect, he says it is concerned with the internal temporal</p><p>structure of a situation, viewing a situation from within (Comrie 1976:24). He further</p><p>notes that it can include subdivisions such as habitual, continuous, and progressive.</p><p>ASPECT</p><p>Perfective Imperfective</p><p>Future -fa -bia</p><p>TENSE Present -ka -bo</p><p>Past -› -ja</p><p>Figure 27. Tense and Aspect of Verb Suffixes</p><p>Just characterizing the Arawak verb suffixes in terms of tense and aspect features does not</p><p>tell how they should be used nor how they translate into another language, like English, in a</p><p>consistent and straightforward way. Tense and aspect in some of the forms interact with the</p><p>type of situation described by the verb to give a composite meaning slightly different from</p><p>what one might expect. For example -ka ‘present perfective’ relates a stative or event verb to</p><p>the (relative) present. Its aspect views the situation from the outside as a completed whole</p><p>without regard to internal composition. When this affix is applied to stative verbs, it expresses</p><p>a situation which, in English, would be translated by the present tense.3</p><p>104 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>3From this point onward in this chapter, the tense/aspect suffix glosses will reflect the analysis in Figure 27.</p><p>(237) a.Alokosia-ka de.</p><p>thirsty-PRES.PERF I</p><p>‘I am thirsty.’</p><p>b. Khareme-ka no.</p><p>black-PRES.PERF it</p><p>‘It is black.’</p><p>c. Bahy loko-ka-i.</p><p>house in-PRES.PERF-he</p><p>‘He is in the house.’</p><p>d. Kawa-ka-i.</p><p>absent-PRES.PERF-he</p><p>‘He is gone.’</p><p>If one applies the same -ka suffix to an event verb, however, the meaning one gets says</p><p>something about both the past and the present. The participants of such a verb are in the</p><p>(relative) present, in the state of having completed the action of the verb; and the effects of</p><p>the verb, if any, are still true. In that sense, it is in the present tense. On the other hand,</p><p>since the event is now complete, the time span for that action must, of necessity, have</p><p>taken place in the past. For a verb such as ka ‘bathe’,</p><p>conjunction</p><p>CONT continuative/continuous/progressive</p><p>CONTR contrastive</p><p>D Dutch</p><p>DESID desiderative</p><p>EPEN epenthetic (for rhythm or syllable pattern)</p><p>EXPECT expected</p><p>FUT future</p><p>HABIL habilitative</p><p>H/HUM human</p><p>IMPF imperfective</p><p>INCH inchoative</p><p>INDIC indicative</p><p>INFL inflection</p><p>INTERJ interjection</p><p>INSTR instrument</p><p>IO indirect object</p><p>LSAP left sentential adjunction position</p><p>LOC generalized location, at</p><p>x</p><p>M/MASC</p><p>n</p><p>masculine</p><p>noun</p><p>NESS necessitative</p><p>NGEN noun generalizer</p><p>NH non-human</p><p>NM</p><p>num</p><p>non-masculine</p><p>number</p><p>OBJ</p><p>p</p><p>object</p><p>particle</p><p>PERF perfect, perfective</p><p>PL plural</p><p>PLACE derive place noun from other noun</p><p>POSS</p><p>pp</p><p>possessed</p><p>postposition</p><p>PRES present</p><p>PRIV</p><p>pro</p><p>privative</p><p>pronoun</p><p>PRO pronominal</p><p>PRON</p><p>quant</p><p>qw</p><p>rp</p><p>pronoun</p><p>quantifier</p><p>question word</p><p>relative pronoun</p><p>SG/SING</p><p>SP</p><p>ST</p><p>singular</p><p>Spanish</p><p>Sranan Tongo</p><p>SUB subordinate, nominalizer</p><p>SUBJ subject</p><p>THING nominalizer (an instrument)</p><p>tw time word</p><p>UNEXP</p><p>vd</p><p>vi</p><p>vs</p><p>vt</p><p>unexpected</p><p>verb ditransitive</p><p>verb intransitive</p><p>verb stative</p><p>verb transitive</p><p>WH.OBJ/WH.O object-relativizer</p><p>WH.SUBJ/WH.S subject-relativizer</p><p>Abbreviations xi</p><p>Part 1</p><p>Grammar</p><p>Chapter 1</p><p>Introduction</p><p>Arawak, known as Lokono Dian ‘people’s talk’ by its speakers, is the mother tongue of</p><p>at least 700 Amerindians of Suriname, South America, and is also spoken by an unde-</p><p>termined number of Arawaks in Guyana and French Guiana, and may extend into east-</p><p>ern Venezuela. Many more people claim to be Arawaks, or are of Arawak descent, but</p><p>no longer speak the language. In Suriname and Guyana all speakers are older adults</p><p>(Lewis 2009:305).</p><p>According to George Huttar (personal communication following a visit to the Arawak</p><p>area of Suriname in 2009), in the villages relatively accessible to the capital and to major</p><p>roads, it is those in their fifties and older who are fully fluent; younger adults understand</p><p>Arawak well but do not speak it well enough to use it with their children. It is possible that</p><p>in extreme western and extreme eastern Suriname there are some children who are native</p><p>speakers of Arawak.</p><p>Arawak is universally regarded as belonging to the Arawakan language family (see</p><p>Figure 1), which is one of the most widespread families found in South America (see</p><p>Noble 1965; Ruhlen 1975; Payne 1991; Aikhenvald 1999) and which formerly was also</p><p>widespread in the Caribbean (see Taylor 1977; Olsen 1974). In fact, people speaking a</p><p>form of Arawak very close to what is described in the following pages may have been</p><p>among the “Indians” whom Columbus met on his first journey to the New World</p><p>(Taylor 1977; Olsen 1974).</p><p>2</p><p>Western</p><p>Amuesha (Yaneshaø)</p><p>Chamicuro</p><p>Central</p><p>Mehinaku</p><p>Parecís</p><p>Waurá</p><p>Yawalapití</p><p>Southern</p><p>Bolivia-Parana</p><p>Terêna</p><p>Bauré</p><p>Ignaciano</p><p>Trinitario</p><p>Purús</p><p>Apurinã</p><p>Iñapari</p><p>Mashco Piro</p><p>Manchinere</p><p>Yine (Piro)</p><p>Kampan</p><p>Asháninka</p><p>Ashéninka</p><p>Caquinte</p><p>Matsigenka</p><p>Nanti</p><p>Nomatsiguenga</p><p>Eastern</p><p>Palicur</p><p>Northern</p><p>Wapishana</p><p>Caribbean</p><p>Garífuna</p><p>TA-Arawakan</p><p>Lokono (Arawak)</p><p>Guajiro (Wayuu)</p><p>Paraujano</p><p>Taino</p><p>Inland</p><p>North-Amazon</p><p>Resígaro</p><p>Río Negro</p><p>Achagua</p><p>Baniwa of Içana</p><p>Cabiyarí</p><p>Curripaco</p><p>Piapoco</p><p>Tariana</p><p>Yucuna</p><p>Yavitero</p><p>Figure 1. Internal Classification of Arawakan Languages (adapted from Payne 1991:489)</p><p>Introduction 3</p><p>1.1 General Comments about Arawak</p><p>Typologically, Arawak is primarily a right-branching, SVO (subject-verb-object) language,1</p><p>but with postpositions rather than prepositions. With few exceptions, adjectives and other</p><p>noun modifiers precede the nouns modified. The subject of a clause is obligatory except in</p><p>some clauses that seem equivalent to English infinitival clauses. In other words, Arawak is a</p><p>configurational and non-pro-drop language. Morphologically, Arawak is agglutinative. For ex-</p><p>ample, one class of verbs has a class of prefixes and at least eight ordered classes of suffixes.</p><p>1.2 Previous Studies of Arawak</p><p>Although there are numerous Arawak word lists and transcriptions, and descriptive state-</p><p>ments about Arawak, some dating back to as early as 1598 (Brinton 1871:1), at the time of</p><p>writing no adequate description of Arawak was available in the literature. Available pub-</p><p>lished sources fall into two groups: outdated studies, and recent, but limited ones. This is</p><p>not to imply that either the older or the more recent studies were or are poorly done. The</p><p>older studies were as complete as the missionaries, anthropologists, and linguists of that</p><p>day could make them, given the state of linguistics (or philology) then and given the focus</p><p>of interest which the writers brought to their work. The more recent studies are limited</p><p>only because the scopes of the studies were explicitly very limited, or because the research</p><p>time was limited. In neither the older nor more recent studies did the investigators attempt</p><p>to relate their observations to phrase or sentence structure.</p><p>The best and most complete example of the older studies is de Goeje (1928). It deals with</p><p>some of the major lexical and morphological classes and discusses at length some interest-</p><p>ing observations about sound symbolism in the language. Although much of the classifica-</p><p>tion and analysis done in the book is outdated, the book contains a wealth of information</p><p>in its examples. Even here, however, one must exercise caution since examples are drawn</p><p>from no fewer than 66 works spanning two centuries, in addition to de Goeje’s own field-</p><p>work. Because de Goeje worked almost completely from published sources,2 and almost all</p><p>the authors of those sources were no longer living at the time he wrote, he was at a great</p><p>disadvantage when it came to assigning phonetic values to transcriptions and to determin-</p><p>ing glosses for many of the words and morphemes. This is reflected throughout his work</p><p>and leads to literally scores of errors such as overdifferentiating forms. For example, he</p><p>lists adi with a meaning of ‘upon (in an abstract sense)’ (p. 125) and a word aji with a</p><p>meaning of ‘more than’ (p. 126). However, these forms were transcribed by different</p><p>sources who apparently used different orthographies. As a matter of fact, these forms are</p><p>identical. Arawak palatalizes /d/ preceding /i/; thus, both forms are transcriptions of the</p><p>postposition [ad‚i] /adi/ ‘more than or above’. In addition to these transcription problems,</p><p>the mixing of Arawak from different times and sometimes from very different locations</p><p>(e.g. Trinidad, as well as Guyana and Suriname) often results in a confused picture.</p><p>More recent studies have been published primarily in the International Journal of Ameri-</p><p>can Linguistics by authors such as Nancy Hickerson and Douglas Taylor between 1953 and</p><p>1977 (see the bibliography). In addition, there exists an insightful article by van Renselaar</p><p>and Voorhoeve (1962). In all cases, the scope of these studies is very narrow. The authors</p><p>restricted themselves to dealing almost exclusively with individual aspects of phonology,</p><p>4 Introduction</p><p>1See sections on stative sentences (3.2.3) for exceptions.</p><p>2His fieldwork in Suriname was limited to approximately two weeks “to clear up several doubtful points” (de</p><p>Goeje 1928:4).</p><p>morphology, and ethnography. Any information as to phrase or clause structure must be</p><p>gleaned from their examples. An additional limitation of the more recent studies is that</p><p>they were generally based on very limited fieldwork. Hickerson’s data were collected in a</p><p>six-month period of work with speakers of the language and are combined with (sometimes</p><p>questionable) analysis and data from the de Goeje volume mentioned above (Hickerson</p><p>1953:181). Van Renselaar and Voorhoeve’s article was based on three months of intermit-</p><p>tent work with an Arawak speaker in Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname, and two days in</p><p>an Arawak village (p. 328 footnote). Taylor’s data were collected in periods totaling about</p><p>15 months between 1967 and 1969 (Taylor 1970a:199 footnote). Of all the recent studies,</p><p>Taylor’s articles were particularly helpful to me in the initial phases of studying Arawak.</p><p>However, as work progressed, shortcomings became apparent. For example, several</p><p>conclusions with</p><p>where the states before (e.g. dirty)</p><p>and after (e.g. clean) can be viewed as different, the Arawak present perfective can be</p><p>translated in a straightforward way by the English present perfective.</p><p>(238) Da-ka-ka.</p><p>I-bathe-PRES.PERF</p><p>‘I have bathed.’</p><p>However, the English translation of the Arawak present perfective of an event verb such as</p><p>yjin ‘to weep’, where a change of state is less clearly evident, almost makes it seem as if -ka</p><p>is a past tense suffix. That is, in most situations where it occurs, it is more naturally trans-</p><p>lated by the English past tense.</p><p>(239) Th-yja-ka.</p><p>she-weep-PRES.PERF</p><p>‘She wept.’</p><p>Nevertheless, for Arawak, what is in focus is that, at the (relative) present moment, the</p><p>person is in the state of having done the action of weeping.</p><p>The suffixes labeled ‘Imperfective’ in Figure 27 also deserve some comments. As was men-</p><p>tioned above, each of these suffixes views the situation from the inside—that is, from the middle</p><p>of the action of the situation. This, again, interacts with the type of situation being described, as</p><p>well as with the tense of the situation. The present imperfective suffix -bo views the action ex-</p><p>pressed by an event verb from the inside in the present. This gives a continuous meaning.</p><p>(240) Da-dalhida-bo.</p><p>he-run-PRES.IMPF</p><p>‘He is running.’</p><p>5.1 Tense/Aspect Suffixes and Particles 105</p><p>However, when this suffix is applied to a stative verb, where no action is inherent in the</p><p>verb itself, it gets the progressive meaning of being in the state expressed by the verb,</p><p>where that state is intensifying.</p><p>(241) Alokosia-bo de.</p><p>thirsty-PRES.IMPF I</p><p>‘I am getting thirstier and thirstier.’</p><p>This latter meaning is close to that which is expressed by the future imperfective suffix</p><p>-bia. If this suffix is applied to a stative verb, it has an inchoative meaning. The state ex-</p><p>pressed by the verb is not present yet, but will be coming or is in the process of coming</p><p>into existence.</p><p>(242) Alokosia-bia de.</p><p>thirsty-FUT.IMPF I</p><p>‘I am getting/will be getting thirsty.’</p><p>The use of this suffix does not imply, however, that the state expressed by the verb will</p><p>ever be reached (as -fa ‘future perfective’ does.) This is true when it is used with event</p><p>verbs also. In fact, the uncertainty of the outcome of the situation expressed by the verb</p><p>allows this aspect/tense to be exploited to express the concept of ‘in order to’ in Arawak.</p><p>(243) Ly-nekhebo-bo minkho, li-sikin-n-bia bokolho-ho ly-sa-be myn.</p><p>he-work-PRES.IMPF very he-give-SUB-FUT.IMPF cloth-NGEN his-child-PL to</p><p>‘He is working hard in order to give his children clothes.’</p><p>5.2 Tense/Aspect in Narrative Discourse</p><p>One of the problems in describing the tense/aspect verb suffixes in Arawak is that, while</p><p>their meanings seem to be clear in isolated utterances, yet in the context of other sen-</p><p>tences, their meanings seem to shift. For example, the present imperfective, future perfec-</p><p>tive, and imperfective suffixes -bo, -fa and -bia, respectively, are found in narratives where</p><p>they are all clearly relating past situations when the location of the situation on a time line</p><p>is considered relative to the moment of speech. Thus in the Bus Story, just at the point the</p><p>bus starts breaking down, all three of the above suffixes and the simple past and present</p><p>perfective occur within the space of three adjacent sentences.</p><p>(244) a.Taha Java-nro wa-kisi-KA osa-BIA.</p><p>far.away Java-to we-try-PRES.PERF go-FUT.IMPF</p><p>‘We tried to go all the way to Java (another village in the interior).’</p><p>b. Wakhaja-› kho w-osy-n atynoa khona balhin.</p><p>bad-PAST.PERF not we-go-SUB at.first on although</p><p>‘(Compared to what would happen,) we did travel well at first.’</p><p>c. Ma to wa-tatonoan-BO khi, thy-boado-FA to falhetho-dalhidi-koana w-abo.</p><p>but the we-be.far.away-PRES.IMPF thusly it-break-FUT.PERF the white.man-run-thing-us-with</p><p>‘Although, when we were getting far away from home, it broke down, the bus, on us.’</p><p>106 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>As mentioned earlier, a narrative is built around a series of events. Progress in the story</p><p>can be viewed in terms of moving the relative event pointer (‘E’ in Figure 26) forward (to</p><p>the right) on the time line.</p><p>At the point that an author or speaker starts a narrative, the relative event pointer (E) is</p><p>located at the same position on the time line as the moment of speech (S). The author can</p><p>then use one of two means to move E relative to S. One of these means is to use an explicit</p><p>time adverbial such as miaka ‘yesterday’ or an expression such as ‘one Sunday’. For exam-</p><p>ple, in the Bus Story, the author starts with</p><p>(245) Aba sondakha mothia ...</p><p>one Sunday morning</p><p>‘One Sunday morning ...’</p><p>The other means is to use an absolute tense particle with or without a time adverbial to further</p><p>specify the time. For example, other stories establish their starting points as follows:</p><p>(246) a.The Jaguar Story:</p><p>Abahan koba, wakharo sabo kho to ...</p><p>once long.ago now more not is</p><p>‘Once, a very long time ago ...’</p><p>b. The Bomb Story:</p><p>Abahan, bikhidolia d-a-n kha ...</p><p>once, young I-dummy.verb-SUB time</p><p>‘Once, when I was young ...’</p><p>c. The Tapir Story (oral):</p><p>Aba koba d-osa-› koba ...</p><p>one long.ago I-go-PAST.PERF long.ago</p><p>‘Once, a long time ago, I went ...’</p><p>Once the relative event pointer E has been established, some clauses cause movement of E, while</p><p>others do not. The tense/aspect suffixes seem to be crucial in determining this movement. For</p><p>example, the suffix -bo ‘present imperfective’ can be used nearly anywhere in a discourse when</p><p>the author intends to relate an event that occurs over a span of time but does not want to advance</p><p>the pointer. Clauses with this affix tend to convey the setting up of explanatory information.</p><p>Thus in the Jaguar Story, the author mentions going to the creek near which he rested, and at</p><p>that point he adds, by way of explanation, that there is where he was working.</p><p>(247) a.D-osa-› Korobali-nro thy-n-ba oniabo.</p><p>I-go-PAST.PERF Korobali.creek-toward drink-SUB-AWAY water</p><p>‘I went over to the Korobali creek to drink water.’</p><p>b. Jon maria nekhebo-thi-na-BO-da de.</p><p>there area work-WH.SUBJ-UNEXP-PRES.IMPF-EPEN I</p><p>‘Near there I happened to be working.’</p><p>5.2 Tense/Aspect in Narrative Discourse 107</p><p>A bit later in the same story, after the brother-in-law and his grandchildren had come to</p><p>the field, the author says:</p><p>(248) a.Ken na-lhyka-BO sikalho.</p><p>and they-cut-PRES.IMPF sugarcane</p><p>‘And they were cutting-BO sugarcane.’</p><p>b. De kho amadiaro khonan-ra-BO.</p><p>I not nothing about-expected-PRES.IMPF</p><p>‘I wasn’t-BO (thinking) about anything’</p><p>c. Da-nekhebo ron khonan-thi-BO-da ba.</p><p>my-work only about-WH.SUBJ-PRES.IMPF-EPEN also</p><p>‘I was-BO only (thinking) about my work’</p><p>d. Siokhanin khi, abare l-a-› minkho simaka-n</p><p>little.while thusly suddenly he-dummy-PAST.PERF much yell-SUB</p><p>li d-orebithi...</p><p>the my-brother.in.law</p><p>‘After a little while of this, suddenly my brother-in-law let out-PAST.PERF a great yell.’</p><p>In this last passage, only the last sentence causes movement along the time line. The cut-</p><p>ting of the cane, working in the field, and thinking are all part of the background or back-</p><p>drop upon which the central events happen. This means that the various tense/aspect</p><p>suffixes seem to have to do not only with movement or lack of movement along the time</p><p>line, but also with the types of information conveyed.</p><p>5.2.1 Foreground and Background Information</p><p>A number of investigators (e.g. Grimes 1975; Longacre 1976 and 1983; Hopper 1979) have</p><p>documented various types of information in a discourse. One of the most widely recognized</p><p>distinctions is between what may be called “foreground” and “background” information.4</p><p>It is evidently a universal of narrative discourse that in any extended text an</p><p>overt distinction is made between the language of the actual story line and the</p><p>language of supportive material which does not itself narrate the main events.</p><p>(Hopper 1979:213)</p><p>Those parts of a narrative which belong to the skeletal structure of the discourse (e.g. the</p><p>temporal succession of events in a narrative)</p><p>are the “foreground,” while those which do</p><p>not belong to the skeletal structure are “background.”</p><p>Hopper (e.g. 1979, 1982) and others (e.g. Jones and Jones 1984; Li, Thompson, and</p><p>Thompson 1982) have documented a number of languages in which there is a strong corre-</p><p>lation between the aspect of sentences and whether they present foreground or background</p><p>information. Sentences in the perfective aspect almost always seem to present foreground</p><p>information, while imperfective sentences are associated with background information.</p><p>This is not to say these are the only signals for foregrounding or backgrounding. For exam-</p><p>ple, Hopper (1979) also discusses the correlation of these concepts with word order and</p><p>108 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>4Terminology for these types of information varies. For example, Longacre (1984:14ff.) calls these “main line”</p><p>and “supportive,” respectively.</p><p>voice in a number of languages. Nevertheless, when a language has a perfective-</p><p>imperfective contrast, it seems to be the case that the imperfective aspect is used to relate</p><p>background information.</p><p>If one looks at the use of the various tense/aspect suffixes in Arawak, there does seem to</p><p>be a very strong tendency for the imperfective to be used for background information. Ex-</p><p>amples above already illustrate the use of the present imperfective suffix -bo to present de-</p><p>scriptive expansions of events concurrent with the foreground or main narrated event.</p><p>This is exactly parallel to observations Hopper (e.g. 1979:114) makes about Swahili and</p><p>other languages.</p><p>The difference between the sentences in the foreground...and the ones in the</p><p>background...has to do with sequentiality. The foregrounded events succeed</p><p>one another in the narrative in the same order as their succession in the real</p><p>world; it is in other words in iconic order. The backgrounded events, on the</p><p>other hand, are not in sequence to the foregrounded events, but are concurrent</p><p>with them. Because of this feature of simultaneity, backgrounded events usu-</p><p>ally amplify or comment on the events of the main narrative. (Hopper</p><p>1979:214)</p><p>5.2.2 Other Kinds of Information in a Discourse</p><p>Like Hopper, Grimes (1975) also distinguishes the main succession of events in a narra-</p><p>tive from other information. However, his taxonomy of those kinds of information is finer</p><p>grained. In particular, he (1975:51–70) distinguishes the following types of information in</p><p>a narrative:</p><p>1. Setting Information: when, where, and under what circumstances actions take</p><p>place.</p><p>2.Background Information: information which is not part of the narrative itself, but</p><p>stands outside it and clarifies it.</p><p>3.Evaluative Information: information which tells how the speaker feels about the</p><p>state of the world at a particular point in the narrative.</p><p>4.Collateral Information: information which, instead of telling what did happen, tells</p><p>what did not happen.</p><p>Grimes points out that each of these types of information in a particular language may in-</p><p>volve distinctive grammatical constructions. For example, he mentions that setting infor-</p><p>mation typically involves time and locative expressions, and collateral information often</p><p>involves negatives, adversatives, and questions such as yes-no questions. Tense displace-</p><p>ment (i.e. relative tense) is also characteristic of certain types of information. For example,</p><p>Grimes (1975:77ff.) points out that it is characteristic of the antecedent events and fore-</p><p>shadowing used in presenting background information. Also, collateral information “in-</p><p>volving questions and predictions regularly signals displacement into the future” (p. 77).</p><p>In Arawak, the suffix -bia ‘future imperfective’ seems to be associated with background</p><p>information (in Grimes’ sense) of the foreshadowing type. That is, it is generally used with</p><p>statements of very generic events which then provide the framework within which the ac-</p><p>tual succession of events in the narrative are presented. For example, it is used twice in</p><p>the Bus Story. One of these times is in the last sentence of the introduction, just as the trip</p><p>is about to start:</p><p>5.2 Tense/Aspect in Narrative Discourse 109</p><p>(249) Taha Java-nro wa-kisi-ka osa-BIA.</p><p>far.away Java-toward we-try-PRES.PERF go-FUT.IMPF</p><p>‘We tried to go all the way to the village of Java.’</p><p>All the events following this sentence, up to the breakdown of the bus, are covered by the</p><p>word ‘go’ to which the -bia is attached. The second occurrence of this suffix is just before</p><p>the return home:</p><p>(250) Ken wa-sifoda-NBIA-the.</p><p>and we-turn.around-FUT.IMPF-BACK</p><p>‘And we started back.’</p><p>Again, the events following this sentence represent a spelling out in detail of the going</p><p>back. Similarly, in the Jaguar Story, the sentence introducing the sequence concerned with</p><p>the successful killing of the jaguar is as follows:</p><p>(251) Ken l-osy-NBIA li bikhidoliathi.</p><p>and he-go-FUT.IMPF the young.man</p><p>‘And the young man set off.’</p><p>The whole of the hunting sequence that follows may be subsumed under this sentence.</p><p>5.2.3 Tension in a Narrative and Tense/Aspect</p><p>As has already been implied, the various types of information are not evenly distributed</p><p>in a discourse. Thus, one obvious statement that could be made is that, in a narrative, one</p><p>would typically expect to find more setting information near the beginning of the narrative</p><p>as a whole, or near the beginning of major sections in the narrative, than in the middle of</p><p>the heat of the action. The distribution of other types of information is not as obvious.</p><p>Nevertheless, there are consistent patterns which emerge. For example, Labov and</p><p>Waletsky (1967) discuss the occurrence of what they call “evaluative” statements at the</p><p>suspension point in English between the complication part of a narrative and the resolu-</p><p>tion. One way to describe parts of a narrative and the distribution of various types of</p><p>information in them is in terms of plot structure.</p><p>A number of authors have dealt with plot structure. Perhaps one of the first to do a close</p><p>analysis was Propp (1928) who dealt with the structure of folk or fairy tales. More re-</p><p>cently, others such as Grimes (1975) and Longacre (1976, 1983) have dealt with plot on a</p><p>rather abstract level, and yet others (e.g. various articles in Longacre 1984) have published</p><p>studies about, and relating to, plot structure in specific languages.</p><p>Longacre (1976:197ff. and 1983:20ff.) posits the existence of both “surface struc-</p><p>ture” and “deep structure” plots and a mapping of the one to the other. The deep</p><p>structure plot is viewed in some sense as a language universal for narrative dis-</p><p>course.5 The specifics of the surface structure plot may have language-particular</p><p>characteristics, and may also show variation from narrative to narrative. In the fol-</p><p>lowing discussion, I assume an analysis of plot essentially like Longacre’s.</p><p>110 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>5This is not to exclude other discourse genres. “Something like plot characterizes other forms of discourse than</p><p>narrative” (Longacre 1976:212). For example, he mentions: “There are plot-like elements in procedural</p><p>discourse. We may think of the whole procedural discourse as reflecting a struggle to accomplish the goal of</p><p>discourse, to carry through an activity, or to produce a product” (Longacre 1983:38).</p><p>One of the most universally mentioned and commented-upon features of a plot is the pro-</p><p>gressive (sometimes steady, sometimes episodic) building toward a climax or peak. The char-</p><p>acteristics of this peak have been well documented for a number of languages and include</p><p>things such as heightened vividness, changes of pace, changes in average sentence length, con-</p><p>centration of participants, and shifts in tense or person orientation (e.g. Longacre 1976, 1984;</p><p>Grimes 1975). The building toward the peak is characterized by Longacre and others (e.g.</p><p>Jones and Jones 1984; Walrod 1984) as a “knotting up” or “building of tension.” What is</p><p>meant by these terms is a combination of rather psychological-sounding</p><p>factors such as excite-</p><p>ment, complication, anticipation, and puzzlement. Although these sound ephemeral, Arawak</p><p>speakers use several concrete devices to bring them about.</p><p>One of these devices is to use contrastive constructions or constructions which denote</p><p>breaks in expectancy chains (cf. Longacre 1976:150ff). For example, note the use of balhin</p><p>‘although’ and ma ‘but’ in the following passage taken from the Bus Story.</p><p>(252) a.Wakhaja-› kho w-osy-n atynoa khona BALHIN.</p><p>bad-PAST.PERF not we-go-SUB at.first on although</p><p>‘(Compared to what would happen,) we did travel well at first.’</p><p>b. MA to wa-tatonoa-n-BO khi, thy-boado-fa to</p><p>but the we-be.far.away-SUB-PRES.IMPF thusly it-break-FUT.PERF the</p><p>falhetho-dalhidi-koana w-abo.</p><p>white.man-run-thing us-with</p><p>‘But when we were getting far away from home, it broke down, the bus, on us.’</p><p>In the Jaguar Story, when the author is asked for his gun, but on that particular day just</p><p>happened to have left it at home, the reader is even alerted to the fact that this was not his</p><p>usual practice.</p><p>Another tension-building device used is to highlight what might have been (or should</p><p>have been or would be) with negative statements and statements implying something other</p><p>than the apparent situation. This corresponds well to Grimes’ (1975:64ff) collateral infor-</p><p>mation. Thus in the Bomb Story, the author tells of playing with the bomb in blissful un-</p><p>awareness of the danger:</p><p>(253) a.Ma we kho etha-bo amaha-n-da no.</p><p>but we not know-PRES.IMPF be.what-SUB it</p><p>‘But we didn’t know what it was.’</p><p>b. ... sa thiake th-a-bo wa-myn.</p><p>good seemingly it-dummy-PRES.IMPF us-BEN</p><p>‘... it seemed good to us.’</p><p>Later in the story, he relates returning to the bomb and playing with it again:</p><p>(254) W-eitha-na kho odaha khona to wa-birabirady-n-bo.</p><p>we-know-UNEXP not death on the we-play.around-SUB-PRES.IMPF</p><p>‘We didn’t know (but should have) that we were playing around with death.’</p><p>In all these tension-building passages, in addition to the negatives, counter expectation</p><p>particles and suffixes, etc., one also finds a similarity in aspect. That is, all the passages</p><p>5.2 Tense/Aspect in Narrative Discourse 111</p><p>contain frequent occurrences of the present imperfective suffix -bo. This is consistent with</p><p>the fact that they do not present main events (i.e. foregrounded information). However,</p><p>foregrounded events can also contribute toward the building of tension.</p><p>One of the puzzles with regard to the use of the tense/aspect suffixes in Arawak has been</p><p>the use of the future perfective suffix -fa in discourse.6 Unlike clauses with the imperfective</p><p>suffixes which relate background (including foreshadowing), setting, and collateral infor-</p><p>mation, clauses with -fa seem to represent foreground information—they relate the main</p><p>events. However, -fa clauses are not evenly distributed in a discourse. They almost all oc-</p><p>cur just before the peak of a story or episode. My feeling is that using -fa in clauses is an-</p><p>other tension-building device. For example, in the Bomb Story, after finding the bomb,</p><p>playing with it, leaving it behind to go fishing, and catching fish (all of which are low-</p><p>tension), the author suddenly uses -fa a number of times in relating the final events leading</p><p>up to the explosion. He uses it in the sentences telling of their arrival at the place they had</p><p>left the bomb, his brother carrying it, and lastly the explosion itself.</p><p>(255) a.Ken kho, w-andy-FA jontho w-eibin to amathali wa-boroanoa-da.</p><p>and not we-arrive-FUT.PERF there.where we-leave.behind the thing we-save-EPEN</p><p>‘And then it was that we arrived there where we had left the thing we had saved.’</p><p>b. De nakaratoa th-abo, ken jontho methe-n-da de,</p><p>I hauled it-INSTR and there.where tired-SUB-EPEN I</p><p>li d-okhithi nykhy-n-FA da-dikhi-da no</p><p>the my-younger.brother carry-SUB-FUT.PERF me-behind-EPEN it</p><p>‘I hauled it, and when I got tired, my brother carried it behind me (i.e. the two carried</p><p>it together).’</p><p>c. Ken kho, thy-tholady-FA to th-andy-n holholho diakon.</p><p>and not it-explode-FUT.PERF the it-arrive-SUB ground on</p><p>‘And then, it exploded when it touched the ground.’</p><p>These sentences are interspersed with other tension-building collateral and evaluative</p><p>sentences. Immediately following the last of the above sentences is the actual peak of the</p><p>narrative: the explosion of the bomb and the immediate aftermath. It is as though the use</p><p>of -fa imparts a sense of anticipation of what is to come.</p><p>The tension-building function of the use of -fa ‘future perfective’ prior to the peak of a narra-</p><p>tive becomes clearer when it is contrasted with the use of its present counterpart, the suffix -ka</p><p>‘present perfective’. Like -fa, -ka appears in clauses relating foreground information. Unlike</p><p>-fa, however, clauses with -ka occur in low-tension portions of a narrative. For example, in the</p><p>Bomb Story, the first episode consists of finding the bomb, playing with it, subsequently leav-</p><p>ing it to go fishing, and fishing. From the point that the bomb is left behind (i.e. after the most</p><p>tense part of the first episode) through the fishing scene, up to the point of the arrival back to</p><p>the place the bomb was left, the author uses -ka. For example, the two clauses below taken</p><p>from this section would be just as acceptable (but not as dramatic) if the -ka were left off.7</p><p>112 Aspectual Particles and the Contribution of Discourse to Arawak Syntax</p><p>6The suffix -fa does not occur in all narratives; but when it occurs, its usage seems to be consistent.</p><p>7In some cases, such as in sentences with stative verbs, the use of -ka is required. For example,</p><p>De ron ka-bode-ka.</p><p>I only ATTR-hook-PRES.PERF</p><p>‘Only I had a hook.’</p><p>(256) a.Da-bodeda-KA-da.</p><p>I-fish-PRES.PERF-EPEN</p><p>‘I fished (with a hook)’</p><p>b. Tho-toka khan-KA da-myn.</p><p>they-peck diminutive-PRES.PERF me-BEN</p><p>‘They sort of bit for me.’</p><p>What is very striking is that immediately following the sequence of clauses with -ka</p><p>is the previously related series of -fa sentences, and thus there is a sharp contrast be-</p><p>tween them. In terms of the relative event pointer, just before the author reaches the</p><p>peak of a narrative, he seems to suspend its movement along the time line.8 The partic-</p><p>ular temporal location he “parks” himself at is just before the most tension-filled events</p><p>are about to occur. From this vantage point, he then describes the situation, looking</p><p>backward at low-tension events and forward in time to the events directly leading to</p><p>the peak. Then, suddenly— Boom! We are in the midst of the peak.</p><p>(257) Boemmm!! Sioko kho-tho thy-thoradyn dase.</p><p>boom small not-WH.SUB it-explode exclamation</p><p>‘Boom!! Boy, was it a big explosion.</p><p>The Story concludes with -ka as the last tense-aspect suffix.</p><p>5.2 Tense/Aspect in Narrative Discourse 113</p><p>8This is perhaps another manifestation of something like the Labov and Waletsky (1974) “point of suspension.”</p><p>Chapter 6</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>As stated in the introduction, the purpose of this study is primarily to provide a general</p><p>description of Arawak as it is spoken in Suriname, South America. There are many limit-</p><p>ing factors in such an undertaking, not the least of which are time and energy. For these</p><p>and many other reasons, the preceding chapters are incomplete and, probably, flawed in</p><p>many respects. Nevertheless, the hope is that it provides enough of a glimpse into this rel-</p><p>atively undescribed language to make it useful as a testing ground for linguistic theories of</p><p>a more abstract or general nature.</p><p>6.1 Summary</p><p>In the following paragraphs, I summarize some of the more interesting aspects of Arawak</p><p>syntax and semantics that have come to light in the course of this study.</p><p>Typologically, Arawak is primarily a right-branching SVO language, except that stative</p><p>and attributive sentences have a VS pattern. Most noun modifiers precede their heads, and</p><p>the language has postpositions, rather than prepositions. Question words, relative pro-</p><p>nouns, and focused constituents appear at the left periphery of the sentence.</p><p>Arawak has both free and mophologically bound, pre-head and post-head pronouns.</p><p>The</p><p>pronouns are not marked for grammatical or semantic case, and they have singular and</p><p>plural first-, second-, and third-person forms. Arawak definite articles are essentially iden-</p><p>tical to the pronouns; and demonstratives incorporate the pronouns as their first</p><p>morphological component.</p><p>Arawak has a number and gender system which distinguishes the features [+/– human],</p><p>[+/– male], and [+/– plural]. The features [+/– human] and [+/– male] are affected by</p><p>the speaker’s viewpoint. The feature [+/– plural] is generally significant only for [+hu-</p><p>man] referents. This number and gender system is found in its fullest form in the third-</p><p>person pronouns. It is also evident to a lesser extent in articles and demonstratives, and it</p><p>affects the choice of nominalizing, pluralizing, and relativizing suffixes.</p><p>The Arawak counting system is a combination of base-five, base-ten, and base-twenty</p><p>numbers. Five is ‘one my hand’; ten is ‘two my hand’; fifteen is ‘one my hand on two my</p><p>hand’; twenty is ‘one man’. After this point, the pattern repeats.</p><p>(258) bian-loko-diako-bian-da-khabo-diako-bian</p><p>two-man-on-two-my-hand-on-two</p><p>‘fifty two’</p><p>114</p><p>Arawak distinguishes two main classes of verbs: event verbs and stative verbs. There ap-</p><p>pear to be no descriptive adjectives in Arawak; almost all concepts which would be ex-</p><p>pressed by adjectives in English are expressed by means of stative verbs in Arawak.</p><p>Syntactically, Arawak is a non-pro-drop configurational language.1 Arawak sentences can</p><p>have both a TOPIC position and a COMP-like one which I call LSAP (Left Sentence</p><p>Adjunction Position). Constituents in the TOPIC position bear no grammatical relationship</p><p>to the rest of the sentence, while those in the LSAP do—they are always associated with a</p><p>gap elsewhere in the sentence. This makes the LSAP seem very similar to an English</p><p>COMP. However, movement of question words, focused constituents, and relative pro-</p><p>nouns in Arawak is clause bounded. Arawak also has no generalized complementizer like</p><p>English ‘that’.</p><p>One of the more interesting aspects of Arawak flows from the description of what hap-</p><p>pens to an Arawak sentence when various constituents are fronted to the LSAP. Constitu-</p><p>ents such as the direct object, the indirect object, time phrases, and locational phrases can</p><p>be questioned or otherwise fronted to the LSAP without further consequences to the struc-</p><p>ture of the sentence. However, the questioning or focusing of manner adverbials or negated</p><p>verbs is accompanied by the obligatory insertion into the sentence of a semantically empty</p><p>“dummy verb,” to which the morphologically bound subject pronoun and tense/aspect</p><p>affixes are then attached.</p><p>Arawak has both pre-head and post-head relative clauses. Post-head ones generally seem</p><p>to be “heavier” than pre-head ones. Pre-head relative clauses never occur with relative pro-</p><p>nouns, while post-head ones optionally do. Subject and object relativization is accompa-</p><p>nied by the addition of special suffixes to the verb. Arawak, in general, does not allow</p><p>postposition stranding when objects of postpositions are questioned or relativized. How-</p><p>ever, the indirect object postposition myn can be stranded when its object NP is relativized.</p><p>Arawak has a set of six tense/aspect suffixes which, when analyzed along lines proposed</p><p>by Comrie (1976, 1985), seem to represent an intersection of the relative past, relative</p><p>present, and relative future tenses with the imperfective and perfective aspects. Arawak</p><p>also has several particles which represent absolute tense. In addition to simply conveying</p><p>temporal and aspectual information, the suffixes and particles are also used to highlight</p><p>different kinds of information in a discourse. That is, in narratives there seems to be a cor-</p><p>relation between the use of perfective-aspect suffixes with foreground information and the</p><p>use of imperfective-aspect suffixes with background information.</p><p>6.2 Areas Needing Further Research</p><p>There are a number of concerns which deserve fuller treatment than they are given in</p><p>this study. One of these relates to the syntax of verbs in Arawak. As mentioned in Section</p><p>2.4.1.1, Arawak event verbs have three stem forms: a basic stem, an a-stem, and an</p><p>oa-stem. In addition, event (as well as stative) verb stems may receive the causative suffix</p><p>-kyty. Each of these forms differs from the corresponding other ones either in the number</p><p>of arguments for which it is subcategorized or in the semantic relationship which holds be-</p><p>tween it and its arguments, or in both (in addition to the aspectual difference noted in Sec-</p><p>tion 2.4.1.1). However, it is not entirely clear how best to describe the regularities.</p><p>Another area needing further investigation is that of the use of the various forms of pro-</p><p>nominal and nominal reference in Arawak—both on the sentence level and on the dis-</p><p>course level. As was mentioned previously, the use of a full NP in subject position in</p><p>Arawak is usually restricted to the first time a participant or prop is introduced into a</p><p>6.2 Areas Needing Further Research 115</p><p>1See Chomsky 1982a for explanations of these terms.</p><p>discourse. After that, the speaker uses an appropriate pronoun, or a pronoun with an ap-</p><p>positive noun phrase if the pronoun alone would be ambiguous. In either case, the pro-</p><p>noun may be either morphologically bound or morphologically free. A morphologically</p><p>bound pronoun tends to be used when its antecedent is the last mentioned noun or pro-</p><p>noun having the same number and gender, whereas the equivalent morphologically free</p><p>pronoun tends to be used when its antecedent is not the last mentioned noun or pronoun,</p><p>but has, nevertheless, already been introduced into the discourse.</p><p>This description of pronominalization is obviously not complete. In the area of sentence</p><p>syntax, more work needs to be done on the description of various co-reference restrictions</p><p>and possibilities. The contribution of discourse structure on pronominalization also needs</p><p>much more work. The notions of TOPIC and FOCUS may be useful in this regard.</p><p>Work also remains to be done in the area of morphology. In particular, words used ad-</p><p>verbially contain several suffixes simply glossed ‘ADV’ in this study. The differences be-</p><p>tween these suffixes need further investigation. There are also unglossed, unanalyzed,</p><p>recurring partials which may be found in, for example, some of the illustrative sentences in</p><p>the lexicon (Part 2). In many cases, this is a reflection of the fact that it is often difficult to</p><p>detect the difference between sequences of morphemes which have become lexicalized and</p><p>sequences of morphemes which represent currently productive processes.</p><p>116 Conclusion</p><p>Part 2</p><p>Lexicon</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>The lexicon in the following pages contains some of the more common words used in</p><p>day-to-day speech by Arawaks. It is by no means complete, and the words included were</p><p>chosen randomly from field notes. An effort has been made, however, to include the words</p><p>occurring elsewhere in this study.</p><p>The illustrative sentences in this lexicon were primarily supplied by Nelis M.</p><p>Biswane, a resident of the Arawak village of Cassipora and a mother-tongue speaker of</p><p>Arawak. The sentences were originally intended to be incorporated into a dictionary</p><p>for Arawaks, not for non-speakers of the language. This means that many of the illus-</p><p>trations actually use derived forms of the word in question, rather than the word in its</p><p>most simple form.</p><p>It should be noted that Arawak has no firm writing tradition. Perhaps because of this,</p><p>many words have alternate pronunciations and, in this lexicon, alternate spellings. It</p><p>should also be noted that, because of vowel cluster reduction, when a prefix is added to a</p><p>word beginning with a vowel, it is difficult to know how best to insert hyphens between</p><p>the different morphemes in sample sentences. In the transcriptions, prefixes sometimes ap-</p><p>pear to have a different final vowel than expected, and word stems beginning with vowels</p><p>often have a different initial vowel</p><p>or lack their initial vowel altogether.</p><p>An effort has been made to include an indication of the lexical class for each word as fol-</p><p>lows: vs = verb stative; vi = verb intransitive; vt = verb transitive; vd = verb</p><p>ditransitive; n = noun; pp = postposition; art = article; pro = pronoun; quant = quanti-</p><p>fier; num = counting number; conj = conjunction; p = particle; rp = relative pronoun;</p><p>qw = question word; tw = time word.</p><p>The classification of verbs into intransitive, transitive, and ditransitive classes is incom-</p><p>plete. For example, some verbs which appear to be a-stem forms (i.e. they end in an) are</p><p>nevertheless classified as transitive.1 This reflects both the fact that it is often difficult to</p><p>find a context suitable to elicit the basic-stem form and the fact that the morphological dif-</p><p>ferences between the basic-stem and the a-stem is not manifested in many environments</p><p>(see Section 2.4.1.1.1).</p><p>The identification of plant and animal species is also incomplete. In most cases, they are</p><p>glossed with a Dutch (D:) or Sranan Tongo (ST:) translation equivalent. The lexicon begins</p><p>with alphabetized lists of preffixes and suffixes</p><p>118</p><p>1The a-stem of a verb is usually intransitive. See Section 2.4.1.1.1.</p><p>B(Y)-: you (singular), your (singular).</p><p>D(A)-: I, my.</p><p>H(Y)-: you (plural), your (plural).</p><p>K(A)-: ATTR, attributive, having.</p><p>L(Y)-: he, his.</p><p>M(A)-: PRIV, privative, without, not.</p><p>M(A)-: UNSPEC, unspecified subject (used when there is no subject prefix for</p><p>the dummy verb).</p><p>N(A)-: they [+human], their [+human].</p><p>TH(Y)-: she, her, it, its, they [–human], their [–human].</p><p>W(A)-: we, our.</p><p>wa- ... -the: let’s</p><p>-(A)RIA: AWAY, from, away from (short form of waria).</p><p>-BA: AWAY, motion away.</p><p>-BAHA: perhaps, maybe.</p><p>-BE: PL, pluralizer [+/– human].</p><p>-BERO: THING, derived noun.</p><p>-(N)BIA: INCH, inchoative, future imperfective, in order to, so that.</p><p>-BO: CONT, continuative, present imperfective.</p><p>-BO: pointing, specific.</p><p>-DA: EPEN, epenthetic syllable (added as last or penultimate syllable of pause</p><p>group to avoid two stressed syllables in a row).</p><p>-DA: verbalizer.</p><p>-FA: FUT, future, future perfective.</p><p>-HA: FUT, future, future perfective (alternate pronunciation of -fa).</p><p>-HV: NGEN, noun generalizer (where V is the same as the last vowel of the</p><p>word to which it is attached).</p><p>-I: EPEN, epenthetic vowel (sometimes added when suffix starting with n is</p><p>added to word ending in n).</p><p>-I: he, him.</p><p>-JA: AWAY, from, motion away (short form of waria and waja).</p><p>-JA: PAST.IMPF, past perfective.</p><p>-JA: POSS, possessed form of noun (spelled -ia after consonant, -a after i).</p><p>-KA: PERF, perfect, present perfective.</p><p>-KE: ADV, adverbializer.</p><p>-KHO: CONTR, contrastive, emphasizer.</p><p>-KO: ADV, adverbializer.</p><p>-KOANA(-HA) (nominalizer): thing, instrument. Kasipara matho balho kia-be to</p><p>nekhebo-koana-ha. “The machete and ax: those are tools.”</p><p>-KOMA: would, could.</p><p>-KYTY: CAUS, causative.</p><p>-LHIN: NOM, nominalizer (occupation, habitual activity).</p><p>-LI: NESS, necessitative, must.</p><p>-LI: NOM, nominalizer [+male].</p><p>-MA: HABIL, habilitative, can, may, be able.</p><p>-MA(N): EACH, individuated.</p><p>-N: BEN, benefactive (abbrev. of myn).</p><p>-N: LOC, locative, at (abbrev. of nin).</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 119</p><p>-N: POSS, possessed.</p><p>-N: she, her, it, they [–human], them [–human].</p><p>-N: SUB, subordinate, nominalized.</p><p>-NA: UNEXP, unexpected.</p><p>(N)BIA: INCH, inchoative, future inperfective, in order to, so that.</p><p>-NE: emphatic.</p><p>-NO: NOM, nominalizer [+human].</p><p>-NON: PL, pluralizer [+human].</p><p>-(N)RO: TOWARD, to (abbrev. of ninro).</p><p>-O: we, us.</p><p>-OA, -A: reflexive, passive (spelled -a after o).</p><p>-ONOA: reflexive, passive.</p><p>-RA: EXPECT, expected.</p><p>-RA: POSS, possessed.</p><p>-RE: ADV, adverbializer.</p><p>-REN: EXACT, exactly.</p><p>-(A)RIA: AWAY, from, away from (short form of waria).</p><p>-RO: ADV, adverbializer.</p><p>-RO: always.</p><p>-RO: NOM, nominalizer [–male].</p><p>-RO: TOWARD, to.</p><p>-RON: only.</p><p>-SIA: WH.OBJ, object relativizer.</p><p>-TA: verbalizer.</p><p>-THE: BACK, back, coming, motion approaching.</p><p>wa- ... -the: let’s</p><p>-THE: POSS, possessed.</p><p>-THI: DESID, desiderative.</p><p>-THI: WH.SUBJ, subject relativizer [+male].</p><p>-THO: WH.SUBJ, subject relativizer [–male].</p><p>-WA: the one(s).</p><p>-WA: own (spelled -a after o).</p><p>-WAJA: self.</p><p>›: PAST.PERF past perfective</p><p>ABA (quant): one, a. Aba emelia-tho dalhidi-koana da-jonto-fa. “I am going to buy</p><p>a new car.”</p><p>ABADAKHABO, BADAKHABO (quant, num): five (one-my-hand).</p><p>ABAHAN (tw): once, once upon a time, sometime.</p><p>ABALI (n): one [+male +human], someone [+male, +human].</p><p>ABAN (tw): once, one time. Aban koba osy-thi dia l-a tho-ja, ken l-oreda-n khan to</p><p>waboroko, ly-dykhysia-ha-da no. “Once he did as if he were leaving, and</p><p>rounding a small bend in the road, he spied on her.”</p><p>ABANBO (tw): sometime.</p><p>ABANON (n): someone, someone else.</p><p>ABAREN, BAREN (adv): suddenly, immediately. To da-dykhy-n abaren to ori</p><p>da-sibon: min-ka kho da-dyda-n. “When I suddenly saw a snake before</p><p>me, I jumped greatly.”</p><p>ABARO (num): one.</p><p>120 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>ABARO (n): one (non-male). Abaro ron osa-ma da-ma. “Only one (female) can</p><p>go with me (e.g. the car is small and there is room for only one).”</p><p>ABARO-DIAKO-ANYKY (num, quant): one and a half. Abaro-diako-anyky khisiba</p><p>wa-kona-n, w-anda Cordon waboroko amyn. “Walking one and a half</p><p>hours, we arrived at the Cordon Road.”</p><p>ABARYKY, ABYRYKY (n): other.</p><p>ABATHIAN, BATHIAN (quant, num): six.</p><p>ABO (n): back (body part). Kari-ka d-abo min kho. “My back hurts a lot. Pos-</p><p>sessed: d-abo = my back.</p><p>ABO (pp): with (instrumental), by means of. Aba ada lo-soka ly-kasiparan abo.</p><p>“He chopped a stick with his machete.”</p><p>ABOJA (n): peccary (species) (ST: pakira).</p><p>ABOLA, ABALA (n): bench. Tora d-abolan khan diako balytyro b-a. “Just sit on</p><p>my bench.” Possessed: d-abola-n = my bench.</p><p>ABON (pp): under. By-sika hala abon no. “Put it under the bench.”</p><p>ADA (n): wood, tree, stick. Aba firo-tho ada da-koban loko-ka, wadili-ka kho</p><p>da-soko-n no. “There is a big tree in my planting ground, I can’t chop it</p><p>(down).” Possessed: d-ada-n = my tree.</p><p>1. ada-byna: leaf of a tree</p><p>2. ada-dynabo: branch of a tree</p><p>3. ada-yda: bark of a tree</p><p>4. ada-sa: branch, young tree</p><p>ADA-DYNABO (n): branch (tree-arm). Ada-dynabo diakhodi halhanron</p><p>ajomyndi-tho khota-ha kona-ka. “All sorts of arboreal animals (i.e. those</p><p>which fly or climb) walk around on tree branches.”</p><p>ADAFE (n): black spider monkey (ST: kwatta).</p><p>ADAJALI (n): God. Adianke l-a san malhithi-n Adajali halhan amathali. “God made</p><p>everything very well.”</p><p>1. Adajali kasakabo: Sunday</p><p>ADAJAN (vs): old.</p><p>ADAKOTAN (vt): interrogate. B-andy farokha falhetho sibon, aba lokhodi-fa kho</p><p>th-adakota-n bo. “If you come before a white man, he is going to interro-</p><p>gate you in many ways.”</p><p>ADAKOTON (vd): ask, request. B-adakota li dinthi da-myn alikha l-osy-fa</p><p>jokhanro. “Ask uncle for me when he is going hunting.”</p><p>ADALI KHA (tw): dry season.</p><p>1. firo koro hadali: big/long dry season</p><p>2. awalhadalithe: short dry season</p><p>ADALI, HADALI (n): sun. Bokolho-ho thy-wata, to adali. “The sun dries clothes.”</p><p>ADI (pp): above, exceeding (used in comparisons).</p><p>ADIA (adv): very.</p><p>ADIANKEN (adv): very. Lira da-jothi adiankenma karin. “That (male) family</p><p>member of mine is very sick.”</p><p>1. adiakhanken: very (diminutive)</p><p>ADISA (n): cassava boat (to grate cassava in). D-ansa-ka d-adisara loko. “I grated</p><p>cassava in my cassava boat (canoe-like, hollowed-out log for grating</p><p>cassava in).” Possessed: d-adisa-ra = my cassava boat.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 121</p><p>ADO(-HO) (n): roof. M-ado-n kha de, min-koma kho oni jojoto-n de. “If I were</p><p>without a roof, the rain would wet me greatly.” Possessed: d-ado = my</p><p>roof.</p><p>ADOTON (vt): cover, roof. Sare b-a adoto-n b-awa, onikhi thy-thebetha-ma b-adi.</p><p>“Cover yourself well, or when it rains it will drip on you.”</p><p>AFODO(-HO) (n): boss, leader, captain. W-afodo dykhy-thi wa-sikoa khona. “Our</p><p>captain watches over our village.”</p><p>AITHAN, AITHIN (vt): know, be acquainted with. See: eithin, eithan.</p><p>AITHI (n): son (also son of brother). Possessed: d-aithi = my son.</p><p>AITHOAN (vi): be careful, watch out. B-aithoa to jadoala myn; by-thikhida-ma</p><p>tho-bolokon; thy-thiada-ma bo. “Be careful of the knife; you can fall on its</p><p>point; (and) it can stab you."</p><p>AJALHO (n): punishment. Ly-thikebe khonaria, l-osa ajalho lokonro. “Due to his</p><p>stealing, he went into punishment.”</p><p>AJALHODON (vt): punish. See: ajalho.</p><p>AJOA (tw): late, later. Ajoaron b-anda-the. “You arrived late.”</p><p>AJOMOLHA (n): fish kind (ST: anjoemara).</p><p>AJOMYN (vs): high. To hadali moda-the ajomyn. “The sun is climbing high (ap-</p><p>proaching noon).”</p><p>AJOMYNDI-KORO (n): airplane.</p><p>AKAKADYN (vt): tell (e.g. a story), relate, explain. Malhikhotoa-sikoa-n wakhaja</p><p>kho malhikhotathi akakady-n na ibilinon. “At school the teacher explains</p><p>(everything) to the children well.”</p><p>AKAN (vt): speak, tell, say. By-dykha farokha da-sanothi, b-aka khan-li to diahy</p><p>na-myn: sa khan koa w-a-n khonan. “If you see our children, you must</p><p>tell them this message: It is still going well with us.”</p><p>AKHARO, WAKHARO (tw): now, at this moment. See: wakharo.</p><p>AKOBAN (vi): rest, take a breather. Min-ka kho methe-n de; d-akoba khan-fa</p><p>bania. “I am very tired; I will just go rest a little.”</p><p>AKOBON (vi): rest. San bena d-akobo-n khi, d-osa to nekhebo khona khi-da ba.</p><p>“After resting thusly well, I went about working again the same way.”</p><p>AKOBYN (vi): breathe. Min-ka kho thonolisia-n de; kiadoma da-norokoadia ron</p><p>d-akoba. “I have a bad cold; therefore I only breathe through my</p><p>mouth.”</p><p>ALEKHEBEN, HALEKHEBEN (vs): happy, glad. Min-ka kho alekhebe-n de;</p><p>da-jonon dykhy-n-the de. “I am very glad; my family came to see me.”</p><p>ALEKHEBETAN (vt): cheer up, make happy.</p><p>ALEKHEBETOAN (vi): celebrate, party.</p><p>ALIKA, HALIKA (qw, rp): how.</p><p>ALIKAN, HALIKAN (qw, rp): who, which person. Alikan khan oma-thi-da bi?</p><p>“Who is with you?”</p><p>ALIKHA, HALIKHA (qw, rp): when. Alikha andy-thi-da bi? “When did you arrive</p><p>(i.e. when were you an arrivee)?”</p><p>ALOKOSIAN (vs): thirsty. Alokosia-ka de. “I am thirsty.”</p><p>ALON, ANON (qw, rp): where. Alon b-osa-bo? “Where are you going?”</p><p>AMA (qw, rp): what. Ama khan ani-thi-bo-the-da bi? “What did you come</p><p>doing?”</p><p>AMA DIARO (n): nothing.</p><p>AMA KHO (n): nothing.</p><p>122 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>AMA-RON (qw): what (non-male) ‘Ama-ron amyn-tho-bo to?’ mo-n d-a-na. “‘What</p><p>is it with?’ I wondered.”</p><p>AMABIA (qw): why (what is the purpose, in order to accomplish what?).</p><p>AMADOMA (qw): why (what is the cause).</p><p>AMAHAN (qw): what. Ma we kho eitha-bo amahan-da no. “But we didn’t know</p><p>what it was.”</p><p>AMATHALI (n): something. Lira wadili min-thi kho eithi-n jaty-n amathali. “That</p><p>man knows how to draw things very well.”</p><p>AMYN (pp): at, by, nearby. Ada amyn-ka-i. “He is by the tree.”</p><p>AMYN, AMON (vt): have, possess. B-amy-n-ka nana jokara-bia? “Do you have</p><p>pineapple to sell?”</p><p>AMYNRO (pp): toward. See: amyn, -ro.</p><p>AMYNTYN (vt): approach.</p><p>ANABYN (vi): wake up. Bo-joda basada-ren li siokothi abo, m-anaby-n l-a-nbia.</p><p>“Swing the little boy slowly (gently) so that he doesn’t wake up.”</p><p>ANBALHITOAN (vi): decorate one’s body (e.g. with paint). Wakhili koba</p><p>n-alekhebetoa-n-ha na lokonon, n-anbalhitoa-ka. “In the olden days, when</p><p>they (Arawaks) would celebrate, they would decorate themselves.”</p><p>ANDA...KHONAN (vi): touch, feel. M-andy-n b-a to ikhi khonan. “Don’t touch the</p><p>fire.”</p><p>ANDADIKE (n): armadillo (species) (ST: kapasi).</p><p>ANDYN (vi): arrive. Bakylamanro de ithi anda-the jokha waria. “My father arrives</p><p>from hunting in the late afternoon.”</p><p>ANIN (vt): do. Lhelhoko ron abo ma-dian b-a, ma b-ani-ra-fa-da no! “Don’t just</p><p>talk with the mouth, but do it!”</p><p>ANOANA (n): buzzard.</p><p>ANON, ALON (qw, rp): where. See: alon.</p><p>ANSAN (vi): grate cassava tubers.</p><p>ANSIN (vt): like, love, want. D-ansi-n doma da-sa-be-wa, sa da-dykhy-n na-khona.</p><p>“Because I love my children, I look after them well.” See: kansin.</p><p>ARAKABOSA (n): gun. To d-arakabosa-n: adiakhankentho sa-n bolheidi-n to. “My</p><p>gun: it throws (shoots) very well.” Possessed: d-arakabosa-n = my gun.</p><p>ARI(-HI) (n): tooth, molar. D-ari abo da-ryda. “With my teeth I bite.” Possessed:</p><p>d-ari = my tooth.</p><p>ATHA(-HA), YTHAN (n): drink (usually alcoholic). Tora atha-ha min-ka kho</p><p>tata-n. “That drink is very strong.” De ythan seme koa-ma. “My drink</p><p>(e.g. a barrel of cassava beer) is still sweet (i.e. not fermented yet).”</p><p>ATHI (n): pepper (a very hot kind). See: hathi.</p><p>ATYNOA (tw): at first.</p><p>AWALHADALITHE (tw): short dry season.</p><p>AWALHIBANA (n): fish kind (ST: dagoe fisie).</p><p>BA (p): again. See: khi ... ba.</p><p>BADA(-HA) (n): nail (of finger or toe). Da-bada ma-lhyky-n d-a-n kha, min-koma</p><p>kho wadibe-n no. “If I didn’t cut my nails, they would get very long.”</p><p>Possessed: da-bada = my nail.</p><p>BADAKHABO, ABADAKHABO (quant, num): five (one-my-hand).</p><p>BAHA (p): perhaps.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 123</p><p>BAHY (n): house. Da-jonto farokha aba holholho, da-malhithi-fa aba bahy</p><p>thy-diako. “If I had a piece of property, I would build a house on it. Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-sikoa = my house.</p><p>BAJOLHA (n): beam (of building). Da-bajolhan da-thobodasia da-kora khonaria. “I</p><p>tie my hammock on my beam.” Possessed: da-bajolha-n = my beam.</p><p>BAKYLAMA (tw): late afternoon (16:00–20:00). Bakylama d-osy-ha-the jadoan-ro.</p><p>“This afternoon I will go traveling.”</p><p>BALA (n): ball, shot (ammunition).</p><p>BALADAN (vi): shoot at.</p><p>BALALAN (vs): round. Li da-kodoja balala-thi. “My gourd bottle is round.”</p><p>BALHA(-HA), (Y)BALHA(-HA) (n): hair, feather. De si khona to balha-ha. “On my</p><p>head is hair.” Da-jokha kodibio; da-dykha thy-balha ron thikhidi-n. “I shot</p><p>a bird; I saw only its feathers falling.” Possessed: da-balha = my hair.</p><p>1. kodibio-balha: feather</p><p>BALHA(-HA), (Y)BALHA (n): sea, ocean. Firo-tho iniabo to balha. “The sea is a</p><p>big (body of) water.”</p><p>BALHAKAROBALI (n): tree (species) (ST: basralokus).</p><p>BALHIN (p): although, though, contrastive, CONTR. D-osa bodedan-ro balhin, ma</p><p>ama kho da-bode-sia-ka. “Although I went hunting, what I caught was</p><p>nothing.”</p><p>1. balhin diaro: even if</p><p>BALHITAN (vt): need, require. Kabenan ma-dyky-n b-a-n b-ojonoa, min-ka kho</p><p>balhita-thi b-a-n je. “When you haven’t seen your own family in a long</p><p>time, you have great need of them.”</p><p>BALHO (n): ax. Min-ka kho da-balhon ma-mana-n. “My ax is very dull.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-balho-n = my ax.</p><p>BALHOSEN (n): leader, chief, captain.</p><p>BALHYDOA (vi): comb one’s hair.</p><p>BALIHIN (vs): dirty, filthy (also used to describe stories).</p><p>BALIN (vi): happen, take place. Alika th-a-n bali-n to oda-ha, ama kho eitha</p><p>sawabo. “How the death happened, no one knows for sure.”</p><p>BALIN (vt): pass, pass by. Waboroko aolhe diako-ren thy-bali-ka, to</p><p>falhetho-dalhidi-koana, de. “Just at the corner of the road, it, the bus,</p><p>passed me.”</p><p>BALISI (n): ash. Ikhi-khodo bithonoan siki-sia-tho balisi. “Burning wood gives</p><p>ash.” Possessed: da-balisi-a = my ash.</p><p>BALYTADAN (n): sit with someone (e.g. to drink).</p><p>BALYTYN (vi): sit down. Mera b-a-the jaha; da-dyna-n by-balyta-the. “Quickly,</p><p>come here, and sit down next to me (at my arm).”</p><p>BANA (n): leaf. Manaka-bana abo by-malhita-ma bahy. “With ‘manaka’ leaves you</p><p>can make a house.”</p><p>1. manaka-bana: ‘palisadeblad’</p><p>2. kolhoa-bana: ‘dwergmaripa palmblad’</p><p>3. halhithi-bana: ‘palulublad’; dale-bana: ‘tasblad’</p><p>4. thimithi-bana: ‘truliblad’</p><p>BANA (n): liver. D-osy-n jokhan-ro, da-fara khanin khota-ha, thy-bana da-jaboda</p><p>d-onoa. “When I go hunting and shoot an animal, I roast its liver for</p><p>myself.” Possessed: da-bana = my liver.</p><p>124 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>BANA (n): place. Abahan d-osy-fa falhetho sikoa-bana-nro. “Sometime I will go to</p><p>the country of the white men.”</p><p>BANIA (p): momentarily, short time, just.</p><p>BAREN, ABAREN (adv): suddenly, immediately. See: abaren.</p><p>BARIRI (n): hawk. Bariri bokota kodibio ken ori thi-khinia-wa. “Hawks catch birds</p><p>and snakes as their food.”</p><p>BARIRI (n): police officer. To bariri bokota to kathikebero. “The policeman caught</p><p>the thief.”</p><p>BASABAN (vs): narrow, small. Da-sikoa basaba-n-ka, da-firota sabo-fa no. “My</p><p>house being small, I will enlarge it some.”</p><p>BASADADOAN (vi): move slowly.</p><p>BASADAN (vs): slow. Adia l-a basada-n kona-n-da. “He walked very slowly.”</p><p>BASE (n): post, pillar. Da-sikoa base-n diako da-malhita da-sikoa-wa. “On my</p><p>house corner posts I build my house.” Possessed: da-base-n = my post.</p><p>BATHIAN, ABATHIAN (quant, num): six.</p><p>BEBE (n): vocative form for older sibling.</p><p>BEBEDAN (vi): feel around (e.g. like a blind man). Olhirokon doma, min kho</p><p>bebeda-ro da-boro-a da-kothi abo. “Because it was dark, I had to feel</p><p>around a lot before myself with my feet.”</p><p>BEBEDIN (vt): feel, touch. By-bebeda-the da-dana khona, ama thiaron baha</p><p>kakolhothima. “Come feel on my leg what sort of bump it could be.”</p><p>BEJOKHA (n): flute. Da-foda aba bejokha. “I blow a flute.”</p><p>BELEN (vs): soft, tender. Bikhidolia-tho khota-ha siroko bele-ka. “The meat of</p><p>young animals is tender.”</p><p>BELETHO (n): cassava bread (soft, thick kind).</p><p>BENA (pp): after. By-ka-ba khan bania; kia bena w-osy-fa jadoan-ro. “Just go</p><p>bathe a little; after that we will go traveling.”</p><p>BENA (n): piece, portion, a piece of. Tora bokolho bena by-kysa-li khali</p><p>by-kyra-koana-wa. “You must sew that piece of cloth as your cassava</p><p>bread wrapping.”</p><p>BEROSOAN (vi): wail (as at a funeral).</p><p>BESEKHEN (vs): short. Adia l-a to lira wadili besekhe-n nin. “That man there is</p><p>very short.”</p><p>BESOAN, BESONOAN (vi): change, metamorphose.</p><p>BETHIRI (n): cassava beer.</p><p>BI (p): immediate past (less than 6 hours).</p><p>BI (pro): you-SG, your-SG. Bi sokosa-bo. “You are washing clothes (a greeting</p><p>when someone is washing clothes).”</p><p>1. bi khabo: your hand</p><p>2. To to bi myn: It is for you.</p><p>BIAMAN: double. See: bia(n)man.</p><p>BIAN (quant, num): two.</p><p>BIAN KHAN (indef pro): some, several, a few. Tanoke by-nyka-li-the bian khan</p><p>marisi da-myn. “Later you must get several ears of corn for me.”</p><p>BIANDAKHABO (quant, num): ten (two-my-hand).</p><p>BIANDAKHABO-DIAKO-ABARO (quant, num): eleven (two-my-hand-on-one).</p><p>BIANDAKHABO-DIAKO-BADAKHABO (num, quant): fifteen.</p><p>BIANINON (n): two persons.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 125</p><p>BIA(N)MAN: double. Bianman to lheroko da-simalha doma. “Because the barrel of</p><p>my gun is double.”</p><p>BIANTHETOAN (vi): be mated with.</p><p>BIANTHIAN (quant, num): seven.</p><p>BIDALHIN (n): doctor (generic).</p><p>BIKARA, FALHETHO BIKARA, BIKATHI (n): doctor (of Western medicine).</p><p>Khatho kari-n bo, b-osa falhetho bikara manro. “When you are sick, go to</p><p>the doctor.” Possessed: da-bikara = my doctor.</p><p>BIKHIDAN (vt): plant, raise, grow. De bikhida-sia to to hathi daja-be. “What I am</p><p>raising is pepper plants.”</p><p>BIKHIDIN (vt): raise (plants, animals, people), grow. Tora siokotho: de</p><p>bikhidi-sia-bo tora. “That little girl: she is what I am raising.”</p><p>BIKHIDOLIAN (vs): young. Wakhili, bikhidolia d-a-n kha, min-thi kho jokha-n de.</p><p>“Long ago, when I was young, I hunted a lot.”</p><p>BIKHIDOLIATHI (n): young man.</p><p>BIKHIDOLIATHO (n): young woman, young lady. Tora bikhidoliatho min-ka kho</p><p>emekho-n. “That young woman is very industrious.”</p><p>BIKHIDONOAN (vi): grow.</p><p>BIKHIN, BIKAN (vt): cut. Basada-re b-a to jadoala abo; by-bika-ma de. “Be careful</p><p>with the knife; you can cut me.”</p><p>BIKHOAN (vi): get a cut (wound). Sikalho-bo da-bojoa-n, da-bikhoa tho-khonaria</p><p>jadoala abo. “(When) I was eating sugar cane, I cut myself with the</p><p>knife.”</p><p>BININ (vi): dance.</p><p>BIRABIRADYN (vi): play around.</p><p>BIRAN (vi): play. Adiake man h-a bira-n bakylama, sa-ma-the kho ho-donko-n.</p><p>“(you-PL) Don’t play much in the evening, (otherwise) you won’t be</p><p>able to sleep well.”</p><p>BITAKAN (vt): go around making fires. Adali kha, by-bitaka-koma by-sakadan-ia.</p><p>“(In the) dry season, you can go around making fires (under savannah</p><p>trees to kill them so they can be collected later for) your dry firewood.”</p><p>BITHI (pp): by, near, next to, to. To bakylama, b-anda-li-the da-bithi; aba dia-hy</p><p>d-amyn-ka b-oma. “This afternoon, you must come to me (my house); I</p><p>have something to say to you.”</p><p>BITHI (num, quant): four.</p><p>BITHIN (vt): burn down, burn up. Na ibili-be hibi-ka bithi-n wa-sikoa. “The chil-</p><p>dren almost burned down our house.”</p><p>BITHIRO (pp): toward, for, before. Wakharo wabo, m-amy-n d-a no, ma mothi</p><p>da-mikodo-fa-the bi-bithiro-da no. “Just now, I don’t have it, but tomor-</p><p>row I will have it sent to you.”</p><p>BITHITHIAN (num, quant): nine.</p><p>BITOAN (vi): burn, get a burn (wound). To ikhi-khodo bitoa. “The firewood</p><p>burns.”</p><p>BO (pro): you (singular).</p><p>BOADONOAN, BOADOAN (vi): spoiled, rotten, broken, fainted. Sa-ja kho</p><p>by-khabaty-n to khota siroko, kiadoma thy-boadoa-ja. “You didn’t salt the</p><p>meat well, therefore it spoiled/rotted.”</p><p>126 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>BODALI (n): cassava baking plate. Da-kora-ka khali da-bodale diako. “I baked</p><p>cassava bread on my cassava baking plate.” Possessed: da-bodale = my</p><p>cassava baking plate.</p><p>BODE(-HE) (n): hook (for fishing). Hime bo-bode-sia-ka th-abo, to bode-he. “Fish</p><p>is what you catch with it, the hook.” Possessed: da-bode = my hook.</p><p>BODEDAN (vi): fish (with hook and line). Mothi w-osy-fa bodeda-nro. “Tomor-</p><p>row we will go fishing.”</p><p>BOJAN (vi): share food. Wakhili koba, na-man-fa n-onekoa, na-boja-ka n-onekoa</p><p>bania. “In the old days, when they (a couple) were in love with each</p><p>other, they shared food with each other briefly.”</p><p>BOJIN (vt): feed, give food. Bo-boja hibin-da je? “Did you feed them (e.g. the</p><p>guests) already?”</p><p>BOKAN (vi): cook (a meal).</p><p>BOKAN ... (Y)JA (vt): scare, startle. Boka-thi l-a to da-ja. “He startled me.”</p><p>BOKHITHI (n): older brother (of a male). Possessed: da-bokhithi = my older</p><p>brother.</p><p>BOKOAN (vi): boil, be cooked.</p><p>BOKOLHO(-HO) (n): cloth, clothing. D-osy farokha forto-nro, da-jonto-fa</p><p>da-bokolho-a. “If I go to town, I will buy my clothing.” Possessed:</p><p>da-bokolho-a = my clothing.</p><p>1. hiaro-non bokolho-ho: dress, skirt</p><p>2. bokolho-eke: suitcase</p><p>3. bokolho-iban: rag, cloth scrap, piece of cloth</p><p>BOKOLHO-IBAN (n): rag, cloth scrap, piece of cloth. Da-bokolho-iban da-kysa-ha</p><p>khali da-kyra-koana-wa. “My cloth scrap I will sew (as) my cassava bread</p><p>wrapper.” Possessed: da-bokolho-iban = my piece of cloth.</p><p>BOKON (vt): cook. Sa-re b-a-li boko-n to khota-ha, ija koa th-a-ma. “You must</p><p>cook the meat well, (otherwise) it may be still raw.”</p><p>BOKONOAN (vi): worry.</p><p>BOKOTAN (vt, vi): go around catching. Mothi d-osy-fa bokota-n-ba kodibio. “To-</p><p>morrow I will go around catching birds (bird hunting).”</p><p>BOKOTO-KOANA (n): handle. Ka-bokoto-koana saken-da no, ken kia khonaria</p><p>wa-nykynda-da no, w-osa th-abo. “It [a bomb] had something exactly like</p><p>handles, and we lifted it up using those, and we went with it (i.e. took</p><p>it along).”</p><p>BOKOTON (vt): grab, catch, hold, grip. To bariri bokota to kathikebero. “The po-</p><p>lice officer caught the thief.”</p><p>BOLHADAN (vi): ferment.</p><p>BOLHAHAN (vs): sour, spoiled, fermented. Bolha-ka to kadykyra. “The pepper</p><p>pot is spoiled.”</p><p>BOLHAN (vs): fermented, sour.</p><p>BOLHEDAN (vi): wrestle. Na-fata-ka kho balhin, ma bolheda-ro n-a. “They were</p><p>not really fighting, but they were only wrestling.”</p><p>BOLHEDIN (vt): lose. M-eithi-n d-a halon da-bolhedi-n da-jadoala-n-ia. “I do not</p><p>know where I lost my knife.”</p><p>BOLHEIDIN, BOLHIEDAN (vt): throw away, throw. Sa koa th-a to amathali;</p><p>amadoma bolheidi-ro n-a-da no? “The thing was still good; why did they</p><p>throw it away?” Ly-bolheida aba ada ly-madianthi manro. “He thew a</p><p>stick to his companion.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 127</p><p>BOLHEKOAN (vi): lying down. To miaka d-osy-n jokha-nro: da-dydy-kyta aba</p><p>firobero waboroko kosa bolhekoan-tho-bo. “Concerning my going hunting</p><p>yesterday: I caused a tapir lying beside the path to jump up (i.e. I</p><p>flushed out a tapir).”</p><p>BOLOKON (pp): at the point of, at the end of. B-aithoa to jadoala myn;</p><p>by-thikhida-ma tho-boloko-n; thy-thiada-ma bo. “Be careful of the knife;</p><p>you could fall on its point; (and) its point could stab you.”</p><p>BON (pp): you-BEN (abbrev. of by-myn).</p><p>BONA (p): intermediate past (two or three days ago).</p><p>BONAN (vi): plant a planting ground. Waboka w-osa koba-nro bonan-ro. “We just</p><p>went to the planting ground to plant.”</p><p>BONYN, BYNYN (vt): plant. Thi-bitoa da-koban, da-bona khan-fa da-khythehe.</p><p>“(When) it (my planting ground) is burned, I will just plant my plants.”</p><p>BORA (pp): before (temporal). By-dykha ama othikhida bo, kia bora kho da-dia-ka</p><p>bo-myn? “You see what has happened to you, didn’t I tell (warn) you</p><p>before it happened?”</p><p>BORADI (n): toucan (species) (ST: koejake).</p><p>BORAN (pp): before, for. Tabo aba wakhai-tho kho khota bona-ha da-dykha;</p><p>d-eiba-fa da-simalha-wa tho-boran. “Over there I saw a good animal trail;</p><p>I will set my gun as a trap for it.” B-obada-li waboroko andanin da-boran.</p><p>“You must wait at the intersection for me.”</p><p>BORATAN (vt): be helpful. Khi dia m-a borata-n onekoa-hy wakhaja kho. “Helping</p><p>each other like that is good.”</p><p>BORATYN (vt): help, support. Mothi d-osy-fa da-retho boratyn-ba reken oma. “To-</p><p>morrow I will go help my wife with weeding.”</p><p>BOREN: times. Wa-thokoda tho-lokoa-ria fata boren baha thirikhida lokokoan</p><p>tho-khona. “We got out uncountable times pushing it.”</p><p>BORO (p): exactly. ‘Ama boro ni-tho-bo to salhi-da?’ d-a-nbia. “‘What exactly is</p><p>the salhi (bird) doing?’ I (thought).” Wabydia boro da-kiwihin! “So soon</p><p>was I successful in the hunt!”</p><p>BORODI (n): lidded, box-like, basketry container for storing clothes, etc.</p><p>BOSOLI (n): sweet cassava (has nontoxic (very low) level of cyanogenic</p><p>glucosides).</p><p>BOTOLI (n): bottle (ENG: bottle). Ma-lhoton b-a da-botolia khona;</p><p>thy-wakydoa-ma. “Don’t let go of my bottle; it can burst.” Possessed:</p><p>da-botoli-a = my bottle.</p><p>BYKHYN (vt): get, receive for free. Bi khan ka-bykhy-ka? “Are you a recipient of</p><p>something free?” Aba khota olaboa da-bykhy-ka. “I received half an animal.”</p><p>BYLHEKOAN (vi): lying down.</p><p>BYLHYTAN (vi): decorate. Sa-thi eithi-n dora-hy, wakhaja kho bylhyta-n to dora-hy</p><p>khona. “He who knows weaving (e.g. baskets) well, decorates the weav-</p><p>ing well.”</p><p>BYLHYTY-KOANA (n): pencil, pen. Da-bylhyty-koana abo da-bylhyta karta (ST)</p><p>diako. “With my pencil I write on a card.” Possessed: da-bylhyty-koana</p><p>= my pencil.</p><p>BYLHYTY-KOANA(-HA)-INIABO-KORO (n): ink.</p><p>BYLHYTYN (vt): write, make marks. Wakharo kho da-sanothi ma-bylhyty-ka-the</p><p>da-bithiro. “My children haven’t written to me in a long time.”</p><p>128 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>BYNA (n): path, small road. Ma-wadili-ka d-osy-n khota byna lokhodi; thibokhili</p><p>koborokodi-ka dan. “I can’t go (follow) the animal trail; it goes through</p><p>(too dense a) thicket for me.”</p><p>BYNAN (vi): plant a planting ground. See: bonan.</p><p>BYNYN (vt): plant. See: bonyn.</p><p>BYRYKAN (vi): clean up (the picking up and burning of unburned wood after a</p><p>planting ground has been chopped open and burned). D-osy-fa</p><p>da-koban-ia byrykan-ro. “I will go clean up my planting ground.”</p><p>DAJA (n): trunk (of a tree).</p><p>DAKAMABALI (n): tree kind (‘brown heart’).</p><p>DAKAN (vi): urinate.</p><p>DALHIDAN (vi): run after, chase. Da-dalhida-ka to khota khona. “I chased the</p><p>animal.”</p><p>DALHIDI-KOANA(-HA), FALHETHO-DALHIDI-KOANA (n): car, bus, bicycle, mo-</p><p>torcycle. Aba dalhidi-koana loko b-osy-n kha, mera sabo-ka by-dalhidi-n.</p><p>“When you go in a car, you go (run) very quickly.” Possessed:</p><p>da-dalhidi-koana = my car.</p><p>DALHIDI-KOANA-KOTHI(-HI) (n): wheel, tire. Possessed: thy-dalhidi-koana-kothi</p><p>= its wheel, tire.</p><p>DALHIDIN (vi): run. Da-kanaby-n-the oni, da-dalhida d-andy-n-bia tho-boradi bahy-n.</p><p>“Hearing the rain coming, I ran arriving home before it (the rain).”</p><p>DALI (n): tree kind (‘baboon wood’).</p><p>DAN (pp): me-BEN (abbrev. of da-myn).</p><p>DANA(-HA) (n): leg. Ma-dana-n de, wadilia-n kho da-kona-n. “Without legs, it is</p><p>impossible for me to walk.” Possessed: da-dana = my leg.</p><p>DANAKE(-HE) (n): pants, trousers (leg container). Da-danake jarykydoa; da-retho</p><p>kysa-ha da-myn no. “My pants are torn; my wife will sew them for me.”</p><p>Possessed: da-danake = my pants.</p><p>DASE (p): exclamation of surprise. Adia th-a to firon dase! “It was very big!”</p><p>DE (pro): I, me, my. De osa-bo. “I am going.”</p><p>To to de myn. “It is for me.”</p><p>DEI (pro): he, him.</p><p>DENTHI (n): uncle. See: dinthi.</p><p>DIA: like, resemble. Khi dia koa th-a w-abo. “Thusly like manner (i.e. this is</p><p>how) it [the bus] did with us.” Ma-kaky khan-koa d-a, m-ani-n kha kho</p><p>wadili-sia-na-ma to dia d-a-n aka-n khonan to ama ... “Never in my life</p><p>have I been able to talk like this about what ...”</p><p>(Y)DIA(-HY) (n): word, message, story, language. By-dykha farokha da-sanothi,</p><p>b-aka khan-li to dia-hy na-myn: sa khan koa w-a-n khonan. “If you see my</p><p>children, you must tell them this message: it is still well with us.”</p><p>1. lokono dian: Arawak language</p><p>DIAKOARIA (pp): off of, from off the surface of. See: diakon, -aria.</p><p>DIAKON (pp): about (a subject). Kia diako l-onaba-ka dei. “He gave an answer to</p><p>that.”</p><p>DIAKON (pp): on, on the surface of top of. Bi-sika hala diakon no. “Set it on the</p><p>bench.”</p><p>DIAKONRO (pp): onto. See: diakon, -ro.</p><p>DIAN, YDIAN (vi): talk, speak. Kakanaky-re b-a-li ydia-n thojothi-non oma. “You</p><p>must speak loudly with old people.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 129</p><p>DIARO: perhaps, uncertain. Siokhan th-a-n nyky-n, ta diaro kho th-osy-n,</p><p>thy-jakosoa khi-ka-da ba. “Carrying on a little while, not going very far,</p><p>it would stall again.” M-eithi-n d-a alika-thi d-a-n, mantha odo-thi d-a,</p><p>manthan diaro kaky koa d-a. “I didn’t know how I was, whether I was</p><p>dead, or whether perhaps I was still alive.”</p><p>DIATHI (n): approximation. Birakhathoa-sia-ma abo diathi th-a-bo wa-myn. “It [a</p><p>bomb] seemed like something which could be played with (e.g. a toy)</p><p>to us.”</p><p>DIBALE (n): smoked fish or meat.</p><p>DIBALEDYN, DIBALEDAN (vt, vi): smoke meat or fish. Miaka da-fara bian</p><p>dodole, ken da-retho dibaleda-ka no. “Yesterday I killed two peccaries,</p><p>and my wife smoked them.”</p><p>DIBEJO(-HO) (n): stomach. Possessed: da-dibejo = my stomach.</p><p>DIKE(-HE) (n): ear. Da-dike abo halhan amathali da-kanaba. “With my ears I hear</p><p>everything.” Possessed: da-dike = my ear.</p><p>DIKHI (pp): after, behind.</p><p>DIKHI (n): footprint, track. By-dykha, jadi thy-bali-n to firobero; by-dykha</p><p>thy-dikhi. “Look, a tapir passed by here; look at its tracks.”</p><p>DIMANYN (vi): stand up. See: dinamyn.</p><p>DIMISAN (vi): sniff at. Aba amathali bali-ka jadi-hi, kiadoma min-ka kho to pero</p><p>dimisa-n th-inabo. “Something passed by here, therefore the dog is sniff-</p><p>ing around a lot.”</p><p>DIMISIN (vt): smell. Ta-tho kho to khota-ha, kiadoma da-dimisa hibin no. “The an-</p><p>imal was not very far away, therefore I smelled it already.”</p><p>DINABYN (vi): stand up. See: dinamyn.</p><p>DINAMYN (vi): stand up. Da-sa farokha b-iri, bare b-a-li dinamy-n. “If I call your</p><p>name, you must stand up immediately (e.g. teacher talking to student).”</p><p>DINTHI (n): uncle (mother’s brother). Possessed: da-dinthi = my uncle.</p><p>DINTHI, DENTHI (n): uncle (polite vocative for male of father’s generation).</p><p>(O)DIO, DIO(-HY) (n): breast. Sioko d-a-n kha, min koba kho da-jo odio</p><p>da-soroto-n. “When I was small, I sucked a lot on my mother’s breasts.”</p><p>Possessed: da-dio = my breast.</p><p>1. dio-yra: milk</p><p>DOADA (n): pot (cooking), pan (deep; i.e. pot). Da-boka-ka halhanron amathali</p><p>da-doadan loko. “I cook all sorts of things in my pot.” Possessed:</p><p>da-doada-n = my pot.</p><p>DOBADYN (vt): pull out (e.g. to harvest cassava). Bian khan khali-doli</p><p>da-dobady-fa kaboja-n. “I will pull a few cassava tubers in my planting</p><p>ground.”</p><p>DODOLE (n): peccary (species) (ST: pingo).</p><p>DOKOKO (n): grandfather (polite vocative for male of grandfather’s</p><p>generation).</p><p>DOKOTHI (n): grandfather. Possessed: da-dokothi = my grandfather.</p><p>DOLHI (n): Creole, Negro. Dolhi khareme-ka, ken thy-balha sikhilhylhi-ka. “Creoles</p><p>are black, and their hair is kinky.”</p><p>DOMA (pp): because.</p><p>DONKAN (vi): overnight, sleep overnight. Bian olhika-ka da-donka-n Saroa maria.</p><p>“Two nights I overnighted by the Saroa Creek.”</p><p>130 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>DONKON (vi): sleep. To olhika bali-koro, min-ka kho da-donko-n. “This past night</p><p>I slept a lot (or deeply).”</p><p>DORON (vt): weave (e.g. a basket or cassava squeezer). Dinthi, aba joro kho</p><p>bo-dora khanina-ma da-myn? “Uncle, couldn’t you just weave a cassava</p><p>squeezer for me?”</p><p>DYDYN, DYDAN (vi): jump, jump over, jump around. To da-dakhy-n baren to ori</p><p>da-sibon: min-ka kho da-dyda-n. “Concerning me suddenly seeing the</p><p>snake in front of me: I jumped greatly.” Alikan wadili-koma dyda-n</p><p>thima-n to onikhan? “Who is able to jump across the creek?”</p><p>DYKHAKOAN (adv): attentive manner. To w-osy-n jadoa-nro: dykhakoa n-a</p><p>wa-sanothi</p><p>we-inabo. “Concerning our going on a trip: our children were</p><p>watching us (go).”</p><p>DYKHAN (vi): visit. To sondei (ST) bali-koro, d-osa koba da-jorodatho manro</p><p>dykha-n-ba. “This past Sunday I went to visit my sister.”</p><p>DYKHY-KOANA (n): mirror. Da-dykhy-koana loko da-dykha da-sibo-wa. “In my</p><p>mirror I see my own face.”</p><p>DYKHYN (vt): see. Khatho kari-n bo-kosi, wadili-koma kho sa-n by-dykhy-n. “When</p><p>your eyes hurt, you are not able to see well.”</p><p>DYKHYN...KHONA (vi): care for, take care of. San by-dykhy-n ibili khona-n, sa</p><p>na-bikhidonoa-n. “If you take care of children well, they will grow up</p><p>well.”</p><p>DYKHYSIAN (vt): spy. Aban koba osy-thi dia l-a tho-ja, ken l-oreda-n khan to</p><p>waboroko, ly-dykhysia-ha-da no. “Once he did as if he were leaving, and</p><p>rounding a small bend in the road, he spied on her.”</p><p>DYKHYTYN (vd): point out, demonstrate. By-dykhyta-na-ma kho da-myn, alo-nro</p><p>boren d-osy-n-fa? “Can’t you show me exactly where I have to go?”</p><p>DYLHYDAN (vs): flexible, stretchable, tough. To mibi: min-tho kho dylhyda-n to.</p><p>“The vine (e.g. one used to make baskets from): it is very flexible.”</p><p>DYLHYDAN (vi): massage. Min-ka kho kari-n da-loa-bana; da-dylhyda-kota-fa</p><p>da-khona-wa. “My chest hurts a lot; I will get myself massaged.”</p><p>DYLHYDYN (vt): drag, pull, pull on. Tatan doma to holholho, wadili-ka kho</p><p>da-waja da-dylhydy-n to khali-doli. “Because the ground is hard, I am not</p><p>able to pull (out) the cassava tubers by myself.”</p><p>DYNA(-HA) (n): arm (whole arm with hand). Dyna-ha abo by-nekhebo-koma.</p><p>“With arms you can work.” Possessed: da-dyna = my arm.</p><p>1. kodibio-dyna: wing</p><p>2. ada-dyna: branch</p><p>DYNEINA(-HA) (n): shoulder. Da-dyneina abo da-nyka-ma ada. “With my shoul-</p><p>der I can carry wood.” Possessed: da-dyneina = my shoulder.</p><p>EIBAN (vt): set a gun trap. See: iban.</p><p>EIBIN (vt): leave behind. See: ibin.</p><p>EIBOAN (vi): leave behind.</p><p>EIBOAN, EIBONOAN (vi): finished.</p><p>EIBON (vt): finish.</p><p>EIMATAN, EMATAN (vt): anger, make angry, madden.</p><p>EIMATONOAN, EMATONOAN (vi): angry. To ma-kanaba-n-thi l-a-n li siokothi</p><p>da-khonan: d-eimatoa lo-myn. “Concerning that the boy doesn’t want to</p><p>listen to (obey) me: I am angry with him.”</p><p>EINATAN (vi): begin, make a beginning at. See: inatan.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 131</p><p>EINATHYN (vt): begin. See: inathyn.</p><p>EITHAN (vt): know about. Tokota konoko de kho eitha saja sawabo-da no. “I don’t</p><p>know that forest over there very well.” See: ethan, ethin, ithan, ithin.</p><p>EITHIDIN (vi): sneeze.</p><p>EITHIN (vt): know, be acquainted with. Lira wadili wakharo kho d-eithi-sia. “That</p><p>is a man I have known a long time.” Wakharo kho ma-dykhy-n d-a-n</p><p>doma lira wadili, m-eithi-n-thi d-a sabo-ka dei. “Because I have not seen</p><p>that man in a long time, I don’t know him so well any more.” See:</p><p>ethan, ethin, ithan, ithin.</p><p>EITHOAN (vi): be careful.</p><p>EKE, KE (n): container, covering. Possessed: th-eke = its/her container; da-ke:</p><p>my container</p><p>EMATONOAN, EIMATONOAN (vi): angry, be mad. See: eimatonoan.</p><p>EMEKHON (vs): industrious, ambitious, not lazy. Tora bikhidoliatho min-ka kho</p><p>emekho-n. “That young woman is very industrious.”</p><p>EMELIAN, HEMELIAN (vs): new. See: hemelian.</p><p>ENHEN (p): yes.</p><p>EREBEN, IREBEN (vs): dirty, messy. To karobo-be min-ka kho erebe-n. “The</p><p>plates are very dirty.”</p><p>ERETHI, RETHI (n): husband. Lira wadili to da-rethi. “That man is my husband.”</p><p>Possessed: da-rethi = my husband.</p><p>ERETHO, RETHO (n): wife. De eretho bikhidolia koa-ma. “My wife is still young.”</p><p>ERODOAN (vi): yawn.</p><p>ETAN (vi): pound (e.g. cassava flour with a mortar and pestle). D-eta-bo khali</p><p>hako lokon. “I am pounding cassava in my cassava pounding mortar.”</p><p>See: itan.</p><p>ETHAN, ETHIN (vt): know about, know. See: eithin, eithan.</p><p>FALHETHO (n): Caucasian. Adali kha thy-jadoa-ka-the falhetho-be wa-sikoa khona.</p><p>“In the dry season white people come to visit our village.”</p><p>1. falhetho-khale: Western style bread</p><p>2. falhetho-dalhidi-koana: car/bus/etc.</p><p>FALHETHO-BEJOKA (n): radio, record player, cassette recorder. Possessed:</p><p>da-falhetho-bejoka = my radio.</p><p>FALHETHO-BIRAKA (n): radio. Possessed: da-falhetho-biraka = my radio.</p><p>FALHETHO-KANAN (n): ship, boat.</p><p>FALHETHO-KHALE (n): bread (wheat bread risen with yeast). Thojo-sikoa ron</p><p>khi, d-othika-ma falhetho-khale. “Only in the city can I get white bread.”</p><p>FALHETHO-KYNDYKHA (n): flashlight. Falhetho-kyndykha by-kalemeta-thi</p><p>farokha, aba tho-kojo thian-tho diako bo-foroto-n. “If you want to light a</p><p>flashlight, press on its navel-like thing (its switch).”</p><p>FARADAN (vi): split fire wood.</p><p>FAROKHA, HAROKHA (p): if, when (conditional). B-osy farokha jokha-nro,</p><p>by-fara-li khota-ha. “If you go hunting, you must kill animals.”</p><p>FARYN (vt): kill. Ta sabo da-faryn doma to khota-ha, ma-wadili-ka-the da-nyky-n</p><p>no, ken takyro d-a th-awa. “Because it was far away where I killed the</p><p>animal, it was impossible to come back with it, and I covered it.”</p><p>FATA (qw): how many.</p><p>FATADYN (vt): hit with the hand or fist. Ama khonaria by-fatada-ma</p><p>b-okhithi-wa? “Why did (could) you hit your little brother?”</p><p>132 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>FATAN (vi): fight. Na-fata-ka kho balhin, ma boredaro n-a. “They were not really</p><p>fighting, they were only wrestling.”</p><p>FILOAN (vt): take off, remove. Ly-dykhy-nbia-da no: thy-filoa-n tho-bokolho, ken</p><p>thy-welada bodali kosa-da no ... “He saw it: she took off her clothes, and</p><p>she hung them next to the cassava baking plate ...”</p><p>FIRO(-HO) (n): body. To firo-ho khonaria-tho to si-hi matho kothi-hi, dyna-ha</p><p>matho khabo-ho, ken abyryky koan. “On the body are head and feet, legs</p><p>and hands, and still other things.”</p><p>FIRO(-HO) (n): penis.</p><p>FIROBERO (n): tapir.</p><p>FIRON (vs): big, thick. Min-tho kho firon to. “It is very big.” Aba firo-tho bahy</p><p>da-malhithi-fa. “I am going to build a big house.”</p><p>FIROTAN...IRI (vt): praise, enlarge. Hi-firota Adajali iri. “(you-PL) Praise God.”</p><p>FIROTYN, FIROTAN (vt): enlarge, make bigger. Da-sikoa basaban-ka da-firota</p><p>sabo-fa no. “My house is small, I will enlarge it.”</p><p>FODI (n): capuchin monkey; monkey (generic). Aba fodi bolhedokota-ka-the ada</p><p>iwi d-adi. “A monkey threw fruit on me.” Possessed: da-fodi-a = my</p><p>monkey.</p><p>FODYN (vt): blow (with mouth, or wind). Da-foda aba bejokha. “I blow a flute.”</p><p>Min-ka kho to awadoli fody-n. “The wind blew very hard.”</p><p>FOFODAN (vi): whistle with the hands.</p><p>FOFON (vs): soft (e.g. sand). Min-ka kho fofo-n to mothoko. “The sand is very</p><p>soft.”</p><p>FOLIFOLIN (vs): slippery (e.g. a fish).</p><p>FONASIAN (vs): hungry. Fonasia-ka de. “I am hungry.”</p><p>FOROTON (vt): press. Falhetho-kyndykha by-kalemeta-thi farokha, aba tho-kojo</p><p>thiantho diako bo-foroto-fa. “If you want to light a flashlight, you must</p><p>press on its navel-like thing (switch).”</p><p>FORTO (n): city (ENG:fort). See: thojosikoa.</p><p>FOTHIKHIDIN, FOTHIKHIDAN (vi): exit, come out.</p><p>HABORI(N) (vs, n): ashamed, shy. Khatho kobydoa-hy abarykyno adi, min-ka kho</p><p>habori-n loko-ho. “When one makes mistakes in front of others, one is in</p><p>great shame.”</p><p>HADALI, ADALI (n): sun. See: adali.</p><p>HADOLHI (n): capybara (species) (small).</p><p>HAKO (n): mortar (for pounding cassava flour). D-eta jora-ha d-ako-n loko</p><p>hako-rethi abo. “I pound cassava meal in my mortar with its husband</p><p>(pestle).” Possessed: d-ako-n = my mortar.</p><p>HAKO-RETHI (n): pestle (mortar husband — for making cassava flour). D-eta</p><p>jora-ha d-ako-n loko hako-rethi abo. “I pound cassava meal in my mortar</p><p>with its husband (pestle).”</p><p>HALA (n): bench, stool. Hala: kia to balyty-koana-ha. “A bench: that is a thing</p><p>for sitting.” Possessed: da-la-n = my bench.</p><p>HALEKHEBEN, ALEKHEBEN (vs): happy, glad. See: alekheben.</p><p>HALHALHO (n): gourd spoon.</p><p>HALHAN (n): all, everyone. Halhan hy-makoa h-anda-li-the d-amyn. “All of you</p><p>must come by me (i.e. to my house).”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 133</p><p>HALHAN (vs): gone, consumed, finished (e.g. completely consumed or used up).</p><p>To atha w-amon-i-n-sia: halha no. “The drink (e.g. a barrel of cassava</p><p>beer) we had: it is finished.”</p><p>HALHIRAN (vs): white. Adia th-a tora bokolho halhira-n-da. “Those clothes are</p><p>very white.”</p><p>HALHO (n): cassava starch, glue made from cassava starch. Firo-tho halho</p><p>d-amon-i-n</p><p>kha, da-jokara-ma khi ba no. “When I have a lot of cassava</p><p>starch, I can sell it again (i.e. to replace the money spent buying what</p><p>is needed to get the starch.)” Possessed: d-alho-n = my cassava starch.</p><p>HALIKA, ALIKA (qw, rp): how. See: alika.</p><p>HALIKAN, ALIKAN (qw, rp): who. See: alikan.</p><p>HALIKHA, ALIKHA (qw, rp): when. See: alikha.</p><p>HALIMA (qw, rp): how long, as long as, however long. Da-lada-ka halima d-a-n</p><p>ma-khole-n khona koan. “I chopped as long as I (could) without being</p><p>tired (i.e. until I got tired).”</p><p>HALITHI (n): sweet potato (white, yellow, or orange kind).</p><p>HAMAKA (n): hammock. Jafo abo da-malhita hamaka. “With cotton I make</p><p>hammocks.”</p><p>HANANAN (vs): thick (e.g. thick skin) Tora khota-ha thojo-tho-ja-da no, kiadoma</p><p>hanana th-yda. “That animal was an old one, therefore its hide was</p><p>thick.”</p><p>HAO (n): monkey (species).</p><p>HAROKHA, FAROKHA (p): if, when (conditional). See: farokha.</p><p>HATHI, ATHI (n): pepper (a very hot kind). Hathi m-amyn th-a-n, seme m-a kho</p><p>to kadykyra. “If it doesn’t have pepper, the pepper pot (soup) is not</p><p>tasty.” Possessed: d-athi-a = my pepper.</p><p>HEBEN (vs): full. Hebe-ka to by-kanan? “Is your boat full?”</p><p>HEBEN (vs): ripe. Hebe-ka to by-manikhinia-n? “Are your eating bananas ripe?”</p><p>HEHE (p): yes (emphatic).</p><p>HEHEN (vs): yellow, pale. To hehe-bero kathokolhokhili bi-sika da-myn. “Give the</p><p>yellow flowers to me.”</p><p>HELODON (vt): polish, shine. Herebe-ka da-kothi-eke; da-helodo-fa no. “My shoes</p><p>are dirty; I will polish them.”</p><p>HELOTHO (n): gold, shiny stuff. Possessed: da-helotho-n = my gold. See:</p><p>kalemero.</p><p>HEMELIAN, EMELIAN (vs): new. Aba hemelia-tho da-simalha-wa da-jonta. “I</p><p>bought a new gun for myself.”</p><p>HI (pro): you (plural), your (plural). Hi dalhida-bo. “You (PL) are running.”</p><p>1. Hi sikoa to: It is your (PL) house.</p><p>2. To to hi myn: It is for you (PL).</p><p>HIARO (n): female, woman. Hiaro min-tho kho ka-nikho-thi-n. “Women greatly</p><p>want things to decorate one’s body with (e.g. jewelry).”</p><p>HIBIN (p): almost. De koborokoa-ka koan alika th-a-n aba kabadaro hibin bokoto-n</p><p>li d-oribithi. “I still remember how a jaguar almost grabbed my</p><p>brother-in-law.”</p><p>HIBIN (p): already. Kabyn kasakabo-ka kari-n hibin de. “I have been sick three</p><p>days already.” L-anda hibin? “Has he arrived already?”</p><p>HIKOLHI (n): turtle.</p><p>HIME (n): fire. Possessed: de hime = my fire.</p><p>134 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>HIME (n): fish. Hime da-bodesia-koma oniabo rakoaria. “I can (catch) fish in</p><p>water.”</p><p>HIMEDAN (vi): fish. To mothia w-osy-fa himedan-ro. “In the morning we will go</p><p>to fish.”</p><p>HIMIRI (n): fish (species) (ST: noja).</p><p>HITHI (n): bird (species) (ST: powisi).</p><p>HITOLHI (n): monkey (species) (red howler).</p><p>HIWA, IWA (n): year.</p><p>HOBO (n): tree (species) (ST: mope).</p><p>HODODI (n): woodpecker. To hododi olada-ka ada khondi. “The woodpecker</p><p>drills holes in trees.”</p><p>HOKOLHERO (n): capybara (species) (D: konijn).</p><p>HOLE (n): hole. See: ole.</p><p>HOLHISIRI (n): fish (species) (ST: pataka).</p><p>HOLHOE (n): monkey (species) (ST: wanakoe).</p><p>HOLHOLHO (n): ground, earth, world. De jada holholho diakhodi. “I travel</p><p>around on the earth.”</p><p>HOLHOLHO (n): hill, mountain. Abaro kho ajomyn-tho holholho ja-ka</p><p>moda-sia-ma diakon. “There are many mountains here which can be</p><p>climbed on.”</p><p>HOLHOLHO (n): property. Da-jonto farokha aba holholho, da-malhithi-fa aba bahy</p><p>thy-diako. “If I buy a property, I am going to build (make) a house on</p><p>it.” Possessed: da-olholha = my property.</p><p>HON (pp): you(PL)-BEN (abbrev. of hy-myn).</p><p>HONOLI (n): bird (species) (D: tijgervogel).</p><p>HYRYKYN (vs): even, the same. Hyryky-re h-a nebethi-n to amathali. “You (PL)</p><p>have to divide the thing (e.g. an animal) evenly (among you).”</p><p>HYRYREN (adv): fully.</p><p>HYRYRY (n): file.</p><p>HYRYRYDIASALHERO (n): bird (species) (ST: anamoe).</p><p>IBAN (n): remainder, leftover. To Jezus boji-n koba na abali-non kho, th-iban koan</p><p>biandakhabo-diako-bian keke n-ebeketa th-abo. “When Jesus fed the many,</p><p>they filled twelve baskets with the remainder of the meal.”</p><p>IBAN (vt): trap (e.g. by setting up a gun with trip wire). Tabo aba wakhai-tho</p><p>kho khota bona-ha da-dykha; d-eiba-fa da-simalha-wa tho-boran. “Over</p><p>there I saw a good animal trail. I will set up a gun trap for it (an ani-</p><p>mal)” See: eiban.</p><p>IBIHI (n): medicine. Li kari-thi isadoa, sa-tho ibihi l-othikhi-n doma. “The sick man</p><p>was healed, because he received good medicine.”</p><p>IBILI (n): child. M-amy-n d-a-n kha ibili, ama kho aikhata-koma da-koboroko. “If I</p><p>didn’t have children, nothing would console me.”</p><p>IBILIN (vs): small.</p><p>IBIN (vt): leave behind. Jara hala diako b-iba to buku (ST) da-myn. “Leave the</p><p>book for me on that bench.” See: eibin.</p><p>IBIN (vs): small. Khi d-a-n dykhy-n rikene aba maja firo-tho bala, aba maja ibi-ron</p><p>my-thi simalha lokoto-n-da de. “At the moment I saw it, I had the gun</p><p>loaded on one side with big shot, on the other side with small.”</p><p>IBONOAN (vi): finished. See: eibonoan.</p><p>IDA (n): gourd bowl.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 135</p><p>IHI (n): arrow cane. By-malhita-ma sarapa ihi abo. “You can make arrows with</p><p>arrow cane.” Possessed: deja-the = my arrow cane (irregular).</p><p>IJA (vs): raw. Sare b-a-li boko-n to khota-ha; ija koa th-a-ma. “You must cook the</p><p>meat well; (otherwise) it might still be raw.”</p><p>IKADYREN (vi): able to hear.</p><p>IKAN (vi): marry. Tokota kathi na bianinon bikhidoliathi ika-fa-the. “Next month</p><p>the two young men are going to get married.”</p><p>IKASIAN (vt): forget. Alikan khana ikasia-ka lo-kothike-wa jaha? “Who then forgot</p><p>his own shoes here?”</p><p>IKHI (n): fire. Bo-bokota-ma ikhi diako. “You can cook on fire.” Possessed: de</p><p>hime = my fire (irregular).</p><p>IKHI-KHODO (n): firewood. Waboka da-borata da-retho-wa nykyn ikhi-khodo.</p><p>“Just now I helped my wife carry firewood.”</p><p>IKOLHIDAN (vi): wound (go around wounding). Li jokha-thi ikolhida ro-ma to</p><p>khota-be khona. “The hunter can only go around wounding animals (i.e.</p><p>he is a bad hunter.”)</p><p>IKOLHIDIN (vt): wound. Majokha-n b-a to da-kalhinan khona; b-ikolhidi farokha</p><p>no, bo-jonto-fa no. “Don’t go around throwing things at my chickens; if</p><p>you wound one, you will buy it.”</p><p>ILON (vs): large, big.</p><p>ILONTHI (n): boy (near puberty).</p><p>ILONTHO (n): girl (near puberty). Tora ilontho to de ysa. “That big girl is my</p><p>child.”</p><p>INABO (pp): after (temporal). D-osa-bo tano-ho bo-bora, ken mothi b-osa-li-the</p><p>de-inabo. “I am leaving today before you, and tomorrow you must come</p><p>after me (i.e. I’ll go first, then you come later).”</p><p>INABO (pp): behind, after (locative). L-ysananothi dalhida-bo l-inabo. “His chil-</p><p>dren are running after him.”</p><p>INARIA (pp): starting from.</p><p>INATAN (vi): begin, make a beginning at. Mothi d-einata-ha da-kekere-wa. “To-</p><p>morrow I will start (making) my own basket.” See: einatan.</p><p>INATYN (vt): begin. Mothi d-einaty-fa da-nekhebo khona. “Tomorrow I will begin</p><p>on my work.” See: einthyn.</p><p>INIABO (n): water. See: oniabo.</p><p>IREBEN, EREBEN (vs): dirty, messy. See: ereben.</p><p>IRI(-HI) (n): name. Possessed: l-iri = his name.</p><p>IRITHIN (vt): name. Ylhihi-n doma da-balha, ylhisili n-a irithi-n-da de. “Because</p><p>my hair is dark, they called me dark-head.”</p><p>ISADAN (vt): improve, prepare, heal. Firo-tho kasakabo boran, sare w-o-fa isada-n</p><p>wa-sikoa khiradia. “Before the feast day, we will prepare the area around</p><p>our house well.” Li bikathi isada li kari-thi. “The doctor healed the sick</p><p>man.”</p><p>ISADONOAN, ISADOAN (vi): be healed. Min-thi koba kho kari-n li da-sa, ma</p><p>wakharo siokhan l-a-thi-ka isadonoa-n. “My child was very sick, but now</p><p>he is getting a little better.” Li kari-thi isadoa, sa-tho ibihi l-othikhi-n</p><p>doma. “The sick man was healed because he received good medicine.”</p><p>ISADONOAN, ISADOAN (vi): be prepared. D-osy-n bora khojaboa-sikoa-nro, sare</p><p>d-oa isadonoa-n. “Before I go to church, I prepare myself well.”</p><p>136 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>ISADYN (vt): save. B-othikhi farokha by-polata-nia, sare b-a-li isady-n no. “If you</p><p>get your money, you must save it well.”</p><p>ISI(-HI) (n): head. Da-si da-noro diako-ka. “My head is on my neck.” Possessed:</p><p>da-si = my head.</p><p>ISI(-HI) (n): leader, boss, captain. Wa-si dykhy-thi wa-sikoa khona. “Our captain</p><p>is the one who watches</p><p>regard to the phonology had to be revised (see Pet 1979).</p><p>1.3 Purpose</p><p>The purpose of this study is to provide a general sketch of the Arawak language as it is</p><p>spoken in Suriname, South America, and to do so with a broader scope than previous stud-</p><p>ies have. The hope is that this sketch will be of use to linguists in general, regardless of the</p><p>theoretical frameworks within which they work.</p><p>The coverage of Arawak syntax in the dissertation version of this study assumed the prin-</p><p>ciples of Government and Binding Theory (e.g. Chomsky 1982a, 1982b). In this present</p><p>version little reference is made to theoretical issues, except where particularly relevant.</p><p>1.4 Overview</p><p>Because of the already mentioned deficiencies in currently available sources for Arawak lan-</p><p>guage data, this study is based primarily on original data collected by me and compared with</p><p>previous works only as necessary. The data presented here were collected during periods of</p><p>residence in two Suriname villages, Powakka and Cassipora, from 1972 to 1978 and from</p><p>1981 to 1984, under the auspices of the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL International).</p><p>In accordance with the primarily descriptive nature of this study, the following chapters</p><p>are organized to present a bottom-up sketch of Arawak—starting with some comments on</p><p>Arawak phonology and ending with some comments about Arawak discourse. The bulk of</p><p>the description is in the area of syntax.</p><p>Chapter 2 consists of an overview of Arawak phonology and of lexical classes and mor-</p><p>phology. The phonological system is discussed only briefly since it is adequately covered</p><p>elsewhere (e.g. Taylor 1969; Pet 1979). The chapter presents a summary of the major lexi-</p><p>cal classes of the language, derivational systems, and various inflectional categories.</p><p>Chapter 3 consists primarily of a description of Arawak phrase and sentence syntax. Par-</p><p>ticular attention is paid to movement of question phrases, focused constituents, and rela-</p><p>tive pronouns to the left periphery of the clause. Such movement is clause-bounded and</p><p>leaves an associated gap. It also involves the obligatory insertion of what I call a “dummy</p><p>verb” in sentences when the verb or a manner adverbial is the questioned or otherwise</p><p>fronted constituent, but not when other constituents are fronted.</p><p>Chapter 4 continues the exposition of Arawak syntax by concentrating on the internal</p><p>structure of relative clauses and on the classes of constituents in a sentence which may be</p><p>relativized.</p><p>Chapter 5 returns to the consideration of some morphemes which cannot be adequately</p><p>described without reference to levels of the language above that of the sentence. In this</p><p>1.4 Overview 5</p><p>chapter, the use and the meaning of the Arawak tense/aspect suffixes and tense particles</p><p>are investigated. Comrie (1976, 1985) is followed for the componential analysis of their</p><p>meaning, and narrative structure analysis (e.g. Longacre 1976, 1984; Grimes 1975; Hopper</p><p>1979) is used for additional insights into their use and meaning.</p><p>Chapter 6 is the conclusion. In it, I summarize the major findings and discuss some of the</p><p>limitations and inadequacies of the study.</p><p>Part 2 is a short lexicon of Suriname Arawak and an English-Arawak index. An appendix</p><p>with six interlinearized narrative texts follows. A bibliography concludes the volume.</p><p>6 Introduction</p><p>Chapter 2</p><p>Phonology and Morphology</p><p>2.1 Phonology</p><p>2.1.1 Segmentals</p><p>There are seventeen consonants in Arawak if one includes the semivowels /w/, /¸/, and</p><p>/h/, and there are five vowels (see Figure 2). The language contrasts voiced and voiceless</p><p>unaspirated stops and voiceless aspirated stops, although the full three-way contrast is</p><p>found only among the apical consonants. The voiceless bilabial stop /p/ is found only in</p><p>obvious loan words from Spanish or Portuguese introduced into the language in the 1700s.</p><p>These loans are fully assimilated, and Arawaks are not conscious of the fact that these</p><p>words are in any way “foreign.”</p><p>(1) pero ‘dog’ Sp. perro</p><p>polata ‘money’ Sp. plata</p><p>sapato ‘shoe/sandal’ Sp. zapato</p><p>kasipara ‘machete’ Sp. espada</p><p>The /º/ is a retroflexed apical flap (tip of the tongue slightly curled back and flipped for-</p><p>ward with a brief contact of the alveolar ridge) and contrasts with /»/, an apical tap or</p><p>trill.</p><p>There is considerable allophonic variation associated with some of the phonemes in Ara-</p><p>wak. These variations are summarized below. For details and examples, see Pet (1979),</p><p>Taylor (1969), and van Renselaar and Voorhoeve (1962).</p><p>The apical phonemes /t/, /th/, /d/, and /s/ strongly palatalize to the affricates [tš], [tš],</p><p>[d‚], and the grooved fricative [š], respectively, preceding /i/. For example: /dinthi/</p><p>[d‚ðntši] ‘uncle’, /siba/ [šiba] ‘stone’.</p><p>The aspirate/non-aspirate contrast among the voiceless stops is neutralized immediately pre-</p><p>ceding the phoneme /i/. This means there is no contrast between /k/ and /kh/ preceding /i/,</p><p>nor is there contrast between the palatalized allophones of /t/ and /th/ preceding /i/.</p><p>The phoneme /o/ is phonetically a rounded, mid- to high-back vocoid. Its high variants,</p><p>approaching [u], occur preceding a syllable containing an /i/. For example: /o»i/ [u»i]</p><p>‘snake’, /oni/ [uni] ‘rain’. Elsewhere, /o/ fluctuates between [o] and [u], with some ten-</p><p>dency to assimilate in height to the vowel of the following syllable.</p><p>7</p><p>CONSONANTS</p><p>BILABIAL APICAL VELAR</p><p>STOPS</p><p>VL ASP /th/ ‘th’ /kh/ ‘kh’</p><p>VL UNASP /p/ ‘p’ /t/ ‘t’ /k/ ‘k’</p><p>VD UNASP /b/ ‘b’ /d/ ‘d’</p><p>VL FRIC /ˆ/ ‘f’ /s/ ‘s’</p><p>LATERAL /l/ ‘l’</p><p>FLAP /º/ ‘lh’</p><p>TAP/TRILL /»/ ‘r’</p><p>NASAL /m/ ‘m’ /n/ ‘n’</p><p>SEMIVOWEL /w/ ‘w’ /¸/ ‘j’ /h/ ‘h’</p><p>VOWELS</p><p>FRONT BACK</p><p>HIGH /i/ ‘i’</p><p>/´/ ‘y’ /o/ ‘o’</p><p>/e/ ‘e’</p><p>LOW /a/ ‘a’</p><p>Note: Orthographic symbols corresponding to phonemes are in single quotation marks. Americanist phonetic</p><p>symbols are used.</p><p>Figure 2. Phonological System of Arawak</p><p>The phoneme /´/ is phonetically an unrounded vocoid and fluctuates between central to</p><p>back and mid to high, with a tendency to assimilate in height to the vowel of the following</p><p>syllable. In terms of distinctive features (Figure 3), it appears to bear the same relationship</p><p>to the vocalic system that /o/ does, except that it is unrounded.</p><p>i e a ´ o</p><p>high + – – + +</p><p>front + + – – –</p><p>rounded – +</p><p>Figure 3. Distinctive Features of Arawak Vowels</p><p>The only consonants which can occur syllable finally in Arawak are the nasal phones</p><p>[m], [n], and [‰]. These, however, do not contrast with each other in this position and are</p><p>therefore treated as instances of a single nasal /n/.1 This consonant is realized as strong na-</p><p>salization of a vowel (e.g. /dansika/ [dãšika] ‘I want’). If the vowel is followed by an oral</p><p>or nasal stop, the nasalization of the vowel is accompanied by a lenis nasal consonant,</p><p>homorganic with that stop (e.g. /danda/ [dãnda] ‘I arrive’, /wos´nbi¸a/ [wos¹mbia] ‘in or-</p><p>der that we go’, /bah´nka¸i/ [bah¹‰kai] ‘he is at home’). If /n/ occurs in pause-group-final</p><p>position, the nasalization of the vowel is accompanied by a velar nasal consonant (e.g.</p><p>/kak´thinon/ [kak´tšinõ‰] ‘people’).</p><p>8 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>1Elsewhere (Pet 1979) I have analyzed this nasal as an “independent suprasegmental phoneme,” and Taylor</p><p>(1970) analyzed it in terms of a full set of nasalized vowels.</p><p>2.1.2 Prefixes and Vowel Cluster Reduction</p><p>The shape of a prefix is often obscured by vowel cluster reduction rules that apply when-</p><p>ever a prefix ending in a vowel is added to a stem beginning with a vowel.2</p><p>(2) a. /a/ + /e/ ® /a/</p><p>(e.g. /da-/ + /e»etho/ becomes /da»etho/ ‘my wife’)</p><p>b./a/ + /o/ ® /ao/ or /o/</p><p>(e.g. /da-/ + /osa/ becomes /daosa/ or /dosa/ ‘I go’)</p><p>c. /a/ + /i/ ® /ai/ or /ei/ or /e/</p><p>(e.g. /da-/ + /itha/ becomes /daitha/ or /deitha/ or /detha/ ‘I know’)</p><p>d./´/ + V1 ® V1</p><p>(e.g. /l´/ + /osa/ becomes /losa/ ‘he goes’)</p><p>e. V1 + V1 ® V1</p><p>(e.g. /da-/ + /a»i/ becomes /da»i/ ‘my tooth’)</p><p>In all the above cases, the resulting vowel or diphthong becomes phonetically stressed or</p><p>lengthened, or both. In addition to the above combination rules, if a prefix ending</p><p>over our village.”</p><p>ITAN (vi): pound (e.g. cassava flour with mortar and pestle). See: etan.</p><p>ITHAN, ITHIN (vt): know. See: eithan, eithin, ethan, ethin.</p><p>ITHI (n): father (also father’s brother). Possessed: da-thi = my father.</p><p>ITOKO(-HO) (b): tail.</p><p>IWA (n): star. See: wiwa.</p><p>IWA (n): year. See: hiwa.</p><p>IWI (n): fruit, seed.</p><p>(Y)JA (n): spirit, image, photo. See: yja.</p><p>JA(HA), JA(DI)(-HI), JA(RA) (n, vs): here.</p><p>JABOARIA (pp): in front of, to the front of, forward. See: jabon, -aria.</p><p>JABOATHO (n): aunt (mother’s sister). Possessed: da-jaboatho = my aunt.</p><p>JABODYN (vt): roast. Min-ka kho fonasia-n de; da-jabody-fa aba hime d-onoa. “I</p><p>am very hungry; I will roast a fish for myself.”</p><p>JABON (pp): behind, after. Aba siokothi da-sikoa jabon-ka. “A little boy is behind</p><p>my house.”</p><p>JABONRO (pp): to the back of, to the rear of, behind, after. See: jabon, -ro.</p><p>JABOSAN, JOBYSAN (vi): sieve cassava flour, sift cassava flour.</p><p>JABYDYN, JABYDAN (vt): roast.</p><p>JADAN (vt): pull out, threaten. Da-jada-fa da-khale-wa. “I will pull out (of the</p><p>ground) my cassava tubers.” Li malokonisiathi jada-ka kasipara abo</p><p>ly-madianthi-wa. “The bad man threatened his own friend with a</p><p>machete.”</p><p>JADOALA (n): knife. Da-jadoala-n da-bolheda; m-eithi-n d-a alon nin no. “I lost my</p><p>knife; I don’t know where it is.” Possessed: da-jadoala-n = my knife.</p><p>JADOAN (vi): go on an outing, take a walk, take a stroll, travel, take a trip.</p><p>Abahan d-osy-fa da-sanothi abo jadoa-n-ba dierentuin (D) ninro. “Someday</p><p>I will go with my children on an outing to the zoo.”</p><p>JADYN (vi): travel, journey. Lira to falhetho adiakhanken-thi jady-n, kiadoma</p><p>abaro kho sikoa-hy ly-dykha. “That Caucasian travels a lot, therefore a lot</p><p>of countries he has seen.”</p><p>JAFO (n): cotton. Jafo abo da-malhita hamaka. “With cotton I make hammocks.”</p><p>Possessed: da-jafo-n = my cotton.</p><p>JAKASYN, JAKASAN (vt): kick. Ma-jakasa-n b-a to by-pero-nia; tho-jokha-koma</p><p>kho sabo. “Don’t kick your dog; (or) it won’t be able to hunt anymore.”</p><p>JAKHATYN, JAKHATAN (vt): hide, conceal. Lira ememethi-khabo jakhata to</p><p>jadoala-n d-oria. “That sticky hand (someone who constantly takes</p><p>things) concealed the knife from me.”</p><p>1. jakhatoan: conceal one’s self, hide one’s self</p><p>JAKOSOAN (vi): stall.</p><p>JAKOSON (vt): extinguish.</p><p>JALHIDIN (vi): fish by poisoning, poison fish. To hime-be min-ka kho odo-n;</p><p>na-jalhida-ka th-adi. “Many fish died; they poisoned them.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 137</p><p>JALOKHOTAN (vi, vt): trade, barter. Wakhili, m-eithi-n koa n-a-n kha polata,</p><p>jalokhota-ro n-a ama rikene-n n-amon-i-n-sia falhetho-be oma. “Long ago,</p><p>when they still didn’t know (about) money, they traded/bartered all</p><p>sorts of things they had with the Caucasians.”</p><p>JALOKHOTON, JALOKHOTYN (vt): return (something borrowed). Da-bokhithi</p><p>amyn da-tyna-ba khaborokhodo-ho, ma da-jalokhoto-fa khi-da ba no. “At</p><p>(from) my older brother I borrowed money, but I will return it again.”</p><p>JALOKOTON (vi): undress.</p><p>JARAO (n): fish (species) (ST: warapa).</p><p>JATYN (vt): draw, sketch. Lira wadili min-thi kho eithi-n jaty-n amathali. “That</p><p>man knows (how) to draw things very well.”</p><p>JAWAHY (n): devil.</p><p>JAWALHE (n): opossum (species).</p><p>JE (pro): they [+human], them [+human].</p><p>JEMA(-HA) (n): nausea. Jema-thi d-a. “I feel nauseous.”</p><p>JENI(-HI) (n): song, tune. Da-wiwida aba jeni khan. “I whistled a little song.”</p><p>JENTONOAN (vi): sing. Joli-non jentonoa-n: sa-thi th-a kanaba-bia. “Many people</p><p>singing: it (is) nice/good/pretty to hear.”</p><p>JERIKOAN (vi): cut hair.</p><p>JESERE (n): armadillo (species).</p><p>JESI (n): armadillo (species) (ST: kapasi).</p><p>JOARIA, JOAJA (tw): then, next, from then, from there. Joaria w-osa khi-ka-da</p><p>ba hadali kolokon. “From there, we went on the same way in the sun.”</p><p>JODOKOTON (vt): hang, hang up. Da-jodokota bahy-dora khona d-arakabosa-n. “I</p><p>hang my gun on the wall.”</p><p>JODON (vt): swing, rock. Bo-joda basada-ren li siokothi abo, m-anaby-n l-a-n-bia.</p><p>“Swing/rock (i.e. in a hammock) the little boy gently, so that he doesn’t</p><p>waken.”</p><p>JOHON (vs): many. De sikoa-n min-ka kho joho-n kolhi-hi. “My house has many</p><p>rats.”</p><p>JOJON (vs): wet, moist. To bokolho jojo-ka. “The clothes are wet.”</p><p>JOJOTON (vt): wet, moisten.</p><p>JOKARYN, JOKARAN (vt): sell. B-amyn-ka nana jokara-bia? “Do you have pine-</p><p>apple to sell?”</p><p>JOKHAN (vi): hunt; go around throwing things. Mothi, saoka koa th-arokha,</p><p>d-osy-fa jokha-n-ro. “Tomorrow, if it is still good weather, I will go hunt-</p><p>ing.” Ma-jokha-n b-a to ka-kalhina-n khona; b-ikolhidi farokha no,</p><p>bo-jonto-fa de. “Don’t go around throwing (things) at my chicken(s); if</p><p>you wound it/them, you will pay me.”</p><p>JOKHON (vi): shoot. To d-osy-n jokha-n-ro: da-kanaba aba da-kosa khan jokho-n.</p><p>“Concerning my going to hunt: I hear someone sort of close to me</p><p>shoot.”</p><p>JOKHONOAN (vi): shoot. To da-simalha min-tho kho ka-kanakyn jokhonoa-n to.</p><p>“My gun shoots very loudly.”</p><p>JOKORO (n): peccary (species) (ST: pingo).</p><p>JOLHADOA-KOANA(-HA) (n): boat, canoe. Possessed: da-jolhadoa-koana.</p><p>JOLHADYN (vi): float. Aba ada, ‘thikhobolo’ n-asia myn, min-tho kho jolhady-n.</p><p>“One (kind of) wood, which they call ‘thikhobolo’, floats very well.”</p><p>138 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>JOLHATYN ... ANSI (vt): tease, bother, torture. Ma-jolhaty-n b-a to pero ansi;</p><p>thy-rydaja-fa-da bo. “Don’t tease the dog; it will bite you.”</p><p>JOLHI (n): tobacco, cigarette, cigar. B-amyn-ka aba jolhi da-myn? Min-ka kho</p><p>da-kolhedoa-thi-n. “Do you have a cigarette for me? I have a great desire</p><p>to smoke.”</p><p>JOLHODOAN (vi): hang. To bajolha-be khonaria tho-jolhodoa, da-kora. “From the</p><p>beams it hangs, my hammock.”</p><p>JON (n, vs): there.</p><p>JONA (n): wage, worth, price. Possessed: tho-jona = its price.</p><p>(O)JONO (n): family. See: ojono.</p><p>JONTAN (vt): buy. Ka-polata-nin kha de, min-koma kho da-jonta-n th-abo. “If I</p><p>were rich (lit: moneyed), I could buy a lot with it.”</p><p>JONTHO (rp): there where, where. Jontho thy-boadonoa-n w-abo kawa-ka oniabo.</p><p>“There where it broke down on us, there is no water.” Khi dia w-a-n</p><p>bena-da, wa-bali-ka jontho-bo w-osy-n ninro. “After doing thusly, we went</p><p>on to where we were going.”</p><p>JONTON (vt): pay. Sa farokha by-nekhebo-n da-myn, sa-fa da-jonto-n thy-jonabo.</p><p>“If you work for me well, I will pay a good wage.”</p><p>JONTONOAN, JONTOAN (vi): pay back, repay. By-sikhi farokha firo-tho kasiri</p><p>da-myn, da-jonto-fa balhinia khi ba. “If you give me a big (gourd of) cas-</p><p>sava beer (to drink), I will pay you back again the same way.”</p><p>JORAHA (n): grated and squeezed cassava pulp, cassava flour, cassava meal.</p><p>Da-jobysa joraha da-manalhi-a abo. “I sift cassava flour with my sifting</p><p>basket.”</p><p>JORO (n): cassava squeezer (made of basketry). Da-joroda khali da-joro-n abo. “I</p><p>squeeze (i.e. squeeze the poisonious juice out of) cassava with my cas-</p><p>sava squeezer.” Possessed: da-joro-n = my cassava squeezer.</p><p>JORO-RETHI (n): stick upon which one sits to stretch the cassava squeezer to</p><p>cause it to squeeze.</p><p>JORODATHO (n): sister (of a male). Possessed: da-jorodatho = my sister.</p><p>JORODON (vi): squeeze cassava.</p><p>JOROKON (vi): drag. Tho-moty-n da-nakara de, kia loko joroko-ro d-a th-abo. “My</p><p>burden defeated me (i.e. it was too heavy); because of that I dragged</p><p>it.”</p><p>KABADARO (n): jaguar. Kabadaro khi ron to khota-ha konoko lokhodi. “Jaguars</p><p>only eat animals in the forest.”</p><p>KABENA (tw): later.</p><p>KABILOKON (vs): wide. De bona-ha min-tho kho kabiloko-n. “My path (e.g. the</p><p>path to my house) is very wide.”</p><p>KABOJA, KABYJA (n): planting ground. D-osy-fa kaboja-nro; da-reke-fa. “I will</p><p>go to my planting ground; I will weed.” Possessed: da-kabo-n = my</p><p>planting ground.</p><p>KABOKHALI (n): tree (species) (ST: copie).</p><p>KABYN (quant, num): three.</p><p>KABYNIBO: three times.</p><p>KABYNTHIAN (quant, num): eight.</p><p>KADANARO (n): deer.</p><p>KADYKYRA, KADAKYRA (n): pepper pot (a soup made of boiled cassava juice</p><p>with pepper and meat or fish). Da-kadykyra loko da-boka-ma khota-ha</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 139</p><p>matho hime. “In my pepper pot (soup) I can cook meat and fish.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-kadykyra = my pepper pot.</p><p>KADYNABORO (n): tree (species) (ST: kankantrie).</p><p>KAJADAN (vi): notice, be aware of. Jakhatoa</p><p>loko d-osa-ja balhin, ma na-kajada</p><p>da-khonan. “I went secretly, but they noticed me anyway.”</p><p>KAJADYN (vt): notice. Miaka olhika d-osa jadan-ro, ken da-retho ma-kajady-n-ka</p><p>da-khonan alikha diaro ren d-osy-n. “Yesterday night I went hunting, and</p><p>my wife didn’t notice exactly when I went.” See: kajadan.</p><p>KAJADYN ... KHONA (vt): understand. To ama by-dia-sia da-myn: da-kajada</p><p>khan-ka tho-khona. “Concerning what you said to me: I do understand</p><p>it.”</p><p>KAJOKOTHI (n): alligator.</p><p>KAJOLHERO (n): cow. Da-kajolhero-n ka-sa farokha, d-othika-ma tho-dio-(y)ra</p><p>da-than-ia-wa. “If my cow had a calf, I could get its milk as my bever-</p><p>age.” Possessed: da-kajolhero-n = my cow.</p><p>KAKANAKYN (vs): loud. Ka-kanaky-re b-a-li ydia-n thojothi-non oma. “You have</p><p>to speak loudly with old people.”</p><p>KAKOARO (n): cow. Da-kakoaro-n ka-sa farokha, d-othika-ma tho-dio-(y)ra</p><p>da-than-ia-wa. “If my cow had a calf, I could get its milk as my bever-</p><p>age.” Possessed: da-kakoaro-n = my cow.</p><p>1. kakoaro ysa: calf</p><p>KAKOLHEMERO (n): capybara (species) (D: konijn).</p><p>KAKOLHOTHIMA (n): boil, bump (on the skin). Be-bebeda-the da-dana khona,</p><p>ama thiaron baha kakolhothima. “Come feel on my leg what sort of bump</p><p>it could be.”</p><p>KAKOLOKHODORO (n): fish (species) (ST: anjoemara).</p><p>KAKOSALOKORO (n): monkey (species).</p><p>KAKOSIRO (n): deer.</p><p>KAKY(-HY) (n): life. To kaky-hy w-amon-i-n-sia: li malhithi-thi we siki-sia-ra</p><p>wa-myn-da-n. “The life which we have: it is what the one who made us</p><p>(God) gave to us.”</p><p>KAKYN (vi): live. San kaky-n wabokoa we: saboro th-a wa-myn. “Our living well</p><p>with each other: it is good for us.”</p><p>KAKYTHI (n): man, human.</p><p>KAKYTHO (n): woman, human [non-Arawak].</p><p>KALEME(-HE) (n): light. To kaleme-he kari-thi-thi-ma da-kosi, adiake th-a tata-n.</p><p>“The light which wants to hurt my eyes, it is very strong.”</p><p>KALEMERO (n): gold, bright thing. Kalemero kawa-n kha, alika w-a-ma khan</p><p>ka-nikho-n? “If there were no gold, how could we have jewelry?” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-kalemero = my gold. See: helotho.</p><p>KALEMETHIN (vt): light.</p><p>KALHAO (vs): green.</p><p>KALHAO, KALHO (n): grain. Aba mothoko kalho osa da-kosi loko-nro. “A sand</p><p>grain went into my eye.”</p><p>KALHAO, KALHO (n): grass. Koadoa-kothiro: kia min-ka kho khi-n to kalhao.</p><p>“Cows/horses: they eat lots of grass.” Possessed: da-kalhao-ja = my</p><p>grass.</p><p>1. kalhao-iwi: rice (lit: grass seed)</p><p>140 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>KALHINA (n): chicken. Da-kalhina-n joto farokha, da-jokara-ma khi ba no. “If my</p><p>chickens multiply, I could sell them again (i.e. just as I bought them).”</p><p>Possessed: da-kalhina-n = my chicken.</p><p>1. kalhina-sa: chicken egg</p><p>KALHIWALHO (n): fish (species) (ST: kwikwi).</p><p>KALHO (n): grass. See: kalhao.</p><p>KALHOBA (n): bird (species) (ST: wakago, D: boshaan).</p><p>KALHYDAKOTON (vt): fold. Bi-misidi farokha da-danake, sare b-a-li kalhydakoto-n</p><p>no. “If you iron my pants, you must fold them well.”</p><p>KALHYDAN (vi): break a bone. Hetho-re h-a bira-n; hy-kalhyda-koma. “(you-PL)</p><p>Be careful in your playing; you could break a bone (e.g. arm or leg).”</p><p>KALHYDONOAN, KALHYDOAN (vi): be broken. See: kalhydyn.</p><p>KALHYDYN (vt): break, snap (by bending). Bo-bora farokha to ada-sa, by-kalhyda</p><p>bo-boroadia no. “If there is a branch in front of you, break it off before</p><p>you.” Hebe-ka to nana; da-kalhydy-fa no. “The pineapples are ripe; I am</p><p>going to harvest them (lit: break them off).”</p><p>1. kalhydykytyn: cause to break</p><p>KALYN, KAYLYN (vs): fast, quick.</p><p>KAMA (n): tapir.</p><p>KAMANAN (vs): sharp. Etho-re b-a to jadoala myn; min-ka kho ka-mana-n no. “Be</p><p>careful of the knife; it is very sharp.” Min-ka kho da-kasipara-n kamana-n.</p><p>“My machete is very sharp.”</p><p>KAMONEKA (vs): poor, be in difficulty. Alikan m-amyn-thi bojoa-hy, ne to</p><p>kamoneka-thi. “Those who don’t have food, they are (really) poor.”</p><p>KAMOTHINAN (vs): difficult, poor. To malhikhota ibili-non: min-tho kho</p><p>kamothina-n to. “The teaching of children: it is very difficult.”</p><p>(Y)KAN (vi): bathe. Bakylamabo da-ka-fa-ba. “This afternoon I will go take a</p><p>bath.”</p><p>KANABAN (vt): hear. Bi waboken kanaba to khota simaka-n? “Do you hear the</p><p>animal also (i.e. in addition to me)?”</p><p>KANABYN (vt): listen. Sare h-a-li kanaby-n ama d-a-n-fa dia-n ho-myn. “You (PL)</p><p>must listen well (to) what I am going to say to you.”</p><p>KANABYN...KHONAN (vi): obey. Hy-kanaby-ra-fa to thojothi-non khonan. “You</p><p>(PL) should obey grown-ups.”</p><p>KANAKANASIRO (n): chicken. See: kalhina.</p><p>KANAKYDI (n): stem of the cassava plant.</p><p>KANAKYN (n): sound.</p><p>1. ka-kanaky-n: loud</p><p>2. ma-kanaky-n: soft (not loud)</p><p>KANAN (n): boat, large canoe. Possessed: da-kanan = my boat.</p><p>KANOA (n): canoe. Possessed: da-kanoa-n = my canoe.</p><p>KANSIN (vt): love, like. Lira bikhidoliathi: kansi-thi hibin li. “That young man</p><p>there: he is already in love.” See: ansin.</p><p>KARI(-HI) (n): sickness, pain.</p><p>KARIN (vs): sick. Kabyn kasakabo-ka kari-n hibin de. “I have already been sick</p><p>for three days.”</p><p>KARIRO (n): dog. See: pero.</p><p>KARIRO (n): fish (species) (ST: anjoemara).</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 141</p><p>KAROBO (n): plate (to eat from). Karobo kawa-n kha, alika d-a-ma khan khota-n?</p><p>“If there are no plates, how can I eat?” Possessed: da-karobo-n = my</p><p>plate.</p><p>KASAKABO (tw): daytime. Da-nekhebo-ka kasakabo. “I work in the daytime.”</p><p>KASAKABO NEBETAN (tw): noon. Kasakabo nebetan da-khoto-fa. “At noon I will</p><p>eat.”</p><p>KASAKABO(-HO) (n): day. Kasakoda nebetan dikhi thy-nyka aba emelia-tho</p><p>kasakabo. “After midnight a new day begins.”</p><p>KASAKODA (tw): nighttime (21:00–24:00). Kasakoda d-osy-fa-the jokhan-ro. “To-</p><p>night I will go hunting.”</p><p>KASAKODA NAKAN (tw): midnight. Kasakoda nakan dikhi thy-nyka aba</p><p>emelia-tho kadakabo. “After midnight a new day begins.”</p><p>KASAKODA NEBETAN (tw): midnight. Kasakoda nebetan da-donko-ra-fa. “At</p><p>midnight I will probably be sleeping.”</p><p>KASAKONRO (tw): pre-dawn (3:00–6:00). See: mothiaro.</p><p>KASALHERO (n): bird (species) (ST: anamoe).</p><p>KASI (n): fish (species) (ST: djakie).</p><p>KASIAN (vt): forget. De kasia-n boradi, bo-koborokoata-li-da de. “Before I forget,</p><p>you must remind me.”</p><p>KASIPARA (n): machete. Kasipara abo da-soka-ka ada-sa-be. “With the machete I</p><p>cut young trees.” Possessed: da-kasipara-n = my machete.</p><p>KASIRI (n): cassava beer (fermented cassava drink).</p><p>KATELOKOJAN, -TELOKOJAN (vs, vt): hate. Ama khoraria na-telokoja-ka</p><p>n-onekoa? “Why do they hate each other?”</p><p>KATHI (n): month. Tokota kathi na bianinon bikhidoliathi ika-fa-the. “Next month</p><p>the two young men will get married.”</p><p>KATHI (n): moon. Wadia khoro kathi kolhobody-fa. “Pretty soon it will be full</p><p>moon.”</p><p>KATHIKEBETHI, KATHIKEBERO, KATHIKEBETHO (n): thief. To bariri bokota to</p><p>kathikebero. “The policeman grabbed the thief.”</p><p>KATHOKOLHOKHILI (n): flower. Da-kathokolhokhili-a da-siki-fa da-sikoa lokoa</p><p>sa-ko th-a-nbia da-sikoa. “My flowers I will put in my house to beautify</p><p>it, my house.” Possessed: da-kathokolhokhili-a = my flower.</p><p>KATHYNAN (vi): bleed. Bo-soko farokha kasipara abo, min-ka kho ka-thyna-n no.</p><p>“If you get cut with a machete, it (the wound) will bleed a lot.”</p><p>KATORORO (n): tapir.</p><p>KAWALAINARO (n): capybara (species) (D: haas, ST: hei, h’e).</p><p>KAWAN (vs): absent, be gone.</p><p>KAYLYN (vs): fast, quick. Adia l-a kaylyn osy-n-da. “He goes (e.g. walks) very</p><p>quickly.”</p><p>KE, EKE (n): container.</p><p>KEKE, KEKERE (n): basket (used primarily by women to carry things).</p><p>Ma-kekere-n kha de, wadili-koma kho khali-doli da-nyky-n. “If I didn’t have</p><p>a basket, it would be impossible for me to carry cassava tubers.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-kekere = my basket.</p><p>KELI (n): cassava juice (very poisonous — contains HCN, cyanide).</p><p>KEN (conj): and.</p><p>KEROSYN (vt): turn. Adiake-man b-a kerosonoan, thy-jodako-ma bo-kosi. “If you</p><p>turn around a lot, your head can become dizzy.”</p><p>142 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>KETOAN (vi): dress one’s self.</p><p>KHA (p): when, at the time, then. Bikhidolia d-a-n kha, min-thi kho jokha-n de.</p><p>“When I was young, I was one who hunted a lot.”</p><p>KHABAN (n): salt. Boka-hy ma-khaba-n seme kho no. “Cooked things without salt</p><p>are not tasty.”</p><p>KHABARO (n): salt. See: pamo.</p><p>KHABARO (n): salted fish.</p><p>KHABATYN (vt): salt, pickle. Sa-ja kho by-khabaty-n to khota siroko, kiadoma</p><p>thy-boadoa-ja.</p><p>“You didn’t salt the meat well, therefore it spoiled.”</p><p>KHABO(-HO) (n): hand. Da-khabo abo abo da-khota. “I eat with my hand(s).”</p><p>Adajali sika khabo-ho ly-diakon. “God blessed him (lit: placed hand on</p><p>him).” Possessed: da-khabo = my hand.</p><p>1. sika khabo-ho ... diakon: bless</p><p>KHABO-IBIRA(-HA) (n): finger. Da-khabo-ibira abo da-bokota-ma amathali. “With</p><p>my fingers I can hold something.” Possessed: da-khabo-ibira = my</p><p>finger.</p><p>KHABOROKHODO(-HO) (n): money, wages. Ma-khaborokodo-n de, d-osa-ma kho</p><p>thojosikoa-nro. “Without money, I can’t go to town.” Possessed:</p><p>da-khaborokhodo = my money.</p><p>KHAJABA (n): Chinese person.</p><p>KHAJABA (n): flea. De sikoa-n min-ka kho joho-n to khajaba. “My house is crawl-</p><p>ing with fleas.”</p><p>KHALI, KHALE (n): cassava, cassava bread. Bianbo thiantho to khale; aba to-da</p><p>bele-tho, ken torabo to tata-tho. “There are two kinds of cassava bread;</p><p>one is soft, and the other is hard.”</p><p>1. khali-daja: cassava stem (see also: kanakydi)</p><p>2. khali-yra: cassava juice (see also: keli)</p><p>3. khali-khoina: cassava starch (see also: halho)</p><p>KHALIDOLI (n): cassava tuber.</p><p>KHAN (p): diminutive, just (diminutive).</p><p>KHANA (p): then.</p><p>KHARASA(-HA) (n): book, letter, something written. Aba kharasa d-othika-the</p><p>da-sa waria. “I have received a letter from my child.” Possessed:</p><p>da-kharasa-n = my book.</p><p>KHARASYN (vt): shave.</p><p>KHARASYN, KHARASAN (vt): scratch, write. To kabadaro min-ka kho kharasa-n</p><p>thy-bada abo. “The jaguar scratches terribly with its nails.” Wakharo</p><p>inaria kho ma-kharasy-n b-a-ja-tha aba karta (ST) khan da-bithiro. “You</p><p>haven’t written me a card/letter in a very long time.”</p><p>KHAREMEN (vs): black. Adia th-a khareme-n to da-doadan. “My pot is very</p><p>black.”</p><p>KHAREMERO (n): sweet potato (dark purple kind used for coloring cassava</p><p>beer).</p><p>KHATHO (tw): when.</p><p>KHI (adv): thusly (back-reference to previously mentioned situation).</p><p>KHI(-HI) (n): fat, oil. To botoli loko da-khoto-n khi-hi. “In the bottle is my eating</p><p>(i.e. cooking) oil.” Possessed: da-khi-hi = my oil.</p><p>KHI...BA: again. De iri by-sakhi-ka khi-da ba? “Did you name my name again?”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 143</p><p>KHIADONOAN (vi): stop. Na ibili bira-n thianthi-bo waboroko diako; ne doma</p><p>abare tha-khiadonoa-n to faletho-dalhidi-koana. “The children were playing</p><p>on the road; because of them the car had to stop suddenly.”</p><p>KHIAN (vi): defecate.</p><p>KHIBIHI (n): monkey (species) (ST: kwasiekwasie).</p><p>KHIDIN: same action. Kabynibo l-a-n khi khidin, th-anda to kabadaro hibin.</p><p>“Three times doing thusly, the jaguar already arrived.”</p><p>KHIDOANDYN (vt): believe. Wa-khidoanda-li Adajali ydian khonan; khatho</p><p>w-osa-ma ajonyn-ro. “We must believe in God’s word; then we can go</p><p>upward (to heaven).”</p><p>KHIDOANIABO (interj): truly.</p><p>KHIN (vt): eat (a light meal). Na-siki farokha amathali kesia-bia by-myn, alekhebe</p><p>loko-re b-a khi-n no. “If they give you something to eat, eat it gladly.”</p><p>(ONI)KHIN (vi): rain. Th-olhiroko-ka-the to oni; min-fa-the kho thy-khin. “The rain</p><p>(clouds) is making it dark; it is going to rain hard.”</p><p>KHIRADI (pp): near, close by, in the neighborhood of, in the vicinity of.</p><p>Wa-khiradi kaky-ka-da je. “They lived near us.”</p><p>KHIREDAN: right then.</p><p>KHISI(-HI) (n): clock, watch. To to da-khisi wakhaitho kho kona-n. “My watch</p><p>runs very well.” Possessed: da-khisi = my clock.</p><p>KHISIBA (n): hour, time. Abaro-diako-anyky khisiba wa-kona-n, w-anda Cordon</p><p>waboroko amyn. “Walking one and a half hours, we arrived at the Cor-</p><p>don Road.”</p><p>KHISIDAN (vi): count, calculate, add. Bi khan eitha khisida lokono-dian loko? “Do</p><p>you know how to count in Arawak?”</p><p>KHISIDIN (vt): try, attempt. By-khisida to atha khan; ma-bolha koa th-a baha.</p><p>“Just taste the drink; it is perhaps still unfermented. (The hope is that it</p><p>is already fermented.)”</p><p>KHISIDONOAN, KHISIDOAN (vi): try (extended effort). To nekhebo min-ka kho</p><p>kamothina-n, ma da-khisido-fa tho-khona. “The work is very difficult, but I</p><p>will try it.”</p><p>KHISIN (vi): point.</p><p>KHO (p): not, negative. Sa-ja kho by-khabaty-n to khota siroko, kiadoma</p><p>thy-boadoa-ja. “You didn’t salt the meat well, therefore it spoiled.”</p><p>1. khoro: no (more emphatic)</p><p>KHOIBAN (vi): serve cassava beer. Bianinon khi khoiban-fa w-adi. “Two people,</p><p>thus, will serve (cassava beer) to us.”</p><p>KHOIDIN (vi): spit.</p><p>KHOJABOA-SIKOA (n): church. Khatho Adajali kasakabo w-osa khojaboa-sikoa</p><p>loko-nro. “On Sunday we go (in) to church.”</p><p>KHOJABOAN, KHOJABONOAN (vi): pray, beg. Halharon kasakabo-ho matho</p><p>olhika, wa-khojaboa-li Adajali dykhy-n-bia wa-khona. “Every day and night</p><p>we must pray, so that God will take care of us.”</p><p>KHOJABYN (vt): ask, request. Da-jono khan da-khojaby-ha na-borata khan-i-nbia</p><p>aba nekhebo oma de. “I will ask some of my extended family to help me</p><p>with my work (e.g. clearing or weeding a planting ground).”</p><p>KHOLEBETAN (vi): cut meat into pieces.</p><p>KHOLEN (vs): weak, tired (lack of strength). Khole-ka da-khona. “I am weak</p><p>(e.g. from tiredness or drink).”</p><p>144 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>KHONA (pp): on, at. Tho-loa sibo khona d-osa. “I went (i.e. shot) at its chest.”</p><p>KHONAN (pp): about. Da-khonan tha na-dia-ka. “They are talking about me.”</p><p>See: dykha...khonan, anda...khona.</p><p>KHONAN (vi): dress. Bokolho-ho da-khona. “I dressed.”</p><p>KHONARIA (pp): from, on, with. Da-thoboda da-kora da-bajolhan khonaria. “I</p><p>hang my hammock from my beam.”</p><p>KHONARO, KHONANRO (pp): toward, at, on. See: khona, -ro.</p><p>KHONDI (n): body, main structure.</p><p>KHORODAN (vi): clear undergrowth before cutting trees to open a new plant-</p><p>ing ground. D-osy-fa khoroda-nro. “I will go to clear undergrowth.” See:</p><p>khorodon.</p><p>KHORODON (vt): clear undergrowth before cutting trees to open a new plant-</p><p>ing ground. Waboka d-osa bi khorodo-n-ba da-koban-ia-wa. “Just a little</p><p>while ago I went to go cut undergrowth on my own planting ground.”</p><p>KHOTA(-HA) (n): animal. Da-dalhida-ka to khota khona. “I chased the animal.”</p><p>To khota-ha, ‘jesi’ na-siamyn, min-tho kho thiki-n. “The animal people call</p><p>‘jesi’ (armadillo) digs a lot.”</p><p>KHOTA(-HA) (n): food, meat. Da-kadykyra loko da-boka-ma khota-ha matho hime.</p><p>“In my pepper pot (soup) I can cook meat and fish.”</p><p>KHOTON (n): a meal. Possessed: da-khoton-ia = my meal.</p><p>KHOTON, KHOTAN (vt, vi): eat a meal. B-ojo siki farokha bo-khoton-ia, jema</p><p>loko-thi m-a-n b-a khoto-n. “If your mother gives you your meal, you</p><p>must not eat as if you were nauseated (i.e. you must eat heartily).”</p><p>KHYTHEHE (n): plants (useful, domesticated). Thi-bitoa da-koban, da-bona</p><p>khan-fa da-khythehe. “(When) my planting ground has been burned (i.e.</p><p>the trees, etc., burned in preparation for planting), I will plant my</p><p>plants.”</p><p>KIA (n): that, that one, that situation.</p><p>KIADOMA (p): therefore, so, because of that. Sa-ja kho by-khabaty-n to khota</p><p>siroko, kiadoma thy-boadoa-ja. “You didn’t salt the meat well, therefore it</p><p>spoiled.”</p><p>KISIN (vt): try. Taha Java-nro wa-kisi-ka osa-bia. “We tried to go all the way to</p><p>the village of Java.”</p><p>KIWIHIN (vi): to have fruit, be successful in the hunt.</p><p>KOA (n): crab.</p><p>KOA(N), -KOA: manner. Khi dia koa th-a w-abo. “Thusly like manner (i.e. this is</p><p>how) it [the bus] did with us.” We osa-bo l-inabo basada-koan. “We went</p><p>behind him slowly.”</p><p>KOADOA-KOTHIRO (n): horse, mule, cow, hooved animal. Wakhili koba</p><p>koadoa-kothiro ron diako na-jada koba. “Long ago they travelled only on</p><p>horses.” Possessed: da-koadoa-kothiron = my horse.</p><p>KOAN (p): still.</p><p>KOANA (n): thing (instrument), tool.</p><p>KOBA (tw): distant past.</p><p>KOBAN (n): planting ground. Da-koban loko da-byna halhanron amathali. “In my</p><p>planting ground I plant all sorts of things.” Possessed: da-koban(-ia) =</p><p>my planting ground.</p><p>KOBOASI (n): monkey (species) (ST: monkie-monkie).</p><p>KOBODOA(-HY) (n): mistake, fault.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 145</p><p>KOBODONOAN, KOBODOAN (vi): make a mistake, goof, err. To ly-dian wa-myn</p><p>li wa-balhosen: lo-kobodoa aba ydia khona w-adi. “When our village cap-</p><p>tain spoke to us: he made a mistake in one thing he said to us.”</p><p>KOBODYN, KOBODAN (vt): miss. Miaka d-othika-ka khota oma, ma koboda-thiaro</p><p>d-a-da ba no. “Yesterday I met game, but I kept missing it.”</p><p>KOBOROKO (pp): among, between, inside a body. Kari-thi th-a da-koborokhodi.</p><p>“It (wants to) hurt on the inside of me (i.e. my insides hurt).</p><p>Na-koboroko-nro l-osa. “He went in among them.”</p><p>KOBOROKOAN (vt): remember, not forget. B-osy farokha bi-sikoa-nro,</p><p>bo-koborokoa-li-da de. “If you go to your country, you must remember</p><p>(i.e. not forget) me.”</p><p>KOBOROKOARIA (pp): from, out, out from among.</p><p>KOBOROKOATOAN (vi): think. Kamothina-tho nekhebo d-othikhi-n, min-ka kho</p><p>da-koborokoatoa-n alika d-a-n-fa ani-n no. “(When) I get difficult work, I</p><p>think very hard about how I will do it.”</p><p>KOBOROKOATYN (vt): remind. De kasia-n boradi, bo-koborokoata-li-da de. “Be-</p><p>fore I forget, you have to remind me.”</p><p>KOBOROKONRO (pp): into the midst of. See: koboroko, -nro.</p><p>KODIBIO (n): bird. Kodibio-be ma-seme-tho kho jabyda-bia. “Birds are delicious to</p><p>roast.” Possessed: da-kodibio-n = my bird.</p><p>1. kodibio-dyna: wing</p><p>KODIBIO-DYNA (n): wing. See: dyna.</p><p>KODIKHITHIN (vt): wrap, fold up, roll up. D-osa-bo donka-ro, kiadoma</p><p>da-kodikhita-bo da-kora-wa. “I am going to overnight (in the jungle),</p><p>therefore I am rolling up my hammock.”</p><p>KODO (n): gourd bottle. Bo-lhoto-ne bo-kodo-ja khonan! Thy-wakydoa-ma. “Don’t</p><p>let go of your gourd bottle! It can burst.” Possessed: da-kodo-ja = my</p><p>gourd bottle.</p><p>KODOA-KOANA-TAKOANA (n): door. Atynoa-thi loko-non: ne kho</p><p>kodoa-koana-takoan eithi-thi nara. “Concerning the first Arawaks: they</p><p>didn’t know (about) doors.” Possessed: da-kodoa-koana-takoana = my</p><p>door.</p><p>KODON, KODAN (vt): braid (hair), weave (leaves). Tora hiaro wakhaja kho</p><p>koda-n thy-madianthi ybalha. “That woman braided the hair of her com-</p><p>panion well.”</p><p>1. kodakotan: cause to be braided</p><p>KOJALHA (n): canoe, boat. Ma-kojalha nin kha de, da-jolhada-ma kho oniabo</p><p>diakhodi. “If I didn’t have a canoe, I would not be able to float on wa-</p><p>ter.” Possessed: da-kojalha = my canoe.</p><p>KOJOAN (vi): leave, return. Mothi da-kojo-fa. “Tomorrow I will leave.” Dalhida</p><p>loko da-kojoa-the! “I went back running!”</p><p>KOLHABASITONOAN (vi): kneel. D-osy-n khojaboa sikoa-nro, da-kolhobasitoa</p><p>sa-nbia da-khojabonoan. “When I go to church, I kneel so I can pray</p><p>well.”</p><p>KOLHEDIN (vi): smoke (e.g. a fire, not cigarette). Hy-larosa to ikhi-hi; min-ka</p><p>kho tho-kolhedi-n-the. “(you PL) Spread the fire out; it is very smokey.”</p><p>KOLHEDOAN (vi): smoke (tobacco product). B-amyn-ka aba jolhi da-amyn?</p><p>Min-ka kho da-kolhedoa-thi-n. “Do you have a cigarette? I have a great</p><p>desire to smoke.”</p><p>146 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>KOLHELI (n): smoke, steam, dust (in the air). Khatho bo-boka-n, by-doadan</p><p>lokoaria kolheli fydikhida-the, ken ikhi-hi sika khi-ka kolheli-da ba. “When</p><p>you cook, steam comes out of your pot, and the fire gives smoke also.”</p><p>Possessed: tho-kolheli-a = its smoke.</p><p>KOLHEN (vs): red, orange. By-dykha, awalha kolhe-n. “Look, the ‘awara’ palm</p><p>fruits are orange.”</p><p>KOLHEN (vs): ripe. Kolhe-ka by-manikhinia-n? “Are your eating ripe bananas?”</p><p>KOLHI(-HI) (n): mouse, rat. De sikoa-n min-ka kho joho-n kolhi-hi. “My house</p><p>(has) many mice.”</p><p>KOLHIAKA (n): parrot kind.</p><p>KOLHIBIRO (n): fish (species) (ST: logologo).</p><p>KOLOKOARIA (pp): out of (fire, sunshine). See: kolokon, -aria.</p><p>KOLOKON (pp): in (fire, sunshine).</p><p>KOLOKONRO (pp): into (fire, sunshine). See: kolokon, -ro.</p><p>KOMAKATHI (n): caterpillar. Abaryky komakathi thyda bo, ken abaryky komakathi</p><p>ma-thydy-n-ka bo. “Some caterpillars sting you (i.e. cause a bad stinging</p><p>rash), and some caterpillars don’t sting you.”</p><p>KOMOJODYTHIMARO (n): powder. Possessed: da-komojodythimaro = my</p><p>powder.</p><p>KONAN (vi): walk. Kari-thi th-a-n doma da-kothi, wadili-ka kho taha da-kona-n.</p><p>“Because my feet want to hurt, it is impossible for me to walk far.”</p><p>KONOKHODO (n): Maroon. Konokhodo khareme-ka, ken thy-balha sikylhylhi-ka,</p><p>ken thy-dian thonoa-ka dolhi oria. “Maroons are black, and their hair is</p><p>kinky, and their language is different from Creoles (those living in the</p><p>capital).”</p><p>KONOKO (n): forest, jungle. Konoko b-osy-n m-eitha-n b-a-n bi-sina-koma. “If you</p><p>aren’t familiar with going in the jungle, you could get lost.” Possessed:</p><p>da-konoko-ra = my jungle.</p><p>KONOKOLHI (n): male peccary (either ST: pakira or ST: pingo).</p><p>KORA(-HA) (n): bed, hammock. Tora kora-ha donko-koana-ha. “That bed is a</p><p>thing on which to sleep.” Possessed: da-kora = my bed, hammock.</p><p>KORAN (vi): bake cassava bread. M-eibonoan koa th-a da-retho kora-n. “My wife</p><p>is still not finished baking bread.”</p><p>KORI(-HI) (n): spring, bathing place. We kori kho makyraken-tho to. “Our spring</p><p>does not dry up.”</p><p>KOROKORODAKOAN (adv): trembling manner.</p><p>KORON (vt): bake. Ma-koro-n koa b-a-bo bo-jorabania? “Aren’t you baking your</p><p>squeezed-out cassava yet.”</p><p>KORONOAN (vi): be baked. Wakhaja kho to khale koronoa-n. “The cassava bread</p><p>has been baked well.”</p><p>KOSA (n): needle. Da-kysa-thin bokolhoho; d-amyn-fa kosa th-alhinia. “I want to</p><p>sew clothes; I will have to a needle for it.” Possessed: da-kosa-the = my</p><p>needle.</p><p>KOSAN (pp): next to, close to. Bi-sika hala kosan no. “Set it down next to the bench.”</p><p>KOSANRO (pp): toward.</p><p>KOSI(-HI) (n): eye. Possessed: da-kosi = my eye.</p><p>KOTHI(-HI) (n): foot. Taha d-osa-ma da-kothi abo kona-n. “I can go far walking</p><p>with my feet.” Possessed: da-kothi = my foot.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 147</p><p>KOTHI-IBIRA (n): toe. Min-ka kho tete-n da-kothi-ibira khondi; tetelio othika no.</p><p>“My toes itch a lot; athlete’s foot got them.”</p><p>KOTHIKE(-HE) (n): shoe (from kothi+eke ‘foot-container’). To da-kothike min-tho</p><p>kho sa-n. “My shoes are very good.” Possessed: da-kothike = my shoe.</p><p>KYDYN (vs): heavy (weight, load, task). To da-la-n min-tho kho kydy-n. “My</p><p>bench is very heavy.”</p><p>KYDYRO (n): stone. Kydyro diako by-manta-koma. “You could sharpen (some-</p><p>thing) on a stone.” Possessed: da-kydyro-n = my stone.</p><p>KYLYKAN (vi): point to, aim at. By-dykha lira siokothi khan kylyka-n-the</p><p>wa-manro. “Look at the little boy pointing towards us.”</p><p>KYLYKYN (vi): aim. Sare b-a kylyky-n; bo-koboda-ma no. “Aim well; you can</p><p>miss it.”</p><p>KYLYKYN (vd): offer. Da-denthi kamyn-ka aba wakhai-tho kho arakabosa da-myn;</p><p>ly-kylyky-ra tora da-myn-da no, ma de khi m-amyn-ka tho-jona. “My uncle has a</p><p>very good gun for me; he offered it to me, but I don’t have enough money.”</p><p>KYNDAN (vi): fish or hunt at night by blinding prey with light. Tanoke</p><p>olhika-ha d-osy-fa kyndan-ro. “Later tonight I will go shine for game.”</p><p>KYNDYN (vi): shine. Adali kyndy-n doma, makyra-bo to onikhan-be. “Because the</p><p>sun is shining, the creeks are drying up.”</p><p>KYRAN (vt): tie off. B-obada bania; de: sare d-a ja kyra-n da-thirithi-a-wa. “Wait a</p><p>moment; me: I am tying off my weaving well.”</p><p>KYRONOAN (vi): tied up, married, tied together. B-ika-n ken sa-n kakyn jady-n,</p><p>wakhaja kho by-kyronoa-n. “If you are married and life is going well, you</p><p>married well.”</p><p>KYRY (n): mother-in-law (mother of husband). Possessed: da-kyry = my</p><p>mother-in-law (mother of husband).</p><p>KYRYKYJA (n): clan, family name.</p><p>KYRYN (vt): tie, fasten by tying. Sa-re b-a kyry-n bo-kora-wa; thy-warokosoa-ma</p><p>b-abo bo-donko-n lokoa. “Tie your hammock well; it can let go on you</p><p>while you are sleeping.”</p><p>KYSA-KOANA (n): sewing machine. Aba kysa-koana da-jonta, ken wakhaja kho</p><p>thy-kysa-n. “I bought a sewing machine, and it sews well.”</p><p>KYSAN (vt, vi): sew. Aba kysa-koana da-jonta, ken wakhaja kho thy-kysan. “I</p><p>bought a sewing machine, and it sews well.”</p><p>KYSONOAN (vi): sewn. Wakhaja kho to bokolho-ho kysonoa-n. “The clothes are</p><p>sewn well.”</p><p>KYSYN (vt): fetch water. To kodo loko by-kysy-ba-the mimi-tho oniabo. “Go get</p><p>cold water in the gourd bottle.”</p><p>1. kysoan: drawn (water)</p><p>KYTHY (n): grandmother. Possessed: da-kythy = my grandmother.</p><p>LABA (n): capybara (species) (D: haas, hei).</p><p>LADAN (vi): chop with an ax.</p><p>LESEJOBE (n): grandchildren (collective).</p><p>LHANATYN, LHANATAN (vt): mix. Khatho ma-lhanaty-n b-a thy-n atha-ha,</p><p>mera-ke b-a-ma kho somole-n. “When you drink unmixed drink (i.e. not</p><p>mixing various kinds), you cannot get drunk as fast.”</p><p>LHEROKO(-HO) (n): mouth, lips. M-amy-n d-a-n kha da-lheroko, wadili-koma kho</p><p>da-dia-n. “If I didn’t have my mouth, I</p><p>would not be able to talk.” Bianman</p><p>to lheroko da-simalha doma. “Because the barrel of my gun is double.”</p><p>148 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>LHIBISIN, YLHIBISIN (vt): roll.</p><p>LHOADAN (vi): crawl around. Lira siokothi khan: thikhin ly-lhoada-n-bo to. “That</p><p>little boy: this is the first time he is crawling.”</p><p>LHOADYN (vi): crawl. To da-kanaby-n to khota-be: da-lhoada omynty-n-da no.</p><p>“Concerning me hearing the animals: I crawled approaching them.”</p><p>LHOTON (vi): slip out of the hand, let go. Min-ka kho folifoli-n to hime khondi,</p><p>kiadoma lhotoro d-a tho-khona. “The fish’s body is very slippery, there-</p><p>fore it slipped (out of my hand).” Bo-lhoto-ne bo-kodo-ja khonan!</p><p>Thy-wakydoa-ma. “Don’t let go of your gourd bottle! It can burst.”</p><p>LHYKABON (vt): cut or chop in pieces. Khatho da-jo kora-n khali, ibibi th-a</p><p>lhykabo-n-da no. “When my mother bakes cassava bread, she cuts it into</p><p>little pieces.”</p><p>LHYKOANA(-HA) (n): scissors. Lhykoana abo by-lhyka-ma by-balha-wa, ken</p><p>by-lhyka-ma bokolho th-abo khi ba. “With scissors you can cut your hair,</p><p>and you can also cut cloth with it.” Possessed: da-lhykoana = my</p><p>scissors.</p><p>LHYKONOAN (vi): be cut, be wounded with a cut. See: bikhoa.</p><p>LHYKYN (vt): cut with knife, scissors, or machete. Aba solhi-hi da-lhyky-fa</p><p>da-jokha-koana-wa. “I will cut open a little path to be my hunting thing</p><p>(i.e. to help me hunt).” Dale-bana da-lhyky-fa da-banabo khondo-wa. “I</p><p>am going to cut ‘dale’ leaves for my temporary shelter.”</p><p>LI (pro): he, his [+male +human]. Li ka-bo. “He is bathing.”</p><p>1. To to li myn: It is for him.</p><p>LI (art): the [+male +human].</p><p>LIHI (pro, adj.): he, this (neutral distance) [+male +human].</p><p>LIKHIN (n): pet, owned animal.</p><p>LIRA (pro, adj.): he, that (slightly distant) [+male +human].</p><p>LIRABO (pro, adj.): he, that there (distant, pointing) [+male +human].</p><p>LIRAHA (pro, adj.): he, that (distant) [+male +human].</p><p>(Y)LOA, LOA(-HY) (n): courage, determination. Ma-loa-n kha bo, wadili-koma</p><p>kho kydy-tho nekhebo b-ani-n. “Without determination, you would be un-</p><p>able to do hard tasks.”</p><p>(Y)LOA, LOA(-HY) (n): heart. Miaka da-nykynykydyn kydy-the; kari-thi th-a</p><p>da-loa-bana khondi. “Yesterday I went around lifting heavy things; (so)</p><p>my chest wants to hurt.” Possessed: da-loa = my heart.</p><p>LOATYN (vt): encourage, give heart. Tanoke hy-dykha-li-the wa-bira-n</p><p>hy-loaty-n-thi we. “Later (today) you (PL) must come watch us play to be</p><p>our encouragers.”</p><p>LOKHODI (adv): in manner.</p><p>LOKO(NO) (n): Arawak, member of an ethnic group, indigenous person.</p><p>Loko-non atynoa-thi ka-sikoa-n solhinama bana. “Arawaks were the first</p><p>inhabitants of the country of Suriname.”</p><p>LOKOARIA (pp): out of. See: lokon, -aria.</p><p>LOKODAN (vi): distribute, divide. Da-fary-n khota-ha ibibi d-a lokoda-n da-jono</p><p>adi. “When I kill game I divide it piece by piece among my extended</p><p>family.”</p><p>LOKOKOAN (adv): in manner.</p><p>LOKON (pp): in, inside of (a container or solid object). Wa-sia-the bahy lokon.</p><p>“Let’s go into the house.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 149</p><p>1. lokhodi: in (with action)</p><p>LOKONRO (pp): into. See: lokon, -ro.</p><p>LOKOTON, LOKOTAN (vt): fill up, load. D-eibona-n lokoton, d-osa; da-dykha</p><p>bylheko th-a-n. “Finishing with loading, I went; I saw it [a tapir] lying</p><p>down.”</p><p>LON (pp): him-benefactive (contraction of ly-myn).</p><p>LOPORO(N)TADAN (vi): load a gun (D: loop ‘gun barrel’). Da-loporontada-n kha,</p><p>..., thy-boadoa. “While I was (re)loading, ..., it fainted.”</p><p>LYKYNTHI (n): grandson. Possessed: da-lykynthi = my grandson.</p><p>LYKYNTHO (n): granddaughter. Possessed: da-lykyntho = my granddaughter.</p><p>LYTYN (vt): rub. Aba ibihi da-jonta lyty-ro da-sia-bia jontho kari-n da-khondi myn.</p><p>“I bought a medicine to rub on my body where it hurts.”</p><p>MA (p): but (probably from D: maar ‘but’).</p><p>(O)MA, OMA (pp): with (accompaniment).</p><p>MABILOKON (vs): narrow (not wide). To waboroko mabiliko-n-tho. “The road is</p><p>narrow.”</p><p>MABYLYDANSIBORO (n): jaguar. See: kabadaro.</p><p>MADIANTHI, YMADIANTHI (n): comrade, companion, associate. See:</p><p>ymadianthi.</p><p>MADOKORETHI (n): father-in-law (wife’s father). Possessed: da-madokorethi =</p><p>my father-in-law.</p><p>MAIKADYN (vs): deaf.</p><p>MAIKADYRE: deafen. Ken maikadyre khan th-a thy-kanakyn-da de. “And it (its</p><p>sound) sort of deafened me.”</p><p>MAITHANDYN (vs): befuddled. Kia ba to maithandy-thi-ma dawa-da de. “And be-</p><p>sides that, I was befuddled.”</p><p>MAJA (n): mango.</p><p>MAJA, MARIA (pp,n): at the side of, in the area of, in the vicinity of, in the di-</p><p>rection of, beside, side. See: maria.</p><p>MAJOREN (n): bugs, insects.</p><p>MAKHANA (pp): between, among. Na-makhana balyty-ro b-a. “Go sit among</p><p>them.”</p><p>MAKORIO (n): wasp. Min-ka kho li sioko-thi simaka-n to makorio thydy-n dei.</p><p>“The little boy screamed greatly (when) the wasp stung him.”</p><p>MALAKYDYN (vi): flow, stream. Balha khona-nro thy-malakyda to onikhan. “The</p><p>creek flows to the sea.”</p><p>MALHI (n): female peccary (either ST: pingo or ST: pakira).</p><p>MALHI-KOMA: please.</p><p>MALHIKHO (n): wisdom, knowledge. Malhikho b-othikhi-n: wakhai-tho kho</p><p>amathali to. “Receiving wisdom: it is a very good thing.”</p><p>MALHIKHOTA-LHIN (n): teacher. Malhikhota-lhin-bia malhikhotoa-thi-bo li da-sa.</p><p>“In order to be a teacher (is why) my child wants to study.”</p><p>MALHIKHOTAN (vt): teach (as a teacher). To malhikhota ibili: min-tho kho</p><p>kamothina-n to. “To teach children: it is very difficult.”</p><p>MALHIKHOTATHI (n): teacher.</p><p>MALHIKHOTOA-SIKOA (n): school.</p><p>MALHIKHOTOAN (vi): learn, study. Sioko d-a-n kha koba, d-osa malhikhotoa-nro.</p><p>“When I was little, I went (to school) to learn.” Malhikhota-lhin-bia</p><p>150 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>malhikhotoa-thi-bo li da-sa. “In order to be a teacher (is why) my child</p><p>wants to study.”</p><p>MALHIKHOTON (vt): teach. De malhikhoto-n-sia-non: naha halha-the thojo-be-n.</p><p>“My students (those whom I taught): they have all become grown-ups.”</p><p>MALHIRA (p): futile, nothing to do about it, can’t be helped.</p><p>MALHITAN (vt): create, bring into being. We kaky-thi-non to li Adajali malhita-n.</p><p>“We people God created.”</p><p>MALHITHIN (vt): make, build, repair. Aba emelia-tho da-sikoa-wa da-malhithi-fa.</p><p>“I am going to make my own new house.”</p><p>MALHOA (n): arrow (for hunting birds). Da-malhoa abo da-fara halhanron</p><p>kodibio. “With my bird arrows I kill all sorts of birds.” Possessed:</p><p>da-malhoa = my arrow.</p><p>MALOKONISIATHI (n): thug, bad boy, bad man. Li malokonisiathi jada-ka kasipara</p><p>abo ly-madianthi-wa. “The bad man threatened his own friend with a</p><p>machete.”</p><p>MAMANAN (vs): dull, not sharp. Min-ka kho da-balho-n mamana-n. “My ax is</p><p>very dull.”</p><p>MANALHI (n): cassava flour sifting basket, sieve, sifter. Da-jobysa jora-ha</p><p>da-manalhi-a abo. “I sift cassava flour with my sieve.” Possessed:</p><p>da-manalhi-a = my sieve.</p><p>MANBA (p): no (not you).</p><p>MANDA (p): no (not me).</p><p>MANHA (p): no (not you-PL).</p><p>MANI(N) (p): no (for action, situation). Manin, d-oda-ja kho; ken khan li</p><p>d-okhithi? “No, I was not dead; and my little brother?”</p><p>MANIKHINIA (n): banana (eating variety). Possessed: da-manikhinia-n = my ba-</p><p>nana(s).</p><p>MANLA (p): no (not him).</p><p>MANNA (p): no (not them).</p><p>MANRO (pp): toward (a person). Li osy-fa l-ojono manro. “He will go to his</p><p>family.”</p><p>MANTHA (p): no (not her/it).</p><p>MANTHA(N) (conj): or.</p><p>MANTYN, MANATYN (vt): sharpen. Mamana-ja da-kasipara-n; da-manty-fa bania</p><p>no. “My machete has become dull; I will just sharpen it.”</p><p>MARIA, MAJA (pp,n): at the side of, in the area of, in the vicinity of, in the di-</p><p>rection of, beside, side. Khi d-a-n dykhy-n rikene aba maja firo-tho bala, aba</p><p>maja ibi-ron my-thi simalha lokoto-n-da de. “At the moment I saw it, I had</p><p>the gun loaded on one side with big shot, on the other side with small.”</p><p>MARISI (n): corn. De marisi-a wadia kho sa-fa khe-bia. “My corn will be ready to</p><p>eat in the not-too-distant future.” Possessed: da-marisi-a = my corn.</p><p>MARODI (n): bird (species) (bush turkey ST: marai).</p><p>MATHI (conj): and, with (followed by masculine word).</p><p>MATHO (conj): and, with (followed by non-masculine word).</p><p>MATOLA (n): peccary (species) (ST: pakira).</p><p>MAWADIN (vs): short (not long). Aba ma-wadi-tho tetei d-ansi-ka. “I want a short</p><p>rope.”</p><p>MAYLYN (vs): slow. Adia l-a mayly-n kona-n-da. “He</p><p>walked very slowly.”</p><p>MERAN (adv): early. Mera-ka-the b-andy-n. “You arrived back (came) early.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 151</p><p>MERAN, MIRAN (vs): fast, quick. Adia l-a mera-n osy-n-da. “He went very fast.”</p><p>MEREHE (n): cashew tree.</p><p>METHEDIN (vt): fatigue, tire. Ma tholha kho-da no, kiadoma waka kho</p><p>thy-methedi-n-da de. “But it was very heavy, so not much later it tired</p><p>me out.”</p><p>METHEN (vs): tired. Methe-ka de. “I am tired.”</p><p>MIAKA (tw): yesterday. Miaka d-anda forto-aria. “Yesterday I arrived from</p><p>town.”</p><p>MIBI (n): vine.</p><p>MIKODON, MIKODAN (vd): send. Wakharo wabo m-amyn d-a no, ma mothi</p><p>da-mikodo-fa-the bi-bithiro-da no. “At the moment I don’t have it, but to-</p><p>morrow I will send it to you (e.g. kerosene from the store).”</p><p>MIMIN (vs): cold, damp. Da-doadan mimi-ka hibin. “My pot is already cold.”</p><p>MIN (vs): small amount, minimum.</p><p>MIN...KHO, MIN-KA...KHO, MIN-THI...KHO, MIN-THO...KHO (vs): very. To</p><p>da-dykhy-n baren aba ori da-sibon: min-ka kho da-dyda-n. “Concerning me</p><p>suddenly seeing a snake before me: I jumped greatly.”</p><p>MIRAN (vs): fast, quick. See: meran.</p><p>MISIDIN (vt): iron, straighten. Bi-misidi farokha da-danake, sare b-a-li</p><p>kalhydakoto-n no. “If you iron my pants, you must fold them well.”</p><p>MITHADAN (vi): laugh. Sathi th-a-n doma andyn na-dian da-khonan,</p><p>da-mithada-ka. “Because their story seemed good to me, I laughed.”</p><p>MITHAKOTOAN (vi): be ridiculous, be comical. M-eithonoa-n l-a-n doma,</p><p>mithakotoa-ro l-a. “Because he was careless, he made himself ridiculous.”</p><p>MITHAN (vt): ridicule, laugh at someone. Li somole-thi na-koboroko-ren</p><p>thikhidi-n: min-ka kho na-mitha-n dei. “Concerning the drunk man falling</p><p>right among them: they ridiculed him.”</p><p>MODYN (vi): climb, go up. To fodi min-tho kho ajomyndin mody-n. “The monkey</p><p>climbs very high.”</p><p>MOLHIDAN (vi): lie, deceive. To jawyhy min koba kho molhida-n na atynoa-thi</p><p>kakythi-non. “The devil greatly deceived the first people.”</p><p>MOLHIDIN, MOLHIDYN (vt): lure by fooling (e.g. making sounds of a wounded</p><p>animal). Da-kanaba fodi; da-molhidi-fa-da no. “I heard birds; I am going</p><p>to lure them.”</p><p>MOLHIDOAN (vi): be deceived.</p><p>MOLHIDOAN (n): liar, deceiver. Lira to min-thi kho molhidoan; khidoanda-sia-ma</p><p>kho li. “That man is a great liar; he is not one who can be believed.”</p><p>MONEKATAN (vt): tease, torture, cause difficulty.</p><p>MORODA-KORO (n): airplane.</p><p>MORODON, MORODAN (vi): fly. To anoana omyndi kho moroda-ka. “The buz-</p><p>zard flies very great distances.”</p><p>MOTHEBOAN (tw): day after tomorrow. Motheboan d-osa-thi-bo jokha-nro. “The</p><p>day after tomorrow I want to go hunting.”</p><p>MOTHI (tw): tomorrow. Mothi to aba emelia-tho kasakabo khi-da ba. “Tomorrow</p><p>is a new day again.”</p><p>MOTHIA (tw): morning (6:00–9:00). Mothia d-osy-fa-the kabyja-nro;</p><p>d-obada-ha-the hokolhero boran. “In the morning I will go to the planting</p><p>ground; I will wait (lie in wait) for capybara.”</p><p>152 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>MOTHIARO (tw): pre-dawn, early morning (3:00–6:00). Taha da-jokha-ha,</p><p>kiadoma mothiaro d-osy-fa. “I will go far (a great distance) hunting,</p><p>therefore I will leave in the wee hours.”</p><p>MOTHOKO (n): sand. Mothoko diako da-malhita da-sikoa-n. “On sand I built my</p><p>house.” Min-ka kho fofo-n to mothoko. “The sand is very soft.”</p><p>MOTYN (vt): win, beat, conquer. Na jaha-thi mota na taharia andy-thi-the bira</p><p>khona. “Those from here beat those from far away, playing (e.g.</p><p>soccer).”</p><p>MYKYTHY (n): mother-in-law (of a male). Possessed: da-mykythy = my</p><p>mother-in-law.</p><p>(O)MYN (pp): BENEFACTIVE, INDIRECT OBJECT, to, for (on behalf of). Bi-sika</p><p>to hala tho-myn da-myn. “Give the bench to her for me.” ‘Hehe!’ l-a tha</p><p>tho-myn. “‘Yes!’ he (said) to her.”</p><p>NA (art): the [+human +plural].</p><p>NAHA (pro, adj.): they, these (neutral distance) [+human].</p><p>NAKAN (n): half, middle. D-aithi anda koba-the kasakoda nakan-ren. “My son ar-</p><p>rived exactly at midnight.”</p><p>NAKANROKOARIA (pp): out of the middle of. See: nakanrokon, -aria.</p><p>NAKANROKON (pp): in the middle of, among, between. Ada nakanroko-ka-i.</p><p>“He is among the trees.”</p><p>NAKANROKONRO (pp): into the middle of, among, between. See: nakanrokon,</p><p>-ro.</p><p>NAKARA (n): load, freight, burden.</p><p>NAKARATOAN (vi): haul a load.</p><p>NAKOAN (vi): paddle (e.g. a canoe). Aba nale-he abo by-nakoa-ma. “With a pad-</p><p>dle you can paddle (e.g. a canoe).”</p><p>NALE(-HE) (n): paddle. Aba nale-he abo by-nakoa-ma. “With a paddle you can</p><p>paddle (e.g. a canoe).”</p><p>NAN (pp): them-benefactive (abbreviation of na-myn) [+human].</p><p>NANA (n): pineapple. Hebe-bo to nana; da-kalhydy-fa no. “The pineapple is ripe;</p><p>I will break it off.”</p><p>NARA (pro, adj.): they, those (slightly distant) [+human].</p><p>NARABO (pro, adj.): they, those there (distant, pointing) [+human].</p><p>NARAHA (pro, adj.): they, those (distant) [+human].</p><p>NE (pro): they, their [+human]. Ne ka-bo. “They are bathing.” Ne sikoa to. “It</p><p>is their house.”</p><p>1. To to ne myn: It is for them</p><p>NEBETAN: middle.</p><p>NEBETHIN (vi): divide, distribute. To polata wa-nekhebon jona wa-nebethi-fa</p><p>wa-wadia. “The money which is the wage for our work, we will divide</p><p>among ourselves.”</p><p>NEKHEBO (n): work.</p><p>NEKHEBON (vi): work.</p><p>NIN (pp): at (generalized locative).</p><p>NIN (abbreviation of ANIN) (vt): do. ‘Ama boro ni-tho-bo to salhi-da?’ d-a-nbia.</p><p>“‘What exactly is the salhi (bird) doing?’ I (thought).”</p><p>NINRO (pp): toward (a location). Maria mathi Jozef osa koba Bethlehem ninro</p><p>bylhyty-kyta-bia ne-iri-wa. “Mary and Joseph went to Bethlehem to have</p><p>their names recorded.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 153</p><p>NO (pro): she, her, it, they [–human], them [–human].</p><p>NYKAMYN (vs): sad, depressed. Da-jo odo-n koba, min-ka kho nykamy-n de.</p><p>“(When) my mother died, I was very sad.”</p><p>NYKAN (vi): hug, embrace. Alima d-a-n alekhebe-n dykhy-n da-sa-wa, da-nyka-ka</p><p>l-oma. “I was so happy to see my child, I embraced him.”</p><p>NYKYDAN (vt): put in an elevated position (e.g. put a tree on a scaffolding to</p><p>saw it with a two-man saw).</p><p>NYKYDYN (vt): lift, lift up. D-adi farokha kydy-n to nakara-ha, wadili-koma kho</p><p>da-nykydy-n no. “If the burden is too heavy for me, I won’t be able to</p><p>lift it.”</p><p>NYKYN (vt): get, take, carry. Tora b-iba de myn; de nyky-fa no. “Leave that for</p><p>me; I will carry it.” Tanoke by-nyka-li-the bian khan marisi da-myn. “Later</p><p>you must get a few ears of corn for me.”</p><p>OBADAN (vi): wait around, stand around waiting. Wakharo sabo kho jaha</p><p>d-obada-ka bo-boran. “I waited for you here a very long time.”</p><p>OBADYN (vt): wait. To kathi halhan boran d-obady-thi-bo de, da-khaborokhodo-a</p><p>khan d-onaby-nbia. “I want to wait for the end of the month, in order to</p><p>receive some of my money.”</p><p>ODA (n): death.</p><p>ODODONOAN (vi): bow.</p><p>ODON (vi): die. Th-oda to pero hibin? “Has the dog died already?”</p><p>ODOTHI (n): dead person.</p><p>OJA, ORIA (pp): from, away from. To d-amynty-n, tho-moroda to kodibio th-oja.</p><p>“Concerning my approaching, the bird flew away from it (e.g. the</p><p>tapir).”</p><p>OJIN (vt): pluck, pick fruit. Hebe-bo to hathi; d-oji-fa no. “The peppers are ripe; I</p><p>will pick them.”</p><p>OJO (n): mother (also father’s sister). Possessed: da-jo = my mother.</p><p>OJOEDOAN (vi): laze around. Liraha kho to nekhebo-thi-thi; ojoedoa-thi diaro</p><p>l-a-thi-ka. “He is not one who wants to work; he only wants to be one</p><p>who lazes around.”</p><p>OJONO (n): family (extended). Possessed: da-jono = my extended family.</p><p>1. da-jono-a: my own family</p><p>OJOTHI (n): family member. Lira da-jothi adianken m-a kari-n. “That (male) fam-</p><p>ily member of mine is very sick.” Possessed: da-jothi = my family</p><p>member.</p><p>OKHITHI (n): younger brother (of a male). Possessed: d-okhithi = my younger</p><p>brother.</p><p>OKHITHO (n): younger sister (of a female). Possessed: d-okhitho = my younger</p><p>sister.</p><p>OKHOKHO (exclamation): oh my!</p><p>OLABOA (n): half. Aba khota olaboa da-bykhy-ka. “I received half an animal.”</p><p>OLABOAN (pp): opposite side. Waboroko olaboan-ka da-jorodatho sikoa. “My sis-</p><p>ter’s house is on the other side of the road.”</p><p>OLADAN (vi): drill, make holes. To hododi olada-ka ada khondi. “The wood-</p><p>pecker makes holes in trees.”</p><p>(H)OLE (n): hole. Jontho th-oloda-n to hododi, hole wa koa th-a thy-dikhi. “Where</p><p>the woodpecker drills, it leaves holes behind</p><p>it.”</p><p>154 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>OLHALHO (n): cloud. Min-tho kho ajomonin to holhalho; alikan kho kodibio</p><p>moroda-ma ajomyn sabon th-adin. “The cloud is very high; no bird can fly</p><p>higher than it.”</p><p>OLHIDAN (vs): thin. To bokolho-ho min-tho kho olhida-n. “The clothes are very</p><p>thin.”</p><p>OLHIKA (n): night (18:00–6:00). Da-kona-ha-the lhykan olhika. “I am going to</p><p>walk the whole night.”</p><p>OLHIKA NEBETAN (tw): midnight. Olhika nebetan da-donko-ra-fa. “At midnight I</p><p>will probably be sleeping.”</p><p>OLHIROKO-SIBO (n): howler monkey.</p><p>OLHIROKON (vs): dark. Adianke th-a to olhika olhiroko-n. “The night is very</p><p>dark.”</p><p>OLHOMOLHEDAN (vi): ripple, have waves. Basada koa th-a-bo-the to oniabo</p><p>olhomolheda-n. “Slowly the water is getting wavy.”</p><p>OLHOMOLHEDAN (n): wave (e.g. in river or ocean). Aba oniabo olhomolhedan</p><p>ika-the to kojalha lokonro. “A wave of water came into the boat.”</p><p>OMA (n): piranha.</p><p>OMA (pp): with (accompaniment). B-osy-fa we oma? “Are you going with us?”</p><p>OMYNTYN (vt): approach. To da-kanaby-n to khota-be: da-lhoada omynty-n-da no.</p><p>“Concerning me hearing the animals: I crawled approaching them.”</p><p>ONABAN (vt): inform, report to. Motheboan th-a falhetho-be andy-fa-the, kiadoma</p><p>basia-non onaba-ka we. “The day after tomorrow Caucasians will come,</p><p>therefore the under-captains (of our village) informed us.”</p><p>ONABON (vt): answer. Na-dia farokha bo-myn, b-onaba-li. “If they speak to you,</p><p>you must answer.”</p><p>ONABON (vs): low. Tora aba ada-dynabo onabo sabo-ka. “That one tree branch is</p><p>a bit lower.”</p><p>ONABYN (vt): receive, get. To kathi halhan: d-onaby-fa sioko-tho khan</p><p>khaborokhodo-ho. “Concerning the end of the month: I will receive a lit-</p><p>tle bit of money.”</p><p>ONAKAN (vt): get, fetch (a person). Bakylama h-onaka-li-the da-ma. “You (PL)</p><p>must come get me in the afternoon.”</p><p>ONAKYN (vt): take along, bring along (a person). D-onaky-fa da-lykynthi-wa</p><p>bania, ken da-sika khi-fa-the l-oma-da ba. “I will (just) come get my</p><p>grandson for a short while, and (but) I will bring him back again.”</p><p>ONI (n): rain. Th-olhirokota-the to oni; min-fa-the kho thy-khin. “The rain is mak-</p><p>ing it dark (i.e. the darkness due to the rain clouds is causing darkness</p><p>to come); it will rain a lot.”</p><p>ONI KHA (tw): rainy season.</p><p>ONIABO, INIABO (n): water. By-tha-ma to iniabo, ken bo-sokosa-ma halhan</p><p>amathali th-abo. “You can drink water, and you can wash everything (all</p><p>kind of things) with it.” Possessed: da-nia = my water.</p><p>ONIKHAN (n): creek, small river. To da-onikhan mintho kho kadise-n; adiake th-a</p><p>hime tho-lokon-nin. “That creek of mine is aswarm (crawling with fish);</p><p>there are lots of fish in it.” Possessed: da-onikhan.</p><p>ONIKHIN (vi (incorporated subj)): rain. See: (oni)khin.</p><p>OREBIATHO (n): sister-in-law. Possessed: d-orebiathe = my sister-in-law.</p><p>OREBITHI (n): brother-in-law. Possessed: d-orebithi = my brother-in-law.</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 155</p><p>ORI (n): snake. Kasakero wadibero, ken labaria kia-be ryda; ken thy-kari thy-sika</p><p>bo-koborokon. “The rattle snake, the fer-de-lance, and the bushmaster</p><p>bite; and their poison they give to you (i.e. their bite is poisonous).”</p><p>ORIA, OJA (pp): from, away from. Kha kho jaha-thi-ja hibin wa-sikoa oria-da we.</p><p>“We were at that time already far away from our village.” Ken w-andy-n</p><p>konoko lokon, ta-thi-na-bo kho th-oria-da we. “And arriving in the forest,</p><p>we were not far away (from our destination).”</p><p>OSABONIN (DASE) (interj): what a pity.</p><p>OSYN (vi): go. Tanoke d-osy-fa bodeda-nro. “Later I will go fishing (with hook</p><p>and line).”</p><p>OSYRON (vs): plain, without purpose, in vain.</p><p>OTHIKAN (vi): meet. To waboroko bi nyka, ken de torabo lokhodi-fa; ken abanbo</p><p>th-andanin w-othika-fa. “You take that path, and I will go in that one;</p><p>and somewhere where the paths cross we will meet.”</p><p>OTHIKAN (vi): take place. Toho ama d-aka-sia bo jaha othika tho-bora koba, to</p><p>thy-bianthedonoan firo-tho fara-hy koba. “This which I am telling you</p><p>here took place before the second big fight (i.e. World War II).”</p><p>OTHIKHIN (vt): receive, get, find, catch. To kathi halhan-fa d-othika-ma-the</p><p>da-khaborokhodo-wa khan. “When the month runs out (i.e. at the end of</p><p>the month) I can receive some wages.” Tano bo-molhida-ka de, ma</p><p>abahan de othikhi-ha bo. “Today you deceived me, but sometime I’ll get</p><p>you.”</p><p>OTHIKOAN (vi): menstruate. Kathi-ma n-a na nonoathi othikoan. “Women men-</p><p>struate monthly.”</p><p>OTHIKONOAN (vi): become sick very quickly. Sakoa l-a-n kha li da-sa d-osa</p><p>jadan-ro, ken da-dikhin abare l-a othikonoa-n. “When I left on the trip my</p><p>child was well, and after I (had left) suddenly he became extremely</p><p>sick.”</p><p>OTO (n): daughter (also brother’s daughter). Possessed: da-to = my daughter.</p><p>OTORO, TORO (n): trunk (of a tree). Ada toro balyta holholho diako. “A tree</p><p>trunk lay on the ground.” Possessed: tho-toro = its trunk.</p><p>(H)OTOTOLHI (n): nail (for fastening). Possessed: da-totolhi-a = my nail.</p><p>(H)OTOTOLHI-KODOKOTO-KOANA (n): hammer.</p><p>OTOTOLHIDIN (vt): nail. Sare b-a ototolhidi-n to ada bo-kora borando;</p><p>tho-lhota-koma b-abo. “Nail the wood for your hammock well; it could</p><p>let go on you.”</p><p>PAMO (n): salt. Da-boko-n amyn da-sika pamo. “In my cooking I put salt.”</p><p>PERO (n): dog. Pero jokha-tho da-myn. “The dog is what hunts for me.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-pero-n = my dog.</p><p>POLATA (n): money. Da-nekhebo doma, d-amyn-ka polata. “Because of my work,</p><p>I have money.” Possessed: da-polata-n(-ia) = my money.</p><p>RABYDYKHY, RABOTYKHY (pp): against, opposed.</p><p>RAKASYN (vt): shake. Hebe farokha to maja, by-rakasa-ma thy-daja</p><p>thy-thikhidi-n-bia. “If the mangoes are ripe, you can shake its (the tree’s)</p><p>trunk so that they (mangoes) will fall.”</p><p>RAKOARIA (pp): out of (a fluid). See: rakon, -aria.</p><p>RAKON (pp): in (a fluid). Lira iniabo rako-ka. “He is in the water.”</p><p>REDAN (vt): sneak up on. Da-kanaba khota-ha; basada-re d-a-bo reda-n no. “I</p><p>heard an animal; slowly I am sneaking up on it.”</p><p>156 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>REKEN (vt): weed, pull weeds. Min-ka kho wakhaokhili da-koban bana; d-osy-fa</p><p>reke-n-ba no. “My planting ground is very weedy; I am going to go weed it.”</p><p>REMO (n): oar. Aba remo abo by-remodoa-ma to kojalha. “With an oar you can</p><p>row the boat.”</p><p>REMODOAN, REMODAN (vi, vt): row. Aba remo abo by-remodoa-ma to kojalha.</p><p>“With an oar you can row the boat.”</p><p>RENE (p): exactly.</p><p>RENETHO (n): sister-in-law (husband’s brother’s wife). Possessed: da-renetho =</p><p>my sister-in-law.</p><p>RENYMALITHI (n): brother-in-law (wife’s sister’s husband). Possessed:</p><p>da-renymalithi = my brother-in-law.</p><p>RIKENE (p): exactly.</p><p>RODYN (vt): wipe off, dry off. Tora erebe-tho jaraha by-roda. “Wipe off that dirt</p><p>there.”</p><p>ROKOARIA (pp): out of. See: rokon, -aria.</p><p>ROKON (pp): in (on the inside surface of, e.g. a hand, bowl, etc.). Polata</p><p>da-khabo roko-ka. “There is money in my hand.”</p><p>ROKONRO (pp): into. See: rokon, -ro.</p><p>ROKOSAN (vi): move around. Da-fara-ba to khota d-a-ja, ma tho-rokosa-ka koan.</p><p>“I killed the animal, I had thought, but it still moved around.”</p><p>ROKOSYN, ROKOSON (vi): shiver, tremble. Min kho himili-n-da de; rokoso-re</p><p>khan th-a da-tala khona. “I am very cold; my jaws are chattering.”</p><p>RON, -RON (p): only. Abaro ron osa-ma da-ma. “Only one person can go with me.”</p><p>RYDAN (vi): chew. Sare b-a ryda-n to khota siroko khona; by-kyda-ma th-abo.</p><p>“Chew well on the meat; you can choke on it.”</p><p>RYDYN (vt): bite. B-aithoa tora pero myn; thy-rydy-ne-n-da bo! “Be careful of the</p><p>dog; it bites!”</p><p>SABADAN (vi): beat wet clothes with a stick to wash them.</p><p>SABO (p): more (comparative, superlative).</p><p>SAKEN (p): exactly, just.</p><p>SALABADYN, SALABADAN (vt, vi): to square up a log with an ax (in prepara-</p><p>tion for sawing it into planks).</p><p>SALAKYDYKYTAN (vt): fry in oil.</p><p>SALHI (n): bird (species).</p><p>SAMALHI (n): cassava grater.</p><p>SAN (vs): good, well.</p><p>(Y)SANOTHI (n): children (collective).</p><p>SAPATO (n): shoe, slipper, footgear. See: kothike.</p><p>SARE(N) (adv): well.</p><p>SAREKEN (vs): better.</p><p>SATHI (n): young man (18–35 years old).</p><p>SATHO (n): young woman (18–35 years old).</p><p>SEKEN (vs): dirty, messy. To bokolho-be min-ka kho seke-n. “The clothes are very</p><p>dirty.”</p><p>SEKHIDIN, SEKHIDAN</p><p>(vt): saw.</p><p>SEMEN (vs): sweet, unfermented, tasty, delicious. Adia th-a-ja seme-n tho-boka-n,</p><p>to hiaro. “She cooks deliciously, the woman.” De ythan seme koama. “My</p><p>drink (e.g. a barrel of cassava beer) is still sweet (when it should be</p><p>fermented).”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 157</p><p>SENSI (n): money, cent. Possessed: da-sensi-a = my money.</p><p>SI (n): tip.</p><p>(I)SI(-HI) (n): head, leader, captain (of village). See: isi.</p><p>SI-ADO(-HO) (n): hat. Possessed: da-si-ado = my hat.</p><p>SIA (vt): give (contraction of sikin).</p><p>(A)SIAMYN (vt): name.</p><p>SIBA (n): stone, rock. Siba diako by-manta-koma. “You could sharpen (e.g. a</p><p>knife) on stone.” Possessed: da-siba-n = my stone.</p><p>SIBALI (n): fish (species) (ST: ‘oroe wefie’).</p><p>SIBERO (n): toad, frog. Khatho pero rydy-n sibero, thokhotata th-ono rokoaria</p><p>matho thy-siri lokoaria. “When a dog bites a toad, foam comes out of its</p><p>(the dog’s) mouth and nose.”</p><p>SIBO(-HO) (n): face. Abaryky fodi min-ka kho wakhaja-n sibo. “Some monkeys</p><p>have very ugly faces.” Possessed: da-sibo = my face.</p><p>SIBON (pp): in front of, before. To da-dykhy-n baren aba ori da-sibon: min-ka kho</p><p>da-dydy-n. “Concerning me suddenly seeing a snake before me, I jumped</p><p>greatly.”</p><p>SIBORANDO (n): pillow (for one’s head). M-amyn d-a-n kha da-siborando, sa-ma</p><p>kho da-donko-n. “When I don’t have my pillow, I can’t sleep well.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-siborando = my pillow.</p><p>SIBYTYN, SIBYTAN (vt, vi): cut a border line (a narrow path marking one’s</p><p>property in the jungle or savannah). D-osy-fa da-koban-ia sibyta-n-ro. “I</p><p>am going to cut my planting ground border line.”</p><p>SIFEN (vs): bitter. Min-ka kho sife-n to ibihi. “The medicine is very bitter.”</p><p>SIFODAN (vi): turn around (180 degrees), turn back. Bakylamabo doma,</p><p>da-sifoda khi-ka-the konoko-aria khi-da ba. “Because it was evening, I</p><p>turned back the same way out of the woods again.”</p><p>SIFODYN (vt): turn over, turn around (180 degrees). Sa farokha aba maria</p><p>tho-koronoan, to khali, by-sifoda-kota-li dan. “If it, the cassava bread, is</p><p>baked well on one side, you must cause it to be turned over for me.”</p><p>SIKALHO (n): sugarcane.</p><p>1. sikalho-yra: sugarcane juice</p><p>SIKAN (vi): bring, take to. Da-khojaba bo, by-sika-na-ma kho li siokothi oma l-ojo</p><p>manro? “I beg you, couldn’t you take the little boy to his mother?”</p><p>SIKIN (vt): give, place, put. By-siki farokha kamonekathi myn amathali, Adajali</p><p>jonto-fa thy-jona bo. “If you give a poor person something, God will pay</p><p>you back (lit: pay its price to you).” By-nyky farokha to nekhebo-koana-ha,</p><p>by-sika-li-the thy-dikoanoa khi-da ba no. “If you take the tool, you must</p><p>come put it back in its place again.”</p><p>SIKOA(-HY) (n): house, village, country. Kaky-ka da-sikoa loko, de. “I live in my</p><p>house” Wa-fodo dykhy-thi wa-sikoa khona. “Our captain (i.e. village</p><p>leader) is the one who takes care of our village.” Possessed: da-sikoa =</p><p>my house/village/country.</p><p>SIKOA-BANA (n): country.</p><p>SIKOATONOAN, SIKOATOAN (vi): reside, live at. Wakhili-ke kho jaha</p><p>sikoato-thi-the de. “Not long ago I came to live here.”</p><p>SIMAKAN (vi): cry out, yell, scream. Min-ka kho li siokothi simaka-n to makorio</p><p>thydy-n dei. “The little boy screamed a lot (when) the wasp stung him.”</p><p>158 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>SIMAKYN (vt): call. Siokothi, by-simaky-ba-the b-ojo bania. “Little boy, go call</p><p>your mother (i.e. go call and come back and do it in a short time).”</p><p>SIMALHA (n): arrow, gun. Wakhili, m-amyn koa d-a-n kha arakabosa, simalha</p><p>matho simalhabo abo ron da-jokha koba. “Long ago, when I didn’t yet</p><p>have a gun, I hunted with only arrow and bow.” Possessed: da-simalha</p><p>= my arrow/gun.</p><p>SIMALHABO (n): bow. Wakhili, m-amyn koa d-a-n kha arakabosa, simalha matho</p><p>simalhabo abo ron da-jokha koba. “Long ago, when I didn’t yet have a</p><p>gun, I hunted with only arrow and bow.” Possessed: da-simalhabo = my</p><p>bow. See: simalha.</p><p>SIMITHAN (n): laugher, giggler. Tora hiaro min-tho kho simithan to. “That</p><p>woman is a giggler.”</p><p>SIMODO (n): jewelry.</p><p>SIN (pp): at the tip of.</p><p>SINRO (n): nose.</p><p>SIOKHAN (adv): short time, shortly.</p><p>SIOKHANIN (tw): little while.</p><p>SIOKON (vs): little, small. Aba sioko-tho khan bahy da-malhithi-fa. “I am going to</p><p>make (build) a small house.”</p><p>SIOKOTHI (n): boy.</p><p>SIOKOTHO (n): girl.</p><p>SIPALHALI (n): iron, steel. Balho thy-malhithi-sia sipalhali abo. “Axes are made of</p><p>iron.”</p><p>SIRI(-HI) (n): nose. Da-siri lokhodi d-akoba. “Through my nose I breathe.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-siri = my nose.</p><p>SIROABALI (n): tree (species) (ST: pisie).</p><p>SIROKO (n): headwater. Abathali w-othika onikhan siroko, ken thy-taka alokosia</p><p>wa-myn. “After a while we found the headwaters of a little creek, and it</p><p>stopped/quenched our thirst for us.”</p><p>SIROKO(-HO) (n): meat, flesh. Da-jabydy-fa to khota siroko; ken ama ibara-tho</p><p>koan, kia da-boko-fa. “I will roast the animal meat; and what is still left</p><p>over, that I will boil.” Possessed: da-siroko = my flesh.</p><p>SOADYN (vt): pour (a drink). Lira kho sathi soada-na-ma to atha wa-myn? “Can’t</p><p>that young man pour the drink for us (i.e. do the job of serving cassava</p><p>beer)?”</p><p>SOBOLEN (vs): green. Kalhao sobole-ka. “Grass is green.”</p><p>SODAN (vt): strain, sieve through a cloth. Sa-thi-n by-thy-n to kasiri, bo-soda-fa</p><p>bania-da no. “If you want to drink good cassava beer, just sieve it a</p><p>little.”</p><p>SODON (vt): peel. Khali by-malhita-thi-n, bo-sodo-fa to khali-doli khona. “If you</p><p>want to make cassava bread, you must peel the cassava tubers.”</p><p>SOKAN (vi): chop open a planting ground (chop/cut down the trees so they can</p><p>be burned), clear a planting ground. Da-khojaba da-jono-a na-soka-nbia</p><p>da-koban-nin da-myn. “I asked my family to (help with) the job of clear-</p><p>ing at my planting ground for me.”</p><p>SOKON (vt): chop (with an ax or machete). Malhi-koma tora ada bo-sokon</p><p>da-myn? “Would you please chop that tree for me?”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 159</p><p>SOKONOAN (vi): get chopped, get cut, get a cut wound. Aba ada dondakota</p><p>da-kasipara-n; kiadoma da-sokoa da-kothi khona. “A stick deflected my</p><p>machete; therefore I cut myself on my foot.”</p><p>SOKOSAN (vi): do the wash (i.e. clothing). Komyky-re th-a to oniabo; ali-ma</p><p>n-a-n sokosa-n? “The water is murky; how can they wash?”</p><p>SOKOSOAN (vi): wash one’s self, get washed, bathe. D-osy-ha bahy-nro bania;</p><p>da-sokosoa-fa-ba siokhanin. “I will go home a minute; I will go wash up a</p><p>bit.”</p><p>SOKOSON (vt): wash. Sare b-a bo-sokoso-n by-khabo-a, bo-khoto-n dikhi. “Wash</p><p>your hands well, after you eat.”</p><p>SOLHI(-HI) (n): small hunting path.</p><p>SOLHINAMA (n): river, Suriname river. Solhinama lokhodi by-jada-ma by-kanan</p><p>abo. “In the river you can travel by boat.”</p><p>SOLHISOLHI (n): parrot (species).</p><p>SOMOLEN (vs): drunk. Adiake l-a thy-n, kiadoma min-ka kho somole-n dei. “He</p><p>drank exceedingly, therefore he is very drunk.”</p><p>SONDAKHA (n): Sunday.</p><p>SONKAN (vt): spill. Adiake n-a-n thy-n doma, sonka-ro n-a to atha-ha. “Because</p><p>they have drunk exceedingly, they only spill the drink.”</p><p>SONKON (vt): pour out. To erebe-tho oniabo bo-sonko-ba tabo. “Go pour out the</p><p>dirty water over there.”</p><p>SORE(-HE) (n): diarrhea. Sore-di-thi de. “I have diarrhea.”</p><p>SOROTON (vt): suck. Sioko d-a-n kha, min koba kho da-jo odio da-soroto-n.</p><p>“When I was little, I sucked my mother’s breasts a lot.”</p><p>SYKYLHIDIN (vt): pinch.</p><p>SYRYBYDYN, SYRYBYDAN (vt): sweep (e.g. with a broom). Sare b-a syrybydy-n</p><p>to bahy lokhodi. “Sweep well inside the house.”</p><p>SYTY (n): monkey (species) (D: sagowentje).</p><p>TA (vs): far. Ken w-andy-n konoko lokon, ta-thi-na-bo kho th-oria-da we. “And arriv-</p><p>ing in the forest, we were not far away (from our destination).” See: tahan.</p><p>TABYSIAN (vs): sleepy. Tabysia-ka de. “I am sleepy.”</p><p>TAHAN, TA (vs): far. Taha-n doma to waboroko, wadili-koma kho aba kasababo</p><p>d-andy-n tho-boloko-n. “Because the road is far (long), it is impossible for</p><p>me to reach its end in one day.”</p><p>TAKAN (vt): dam up.</p><p>TAKOANA(-HA) (n): roof. See: ado(-ho).</p><p>TAKONOAN (vi): stop, come to a stop. Abare th-a to takonoa-n to</p><p>falhetho-dalhidi-koana. “The car stopped suddenly.”</p><p>TAKYN (vt): close, shut. San doma da-taty-n thy-sikoa, to jesere, wadili-ka kho</p><p>thy-fothikhidi-n. “Because I closed the burrow</p><p>of the armadillo well, it is</p><p>impossible for it to exit.”</p><p>TAKYN (vt): cover. Ta sabo da-faryn doma to khotaha, ma-wadili-ka-the da-nyky-n</p><p>no; ken taky-n-ro d-a th-awa. “Because it was far away where I killed the</p><p>animal, I could not carry it back; and I covered it.”</p><p>TAKYN (vi, vt): stop. W-andy farokha Paranam nin, siokhan b-a-na-ma kho taky-n?</p><p>“(speaking to the bus driver:) When we arrive in Paranam, can’t we</p><p>stop a little while?” Abathali w-othika onikhan siroko, ken thy-taka</p><p>alokosia wa-myn. “After a while we found the headwaters of a little</p><p>creek, and it stopped/quenched our thirst for us.”</p><p>160 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>TALA(-HA) (n): jaw, chin. Da-tala khondi ka-balha khona; kia to-da da-thima.</p><p>“(The body of) my jaw is hairy; that is my beard.” Possessed: da-tala =</p><p>my jaw.</p><p>TANBO (n): fish trap.</p><p>TANO(-HO) (tw): today. Tano to kasakabo bali-bo khi ba. “Today the day is pass-</p><p>ing also (time is passing too quickly again).”</p><p>TANO-MAKERON (tw): a very short time ago today, just now.</p><p>TANOKE (tw): later, a bit later (today). Tanoke d-osy-fa bodedan-ro. “Later I will</p><p>go fishing.”</p><p>TATA(-HA) (n): power, strength.</p><p>TATABO (n): tree (species) (D: zwarte kabes).</p><p>TATAN (vs): hard, tough, strong. Katororo min-ka kho tata-n siroko. “The tapir</p><p>(has) very tough meat.” Min-ka kho tata-n to hala diako. “The bench is</p><p>very hard (to sit on).”</p><p>TE(-HY), (Y)TE (n): stomach, belly. Ma-te-n kha de, alon-ka th-osa-ma, to</p><p>da-khi-sia khota-ha? “If I didn’t have a stomach, where could it go, the</p><p>food which I eat?” Possessed: da-te = my stomach.</p><p>TE(-HY)-IBIRA, (Y)TE-IBIRA (n): intestines. Da-fary-n khota-ha, thy-te-ibira</p><p>ma-nykyn d-a; firo-koro thy-te ron da-nyka. “(When) I kill an animal, I</p><p>don’t take its small intestines; I only take its stomach.” Possessed:</p><p>da-te-ibira = my intestines.</p><p>TE-FIRO(-HO), (Y)TE-FIRO (n): stomach (the organ). Khatho da-khoto-n,</p><p>da-te-firo loko-nro th-osa da-mykydy-sia. “When I eat, what I swallow</p><p>goes into my stomach.” Possessed: da-te-firo = my stomach.</p><p>TEBEDAN (vi): touch.</p><p>TELETELEN (vs): slippery. Adiake th-a to waboroko teletele-n. “The road is very</p><p>slippery.”</p><p>TEODYN (vt): bend. Abaryky ada wakhaja kho by-teody-n. “Some kinds of wood</p><p>you can bend well.”</p><p>TETEDAN (vt): scratch an itch.</p><p>TETEDIN (vt): itch. M-andy-n b-a to jolhika; thy-tetedi-ha bo. “Don’t touch the</p><p>moko-moko water plant; it will give you an itchy rash.”</p><p>TETEI (n): rope, string. Aba ma-wadi-tho tetei d-ansi-ka. “I want a short rope.”</p><p>TETELHOMA (n): tree (species) (ST: wana, red louro).</p><p>TETELIO (n): itchy rash, athlete’s foot, fungus infection. Min-ka kho tete-n</p><p>da-kothi-ibira khondi; tetelio othika no. “My toes itch terribly; athlete’s</p><p>foot got them.”</p><p>THA (p): REPORT, reportative.</p><p>THABAKOTON (vt): separate. Khatho-fa holholho ibonoan-fa, Adajali thabakoto-fa</p><p>sa-be-thi wakhaja-be-thi oria. “When the world ends, God will separate</p><p>the good from the bad.”</p><p>THEREN (vs): hot. Da-doadan there-ka hibin. “My pot is already hot.”</p><p>THETHEDAN (vi): whisper.</p><p>THIADYN (vt): stab, prick. B-aithoa to jadoala myn; by-thikhida-ma tho-boloko-n;</p><p>thy-thiada-ma bo. “Be careful of the knife; you could fall on its point; it</p><p>could stab you.”</p><p>THIDIN (vt): clean hair or feathers off an animal.</p><p>THIKEBETOAN (vi): steal. Ma-nekhebo-thi b-a-n doma, thikebetoa-ro b-a. “Because</p><p>you don’t want to work, you only go about stealing.”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 161</p><p>THIKHIDIN (vi): fall. Sare b-a dykhyn bo-boro-a; by-thikhida-ma. “Look before</p><p>yourself well (i.e. watch where you are going); you can fall.”</p><p>THIKHIN (tw): at first.</p><p>THIKIN (vi): dig. To khota-ha, ‘jesi’ na-sia myn, min-tho kho thiki-n. “The animal</p><p>they call ‘jesi’ (armadillo) can dig very well (or much).”</p><p>THILIKHITHI (n): brother (of a female). Possessed: da-thilikhithi = my brother.</p><p>THIMA(-HA) (n): beard.</p><p>THIMA-KOANA(-HA) (n): bridge. Ma-thima-koana-n kha de, wadili-koma kho</p><p>da-thima-n th-olaboan-ro. “If I didn’t have a bridge, I would be unable to</p><p>cross to the other side.” Possessed: da-thima-koana = my bridge.</p><p>THIMAN (vi): cross, go through to the other side. Ma-thima-koanan kha, de</p><p>wadili-koma kho da-thima-n th-olaboan-ro. “If I were without a bridge, I</p><p>would be unable to cross to the other side.” Aba jolhadoa-koana</p><p>d-amon-i-n kha, da-thima-koma th-olaboan-ro. “If I had a boat, I could</p><p>cross to the other side.”</p><p>THIMIN (vt): swim. Bi wadili-koma thimi-n to onikan olaboan-ro? “Are you able to</p><p>swim to the other side of the creek?”</p><p>THINATHI(-HI) (n): collective father. Possessed: wa-thinathi: our collective</p><p>father (i.e. our God)</p><p>THIO (n): daughter-in-law (of male or female). Possessed: da-thio = my</p><p>daughter-in-law.</p><p>THIRIKHIDIN (vt): push. Wa-thirikhida-the to kojalha khona oniabo rakonro. “We</p><p>came to push the canoe into the water.”</p><p>1. thirikhidan: push/shove someone on purpose</p><p>THITAN (vi): beat.</p><p>THITHI (n): son-in-law (of a woman). Possessed: da-thithi = my son-in-law.</p><p>THO (pro): she, her, it, its, they (non-human), their (non-human). Tho</p><p>sokosa-bo. “She is washing clothes.”</p><p>1. tho khabo: her hand</p><p>2. To to tho myn: It is for her.</p><p>THOBOLHIDIN (vt): knot, tie. Bo-thoboda farokha bo-kora-wa, sare b-a-li</p><p>thobolhidi-n no. “If you hang up your hammock, you must tie it well.”</p><p>THOJON (vs): mature.</p><p>THOJOSIKOA (n): city. B-osy-n thojosikoa-nro, halhan amathali by-dykha-ma; ken</p><p>halhan amathali bo-jonta-ma. “Going to town, you can see all sorts of</p><p>things; and you can buy all sorts of things.”</p><p>THOJOTHI (n): elder, old person, old man.</p><p>THOJOTHO (n): elder [–male], old woman.</p><p>THOKODON (vi): descend, sink, land, disembark. W-anda wa-sikoa-noa hibin;</p><p>wa-thokoda-the falhetho-dalhidi-koana lokoaria. “We have arrived at our</p><p>house already; let’s descend out of the bus.” Adia th-a-n koratonoa-n</p><p>wandali, tho-thokoda-the, to moroda-koro. “At exactly the stroke of noon,</p><p>it landed, the airplane.”</p><p>THOLHADYN (vi): explode.</p><p>THOLHAN (vs): light (in weight). Li da-wajalhi-a min-thi kho tholha-n. “My carry-</p><p>ing basket is very light.”</p><p>THOLHODON (vi): lie down to rest. To kakosiro kasakoda osa khota-nro, ken</p><p>kasakabo tho-tholhoda. “The deer goes to eat at night, and it sleeps in</p><p>the daytime.”</p><p>162 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>THOLHODON (vi): lie down.</p><p>THOLHODON (vt): open. Tora dosu (D) bo-tholhoda-n kha, wa-dykha-ja-ma ama</p><p>tho-lokon. “When you open the box, we can see what is in it.”</p><p>THON (pp): her/it-benefactive [+human –male], them-BEN [–human] (contrac-</p><p>tion of thy-myn).</p><p>THONDON (vi): cough. Maosoan thonolisia-n bo; min-ka kho bo-thondo-n. “You</p><p>have a terrible cold; you are coughing a lot.”</p><p>THONOLISIAN (vs): have a cold. Thonolisia-ka de. “I have a cold.”</p><p>THYDYN (vt): sting. Min-ka kho li siokothi simaka-n, to makorio thydy-n dei. “The</p><p>boy screamed a lot, (when) the wasp stung him.”</p><p>(Y)THYN, YTHA (vt): drink. Alokosia-n bo, ma-seme kho osyron-tho oniabo</p><p>by-thyn. “(If) you are thirsty, it is delicious to drink plain water.”</p><p>THYNA-BYNAHA (n): blood vessel. To da-thyna-bynaha da-bikhi-n kha, min-koma</p><p>kho da-thyna osy-n d-oria. “If I cut my blood vessel, I could lose a lot of</p><p>blood.” Possessed: da-thyna-bynaha = my blood vessel.</p><p>TO (copula): be. De to Nederland khondi. “I am a Dutch person.”</p><p>TO (art, pro): the, it, her.</p><p>TOBADYN (vt): soak in water (e.g. clothes).</p><p>TOHO (pro, adj.): this [–human]/[–male +human].</p><p>TOKON, TOKAN (vt): peck.</p><p>TOKOTA: next (e.g. next week).</p><p>TORA (pro, adj.): she, it, that (slightly distant) [–human]/[–male +human].</p><p>TORABO (pro, adj.): she, it, that there (distant, pointing) [–human]/[–male</p><p>+human].</p><p>TORAHA (pro, adj.): she, it, that (distant) [–human]/[–male +human].</p><p>TORO (n): trunk. See: otoro.</p><p>TYBONTOAN (vi): dream.</p><p>TYDYN (vi): flee, escape. M-eisa khona da-kyry-n to hikolhi, kiadoma thy-tyda</p><p>d-oria. “I didn’t tie the turtle well, therefore it escaped from me.”</p><p>TYLATHO (n): older sister of a female. Possessed: da-tylatho = my older sister.</p><p>TYNAMARO (n): master, boss.</p><p>WA-MALHITA-KOANATHI (n): God (our maker). See: Adajali.</p><p>WABODIN (vs): early. Wabodi-ka-the b-andy-n. “You arrived early.”</p><p>WABOKA (tw): a very short time ago, just now. Waboka</p><p>da-borata da-retho-(w)a</p><p>nyky-n ikhi-khodo. “I just now helped my wife carry firewood.”</p><p>WABOKEN (p): also. De waboken osa-thi-bo h-oma. “I want to go with you (PL)</p><p>too.”</p><p>WABOROKO (n): permission. Waboroko d-othikhi-n doma, d-osa thojosikoa-nro.</p><p>“Because I received permission, I went to town.”</p><p>WABOROKO (n): road, street, large path. Aba khota da-dykha waboroko loko. “I</p><p>saw an animal on the road.”</p><p>WADIA (tw): late. Wadia sabo min-fa-the kho olhiroko. “Later it will get very</p><p>dark.”</p><p>WADIBE-DYNARO (n): spider monkey.</p><p>WADILI (n): male, man. Lira wadili to da-rethi. “That man is my husband.”</p><p>WADILI (n): penis.</p><p>WADILIN (vi): able to. Wadili-koma b-ani-n tora amathali? “Would you be able to</p><p>do that?”</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 163</p><p>WADIN (vs): long. Aba ada wadi-tho da-lhyky-fa. “I am going to cut a long</p><p>stick.”</p><p>WADON (vs): old. To da-dalhidi-koana: min-ka kho wado-n. “My car: it is very old.”</p><p>WADYN (vt): fan. By-nyka to walhiwalhi, ken by-wada to ikhi-hi th-inyky-n-thi.</p><p>“Take the fan, and fan the fire (so) it starts.”</p><p>WADYN (vi): search, look for. Da-jadoalan da-bolheda, kia bithiro wady-thi-bo de.</p><p>“I lost my ax; that is what I am searching (lit: a searcher) for.”</p><p>WAJA, WARIA (pp): from, of, originating from. See: waria, -aria, -aja.</p><p>WAJALHI (n): basket (usually used by men). Khatho d-osy-n kaboja-nro, da-nyka</p><p>da-wajalhia-wa ikhikhodo da-nykyn-bia. “When I go to my planting</p><p>ground, I carry my (men’s) basket for me to carry firewood.” Possessed:</p><p>da-wajalhi-a = my basket.</p><p>WAKA: a long time.</p><p>WAKHAITHO AMATHALI (n): sin, bad thing.</p><p>WAKHAJAN (vs): bad, ugly. Lira da-sikoa-n min-thi kho wakhajan. “That house of</p><p>mine is very ugly (but he has affection for the house, therefore</p><p>[+male] forms are used]).”</p><p>WAKHARO, AKHARO (tw): now, this moment. Wakharo, kho wadili sabo-ka tadi</p><p>da-jady-n. “Nowadays I can’t travel far any more.”</p><p>WAKHILI (tw): long ago (time of our forefathers). Wakhili, bikhidolia d-a-n kha,</p><p>min-thi kho jokha-n de. “In the old days, when I was young, I was a</p><p>great hunter.”</p><p>WAKYDONOAN, WAKYDOAN (vi): burst, break. Bo-lhoto-ne bo-kodo-ja khonan!</p><p>Thy-wakydoa-ma. “Don’t let go of your gourd bottle! It can burst.”</p><p>WAKYDYN (vt): burst, break. See: wakydonoan.</p><p>WALHAKABA (n): bird (species) (ST: kamikami, trumpet bird).</p><p>WALHIWALHI (n): fan. Ikhi i da-wada da-walhiwalhi-a abo. “I fan the fire with</p><p>my fan.” Possessed: da-walhiwalhi-a = my fan.</p><p>WAN (vs): dry. Wa-ka to bokolho-ho? “Are the clothes dry?”</p><p>WAN: us-benefactive (contraction of wa-myn).</p><p>WANDALI (tw): noon. Da-khoto-fa wandali. “I will eat at noon.”</p><p>WARIA, WAJA (pp): from, of, originating from. Halhan amathali malhiti-tho</p><p>Adajali waria-tho to. “Everything created is what comes from God.”</p><p>WASIBA (n): tree (species) (greenheart).</p><p>WASINA(-HA)(n): heart. Da-wasina m-amyn d-a-n kha, wadili-koma kho kaky-n de.</p><p>“If I didn’t have a heart, I wouldn’t be able to live.” Possessed:</p><p>da-wasina = my heart.</p><p>WA-THINATHI (n): God (our collective father). See: Adajali.</p><p>WATOA-KOANA(HA) (n): towel. M-amyn d-a-n kha da-watoa-koana, wadili-koma</p><p>kho da-khondi da-rody-n. “If I didn’t have a towel, I wouldn’t be able to</p><p>dry my body.” Possessed: da-watoa-koana = my towel.</p><p>WATYN (vt): dry. Sare b-a waty-n to bokolho-ho; mimi koa th-a-ma. “Dry the</p><p>clothes well; they may be still damp.”</p><p>WE (pro): we, us, our. We kojo-fa. “We will leave.” We sikoa to. “It is our</p><p>house.”</p><p>1. To to we myn: It is for us.</p><p>WEDIN (vi): vomit.</p><p>WELADYN, WELADAN (vt): hang.</p><p>164 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>WEREBEN (vs): warm. Tano min-ka kho werebe-n to kasakabo. “Today is a very</p><p>warm day.”</p><p>WESI (n): fish (species) (ST: datra).</p><p>WIRIBISIRI (n): deer (small, dwarf species).</p><p>WIWA, IWA (n): star. Kasakoda ron by-dykha-ma to wiwa-be. “Only at night can</p><p>you see the stars.”</p><p>WIWIDAN (vi): whistle. Da-wiwida aba jeni khan. “I whistled a little song.”</p><p>YBALHA, BALHA(-HA) (n): hair, feather, sea. See: balha(-ha).</p><p>YDA(-HA) (n): skin, hide. De yda kolhe-ka, ken abaryky-no yda halhira, ken</p><p>abaryky-no yda kharemen. “My skin is red, and the skin of another is</p><p>white, and the skin of another is black.” Possessed: da-da = my skin.</p><p>1. ada-yda: bark</p><p>YDIA(-HY) (n): word, message, news, story. See: (y)dia(-hy).</p><p>YDIAN (vi): talk, speak. See: dian.</p><p>YJA(-HA) (n): image, photo, spirit. Sare b-a dinaby-n, sa-n-bia thy-rybytonoa-n</p><p>b-yja. “Stand well, so that your image can be removed well (i.e. photo</p><p>can be taken well).”</p><p>YJAN (vi): cry, weep. To w-osy-n kaboja-nro: min-ka kho ly-ja-n li wa-sa siokothi</p><p>khan wa-khonan. “Concerning our going to the planting ground: our</p><p>young son cried a lot for us.”</p><p>YJE(-HY) (n): tongue. Da-je abo da-dia-ka, ken da-je abo da-bela khi-ko-ma-da.</p><p>“With my tongue I talk, and with my tongue I can also lick.” Possessed:</p><p>da-je = my tongue.</p><p>YJIN (vi): cry, weep. To thy-sa odo-n: min-ka kho th-yji-n to jonatho-ho. “Concern-</p><p>ing her child dying: her female ancestor (i.e. mother) cried greatly.”</p><p>YKHA (tw): now, when.</p><p>YKYRA, KYRA (n): root. Thy-kyra bokoto-sia to ada holholho koborokon. “Its roots</p><p>are what hold a tree in the ground.” Possessed: thy-kyra = its root.</p><p>YLHIBISIN, LHIBISIN (vt): roll. Da-lhyka-n bena to ada, da-lhibisi-fa oniabo</p><p>rako-nro no. “After I cut the tree, I will roll it into the water.”</p><p>1. ylhibisan: to work rolling trees</p><p>YLHIHIN (vs): brown, gray (between dark and light in color). Toro bikhidoliatho</p><p>ylhihin. “That young woman there is dark (-skinned).”</p><p>YLHYDABAN (vs): blue. Ylhydaba to khota-ha, thy-boadoa-bo. “(When) the meat</p><p>is blue, it is spoiling.”</p><p>YMADIANTHI, OMADIANTHI, MADIANTHI (n): companion, buddy, comrade.</p><p>Sare b-a-li kaky-n b-omadianthi oma. “You must live well (in peace and</p><p>harmony) with your companions/comrades.” Sare w-a-the ymadianthi</p><p>oma kaky-n. “Let us live well (in peace and harmony) with our compan-</p><p>ions.” Possessed: da-madianthi = my comrade.</p><p>YRA (n): juice. Abaryky konokhodi-tho mibi yra sa ythy-nbia. “The juice of some</p><p>jungle vines is good to drink.”</p><p>1. dio-yra: milk (lit: breast juice)</p><p>2. sikalho-yra: sugarcane juice</p><p>YSA, SA (n): child, offspring. Da-sa min-ka kho hebekhanin, kiadoma min-ka kho</p><p>alekhebe-n de. “My child is growing up very well, therefore I am very</p><p>happy.” Possessed: da-sa = my child.</p><p>1. ysanothi: children (collective group)</p><p>A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak 165</p><p>YSA, SA (n): egg. Da-khi-n bora-da no, to kalhina sa, da-boko-fa bania-da no. “Be-</p><p>fore I eat it, the egg, I cook it a short while.”</p><p>YSANOTHI, SANOTHI (n): children (collective). Possessed: wa-sanothi = your</p><p>and my children, altogether.</p><p>YTHAN (n): drink (usually alcoholic or fermented). Possessed: da-than-ia = my</p><p>drink. See: atha(-ha).</p><p>YTHY(-HY) (n): blood. To da-thyna-bynaha da-bikhi-n kha, min-koma kho da-thyna</p><p>osy-n d-oria. “If I cut my blood vessel, I could lose a lot of blood.” Pos-</p><p>sessed: da-thyna = my blood.</p><p>166 A Short Lexicon of Suriname Arawak</p><p>English Index for Lexicon</p><p>ENGLISH ARAWAK CLASS</p><p>a aba quant</p><p>able -ma</p><p>able wadilin vi</p><p>about khonan pp</p><p>about (a subject) diakon pp</p><p>above adi pp</p><p>absent kawan vs</p><p>acquainted with aithin, aithan, eithin vt</p><p>add khisidan vi</p><p>adverbializer, ADV -ke, -ko, -re, -ro</p><p>after bena pp</p><p>after dikhi pp</p><p>after inaboa pp</p><p>after jabon, jabonro pp</p><p>after (locative, temporal) inabo pp</p><p>afternoon (16:00–20:00) bakylama tw</p><p>again ba, khi...ba p</p><p>against rabydykhy, rabotykhy pp</p><p>aim kylykyn vi</p><p>aim at kylykan vi</p><p>airplane ajomyndi-koro, moroda-koro n</p><p>alive kaky koan vi</p><p>all halhan n</p><p>alligator kajokothi n</p><p>almost hibin p</p><p>already hibin p</p><p>also waboken p</p><p>also like badia p</p><p>167</p><p>although balhin p</p><p>always -ro</p><p>ambitious emekhon vs</p><p>among koboroko pp</p><p>among makhana pp</p><p>among nakanrokon, nakanrokonro pp</p><p>and ken, mathi, matho conj</p><p>anger, make angry eimatan, ematan vt</p><p>angry (be) eimatonoan, ematonoan vi</p><p>animal khota(-ha) n</p><p>answer onabon vt</p><p>approach amyntyn, omyntyn vt</p><p>motion approaching -the</p><p>approximation diathi n</p><p>Arawak loko(no) n</p><p>area maja n</p><p>in the area of maria, maja pp</p><p>arm (whole arm with hand) dyna(-ha) n</p><p>armadillo kind (‘kapasi’) andadike, jesi n</p><p>armadillo kind jesere n</p><p>arrive</p><p>in /´/ is</p><p>added to a consonant-initial stem, the /´/ of the prefix optionally assimilates to the vowel</p><p>in the first syllable of the stem:</p><p>(3) a. /l´-/ + /sikowa/ ® /lisikowa/ or /l´sikowa/ ‘his house’</p><p>b./th´-/ + /no»o/ ® /thono»o/ or /th´no»o/ ‘her neck’</p><p>2.1.3 Stress</p><p>Arawak has two partially conflicting stress rules.3</p><p>1.Each pause group4 potentially has a stress that falls on the penultimate syllable of</p><p>that group. Secondary stresses fall on alternate syllables moving backward in the</p><p>pause group.</p><p>2.Each word potentially has a secondary stress which falls on the first syllable of its stem.</p><p>In natural speech, such as that heard in recorded conversations and stories, both rules</p><p>operate simultaneously in determining the actual position of stress, but pause-group stress</p><p>2.1 Phonology 9</p><p>2These cluster reduction rules seem to apply only to prefixes. For example, adding the suffix /-¸i/ ‘he’ to the</p><p>stative verb /fonasi¸a-ka/ (be.hungry-PERF) yields /fonasi¸aka¸i/ ‘he is hungry’, not */fonasi¸ake/.</p><p>3See Pet (1979) for details and examples.</p><p>4A pause group is characterized by a juncture consisting of the following: a potential tense pause, sustained</p><p>pitch, and primary stress on the penultimate syllable. Although its boundaries are generally coterminous with</p><p>those of the phrase, it is a unit which expands and contracts depending on the speed of utterance. See Pet (1979)</p><p>for further details.</p><p>tends to be more prominent. In very precise speech of the sort a speaker uses when dictat-</p><p>ing for transcription or when correcting a linguist, word stress tends to predominate. In</p><p>this latter situation, word stress can give the effect of lexical contrast.</p><p>(4) a. /Da-ka-bo./ [dakábo]</p><p>I-bathe-CONT</p><p>‘I am bathing.’</p><p>b. /D-aka-bo./ [dákabo]</p><p>I-speak-CONT</p><p>‘I am speaking.’</p><p>Notice, however, that this contrast is the result of adding a prefix which ends in a vowel to a</p><p>vowel-initial or consonant-initial stem. That is, when prefixes are added to stems beginning with</p><p>a vowel, word stress falls on the first syllable of the resulting word. When a prefix is added to a</p><p>stem starting with a consonant, word stress falls on the second syllable of the resulting word. All</p><p>lexical contrasts noted by investigators such as Taylor (1969) seem to be explainable in these</p><p>same terms, or as the result of the interaction between word- and pause-group stresses.</p><p>2.1.4 Orthographic and Other Conventions</p><p>The Arawak examples in the remainder of this study are written in a simplified orthography</p><p>which is currently in use by Arawaks writing in their own language. In this orthography, y =</p><p>/´/, j = /¸/, th = /th/, kh = /kh/, lh = /º/, r = /»/, and f = /ˆ/. In its underlying form, any</p><p>combination of a vowel and o is divided by a /w/, and any combination of a vowel and i is di-</p><p>vided by a /¸/; however, these are not written in the simplified orthography.5</p><p>Throughout this study, morpheme boundaries relevant to the particular discussion at hand are in-</p><p>dicated by hyphens, and word juncture is indicated by space. In most cases, the morphemes are</p><p>matched on a one-to-one basis by a literal English gloss.6 When more than one English word is re-</p><p>quired to translate a single morpheme, those words are joined by a period. When the meaning of a</p><p>morpheme is unknown, that fact is indicated by two question marks (??).</p><p>2.2 Lexical Classes and Morphology</p><p>Given appropriate affixes, it sometimes seems possible to use almost any root in Arawak</p><p>as any part of speech. However, uninflected roots generally seem to represent only one</p><p>part of speech; to be used as another part of speech, such a form must receive appropriate</p><p>derivational morphology. For example, an intransitive verb stem can be derived from many</p><p>nouns with the derivational suffix -da.7</p><p>(5) a. da-bode</p><p>my-fishhook</p><p>‘my fishhook’</p><p>10 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>5Although these combinations are pronounced as single syllables, they count as two syllables in the application</p><p>of stress rules. See Pet (1979) for further discussion.</p><p>6See list of abbreviations used in the glosses and elsewhere.</p><p>7See sections on derived nouns (2.3.4) and verbs (2.4.1.4, 2.4.2.2) for further examples and discussion of</p><p>derived forms.</p><p>b. Da-bode-da-bo.</p><p>I-fishhook-NOUN.VERBALIZER-CONT</p><p>‘I am fishing with a line and hook.’</p><p>Arawak words may be divided into four classes based on the distribution of those words</p><p>in larger structures and based on internal inflectional differences. These classes are the fol-</p><p>lowing: nominals, verbs, postpositions, and functors.</p><p>1.Nominals are those words which, without accompanying words other than articles,</p><p>may serve as subject or object of a verb, or as object of a postposition. They may</p><p>be inflected for number but not for aspect or tense. For example: wadili and siba in</p><p>Li wadili dykha siba-be. (the man see stone-PL) ‘The man saw stones’.</p><p>2.Verbs are those words which, without accompanying words, may serve as predicate of a</p><p>clause.8 They may be inflected for aspect and tense but not for number. For example:</p><p>dalhida in Li wadili dalhida-bo. (the man run-PRES) ‘The man is running’. Verbs in Ara-</p><p>wak also include words expressing concepts which, in English, would be expressed by</p><p>adjectives. For example: firo in Firo-ka no. (big-PERF it) ‘It is big (e.g. the house)’.</p><p>3.Postpositions may not serve as the subject or object of a clause, and may not serve</p><p>as the predicate unless they are inflected with tense/aspect suffixes.9 Some exam-</p><p>ples of postpositions are the following: loko ‘inside of’, diako ‘on top of’, and oma</p><p>‘with (accompaniment)’.</p><p>4. Functors are those words which may not serve as predicate, subject, or object of a clause</p><p>and may not be inflected for number, tense, or aspect. This definition is a negative one</p><p>and is set up primarily for descriptive convenience. They do, however, share one feature:</p><p>none of them can receive any of the pronoun prefixes or suffixes (while nominals, verbs,</p><p>and postpositions all can). Functors are all members of closed subclasses such as articles,</p><p>conjunctions, and adverbials. For example: to ‘the’, ken ‘and’, hibin ‘already’.</p><p>2.3 Nominals</p><p>The nominals of Arawak may be subdivided into nouns and pronouns. Nouns, except</p><p>proper nouns, may receive a possessor prefix, while pronouns may not:</p><p>(6) Common Noun Proper Noun Pronoun</p><p>da-sikoa Adajali de</p><p>my-house ‘God’ ‘I’</p><p>‘my house’</p><p>The pronouns are discussed first since they exemplify in a clearer fashion some of the dis-</p><p>tinctions in number and gender that are also made among the nouns.</p><p>2.3.1 Personal Pronouns</p><p>Arawak pronouns are differentiated as to gender, person, humanness, and number. There</p><p>are both personal and demonstrative pronominal forms. Grammatical case roles (e.g.</p><p>2.3 Nominals 11</p><p>8Nouns phrases may also be used predicatively, but only in attributive (stative) sentences. See Section 3.2.3.1.</p><p>9See Section 2.5.1 for a discussion of the lexical status of postpositions and some reasons why they should be</p><p>considered as distinct from both verbs and nominals.</p><p>genitive or possessive, objective) are not distinguished morphologically. Thus, a pronoun</p><p>occurring as a subject or an object of a clause has the same form as one occurring as the</p><p>object of a postposition or the possessor in a noun phrase.</p><p>2.3.1.1 Morphological Forms of Personal Pronouns</p><p>Personal pronouns (Figure 4) have morphologically free and bound variants, each of</p><p>which also has different forms depending on where it occurs in a clause or phrase.10 Thus,</p><p>personal pronouns potentially have four forms. (shown in Figure 4):11</p><p>1.a morphologically free form before a verb, a postposition, or a noun;</p><p>2. a morphologically bound form (prefix) before a verb, a postposition, or a noun;</p><p>3. a morphologically free form after a verb;</p><p>4. a morphologically bound form (suffix) after a verb.</p><p>The lexical meanings of corresponding variant forms of personal pronouns are all the</p><p>same, whether the forms are bound, free, pre-head, or post-head. The use of the bound ver-</p><p>sus the free forms is dependent on discourse considerations; they are not freely inter-</p><p>changeable.</p><p>andyn vi</p><p>arrow simalha n</p><p>arrow (for hunting birds) malhoa n</p><p>arrow cane ihi n</p><p>ash balisi n</p><p>ashamed habori(n) vs, n</p><p>ask adakoton vd</p><p>ask khojabyn vt</p><p>associate madianthi, ymadianthi n</p><p>at amyn pp</p><p>at khona pp</p><p>at khonaro, khonanro pp</p><p>at -n (contraction of nin)</p><p>at (generalized locative) nin pp</p><p>at first atynoa, thikhin tw</p><p>athlete’s foot tetelio n</p><p>attempt khisidin vt</p><p>attentive manner dykhakoan adv</p><p>attributive, ATTR k(A)-</p><p>aunt (mother’s sister) jaboatho n</p><p>be aware of kajadan vi</p><p>AWAY -ba</p><p>away, away from, from -ria, -ja</p><p>away, away from oria, oja pp</p><p>168 English Index for Lexicon</p><p>ax balho n</p><p>BACK -the</p><p>back (body part) abo n</p><p>to the back of jabonro pp</p><p>bad wakhajan vs</p><p>bad man/boy malokonisiathi n</p><p>bad thing wakhaitho amathali n</p><p>bake koron vt</p><p>bake cassava bread koran vi</p><p>be baked koronoan vi</p><p>ball bala n</p><p>banana (eating variety) manikhinia n</p><p>barter jalokhotan vi,vt</p><p>basket (used by women) keke, kekere n</p><p>basket (used by men) wajalhi n</p><p>basketry box clothes borodi n</p><p>bathe (y)kan, sokosoan vi</p><p>bathing place kori(-hi) n</p><p>be to copula</p><p>beam (of building) bajolha n</p><p>beard thima(-ha) n</p><p>beat thitan vi</p><p>beat (win) motyn vt</p><p>beat wet clothes sabadan vi</p><p>because doma pp</p><p>because of that kiadoma p</p><p>bed kora(-ha) n</p><p>before bithiro pp</p><p>before boran pp</p><p>before sibon pp</p><p>before (temporal) bora pp</p><p>befuddled maithandyn vs</p><p>beg khojaboan, khojabonoan vi</p><p>begin einatan, inatan vi</p><p>begin einatyn, inatyn vt</p><p>make a beginning at einatan, inatan vi</p><p>behind dikhi pp</p><p>behind inabo pp</p><p>behind jaboa pp</p><p>behind jabon, jabonro pp</p><p>believe khidoandyn vt</p><p>belly te(-hy), (y)te n</p><p>bench abola, abala, hala n</p><p>bend teodyn vt</p><p>English Index for Lexicon 169</p><p>benefactive, BEN (contraction) -n</p><p>benefactive, BEN myn pp</p><p>beside maria, maja pp</p><p>better sareken vs</p><p>between koboroko, makhana pp</p><p>between nakanrokon, nakanrokonro pp</p><p>bicycle (falhetho-)dalhidi-koana n</p><p>big firon, ilon vs</p><p>bird kodibio n</p><p>bird (species) salhi n</p><p>bird (bush turkey; marai) marodi n</p><p>bird (D: tijgervogel) honoli n</p><p>bird (ST: anamoe) hyryrydiasalhero, kasalhero n</p><p>bird (ST: powisi) hithi n</p><p>bird (wakago; boshaan) kalhoba n</p><p>bird (trumpet bird) walhakaba n</p><p>bite rydyn vt</p><p>bitter sifen vs</p><p>black kharemen vs</p><p>bleed kathynan vi</p><p>blood ythy(-hy) n</p><p>blood vessel thyna-bynaha n</p><p>blow (with mouth, or wind) fodyn vt</p><p>blue ylhydaban vs</p><p>boat falhetho-kanan n</p><p>boat jolhadoa-koana(-ha) n</p><p>boat kanan, kojalha n</p><p>body firo(-ho), khondi n</p><p>boil bokoan vi</p><p>boil kakolhothima n</p><p>book kharasa(-ha) n</p><p>boss afodo(-ho), isi(-hi) n</p><p>boss tynamaro n</p><p>bother jolhatyn ... ansi vt</p><p>bottle botoli n</p><p>bow ododonoan vi</p><p>bow simalhabo n</p><p>box-like basket (w/ lid) borodi n</p><p>boy siokothi n</p><p>boy (near puberty) ilonthi n</p><p>braid (hair) kodon, kodan vt</p><p>branch (tree-arm) ada-dynabo n</p><p>bread (wheat bread) falhetho-khale n</p><p>break kalhydyn vt</p><p>170 English Index for Lexicon</p><p>break wakydonoan, wakydoan vi</p><p>break wakydyn vt</p><p>break a bone kalhydan vi</p><p>breast (o)dio, dio(-hy) n</p><p>breathe akobyn vi</p><p>take a breather akoban vi</p><p>bridge thima-koana(-ha) n</p><p>bright thing kalemero n</p><p>bring sikan vi</p><p>bring along (a person) onakyn vt</p><p>bring into being malhitan vt</p><p>broken boadonoan, boadoan vi</p><p>be broken kalhydonoan, kalhydoan vi</p><p>brother (of a female) thilikhithi n</p><p>brother-in-law orebithi n</p><p>brother-in-law renymalithi n</p><p>brown ylhihin vs</p><p>buddy (y)madianthi, (o)madianthi n</p><p>bugs majoren n</p><p>build malhithin vt</p><p>bump (on the skin) kakolhothima n</p><p>burden nakara n</p><p>burn bitoan vi</p><p>burn (go around burning) bitakan vt</p><p>burn down bithin vt</p><p>burn up bithin vt</p><p>burst wakydonoan, wakydoan vi</p><p>burst wakydyn vt</p><p>bus (falhetho-)dalhidi-koana n</p><p>Bush Negro konokhodo n</p><p>but ma p</p><p>buy jontan vt</p><p>buzzard anoana n</p><p>by amyn pp</p><p>by bithi pp</p><p>by means of abo pp</p><p>calculate khisidan vi</p><p>call simakyn vt</p><p>can -ma</p><p>can’t be helped malhira p</p><p>canoe jolhadoa-koana(-ha) n</p><p>large canoe kanan n</p><p>canoe kanoa, kojalha n</p><p>captain afodo(-ho), balhosen n</p><p>English Index for Lexicon 171</p><p>captain (of village) (i)si(-hi) n</p><p>capybara (species) (small) hadolhi n</p><p>capybara (species) (konijn) hokolhero n</p><p>capybara (species) (konijn) kakolhemero n</p><p>capybara (species) (haas) kawalainaro n</p><p>capybara (species) (haas, hei) laba n</p><p>car (falhetho-)dalhidi-koana n</p><p>care for dykhyn...khona vi</p><p>be careful aithoan, eithoan vi</p><p>carry nykyn vt</p><p>cassava khali, khale n</p><p>cassava baking plate bodali n</p><p>cassava beer bethiri, kasiri n</p><p>cassava boat (for grating) adisa n</p><p>cassava bread (hard kind) khali, khale n</p><p>cassava bread (soft kind) beletho n</p><p>cassava flour joraha n</p><p>cassava grater samalhi n</p><p>cassava juice (poisonous) keli n</p><p>cassava meal joraha n</p><p>cassava sifter (basketry) manalhi n</p><p>cassava squeezer joro n</p><p>cassava starch halho n</p><p>cassava tuber khalidoli n</p><p>cassette recorder falhetho-bejoka n</p><p>catch bokoton, othikhin vt</p><p>catch (go around catching) bokotan vt, vi</p><p>caterpillar komakathi n</p><p>Caucasian falhetho n</p><p>causative, CAUS -kYtY</p><p>celebrate alekhebetoan vi</p><p>cent sensi n</p><p>change besoan, besonoan vi</p><p>change repeatedly besoabesoadyn vi</p><p>chase dalhidan vi</p><p>cheer up alekhebetan vt</p><p>chew rydan vi</p><p>chicken kalhina, kanakanasiro n</p><p>chief balhosen n</p><p>child ibili, ysa, sa n</p><p>children (collective) ysanothi, sanothi n</p><p>chin tala(-ha) n</p><p>Chinese person khajaba n</p><p>chop (with ax or machete) sokon vt</p><p>172 English Index for Lexicon</p><p>chop open a planting ... sokan vi</p><p>get chopped sokonoan vi</p><p>church khojaboa-sikoa n</p><p>cigar, cigarette jolhi n</p><p>city thojosikoa, forto n</p><p>clan kyrykyja n</p><p>clean hair off an animal thidin vt</p><p>clean up a planting ground byrykan vi</p><p>clear a planting ground sokan vi</p><p>clear undergrowth khorodon, khorodan vt, vi</p><p>climb modyn vi</p><p>clock khisi(-hi) n</p><p>close takyn vt</p><p>close by khiradi pp</p><p>close to kosan pp</p><p>cloth bokolho(-ho) n</p><p>cloth scrap bokolho-iban n</p><p>clothing, clothes bokolho(-ho) n</p><p>cloud olhalho n</p><p>cold mimin vs</p><p>have a cold thonolisian vs</p><p>comb one’s hair balhydoan vi</p><p>come out fothikhidin, fothikhidan vi</p><p>come to a stop takonoan vi</p><p>be comical mithakotoan vi</p><p>coming -the</p><p>companion, comrade (y)madianthi, (o)madianthi n</p><p>conceal jakhatyn, jakhatan vt</p><p>conquer motyn vt</p><p>consumed halhan vs</p><p>container eke, ke n</p><p>container (boxlike basket) borodi n</p><p>continuative, CONT -bo</p><p>contrastive, CONTR. balhin p</p><p>contrastive, CONTR -kho</p><p>cook bokon vt</p><p>cook (a meal) bokan vi</p><p>be cooked bokoan vi</p><p>corn marisi n</p><p>cotton jafo n</p><p>cough thondon vi</p><p>could -koma</p><p>count khisidan vi</p><p>country sikoa-bana, sikoa(-hy) n</p><p>English Index for Lexicon 173</p><p>courage (y)loa, loa(-hy) n</p><p>encourage loatyn vt</p><p>cover adoton vt</p><p>cover takyn vt</p><p>covering eke, ke n</p><p>cow kajolhero, kakoaro n</p><p>cow koadoa-kothiro n</p><p>crab koa n</p><p>crawl; crawl around lhoadyn; lhoadan vi</p><p>create malhitan vt</p><p>creek onikhan n</p><p>Creole dolhi n</p><p>cross thiman vi</p><p>cry yjin, yjan vi</p><p>cry out simakan vi</p><p>cut bikhin, bikan vt</p><p>be cut lhykonoan vi</p><p>get cut sokonoan vi</p><p>cut (be wounded w/ a cut) lhykonoan vi</p><p>get a cut (wound) bikhoan vi</p><p>cut a border line sibytyn, sibytan vt, vi</p><p>cut hair jerikoan vi</p><p>cut meat into pieces kholebetan vi</p><p>cut or chop in pieces lhykabon vt</p><p>cut with knife, machete or scissors lhykyn vt</p><p>dam up takan vt</p><p>damp mimin vs</p><p>dance binin vi</p><p>dark olhirokon vs</p><p>daughter (also bro. da.) oto n</p><p>daughter-in-law thio n</p><p>day kasakabo(-ho) n</p><p>day after tomorrow motheboan tw</p><p>daytime kasakabo tw</p><p>dead person odothi n</p><p>deaf maikadyn vs</p><p>deafen maikadyren vt</p><p>death oda n</p><p>deceive molhidan vi</p><p>be deceived molhidoan vi</p><p>deceiver molhidoan n</p><p>decorate bylhytan vi</p><p>decorate one’s body anbalhitoan vi</p><p>deer kadanaro, kakosiro n</p><p>174 English Index for Lexicon</p><p>deer (small, dwarf species) wiribisiri n</p><p>defecate khian vi</p><p>delicious semen vs</p><p>demonstrate dykhytyn vd</p><p>depressed nykamyn vs</p><p>derived noun -bero, -koana</p><p>descend thokodon vi</p><p>desiderative, DESID -thi</p><p>determination (y)loa, loa(-hy) n</p><p>devil jawahy n</p><p>diarrhea sore(-he) n</p><p>die odon vi</p><p>difficult kamothinan vs</p><p>be in difficulty kamonekan vs</p><p>cause difficulty monekatan vt</p><p>dig thikin vi</p><p>diminutive khan p</p><p>in the direction of maria, maja pp</p><p>dirty ereben, ireben vs</p><p>dirty seken vs</p><p>dirty (things, stories) balihin vs</p><p>disembark thokodon vi</p><p>distant past</p><p>Informally stated, a bound pronoun tends to be used when its antecedent is</p><p>the last mentioned noun or pronoun having the same number and gender, whereas the</p><p>equivalent morphologically free pronoun tends to be used when its antecedent is not the</p><p>last mentioned pronoun or noun but has, nevertheless, already been introduced into that</p><p>section of the discourse. This tendency is even true within a single sentence. For example,</p><p>the possessive pronoun in (7a) is understood as being coreferential with the subject. The</p><p>possessive pronoun in (7b) is usually understood as not being coreferential.</p><p>BEFORE HEAD* AFTER HEAD**</p><p>MEANING FREE BOUND FREE BOUND</p><p>1ST SG. de da- de —</p><p>2ND SG. bi by- bo —</p><p>3RD SG. M. H. li ly- dei -i</p><p>3RD SG. NM. H. tho thy- no -n</p><p>SG. NH. tho thy- no -n</p><p>PL. NH. tho thy- — —</p><p>1ST PL. we wa- we -o</p><p>2ND PL. hi hy- hy —</p><p>3RD PL. H. ne na- je —</p><p>Notes: * Where head stands for a verb, noun, or postposition.</p><p>** Where head stands for a verb.</p><p>Figure 4. Arawak Personal Pronouns</p><p>12 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>10De Goeje (1928), Hickerson (1953), and Taylor (1969) give slightly different spellings for several of the forms</p><p>and include some additional ones. In the case of de Goeje’s data, this is understandable, given the date and</p><p>locations from which he obtained them (see discussion in Chapter 1). In the cases of Hickerson and Taylor, it is</p><p>unclear to me whether the differences are due to dialect differences or to the fact that both Hickerson and Taylor</p><p>depended partially on de Goeje’s data.</p><p>11The shape of prefix pronouns is often obscured by vowel cluster reduction rules. See Section 2.1.2.</p><p>(7) a. L-osa-bo ly-kabojan ninro.</p><p>he-go-CONT his-planting.ground to</p><p>‘Hei is going to hisi planting ground.’</p><p>b.L-osa-bo li kabojan ninro.</p><p>he-go-CONT his planting.ground to</p><p>‘Hei is going to hisj planting ground.’</p><p>The following are some examples illustrating the various forms of the personal pronouns:12</p><p>(8) by-simaka-i you-call-him ‘you called him’</p><p>li simaka-o he call-us ‘he called us’</p><p>ly-simaka bo he-call you ‘he called you’</p><p>tho simaka-i she call-him ‘she called him’</p><p>thy-simaka je she-call them ‘she called them’</p><p>we simaka no we call her ‘we called her’</p><p>wa-simaka dei we-call him ‘we called him’</p><p>hi simaka we you.pl call us ‘y’all called us’</p><p>na-simaka-o they-call-us ‘they called us’</p><p>kawa-ka-n absent-PERF-she ‘she is gone’</p><p>thy-diako it/her-on ‘on it/her’</p><p>ne koboroko them among ‘among them’</p><p>2.3.1.2 Gender, Number, and Humanness in Arawak</p><p>As mentioned above, Arawak distinguishes its third person pronouns according to three fea-</p><p>tures: [+/– human], [+/– male], and [+/– plural]. If one examines the data in Figure 4, one</p><p>can see that these three features interact. For example, all non-humans, regardless of gender or</p><p>number, are referred to by tho. This same pronoun is also used for singular human females.</p><p>The relationship of the number and gender features relevant to the third-person pronouns is</p><p>summarized in Figure 5.</p><p>3RD PERSON</p><p>HUMAN + –</p><p>PLURAL + –</p><p>MALE + –</p><p>ne li tho</p><p>‘they’ ‘he’ ‘she,it,they’</p><p>Figure 5. Arawak Number and Gender Features</p><p>2.3 Nominals 13</p><p>12The forms tho, thy-, no, and -n, in the examples, can all just as well be translated as ‘it’, ‘they’, or ‘them’ since</p><p>they refer to a non-human referent.</p><p>Simply knowing the features associated with the pronouns is not sufficient to allow one</p><p>to choose the correct pronoun for a particular referent. The problem lies in the fact that,</p><p>for Arawak, humanness and maleness are not completely biologically based. The pronouns</p><p>do not necessarily reflect whether or not a referent is human or male in an objective sense;</p><p>instead, they sometimes reflect the speaker’s feelings toward that referent. This is most true</p><p>of the feature [+/– human]. In general, referents are [+human] if they are Arawak, and</p><p>they are [–human] if they are not Arawak.13 However, speakers who feel a unity with other</p><p>indigenous groups extend the use of [+human] to members of all such groups. It can be</p><p>further extended to include close friends in other races if both the speaker and hearer feel</p><p>an affinity to them. In a similar but lesser manner, [+/– male] is influenced by a speaker’s</p><p>feelings toward a referent. Cute, small, female infants and some animals are also</p><p>sometimes regarded as having the feature [+male].</p><p>Applying the above specifically to Arawak third-person pronouns, one tends to find the</p><p>third-person singular masculine human forms used for:</p><p>1.All males of the speaker’s ethnic group, except if special disdain is intended.</p><p>2.Males who are not of the speaker’s ethnic group, if they are friends of the speaker</p><p>or if a relationship of mutual respect exists between the speaker and referent.</p><p>3. Small, human infants (either male or female, from the speaker’s group or not), if</p><p>there is no emphasis on gender intended and they are “cute.”</p><p>4.Animals (e.g. hikolhi ‘turtle’), objects (e.g. adali ‘sun’), and spiritual beings (e.g.</p><p>Adajali ‘God’) considered to be good or desirable, or when they are protagonists in</p><p>stories.</p><p>The third-person singular non-masculine forms tend to be used for:</p><p>1.All females except, sometimes, infants.</p><p>2.Males who are not of the speaker’s ethnic group (except as provided for in point 2,</p><p>above).</p><p>3.All animals, objects, and spiritual beings (except those provided for in 4, above).</p><p>4.The plurals of male humans who are not of the speaker’s group and the plurals of</p><p>animals, objects, and spiritual beings.</p><p>The third-person human plural is used only for male and female humans who are Arawaks</p><p>or with whom the speaker is in sympathy. In all other cases, plural human referents are re-</p><p>ferred to by the same forms as the third-person singular non-masculine referents (see above).</p><p>2.3.2 Demonstrative Pronouns and Adjectives, and Articles</p><p>Arawak demonstrative pronouns, articles, and demonstrative adjectives14 are closely related</p><p>to the personal pronouns in both form and meaning; however, they occur only in the third per-</p><p>son. Like the personal pronouns, they are differentiated according to the number, gender, and</p><p>humanness features mentioned in the previous section. They are further differentiated</p><p>14 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>13This classification is also reflected in the nouns. Arawak has no generic root word for ‘human’, as English</p><p>does. The closest word to this is loko(no) ‘Arawak person’ (often extended to mean ‘indigenous person’). Other</p><p>races are referred to by other specific words (e.g. falhetho ‘white man’, dolhi ‘negro’). Two words, wadili ‘male’</p><p>and hiaro ‘female’, are often used in Arawak under circumstances where an English speaker would use ‘man’ and</p><p>‘woman’. However, these refer only to the sex of the referent, since they can equally well be used for animals. One</p><p>other word, kakythinon ‘people’, is now commonly used for groups of people. However, the singular of this word</p><p>is, again, specific for the gender of the referent: kakythi ‘man’, kakytho ‘woman’ or ‘living being’.</p><p>14Articles and demonstrative adjectives are not nominals, they are identical in form and similar in meaning to</p><p>the demonstrative pronouns. Hence they are discussed together here.</p><p>according to the referent’s physical or psychological distance from the speaker and the amount</p><p>of “pointing” or “singling out” the speaker intends. Their forms may be found in Figure 6.</p><p>A B C D E</p><p>1. to toho tora toraha torabo</p><p>the this that that that there</p><p>2. li lihi lira liraha lirabo</p><p>the this that that that there</p><p>3. na naha nara naraha narabo</p><p>the these those those those there</p><p>1 = singular non-masculine human and singular or plural non-human</p><p>2 = singular masculine human</p><p>3 = plural human</p><p>A = neutral distance article or demonstrative adjective</p><p>B = neutral distance demonstrative adjectives or pronoun</p><p>C = slightly distant demonstrative adjective or pronoun</p><p>D = distant demonstrative adjective or pronoun</p><p>E = distant pointing demonstrative adjective or pronoun</p><p>Figure 6. Demonstrative Pronouns and Adjectives, and Articles</p><p>The uses of the singular non-masculine, the singular human masculine, the singular or</p><p>plural non-human, and the plural human forms are the same as those given for the per-</p><p>sonal pronouns.</p><p>As implied by their names, the articles and demonstrative adjectives modify nouns in</p><p>noun phrases, while the demonstrative pronouns are generally used in place of nouns. The</p><p>articles and demonstrative adjectives are mutually exclusive. That is, a noun may be modi-</p><p>fied by either an article or a demonstrative adjective (or neither), but not by both. Neither</p><p>personal nor demonstrative pronouns may be modified by articles or demonstrative adjec-</p><p>tives. Some examples using articles and demonstrative pronouns and adjectives follow:</p><p>(9) a. li da-rethi</p><p>the my-husband</p><p>‘the husband of mine’</p><p>b. to kodibio</p><p>the bird</p><p>‘the bird’</p><p>c. tora da-bianthe</p><p>that.non-masc. my-spouse</p><p>‘that (female) spouse of mine’</p><p>2.3 Nominals 15</p><p>d.Lira-bo osa-bo.</p><p>that.male-there go-CONT</p><p>‘That (male) there is going.’</p><p>e. Ama to toho?</p><p>what be this</p><p>‘What is this?’</p><p>f. Alikan osy-fa? Naraha?</p><p>who go-FUT they.there</p><p>‘Who will go? They there?’</p><p>2.3.3 Nouns</p><p>Nouns are an open lexical class and represent the largest group of Arawak nominals.</p><p>They may be divided into two large classes: alienable and inalienable nouns. Cross-cutting</p><p>these classes are several other categorizations.</p><p>2.3.3.1 Inalienable and Alienable Nouns</p><p>Whether a noun is inalienable or alienable has to do with its behavior when it is possessed.</p><p>Some nouns must receive a suffix to be unpossessed, while others must receive a suffix to be</p><p>possessed. The former are called inalienable, and the latter are called alienable. For example,</p><p>note the use of the ‘noun generalizer’ (NGEN) and ‘possessed’ (POSS) suffixes in the following:</p><p>(10) a. Inalienable Noun:</p><p>de dyna dyna-ha</p><p>my arm arm-NGEN</p><p>‘my arm’ ‘arm’</p><p>b. Alienable Noun:</p><p>de arakabosa-n arakabosa</p><p>my gun-POSS gun</p><p>‘my gun’ ‘gun’</p><p>What is meant by ‘possessed’ in the above is that a pronoun or noun expressing ownership,</p><p>or one referring to a whole of which the noun is a part, is present in the same noun phrase (see</p><p>Section 3.1). It does not have to do with definiteness or the presence of other modifiers.</p><p>As might be expected, inalienable nouns tend to be nouns which are most commonly</p><p>used in contexts where they would be possessed. They include most body parts or other</p><p>parts of a whole, most kinship terms, and a few other words which do not seem to fall into</p><p>any one easily-definable semantic category. With the exception of most kinship terms, in-</p><p>alienable nouns can only be used in an unpossessed sense if they have the “noun</p><p>generalizer” suffix -hV15 (where V is identical with the last vowel of the preceding</p><p>16 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>15This suffix may be the same as the recurring partial which occurs in some of the demonstrative pronouns</p><p>listed in Figure 6.</p><p>syllable). If a noun has the noun generalizer suffix, it is taken in a very abstract or general</p><p>sense, not referring to any specific object or entity which exists or has existed or will exist.</p><p>(11) Kakythinon kamyn-ka khabo-ho.</p><p>people have-PERF hand-NGEN</p><p>‘People have hands.’</p><p>Kinship terms, other than special vocative forms, are never used without an expressed possessor.16</p><p>Some additional examples of inalienable nouns are the following:17</p><p>(12) khabo-ho ‘hand’ da-khabo ‘my hand’</p><p>bana-ha ‘liver’ thy-bana ‘its liver’</p><p>*aithi ‘son’ l-aithi ‘his son’</p><p>*eretho ‘wife’ l-eretho ‘his wife’</p><p>yda-ha ‘skin’ ada yda ‘bark’ (tree skin)</p><p>bode-he ‘fishhook’ de bode ‘my fishhook’</p><p>Alienable nouns represent the majority of nouns. When they are possessed, in addition to be-</p><p>ing preceded by a possessor pronoun (either morphologically bound or free) or a noun, they</p><p>receive one of the possession (POSS) suffixes, -n, -ja, or -ra.18 When they are unpossessed, they</p><p>may be used without any morphological modification. Although which suffix to use seems to</p><p>depend to some extent on the last syllable of the stem (e.g. words ending in i tend to receive</p><p>-ja) and to some extent on their origin (e.g. many loan words receive -ja), there are many ex-</p><p>ceptions, and thus it seems best to posit three arbitrary subclasses for them. In terms of fre-</p><p>quency, most nouns receive the -n suffix. Some examples of alienable nouns are as follows:</p><p>(13) a. siba ly-siba-n</p><p>‘stone’ ‘his stone’</p><p>b. ada d-ada-n</p><p>‘tree/wood’ ‘my tree/wood’</p><p>c. karobo wa-karobo-n</p><p>‘plate’ ‘our plate’</p><p>d. arakabosa de arakabosa-n</p><p>‘gun’ ‘my gun’</p><p>e. kalhao da-kalhao-ja</p><p>‘grass’ ‘my grass’</p><p>f. boko Adajali boko-ja</p><p>‘book’ ‘God’s book (i.e. Bible)’</p><p>2.3 Nominals 17</p><p>16See Hickerson (1953), van Renselaar and Voorhoeve (1962), and de Goeje (1928) for descriptions of the</p><p>Arawak kinship system.</p><p>17An asterisk before an example or other cited form indicates that the form is ungrammatical or unacceptable</p><p>Arawak. It should be understood that since I am not a native speaker of Arawak, some forms may be marked as</p><p>ungrammatical when they may not actually be so.</p><p>18Note that -ja is written a when added to a word ending in i.</p><p>g. malhisi hi malhisi-a</p><p>‘corn’ ‘your (pl.) corn’</p><p>h. botoli Henk botoli-a</p><p>‘bottle’ ‘Henk’s bottle’</p><p>i. adisa d-adisa-ra</p><p>‘grating boat’ ‘my grating boat’</p><p>2.3.3.2 Gender in Nouns</p><p>In addition to being classified according to the categories of alienable and inalienable,</p><p>Arawak nouns may also be loosely grouped according to the features of [+/– human] and</p><p>[+/– male]. This is reflected in the articles which occur with them.</p><p>(14) li wadili ‘the man’</p><p>li adali ‘the sun’</p><p>to hiaro ‘the woman’</p><p>to oniabo ‘the water’</p><p>na kakythinon ‘the people’</p><p>As is the case with pronouns (see Section 2.3.1.2 on pronoun gender), the features as-</p><p>signed to the noun to some extent have to do with the speaker’s view of the referent of that</p><p>noun. For example, although wadili ‘male’ is usually used when referring to a man and</p><p>therefore usually occurs with the masculine singular article li, it can also occur with the</p><p>non-masculine or non-human article to when referring to a non-Arawak.</p><p>2.3.3.3 Number in Nouns</p><p>As was indicated in the discussion of the third-person pronoun features (Figure 5), the fea-</p><p>ture [+/– plural] is overtly indicated for pronouns only when the pronoun has the feature</p><p>[+human]. This is true also of the nouns.19 Nouns referring to humans (in the Arawak sense)</p><p>are intrinsically singular, and if they are used to refer to more than one person, they must be</p><p>pluralized with a pluralizing suffix. For example, if the following nouns refer to an Arawak</p><p>(therefore [+human]) referent, the singular forms cannot refer to more than one person:</p><p>(15) a. ibili small.one ‘child’</p><p>*bian ibili 2 small.one ‘two children’</p><p>bian ibili-non 2 small.one-PL ‘two children’</p><p>18 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>19See also Taylor (1976). In addition to the two pluralizing suffixes I mention, he lists (p. 373) an additional</p><p>suffix -kho about which he says, “my examples of its use suffice only to suggest that it may refer to a ‘set’ or</p><p>collectivity rather than a plurality of persons or things: iborokho ‘little ones’...” This -kho morpheme also occurs a</p><p>few times in my data; however, it sometimes occurs when neither ‘collectivity’ nor plurality seems to be involved.</p><p>For example, I have recorded several instances where -kho is added to the pronoun de ‘I’, and to the conjunction</p><p>ken ‘and’. The only thing that all instances of -kho have in common is that they all seem to have to do with contrast</p><p>or emphasis. Instances of dekho occurred in contrastive situations in which the author seemed to be saying: ‘I, not</p><p>someone else’. The only occurrences of kenkho I have recorded are at, or just before, the climax of a narrative (e.g.</p><p>in the Bomb Story in the appendix). It may be that this suffix is related to the homophonous, negative adverbial</p><p>particle kho ‘not’.</p><p>b. wadili male ‘man’</p><p>*kabyn wadili three male ‘three men’</p><p>kabyn wadili-non three male-PL ‘three men’</p><p>c. hiaro female ‘woman’</p><p>*bithi hiaro four female ‘four women’</p><p>bithi hiaro-non four female-PL ‘four women’</p><p>In contrast to the above, and like the third-person pronoun tho, [–human] nouns may re-</p><p>fer to either plural or singular referents.</p><p>Their exact interpretation often depends on the</p><p>context in which they are found. For example, the following nouns refer to [–human] refer-</p><p>ents, and they may be plural even without an overt pluralizing suffix:</p><p>(16) a. sikoa house ‘house/houses’</p><p>aba sikoa one house ‘one/a house’</p><p>bian sikoa two house ‘two houses’</p><p>b. ada dyna tree arm ‘branch/branches’</p><p>aba ada dyna one tree arm ‘one/a branch’</p><p>kabyn ada dyna three tree arm ‘three branches’</p><p>c. siba stone ‘stone/stones’</p><p>aba siba one stone ‘one/a stone’</p><p>bithi siba four stone ‘four stones’</p><p>Although it is not strictly necessary to do so, it is possible to add a pluralizing suffix</p><p>to a [–human] noun. In the case of a [–human] noun used in a context which does not</p><p>force a plural interpretation, the use of the plural suffix apparently serves to disam-</p><p>biguate the speaker’s meaning. However, it is also sometimes used when the context is</p><p>clear. In this case, it seems to emphasize that there is some sort of diversity among the</p><p>referents.</p><p>(17) siba-be stone-PL ‘stones’</p><p>bian siba-be two stone-PL ‘two different stones’</p><p>As can be gleaned from the human and non-human examples above, Arawak has two</p><p>pluralizing suffixes: -non and -be. The suffix -non is only used with [+human] referents.</p><p>The suffix -be is used with both [+human] and [–human] referents. Thus it is also possible</p><p>to say:</p><p>(18) wadili-be ‘men’</p><p>hiaro-be ‘women’</p><p>As a matter of fact, both -non and -be can be used together on the same [+human]</p><p>noun—and in either order.</p><p>(17) hiaro-be-non ‘women’</p><p>hiaro-non-be ‘women’</p><p>2.3 Nominals 19</p><p>As with [–human] referents, when -be is used with [+human} referents, it seems to add</p><p>the implication that a diverse group is involved. Thus, the above forms for ‘women’ with</p><p>the suffix -be would be appropriate to use when the women referred to are of different ages</p><p>or from different villages.</p><p>2.3.3.4 Shape Classes</p><p>The use of some postpositions in postpositional phrases (fairly equivalent to preposi-</p><p>tional phrases in English) is dependent on the physical shape or type of object referred to</p><p>by their object noun phrases. An obvious example is that the object NP of diakon ‘on’ must</p><p>refer to some referent which can be thought of as having a top surface. Less obvious from</p><p>the standpoint of an English speaker are those postpositions which are translated by the</p><p>English prepositions ‘in’, ‘from’, and ‘into’. Which word to use for ‘in’ in Arawak depends</p><p>on whether its object NP refers to, for example, an animate body or bodies, a fluid, fire or</p><p>sunshine, the inside surface of an object, or the inside of a hollow or solid object.20</p><p>(20) a. loko ‘inside a hollow or solid object’</p><p>b. da-khabo loko</p><p>my-hand in</p><p>‘in my hand (e.g. the thorn inside the flesh of my hand)’</p><p>c. to kodo loko</p><p>the gourd in</p><p>‘inside the gourd (e.g. referring to what is contained in the gourd),</p><p>(21) a. roko ‘on the inside surface of’</p><p>b. da-khabo roko</p><p>my-hand in</p><p>‘in my hand (e.g. referring to what I am holding in my hand)’</p><p>(22) a. koborokon ‘inside of an animate body, among living beings’</p><p>b. de koborokon</p><p>me in</p><p>‘in me (e.g. a pain in my body)’</p><p>c. ne koborokon</p><p>them among</p><p>‘among them (e.g. the location of a person)’</p><p>(23) a. rakon ‘in a fluid’</p><p>b. to iniabo rakon</p><p>the water in</p><p>‘in the water (e.g. referring to the wash)’</p><p>20 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>20Only examples for ‘in’ are illustrated here. Corresponding forms for ‘into’ and ‘from’ are derived by adding</p><p>the suffixes -nro ‘toward’ and -ria ‘from’ to the postpositions. See also Section 2.5.</p><p>(24) a. kolokon ‘in fire or light’</p><p>b. ikhi-hi kolokon</p><p>fire-NGEN in</p><p>‘in (the) fire (e.g. referring to the pot)’</p><p>c. hadali kolokon</p><p>sun in</p><p>‘in the sunshine (e.g. referring to walking)’</p><p>2.3.4 Derived Nouns</p><p>Arawak has at its disposal a number of ways by which it can derive nouns and noun</p><p>phrases from other categories in the language.</p><p>2.3.4.1 Event Verb + -koana</p><p>An instrumental noun or noun phrase may be derived from an event verb21 with the suffix -koana</p><p>‘an instrument or device with which’ (glossed below and elsewhere as ‘THING’). The resulting de-</p><p>rived noun is always something with which the action of the verb can be accomplished.</p><p>(25) a. falhetho-dalhidi-koana</p><p>white.man-run-THING</p><p>‘bus’</p><p>b. da-dalhidi-koana</p><p>my-run-THING</p><p>‘my car’</p><p>c. bylhyty-koana</p><p>make.marks-THING</p><p>‘pen/pencil’</p><p>2.3.4.2 Stative Verb + -bero</p><p>The suffix -bero may be added to almost any stative verb22 which describes or ascribes an</p><p>attribute. The result is a [–human] noun having that attribute.</p><p>(26) a. firo-bero</p><p>big-THING</p><p>‘big thing/tapir’</p><p>b. bithi-ka-kothi-bero</p><p>four-ATTRIB-foot-THING</p><p>‘car/bus’</p><p>2.3 Nominals 21</p><p>21See Section 2.4.1 for a discussion of event verbs.</p><p>22Concepts which in English are expressed by means of adjectives are expressed with stative verbs in Arawak</p><p>(e.g. firo ‘be big’). Stative verbs may be derived from nouns with the ka- ‘attributive’ and ma- ‘privative’ prefixes.</p><p>See Section 2.4.2.</p><p>2.3.4.3 Event Verb + -lhin</p><p>The suffix -lhin ‘he who habitually does’ may be added to the “a-stem”23 of an event verb</p><p>to derive a noun with a habitual-agent meaning or a noun which expresses a person’s pro-</p><p>fession. For example, applying this suffix to the intransitive a-stems of the transitive verbs</p><p>boratyn ‘to help, and jokaryn ‘to sell’ yields:</p><p>(27) boratan ‘help’ borata-lhin ‘savior’</p><p>jokaran ‘sell’ jokara-lhin ‘salesman’</p><p>2.3.4.4 Noun Quantifier + -li, -ro, -ninon, -be</p><p>The suffixes -li and -ro may be added to quantifiers in order to derive singular [+male</p><p>+human] nouns and singular [–male +human] or [–human] nouns, respectively. The suf-</p><p>fixes -ninon (or -non if the word ends in a vowel) and -be may be added in order to derive</p><p>plural [+human] and plural [–human] nouns, respectively.24</p><p>(28) aba-ro ‘one thing/female’</p><p>aba-li ‘one male’</p><p>bian-ninon ‘two people’</p><p>kabyn-be ‘three things/females’</p><p>joho-non ‘many people’</p><p>2.3.4.5 Verb + -n</p><p>Verbs may be nominalized with the suffix -n, yielding the equivalent of an English ger-</p><p>und or infinitive.</p><p>(29) osyn ‘going/to go’</p><p>amyn ‘having/to have’</p><p>simakyn ‘calling/to call’</p><p>simakan ‘yelling/to yell’</p><p>2.3.4.6 Verb + -thi, -tho, or -sia</p><p>The suffixes -thi or -tho (WH.SUBJ) may be added to event and stative verbs to create rela-</p><p>tive clauses. These suffixes function syntactically to indicate that the subject of the verb to</p><p>which they are attached has been relativized. The suffix -thi is used for [+male +human] sub-</p><p>jects, and -tho is used for [–male +human] or [–human] subjects. (Number is insignificant.)</p><p>(30) a. li wadili [ › dia-thi jon ] ...</p><p>the man [ › speak-WH.SUBJ there ]</p><p>‘the man who spoke there...’</p><p>b. to hiaro [ › soko-tho-fa ada ] ...</p><p>the woman [ › chop-WH.SUBJ-FUT wood ]</p><p>‘the woman who will chop the wood...’</p><p>22 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>23See Section 2.4.1.1 for a discussion of stem forms of event verbs.</p><p>24These latter two suffixes are also noun pluralizers. See Section 2.3.3.3 for a discussion of number in noun.</p><p>c. aba [ firo-tho › ] kabadaro ...</p><p>one [ be.big-WH.SUBJ › ] jaguar</p><p>‘a big jaguar (or, a jaguar which is big)’</p><p>The relative clauses formed by the addition of these suffixes (-thi and -tho) sometimes oc-</p><p>cur as free relative clauses.25 When a free relative clause consists of a single word, it takes</p><p>on the character of a noun, where the noun expresses the subject (not necessarily the</p><p>agent) of the verb.</p><p>(31) malhitan ‘to create’ malhita-thi ‘creator’</p><p>kakyn ‘to live’ kaky-tho ‘woman’</p><p>dian ‘to speak’ dia-thi ‘speaker’</p><p>ajomyn ‘to be high’ ajomyn-thi ‘God’</p><p>hehen ‘to be yellow’ hehe-thi ‘yellow one’</p><p>There seems to be an on-going process in the language whereby short, free relative</p><p>clauses such as the above become conventionalized and, apparently, are added to the lexi-</p><p>con as nouns. When this happens, it becomes possible to pluralize the resulting noun with</p><p>the noun pluralizing suffixes already mentioned.</p><p>(32) bian kaky-tho-be</p><p>two live-WH.SUBJ-PL</p><p>‘two women’</p><p>An extreme example of this process may be many of the Arawak kinship terms. Most of</p><p>the [–male] Arawak kinship terms end with -tho and most of the [+male] ones end with</p><p>-thi, yet</p><p>no speaker today is able to give meanings for the root forms. The following is but a</p><p>small sample:26</p><p>(33) da-thi ‘my father’</p><p>d-aithi ‘my son’</p><p>da-(e)rethi ‘my husband’</p><p>da-(e)retho ‘my wife’</p><p>d-okithi ‘my(=elder bro) younger brother’</p><p>d-okitho ‘my(=elder sis) younger sister’</p><p>da-bokithi ‘my(=younger bro) older brother’</p><p>In addition to the subject-relativizing suffixes (-thi and -tho), Arawak also has a suffix</p><p>which indicates a relativized direct object: -sia ‘WH.OBJ’. Since relativizing the object still</p><p>leaves the subject of a clause in place, the -sia suffix does not occur in single-word free rel-</p><p>ative clauses. Nevertheless, it does enter into the derivation of some nouns:</p><p>(34) khin ‘to eat’ khesia ‘food’</p><p>(y)thyn ‘to drink’ ythysia ‘beverage’</p><p>In spite of the fact that many nouns are transparently combinations of verbs with one of</p><p>the above relativization suffixes, these suffixes are relativizers and not nominalizers. They</p><p>2.3 Nominals 23</p><p>25See Section 4.2 for a the discussion of free relative clauses.</p><p>26See also Hickerson (1953), van Renselaar and Voorhoeve (1962), and de Goeje (1928).</p><p>form relative clauses, and only some of these relative clauses have become conventional-</p><p>ized sufficiently to be used as lexical nouns. For example, although ythysia means ‘bever-</p><p>age’, adding -sia to sikin ‘to give’ does not yield *sikisia ‘gift’.</p><p>2.3.4.7 Complex Derived Nouns</p><p>Not all derived nouns are simple. Many nouns go through a number of steps before reaching their</p><p>final forms. For example, the attributive prefix ka- ‘to have, to be’ may be added to the noun sikoa</p><p>‘house’ to derive from it a stative verb kasikoa meaning ‘to be with house’. This word can, in turn,</p><p>receive the nominalizing suffix -li ‘he who’ to yield the word kasikoali ‘he who is with house’ (i.e.</p><p>‘owner’). Similarly, the verb ythyn ‘to drink’ can receive the object-relativizing suffix -sia, yielding</p><p>ythysia ‘that which is drunk, beverage’. This derived noun can then receive ka- ‘attributive’, giving</p><p>kathysia ‘to be with drink’, and can then receive the human nominalizer -non, giving kathysianon</p><p>‘they who are with drink’ (i.e. ‘mildly drunk people’).</p><p>2.4 Verbs</p><p>Arawak verbs may be divided into two large classes based on their semantics and the</p><p>structures in which they occur: event verbs and stative (or non-event) verbs. This latter</p><p>group consists primarily of words expressing concepts which, in English, would be ex-</p><p>pressed by adjectives.</p><p>(35) a. Event Verb:</p><p>Lirabo soko-fa to ada.</p><p>he.there chop-FUT the tree</p><p>‘That man over there will chop the tree.’</p><p>b. Stative verb:</p><p>Fonasia-ka no.</p><p>be.hungry-PERF she</p><p>‘She is hungry.’</p><p>In addition to the verbs in the two major verb classes, Arawak has a copular verb and a se-</p><p>mantically empty dummy verb which functions somewhat like AUX in English.27</p><p>2.4.1 Event Verbs</p><p>Event verbs in Arawak are those words which indicate that some event is, was, or will be</p><p>happening. They indicate a physical or mental process or action and are found in Subject-</p><p>Verb-Object (SVO) and Subject-Verb (SV) sentences.</p><p>2.4.1.1 Event Verb Stem Forms</p><p>Almost all event verbs have a “basic-stem” form and an “a-stem” form (so-named for</p><p>the a in its final syllable). Semantically, these stem forms differ from each other with</p><p>respect to aspect, and often also with respect to voice. Transitive verbs usually also</p><p>24 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>27See also Sections 2.4.3, 3.2.2, and 3.2.3.</p><p>have a third stem form, an “oa-stem,” which seems to be an agentless passive and also</p><p>functions as a reflexive.28</p><p>2.4.1.1.1 “Basic-stem” and “A-stem” Forms</p><p>The “basic-stem” forms of verbs all have an e, i, o, or y (but not29 a) as the nucleus of</p><p>their last syllable. They are here named “basic” because the specific vowel found in their</p><p>last syllable is unpredictable and because they are the forms from which the other stem</p><p>forms are derived. The “a-stem,” as its name implies, has an a as the nucleus of its final syl-</p><p>lable. In most, if not all, cases it can be derived from the basic-stem form by replacing the</p><p>vowel of the final syllable of a basic-stem with an a.</p><p>(36) a. Basic-stem Forms:</p><p>osy-n go-SUB ‘to go’</p><p>andy-n arrive-SUB ‘to arrive’</p><p>morodo-n fly-SUB ‘to fly’</p><p>dinamy-n stand.up-SUB ‘to stand up’</p><p>b. Corresponding A-stem Forms:</p><p>osa-n wander-SUB ‘to wander around’</p><p>anda-n touch-SUB ‘to touch or feel’</p><p>moroda-n fly.around-SUB ‘to fly around’</p><p>dinama-n pace.around-SUB ‘to pace up and down’</p><p>As can be seen in the preceding examples, the basic-stem and a-stem forms consistently</p><p>differ in how they present the action of the verb: whether they present an action as what</p><p>might be called “bounded” or “unbounded” in time. That is, the basic-stem forms view an</p><p>action as happening at some specifiable point or range in time and as having a starting or</p><p>ending point, or both. The a-stem forms, on the other hand, emphasize the action of the</p><p>verb itself as an event with duration, and neither the start nor the terminus of the action</p><p>seems to be in focus.</p><p>The preceding examples of the basic-stem and a-stem forms were all of intransitive verbs.</p><p>However, transitive verbs also have these stem forms. For example, notice the following</p><p>pairs of sentences:30</p><p>(37) a. Li fary-fa aba kabadaro.</p><p>he kill-FUT one jaguar</p><p>‘He will kill a jaguar.’</p><p>2.4 Verbs 25</p><p>28This oa-stem seems to bears a certain resemblance to the Greek “middle” voice which also seems to have both</p><p>a passive and a reflexive interpretation (see Lyons 1968:375ff). See also Taylor (1970a:210ff.) for further</p><p>discussion of the three Arawak stem forms.</p><p>29A number of verbs at first appeared to have only a-stems. In most cases, further investigation yielded</p><p>basic-stem forms not ending in a.</p><p>30These sentences are presented in the future tense because the phonological difference between the basic- and</p><p>a-stem forms is most clearly seen in this tense. The tense suffixes in Arawak all also contain an aspect component</p><p>in their meaning (see Chapter 5 on discourse). This interacts with the stem forms such that the difference between</p><p>the stem forms is often neutralized (see discussion in following paragraphs).</p><p>b. Li fara-fa.</p><p>he fight-FUT</p><p>‘He will fight.’</p><p>(36) a. Thy-simaky-fa-i.</p><p>she-call-FUT-him</p><p>‘She will call him.’</p><p>b. Thy-simaka-fa.</p><p>she-yell-FUT</p><p>‘She will yell/scream.’</p><p>(37) a. Na-mithady-fa de.</p><p>they-ridicule-FUT me</p><p>‘They will ridicule me.’</p><p>b. Na-mithada-fa.</p><p>they-laugh-FUT</p><p>‘They will laugh.’</p><p>(38) a. To hiaro kanaby-fa to kodibio-be.</p><p>the woman hear-FUT the bird-PL</p><p>‘The woman will hear the birds.’</p><p>b. To hiaro kanaba-fa.</p><p>the woman listen-FUT</p><p>‘The woman will listen.’</p><p>As can be seen in the preceding sentences, the a-stems corresponding to transitive</p><p>basic-stems are usually intransitive.31 It is almost never acceptable to add a direct object to</p><p>clauses with a-stems.</p><p>26 Phonology and Morphology</p><p>31There are some apparent exceptions to this, as is also noted by Taylor (1970:202). One is the potentially</p><p>ditransitive verb sikin ‘to give/put’ which becomes just transitive.</p><p>Da-siki-fa no thy-myn.</p><p>I-give-FUT it her-to</p><p>‘I will give it to her’</p><p>Da-sika-fa no bahy-nro.</p><p>I-bring/take-FUT her home-toward</p><p>‘I will take her home.’</p><p>Other exceptions seem to occur in dummy verb sentences (see section 3.2.2).</p><p>Ma-bolheidi-n d-a-ja-da no.</p><p>PRIV-throw.away-SUB I-dummy-PAST.CONT-EPEN it</p><p>‘I didn’t throw it away (particular act).’</p><p>Ma-bolheida-n d-a d-anikho.</p><p>PRIV-throw.away-SUB I-dummy my-belongings</p><p>‘I didn’t go about throwing my things away.’</p><p>(41) *Li fara-fa to kabadaro.</p><p>*he fight-FUT the jaguar</p><p>*‘He will fight with the jaguar.’</p><p>If the noun phrase corresponding to the direct object in the basic-stem form needs to be</p><p>mentioned, it must usually be done in the form of a postpositional phrase. When this noun</p><p>phrase is a co-participant in the action of the verb, the postposition oma ‘with (accompani-</p><p>ment)’ is used. When it is not a co-participant, usually khonan ‘about/on/of’ is used.</p><p>(42) a. Li fara-fa to kabadaro oma.</p><p>he fight-FUT the jaguar with</p><p>‘He will fight with the jaguar.’</p><p>b. Na-mithada-fa da-khonan.</p><p>they-laugh-FUT me-about/on</p>
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