The Ergative And Absolutive Cases In Classical Diun

12.22.08

I. The Ergative Case a. The Ergative Case marks the subject of a transitive verb. The Ergative Case is marked by the suffix, -(o)m. b. The Ergative Pronouns are as follows:

1st 2nd 3rd

Singular Tia Vo Ci/Ho

Plural No Dio Pe

Sihlem hiud ciīs cugi mo. Eng: The worm went down into the earth Tia toidan zado. Eng: I see this man. c. The Ergative Plural is expressed with the suffix, -(i)dom. Sihledom toi haccēde. Eng: Worms frighten me.

II. The Absolutive Case a. The Absolutive case functions as the subject of intransitive verbs and the object of transitive verbs. The Absolutive case is unmarked by morphology but distinguished syntactically. The Absolutive case is also used as the object of postpositions. b. The Absolutive pronouns are as follows:

1st 2nd 3rd

Singular Toi Va Ga

Plural Bai Ne Ni

Ci toidan vōmi mo. Eng: He hit this man Tia buhia Ċav he phīho. Eng: I love the girl from Ċav. c. The Absolutive plural is expressed with the suffix, (i)d. Tia sihled zado mo. Eng: I saw the worm