Details
General
| Morphemic form: | N{taq}N |
| New orthography: | +taq, +saq |
| Old orthography: | -taĸ, -saĸ, -rtaĸ |
| Sources: | [19, 16] |
| Combinations: | View list |
| Variants: | N{caq}N |
| See also: | {ila}N |
| Left sandhi: | Default |
| Right sandhi: | Default/none |
| Inflection sandhi: | Default/none |
| Stem type(s): | Weak q-stem |
Description and behaviour
Form and usage:
This is a so-called partitive affix, used to denote that an N (to which this affix is added) is a part of some larger whole. With inanimate objects this affix may also be translated as 'consists of N', if N e.g. is a type of material. Kleinschmidt [13] gives the following examples to illustrate its usage:
nassua, 'its antler/horn' (e.g. an animal), with just a possessive ending;
nassuttaa, 'its antler-piece', i.e. the piece of an object that is made of horn/antler; here with the present affix and a possessive ending.
neqaa, 'its flesh' (e.g. an animal), with just a possessive ending;
neqitaa, 'its (attached) piece of meat', e.g. a fishing hook with a piece of meat on it.
savia, 'his knife' (or 'iron');
savissaa, 'its (attached) piece of iron', i.e. the part of an object that is made of iron.
The affix is commonly used with possessive endings or with the 'verbal possessive' affix N{-gə}V. See also the partitive stem {ila}N, which is used for the same purpose. There is also a special variant of of this affix, N{caq}N, which is used in comparative/superlative constructions.
Inflection
Declension pattern:
| Stem type: | Weak q-stem |
| Declension type: | p-declined |
| Declension sandhi: | Default/none |
| Stem before consonant | Stem before vowel | Notable forms | |
|---|---|---|---|
| New orthography | +ta | +ta | +taq, +tap, +tat, |
| Phonemic orthography | ta | ta | taq, tap, tat, |
Notes on declension:
Most commonly used with possessive endings.
Meanings and examples
- angutitaq, a male member
Of some unspecified group. Often, the group would be specified with possessive endings, as in the other examples.
- initaq, an adjacent room
Or 'room pertaining/belonging to' something, here unspecified, e.g. an apartment.
- arnartarput, our female member
I.e. the (singular) member of our group, who is female, from {aqnaq}N, and with ABS.1pl/sg ending N{(q)vut}. Thus 'we' (1pl) is the whole of which the female is a part.
- illup qisuttaa, the part of the house (made of) wood
[10]
Or 'the wooden part of the house'. Here the house, illup is the possessor, denoting the whole of which qisuk, 'wood' is a part.
- amersaq, a attached patch of skin/leather
[19]
From ameq, 'skin/leather'. This is {amiq}N, and the true /i/ in the stem assibilates the /t/ to /s/.
- savissaq, an attached piece of metal/iron
[19]
This is from savik, here in the meaning of 'iron'. The true /i/ in the stem assibilates the /t/ to /s/.