Details

General

Morphemic form: V{niaqcarə}V
New orthography: +niarsaraa, +niarsaraaq
Old orthography: -niarssarâ, -niarssaraoĸ
Sources: [12, 14, 13, 8]
Combinations: Click here
Constituents: V{niaq}V, V{(q)carə}V,
Left sandhi:
Default,
Right sandhi:
Default/none,
Inflection sandhi:
ə-contraction,
Stem type: ə-stem
Diathesis: None
Valency:
Preserving,

Description and behaviour

Form and usage:

Form:
This affix is not mentioned in the Comparative Eskimo Dictionary [16], nor in Schultz-Lorentzen [11] or any of the older dictionaries. The earliest attestation seems to be in Ordbogeeraq [12], which gives the forms -niarssarâ, -niarssaraoĸ, and it subsequently appears in Fortescue [13] and in later editions of the Greenlandic dictionaries, e.g. Oqaatsit [14]. This suggests that this affix is a fairly recent invention. I assume it is formed from V{niaq}V, 'intend' and an obscure, presumably non-productive morpheme V{(q)carə}V with unclear meaning. The latter is mentioned in Ordbogeeraq [12] and Fortescue [13], but they do not agree on the meaning, and the affix does not appear in any later dictionaries.

The affix only appears with transitive endings in Oqaatsit [14]. However, neither V{niaq}V nor V{(q)carə}V normally appear to increase the valency of the stem, and the latter is given with both transitive and intransitive endings in Ordbogeeraq [12]. The transitive endings can be explained by the fact that all the examples given in that dictionary are of divalent stems, so we assume the affix is simply valency-preserving. This is supported by Nielsen [8], who gives a single example of its usage on a monovalent stem, where it indeed takes an intransitive ending.

Meaning:
With respect to the meaning, there also seems to be some confusion. According to Ordbogen [15], 'try' can be expressed in the following ways:

However, the present affix seems to be preferred, at least by some speakers (Ilulissat), over ooqattaarpaa as a way to express 'attempt' (and thus limiting ooqattaarpaa to mean 'try tasting' or 'try on' e.g. a new pair of shoes). Whether this reflects a general change in the usage/meaning, or just local preferences, is unclear.


Meanings and examples

  • ammarniarsaraa, he tries (hard) to open it [14]

    From ammarpaa, 'he opens it'.

  • tiguniarsaraa, he tries (hard) to grab hold of it [14]

    From tiguaa, 'he takes it'.

  • tikinniarsaraa, he tries (hard) to get to it [14]

    Or 'to reach it', where 'it' refers to a destination. From tikippaa, 'he arrives at it'.

  • iserniarsaraaq, he tries to get in [8]

    From iserpoq, 'he enters'. The ending is the usual intransitive indicative 3sg ending V{vuq} with ə-contraction.


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