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nouns. -h

occurs with masculine nouns and with neuter nouns.

Feminine nouns take only -ska ~ -sika as the plural suffix. A small class of neuter nouns take - ska, but -ka occurs exclusively with neuter nouns.

When the plural suffixes are added certain sandhi changes take place in stem-final syllables of certain nouns.

Masculine nouns derived from simple verbal bases or from nominal or adjectival stems and which end in-?esi take the plural suffix -ńga after-? esi is dropped.

singular plural

vi:spala?esi	‘beggar’	vi:spalańga	'beggars’
kamsala?esi	‘goldsmith’	kamsalańga	‘goldsmiths’
sa:kala?esi	‘washeran’	sa:kalańga‘	washermen’

4.2.2.2.

Masculine nouns ending in--si which are derived from compound verbs or adjectival bases take the suffix --ri after dropping --si.

pa:nji vehnasi	‘astrologer’	pa:njivehnari	‘astrologers’
na:yũtasi	‘villager’	na:yũtari	‘villagers’
be:ţagaţţasi	‘hunter’	be:ţagaţţari	‘hunters’

4.2.2.3

The following nouns have stem alternant.

rohle-	rohla
bakţe-	bakţi-
kumbre-	kumbra-
go:ŗagaâ:he-	go:ŗagâ:hi-

ayya	‘mother,	ayyaska ~	‘mothers,
	woman’	ayyasika	women’
tańgi	‘sister’	tańgiska ~	‘sisters
		tańgisika

An exception to the above rule is

4.2.3.1

po:da

‘girl’

po:dahaâ

‘girls’

4.2.3.2

feminine nouns derived from masculine nouns drop the singular marker a:yi and suffix -ska ~ -sika.

alari	‘female	·alari	‘female
gaţţa:yi	broker’	gaţţa:sika	brokers’

The alternant in the left-hand column occur before the singular suffix --?esi. The alternant in the right-hand column occur before the plural suffix--h

The v of te plural suffix is realized as the final vowel of the plural stem with nasalization, as

rohle?esi	‘blacksmith’	rohlahņ	‘blacksmiths’
bakţe?esi	‘fisherman’	bakţihĩ	‘fishermen’
kumbre?esi	‘potter’	kumbra	‘potters’
go:ŗagâ:he?esi	‘groom’	go:ŗagâ:hihĩ	‘grooms’

All other masculine nouns suffix -hvâ to the singular noun stem without any changes. The v of the plural suffix is realised as the final vowel of the singular noun stem with nasalization.

ma:ma	‘uncle’	ma:ma	‘uncles’
ta:yi	‘brother’	ta:yihĩ	‘brothers’

An exception to all the four classes is

ir?esi

‘son’

mirka

‘sons’

All feminine nouns take the plural suffix-ska-sika.

ayya	‘mother,	ayyaska ~	‘mothers,
	woman’	ayyasika	women’
a´gi	‘sister’	ta´giska	~ ‘sisters’
		ta´gisika