Ubykh grammar

Ubykh nouns do not mark plurality and the only case that displays plurality is the relational suffix -/nɜ/. Otherwise plurality is shown either by suppletive verb roots (e.g. /ɐkʷɨn blɜs/ 'he is in the car' vs. /ɐkʷɨn blɜʒʷɜ/ 'they are in the car') or by verb suffixes: /ɐkʲʼɜn/ ('he goes'), /ɐkʲʼɐn/ ('they go').

The definite article is /ɐ/ (e.g. /ɐtɨt/ 'the man'). There is no indefinite article directly equivalent to the English a or an, but /zɜ/-(root)-/ɡʷɜrɜ/ (literally 'one'-(root)-'certain') translates French un : e.g. /zɜnɜjnʃʷɡʷɜrɜ/ ('a certain young man').

There are two core cases and four non-core cases in Ubykh. The core cases are: relational, absolutive; the non-core cases are: adverbial, locative, instrumental, and instrumental-comitative.

This case displays ergative, genitive, and dative functions. It is marked with -/n/ in the singular and -/nɨ/ in the plural and is the only case that has a distinction in plurality.

Marked with the bare root; this indicates the subject of an intransitive sentence and the direct object of a transitive sentence (e.g. /tɨt/ 'a man').

This is marked with -/n(ɨ)/ and has the primary function of marking essive and translative functions of nouns.

Marked in -/ʁɜ/, which is the equivalent of English in, on or at.

Marked with -/ɜwn(ɨ)/ and was also treated as a case in Dumézil (1975). This is similar to "by means of" in English.

Marked with -/ɐlɜ/ and broadly means "with".

There is also a pair of suffixes that have been noted to be synthetic datives but are not cases in their own right: -/lɐq/ ('to[wards]') and -/ʁɐfɜ/ ('for') e.g. /ɜχʲɨlɐq ɐstʷɜdɜw/ 'I will send it to the prince'.

Possessed nouns have their plurality marked with the affix /-ɜw-/.

The Ubykh verb template is quite complex with 26 slots for the verb.

1. Interrogative / subordinative prefixes
2. absolutive agreement marker or a prefixed interrogative pronoun
3. Oblique-1 marker agreeing with slot 4
4. Relational preverb
5. Incorporated noun or Oblique-2 marker
6. Local preverb
7. /ʁɜ/- or /ɐ/-
8. Generic preverb /lɜ/
9. Orientational preverb /jɨ/-
10. Ergative preverb marker
11. Negation in the dynamic and imperfect tenses or polite imperative
12. Causative
13. stem
14. Intensifying suffix
15. Habitual aspect
16. Iterative aspect
17. Exhaustive aspect
18. Excessive aspect
19. Continual aspect
20. Potential aspect
21. Plural marker
22. Tense
23. Plural marker for dynamic past, conditional II, and stative present.
24. Negation in all tenses except for dynamic present
25. Affect marker
26. Mood or converb markers
27. Conjunctive elements

Oblique 1 markers are limited to marking the agreement of a noun before a relational preverb and Oblique 2 markers are used for not only marking agreement with local and directional preverbs but also the simple oblique, or dative, arguments.[1]

The second-person /χɜ/- is an archaic pronoun used to indicate that the person being referred to is a female, or heckling the speaker in some way. It became extinct before the death of the language due to all of the last speakers being male.

The third person agreement markers have a fair amount of variation due to the rules it must follow.

The plural markers exist in the same rules as the singular rules with the exception that singular /ɐ/- can be deleted but plural /ɐ/- cannot.

Dynamic Ubykh verbs are split up in two groups: Group I which contain the simple tenses and Group II which contain derived counterpart tenses. Only the Karaclar dialect uses the progressive tense and the plural is unknown.

The singular-plural distinction is used when the subject, the ergative, is singular or plural.

Square brackets indicate elided vowels; parenthesis indicate optional parts of the stem; and the colon indicates the boundary of a morpheme.[1]

The verbs in the simple past tense are conjugated with -/qʼɜ/ in the singular and -/qʼɜ-n(ɜ)/ in the plural.

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼɜ-qʼɜ/ (s)he said
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-fɨ-qʼɜ/ (s)he ate
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼɜ-qʼɜ/ (s)he knew
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼɜ-qʼɜ/ (s)he went

The verbs in the mirative past tense are conjugated with -/jtʼ/ in the singular and -/jɬ(ɜ)/ in the plural.

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼɜ-jtʼ/ (s)he said apparently
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-fɨ-jtʼ/ (s)he ate apparently
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼɜ-jtʼ/ (s)he knew apparently
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼɜ-jtʼ/ (s)he went apparently

The verbs in the present tense are conjugated with -/n/ in the singular and -/ɐ-n/ in the plural.

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼɜ-n/ (s)he says
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-fɨ-n/ (s)he eats
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼɜ-n/ (s)he knows
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼɜ-n/ (s)he goes

The verbs in the present tense are conjugated with -/ɜw/ in the singular and -/n[ɜ]-ɜw/ in the plural. It conveys a sense of certainty, immediacy, obligation, or intentionality.

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼ-ɜw/ (s)he certainly will say
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-f-ɜw/ (s)he certainly will eat
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼ-ɜw/ (s)he certainly will know
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼ-ɜw/ (s)he certainly will go

The verbs in the present tense are conjugated with -/ɜw:t/ in the singular and -/n[ɜ]-ɜw:t/ in the plural. It conveys a generic sense of the future as well as an exhortative sense such as: /ʃɨ-kʲʼɜ-n[ɜ]-ɜw/ (let's go!).

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼ-ɜw:t/ (s)he will say
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-f-ɜw:t/ (s)he will eat
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼ-ɜw:t/ (s)he will know
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼ-ɜw:t/ (s)he will go

The verbs in the present tense are conjugated with -/ɜw/ in the singular and -/n[ɜ]-ɜw/ in the plural. It conveys [TODO]

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼɜ-qʼɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he had said
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-f-qʼɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he had eaten
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼɜ-qʼɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he had known
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼɜ-qʼɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he had gone

The verbs in the imperfect tense are conjugated with -/nɜ:jtʼ/ in the singular and either -/ɐ-nɜ:jɬ(ɜ)/ in the plural. It conveys a sense of

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼ-nɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he was saying, (s)he used to say
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-f-nɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he was eating, (s)he used to eatk
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼ-nɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he was knowing, (s)he used to know
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼ-nɜ:jtʼ/ (s)he was going, (s)he used to go

The verbs in the present tense are conjugated with -/ɜwɨ:jtʼ/ in the singular and -/n[ɜ]-ɜwɨ:jɬ(ɜ)/ in the plural. It conveys a sense of uncertainty but also a kind of future-in-the-past if the situation had been reversed.

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼ-ɜwɨ:jtʼ/ (s)he would have said
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-f-ɜwɨ:jtʼ/ (s)he would have eaten
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼ-ɜwɨ:jtʼ/ (s)he would have known
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼ-ɜwɨ:jtʼ/ (s)he would have gone

The verbs in the present tense are conjugated with -/ɜw:tʷ:qʼɜ/ in the singular and -/(n[ɜ]-)ɜw:tʷ:qʼɜ(-n)/ in the plural. It conveys a sense of certainty and intention but also a kind of future-in-the-past if the situation had been reversed.

Examples:

• /qʼɜ/ – to say → /ɐ-qʼ-ɜw:tʷ:qʼɜ/ (s)he was going to say
• /fɨ/ – to eat → /ɐ-f-ɜw:tʷ:qʼɜ/ (s)he was going to eat
• /tɕʼɜ/ – to know → /ɐ-tɕʼ-ɜw:tʷ:qʼɜ/ (s)he was going to know
• /kʲʼɜ/ – to go → /ɐ-kʲʼ-ɜw:tʷ:qʼɜ/ (s)he was going to go

In all dialects and speakers, only two static tenses exist: present and past.

There are five basic aspects that exist besides the aspects that exist within the Ubykh tense system. They are: habitual, iterative, exhaustive, excessive, and potential.

A few meanings covered in English by adverbs or auxiliary verbs are given in Ubykh by verb suffixes.

A speaker may combine one of these aspects with another to convey more complex aspects in conjunction with the tenses.[1]

There are eleven distinct moods in Ubykh: indicative; direct, polite, and emphatic imperative; potential and frustrative optative; irrealis and realis conditional; binary and complex interrogative.[1]

There is no marker for the indicative mood.

There are two forms of the imperative: a formal, more polite imperative and a direct, curt imperative.

The direct imperative is usually the omission of the singular tense marker:

Versus in the plural:

This is formed by adding a -/ɨ/ suffix to the verb root. This, however, is sometimes omitted.

This is formed by adding -/mɜɕ/ to the end of an imperative verb.

There are two forms of optative present: potential and frustrative optative.

This is formed by adding a -/χ/ suffix to the verb root or /ɐχ/ after a final /ɨ/.

This is formed by adding a -/dɐχ/ or -/dɜχ/.

There are realis and irrealis conditionals.

This is marked with -/dɜ(n)/.

This is marked with -/bɜ/.

Open questions are marked with -/ɕ/ and closed questions are marked with -/j/.

Ubykh has a liberal usage of converbs to convey complex sentences.