Details

General

Description and behaviour

Form and usage:

The meaning of this base is something like '(a) what' in a nominal sense; note also the verbal variant {su}V for a similar verbal meaning, 'do what'. This base has two related usages:

• It is used to form a standalone interrogative pronoun suna, 'what', which is used to inquire about things, similar to {ki}N, which is used to inquire about persons.
• It is used as a pro-base similar to {pi}N, which can replace a nominal base to which affixes can be added.

In the first usage, besides its absolutive and ergative endings, the stem takes all the usual prepositional case endings as well, which yields the equivalent of English wh- question-words such as where (in what, sumi), whither (to what, sumut), whence (from what, sumit, sumiit, suminngaanniit); as well as sumik (with what), sukkut (through what) and sutut (as what), which have no equivalent single word in English. Of course, all of these also have a corresponding plural form, i.e. sunik, suni, sunut, sunit, suniit, suninngaanniit, sutigut, sutut.

In the second usage, this base can be used to pose a question about another nominal base, which is modified by affixes; e.g. in case the beginning of the word was not heard, and the listener wants to ask the speaker to repeat it. For example, consider the following exchange:

• A: Nutaamik qimmeqarpunga, 'I have a new dog'
• B: Soqarpit?, 'you have a what?'
• A: Qimmeqarpunga!, 'I have a dog'

In this exchange, B perhaps did not hear the start of the word A said, and he therefore wants A to repeat the start of the word again. Thus, he uses the present stem, adds the affixes he heard - in this case N{-qaq}V - and changes the ending to the corresponding one in the interrogative mood. This is a common and useful construction.

The stem also has another meaning, 'something (unknown)', or, with negative/negated verbs, 'nothing at all'. This meaning seems closely related to {pi}N, and the difference is not quite clear. None of the dictionaries or grammars seem to describe it, but based on the available examples, my guess is that

• {pi}N is used instead of a definite/known 'something'.
• {su}N is used for an unknown 'something', or, in a more general sense 'some/anything (at all)'.

Right sandhi:

Most affixes join regularly onto the stem {su}, but N{-u}V joins onto the absolutive singular form {suna} instead, similar to {ki}N, e.g. sunaava?, 'what is it?'.

Inflection sandhi:

This stem has a highly irregular inflection pattern:

• Like {ki}N, the absolutive singular marker is the demonstrative morpheme {na}.
• Unlike {ki}N, the ergative singular marker is {-up}, like any other up-declined stem; but the plural marker is {-ut}, rather than the usual {-it} seen in up-declined stems. Alternatively, the stem might therefore be regarded as {suu} and p-declined, but this only holds in the unpossessed, ergative case. To avoid complicating the matter further, we therefore record it as up-declined here, and with an irregular plural ending.
• The prepositional case markers are normal and join onto the stem {su} in the usual way. Note that, unlike {ki}N, this stem is also used with possessive endings.

Inflection

Declension pattern:

Meanings and examples

Tags

• Stem categorisation / Question stem
• Stem categorisation / Pronoun
• Stem categorisation / Pro-base