Details
General
Morphemic form: | *{-Vq}V |
New orthography: | +moorpoq, -moorpoq, +noorpoq, -noorpoq, +meerpoq, -meerpoq, +neerpoq, -neerpoq, +minngaanneerpoq, -minngaanneerpoq, +ninngaanneerpoq, -ninngaanneerpoq, -kkoorpoq, -goorpoq, +toorpoq, -toorpoq, +soorpoq, -soorpoq, -arpoq, -orpoq, -erpoq |
Old orthography: | -môrpoĸ, -nôrpoĸ, -mêrpoĸ, -nêrpoĸ, -míngãnêrpoĸ, -níngãnêrpoĸ, '-kôrpoĸ, -gôrpoĸ, -tôrpoĸ, -sôrpoĸ, ^-rpoĸ |
Combinations: | Click here |
See also: | *{-kaq}V, {ət}V, |
Left sandhi: | Truncative,
|
Right sandhi: | Default/none,
|
Inflection sandhi: | Default/none,
|
Stem type: | q-stem |
Diathesis: | Subjective |
Valency change: | None |
Valency: | Monovalent,
|
Description and behaviour
Form and usage:
This morpheme is a generic verbalisation of most of the oblique cases, i.e. the allative, ablative, vialis, instrumental and equative cases. For a verbalisation of the locative case, N{mi}, N{ni}, see *{ət}V. Note also the more specialised verbalisation of the allative case *{-kaq}V.
The verbalisation works as follows:
- First, the case ending is added to a noun stem as usual, and any inflection-sandhi processes resulting from this addition are performed.
- Then, this morpheme is added directly onto the case ending, by (1) deleting the final consonant, and (2) by lengthening the vowel sound in the ending (represented by V in the morphemic form).
Thus, we get the following verb stems:
- From the allative endings N{mut}, N{nut}, N{-anut} etc., we get -moorpoq, -noorpoq, -anoorpoq ... and so on.
- From the ablative and instrumental endings N{mit}, N{miit}, N{miŋŋaanniit}, N{nit}, N{niit}, N{niŋŋaanniit}, N{mək}, N{nək}, N{-anək}, ..., we get -meerpoq, -neerpoq, -minngaanneerpoq ... and so on. Note in particular that it is the vowel sound that is lengthened, so even if the vowel historically is /ə/, as in the instrumental endings N{mək}, N{nək}, it has taken the sound [i], and the result is therefore [ii] and not /əə/.
- From the vialis endings N{kkut}, N{-agut}, ..., we get -kkoorpoq, -agoorpoq, and so on.
- From the equative endings N{tut} etc., we get -toorpoq, -soorpoq and so on. Forms with initial /s/ are from words were the initial /t/ of the ending has been changed to /s/ by the t-to-s rule following an /i/.
These verbalised case endings are used to express a plethora of actions, which cannot easily be captured by a single translation.
In the most general sense, they mean something like 'Subject
is (in)to/from/going through/as N', where N is the noun carrying the case ending.
This morpheme also has another, related, but even more general meaning: 'Subject
says word
' where word
can be practically any word; both full verbs (with endings), nouns (preferably in the absolutive case) and particles.
Thus, it can also act as a completely generic verbalisation of any word.
However, this usage does not seem to be too common.
Meanings and examples
On nouns with allative case endings.
- siumoorpoq, he goes forward
[4]
From siumut, 'forward'
- sanimoorpoq, he steps aside; goes to the side; goes sideways
[4]
From sanimut, 'to the side'.
- avammoorpoq, he moves away from the shore
[8]
From avammut, 'to the area off the shore', i.e. the spatial noun {avatə}N, 'area off of the coast'.
On nouns with allative case endings.
- angutinoortarpoq, he is gay
I.e. 'he is (habitually) into men'. Sometimes also just angutimoorpoq. Compare also the official word for '(male) homosexual' anguteqatiminoortartoq, literally 'one who habitually is into his own fellow men'. By replacing {aŋutə}N with {aqnaq}N, we obtain the corresponding words for 'lesbian'.
- taarmoorpoq, he does something in darkness
[8]
From taaq, 'darkness'.
I.e., 'Subject
comes (e.g. to school or work) at N o'clock'.
This meaning is only with numerals with allative case endings, which are used to denote the hours.
Note that most hours take a plural allative ending, except ataaseq (1), arfineq (6) and aqqaneq (11), which are singular.
- ataatsimoorpoq, he comes (in) at 1 o'clock
[8]
From ataatsimut, '1 o'clock'.
- arfinermoorpoq, he comes (in) at 6 o'clock
[8]
From arfinermut, '6 o'clock'.
- aqqanermoorpoq, he comes (in) at 11 o'clock
[8]
From aqqanermut, '11 o'clock'.
- arfineq-pingasunoorpoq, he comes (in) at 8 o'clock
[8]
Note that the plural is used here, from arfineq-pingasunut, '8 o'clock'.
- sisamanoorpoq, he comes (in) at 4 o'clock
[8]
From sisamanut, '4 o'clock'.
With nouns in the vialis case.
- nunakkoorpoq, he goes/moves over land
[4]
From nuna, 'land'. This could also mean 'he travels over land', or similar.
- inukkoorpoq, there is a rumour going around; people say
[4]
From inuk, 'person', so literally 'it moves through people'.
- aputikkoorpoq, he goes through (the) snow
[8]
From aputikkut, 'through (the) snow'.
- ikerasakkoorpoq, he sails through the strait
[8]
From ikerasak, 'strait'.
- qaqqakkoorpoq, he goes/passes over the mountain
[8]
From qaqqaq, 'mountain'.
- saniagoorpoq, he goes past it
[8]
From saniagut, 'through the area to the side of it' with 3sg/sg possessive ending N{-agut}.
- sinaagoorpoq, he goes along the edge of it
[8]
From {sinə}N, 'edge', and possessive vialis 3sg/sg, N{-agut}.
- tunuagoorpoq, he goes behind it
[8]
From tunu, 'backside', and possessive vialis 3sg/sg, N{-agut}.
With nouns in the ablative case. Especially with the long form of the ablative, i.e. with the morpheme {ŋaanniit} to disambiguate it from the verbalisation of the instrumental case.
- Nuumminngaanneerpoq, he is from Nuuk
From Nuummit, 'from Nuuk', and with {ŋaanniit}. Note that Nuummeerpoq is also a possibility.
- Illoqqortoormiuninngaanneerpoq, he is from Illoqqortoormiut
Note that as the name of this town is plural, we must therefore also verbalise the plural ablative ending, i.e. Illoqqortoormiunit.
- Kangermeerpoq, he is from Kangeq
[8]
From the ablative singular form of Kangeq, i.e. Kangermit.
- 1977-imeerpoq, he is from 1977
[8]
I.e., he was born in 1977.
- Asianneerpoq, he is from Aasiaat
[8]
Note that the town name Aasiaat is plural of asiak, 'spider'. Thus, the plural ablative, asiannit must be used.
With nouns in the instrumental case. Note that this can even be used with transitive endings.
- iluameerpoq, he does (something) properly
[4]
From iluamik, 'proper(ly)'.
- naggammeerpoq, he does (something) for the last time
[4]
From naggammik, 'for the last time'.
- terlinganeerpaa, he attacks it from behind
[4]
This seems to be related to terlik, an unsuspecting seal resting near the surface of the water. It seems to be with the 3sg/sg possessive instrumental ending N{-anək}. Note the transitive usage.
With nouns in the equative case.
- palasisoorpoq, he acts like a priest
[4]
From palasisut, 'as a priest'. Note that the ending here is -sut because of the preceding true /i/.
- allatoorpoq, he acts like someone else; he does something different
[8]
From allatut, 'as someone/something else/different'.
- itsartoorpoq, he acts like in the old days
[8]
From itsaq, 'in the old days', or 'long ago'.
- Ujuaatoorpoq, he acts like Ujuaat
[8]
- kalaallisoorpoq, she is wearing the Greenlandic national costume
[8]
From kalaaleq, 'Greenlander', so literally 'behaves like a Greenlander', but this special meaning is lexicalised. Note however that this word also means 'speaks Greenlandic'.
With names for languages derived with the equative ending -tut.
- kalaallisoorpoq, he speaks Greenlandic; he has a Greenlandic class in school
[4]
From kalaallisut, 'Greenlandic', which is formed from kalaaleq, 'greenlander' with gemination of /l/ and assibilation of /t/ to /s/ due to the preceding true /i/ in the stem. From this we also get the word for the subject 'Greenlandic' when taught in school, which is kalaallisoorneq.
- qallunaatoorpoq, he speaks Danish; he has a Danish class in school
[4]
From qallunaatut, 'Danish' (nowadays also danskisut).
- tuluttoorpoq, he speaks English; he has an English class in school
[4]
From tuluttut, 'English'.
This can be used with full words, i.e. nouns in the absolutive case, or verbs including endings, or particles.
- naaggaarpoq, he says no
[4]
From naagga, 'no'.
- aammaloorpoq, he says: one more time!
[4]
From aammalu, i.e. aamma and the enclitic *{lu}.
- kalippoorpoq, he yells:
is being towed [4]
E.g., a whale that is being dragged to the beach by a whaling boat. From kalippoq, so here the morpheme has been added onto a full verb including its ending.
- palasi aggerpoorpata, when they yell: the priest is coming
[4]
From palasi aggerpoq, 'the priest is coming'. As can be seen, the morpheme here has scope over a full clause, i.e. both the verb aggerpoq, and its explicit subject palasi.
References
- [4] C.W. Schultz-Lorentzen (1958): Den Grønlandske Ordbog.
- [8] Christian Berthelsen, Birgitte Jakobsen, Robert Petersen, Inge Kleivan & Jørgen Rischel (1997): Oqaatsit.