A Brief Description of Modern Standard Minhast

Christian C. BorilloAugust 2, 2014

Introduction

Minhast is the spoken language of the Republic of Minhay, with a robust speech community of nearly 26 million people, approximately one million of them living in expatriate communities. It is divided into two major dialects, Upper Minhast and Lower Minhast, each of which is divided into several smaller subdialects, such as the Salmon Speaker variant of the Upper Minhast dialect, and the Osprey Speaker variant of the Lower Minhast dialect.

Located just 1,232 km from northeast Japan, this Northeast Asian language has no known relatives and bears few if any similarities with Japanese and its two other nearest neighbors, the Kingdom of Kogureo (Korea) and the Ainu Democratic Federation. Two other languages in the island nation, Peshpeg and Golahat, both of which are moribund, are also unrelated; any similarities existing between the two languages and Minhast are due to areal features, with Minhast as the dominant influence. Linguists have investigated possible relationships with the Altaic, Paleosiberian, and Native North American languages, but so far have failed to find any conclusive evidence. Therefore, Minhast remains classified as a language isolate.

Typologically, Minhast is an ergative, polysynthetic language. Verbal morphology is highly aggluginative and performs noun incorporation and other complex valence operations. Unmarked word order is SOV. Ergativity surfaces both at the morphologic and syntactic levels. Both its ergative and polysynthetic characteristics have generated much academic research in comparative and theoretical linguistics.

This document contains a summary of the phonology, grammar, and syntax of the National Capital Region variant of Upper Minhast, also known as Modern Standard Minhast1 (MSM). The final section contains a sample text, followed by translation.

1 The standard dialect is a compromise between the Horse Speaker variant of the Upper Minhast dialect, and the Lower Minhast dialects of the Stone Speakers. The phonology and grammar are predominantly Horse Speaker, whereas many areas of vocabulary, particularly in administration, commerce, law, and science come from Stone Speaker sources. The Upper Minhast dialects of the Dog Speakers and Knife Speakers, and the Lower Minhast dialects of the Osprey and Gull Speakers also form a major constituent of MSM.

Grammatical Sketch

Phonology and Orthography :

A modified version of the Americanist notation known as Ammerkastim nappua or Ammerkast, is used to transcribe the Minhast phonemic inventory. The two tables below, representing both the consonantal and vowel inventories respectively, list the IPA equivalents in the top row, above the Ammerkast notation. In writing, the grapheme

Vowel length is distinctive. The following table summarizes the Minhast vowel inventory:

Minhast Vowel Inventory

Vowel TypeTranscription Basic Dipthongs

IPA a e I i u aj ej ij uwAmmerkast a e i i u ay ey

Devoicing

Devoicing is a frequent yet highly predictable process triggered by certain syllabic patterns. Typically short vowels devoice after two unvoiced consonants. Devoiced consonants tend to occur immediately following an unvoiced consonant, or especially for sonorants, following an unvoiced consonant in word-final position.

Phoneme

Vocalic Devoicing Consonantal Devoicing

C Vtarg

etC

C Vtarge

t CC

C Vtarge

tCC

C Vtarge

t C

(C)

C Vtarg

etCC

CV

Ctarget

CV

CtargetC

CVC

Ctarget

CV C

Ctarget

a a a a a a e e e e e e

i i i i i i u u u u u u b b p p pd d t t tg g k k kz z s s sm m m m mn n n n nl l l l lr r r r r

Syllabic Structure and Phonemic Interactions

Minhast words are subject to complex morphophonemic changes resulting from interactions with other morphemes occurring within a word. The verb is particularly complex in the various sound changes that may occur as a result of noun incorporation as well as the aggluginative processes involved in conjugation or other inflectional processes. These phonemic changes can be broken down according to the following classifications:

Assimilation Metathesis Syncope Epenthesis Voicing/Devoicing

These complex morphophonemic interactions operate according to the general phonological principals outlined below:

1) No syllable can have a consonant cluster of more than two consonants. Syncope can be applied only if a biconsonantal cluster is formed, and the vowel is not a part of a heavy syllable (i.e. the vowel is long, or it occurs in a CVCC sequence).

2) No Minhast word can begin with an initial consonant cluster. If any initial consonant cluster results from one or more of the possible morphophonemic alternations described below, an epenthetic i- is automatically appended to the head of the word to form the permissible iCC- pattern.

3) An epenthetic vowel is always inserted between two syllables if combining the syllables results in a triconsonantal cluster. The default epenthetic vowel is i, but the other three short vowels may also be used, conditioned on multiple factors (e.g. vowel harmony, an underlying quiescent initial vowel as part of the attached morpheme, etc.)

4) Minhast has a strong tendency to form intermedial clusters, either (C)VCC or CCV(C), providing that Rules #1-#3 are observed. If necessary, an epenthetic vowel may be added before or after the syllable to create these syllabic patterns, e.g. kantumariskar >> *kanut-maris-kar. The tendency to form intermedial consonant clusters creates complex assimilation interactions that nevertheless are predictable and almost always regular. Permissable CC clusters are illustrated in the following table:

Phonemic Interaction Chart

Final Consonant Initial Consonant f p b k x g t d s z l r m n h w y

f ff pp pp fk fx fk ft ft fs f fs fl fr fm fn ff fw fy p pp pp pp pk xp pk pt pt ps p ps pl pr pm pn p pw py b pp pp bb pk xp mg pt mb ps p ps bl br mb mb p bw by k kf kp kp kk kk kk kt kt ks k ks kl kr km kn k kw ky x xf xp xp kk xx gg xt xt ss ss xl xr xm xn xx xw xy g kf kp gb kk kk gg kt gd ks k zg lg gr gm gn k gw gy t ft pt pt kt xt kt tt tt st t st tt rt mt nt t wt d ft pt bb kt xt gd tt dd st t zd ld rd mb nd t dw dy

s sp sp sp sk xs sk st st ss ss sl srss sm sn s sw

f p p k k t t ss ss l m n ww z sp sp zb sk ss zg st zd ss zz zl zz zm zn s zw zy l lf pp lb kk xl lg tt ld sl l zl ll rr lm,mm nn l lw yy

r rf rp rb rk rx rg rt rddd rsss

r zz ll

rnnn

rm mm nn r rw ry

m mf mp mb nk xn ng,ng mt md ns m nz ml mr mm nn mh ww my n mf mp mb nk xn ng nt nd ss nz ll rr mm nn nh nw ny,yy h ff p p k xx k t t s s l r m n w y

5) Vowels are classified according to a "weak-strong" gradient, where the "strong" vowels are more resistant to syncope than neighboring "weak(er)" vowels. All long vowels are by definition "strong", so the weak-strong gradient really applies to short vowels.

6) The shape of a CVCVC syllable may contract either to a CCVC or CVCC pattern, depending on the strength gradients of the vowels with respect to one another. The CaCaC syllable pattern is the only one that does not contract. Syllables consisting of the same vowels may appear in either CCVC or CVCC patterns; the pattern they resolve to is influenced by interactions from surrounding syllables:

Initial Pattern Final Contraction CaCaC (no change) CaCuC, CaCeC, CaCiC CaCC CuCaC, CeCaC, CiCaC CCaC CuCuC, CuCeC, CuCiC CuCC CuCuC, CeCuC, CiCuC CCuC CeCeC, CeCiC CeCC CeCeC, CiCeC CCeC CiCiC CCiC, CiCC

7) A verb root or an incorporated noun may lose one or more vowels to form at least one biconsonant cluster. The vowel that is lost depends on its strength gradient in relation to the noun of the neighboring syllable.

8) With the exception of pattern CaCaC, when two adjoining syllables have vowels within the same gradient, vocalic syncope resolves to CVCC, e.g. ipikirmu >> * p-kirim-u.

9) The pattern (C)VVCC always resolves to (C)VCC, e.g. dr story vs. darki in the story. 10) Compared to nominal and verbal roots, inflectional morphemes (e.g. theme, aspect, tense, person, etc) are resistant to syncope because this may lead to the inflectional morpheme to be changed beyond recognition. For example, ipirakaran >> p-irak-an he informed (him), lit. "he caused (him) to know", does not resolve to -ip-rak-an, even though this would prevent the impermissible CCV pattern from occurring. Instead, an epenthetic vowel is added before the causative affix to prevent this impermissible consonant cluster from occurring.

12) Although inflectional morphemes do not experience syncope, they still may experience phonological changes in the form of metathesis and devoicing of adjacent morphemes, dutipkirmaru >> dut-p-kirm-ar-u he made (him) speak to him, where the t in -dut- metathesisizes to the p in -p-, yielding -du- and -t-, so the expected form *dutipikirmaru is not well-formed.13) Vowel devoicing occurs in C'VC', C'VxC', C'VsC', or final-C'VC' syllabic patterns, where C' is any unvoiced consonant.

14) The voiced consonants /b, d, g, z/ devoice to /p, t, k, s/ when followed by a voiceless consonant. Similarly, the nasals /m,n/ devoice to [m, n] and the liquids /l, r/ devoice to [l, r] if they occur in coda position and are immediately preceded by a voiceless consonant.

15) Two consecutive syllables with the pattern C'VC'V(C') resolves to CVCC'V(C'), due to the difficulty of pronouncing the // allophone in two consecutive closed syllables.

16) Dissimilation occurs in CVC-patterns involving -V, resolving to s-V. A prime example is the number "twenty", sentz >> *san-entz >> *an-entz17) Dissimilation occurs in CVC-patterns involving m-Vm, resolving to n-Vm.

18) The sequence wa + u resolves via metathesis to uwa- to avoid inserting a glottal stop in the wa + u sequence, e.g. Neyun uwanaru, not *Neyun wa'unaru.

Nouns/Noun Phrase :

1) Gender:

All nouns have an intrinsic gender; interestingly, some nouns may have multiple genders, each gender conveying different meanings; these should be considered separate lexical entities. However, nouns are not inflected or marked by gender clitics. Instead, cross-reference affixes in the verb identify the gender of the nouns that serve as core arguments of a clause; in contrast, the gender of oblique arguments are not marked by verbal affixes. Thus, gender of each noun must be memorized in order to choose the correct verbal affix, or to identify the gender of a noun serving as an oblique argument.

2) Number:

Nouns do not inflect for number. Verbal cross-reference affixes (see section below on verbal Pronominal Affixes) can mark number on Ergative and Absolutive noun phrases (NP), but do not provide any information about number for non-core NPs. Speakers must rely on context or use numbers in a min construction using the formula [number + min + NP], e.g. n min redad (i.e. two man) to mark plurality; otherwise the default number is singular.

3) Case:

Although nouns are not overtly marked for gender or number by inflection or clitics, they do take case marking clitics that attach to the end of the noun or noun phrase. There are two core nominal arguments: the Absolutive which receives null marking, and the Ergative clitic =de. The Genitive derives from the same =de clitic as the Ergative, and in most declension tables are thus listed as the Ergative-Genitive case. However, there are several allomorphs of the Ergative/Genitive, which are explained in the section Allomorphs of the Ergative-Genitive.

Additionally, there are seven basic Oblique (OBL) case clitics to non-core NP arguments. Most of the Oblique clitics have two forms, one form with a short medial vowel, and the other with a long medial vowel. Use of both forms are acceptable, but native speakers tend to use the clitics with short vowels when the clitic is preceded by a syllable containing a long vowel, while the converse is true for clitics preceded by syllables containing long vowels. Dialectal variation may also come to determine whether the short form or long form is used. Additionally, speakers emulating Classical Minhast use the Long form. There are other OBL case clitics, but these are either rare, dialect- specific, or are forms from Classical and older forms of Minhast that have now fallen into disuse.

The following table summarizes the main case clitics that may attach to a Minhast noun/noun phrase. Note that the Dative clitic contains the quiescent vowel -a-:

Case Clitics

CliticCase Short Form Long Form

Absolutive = N/AErgative-Genitive (See Section 4) N/ADative =(a)ran N/AInstrumental =par =prLocative =ki =kAblative =yar =yrBenefactive =ni =nMalefactive =da, =da =d

4) Allomorphs of the Ergative-Genitive:

As mentioned earlier, the Ergative and Genitive forms originate from the same =de clitic, but several allomorphs have arisen through the passage of time, based in part from phonemic interactions with the preceding phoneme. As a result, instances have arisen where the Ergative and Genitive differ in form. Additionally sometimes the head noun, to which the clitics attach, may be simultaneously both possessor and Agent. However, only one clitic may attach. This form is indicated in the column Genitive + Ergative; a form like **mazer min haduzmatede >>*mazer min haduz-mah=de=de, (i.e. the slave's ragged clothing) where the first =de indicates the Genitive clitic, and the second =de is meant to indicate the Ergative clitic, is ungrammatical.

The forms of the Ergative, Genitive, and the Ergative-Genitive are listed in the following table:

Ergative-Genitive Allomorphs

Resultant FormPreceding Phoneme Ergative Genitive Genitive +

Ergative(V)V, g, z =de =de =del, r, n =de =t =tef, p, k, x, s, , h =te =t =tem =be =t =te

b =mbe2 =pt =pted =e =te3, =tide =te, =tidet =te, =tide =te =te, =tideC1C2 =e, =ide =e =enk, ng =ide =ide =ideCC =e, =ide =e, =ide =e, =ide

2 Notice the appearance of an intrusive m, which causes the d to mutate to b.3 The preceding d mutates to t for the Genitive and Genitive+Ergative forms.

5) Noun Classes:

Nouns are divided into three classes based on the syllabic pattern of the final syllable of the noun. The Class I nouns (also known as Strong Stem nouns are those whose Absolutive forms end in a single consonant, or a short vowel. Additions of a short-vowel clitic do not change the noun stem's final vowel. The rules of vowel apocopation, however, still apply.

Class II nouns are divided into three subtypes, with Absolutive forms ending with the glides -ea, -ia, or -ua. Class II nouns undergo a morphophonemic process whereby the final -a of the noun stem is dropped and the preceding vowel is automatically lengthened when either a short or a long-vowel case clitic is attached to the noun stem. Additionally, during noun incorporation the entire glide is elided. Examples are as follows for marua, yarea, and simmia, meaning the star Venus, young girl, and moonless night, respectively.

Class III nouns (e.g. asr nose) all terminate with either a consonant cluster or gemminate consonnants. If the following clitic that attaches to it has a quiescent vowel, such as the Dative clitic =(a)ran, the quiescent vowel resurfaces to prevent an impermissible CCC pattern, or the epenthetic vowels -i- or -e- is inserted. An additional feature is that these nouns will select the long-vowel forms of case clitics if they do exist.

These nouns are contrasted against the Class I noun gal (horse).

Noun Classes

Class Absolutive Pre-clitic FormIncorporated

Form Examples

Class I gal= gal= -gal- galde, galyr

Class IImarua mar- -mar- marde, marparyarea yar- -yar- yarde, yarransimmia simm- -simm- simmde, simmkan

Class IIIasr asr-, asre- -asr- asride, asrenniss niss-,nisse- -niss- nisside, nissek

6) Possessive Noun Phrases:

Modern Minhast expresses possession using the following formula:

[possessor] + min + [possessum] + [Transitive Pronominal Affix] = GEN

An example of this construction would be tazer min erakmast >> tazer min erak-mass=de, (literally "the birds - their feathers"). Case clitics are attached after the pronominal affixes. Possession may additionally be marked for distributed ownership, in which case the verbal Distributive affix -tar- is added to the NP, e.g. kamaktarskemt >> kamak-tar-skem-de "their swords, one sword per person", versus shared ownership, where the verbal Reciprocal affix -att- is added, e.g. balamattirhakt >> balam-att-tirhak=de "our [inclusive] land (that you, I, and others share).

In cases where a possessum occurs between two 3rd person NPs with the same gender, number, and animacy, the reflexive affix -ar- can be used to disambiguate which NP is the possessor. Hence, the sentence "Xani and Yuttam dropped their pencils. Xani reached down and retrieve his own pencil" would be rendered as "Xani sut Yuttam irriyetaran rassibaru. Xani irriyettartirennaran (>> irriyet-ar-tirenn=aran)", as opposed to "Xani irriyettirennaran (>> irriyet-0-tirenn=aran)" would imply that Xani reached for Yuttam's pencil.

As expected, possessive NPs can mark tense and aspect, e.g. "kassartisussasattapt" >> kar-sart-suss-asatt-ab=de "the car which they will be owning together".

In the case of nouns derived from nominalized VPs, the situation becomes even more complex. In particular, nominalized transitive verbs, which are able to encode agent-patient relationships, can secondarily express possessive relationships. An example would be the nominalization astekkenarunaft >> ast-ekken-ar-un-aft, literally "they that begat me", a formal term for "my father". Here, the Transitive pronominal affix -ekken- denotes the Ergative 3rd person common plural and the Absolutive 1st person singular, paraphrases the possessive relationship using verbal syntax in the form of a nominalization to describe possession indirectly via an agent-patient relations construction.

Verbs:

Minhast verbs are extremely polysynthetic, with a plethora of affixes that indicate mood, manner, person, number, gender, transitivity, tense, aspect, reciprocity, among many other functions. Verbs also alter the argument structure of a clause through valence operations involving Noun Incorporation (NI), Antipassivation (ANTI), and Applicative Formation4 (AF); these processes may occur singly or in combination to promote NPs to core status or to demote them for discourse purposes.

The verb affixes are organized according to a strict template: affixes are assigned a position, aka slot, relative to their position to the verb root. Deviation from that position would render the verb ungrammatical and possibly incomprehensible to native speakers. The template contains the following slots: Negator, Theme5 I, Applicatives, Theme II, Verb Root, Incorporated Noun, Prepronominal Affixes, Pronominal Affixes, Tense, Aspect, Transitivity, and Postverbal Clitics. Not all affixes are used at the same time, in fact some affixes are mutually incompatible with others (e.g. Reflexive + Reciprocal).

For the purposes of this article, only the most common forms of each slot are listed in the next table. The position of the slot for the portmanteau Pronominal Affixes slot is indicated in the table, but because of the complications arising from morphophonemic interactions, particularly with the Transitive Portmanteau Affixes, their individual forms have been listed in separate tables in the Pronominal Affixes section.

Just as slots in the verbal template occur in a hierarchy, affixes occurring within a slot also follow a strict order. This order among the affixes within the same slot are indicated with the first slot affix occuring in the top cell of the column, followed in descending order within the given slot.

4 Also called Applicativization or Applicative Voice. The term Applicative Formation is used here, following Masayoshi Shibatani.5 Theme is the conventional term used in Minhast linguistic terminology, overlapping mood, modality, and certain voices (e.g. Causative).

The following table illustrates the most common affixes of the Minhast verb template:

Minhast Verb Template

Slot

Initials Theme I Applicatives Theme II Verb RootIncorporated

NounPrepronominal

Affixes

Hortative ha= Desiderative -ak- Dative -dut- Habitual -asm- Verb RootIncorporated Noun Reflexive -ar-

Negators ta=

Causative -p- Benefactive -rak- Inchoative -saxt- Reciprocal -attar--att-Resumptive -b- Instrumental -mat- Inceptive -nd- Distributive -tar-

Intensive -nt(a)- Locative -n-, -nak-

Inverse Volitional -kah- Partitive

-nesr- -ness-

Privative -man- Commitative -ngar-Necessitive -(y)yat- Ablative -rak-Cessative -k-

Malefactive -nusk-Iterative -xr-Reactive -knak-Excessive -hapm(a)-

Minhast Verb Template (cont.)

SlotPronominal

Affixes Tense Aspect Transitivity Postverbal Clitics

(See section Pronominal Affixes below)

Remote Past -ar- Imperfect -(a)b- Intransitive

-an-n-en

General Subordinative =m=

Past -ar- Perfect -- Transitivize -u Purposive =nimm=

Present --

Partial Completion -knakt- Antipassive -pi

Direct Quotative =nam

Immediate Future -ne-

Indirect Quotative =tam

Future -(a)satt-

Resultative =dur= =dr= Unexpected =kil= Irrealis ==Nominalizer =(n)aft

There are two classes of verbal pronominal affixes: the Transitive class, used to cross-reference both the Patient and the Agent of a grammatically transitive clause; and the Intransitive class, which is used for the single core argument grammatically intransitive clauses. It must be emphasized that the phrase grammatically transitive clause refers to clauses with two core arguments, the Absolutive and the Ergative. In contrast, the phrase grammatically intransitive clause refers to clauses with only one core argument, the Absolutive.

This is an important distinction because the verb can employ valence operations to change the transitivity of a clause, through processes such as ANTI, NI, and AF, as mentioned earlier in this paper. For example, the English transitive sentence He wounded me with his words could be rendered in Minhast transitively in the sentence Irriyrum=pr (kua=de) (yak) ikwask-knen-ar-u [word=INSTR (3S.MASC=ERG) (1S.ABS) hurt-1S.PT+3S.AGT-PAST-TRANS]. By using NI + ANTI, the same English sentence can be rendered intransitively also, as in (yak=aran) (kua) ikwask-irrrum--ar-an=pi [(1S=DAT) (3S.ABS) hurt-word-3S.ABS-PAST-INTRANS=ANTI], literally meaning He word-hurt (to me); for an alternative Transitive structure, NI, ANTI and AF can be combined, as in (k=de) (yak) dut-ikwask-irrrum-iknen-ar-u; this variation changes the argument structure of the sentence - it puts focus on the Dative NP by promoting it from an OBL Dative role to a derived Absolutive (just as the accusative language English derives subjects from direct objects via Passivation). The tables for the portmanteau Pronominal Affixes are as follows:

Transitive Pronominal Affixes6 Singular Agent + Singular Patient

Agent Patient

1st Sg. 2nd Sg. 3rd Masc. Sg. 3rd Fem. Sg. 3rd Neut. Anim Sg. 3rd Neut. Inanim. Sg. 1st Sg. (na) -tak- -(e)k- -(e)kk- -(e)k- -tirk- 2nd Sg. -ktah- (na) -tah- -lettah- -tah- -tittah- 3rd Masc. Sg. -knen- -nten- --, -nn- -lenn- -nenn- -tirenn- 3rd Fem. Sg. -kl- -tal- -l- -ll- -l- -till- 3rd Neut. Anim. Sg. -k- -t- -- -- -s- -t- 3rd Neut. Inanim. Sg. -km- -tam- -m- -mm- -m- -timm-

6 As noted earlier, one of the interesting features of the Transitive pronominal affixes is that they are used in noun phrases in possessive phrase constructions, capable of marking the number, gender, and animacy of both possessum and possessor. Please refer to the section Possessive Noun Phrases for a full description.

Transitive Pronominal Affixes - Plural Agent + Singular Patient

Agent Patient

1st Sg. 2nd Sg. 3rd Masc. Sg. 3rd Fem. Sg. 3rd Neut. Anim Sg. 3rd Neut. Inanim. Sg.

1st Pl. Incl. (na) (na) -hak- -hlak- -k- -tirhak- 1st Pl. Excl. (na) -ntem- -nn- -lennem- -ennem- -tinnem- 2nd Pl. -(e)ktam- (na) -mt- -lettem- -ettem- -tittem- 3rd Pl. Common -(e)kken- -takken- -nk- -lekken- -seen- -tikken- 3rd Pl. Neut. Anim. -(e)ksen- -tasn- -(a)sn- -less- -sess- -tiss- 3rd Pl. Neut. Inanim. -(e)kmah- -tammah- -mah- -(a)mmah- -mah- -timmah-

Transitive Pronominal Affixes - Singular Agent + Plural Patient

Agent Patient

1st Pl. Incl. 1st Pl. Excl. 2nd Pl. Common 3rd Pl.

Common 3rd Pl. Neut.

Anim 3rd Pl. Neut.

Inanim. 1st Sg. (na) (na) -mtek- -kenk- -ak- -mak- 2nd Sg. -haktah- -nimtah- (na) -kemtah- -yat- -mattah- 3rd Masc. Sg. -hakn- -nenn- -tenn- -kenn- -sn- -mann- 3rd Fem. Sg. -hall- -nell- -tall- -kell- -sl- -mall- 3rd Neut. Anim. Sg -hak- -mm- -tam- -km- -s(e)- -ma-

3rd Neut. Inanim. Sg. -hakm- -nemm- -tamm- -kemm- -sm- -namm-

Transitive Pronominal Affixes - Plural Agent + Plural Patient

Agent Patient

1st Pl. Incl. 1st Pl. Excl. 2nd Pl. Common 3rd Pl.

Common 3rd Pl. Neut.

Anim 3rd Pl. Neut.

Inanim. 1st Pl. Incl. (na) (na) (na) -kemhak- -sak- -makkak- 1st Pl. Excl. (na) (na) -tamme- -kemmi- -sni- -manne- 2nd Pl. Common (na) -nittamm- (na) -kettamm- -stamm- -mattam(m)-

3rd Pl. Common -hakkem- -nikkem- -takkem- -ikkem- -skem-,-skum- -makkem-

3rd Pl. Neut. Anim. -haks- -niss- -tass- -kess- -suss- -mass-

3rd Pl. Neut. Inanim. -hakmah- -nemmah- -tammah- -kemmah- -smah- -nammah-

In contrast to the Transitive pronominal affixes, the Intransitive pronominal affixes are considerably simpler, as demonstrated by the following table:

Pronominal Affixes Intransitive

Person-Number-Gender-Animacy Absolutive 1st Sg. -k- 2nd Sg. -ta- 3rd Masc./Common Sg. -- 3rd Fem. Sg. -l- 3rd Neuter Anim. Sg. -- 3rd Neuter Inanim. Sg. -m- 1st Plural Incl. -hak 1st Pl. Excl. -mm- 2nd Pl. -tam- 3rd Pl. Common -km- 3rd Neut. Anim. Pl. -i- 3rd Neut. Inanim Pl. -mah-, -ma-

Conjunctions and Connectives :

Minhast has two classes of morphemes for joining two or more NPs into a larger phrase, one set being conjunctions, and another set called either ligatures or connectives which bind either mutually interdependent NPs (e.g. possessive phrases), or adjuncts to the nuclear clause. Most of the Minhast linguistic literature uses the latter term connectives, as in this article. The purpose of both conjunctions and connectives is to link two or more phrases together to form a cohesive unit. However, there are major differences between the two. Conjunctions simply link a series of NPs with no implication that the individual NP units are interdependent. The connectives, on the other hand, are required for interdependent NPs or other adjuncts (e.g. evidential particles), otherwise the phrase would be ungrammatical when the connective is omitted. An example would be a possessive construction; omission of the connective min render the sentence ungrammatical because two NPs, namely the possessor and possessum, are stranded, and a possessive relationship cannot be inferred from the stranded NPs.

1) Conjunctions : Unlike many other languages, including English, Minhast has only a few conjunctions, and these join only NPs; they never join clauses, simply because the highly polysynthetic verb possesses a flexible, robust array of tools for joining clauses (e.g. pseudo-adverbial affixes, valence operators, the S/O pivot, verb serialization, nominalization, etc) to perform the operations that prototypical conjunctions do. Since the Minhast NP is barely developed compared to the VP, it is not surprising that there are few function particles available to the NP, including conjunctions, as demonstrated by the following table:

Conjunction Form Translation

Serializing suttu, sut, =s7 andAlternative xanda, xan or

7 The =s clitic allomorph of suttu is used when a list of more than two NPs are joined. The list of NPs are simply added as a series without any intervening linkers, and the =s allomorph appears at the end of the NP series. If a case clitic appears, it attaches to the =s clitic, e.g. Joe, Eric, Dave, Anyar=s=par

2) Connectives : There are two major connectives. One binds only NPs together, while the other binds a NP or adjunct (e.g. evidentials) and a clause together. The first type of connective, called the min-connective, is used most notably for creating possessive phrases. The min-connective also performs other functions. The other is called the wa-connective and is used to bind adjuncts to clauses.

a. The Min-Connective: In addition to creating possessive noun phrases, the other functions of min are demonstrated in the following table:

Phrase Type Format Example and Translation

Possessive NPs NP[possessor] + min + NP[possessum] + GEN tazer min erakmast >> tazer min erak-mass=de (the birds' feathers)

Gentilic NPs NP=GENT + min + NP Canadastim rakne >> kanada=ast min rakne (Canadian tourists)

Cardinal Numeric NPs [Cardinal Number] + min + NP karum Canadast >> karun min kanad=ast (nine Canadians)

Ordinal Numeric NPs [Cardinal Number] + min + NP karnxim Canadast >> karnx min kanadast (the ninth Canadian)Quantifier NPs [Quantifier] + min + NP wakk min redad (some men)

Constituent NPs N NP[constituent] + min + NP wakuk min hattewak = a ring made of/consisting of gold (wakuk = gold, hattewak = ring)

Demonstrative NPs [Deictic] + min + NP sapim redad >> sap=im redad >> sap min redad (this man)Interrogative Partitive NPs [Interrogative Partitive] + min + NP adam redad >> adan min redad (which man)

Positive Existential NPs [Existential] + min + NP mattim redad >> matti min redad (there is a man/there are men)Proper Names [Surname] + min + [Given Name] Uheyr min Iskarrit (Scarlett O'Hare)Attributives NP1 + min + NP2 Bir min Hr (Lion Mountain)

Min has several allomorphs, indicated by the next table. Note that some combinations allow for more than one allomorph (e.g. -Vw combinations allow both the min form and the =im form). The form selected by a native speaker often is a result of dialectal differences.

Preceding Phoneme Resultant Form Examples

-Vm, -Vp, -Vf, -Vg, -Vk, -Vx, -Vr,-Vs, -V-V, -V, -Vw, -Vy

min Bir min Hr (Lion Mountain)

-min num Andumin num Axumbt >> *Andumin min Axumbt (a middle-class suburb of min Gl)-Va (Class II Nouns) =Vm marum >> *marua min (Venus)-VV =Vm karbawam >> *karbaw min (water buffalo)

-n =m=imdam/danim >> *adan min (which); kayyunim >> *kayyun min (tree)

-C1C2, -CC, Vt =im asrim >> *asr min (nose); a=im >> *a min (nose)-Vw, -Vy =im kappuyim >> *kappuy min (whale)-iC1C2, =um suhispum >> *suhispim >> * suhisp min (pot)

-iCC =um nimmum >> nirim min (name)-Vb =in karabin >> * karab min (grasshopper)

b. The Wa- Connective : This clitic appears either at the head of a clause, or at the end of a final clause, usually doubling any consonant that follows. The wa-connective is therefore divided into two classes of constructions, based on the location of the particle in the sentential complex. The first classification is known as the Preposed Wa-Construction in which the wa= clitic appears at the head of a clause, and the second classification is called the Postposed Wa-Construction, because it appears in the final position of the last clause of a sentential complex. Their structures are therefore different, as illustrated in the following table:

Position Format

Preposed [Adjunct/NP] + wa=[Clause]Postposed [Clause] + wa=[Adjunct/NP]

The Preposed Wa-Construction performs the following functions:

1. To introduce a topic, e.g. Nammakt wassikkur8 asmuryaku >> Nammakt wa=sikkur asm-ryak--u, i.e. As for Namakt, he hates Sikkur.

2. To bind evidential and modal particles to a clause, e.g. Ka wassuyyeknapr harran >> Ka wa=suyyekna=pr ha-ar-an, i.e. It is said, dubiously, that he came with good intentions (came with good intentions == came using a [good] heart).

3. To bind existential particles to clauses for creating transitive clauses with an unknown agent, e.g. Matti waurkintesnattu9 >> *Matti wa=urk-nten-satt-u=, i.e. There is someone who will hurt you (lit: There is a who/something which will hurt you).10

4. To bind deixis adverbs to their head clause, e.g. Sappu wamminhast kirmennemu >> Sappu wa=Minhast kirim-ennem-u We speak Minhast here.

5. To form the absolute negation structure with the negation particle hat' and the verb of the bound clause in the negative (essentially creating a double negative), e.g. Hat' wattekka >> Hat' wa=ta-eki-ek-an=, i.e. I will absolutely not follow.

8 Wa= gemminates any consonant that follows it, otherwise it is followed by the glottal stop // 9 Wa= will both gemminate and pharyngealize the /h/ phoneme.10 This construction is often translated as a Passive Voice in languages that have passives, e.g. English.

6. To bind stranded nominals that arise due to verbal valence operations, especially when these operations would create double Dative (i.e. double indirect objects), which are ungrammatical in Minhast, e.g. Nismien wappiynaran Anyar yakte rakittekaru >> Nismien wa=piyn=aran Anyar yak=de rak-hitt-ek-ar-u PN.ABS CONN=piano=DAT PN.ABS 1S=ERG BEN.APPL-give-3S.ABS+1S.ERG-PAST-TRANS, i.e. I gave on behalf of Anyar a piano to Nismien. Here, piyan is a direct object, but it is marked with the Dative clitic =aran because it is indefinite11, and Anyar is a derived Absolutive via AF using the Benefactive Applicative affix -rak-. The sentence *Nismien=aran piyn=aran Anyar yak=de rak-hitt-ek-ar-u is ungrammatical

7. To create idiomatic expressions, e.g. Hambim bak uwanaru12 >> hambin bak wa=un-ar-u, i.e. It is no business of yours...that he hit him (lit. There is no what [that] he hit him), Hambin wattahittaha >> hambin wa=ta-hitt-tah-an=, i.e It doesn't belong to you, it's not yours for the taking (lit. There is no and not you shall take).

The Postposed Wa-Construction performs the following functions:

1. To mark the conclusive NP of a ditransitive clause, e.g. Ipiyinnaru wakkarkarabaw >> p-iy-nn-ar-u wa=karkarabaw, i.e. We selected him as war captain (lit. we raised him high, a great water buffalo)

2. To bind the preceding clause to the Reason particle mn, e.g. Unekaru nataraban wammn >> un-ek-ar-u nat-ar-ab-an wa=mn, i.e. I hit him - he was annoying, that's why

3. To allow inversion of an Interrogative pronoun/particle to final position, e.g. Kalluttahara wabbk? >> kallut-tah-ar-an= wa=bk? i.e You ate what?

4. To provide an alternative to Preposed Wa- constructions in binding evidential and modal particles to their head clause, e.g. Suyyeknapr harran wattumat >> Suyyekna=pr ha-ar-an wattumat, i.e. He (supposedly) came with good intentions, it is said (came with good intentions == came using a [good] heart).

5. Like Preposed-Wa structures, to bind deixis adverbs to their head clause, e.g. Minhast kirmennemu wassappu >> Minhast kirim-ennem-u wa=sappu, i.e. We speak Minhast here.

Although both the Preposed and Postposed-Wa structures bind adjuncts to clauses, an important determiner for the speaker in selecting which structure to use is the issue of scope. The Preposed-Wa structure has narrow scope, and governs only its adjunct and the clause immediately following it, whereas the Postposed-Wa structure has wide scope, governing not just its adjunct and the clause immediately preceding it; its scope governs all the clauses of a sentence. This difference is why the majority of evidential and modal

11 The Dative is typically used when Patients are demoted to Oblique roles, particularly during Antipassivation.12 Not expected wa'unaru. Metathesis takes places when the wa + u combine.

particles are sentence-final; evidentials and modals are in the majority of cases used to cover the speaker's beliefs and attitudes and trustworthiness of the source, which applies to whole statements, but rarely for just individual segments of a given statement. Another important difference is that the Preposed-Wa structure can be preceded by a verb marked with =m or other subordinating clitic. This means that the number of Preposed-Wa structures can occur for each and every clause in a sentence. Such is not the case with Postposed-Wa structures; only one Postposed-Wa structure can occur for a given sentence.

Syntax:

Word Order:Minhast as a whole tends to package the obligatory elements of clauses and sentences into a cohesive unit. Specifically, core NPs and the verbs they serve as arguments tend to be adjacent to each other. OBL arguments tend to be placed before the core NPs, so that unmarked word order is XSOV (where X stands for the OBL argument). This observation can be verified statistically by reviewing of the corpus of texts and spoken speech, and this observation holds for almost 60%, close to one standard deviation of all text and recorded speech sampled. XOSV order is the second most common arrangement found, accounting for close to 30% of all observations. Since the Ergative argument in transient clauses are highly salient, the XOSV order defocusses the Ergative (Agent) argument and emphasizes the Absolutive (Patient) argument. SOXV and SXOV orders are regarded as unusual, and OSXV and OXSV orders tend to make native speakers cringe, although they will concede that those arrangements are grammatical. These arrangements account for the remaining 10% of observations.

What is almost inviolable is the position of the verb, which prominently occurs in clause-final position. The main reason for this restriction is most likely because the verb, being extremely suffix-laden, includes clause-linking and coordinating affixes which occur in the Postverbal Clitics slot of the Minhast verb template. Thus, the verb serves as to mark clause boundaries and coordinate compound and complex sentences, hence the predominance of the verb's clause-final position. Nevertheless, verbs do occur in non-final position under the following circumstances:

1) In simple sentences: the sentence Rassibararu Anyarde suharak (Anyar reached for the book) >> rassibar-ar-u anyar=de suharak (reach.for-PAST-TRANS [proper.noun]=ERG book) is well-formed, even though the verb occurs in sentence-initial position. Here, the reaching for the book (rassibar) is being raised to a high saliency level.

2) When the sentence (always either an independent sentence, or the final clause in a clause chain) is joined to a sentence-final adjunct by a Postposed-Wa Construction. The following sentence, containing a sequential clause followed by the final clause of the sentence is well-formed: Sayyumperan iknitaharamm, kalluttahara wabbk? (You went to Sayyumpe['s house] and ate what???) >> sayyumpe=aran ikn-tah-ar-an=m, kallut-tah-ar-an= wa=bk ([proper.noun=DAT go-2S.ABS-PAST-INTRANS=SUB eat-2S-PAST-INTRANS=IRREAL CONN=what). Please refer to the related section on Postposed-Wa constructions above.

3) When followed by antitopics, often derogatory in nature, or interjections, e.g. Ussar tmantirektaran hran, kuhakna! (Ussar came to my house, the fool!) >> ussar tman-tirek=de=aran h-ra-an ([proper.noun] house-3S.NEUT.ABS+1S.ERG=ERG=DAT come-PAST-TRANS, idiot). Again, this can occur only if the clause is an independent sentence or the final clause in a clause chain.

Valency:

Valency involves the manipulation of the argument structure of a clause. This results in altering the number of core arguments in a clause via different verbal morphosyntactic operations for pragmatic and discourse functions and thus changes the transitivity of the clause the verb is embedded in. Such processes serve background previously mentioned NPs, ensure that a core argument retains its central status, to change the theta-role of an argument, or to promote OBL arguments to core status.

A major factor that motivates valence operations is to bring and keep the principal protagonists of a narrative to the forefront. As an example, consider the following English passage, The convict threatened to kill his hostage but the policeman shot him and the paramedic brought him to the hospital where he soon died. Four participants have been introduced into the narrative all at once, each one associated with his own verb, but who the principal characters (i.e. core arguments) are remains unclear; the convict, the hostage, the policeman, or the paramedic could each be the main topic of interest and thus be assigned as a core argument. A glaring ambiguity in the passage is that who the pronouns he and him refer to cannot be conclusively determined without any additional context. Either the convict or the hostage was shot; any one of the participants could theoretically be brought to the hospital - perhaps the policeman was gravely wounded before he shot the convict (or the hostage). Although far-fetched, it's even conceivable that the paramedic himself was brought to the hospital perhaps he suffered a heart attack during the faceoff between the convict and the policeman.

Fortunately, English does have a mechanism to disambiguate this sentence, using a valency operation called Passivization that promotes the logical Object to a derived Subject. The logical Subject is then either demoted to an OBL role, or is omitted from the sentence altogether. This allows the sentence to be restated: The convict threatened to kill his hostage but got shot (by the policeman) instead and was immediately brought (by the paramedic) to the hospital where he soon died. Passivization promoted the convict to Subject status and demoted the rest of the Agents to OBL (and therefore optional) arguments. As a result correference across successive clauses could be reestablished, even when PRO-drop occurred, because in English and many Nominative-Accusative languages, the core argument that has Agent status, including arguments that were promoted to Agent status through Passivization, fill the empty slot for the Agent argument where PRO-drop occurred. This valency reduction operation thus eliminated the various sources of ambiguity found in the original passage.

Minhast has at its disposal three mechanisms to alter the valency of a clause to maintain proper correference between the pronominal affixes

and the core NPs. These mechanisms13 are Antipassivization (ANTI), Noun Incorporation (NI), and Applicative Formation (AF).

13 Unlike English, Minhast lacks the Passive Voice

Sample Text: Ananxr min Irkay Innyun (The Desecration of Brother Deer)

Minhast:

Yak kasartarekaran, arrat inyuzlara,Yutukna tastayentiran, rgan miznemtaharannafti gayyakayyummaharan.

Dy naambahakyara, dy taambahakyara,Sendiz nayukudnamahara, sendiz tayukudnamaharan.Nemmut astitartinnemarun, hambin wattampuzmahara,Yutukna hraban, intasmzimmara, wassukkun.

Uyyurkide ipiyuhararekkenarumm, dutafrekkenarunnam,Yiptia istinesamm, marrataknesand!Tibbaktemmide duktasarkemtahu, wahk nim waimzikma,Dutafrekkenarunnam: Bakpr tibbaktemmide ipikalluktemminesu?

Wahk, kerktirkidek arrekekaramm, apparapiraran siyyekkitekarampi,Taripr attarapmakekarun, tarite tarry asmikahattarapmahunnaft, tarry asmunnatannaft.Tarry asminiwakannaft, tarry asminattiannafta,Tarry ipasmihhuskapannaft, yakaran ipisarinesampi, warrem.

Wahk, kimalak nesit sarekaru,Nesit asmizzayyaannaft, nesit asminattaannaft.Duturussukaru, rakinessadannkaru,Nesit murrearankilw! Wahk, kunnekaran.

Wahk garragunnekaran, kuddumsuyyeknaarampi,an wakkamattarruyarekarampi, an wantakamatuskapararamp'.

Intanestannuekamm, kunneku,Dannua aktameku, rehunt yuknitirennaban.

Kan wannakanafti taullumeku,Kattakiddimattaran, tamarullumekudr;Tahakkaran, talasibba,Kasarekaban immattaban, yakaran intakasarekabampi, waian kunnedannuekaban.

Wahk, ururtate kuddumeku, garragumururtahekan, kibbuktaykneku,Ururtate kuddumsuyyeknaku, wahk napinnakekan.Ipiniputatarekan, intaniputaka,Kan awwastanede intarakinurritartiekabun, kurg iknitartikan.

Wahk, watuattarekampi, watuattarekampinimm, sattaberradaran kasarekampi,Sap min sespirennideki hunnearan ittaabampi, xan min sespirennideki kimanaran ittaabamp.Yakaran neaban sumataban, kasarabampi, wahk napinnakeka,Kiman kahittaennun, garragumillumekun, tabbukillumamp.

Wahk, marratekan, tura iknitartia,Nippareyrkaban, siyekabannimm kasarekaban;Tartiekte ikarbuhannaft sareku, hat betaxyku,Wastane nurritarampi, wastane ipikurgitartian.

Sarekabu, huttuyektaran intarabbampi, uukkide watulennu.Wahk, innuykimanekukil, uukkide tabbukukil!Kayantaykimanan, uukkidearan ipiyiwatuukkampi,Intaweggitaban, matti sawwat wassuyyeknadek tmanabannaft, ullumekabun.

Wahk, sayyupekan, uxtaran sayyupuxteka,Turatmanaran sayyupekan, Turatmanaran hafrekan:Hambin waulumeku? Hambin wahafrekannaft ulumekua?Rukkuwakammdr, sap min redadde innyekarun!

Wahk, halua sareku, halua xummannaft, halua min siyyumkennide asmihuurkenna,Kan wassuhapmakenkide, nemaran asmitamakinkamp.Kan wassap min halua hurpakabu, duktasiyyumsarekumm,Halua hat asmihannuan, wahk halua suyyeknak ittahiniswakan.

Iklawannam: Yak wattainirizekan wainsilak, asmihuurinkannaft, wassiyyumkenkide,Duktirimekumm, karan ullumekampim, ipihaxmutekun;Irakekabu, yakaran istannimm, kaullumampinimm, ukuriktearan duktaullunnesanda,Irakekabumm, kaulluman, irakekabumm gaxlenasan.

Haldixtaharan, innyun pulunkirde, innuyyintenarumm ipikerintenaru.Tezub hat marizmikun, tezub intammantayyiskun,Anxea min Irkayya, kaullumtakaran, kaullumlamaxtirkara.Ipimanirakinnuyyintennesu, rakittaukamintemnesu, wazzd!

Wahk, sanum ipisareku, matti min ruppumak wammaakan adduakmannafta,Ruppumak min asnupiskemte adduakmannaft, sanumaran urrudikmamp.Hittekampi, ipitemmeyarakan hittekampi,Kahittahitirkun, pummarktirkek ittahitirkun.

Kirimannam: Sanumkidearan ittatahampia,Ittatahampim uniarrattittampi.Wahk, asmiputakmabannaft ruyakminesamm hafrekminesaa,arrataran intuniarrattittahampi, ipiturtankikemtanesa.

Wahk, arrataran biyekan, kerekianektaran biyeka,Sanum ipiyekun, sanum intapiyekun;arrat unekkun, arrat intuniarrateku,arrat intakringargumlan, arrat indikerelaban.

Wahk, arrat min uyyurkilekkende uyyiattaaran, intahafrikmabannaft kaullumkenku,Uarimakkembe ayyizmahamm sarimakkemun, intahafrikmabannaft kasarkenkun;Dy hat istayannaft kumgatikkemabun, intahafrikmabannaft kaullumkenku,

Ruyakmannaft kasarkenku, ipintahafrikenkun wammn.

Wahk, narid sareku, uyyurkide rakuyyiattarinku,Dutafrekinkun, intadutuxradankun.Intadutuxradankun, siyyumikkembek dwampakkembe sarampi;Wahk, yanaxtutan ipiwasaman, sarrekkerkuan.

Isangaran, kasareku,Isangarbiddisan, allayp sahyallayaptaran.Tar min allayp, tarite huttuy ittau,Indinazdaan, nazdaan indiwahiknan, indiglan.

E waggl ullunsekun, e awwahikn ullummaku,Ipidustarattarekun, hambin usakte, baxa wapidustarattarekun.Kirimekannam: Innattsaparan hittekampi, turtankekan, wahk, ukamitirkide,Redad, mimbe zuzzuliknennaru, wahk, sap min innattua hittimtekudr!

Narid rayan, narid kattakrupmakattaran, yakaran saran wammna;Kirimannam: Ananxr min Irkayay! Ananxr min Irkayya, ba wayyizmitammea!Redad tat zuzzulinarannaft tamakinninesu, redad tat intatabbuktarannaft sarimimtinesua,Ananxr min Irkayya! Sarimimtinesu, watturaba! Turaba wannayyizinninesu!

Kirmekannam:Yuxriampi, warrassukte!Yuxriampi, tart dutyuxriampi, wakkawwt!arrat innatulannaft, ipixtinnatukkinesu, watturaba!Hat sariminnenu, hat rassukte yuxrimtu, nayyizmteknesund, rea keretamand!

Redad ipintimtu, zuzzuliknennarannaft ipintimtua!Zuzzuliknennarannaft dutittikeremtu, ruppamakaran wapikeremtu!Ururta ipimaktereknenarunnaft ipimatikeremtua,Rassde tabbukettemu, ruppamakaran waundapettemu!

Naridyr nakputekamm, mammattarryeka,

arratyr ipiyiku, Turatmanaran ipiyikumm, byekan.

Tarry iknaaran, nuxmia hattuara,Allayp ruyyambitirkaru, nahubbitirkarun.

Uyyurkiaran sarekaran, hurpapparan innakekara,Irkay suttu turankide ipirakinusillekarun, irriyrum ipinusilliirkayekarun.Ipraknusillekarunnam: Dalaxmakkahaknabumm, dahittaukamihaknaru,Redad min rasmalennide rukuwwalennarun, redad innyarannaft rukuwwarun!

Dl uyyiattarikmaran, raknearrattarikmaraba,Sahan min nukarpi ixrikasararrattitarikmaraban.Sahan min nukarpi hat ittawatastarimmaraba, sahan min happr hat'ittawatastarimmaraba,Kirimimmarannam: Sikkan wabbiakmisatta?

Wahk, yaduk intakrimaramm, sayyuplaklakaramm, matti dl wassarkemmiaru;Xn min redad ipistakmu, ipintakahmadikmarunaft ipidutistankarun.Kirimikmarannam: Matti redad, wappulunkr kua,Sap min redad, wappulunkr, redad innyaran

Wahk, nukarpik sattabemmiarun, ururtahinnidepr sattabemmiarun, rassuennide hagduennemaruUykaumbatteyr Ananxr min Irkay ipiduptiammaru, hittirussukemmiarun.Matti pulunkr, Ananxr min Irkay rakukamitammru!Ananxr min Irkay yizmutamm, Ananxr min Irkay arraltennembe ipibarbulettemu!

Wahk, dy biyaran, unnakaran tasum ipibittaiara,Ananxr min Irkay, wayyizmuhakkemarumm, rasma bilaran.

English:

I stared around me, the land was parched,It was not even winter, yet brown leaves had fallen all over the ground.

It was time for the salmon to return, but the salmon did not come,It was time to harvest the berries, but the berries did not come.We planted fields of squash, but none ever bore for the harvest,The winter was approaching, and we would starve soon.

The people surrounded me, they cried out to me,We will all die when the snows come, they said.Look at our children, they are already hungry,What shall we do to feed our children? they cried out to me.

And then I went into my tent, and I built a great fireI made it with wood that makes the thick smoke;The smoke that is white, the smoke that is pure and flawless,The smoke that brings visions, it would reveal all to me.

And before me I spied a brook in a forest,A brook that was cold, a brook that was pure.I bent down my head, and I drank its water.What a delicious stream it was! Thus I slaked my thirst.

And then I felt a pain in my side, I felt it pierce my heart,While I twisted the smoke about me, twisting the vision around myself tightly.

I drink its water heartily, and it slakes my thirst,Thus I enjoy this water, it flows from the mountain glacier up high.

But I do not hear the hunter, the one who hides behind me,He hides in the bushes silently, so I cannot hear him;He makes no move, and he makes no soundHe watches me and waits, watching me drink to slake my thirst.

Then the arrow pierces me, I feel it plunge into my chest,The arrow pierces my heart, thus I fall to the ground.I try to rise up to my feet, I fight to stand up straight,But the blood gushes mightily, I feel my strength leave me.

Then I raise my head, I raise it to stare at my killer,He wields his bow in one hand, he wields a blade in the other.He runs up to me, he watches me falter,He then takes the blade, and I feel its slash across my throat.

And so I die, and my spirit departs my body.I stand over the hunter, I look over his shoulder,And I see what was once my body, I cannot recognize it,For blood has covered all of it, blood that once nourished my body.

And then I watch him grab my antlers, I watch him pull up my head,And with his blade he defiles me, now he has cut off my head!He drops his blade, and lifts my head high,He laughs so hard, and I hear the evil that lives in his heart.

And so I return to where I originally came,To the Spirit World I return and cry out:Will no one hear my protest, will no one hear my cry?I demand justice, for that man has defiled me!

And then I see a magnificent wolf, a wolf with blue eyes,But wolves are my enemies, they always hunt my kind.But this one I trust, for when I look into his eyes,I see he is no ordinary wolf, but a wolf with fierce justice in his heart.

I am Insilak, the One with the Blue Eyes, he says;And when I hear his voice I am filled with joy.I know he has come to hear me, he has come to hear my story;I know he will listen, I know he will render his justice.

You are the victim of inny, he says to me,The crime that is unforgivable, the crime that must always be punished.I have heard you, Brother Deer, I have heard your indignation;We will see that for the crime of inny, your murder will be avenged.

And then he shows me a branch, a branch carved with beautiful faces,Faces of creatures of all kinds, they wind around it in graceful curves.He gives it to me with his outstretched paws,I accept it with my outstretched hooves.

Take my staff with you, he says,Take it and smite the ground.Then the ones who stand on two legs will starve and suffer;Smite the earth hard, and they shall be duly repaid.

And so I return to the earth, I return to where I died,I raise the staff above me, I raise the staff high.Then I strike the earth, I strike it with all my might,The land shrieks, and then the land starts to die.

So then the people of the land gather, and then I hear them wail,They watch their crops wilt, and I watch them wail.I watch them wait for the salmon that do not come, and I hear them wail,

I watch them starve, because of me I have caused them to wail.Then I see an old man, and the people gather around him,They cry out to him, they beg loudly to him;They entreat him as he sees the tears in their eyes,He raises his hands and calms them, then he enters his tent.

Then I watch him as he makes a fire,I watch him light the wood, and he puts on a mask;A mask of wood, a mask with great antlers,Then he begins to dance, he dances as he begins his prayer chant.

And after hearing his chants, and after hearing his prayers,I reveal myself to him, although without my head I still present myself to him.Then I say: I have brought you this misery, I have meted out my justice,For one of you has defiled me, and therefore I have brought this calamity upon you!

The old man cries out, he hides his face when he see me,Brother Deer, he cries out, Brother Deer, forgive us all!The man who has defiled you we will hunt down, the man who has disfigured you we will find,Brother Deer, I promise you we shall find him, I promise you we shall punish him!

Give me back my head, I say to the old man,Return it to me, reunite it with my body.Else the land that I make suffer, I will continue to make it suffer,I will punish all of you, do not find him and do not return my head and you will all die!

Bring that man to me, bring the one who defiled me,Put him to death that defiled me, kill him in front of me.Kill him with the arrow, the one he used to kill me,Then cut off his head, and place it before me!

And then I turn away from the old man, and I step on a wisp of smokeIt carries me away from the earth, it raises me back to the Spirit World.

The smoke departed, and the embers died down,I took off the mask, and I placed it back in its niche.

I called out to the people, and I summoned the elders,I told them of the deer spirit, I told them what he said to me.He is angry, I said, He has meted out his vengeance,He demands the life of a man, the one who committed against him inny!

And so the young men assembled, and they spread out across the land,For many days they searched, through many lands they traveled.We did not hear from them for many days, for many nights we all worried,When will our men return to us? When will we see them? we asked.

Then one day with a cry, a young boy pointed into the distance and we saw our young men,They brought back another, they brought him to us bound tightly.They announced to us: Here is the man that did this,The man who is guilty, the one who committed inny.

And so we killed him that day with his arrow, then we cut off his head,We returned to Brother Deer that which was stolen from him, and we presented him the man's head.Behold the perpetrator, we have avenged you Brother Deer,Forgive us, Brother Deer, please bring back life to our land!

Then the salmon returned, then the fields brought back their bountyThus Brother Deer forgave us, and life returned to the land.

Appendix

About Ananxr min Irkay Innyun

Cultural Notes:

Inny is a difficult concept for non-Minhast speakers to grasp: most foreigndictionaries list it as desecration. However, inny has a complex, multilayered meaning;superficially it describes a specific crime, namely, a disrespectful way of killing an animal and handlingits remains. What is not mentioned in dictionaries is that inny assumes that the rationale for taking ananimal's life was for frivolous purposes only. This includes killing an animal merely for sport orpleasure, or taking the life of an animal and leaving its remains as waste once certain trophy items fromthe body were taken. Inny also implies that cruel methods were used in killing the animal. All ofthese have serious ramifications in the interaction between the Minhast and the natural world whichthey inhabit, one that is religious in nature. It is the religious aspect that translations of inny often failto describe.

Traditionally, the Minhast tribes engaged in hunting to supplement their livelihoods, for food, clothing,tools, and religious and ceremonial objects for their shamanistic and animist religion. The taking of thelife of an animal was a serious matter; the Minhast tribes believed that the animal spirits and humanswere ultimately part of the same family. From birth to death a Minhast was guarded by a personaltotem, in effect, under the protection of an elder sibling, hence why the Minhast address an animalspirit as Ananxr (elder brother) or Suryamik (elder sister). So to take the life of an animal was theequivalent of killing a family member.

Certain ceremonies and rituals had to be undertaken before the hunt so that the animal's spirit wouldnot seek revenge. Before a hunting party would set out, the babayk (killing edge of a weapon) wouldbe ritually cleansed with water blessed by the hatuxte (shaman). Then the hunters would send prayersto the Turatman (Spirit World) asking for forgiveness from the animal spirit who would ultimatelyfall before the hunters. When a quarry was spotted and eventually killed, the hunters would gatheraround the fallen animal and once again ask the animal's spirit for forgiveness, and conclude withprayers of thanksgiving to acknowledge the great sacrifice the animal took so that the hunters and their

families may live. Once taken back to the village, every part of the animal would be put to use; nothingwas ever wasted. And at the winter solstice, the Ayambauk ceremony would be held to once againgive thanks to the animal spirits that sacrificed their lives so that man may live.Inny, then, is not only a symbol of disrespect to the animal's spirit; by extension, it is the greatest formof disrespect to the Spirit World. Ultimately, it is also an assault against mankind, because the animalmay be someone's Elder Brother or Elder Sister, and thus a family member of humanity. An animalfalling victim to inny would return to earth to exact its vengeance in the form of floods, earthquakes,tsunamis, famine, and a whole of host of natural disasters. It is no surprise then that the punishment forinny is severe, as the reader will discover in Ananxr min Irkay Innyun.

About the poem:

Ananxr min Irkay Innyun is a subtype of the genre called sekimbt1, calledseksarambt, meaning Great Sekimbt. All sekimbt are narrated in the first person, following aspecific formula: they begin and end with a two-line stanza, with the main body of the poem consistingof four to six quatrains. The lines of each stanza of the sekimbt follow an AB pattern in terms of theterminating word (usually a verb), whereby the final word ends with a vowel in the initial line,followed by another line whose terminating word ends in a consonant. Poetic license is often taken tomaintain this effect. An example is dropping a consonant, as in the word raknearrattarikmaraba,instead of the expected raknearrattarikmaraban for the Intransitive suffix. Another example, where avowel as opposed to a consonant is lost, is found in dropping the final -i of the Antipassive suffix -mpiin the word wantakamatuskapararamp' (expected form: wantakamatuskapararampi). TheTransitive suffix -u also often appears in the archaic form -un, as in ipirakinusillekarun.

What differentiates the seksarambt from the typical sekimbt is that it consists of three sekimbts; theuua (prologue), the tart (main body of the narrative) and the (epilogue). The tart deviates fromthe typical sekimbt in that the number of quatrains exceeds the six-quatrain limit. Instead, the numberof quatrains is unconstrained other than by what is necessary to develop the storyline, reach the climax,and then begin the denouement to complete the main body of the narrative before reaching theconcluding stanzas of the . Another distinguishing feature of the seksarambt is the alternationbetween pause versus full stop terminating each line of the stanzas, as in the following example:

Dy naambahakyara, dy taambahakyara,Sendiz nayukudnamahara, sendiz tayukudnamaharan.Nemmut astitartinnemarun, hambin wattampuzmahara,Yutukna hraban, intasmzimmara, wassukkun.

A notable characteristic of Ananxr min Irkay Innyun is that two narrators are present: the shaman,who begins the seksarambt with the uua and ends with the . The main protagonist and narrator,though, is Brother Deer, whose narrative encompasses the tart. This is another defining characteristicof the seksarambt: unlike the typical sekimbt, which consists of only one narrator, the seksarambthas multiple narrators, at least two, but some epic seksarambt have as many as twelve14 narrators.Note too that the shaman's narrative in both the uua and the is entirely in the past tense, whereasBrother Deer's narrative in the tart is in the present tense. As the main storyline occurs in the tart, theuse of the present tense as the narrative tense frequently found in the Minhast oral tradition, conveysthe immediacy of the perceptions and events of the main character, around whom the entire storyrevolves.

I am greatly indebted to Ahar min Nammun, Minhay's Poet Laureate of 2013, who recited to me thistraditional Salmon Speaker seksarambt. This and other traditional poems, along with his originalworks, may be found in I Hear the Orca Spirit: Words from the Heart of Minhay.

14 The number twelve is an auspicious number in Minhast numerology.

Symbols and Abbreviations

= Clitic- Affix boundary+ Fused affix decomposed into its contituent parts-- Null marker>> Derives from == Is equivalent or synonymous* Ungrammatical

C Single ConsonantC1C2 Consonant Cluster, Non-geminateCC Geminate ConsonantV Single VowelVV Long/Geminate Vowel(V) Quiescent VowelPN Proper NounNP Noun PhraseVP Verb PhraseOBL Oblique argumentGENT GentilicAGT Agent

PT PatientERG ErgativeABS AbsolutiveDAT DativeINSTR InstrumentalCONN ConnectiveNEG NegatorCAUS CausativeDISTR DistributivePART PartitiveREFLX ReflexiveRECIP ReciprocalNI Noun IncorporationNP Noun PhraseVP Verb PhraseAPPL Applicative (generic)AF Applicative FormationDAT.APPL Dative ApplicativeBEN.APPL Benefactive ApplicativeINSTR.APPL Instrumental ApplicativeS SingularP PluralMASC Masculine

FEM FeminineANIM.NEUT Animate NeuterINANIM.NEUT Inanimate Neuter1P.INCL First Person Inclusive1P.EXCL First Person ExclusiveREM.PAST Remote Past TensePAST Past TensePRES Present TenseIMM.FUT Immediate Future TenseFUT Future TenseIMPF Imperfect AspectPERF Perfect AspectTRANS Transitive markerINTRANS Intransitive markerANTI AntipassiveSUB General SubordinatorPURP PurposiveIRREAL IrrealisNOMLZ Nominalizer