It was mentioned
earlier that the principal function of the copulative verb
 se ‘is’ to serve as the locus
in the surface structure for marking tense where there is no other
verbal element to carry the tense marker. For indicating the present
time, the tense is not always marked, with the result the need for the
copulative verb is not found in such situation. This happens in all
equative type of sentences. Therefore the equative sentences in the
present tense in this language permits of simple sentences having just
a subject and a complement. In other words, a simple sentence in this
language would have the following occurrences.
|
|
S1 |
O |
V |
|
|
| (i) N |
|
Vint |
‘moy jabo |
‘I will
go’ |
| (ii) N |
N |
Vtr |
‘moy
sualik dikhis |
‘I saw the
girl’ |
| (iii) N |
N1N2 |
Vd.tr |
moy sualik
kitab
ekta dise |
‘I gave
the girl a book’ |
| (iv) N |
N/adv |
C |
moy gor
se
moy gor tat
se |
‘I have a
house’
‘My house is there’ |
| (v) N |
N/adj |
suali bal |
‘The girl
is good’ |
| |
|
gor di or
|
‘the house
is big’ |
|
The NN type of
sentences are not available either in Assamese, the principal source
of this language or in Indo-Aryan languages. NN types of sentences are
available in Naga langauge. A few examples from Sema (Sreedhar :
1980:175) are cited for illustrating this point.
|
| pa ipu |
‘He is my father’ |
| 1 2 3 |
1 2
3 |
| ikiye kize |
‘my house big’ |
| 1 2 3 4 |
lit. ‘I house focus marker) big’ |
| |
1
2 3
4 |
| hiye acqo |
‘These are dogs’ |
| 1 2 3 4 |
(lit. ‘This (focus marker) dog
plural’) |
| |
1 2
3 4 |
|
Thus the NN type
of sentence found in this language is a direct influence of the Naga
language. The NN type of sentences are also found in most of the
Dravidian languages. A few illustrative examples from Kannada are
cited.
|
| adu pustaka |
‘That is a book’ |
| 1 2
3 |
(lit. that thing book) |
| |
1 2
3 |
|
1The
subject is not usually expressed overly, if the verb is in its
imperative form.
|
| ivanu nnanna maga
‘He is my son’ |
| 1
2 3
1 2 3 |
nanna mane do adu
‘my house is big’ |
| 1
2 3 4 |
(lit. my house big thing) |
|
1 2 3
4 |
| nanage ibbaru ganu
‘I have two sons’ |
| 1
2 3
4 |
| makkalu iddaare |
|
5 6 7 |
| |
(lit. I to two male children
exist plural), etc. |
| |
1
2 3 4
5 6 7 |
On the basis of
the aforesaid surface structure, the simple sentences in this language
may be further sub-classified into a few types. For instance, the
subject of the simple sentences having the structure of S (o) V would
be performing the action indicated by the V. The action may be
voluntary or involuntary. Hence these types of sentences are
designated as actor-action type of sentences. Depending upon whether
the complement of the subj. complement copula type of sentences is a
Noun or an adverb, such sentences in their turn can be further
sub-divided into two. The sentences having a N as the complement show
a possessive relation between the N functioning as the subject and the
N functioning as the complement. This type of sentences signal that
the N functioning as the subject possesses the item occurring in the
complement slot, whereas the sentences having and adverb as the
complement, signals the location of the Noun/Pronoun functioning as
the subject. Therefore these two types of sentences are designated
respectively as possessive and locative sentences. Lastly in the N N/adj
(C) type of sentences, the N /adj occurring in the complement slot.
The copula is taken only if the sentence refers to a non-present
situation. Since the function of the complement in this type of
sentences is to identify the subject, such sentences are designated as
equative sentences. We have thus four types of simple sentences. A few
illustrative examples of these few types of simple sentences are
listed below:
|
Actor-action:
|
| sualitu girise |
‘the girl fell’ |
| gortu girise |
‘the house fell’, etc. |
| |
|
| Possessive type: |
|
| moy gor ekta
se |
‘I have a house’ |
| moy lora ekta
se |
‘I have a child’ |
|
