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Morphology is the branch of GRAMMAR which studies the Structure or FORMS of WORDS, primarily through the use of the MORPHEME construct. It is traditionally distinguished from SYNTAX, which deals with rules governing the combination of words in Sentences. It is generally divided into two fields : the study of INFLECTIONS ('inflectional morphology') an of Word Formation ('Lexical' or 'derivational morphology')1.

This chapter has been divided mainly into four sections - inflectional morphology, derivational morphology and two other important word formative processes, i.e. compounding and reduplication. Reduplication includes word reduplication, echoword formation and expressives.

3.1 INFLECTION

3.1.1 NOUN INFLECTION

In linguistic terms, nouns are Items which display certain type of INFLECTION (e.g., CASE or NUMBER), have a specific DISTRIBUTION (e.g., they may follow a specific syntactic function (e.g., as SUBJECT or OBJECT of a sentence). Nouns are generally subclassified into COMMON and PROPER types, and analysed in terms of NUMBER, GENDER, CASE and COUNTABILITY2.

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1D.Crystal (1985), A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics, Basil Blacwell, Oxford, p. 200.
2 Ibid., p. 209.

Nouns can be classified as follows :

There are nouns which can be counted in number and hence they are called count nouns while the mass nouns can only be measured. Mass nouns can be used only for singular.
Nouns can be inflected for number, gender and case. These have been illustrated below.

3.1.1.1 Number Inflection

Laria has a bipartite number inflection i.e., Singular and Plural. Laria has two plural markers mne and gera which are used to change the number of the noun from singular to plural. Only common countable nouns can be inflected for number.

Singular Gloss Plural (Laria) Gloss
Inanimate Nouns
kurci 'chair' kurci gera 'chairs'
sa:eki:l 'cycle' sa:eki:l gera 'cycles'
kht 'bed' kht gera 'beds'
tebul 'table' tebul gera 'tables'
gad?i 'vehicle' gad?i mne 'vehicles'
cit?t?hi 'letter' cit?t?hi mne 'letters'
Animate Human Nouns
pila: 'boy' pila mne 'boys'
d?ki 'girl' d?ki mne 'girls'
lok 'man' lok gera 'men'
maejhi 'woman' maejhi mne 'women'
chua 'child' chua gera 'children'

Animate Non-Human Nouns
Singular (Laria) Gloss Plural (Laria) Gloss
ga:e 'cow' ga:e mne 'cows'
bld 'ox' bld mne 'oxen'
kukur 'dog' kukur gera 'dogs'
bilei 'cat' bilei gera 'cats'
makd? 'monkey' makd? gera 'monkeys'
myur 'peacock' myur gera 'peacocks'
Abstract Nouns
kthni 'story' kthni gera 'stories'
da:m 'price' da:m gera 'prices'
bhasn 'speech' bhasn gera 'speeches'
gi:t 'song' gi:t mne 'songs'
di:n 'day' di:n gera 'days'

mne is generally used for Animate Human Nouns and gera is used for all other nouns. But this categorisation is not strict as can be seen from the examples given. The plural marker gera seem to have been borrowed from Oriya guda. In Oriya the categorisation is pretty strict. Mane is used for Animate Human Nouns and guda is used for other nouns.
3.1.1.2 Gender Inflection

Laria does not have distinct gender marking or grammatical gender, kinship terms being the only exceptions. '-I' suffix is added after deleting 'a:' ending in most cases.

Masculine Gloss Feminine Gloss
kka 'uncle' Ka:ki 'Aunt'
mamu 'uncle' mami 'Aunt'
ja: 'Grandfather a:i 'Grandmother'
musa 'uncle' mausi 'Aunt'
sla 'brother-in-law' sa:li 'sister-in-law

For all other gender variation, a different lexical item is used.

Masculine Gloss Feminine Gloss
bhai 'brother' bhin 'sister'
pila: 'boy' d?ki/ t?ukel 'girl'
dda 'elder brother' bai 'elder sister'
bhato 'elder brother-in law bai 'elder sister-in law'
ssur 'father-in-law' sa:s 'mother-in-law'
po: 'son' jhi: 'daughter'
pod? 'bison' bhes 'buffalow'
bld 'bullock' ga:e 'cow'

3.1.1.2 Case Inflection

The category of case indicates syntactic and semantic relationship between (i) a noun or noun phrase and a verb, or (ii) two nouns or noun phrase. Case markers indicates the grammatical function of an argument NP, e.g., subject or object, and they express the semantic role of the argument NP in the prediction, e.g., reason or cause of an action or event, location of an event or state, source or goal of motion, etc. the genitive case, however, express the relation between two nouns phrases. Morphosytactically case marking in Laria is realised by postpositions.

In dealing with case inflection in Laria the following cases can be distinguished -

- nominative case
- accusative case
- dative case
- instrumental case
- locative case
- ablative case
- commutative case
- genitive case
- vocative case

3.1.1.3.1 Nominative Case

The nominative form of a noun is identical with the noun stem. The nominative case is thus not marked on the noun by means of any postposition in Laria. It is morphologically the unmarked case. The nominative case is nt only morphogically, but also syntactically and semantically, the unmarked case as other syntactic and semantic functions in Laria are mostly expressed by case markers or post-positions.

Syntactically the nominative case is the unmarked case i.e. it does not indicate a particular grammatical function, e.g. the subject function. A noun or noun phrase in nominative case may function as (i) subject, (ii) predicate (iii) subject complement, (iv) object complement.

In example (1) there are two nouns (or NPs) in the nominative case, where the first one functions as subject and the second as a predicate.

(1) ra:m chatr e
Ram student is
Ram is a student.'

In (2), the first noun phrase in nominative case functions as subject and the second noun phrase in nominative case functions as subject complement.

(2) ra:ju neta: bnis
Raju leader become-PST-3-SING
'Raju became a leader'.

In (3), the noun phrase in nominative case is the object complement.

(3) ra:ju rbi la neta: bneis
Raju Ravi ACC leader made-PST-3-SING
'Raju made Ravi a leader'.

The above examples show that the nominative can occur with a variety of syntactic functions. There is no strict interrelationship between the subject function and the nomnative case.

In contrast to all other cases, which are case marked, the nominative case, semantically, is the unmarked case in he sense that it does not express a particular semantic role of the noun phrase. The nominative cse noun phrase with subject function expresses a wide range of semantic roles, depending on the meaning of the verbal predicate. Some examples, showing three different semantic roles of the nominative noun phrase with subject function are given below.

Agent :--

(4) he p ila Ø cabi thi kbat la kh ulis
that boy key with door ACC open-PST-3-SING
'The boy opened the door with the key'.
Instrument : -

(5) churi Ø phl la katis
knife fruit ACC cut-PST-3-SING
'The knife cut the fruit'.
Patient : -

(6) 'kbat Ø khulis
door open-PST-3-SING
'The door opened'.

Since the nominative case is the semantically the unmarked case, a noun phrase will occur in the nominative case if no other specific case assigning rule lays claim to that particular noun phrase2. The nominative case is thus a sort of 'elsewhere case' for noun phrses that have no other motivated case assigned. But

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2S.B.Steever (1981a), c.f. T.Lehmann (1989(, A Grammar of Modern Tamil, Pondicherry Institute of Linguistics and Culture, Pondicherry, p. 27.

every noun phrase that occurs without a case marker is not in the nominative case as several case markers can be optionally deleted in certain contexts.3

3.1.1.3.2 Accusative Case

The accusative case marker is 'la' in Laria. The accusative case marks the direct object noun phrase of a transitive verb.

When the direct object noun phrase of a transitive verb is definite, the accusative case suffix occurs obligatorily on the object noun phrase. For example,

(7) ra:m si:ta: la pitis
Ram Sita ACC beat
'Ram beat Sita'.

(8) i: bhi la de
this book ACC give-PRE
'(Please) give this book.'

In (7) the object noun phrase consists of a definite noun, in (8) it contains determinative noun modifiers such as demonstrative pronoun i: 'this'. The object noun phrase is therefore definite in the above examples and the case marker is obligatory.

If the object noun phrase does not contain any nounmodifier which would indicate definiteness, the accusative case marker marks the object as specific.

(9) ra:ju mi:t?ha: la kha:is
raju sweet ACC eat-PST-3-SING
'Raju ate the sweet'.

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3 T. Lehmann (1989), A Grammar of Modern Tamil, Pondicherry Institute of Linguistics and Culture Pondicherry, p. 27.

(10) ra:ju mi:t?ha Ø kha:is
Raju sweet eat-PST-3-SING
'Raju ate sweet.'

The accusative case marker in (9) marks the object noun phrase as specific. The speaker refers to a particular 'sweet'. In (10) the object noun phrase has neither a noun modfier nor a case marker. The speaker just expresses that ra:ju was eating sweets (and nothing else). The object noun phrase occurs obligatory without the accusative suffix.

Whenever a non-rational object noun phrase is indefinite and generic as in (10) or (11), the object noun phrase is in the accusative case and is unmarked.

(11) pne bhat Ø ma?gis
he rice asked
'He asked for rice.'

When a non-rational object noun phrase is indefinite but marked by an indefinite noun modifier, the accusative case marker is optional.

(12) ra:ju gut?e baks (la) ut?heis
Raju one box (ACC) see-PST-3-SING
'Ram saw a man'.

When a rational [+ Human] noun phrase is indefinite but marked by an indefinite noun modifier the accusative case marker is optional.

(13) ra:m gut?e lok (la) dekhis
Ram one man (ACC) see-PST-3-SING
'Ram saw a man'.

When a rational noun phrase is indefinite, the accusative case marker is obligatory.

(14) ra:m chua la dekhis
Ram child ACC see-PST-3-SING
'Ram saw the child'.

The interdependence between the categories of accusative case, definiteness and rationality can be stated as follows:

(i) When the object noun phrase is definite, the accusative case suffix is obligatory.

(ii) When the object noun phrase is indefinite and non-rational and it is not preceded by an indefinite determiner, the noun phrase is unmarked.

(iii) When the object noun phrase is indefinite and non-rational and is preceeded by an indefinite determiner, the accusative case marker is optional.

(iv) When the object noun phrase is indefinite and rational but marked by a indefinite noun moidifier, the accusative case marker is optional.

(v) When the object noun phrase is indefinite and rational, the accusative case marker is obligatory.

The above results can be put in a matrix as given below:

Noun Phrase Determiner Case Marker
Denifite Rational Indefinite Definite Optional Obligatory Unmarked
+ + +
-- -- -- +
-- -- + +
-- + + +
-- + +

3.1.1.3.3 Dative Case

The dative case marker in Laria is la which is homophonous to the accusative marker. The dative case marker has two functions in Laria viz.(i) indirect object function and (ii) experience constructions.

3.1.1.3.3.1 Indirect Object Function

The indirect object noun (or noun phrase) of a di-transitive verb is marked by a dative case marker.

(15) ra:m si:ta la bhi t?c di:s
Ram Sita DAT book CL give-PST-3-SING
'Ram gave a book to Sita'.

In (15) 'Sita' is the indirect object marked by the dative case marker la.

3.1.1.3.3.2 Experiencer Constructions

In experience condstructions, the dative case marker is attached to the subject and hence the subject is known as dative subject.

(16) ra:m la jr heis
Ram DAT fever happen-PST-3-SING
'Ram had fever'.

(17) si:ta la ra:g la:gis
Sita DAT anger feel-PST-3-SING
'Sita became angry'.

When the subject noun phrase has the semantic role of recipient of experience, the noun phrase takes the dative case marker as in (16) and (17).

3.1.1.3.4 Instrumental Case

The instrumental case marker in Laria is the case marker thi. The instrumental case expresses the following semantic function: (i) instrument (ii) means (iii) source or material.

3.1.1.3.4.1 Instrument

(18) ra:m phl la cku thi katis
Ram fruit ACC knife INST cut-PST-3-SING
'Ram cut the fruit with the knife'.

3.1.1.3.4.2 Means

(19) hri senela nije ke iccha: thi ja:erihis
Hari there self POSS will INST go-PST-3-SING
'Hari had gone there of his own will'.

3.1.1.3.4.3 Source and Material

(20) ra:m i: hã:d?i la bael thi bneis
Ram this pot ACC sand INST made
'Ram made this pot out of sand'.
3.1.1.3.5 Locative Case

The case markers for locative case in Laria are upre 'on/over',tle' under', thi/bhitre 'in', ne'at', pa:khe 'near', bhitre'among'. In the following examples the locative case markers have been illustrated.

(21) bhi la t?ebul upre a:he
book CL table on LOC is
'The book is on the table'.

(22) ba:ks la kht? tle rkhla a:he
box CL bed under kept is
'The box is kept under the bed'.

(23) mit?ha: gera mid?set? thi/bhitre rkhla a:he
sweet PL cupboard in LOC kept is
'The sweets are kept in the cupboard'.

(24) gad?i la ghr ne a:he
vehicle CL home at is
'The vehicle is at home'.

(25) bl la gch pa:khe a:he
bail CL tree near is
'The ball is near ther tree'.

(26) he gda bhitru ken a:m gera lengd?a e
that heap among which mango PL langda is
'Which mangoes amongst that heap are Langda?'

3.1.1.3.6 Ablative Case

The ablative case marker in Laria is nu 'from'.

(27) ra:m skul nu asis
Ram school from come-PST-3-SING
'Ram came from school'.

(28) a:m la gch nu pd?is
mango CL tree from fall-PST-3-SING
'The mango fell from the tree'.

In (27) and (28) the ablative case marker is attached to the noun phrase skul and gch respectively.
3.1.1.3.7 Commitaive Case

The commutative case marker in Laria is s?ge 'with'. The function of commutative case is to show that the referent of the commutative case is involved in the same action as the other noun phrase.

(29) hri kr bhai s?ge a:sis
Hari his brother with some-PST
'Hari came with his brother'.

(30) t?ebul nu bhi s?ge klm bhi ped? guis
table from book with pen also fall-PST go-PST
'Along with the book a pen also fell from the table'.

3.1.1.3.8 Genitive Case

The genitive case is different from the other cases. It marks the syntactic function of a noun phrase in relation to another noun phrase and not to a verb as is the case with other cases. It marks a noun phrase as subordinate to and as modifier of another noun - its head. The semantic relation between the genitive NP which is the subordinate NP and its head is that of possession.

The genitive case marker in Laria is ke 'of'

(31) ra:m ke kukur
Ram of GEN mother
'Ram's dog'.

(32) si:ta ke ma:
Sita GEN mother
'Sita's mother'.

(33) gch ke da:l
tree of GEN branch
'The branch of a tree'.

3.1.1.3.8 Vocative Case

Vocative case is used to address somebody. Laria does not have vocative case.

3.1.2 PRONOUN INFLECTION

Pronoun is a term used in the GRAMMATICAL classification of WORDS, referring to the CLOSED sets of ITEMS which can be used to substitute for a NOUN PHRASE (or single noun). Pronouns therefore share the common characteristics of nouns and are syntactically substitutable for nouns. They are inflected for number, gender and case as well as persons by which they are distinguished from nouns.4

There are five classes of Pronouns in Laria (1) Personal (2) Reflexive (3) Relative (4) Possessive (5) Indefinite

3.1.2.1 Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns can be categorized into two classes (a) True personal pronouns (b) Non-true personal pronouns i.e. demonstrative pronouns.

3.1.2.1.1 True Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns have a fixed reference to one or a group of particular entities. The identity of the referent is identifiable by the hearer. It is extablished because the pronouns are used in discourse context i.e. anaphoric usage of pronouns.

In Laria, true personal pronouns can be inflected for number and person. Gender inflection for pronouns does not occur in Laria. The table below shows the personal pronouns.

Person Singular Plural
1st mE) 'I' ha:m 'we'
2nd tE) 'you'tum 'you' (hon.) tum 'you'tum mne 'you'
3rd pne 'he'u:mne 'he' (hon.) u:mne 'they' (-prox)i: u:mne 'they' (+prox)

Examples

(34) mE) d?a:ktr a:
I doctor am
'I am a doctor'.

(35) ha:m chatr a:n
we students are
'We are students'.

(36) tE) ghr ja:
you home go
'You go home'.

(37) tum mne bhat khae pka:
you PL rice eat drop
'You all (please) have your food'.

(38) pne kael jahi
he tomorrow go-FUT-3-PL
'He will go tomorrow'.

(39) u:mne kael jahi
they tomorrow go-FUT-3-PL
'They will go tomorrow'.

3.1.2.1.2 Non-true personal pronouns

Non-true personal pronouns ca be called demonstrative personal pronouns because they are marked for the category of spatial deixis. Demontrative pronouns can be promimate and remote. These are inflected for number and case Demonstrative pronouns can be categorized in 3rd person.

Person Singular Plural
3rd i: 'this' i:gera 'these'
i: pne 'this one' i:mne 'these people'
se / he 'that' se gera 'those'
se pne 'that one' se mne 'those people'
he pne 'that one' he mne 'those people'

3.1.2.2 Reflexive pronouns

Reflexive Pronouns can be categorized into three (a) Reflexive possessive
Pronouns (b) Emphatic reflexive pronouns (c) Reflexive pronouns.

3.1.2.2.1 Reflexive possessive pronouns

The reflexive possessive pronoun in Laria is the reflexive pronoun nije 'self' with he genitive marker ke i.e. nije ke 'self's'. It is invariant for all categories, i.e., number, person and gender. The examples below illustrate the fact.

(40) mE) nije ke ghr ja:hã:
I self POSS home go-FUT-1-SING
'I will go to my home'.

(41) tE) nije ke ghr jabe
you self POSS home go-FUT-2-SING
'You will go to your home'.

(42) si:ta: nije ke ghr ja:hi
Sita self POSS home go-FUT-2-SING
Sita will go to her home'.

3.1.2.2.2 Emphatic reflexive pronoun

The emphatic reflexive pronoun is homophonous to the reflexive pronoun, i.e., nije 'self'. The emphatic reflexive pronoun is also dame for all categories, i.e., number, person and gender. For example,

(43) mE) nije ka:m krE)
I myself work do-PST-1-SING
'I did the work myself'.

(44) tum nije bhat randh
you PL yourself rice cook-FUT-2-PL
'You cook rice yourself'.

(45) pne nije cit?t?hi lekhihi
he himself letter write-FUT-3-SING
'He himself will write the letter'.

3.1.2.2.3 Reflexive Pronoun

Reflexive Pronouns cannot exist on their own like Reflexive possessive pronouns and Emphatic reflexive pronouns. They must have an antecedent in the sentence. The Reflexive pronoun in Laria nije is also invariant for number, person and gender. For example,

(46) mE) nijei la drpn thi dekhE)
I self ACC mirror in see-PST-1-SING
'I saw myself in the mirror'.

(47) tE) nijei la bhlse dhu
you self ACC nicely wash-PRE-2-SING
'You wash yourself properly'.

(48) pnei nijei la drpn thi dekhE)
he self ACC mirror in saw
'He saw himself in the mirror'.

3.1.2.3 Relative Pronouns
Relative Pronouns are pronouns which link the main clause with the subordinate clause when the noun phrases are identical. All relative pronouns in Laria start with j. They have been listed as below.

jen / jie 'who' jebhe 'when'
jla 'whom' jendi 'which way'
jene 'where' jenjaga 'which place'

Relative pronouns are also invariant for categories of person and gender. When the matrix noun phrase is plural marker mne or gera is added to the relative pronoun.

(49) jen pila lal sa:t? pindhise pne mr bhai e
who boy red shirt wear-CONt he my brother is
'The boy who is wearing a red shirt is my brother'.

(50) jen mnla ?tE) d?ake rehe semne a:si nehe
who PL-ACC you callPST-2-SING they come PRE-3-PL
'The people whom you had called have come'.

(51) jene tE) ja:ths sene mr ma:mu rhthe
where you go-CONT there my uncle stay-PRE-3-SING
'The place where you are going my uncle stays there'.

(52) jen jaga: gera la tE) ja:ths jene hene bhl
where places PL ACC you goCONT there good
hotel ni n
hotel NEG FP
'The places where you are going don't have good hotels'.

3.1.2.4 Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns are pronouns which indicate possession. Possessive pronouns can be inflected for number and person in Laria.

Person Singular Plural
1st mor ha:mr
2nd tor tumhr/tumr
tumhr (hon.) / tumr
kr u:mnkr / u:kr
3rd u:kr (hon.)

The rules for the formation of possessive pronouns are:
Rule 1- C Ø C * _____

+ high
+ back
-- cont
--voice

Rule 2a - Ø - -cons # C VC _____ *
+cont [--spread]
+ spread

Rule 2b - V Ø _______ *

Rule 3 - C Ø # C + ________

-cont
+high
+back
-voice

Rule 4 -
-syllabic [+high] # C * ________
+ mid
+ back
+round

Rule 5 - CC Ø _______ *

Rule 5 is not ordered.

3.1.2.5 Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns can be divided into two categories (i) General referential pronouns, (ii) Specifid indefinite referential pronouns.

3.1.2.5.1 General refertial pronouns

When the inclusive particle is attached to the interrogatoive pronouns, the non-referentiality of the interrogative pronoun is annulled and the pronoun has the semantic property of a pronoun with general reference like 'anybody' or 'anything' in English. The reference of this pronoun is not fixed to a particular entity, but to any or all members of a class of entities. In Laria the inclusive particle bhi is attached to the interrogative pronoun.

kiye + bhi kiye bhi
who PART anyone
kene + bhi kene + bhi
where PART anywhere
kala + bhi kala bhi
What PART anything

3.1.2.5.2 Specific indefinite referential pronouns

When the numerical gute 'one' is attached to the interrogative pronoun, the non-referentiality of the interrogative pronoun is cancelled and a reference to a particular entity is established. The pronoun does not specify the identity of the referent, i.e., the referent is not identifiable by the hearer. For example,

kiye + gute kiye gute
who one Someone

kene + gute kene gute
where one Somewhere

kala + gute kala gute
what one something

3.1.2.6 Interrogative Pronouns

Interrogative Pronouns do not have a fixed reference. Since they occur in questions, in which they ask for information, they presuppose that the reference has not been established. Interrogative Pronouns can be inflected for number by adding the plural marker 'mne' or 'gera'. For example,

Singular Plural
kiye 'who'
ken 'which' ken mne 'who all'
kala 'what' ka gera 'what all'
ketekhn 'when'
kenta 'how'

3.1.2.7 Case
Pronouns like nouns can be case marked. The case markers are the same as used with nouns and also occur post nominally. These are

· nominative
· accusative
· dative
· ablative
· instrumental
· commutative
· locative
· genitive

Pronouns in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, person with the case markers have been illustrated below:

Pronouns Nominative Accusative Dative Ablative
1st Singular mE) mla mla mor nu
1st Plural ha:m ha:m la ha:m la ha:mr nu
2nd Singular tE) tla tla tor nu
2nd Plural tu:m tu:m la tla tumhr nu
3rd Singular pne  la  la  kr nu
3rd Plural u:mne tum la u:mn la u):kr nu

Pronouns Instrumental Commitative Locative Genetive
1st Singular mor duara/nu mor s?ge mor ne mor
1st Plural hamr duara/nu hamr s?ge tumhr ne hamr
2nd Singualar tor duara/nu tor s?ge tor ne tor
2nd Plural tumhr duara/nu tumhr s?ge tumhr ne tumhr
3rd Singular kr duara / nu kr s?ge kr ne kr
3rd Plural u:kr duara/nu u:kr s?ge u:kr ne u:kr

3.1.3 ADJECTIVE INFLECTION

Adjective is a term used in the GRAMMTICAL classification of words to refer to
the main set of itsms which specify the attributes of NOUNS. Adjectives genrally occupy a position immediately before the head in a noun phrase5.

Adjectives can occur in the attributive position i.e. they can occur within the noun phrase and they can occur in the predicative position i.e. they can occur in pre-verbal position in Laria.

(53) pne bhl pila e
he good boy is
'He is a good boy'.

(54) ra:m ke mã: bhut bhl e
Ram POSS mother very good is
'Ram's mother is very good'.
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5 Ibid., p. 7.

(55) he lmba pila: la ghr ja:th e
that tall boy CL home go-CONT
'That tall boy is going home'.

(56) he d?ki la lmba e
that girl CL tall is
'That girl is tall'.

In Laria, there is no distinction between the attributive and predicative case. The form of adjectives is invariant in all cases.

3.1.3.1 Number

In both singular and plural the adjectives remain te same.

(57) bhl pila: t?e a:sis e
good boy CL come-PST is
'A good boy has come'.

(58) bhl lok mne a:si nehE)
good peope PL come PST
'Some good people have come'.

3.1.3.2 Person

In all, 1st, 2nd and 3rd person, the adjective remains the same.

(59) mE) bhl pila ã
I good boy am-PRE-I-SING
'I am a good boy'.

(60) tE) lmba a:s
you tall are-PRE-2-SING
'You are tall'.

(61) dilli thi gora: lok mne rhthE)
Delhi in fair man PL stay-CONT-3-PL
'Fair men stay in Delhi'.

3.1.3.3 Gender

In both, masculine and feminine gender, the form of the adjective is invariant.

(62) bdmas pila la kãc bh?geis
naughty boy CL glass break-PST-3-SING
'The naughty boy broke the glass'.

(63) bdmas d?ki la kac bh?geis
naughty girl CL glass break-PST-3-SING
'The naughty girl broke the glass'.

3.1.3.4 Case

In Laria, the adjectives cannot be inflected for case. Their form is invariant in all
cases.

3.1.3.5 Kinds of Comparison

There are three kinds of comparison specified for adjective. They are (i) equality (ii) comparative (iii) superlative.

3.1.3.5.1. Equality

In specification of the equality of the attributes of the nouns, the marker of equality, jetki or etki 'as much as', is used in Laria. The form of the adjective is invariant in sentences indicating equality.

(64) ra:m hri etki gora e
Ram Hari as much fair is
'Ram is as fair as Hari'.

(65) ha:mr kuã: la u):kr kua etki cud?a e
our well CL their well as much wide is
'Our well is as deep as their well'.

3.1.3.5.2 Comparative

The comparative form is used for a comparison between two entities. In LAria, the marker of comparison nu 'than' is used in comparative sentences. The form of the adjective remains invariant as can be seen in the following examples.

(66) i: gch la he bijli khmba nu d?enga e
this tree CL that electric pole than tall is
'This tree is taller than that electric pole'.

(67) ra:m ke bhin kr bhai nu gora e
Ram POSS sister his brother than fair is
'Ram's sister is fairer than his brother'.

3.1.3.5.3 Superlative

Superlative is used in the three way GRAMMATICAL description of ADJECTIVES and ADVERBS into DEGREES, specifying the extent of their application. The superlative form is used to express a comparison between more than two entities6. In English there is both an inflection (-est) and PERIPHARASTIC construction (most) to express this notion (eg. biggest, most interesting)7.

Laria, unlike English, does not have any inflection to indicate superlative. Only periphrastic constructions can be used to indicate superlatives in Laria.

(68) pne bd? e
he big is
'He is big'.

(69) pne ra:m nu bd? e
he Ram than big is
'He is bigger than big Ram'.

(70) pne sbkr nu b?d e
he everyone than big is
'He is the biggest of all'.

The various degrees of a quality can be expressed by a pre-adjective modifier r intensifier as shown in the following examples.

(71) pne bhut lmba e
he very tall is
'He is very tall'.

(72) pne bhut besi lmba e
he very much tall is
'He is too tall'.
____________________
6 Ibid., p. 296.
7 Ibid.

(73) pne t?ike lmba e
he a little tall is
'He is rather tall'.

3.1.4 VERB INFLECTION

Verb is a term used in the grammatical classification of words, to refer to a class traditionally defined as 'doing' or 'action' words (a description which has been criticized inLINGUISTICS, largely on the grounds that many erbs do not 'act' in any obvious sense, e.g. seem, e.g. seem, be). The FORMAL definition of a verb refers to an element which can display MORPHOLOGICAL contrasts of TENSE. ASPECT, VOICE, MOOD, PERSON and NUMBER. FUNCTIONALLY, it is the ELEMENT which, singly or in combination with other verbs (i.e. verb phrase), is used as the minimal PREDICATE of a sentence, co-occuring with a SUBJECT. e.g. he/came8.

Laria verb forms can be divided into two types-finite and non-finite. Finite and non-finite verb forms can be defined syntactically rather than morphologically as no morphological property marks all finite and non-finite verb forms. Finite verb forms occur as predicate of the main clause i.e. they end a sentence. Non-finite verb forms occur as predicate of an embedded or sub-ordinate clause.

In Laria, finite verbs can be inflected for tense, aspect, mood, number and person. Verbs cannot be inflected be inflected for gender in Laria. The above categories for inflection have been dealt with in the following sections.

___________________
8 Ibid.,p.325.

3.1.4.1 Tense

Laria distinguishes between three tenses-past, present and fuiture. Being a highly inflecting language, the tense morphology is not independent of number and person inflection. The inflection paradigms for some of the verbs are given below.

Verb: - pd? - 'fall'

Present Past Future
1st Singular pd?th) pd?E) pd?h)
1st Plural pd?thn pd?en pd?bo
2nd Singular pd?ths pd?e pd?ebe
2nd Plural pd??th pd? pd?h
3rd Singular pd?the pd?is pd?hi
3rd Plural p dthE) pdin pdhi

Verb : - de - give

Present Past Future
1st Singular ?deth) dE) deh)
1st Plural dethn den debo
2nd Singular deths de debe
2nd Plural deth d deh
3rd Singular dethe dis dehi
3rd Plural dethE) di:n dehi

Verb : - ja :- 'go'

Present Past Future
1st Singular ja:th) jaE) ja:h ã/ ja:ih)
1st Plural ja:thn jaen ja:bo
2nd Singular jaths jae/ge ja:be
2nd Plural jath ja:/g ja:ha / jaha
3rd Singular jathe jais/guis jahi
3rd Plural jathE) jain / guin jahi

Verb : - kha - eat

Present Past Future
1st Singular khath) khaE) kha:ih)/khahã
1st Plural khathn khaen khabo
2nd Singular khaths khae khabe
2nd Plural khath kha khaih / khaha
3rd Singular khathe khais khahi
3rd Plural khathE) khain khahi

The tense paradigm for verbs in Laria can be formulated as given below. The inflectional suffixes can be added to verb stem for the required verb.

Present Past Future
1st Singular --th) -- E) --h)
1st Plural --thn --en --bo
2nd Singular --ths --e --be
2nd Plural --th -- --h
3rd Singular --the --is --hi
3rd Plural --thE) --in --hi
3.1.4.2 Aspect

Aspect is a category used in the GRAMMATICAL description of VERBS (along with TENSE and MOOD), referring primarily, to the way the grammar marks the duration or type of temporal activity denoted by the verb9.

Aspect can be categorised into the following - perfect, imperfect, habitual, continuous (non habitual imperfective aspect), progressive (continuous aspect of a nonstative (dynamic) verb), ingressive aspect (beginning of a situation), terminative aspect. The various aspectual categories have been dealt with in the following.
_____________________
9 Ibid.,p.24.

3.1.4.2.1 Perfect Aspect

The perfect aspect is an indication of the present relevance of a past situation, state, action, etc. The following table shows the verb de 'give' in perfect aspect illustrating its variation according to tense, number and person.

Verb - de - 'give'

Present Past Future
1st Singular dehã de rehE) derh)
1st Plural dehan derehen derhbo
2nd Singular dehas derehe derhbe
2nd Plural deha derh derh
3rd Singular dedise derihis Derihi
3rd Plural de fi:nehE) derihin Derihi

The following examples illustrate the verb forms in perfect aspect in Laria.

(74) ra:ju ka:m krel jaise
Raju work do-INF go-PRE-PER
'Raju has gone to work'.

(75) kael mE) mela dekhel jaerehe
Yesterday I fair see-INF go-PST-PER
'Yesterday I had gone to see the fair'.

(76) mor jiba:r la pne jaerihi n
my go-INF DET he go-FUT-PER
'When I reach there he will have gone'.

(74) is in present perfect, (75) is in past perfect and (76) is in future perfect respectively.
3.1.4.2.2 Perfective Aspect

Perfective aspect views a situation in its totality. Perfective aspect is shown by a suffix or an aspectual auxiliary or 'vectors'. The auxiliary verb or the vector verb which indicates the perfective aspect does not have its 'full' lexical meaning when it functions as a vector. Some of the verbs with their lexical and aspectual meaning are given.

Verb Lexical Meaning Aspectual Meaning
dis gave completion, finality
guis went completion, finality
pkeis make fall completion, finality

The sentences given below illustrate the perfective aspect in Laria.

(77) gurs la khra:b he guis
milk CL bad happen-PST go-PERF
'The milk has gone bad'.

(78) kr prikhya ser guis
his exam finish-PSt go-PERF
'His exams are over'.

(79) rbi kr ka:m ker di:s
ravi his work do-PST give-PERF
'Ravi did his work'.

(80) ra:ju kr bhai la maer di:s
Raju his brother ACC kill-PST give-PERF
'Raju killed his brother'.

(81) ra:m gadi la ghin pkeis
Ram vehicle ACC buy make fall-PERF
'Ram bought the vehicle'.

(82) gi:ta sbu bhat la khae pkeis
Gita all rice ACC eat-PST make-fall-PERF
'Gita ate all the rice'.

3.1.4.2.3 Continuous and Progressive Aspect

Continuous or progressive aspect shows the non-completion or continuity of the verb. The following table shows the verb de 'give' in continuous or progressive aspect. All the inflectional variations with respect to tense, number and person have been given.

Verb - de- 'give'
Present Past Future
1st Singular dth) dterehE) dterh)
1st Plural dthn dterehen dterbo
2nd Singular dths dterehe dterbe
2nd Plural dth dterh dtrh
3rd Singular dthe dtirihis dtirihi
3rd Plural dthE) dtirihin dtirihi

The examples given below illustrate the verb in continuous or progressive aspect.

(83) si:ta kand the
Sita cry-PRE-CONT
'Sita is crying'.

(84) tE) h)sterehe
you laugh - PST-CONT
'You were laughing'.

(85) tE) h)sterbe
you laugh-FUT-CONT
'You will be laughing'.

The verb in (83) is 3rd person, singular, present continuous, in (84) it is 2nd person, singular, past continuous and in (85) it is 2nd person, singular, future continuous.

3.1.4.2.4 Habitual Durative Aspect

The table given below shows the verb le 'take' in its perfect continuous aspect with inflections of number, person, and tense.

Verb- le- 'take'

Present Past Future
1st Singular lterth) lterehE) lterh)
1st Plural lterthn lterehen lterbo
2nd Singular lterths lterehe lterbe
2nd Plural lterth lterh lterh
3rd Singular lterthe lterihis lterihi
3rd Plural lterthE) lterihin lterihi

The inflections in past tense and future tense of continuous aspect and habitual durative aspects are the same. Only the inflections in present tense are different. The example given illustrate habitual durative aspect in Laria.

(86) mE) ra:ju nu bhi lterth)
I Raju from book rake-PRE-PER-CONT
'I have been taking books from Raju.'

(87) tum ra:ju nu bhi lterh
you-PL Raju from book take-PST-PER-CONT
'You had been taking books from Raju'.

(88) u:mne ra:ju nu bhi lterihi
They Raju from book take-FUT-PER-CONT
'They will have been taking books fron Raju.'

In (86) the verb is inflected for 1st person, singular, present perfect continuous, in (87) the verb is inflected for 2nd person plural present continuous and in (88) the verb is inflected for 3rd person plural present perfect continuous.

3.1.4.2.5 Habitual Aspect

The habitual aspect is expressed by the use of the simple present or the continuous/progressive aspect. The examples below illustrate the habitual aspect.

(89) u:mne sbu di:n ldthE)
They every day fight
'They fight everyday'.

(90) si:ta bhut sinema dekhtirihis
Sita lot cinema see-PST-CONT
'Sita used to see a lot of movies'.

In (89) the habitual aspect is expressed by simple present and in (90) by past continuous aspect marker.

3.1.4.3 Mood

Mood ('modality' or 'made') refers to a set of SYNTACTIC and SEMANTIC CONTRASTS signaled by alternative PARADIGMS of the verb, e.g. INDICATIVE (the unmarked form), SUBJEUNCTIVE, IMPERATIVE. Semantically, a wide range of meanings is involved, especially attitudes on the part of the speaker towards the factual content of his utterance, e.g. uncertainity, definiteness, vagueness, possibility. Syntactically, these contrasts may be signaled by alternative INFLECTIONAL forms of a verb, or by using AUXILIARIES10.
The various modal forms marked on the verb in Laria are shown under the various sub-sections.

3.1.4.3.1 Indicative Mood

A verb which makes a statement of fact or asks a question or expresses a supposition which is assumed as a fact, is in the Indicative Mood. (91), (92) and (93) are examples of the indicative mood.

(91) ra:m sbu di:n skul ja:the
Ram every day school go-PRE
'Ram goes to school everyday'.
_________________________
10 Ibid.,p.198.

(92) tE) bhi la pa:e ka
you book ACC get QUES
'Did you get the book?'.

(93) jdi brsa heis kele mE) ghre rh
if rain happen then I home stay
'If it rains, I shall stay at home'.

(91) is a statement of fact, (92) is a question and (93) is a supposition which is assumed as a fact.

3.1.4.3.2 Imperative Mood

The imperative mood is used to express a command, an exhortation, an entrety or prayer. The following are examples of verb in the imperative mood.

(94) i:ne la a:
here ACC come
'Come here'.

(95) a:u bhl krba:r lagi cesta:kr
more good do INF for try do
'Try to do better'.

(96) ha:mr upre dya kr
our on mercy do
'Have mery on us.'

Imperative mood can be judged from the statements as there is no inflectional marker to incate the imperative mood.
3.1.4.3.3 Potential Mood

Potential (or the ability to do something) is expressed by the verb par - 'can do' as the auxiliary to the infinitive verb. Positive potential is expressed by the auxiliary verb par - 'can do' while negative potential has the negative marker ni before the auxiliary verb. The following sentenes are examples of potential mood.

(97) ra:m i:thr prikhya pa:s krel pa:re
Ram this time exam pass do INF can do-PRE-3-SING
'Ram may pass the exam this year'.

(98) mi:ta dukh shel ni pa:ris
Mita sorrow bear NEG can-do-PRE-3-SING
'Mita could not bear the sorrow'.

3.1.4.3.4 Hortative or Suggestive Mood

When the spearker includes himself / himself in the wish or suggestion, the verb is said to be in the hortative mood

(99) kael sinema dekhel ja: u)
tomorrow cinema see-INF go-PL
'Let's go to see a cinema tomorrow'.

(100) cl khael bsu)
go eat-INF sit-PL-3-FUT
'Let's sit down to eat.'

In the hortative mood, the auxiliary verb has a-u suffix attached to infinitive verb root indicating suggestion.

A verb can be said to be in two voices according to its state - active and passive. A verb is in the Active voice when its form shows that the person or thing denoted by the subject does something; or in other words is the doer of the action. A verb is in the Passive Voice when its form shows that something is done to the person or thing denoted by the subject. The passive voice is so called because the person or thing denoted by the subject is not active but passive, i.e. suffers or receives some action.

(101) and (102) show active and passive voices in Laria.

(101) ra:m sita: la marthe
Ram Sita ACC beat-PRE-3-SING
'Ram beats Sita'.

(102) ra:m nu sita ma:r khathe
Ram from Sita hit eat-PRE-3-SING
'Sita is beaten by Ram'.

In Laria, the passive is formed by adding nu 'from' to the subject and raising the object to the subject position. The verb also changes from active marthe to passive ma:r khathe is beaten'. In non-configurational languages like Laria overt movement is not needed as in configurational languages like English as shown in the examples.

Active - Ram hit Sita

Pasive - Sita was hit by Ram.

Passives are not used very frequently in Laria. Sentences such as (102) are rarely used. Agentless passives are the most frequently used constructions in Laria. For example,

(103) cit?t?hi pt?ha diya guis
letter send given go-PST-3-SING
'The letter was sent'.

(104) kã:thi bna ja:the
wall built go-PRE-CONT-3-SING
'The wall is being built'.

(105) ghr bh?gae dia guis
house break give go-PST-3-SING
'The house was demolished'.

3.1.4.5 Causatives

Causative is a term used in GRAMMATICAL description to refer to the causual relationship between alternative versions of a SENTENCE11.

Causatives can be formed by two ways - morphological and periphrastic causatives. Morphological causatives are formed by adding an affix which has a causative role, e.g. -ise as in domesticase. (='cause to become domestic'). Periphrastic causatives are those in which a different word shows the causation e.g. die and kill (= cause to die).

Laria has morphological causatives like most Indain languages. Causatives are formed by adding '-a' suffix to the verb root eg.,

sikh 'learn' sikha 'cause to learn'

In Laria the 1st causative and 2nd causative are homophonous. For examples,

Verb 1st Causative 2nd Causative
_________________________
11Ibid., p.44.

rkh 'keep' rkha 'cause to keep' rkha 'cause to make keep'

su 'sleep' sua: 'cause to sleep' sua: 'cause to make sleep'

The following examples show the difference between verbshaving causation.

(106) chua suis
child sleep-PST-3-SING
'The child sleep'.

(107) pne chua la sua is
he child ACC sleep-CAUS-PST-3-SING
'He put the child to sleep'.

(108) pne ca:kr duara chua la suais
he servant by child ACC sleep-CAUS-PST-3-SING
'He put the child to sleep by the help of the servant'.

Therefore the 1st causative and 2nd causative are morphologically the same in Laria. The following table is a select list of verbs in Laria with their causative forms.

Verb 1st Causative 2nd CAusative
sikh 'learn' sikha 'cause to lean' sikha 'cause to make learn'
ra:g 'anger' rga 'cause to anger' rga 'cause to make anger'
dud?'run' dud? 'cause to run' dud? 'cause to make run'
kr 'do' 'kra 'cause to do' 'kra 'cause to make do'
a:n 'bring' na 'cause to bring' na 'cause to make bring'
g a:d 'bathe' gdha 'cause to bathe' gdha 'cause to bathe'

Thus, causatives are formed by adding a '-a' suffix to the verb. If the thematic vowel of the verb is 'a:' then it changes to the vowel '' in the causative verb as in

ga:dh gdha

ja:n jna:

na:c nca:

3.1.5 ADVERB INFLECTION

Adverb is a term used in the GRAMMATICAL classification of WORDS to refer to a heterogeneous groups of item whose most frequent function is to specify the mode of action of the VERB12. Adverbs can be inflected in two ways - comparison and degrees of a quality.

3.1.5.1 Comparison

Comparison can be devided into three sections.

Equality :-

Equality is expressed by adding the morpheme etki 'as much' to the standard of comparison.

(109) mE) ra:m etki jor dud?el pa:rth)
I Ram asmuch quickly run-INF able-PRE-1-SING
'I can run as fast as Ram.'

__________________________
12 Ibid., p. 9.

Comparitive

The comparative is expressed by adding the post-position nu 'from' to he standard of comparison.

(110) mE) sb kr nu jldi pdhel parth)
I everybody from quickly read-INF able-PRE-1-SING
'I can read faster than anybody else.'

(112) i: bja la sbu nu jor bajthe
this instrument CL all from loud play-PRE
'This instrument plays the loudest of all'.

3.1.5.2 Degrees of a quality

Degree of a quality can also be categorised into three sections.

Large measure

bhut 'a lot' or besi 'much' are used to indicate large measure. These words are used before the adverb.

(113) ra:ju bhut jor ktha khthe
Raju very loud conversation talk-PRE-3-SING
'Raju talks very loudly'.

Superabundence

The word kete ni ke te ' a huge amount' conbeys superabundance and it comes before the adverb.

(114) ra:jdhani kete ni kete jor jathe
Rajdhani very very quick goes
'Rajdhani goes very very fast'.

Small measure

The words tike 'a little', kichi 'a little' before the adverb convey the meaning of a small measure. The words bhut 'a lot' before the adverb also indicates small measure.

(115) pne t?ike dhire khthe
he little slowly say-PRE-3-SING
'He says a little slowly.'

(116) bld gad?i bhut dhire jathe
bullock cart very slowly go-PRE-3-SING
'A bullock cart goes very slowly.'

3.1.6 NUMERALS

3.1.6.1 Cardinal Numerals

The numerals used in Laria for counting are the same as that of Sambalpuri. The numerals from 1 to 20 are as follows :

1 - ek 11 - ega:r
2 - dui 12 - bar
3 - ti:n 13 - ter
4 - caer 14 - cud
5 - pa:c 15 - pndr
6 - c h 16 - sulh
7 - sa:t 17 - str
8 - a:t?h 18 - t?hr
9 - n 19 - uneis
10 - ds 20 - kur?e

The numbers from 21 to 28 have a suffix - is attached to them; 31 to 38 have -tis suffix;
41 to 48 have -lis suffix; 51 to 58 have -bn suffix; 61 to 68 have -sthi suffix, 71 to 78
have -si suffix; 91 to 98 have -nbe suffix. The numbers multiples of 10 are as follows :

20 - kure 70 - staor
30 - tiris 80 - si
40 - calis 90 - nbe
50 - pcas
60 - sat?he

The numerals just preceding the multiples of 10 have n- prefix attached to them, for
Example 29 proceeds 30 and it is ntiris. Similarly, 39 is ncalis and so on.

Four other basic numerals used are : se '100', hja:r '1000', lakh '100,000', koti '10
million'. The word used for million is dslakh.

3.1.6.2 Ordinal Numerals

Oridinal Numerals are generally not used in Laria. Whenever they are used, the ordinal numerals of Oriya are borrowed e.g., dutiy second, trutiy third, pncm 'fifth'.

(117) pne trutiy thi pdthe
he third in reads
'He studies in the third'.

(118) pne ti:n klas thi pdthe
he three class in reads
'He studies in class three'.

(118) is the more regularly used form in Laria speech.

3.1.6.3 Distributive Numerals

Numerals can be reduplicated to form distributives ek-ek 'one by one', dui - dui 'by twos', ti:n - ti:n 'by threes', hja:r - hja:r 'by thousands', lakh - lakh 'by lakhs, etc.

3.1.7 QUANTIFIERS

In some MODELS OF GRAMMATICAL description, 'quantifiers' refer to a class of items expressing contrasts in quantity occuring with restricted DISTRIBUTION in the NOUN PHASE, e.g., much/many, several, a lot of.13

Some of the words which occur as quantifiers are

tike 'a little' pura - 'whole'
etki 'this many' setki - 'that many'
etki 'this much' setki - 'that much'
kete 'how much' kete - 'how many'
sbu 'all' bhut - 'amny/much'
kichi 'some'

These quantifiers are modifiers of nouns and adjectives as shown in some of the examples below:

pura gã
whole village
'The whole village'
etki bhat
this much rice
'This much rice'
bhut bhl
very good
'Very good'.

13 Ibid., p. 253.

3.2 DERIVATIONAL MORPHOLOGY

Derivational is a term used in Morphology to refer to one of the two main categories or processes of word formation, the other being inflection. The resulr of a derivational process is a new word (eg., class - classical). Derivational affixes change the grammatical class of morphemes to which they are attached (as in suffixation, e.g., -tion is a noun forming derivational suffix).14

In Laria derivation is not a very productive word - formation device. Most of the words which can undergo derivation are loan words either from Oriya or Hindi. This will be dealt with in deal with in detail in Chapter V. The derivational processes are discussed in the following sections.

3.2.1 Derivation of Nouns

3.2.1.1 Nouns from Nouns

-I suffix can be added to nouns to create nouns indicating the quality of a [+Human] noun. For example :

ca:s 'agriculture' - ca:si 'agriculturist'
sa:has 'courage' - saha:si 'courageous'
sika:r 'hunted' - sika:ri 'hunter'
ked 'jail' - kedi 'prisoner'
gun? 'virtue' - gun?i 'virtuous person'
lobh 'greed' - lobhi 'greedy person'
husia:r 'clever' - husia:ri 'cleverness'
___________________________________
14 Ibid., p.89.

Nouns can be formed by adding the prefixes -, nir-, p-, n-. The derived nouns are the negative counterparts of the nouns given.

st 'truth' - st 'lie'
ja:ti 'caste' - ja:ti 'outside caste'
i:ccha 'with' - niccha 'without wish'
ka:m 'work' - ka:m 'without work'
bela 'time' - bela 'without time'
karn? 'reason' - karn? 'without reason'
santi 'peace' - santi 'without peace'
jn 'people' - nirjn 'desolated'
a:sa 'hope' - nira:sa 'hopeless'
bhdr 'civilized' - bhdr 'uncivilized'

-ami suffix can be added to nouns to derive abstract nouns.

murukh 'fool' - murukhami 'foolishness'
pagl 'mad' - pagami 'madness'
bhdr 'civilized' - bhdeami 'civility'

-da:r suffix can be suffixed to nouns to derive personified nouns indicating possession.

jmi 'land' - jmida:r 'landowner'
krja 'loan' - krjd a:r 'debtor'
ma:l 'money' - ma:lda:r 'rich man'

-bad is suffixed to nouns to derive nouns.

samra:jy 'kingdom' - samra:jyba:d 'king's rule'
smaj 'society' - smajba:d 'socialism'
ugr 'hostile' - ugrba:d 'terrorism'

These nouns are loan words from Oriya.

3.2.1.2 Nouns from Verbs

Laria does not have large number of derivations of nouns from verbs except in participles.

bu:h 'carry' - pa: en buha: 'water bearer'
bi:k 'sell' - phlbi:ka 'fruit seller'
k 'say' - khelaktha 'the thing which is said'
bs 'sit' - bsla pi:la 'the boy who is sitting'
ja 'go' - gla pi:la 'the boy who went'
kha 'eat' - khaela jinis 'the thing which was eaten'
de 'give' - dela jinis 'the thing which was given'

-a, -ela or -la suffix is used for participalisation and noun formation.

-nia is suffixed to some verbs to derive nouns but these seem to be loan words from Sambalpuri.

na:c - 'dance' - ncnia 'dancer'
ra:ndh - 'cook' - rndhnia 'cook'

3.2.1.3 Nouns from Adjectives

Nouns cannot be derived from adjectives. But some of the ajectives are homophonous with nouns as given below.

muruk 'foolish' - muruk 'fool'
husiar 'clever' - husiar 'clever'
pagl 'mad' - pagl 'mad'
ca:la:k 'clever' - ca:la:k 'clever'

3.2.1.4 Nouns from Adverbs

Nouns cannot be derived from adverbs in Laria.

3.2.2 DERIVATION OF VERBS

3.2.2.1 Verbs form Nouns

Laria does not have any process of deriving verbs frm nouns.

3.2.2.2 Verbs from Verbs

Causativisation is the process of deriving verbs from verb by adding a '-a' suffix to the verb. Some examples are given below.

kha: 'eat' - khua: 'feed'
ma:r 'kill' - mra: 'cause to kill'
bs 'sit' - bsa 'cause to sit'
si:kh 'learn' - si:kha 'cause to learn'

3.2.2.3 Verbs from Adjectives

Verbs are not derived from adjectives.

3.2.3.4 Verbs from Adverbs

Verbs are not derived from adverbs.

3.2.3 Derivation of Adjectives

3.2.3.1 Adjectives from Nouns

Adjectives can be derived from nouns by adding '-I' suffix to the noun.

sk 'suspicion' - ski 'suspicious'
dukh 'sadness' - dukhi 'sad'
bides 'foreign' - bidesi 'foreigner'
udyog 'industry' - udyogi 'industrial'
pryog 'experiment' - pryogi 'experimental'

-si:l suffix is used to derive adjectives from nouns with loan words form Oriya. Both, the noun and adjectives are loan words from Oriya.

prgti 'progress' - prgtisi:l 'progressive'
unnti 'progress' - unntisi:l 'progressive'
a:krmn? 'agression' - a:krmn?si:l 'aggressive'

-ia suffix is added to nouns to derive adjectives as shown below

tel 'oil' - telia: 'oily'
nun 'salt' - nunia: 'salty'
hldi 'termeric' - hldia: 'yellow'

3.2.3.2 Adjectives from Verbs

Adjectives can be derived from verbs by adding a -la suffix to the verb.
pa:c 'ripen' - pa:cla: 'ripe'
su:kh 'dry' - su:khla 'dry'
sr 'rancid' - srla 'rancid'
ja: 'go' - gla brs 'past year'
bd? 'grow' - bd? 'grown-up girl'

The above formed adjectives are relative participles functioning as adjectives.

3.2.3.3 Adjectives from Adjectives

The Sanskrit prefix ntr- is used in loan words to derive adjectives from adjectives.

ra:st?riy 'national - ntra:st?riy 'international'
ja:ti:y 'caste' - ntja:ti:y 'inter-caste'
desi 'national' - ntdesi 'inland'

3.2.3.4 Adjectives from Adverbs

Laria does not have any process of deriving adjectives from adverbs.

3.2.4 DERIVATION OF ADVERBS

3.2.4.1 Adverbs from Nouns

Adverbs cannot be derived from nouns in this language.

3.2.4.2 Adverbs from Verbs

Past participle of the verbs are used extensively as adverbs. Past participles are formed by adding -tel suffix to the verb.

ga: 'sing' - ga:tel guis 'went singing'
kha: 'eat' - khatel guis 'went eating'
hs 'laugh' - hstel a:sis 'came laughing'
kand 'cry' - kandtel pleis 'went crying'

3.2.4.3 Verbs from adjectives

There is no derivational process to form adverbs from adjectives.

3.2.4.4 Adverbs from Adverbs

There is noderivational processto derive adverbs from adverbs.

3.3 COMPOUND MORPHOLOGY

Compounding is also a productive word formation process in the language. Several types of compounds may be distinguished both on the formal and semantic levels. The important types are detaile below.

3.3.1 NOUNS

3.3.1.1 Noun-Noun Compounds

3.3.1.1.1 Hyponomous Compounds

Hyponomous compounds consist of a concrete noun as the first element and a descriptive noun indicating the semantic category as second element.

khra 'sun' ma:s 'season' ; khra ma:s 'summer season'
ghur?a 'horse' gadi 'carriage' ; ghur?a gad?i 'horse carriage'
kpr?a 'cloth' duka:n 'store' ; kpr?a duka:n 'cloth store'

3.3.1.1.2 Dwanda compounds

This class of additive compounds (also called 'w-compounds') involves two nouns which belong to the same semantic class.

aE)kh 'eye' ka:n 'ear' ; aE)kh ka:n 'facial features'
gad?i 'car' motr 'car' ; gad?i motr 'vehicles'

3.3.1.1.3 Reduplicative Compounds

Reduplicative compounds involve repetition of nouns to intensify meaning, as well as to convey an exhaustive meaning.

ghr 'house' ; ghr ghr 'every house'
kaend 'cry' ; kaend kaend 'cry intensely'

3.3.1.1.4 Partially Reduplicative Compounds

These are also known as echo words.

tel 'oil' ; tel tula 'oil and the like'
ba:g 'tiger' ; ba:g bugi 'tiger and te like'

Reduplication and Echo word have been dealt with in detail in section 3.4.

3.3.1.2 Verb-Noun Compunds
3.3.1.3 Adjective-noun compounds

Compounds consisting of adjectives and nouns are :

khali gud?e 'barefoot'
cnda mud?ia 'bald headed'
caer gud?ia 'four-legged'
dui hlia 'one who owns two plough'

3.3.2 VERBS

3.3.2.1 Noun/Adjective compounds (conjunct verbs)

The term conjunct verb refers to certain combination of non-verbal elements, which may be called preverbs, with verbs. The verb and the preverb together form a semantic unit. The preverb usually determines the nature of the complements and other parts of the sentences15. The pre verbs are generally Nouns or Adjectives. Conjunct verbs are formed with only a few types of verbs which can be listed as follows :

krbar 'to do'
hebar 'to be'
debar 'to give'
lag bar 'to feel'

Examples of conjunct verbs with all the above are given below :

juhar kr bar 'to do obeisance to'

________________________
15 H. Van Olphen (1973), 'Functional and Non-Functional Conjunct Verbs in Hindi', International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics, Vol. 34, No. 4, p. 237.

bhl kr bar 'to do good'
psnd hebar 'like'
lobh hebar 'greed'
udha:r debar 'to lend'
dukh debar 'to afflict sorrow'
la:j lagbar 'to be ashamed'
bu:kh lagbar 'to be angry'
khula ahe 'is open'
bhl ahe 'is well'
Conjunct verbs formed with the verb debar 'to give' and ker bar, 'to do' are active, hebar 'happen' is inchoative, ahe 'is'stative. Conjunct verbs are also formed in Experiential dative consructions with the verb lag bar 'to feel' which are in the inchoative category.

3.3.2.2 Verb - Verb Compounds (compound verbs)

Compound verbs consist of a main lexical verb and an explicator (vector', 'post-'verb). The various compound verbs have been illustrated below.

A class of compound verbs consists of a main verb in the infinitive form followed by an explicator.

ji:ba:r a:he 'to go is'
kheba:r a:he 'to say is'
a:sba:r rhis 'to come stay'
khael pd?ihi 'to eat fall'
marel pd?ihi 'to kill fall'

Infinitives in Laria can be formed by adding ba:r to the verb or -el suffix to the stem of the verb.

Other explicators like de 'give', guis 'went' pka 'make fall' etc. form a wide range of compound verbs.

maer de 'kill give'
a:en de 'bring give'
le de 'take give'
khae de 'eat give'
pi: de 'drink give'
dekh de 'see give'
baed? de 'serve give'
ker de 'do give'

ker pka 'do make fall'
a:en pka 'bring make fall'
maer pka 'kill make fall'
khae pka 'eat make fall'
plae guis 'went went' (went away)
khae guis 'eat went'
pi: guis 'drink went'
khe guis 'said went'
bed? guis 'enlarge went'
kem guis 'small went'
Explicators are inflected for number and person. For instance :

khae guis 'eat went' (3rd person singular)
khae ge 'eat went' (1st person singular)
khae g 'eat went' (2nd person plural)

3.3.3 Postposition

3.3.3.1 Postposition - Postposition compounds.

Locative case markers can be formed into compounds as shown in the examples.

upr tl 'above and below'
a:g pch 'front and behind'
bahar bhitr 'outside and inside'

3.4 REDUPLICATION

Reduplication stands for repetition of all or a part of a lexical item carrying a semantic modification. Reduplication thus, can be partial or complete. For instance, b"cca b"cca 'child child' in Hindi is an example of complete reduplication, da-dal 'strike intensively' in Munda is an instance of partial reduplication. The Reduplicated structure thus derived functions as a single lexical category. Reduplication may also refer to the iteration of syllables which constitute a single word/lexeme. Thus l?l? 'clouds' in Khasi and ra? ra? 'flowers' in Kharia or sr sr 'flowering water' in Hindi are instances of reduplication inspite of the fact that the part which is repeated is not a lexical item. (It acquires this status only after it is being reduplicated). In such cases, the repetition of such syllables itself constitutes a word or a lexical item. All reduplicated onomatopoeic constructions in natural languages can be cited as instances of reduplication of iterated syllables16. Reduplicated structures can be divided into two broad categories - Morphological Reduplication and Lexical Reduplication.

3.4.1 MORPHOLOGICAL REDUPLICATION

Morphological Reduplication refers to the minimally meaningful and segmentally indivisible morphemes whicha are constituted of iterated syllables. Thus, the base and the iterated part together constitute a single morpheme which is also a lexeme17.

Morphological Reduplication can be of various forms like onomatopoeias, sound symbolism, ideophones and imitatives. These various forms can be together categorised as expressives.
__________________
16 A. Abbi, (1991), Reduplication in South Asian Languages : An Areal, Typological and Historical Study, Allied Publishers Limited, Delhi, p. 12.
17 Ibid.,

3.4.1.1 Expressives in Laria

Expressives in Laria, like other South Asian languages, can be used to emote all the five senses of perception, i.e., of smell, sight, touch, hearing and taste. Some examples are cited below.

3.4.1.1.1 Acoustic noises

(a) Animal noises :
'dog barking'
bho-bho

(b) Noises of natural phenomena :
'rain pattering'
t?p- t?p
'thundering sounds'

gr-gr

(c) Noises made by humans :

'laughing sound'

khi-khi

(d) Noises by miscellaneous inanimate objects:

'jingling of anklets'

chn- chn
'tapping of shoes'
t?k- t?k

3.4.1.1.2 Sense of sight

These usually refer to the flickering or glimmering or shimmering aspects of an object :

'shining - twinkiling'

cm- cm

'shining'

cik-cik

3.4.1.1.3 Sense of Touch

Some of the expressives indicating the 'feel of' or 'touch' overlap with those indicating sounds. Perhaps they reflect that touching of objects also produce certain sounds.

'sticky' 'itchy'
cp cp kit? kit?
'soft'
lb-lb

3.4.1.1.4 Sense of Smell

Expressives are used for good and bad smells.

'bad smell'
bhn-bhn

3.4.1.1.5 Sense of Taste

'tangy' 'crunchy'
kurum-kurum ct? -pt?

Thus, reduplicative expressives are common and abundant in Laria, like other South Asian languages. The knowledge of expressive constitute a part of the linguistic competence of the native speakers18.

3.4.2 Lexical Reduplication

Lexical Reduplication thus refers to the repetition of any sequence of phonological units comprising a word. Lexical reduplication, unlike morphological reduplication, is not minimally meaningful and thus can be further devuded as they are formed of two identical words, or two non-identical phonological words. From the grammatical point of view, however, they act as a single lexical category. Most often reduplicated structures have distinct morpho-syntactico properties that keep them different form the other lexical items in the lexicon of thelanguages19.

Lexical reduplication can be partial or complete. The various types of lexical reduplication are :

3.4.2.1 Echo Formations

An echo word has been defined asa partically repeated form of the basic word-partically in the sense that either the initial phoneme (which can be either a consonant or a vowel) or the syllable of the base is replaced by another phoneme or another syllable. The replacer (phoneme/syllable) sound sequences are more or less fixed and rigid. The replacer sound sequences may nt necessarily be unique but may never be numerous20.
____________________
18 Ibid., p. 17.
19 Ibid., p. 13.
20 Ibid., p. 20.

An echo word is meaningless by itself but it conveys the sense of 'etc' and 'things similar to' or associated with that' etc. Some examples of echo formation are given below.

3.4.2.1.1 Nouns

nã: 'name' ; nã nui 'name, etc'
phl 'fruit' ; phl 'fruit, etc.'
ba:g 'tiger' ; ba:g 'tiger, etc.'
rkt 'blood' ; rkt rukti 'blood. etc.'
kukur 'dog' ; kukur kukra 'dog, etc.'
bilei 'cat' ; bilei bula 'cat, etc.'

3.4.2.1.2 Adjectives

de?ga 'tall' ; de?ga du?gi 'tall, etc.'
chot? 'short' ; chot? chut?i 'short, etc.'
shj 'easy' ; shj suhji 'easy, etc.'

3.4.2.1.3 Pronouns

Echo words of pronouns cannot be formed.

3.4.2.1.4 Adverbs

jor 'fast' ; jor juri 'fast, etc.'
dhire 'slow' ; dhire dhuri 'slow, etc.'

3.4.2.1.5 Verbs

dekhel 'to see' ; dekhel dukhla 'to see, etc.'
ghsel 'to rub' ; gheel ghusla 'to rub, etc.'
chiel 'to touch' ; chiel chula 'to touch, etc.'

The echo formation rule in Laria can be given as

(C) V X (C) V X V i/a

+ high + high
+ back - back

+ back
+ low

where X refers to rest of the stem. Deletion under identity takes place in Laria. The vowel shows the pattern of echo formations. There is always a conscious effort to distinguish between word reduplication and echo formation. For example,

chua chui 'child, etc.' chui chua 'vegetable etc.'

3.4.2.2 Compounds

The compounds refer to the paired construction in which the second word is not an exact repetition of the first but has some similarity or relationship to the first word either on the semantic or he phonetic level. Each constituent word of a compound has a meaning of its own and hence can be used independently in a sentemce.More often than not the paried construction has a new meaning and a new reference21. Some examples of compounds are:

uthba:r 'to rise' bsba:r 'to sit' ; uthba:r bsba:r 'frequening'
tol 'measure' mol 'price' ; tol mol 'bargain'
sukh 'happiness' dukh 'suffering' ; sukh dukh 'ups & downs of life'
jiba:r 'togo' a:sba:r 'to come' ; jiba:r a:sba:r 'travel about'
lekha 'write' pd?ha 'read' ; lekha pdha 'studying'

3.4.2.3 Word Reduplication

Word Reduplication refers to the total or partial bimodal reduplication, meaning therefy repetition of the base of the word or of the stem. Reduplication can be of either a syllable or a larger constituent of word or of the whole word. Whatever the unit of reduplication the end result is a new word which has no parallel in its non-reduplicated counterpart22.

3.4.2.3.1 Complete Reduplication

Completely reduplicated words may not serve as a single structural category and thus take affixes twice at the end of each constituent of the word. Examples of complete reduplication is shown in various part of speech.

Nouns

ghr 'house' ; ghr ghr 'house house'
maet? 'mud' ; maet? maet? 'mud mud' (dirty)
pani 'water' ; pani pani 'water water' (wet)
gã 'village' ; gã gã 'village village'
tel 'oil' ; tel tel 'oil oil' (oily)

_____________________
21 Ibid, p. 24.
22 Ibid, p. 25.

Adjectives

bhl 'good' ; bhl bhl 'good good' (nice)
gol 'round' ; gol gol 'round round'
ptla 'thin' ; ptla ptla 'thin thin'
cept?a 'flat' ; cept?a cept?a 'flat flat'

Verbs

dud?te 'run' ; dud?te dud?te 'run run' (while running)
khae 'eat' ; khae khae 'eat eat' (while eating)
hes 'laugh' ; hes hes 'laugh laugh' (while laughing)
dekhte 'see' ; dekhte dekhte 'see see' (while seeing)
gae 'sing' ; gae gae 'sing sing' (while seeing)

Adverbs

jor 'fast' ; jor jor 'fast fast' (very fast)
dhire 'slow' ; dhire dhire 'slow slow' (very slowly)
jldi 'quick' ; jldi jldi 'quick quick' (very quick)

Postposition

upre 'above' ; upre upre 'above above' (on top)
tle 'below' ; tle tle 'below below' (underneath)
bhitre 'inside' ; bhitre bhitre 'inside inside' (inside)

3.4.2.3.2 Discontinuous Word Reduplication

The kind of Reduplication stems that are disjoined by an interfixation of a syllable (which could be a V, or VC or CV) may be termed as DISCONTINUOUS WORD REDUPLICATION23. Some examples of discontinuouos word reduplication are:

km nu km 'minimum'
chot? nu chot? 'smallest'
bd? nu bd? 'biggest'

_____________
23. Ibid., p. 27.