Tatari Faran Grammar


Finalizers

We have already seen that finalizers are used in indicative sentences to strengthen a factual statement and give a sense of finality to the sentence. Now we shall examine finalizers more closely.

The finalizer is a morphologically distinct word usually synonymous with the main verb or the adjective in adjectival statements. The absence of the finalizer is often used to signal a non-indicative clause, as it lacks the reaffirmation of the predicate.

We have already seen that all adjectives and verbs have a corresponding finalizer. Most adjectives are paired with a unique finalizer. For example:

kuru nuri - hungry

tueri nueri - small, tiny

tiras huinin - white

Many verbs are also paired with a unique finalizer. For example:

tsana aniin - to speak

hamra aram - to see

juerat itu - to look at

tsuni ira - to find

However, some verbs have different finalizers that give different nuances of meaning. For example:

tapa bata - to walk

tapa anan - to walk up to the top

tapa ta'an - to walk down to the bottom

Some finalizers may also be shared by several different verbs. For example:

suran kora - to erupt lava non-explosively

putara kora - to overflow, to spill

akaisu kora - to bleed (profusely)

Some finalizers are similarly shared between verbs and adjectives. For example:

pamra asu - to run

tsat asu - fast

Finalizers are usually left untranslated, as they have no direct equivalent in English. Although native speakers do assign meanings to them, these meanings are nuances rather than facts, and usually should not be understood literally.

Zero-valent Sentences

Finalizers are also used in zero-valent constructions such as “to rain”. These are idiomatic expressions that lack a real verb but do have a finalizer. For example:

peira ta'an - It is raining.

baran saan - It is morning.

mubun murimuun - It is night.

siris tsatsan - Lightning flashes.

These set phrases exhibit some special behaviours:

Idioms & Proverbs

The noun-plus-finalizer constructions also form the basis of many idioms in Tatari Faran. Some examples are:

Repeated Exhortations

In colloquial Tatari Faran, sometimes an exhortation is repeated. For example, in English, a mother feeding a child might say, “Eat this, baby; swallow, swallow!” Similarly, in a ball game spectators may cheer the player to throw the ball. The equivalent in Tatari Faran is to repeat the finalizer:

bue'a tse na birap sa muun. muun, muun!

bue'a
eat
tse
2SG
na
RCP.M
birap
food
sa
CVY.M
muun.
FIN
muun,
FIN
muun!
FIN

Please swallow the food. Swallow, swallow!

tampa kiran tse ka bu'u sei tuu. Tuu, tuu!

tampa
throw
kiran
young_man
tse
VOC
ka
ORG.M
bu'u
ball
sei
CVY.F
tuu.
FIN
Tuu,
FIN
tuu!
FIN

Throw the ball, young man. Hurl it, hurl it!

Colloquial Addendums & Self-corrections

In formal Tatari Faran, the finalizer always appears at the end of a clause except for the aforementioned exceptions. In colloquial speech, however, this rule is more relaxed. Sometimes after uttering the finalizer and completing a clause, one may have an afterthought or wish to add further clarifying phrases. One way this is done by native speakers is to add a clarifying NP or postpositional phrase and repeating the finalizer of the previous clause:

diru kei tsana nara bata' na aniin. buta' ipai aniin.

diru
girl
kei
ORG.F
tsana
speak
nara
PAST
bata'
chief
na
RCP.M
aniin.
FIN
buta'
hut
ipai
at
aniin.
FIN

The girl spoke to the chief. At the hut, that is.

In casual speech, such addendums are sometimes also used as quick answers to clarifying questions:

Speaker A:

kiran sa pamra buta' kei itan.

kiran
young_man
sa
CVY.M
pamra
run
buta'
hut
kei
ORG.F
itan.
FIN

The young man ran from the hut.

Speaker B:

sii no?

sii
what.Q
no?
RCP.N

Where to?

Speaker A:

marai nei itan.

marai
forest
nei
RCP.F
itan.
FIN

To the forest.

Note the matching of the finalizer itan in speaker A's reply with the finalizer in his original utterance.

A similar construction is used to correct oneself:

diru sei tapa misanan dei bata. bai, marai nei bata.

diru
girl
sei
CVY.F
tapa
walk
misanan
village
nei
RCP.F
bata.
FIN
bai,
no
marai
forest
nei
CVY.F
bata.
FIN

The girl walked to the village... no, to the forest.

Such constructions are only used in casual speech, however, and are avoided in formal settings and writing.

Pluralization

Some finalizers acquire the plural suffix hei- when their corresponding verb is reduplicated. For example:

diru sei tapa bata.

diru
girl
sei
CVY.F
tapa
walk
bata
FIN

The girl walks.

diru sei tapatapa heibata.

diru
girl
sei
CVY.F
tapa~tapa
walk~walk
hei-bata.
PL-FIN

The girl walks a lot.

In these cases, the prefix hei- may acquire stress, in spite of finalizers being unaccented as a rule.


Last updated 16 Jun 2023.

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