Grammar Raga language

1 grammar

1.1 pronouns
1.2 nouns
1.3 verbs

grammar

basic word order in raga subject–verb–object.

pronouns

personal pronouns distinguished person , number. not distinguished gender. basic pronouns follows:

nouns

plurality indicated placing ira before noun:

manu = [the] bird
ira manu = [the] birds

nouns may suffixed indicate whom item belongs to. example:

iha = name
ihaku = name
ihamwa = name
ihana = his/her name
ihan ratahigi = chief s name

possession may indicated use of possessive classifiers, separate words occur before noun , take possessive suffixes. these classifiers are:

no- general possessions (nonggu tanga, basket )
bila- things cared for, such crops , livestock (bilada boe, our pig )
ga- things eaten (gam bweta, taro )
ma- things drunk (mara wai, water )

historically there classifier wa- sugarcane chewed (wan toi, sugarcane ); has fallen out of use among younger speakers.

the possessive suffixes follows:

a verb may transformed noun addition of nominalising suffix -ana:

bwalo = fight (verb)
bwaloana = fight (noun)

modifiers come after noun:

vanua = island
vanua kolo = small island
vanua gairua = 2 islands

verbs

verbs in raga preceded subject pronoun , marker indicating tense, aspect , mood of action.

the subject pronouns follows:

there no 3rd person singular subject pronoun ( he/she/it ).

raga has 5 sets of tense/aspect/mood markers:

the full forms of these markers used in 3rd person singular, when there no subject pronoun:

mwa lolia = it
nu lolia = did it
vi lolia = it

elsewhere, short forms of these markers suffixed subject pronoun:

nam lolia = it
nan lolia = did it
nav lolia = it

there dual (two-person) forms incorporating particle ru 2 :

ram lolia = it
ramuru lolia = 2 of them it

historically there trial (three-person) forms incorporating particle dol or tol, these have fallen out of use.

there pattern of verb-consonant mutation whereby v @ start of verb changes b, vw bw, g ngg, , t d. mutation occurs in imperfective aspect, , in presence of additive marker mom:

nan vano = went
nam bano = going

negative sentences indicated two-part marker hav...te(he) not , encloses verb , suffixed it:

nan hav lolia tehe = didn t it

the passive voice can formed attaching suffix -ana verb:

nu lolia = did it
nu loliana = done

the direct object follows verb. object pronouns take form of suffixes attached verb:

in cases particle -ni- interposes between verb , object pronoun:

nam doronia = it