Animacy: Difference between revisions

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Toaq has a system of grammatical '''animacy'''.
Toaq has a system of grammatical '''animacy'''.


Any noun phrase belongs to one of nine '''classes''', each with its own word for “he/she/they/it” that refers back to the most recent noun phrase belonging to that class. (This system of anaphoric pronouns is the ''only'' place in Toaq where this animacy distinction comes up, so the classes are known varyingly as '''animacy classes''', '''anaphora classes''', or '''pronominal classes'''.)
Any noun phrase belongs to one of four '''classes''', each with its own word for “he/she/they/it” that refers back to the most recent noun phrase belonging to that class. (This system of anaphoric pronouns is the ''only'' place in Toaq where this animacy distinction comes up, so the classes are known varyingly as '''animacy classes''', '''anaphora classes''', or '''pronominal classes'''.)


== Grammatical, rather than natural animacy ==
== Grammatical, rather than natural animacy ==
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If you know some Spanish, it's like "grammatical gender" in that language. ''La persona'' is feminine, even if the person you're talking about isn't necessarily female.
If you know some Spanish, it's like "grammatical gender" in that language. ''La persona'' is feminine, even if the person you're talking about isn't necessarily female.


Toaq's pronouns work the same way: if you describe a person as {{t|sa sảo}} (“someone big”), the appropriate pronoun to refer to them later in the sentence is {{t|tá}} (“it<sub>adj.</sub>”), because {{t|sảo}} is an adjective. It's not correct to use {{t|hó}}, because that's the pronoun for animate ''verbs'', not animate referents.
Toaq's pronouns work the same way: if you describe a person as {{t|sá sao}} ("someone big"), the appropriate pronoun to refer to them later in the sentence is {{t|tá}} (“it<sub>descriptive</sub>”), because {{t|sao}} has the "descriptive" animacy. It's not correct to use {{t|hó}}, because that's the pronoun for animate ''verbs'', not animate referents.


== Table of classes ==
== Table of classes ==
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! Nr. !! Class !! Pronoun !! Example !! Meaning
! Nr. !! Class !! Pronoun !! Example !! Meaning
|-
|-
! colspan=5 | Verb classes
| I || Animate || {{t|hó}} || {{t|sá poq}} || a person
|-
|-
| I || Animate verbs || {{t|hó}} || {{t|sa pỏq}} || a person
| II || Inanimate || {{t|máq}} || {{t|sá jıo}} || a building
|-
|-
| II || Inanimate verbs || {{t|máq}} || {{t|sa jỉo}} || a building
| III || Abstract || {{t|hóq}} || {{t|sá sıo}} || an idea
|-
|-
| III || Abstract verbs || {{t|hóq}} || {{t|sa sỉo}} || an idea
| IV || Descriptive || {{t|tá}} || {{t|sá de}} || something pretty
|-
| IV || Adjective verbs || {{t|tá}} || {{t|sa dẻ}} || something pretty
|-
! colspan=5 | Syntactic classes
|-
| V || {{tone|5}} clauses || {{t|róu}} || {{t|dûa jí sıa rảı}} || that I know nothing
|-
| VI || {{t|lu}} phrases || {{t|kúy}} || {{t|lú tảo jí hóa}} || what I do
|-
| VII || {{class|po|object-incorporating verb}} phrases || {{t|zé}} || {{t|pó sa gỉ}} || a good one's
|-
! colspan=5 | Odd-one-out classes
|-
| VIII || Personal pronouns || {{t|fúy}} || {{t|nháo}} || they
|-
| IX || Demonstratives || {{t|bóu}} || {{t|ní}} || this
|-
| 0 || Just {{t|raı}} || {{t|ráı}} || {{t|sa rảı}} || something
|}
|}
Note the following distinction:
* Classes I through IV apply depending on the "main" '''verb animacy class''' of a determiner phrase (animate, inanimate, abstract, or unspecified).
* Classes V through VII apply when the expression has a certain grammatical form.
* Classes VIII, IX, and 0 apply to specific closed sets of verbs.


=== Verb animacy classes ===
=== Verb animacy classes ===
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|}
|}
</div>
</div>
<div style="font-size: smaller; padding: 1em">[[User:Lynn|Lynn]]’s animacy poster, <br>outlining the main verb animacy classes. <br>[[Media:AnimacyPoster.png|See image version.]]
<div style="font-size: smaller; padding: 1em">The main verb animacy classes. <br>[[Media:AnimacyPoster.png|See image version.]]


</div>
</div>
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*: ''Examples:'' {{t|doq, nuı, juı, lıo, muo, raq, daı, de…}}
*: ''Examples:'' {{t|doq, nuı, juı, lıo, muo, raq, daı, de…}}


'''Class 0''' consists of just the verb {{t|raı}}. This is so that we can use {{t|raı}} as a dummy verb whose only role is to bind {{t|ráı}} for later use, e.g.,
There is one exception: the verb {{t|raı}}. This is so that we can use {{t|raı}} as a dummy verb whose only role is to bind {{t|ráı}} for later use, e.g.,
:; {{t|Sa rảı bı, dủa jí bû bỏ jí ráı da.}}
:; {{t|Sá raı nä dua jí, ꝡä bu bo jí ráı da.}}
:: ''There are some things I know I don’t own.''
:: ''There are some things I know I don’t own.''
Variables (words starting with the prefix {{t|nha-}}) also behave this way.


=== Which is the "main" class? ===
In a serial verb, the first verb determines the animacy.
How do we determine the animacy class of a DP like {{t|sa dẻ pỏq}} — a [[serial]] of a class-IV and a class-I word?
 
An unofficially proposed rule seems to boil down to: "use the first non-class-IV word's class, if possible; otherwise use class IV".<ref name=loekia />
 
=== References ===
 
<references>
<ref name=loekia>
[https://discord.com/channels/311223912044167168/889589074011230230/926472970518548490 Loekıa’s formulation] {{Transcript|[[User:Loekıa]]: <blockquote>
I've been thinking about how to determine the animacy class of serials. To me, both of Hỏemaı's original suggestions for how to do this lead to unexpected results, such as pủ zảı being class III if you just use the head's animacy, and chủa lỉq being class I if you take the most animate serial component. So, I've come up with the following system that I think works rather intuitively, using the concept of 'animacy strength', similar to the concept of 'class strength' first described here: https://toaqlanguage.wordpress.com/2021/08/08/miscellanea1/#comment-244 {{Transcript|The basis rule is that the the highest predicate determines the type of the whole phrase and therefore its adverbial behavior. With some predicates (call them weak predicates), it is more useful to say that the highest *strong* predicate determines the type. All non-Main Class predicates are strong. Some Main Class predicates are weak, such as, e.g. “jaq”. For example, if “lẽ” (“le” being a Modal) attaches high, then so would “jãq le”. It would be less useful if it had to attach low.}}
* If the serial head is strong, use its animacy class.
* Otherwise, use the animacy class of the tail.
Then, by assigning words the appropriate animacy strengths, you can put e.g. {{t|tảq ''tủa'' sỉq}} in class I, {{t|dẻ ''rủa''}} in class II, {{t|''chủa'' lỉq}} in class III, etc. Generally, all verbs not in the main class would be weak, and all verbs of animacy class IV would be weak, while most other verbs would be strong.
</blockquote>}}
</ref>
</references>

Latest revision as of 15:36, 20 November 2023

Toaq has a system of grammatical animacy.

Any noun phrase belongs to one of four classes, each with its own word for “he/she/they/it” that refers back to the most recent noun phrase belonging to that class. (This system of anaphoric pronouns is the only place in Toaq where this animacy distinction comes up, so the classes are known varyingly as animacy classes, anaphora classes, or pronominal classes.)

Grammatical, rather than natural animacy

Toaq's animacy being "grammatical" means that it is a property of expressions, not of their referents.

If you know some Spanish, it's like "grammatical gender" in that language. La persona is feminine, even if the person you're talking about isn't necessarily female.

Toaq's pronouns work the same way: if you describe a person as sá sao ("someone big"), the appropriate pronoun to refer to them later in the sentence is tá (“itdescriptive”), because sao has the "descriptive" animacy. It's not correct to use hó, because that's the pronoun for animate verbs, not animate referents.

Table of classes

Toaq animacy classes
Nr. Class Pronoun Example Meaning
I Animate hó sá poq a person
II Inanimate máq sá jıo a building
III Abstract hóq sá sıo an idea
IV Descriptive tá sá de something pretty

Verb animacy classes

Class I – ho

For living beings and their actions.

🧒 🐕 🏊 🗣️
deo kune lıaı kuq
child dog swims says

Class II – maq

For inanimate tangible things.

🥝 ⛰️ 📦 🔥
zeo meı tıaı loe
fruit mountain box flame

Class III – hoq

For abstract (intangible) concepts.

🌃 🔠 ☯️ 🚭
nuaq laı chuaq juao
night letter ideology rule

Class IV – ta

For words that could apply to many things.

💨 ✨ ☕ 🌈
suaı de loq reo
fast beautiful warm colorful
The main verb animacy classes.
See image version.

Every Toaq verb belongs to some verb animacy class:

  • If the verb necessarily implies animacy/sentience of its subject, it's in class I (hó).
    Examples: poq, naq, kato, che, be, deo, mıe, koı, moı, tao, fıeq, jaı…
  • If the verb describes some other tangible object, it's in class II (máq).
    Examples: cea, kıoq, haq, toq, nao, hoe…
  • If the verb describe an abstract concept or idea, it's in class III (hóq).
    Examples: noı, daq, dao, sıo, muı, zu…
  • Other verbs are in class IV (tá).
    Examples: doq, nuı, juı, lıo, muo, raq, daı, de…

There is one exception: the verb raı. This is so that we can use raı as a dummy verb whose only role is to bind ráı for later use, e.g.,

Sá raı nä dua jí, ꝡä bu bo jí ráı da.
There are some things I know I don’t own.

Variables (words starting with the prefix nha-) also behave this way.

In a serial verb, the first verb determines the animacy.

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