Sound changes in word-building.
When words are built up by suffixing, there are often changes in the final
consonant of the word to which the suffix is added. For example, look at
these words that are built on the root √bekʷ-(the root sign
√ is borrowed from mathematical symbolism to show that the item is a root,
which usually requires suffixes to make a pronounceable word):
|
ROOT: √bekʷ- |
|
| bekʷai body, self |
begʷanem person |
bek̓ʷes |
| bekʷelusemi character |
begʷis merman, sea-person |
bek̓ʷala speak, talk |
In the first column, the root ends on a plain or voiceless consonant, in the
second column the root appears with a final voiced consonant, while in the
third column the final consonant of the root is glottalized (`popped'). Two
points should be noted: first, these changes never are associated with the
personal and demonstrative endings we've been learning; second, the changes
are different from the more or less automatic rules of combination we've been
learning about, as seen for example in another word from the same root:
bexʷsisda `turn into a human,' this latter word just comes about
by the regular rule that replaces
k by
x in pronunciation when
consonant comes at the end of a syllable or word. The changes illustrated
above with the words built on
√bekʷ- come about by virtue of the
particular suffixes that are used. The best way to think about it is this:
the root has the basic shape that appears in the lefthand column (plain,
voiceless), then certain suffixes have the power to voice or to glottalize
this final consonant. It is convenient to have some way to mark the suffixes.
We can follow a common practice and mark the ones that cause voicing with an
equals sign (=X), the ones that glottalize with an exclamation mark (!) and
the ones that cause no change with a plain hyphen (-). So the suffixes
involved above would be given like this:
| -SUFF |
=SUFF |
-!SUFF |
| -ai |
=anem |
-!es |
| -el(a) |
=is |
-[k]!ala |
Notice the way the last suffix is represented: the
"[k]" means that the
k appears only in certain circumstances (basically: after a vowel or
m n l), otherwise the suffix is just
-!ala. The "k" itself is
glottalized when it appears.
qen
The word
qen is one of the few prepositions in X̅aʼislak̕ala.
Prepositions are words like in, on, for, from, and so on.
It often means `for' but it has other uses as well. When used with pronouns,
in uses like `for me,' `for him,' and so on,
qen has special forms that have to
be learned. These forms look mostly like a combination of
qen and a
subject ending:
- qenugʷa `for me'
- qencu `for you'
- qenis `for us (inclusive)'
- qenuxʷ `for us (exclusive)'
- qenex `for him, her, it' (here by me: qix)
- qenu `for him, her, it' (there: qu)
- qeni `for him, her, it' (away: qi)
- qenaki `for him, her, it' (just gone: qiki)
(Some people will pronounce
n in these words as
n̓.)
There are also plural forms:
qiqeni and so on. You know these so
well now, that there is probably no need to give meanings! Stop a few minutes
and congratulate yourself!!
The little word
qen is also used as an important brick in building
other kinds of constructions. Look at these examples:
- Yamácisagilanuxʷ qen laqiamasiganuxʷʼi ʼisdlam.
We go to Yamacisa (Kemano) to get them now.
- Gaiqel begʷanemi x̄aʼisax̄i qen w̓anudap̓isi.
The people came up to trade.
- Sax̄gi qen w̓anudap̓isi du nugʷanuxʷ qi zaxʷenasi du qi t̕latiasi.
They want to trade with us for oulichans and grease.
Here the use is reminiscent of the use of "for" in older English or
in uses like "I would hate for you to do that." After
kuta qen is used also where it roughly translates
that. But it is not used after
q̓ala.
The verb form used after qen in these constructions is built with a a
suffix -i (roughly like an English -ing form) and then the
appropriate subject endings. So we have:
- w̓anudap̓igenc
- w̓anudap̓iʼex̄ʷs
- w̓anudap̓iganis
- w̓anudap̓iganuxʷ
- w̓anudap̓isix
- w̓anudap̓isu
- w̓anudap̓isi
- w̓anudap̓isgi
The subject of
sax̄g- does not have to be the same as the subject of
the
qen- phrase (compare English):
- Sax̄gen qen lamiy̓axc̓iʼex̄ʷs. `I want you
all to leave.'
These very same endings appear on the connecting word li- `when,
as.'
Another connecting word that means `and, when' and so on (depending on
context) is built on the simple base
g-:
gen
ges
genis
genuxʷ
gex
gi
gu
gisgi
Like this word is
ʼinaxʷ- `if, when':
ʼinaxʷen,
ʼinaxʷs , and so on.