_{Fot Teiby xte Lecsyony Galyabtap. A man carries a marimot at a celebration in Tlacolula.}

Bound object pronouns are presented in section §24.1, and section §24.2 presents diminutives. The use of a-pronouns is explained in section §24.3. The –ru particle is introduced in section §24.4; this particle is used in comparatives (section §24.5). Sections §24.6 and §24.7 describe two special negative structures, “some” and “no” and “not even one”.

Xiëru Zalo Ra Dizh

1. There are a lot of new vocabulary words in this lesson! However, you’ll see that the majority of them are in sets of similar words — a-pronouns, which you’ll learn about in section §24.3, and “some” and “no” words, which you’ll find in section §24.6.

2. Nu rrespeity loëng is a special type of inverse idiom. In normal inverse idioms like riabzac (Lecsyony Tseinyabteiby), what we’d expect to be the subject is expressed as the object of the sentence. In inverse prep. idioms like nu rrespeity lo, what we’d expect to be the subject is expressed as a prepositional object — here, as the object of lo. Thus, nu rrespeity loëng means “he is respectful” and nu rrespeity lua means “I am respectful”.

§24.1. Bound object pronouns

Of course you know that bound pronouns can be used as subjects, possessors, and objects of native prepositions. In addition, however, you’ve seen examples of bound pronouns used as objects in some readings:

Each of these examples uses a bound distal pronoun –i following a bound subject pronoun.

You also can use bound object pronouns following a subject noun, as in

This sentence, just like the ones with pronoun subjects, follows the normal verb – subject – object word order. The bound object pronoun follows the subject in both cases.

A bound object pronoun can also come right after a verb if the subject is focused:

In fact, with a reversible verb following a focused name or noun, a bound pronoun can be interpretable either as a subject or as an object:

The first translations of these two examples show that a bound proximate or distal pronoun means “her”, “him”, or “it” when it’s used as an object.

Finally, a bound object pronoun may follow other sentence items, in positions where a free object pronoun could appear:

One position where bound object pronouns normally cannot appear, however, is following Spanish prepositions. Only free pronouns are used as objects of Spanish prepositions.

While it’s pretty easy to learn to recognize bound object pronouns, learning how to use them yourself is a bit trickier. Only certain bound pronouns can be used as objects, and they can only come after certain bound pronoun subjects.

The only bound pronouns that can normally be used as objects are singular proximate –ëng and singular distal –i. There are no bound object pronouns for “me”, “you”, “us”, or “them” objects. Most of the “he”/”she”/”it” bound pronouns cannot be used for objects either (although possibly some speakers follow slightly different rules than those we’re presenting here). For all of these other objects, you need to use free pronouns (just as you’ve been doing all along).

-Ëng and –i objects can be used following noun or name subjects (as in Rzhilodizy Tiu Pamyëli), following verbs (when the subject comes before the verb, as in Lia Glory bchiguelyëng), and following most bound pronoun subjects.

The table below shows where you can use bound object pronouns.

The first column tells what the object comes after — a verb; a subject noun, name, or other sentence element; or a verb plus a bound subject pronoun. There is a line in the chart for each of the bound subject pronouns that you know. The second column shows the combination with a bound proximate object pronoun, and the third column the combination with a bound distal object pronoun. A “—” in the chart means that combination is not allowed. Each allowed combination is exemplified with a complete sentence using the perfective verb btaz “hit”. As you study the chart, you may find it helpful to read each example sentence aloud, or maybe your teacher will read each one to you. Make sure you can tell what each example means!

The only bound pronoun subjects that –ëng cannot follow are proximate –ëng, distal –i, proximate plural –rëng, and distal plural –ri; the only bound pronoun subjects that –i cannot follow are distal singular and plural –i and –ri.

Be careful when pronouncing the combination of –ëng or –rëng plus –i, as in

The ëngi in this word contains an unusual sequence of sounds that you don’t often hear in Zapotec — an ng sound between two vowels, similar to the ng in English words like singer. There’s no separate g sound pronounced in this word (if there were, we’d write gu!).

When the bound object pronouns follow a verb, noun, or pronoun ending with a vowel, the same types of new pronunciations occur that you learned about in Lecsyony Tseiny (13).

Keep in mind that free pronouns can always be used as objects, just as you learned in Unida Tyop. You can always use a free object pronoun, and if you are uncertain about whether a bound pronoun will work, this is the best choice.

When the subject is a proximate or distal bound pronoun and the object is non-living, you have another choice too, the non-living object pronouns, proximate niëng [ni’ëng] and distal nii [nìi]:

As you listen to more Zapotec, you’ll also hear these pronouns used in other types of sentences (and even, occasionally, as subjects).

§24.2. Diminutives

A DIMINUTIVE (“dim.”) is a form of a noun used to refer to a little, cute, or dear noun. In English, we use –y or –ie as a diminutive marker, but this is pretty much restricted to baby talk or children’s words like horsie or doggie and to nicknames. Valley Zapotec diminutives are much more common (they are more like the Spanish diminutives –ito and –ita). However, Valley Zapotec speakers normally do not use diminutive forms of personal names.

Here are some examples of Valley Zapotec diminutives. Listen as your teacher pronounces each one.

We’ll use the translation “little” in this lesson, but in some cases “dear” or “cute” would be better. The best way to learn how to use diminutives is to listen to Zapotec speakers (of course).

As you can see, diminutives end in an added –e [e’eh], –i [i’ih], –ëny [ëny], –we [we’eh], or –yi [yi’ih]. You chose the ending depending on the ending of the noun you’re working with.

Forming diminutives. After any consonant but y, ch, x, or zh, the diminutive ending is –e [e’eh]:

Following regular spelling rules, the –e ending is spelled ue following g, and a word ending in c has a diminutive spelled with que:

After y, ch, x, or zh, the diminutive ending is –i [i’ih]:

These –i diminutives look like nouns with the “that” ending –i, but they’re pronounced differently: mninyi [mnìi’inyi’ih] “little child”, but mninyi [mnìi’inyih] “that child”.

_{Fot Tyop xte Lecsyony Galyabtap. Zhilyi.}

After any simple vowel (not a diphthong), the diminutive ending is –ëny [ëny]:

(Even though btsigui looks as if it ends in two vowels, gui just represents g plus a simple vowel i in Zapotec spelling.) The –ëny ending is added as a separate syllable following the end of the noun. With CB nouns, the B vowel is dropped before –ëny is added:

Diphthongs work differently. After a diphthong ending in u (such as au, eu, or iu), the diminutive ending is –we [we’eh]:

After a diphthong ending in i (such as ai or ei), the diminutive ending is –yi [yi’ih]:

And finally, after any other diphthong, the diminutive ending is –ëny [ëny] (again added as a separate syllable):

Below is a chart summarizing the formation of Valley Zapotec diminutives.

Possessed diminutives. Here are some e-possessed diminutive noun phrases:

As these examples show, you use the diminutive form of the possessed noun followed by the possessor, using the regular possessed noun pattern you learned about in Lecsyony Tsëda.

As you know, some nouns change when they are e-possessed (for example, yu has the e-possessed form liaz, becw has the e-possessed form xyecw, and the new word ri “water jug” has the e-possessed form xti). Those special e-possessed forms can have diminutive endings too:

However, something unusual can happen when use a diminutive possessed noun ending in a vowel is used with a bound pronoun possessor ending that starts with a vowel, especially –a “my”. In this case, speakers may add –ny before the bound pronoun, as in these examples:

In other words, any diminutive noun that ends in e or i will add this extra ny before the bound pronoun –a.

With other bound pronoun possessors beginning with vowels (especially –ën “our”), you might also hear this added ny. However, it’s probably more common for the bound pronoun to be added directly to the diminutive noun, as in

If the diminutive noun already ends in –ëny, you can just add the bound pronoun:

Some speakers may not use the extra –ny to say “my” with a possessed diminutive. So, you might also hear “my” forms like

When the bound pronoun –a is added to a diminutive that ends in the diminutive ending ‑e, however, a change occurs. As you learned in Lecsyony Tseiny (13), when the bound pronoun –a is added to a word that ends in e, that e will turn into i, as in the following examples:

See which “my” form your teacher prefers.

§24.3. A-pronouns

You know about bound pronouns and free pronouns. There’s one more type of Valley Zapotec pronoun to learn, A-PRONOUNS. Here is a list of them:

Unlike bound pronouns and regular free pronouns, a-pronouns only express “he”, “she”, “it”, or “they” (and, sometimes, “him”, “her”, and “them”) — there are no a-pronouns for “I”, “me”, “you”, “we”, or “us”. The list above gives singular and plural a-pronouns for the six categories of “he”/”she”/”it” pronouns you’ve learned in this course.  Like the other Valley Zapotec pronouns you’ve learned, a-pronouns are gender neutral.

Normally, a sentence with an a-pronoun subject means just about the same as a sentence with a bound pronoun subject. Here are some comparisons of sentences with bound pronoun subjects and a-pronoun subjects:

Although the sentences with a-pronoun subjects and the sentences with bound pronoun subjects mean the same, there are a number of differences between these two types of sentences.

To begin with, bound pronoun subjects come after the verb, while a-pronouns come right at the beginning of the sentence, before the verb. But while a verb plus a bound pronoun can also come in other places in the sentence (if something is focused, for example), an a-pronoun must come at the beginning of the sentence, and must be followed by the verb. Of course, free pronouns can come at the beginning of a sentence, too:

etc.

But when a free pronoun comes at the beginning of the sentence, it adds a focus meaning, and the verb must still be followed by a bound pronoun. With an a-pronoun, there’s no focus meaning, and the verb does not have a bound pronoun after it. The a-pronoun must come first in the sentence, followed by the verb.

Another difference between a-pronouns and bound pronouns is shown by the following sentences:

Here, all three sentences have slightly different meanings, even though each of them has a proximate pronoun subject. In both sentences with bound pronoun subjects (with or without the focused free pronoun), the same bound pronoun is used to show the possessor of the book. As you know, these sentences have two possible interpretations: the subject may be reading his own book, or he may be reading a book belonging to another person referred to with a distal pronoun. In the sentence with the a-pronoun subject, however, the possessor of the book is indicated with the special possessor ending –ni. This ending means that the possessor of the book must be the subject of the sentence — it cannot be anyone else. Any bound pronoun possessor or bound pronoun prepositional object that is the same as an a-pronoun subject must be indicated with –ni. If you use a normal bound possessor pronoun instead of –ni, then the sentence means that the possessor is someone different from the subject:

A final difference between a-pronouns and bound pronoun subjects is that a-pronouns are normally only used in sentences referring to real, verifiable events. A-pronouns are not used in sentences with a following verb that is irrealis or definite. (In other words, they are only used in sentences with following habitual, perfective, progressive, incompletive, or neutral verbs.) A-pronouns are not used in focus sentences, or any other type of sentence whose first word (other than the a-pronoun) is not a verb.  The “must” particle –zhyi is also never used in a sentence with an a-pronoun.

Here’s an example of an a-pronoun in the last chapter of Blal xte Tiu Pamyël, in this unit:

This sentence, and all the examples in this section, have shown a-pronouns used as subjects. This is by far the most common use of a-pronouns, but if you listen, you’ll also hear speakers use a-pronouns as objects. Here’s an example, from one of the readings in S-26, where the narrator uses the a-pronoun ai to refer to the object (the “it” he’s talking about is money):

Once again, a-pronoun objects are used only at the beginning of in positive sentences (as in ai caa), and only with verbs that are not irrealis, definite, or subjunctive!

You might very rarely hear a speaker use a-pronouns in negative sentences like the following:

Such sentences may suggest a slight emphasis on the subject. Because this type of sentence is very uncommon, it’s best not to use it yourself. A negative sentence like the second one above would be the only time you’d hear an a-pronoun in a sentence with a following subjunctive verb.

Variation. Some speakers use a-pronoun forms that start with ga-, not a-. (They could call these “ga-pronouns”!) We will not use these in this book.

§24.4. The -ru particle

-Ru “more”. As you have probably realized, Valley Zapotec has a lot of particles. The last one we’ll cover in this book is –ru [ru’] “more”. Here are some examples:

Like other particles, –ru normally follows the first word or short phrase in the sentence. –Ru isn’t exactly like the –izy and –zhyi particles, however, since it normally is used only on verbs in sentences like those above. –Ru adds the idea that there is “more” or an additional quantity of either the object (as in the first two sentences) or the subject (as in the last one). It’s good to be able to recognize this use of –ru, but you’ll need practice to be able to make up sentences like these yourself. You’ll learn another way to use –ru to mean “more” in section §24.6.

Sometimes –ru sentences like these might be translated into English with “still” (if you think about it, “Is there still money in the box?” is similar to “Is there more money in the box?”), but the usual way to say “still” is axta na:

-Ru in negative sentences. In negative sentences, -ru means “any more” or “no longer”:

(The last sentence here uses nu rrespeity lo, an inverse preposition idiom — see the Ra Dizh for this lesson.)

Here’s the negative “any more” pattern:

Negative irrealis –ru sentences. In irrealis negative sentences with –ru, a different pattern is used. As in other irrealis negative sentences, the subject appears twice. It comes after queity plus –di plus –ru as well as after the verb, and –di follows queity. Here are some examples:

Here’s the pattern:

There’s another version of this pattern, in which –di is not used, as in

Here’s the second pattern:

If you listen, you’ll hear other ways to use –ru in negative sentences like these, as well as additional ways to combine –ru and other particles.

Other expressions with –ru. There are several other ways to use –ru that you’ll learn as you listen to fluent speakers.

-Ru is also used as part of several words that are useful to know. It’s part of some words you know already, such as chiru “then, and” (can you see the connection with “more”?), as well as naru [nahru’] “finally”:

-Ru also is also used in the words tuëru “who else” and xiëru “what else”. These are used just like the question words tu and xi in questions like

§24.5. Comparatives

One of the most common ways –ru is used is in COMPARATIVE SENTENCES. A comparative sentence compares two items, telling which has more of the quality or other feature compared. Here are some Zapotec examples:

These sentences begin with a compared feature — either a predicate adjective or a verb expressing an adjective meaning — plus the particle –ru, which expresses the equivalent of English –er or more. Next comes the subject (a name, a noun phrase, or a bound pronoun), followed by ca [cah] “than” and the COMPAREE, the person or thing that the subject is compared to. Here’s the pattern:

If the comparee is a pronoun, it is expressed as a free pronoun following ca:

_{Fot Chon xte Lecsyony Galyabtap. Mniny re zyualru ca mniny re.}

Sometimes speakers use cano [cahnoh] instead of ca, and other speakers may use the preposition lo to express “than”:

For speakers who use lo, the comparee must be a bound pronoun, since lo is a native preposition:

You may also hear na “is” used following a compared adjective:

You’ll learn other more complicated comparative patterns as you study more Zapotec.

§24.6. “Some” and “no”

Expressing “some”. The main way to express “some” words (like “something”, “someone”, and “somewhere”) in Valley Zapotec is with nu “exists, is located” plus a question word. Here are some examples using nu plus xi “what” and tu “who”:

(In a question we often use “any” rather than “some” in English.) These examples show that nu xi means “something” and nu tu means “someone” or “somebody”. These nu “some” sentences are used when the “someone” or “something” you’re talking about is a real person or item that the speaker believes can be identified.

First, here is the structure for “some” sentences like Nu xi bguad bdo, Nu tu bdaëng, and Nu tu gual e?, in which the “some” phrase is the subject of the sentence:

The nu “some” phrase at beginning of the sentence is the subject of the following verb. An object (like the bound pronoun –ëng in the last sentence) or anything else in the sentence follows that verb. The “some” phrase is always focused (though you don’t have use underlining in its translation); the only position for it is at the beginning of the sentence.

Now, here is the structure for “some” sentences like Nu xi mnaa loni, Nu xi bzhielu lany caj e?, and Nu tu btaz Bed e?, in which the “some” phrase is not a subject:

In these sentences, nu and the question word are followed by a verb, its subject, and the rest of the sentence. If the “some” word is the object of a native preposition in the sentence, as in the first example, the native preposition must be followed by the special pronoun –ni, just as in the question pattern you learned in Lecsyony Galy.

The special bound pronoun –ni is also used to show that the sentence contains an object possessed by the “some” subject, as in

“Some” with other question words. The same non-subject “some” pattern that you just learned can be used with other question words in addition to xi and tu. The most common “some” phrases you’ll hear are nu xa “somehow” and nu cali “somewhere”. The examples below follow exactly the same pattern as the non-subject sentences above:

Once again, the verb comes after the nu plus question word phrase at the beginning, followed by its subject and the rest of the sentence.

“Some” plus noun phrases in questions. Another way we use “some” in English is before a noun, in phrases like “some books” or “some teachers”. You can do the same thing with nu plus question word phrases in Zapotec, as in examples like

These sentences use a version of the “some” patterns presented earlier, but with a noun following tu or xi. Nu tu goes before nouns referring to humans, and nu xi goes before inanimate nouns, as in the first two examples. Before nouns referring to animals, nu xi is usual (but some speakers might say nu tu). You use the subject “some” pattern if the “some” phrase is a subject, and the non-subject “some” pattern if the “some” phrase is not a subject. Remember, in Valley Zapotec, in contrast to English, the “some” plus noun phrase pattern is only used in questions.

You may also hear plural ra before the nouns in these sentences:

Expressing “no”. “No” words (like “nothing”, “no one”, and “nowhere”) work quite similarly to “some” words in Valley Zapotec, except that there are more possibilities!

“No” phrases contain a negative word plus a question word. The most common negative word that’s used in “no” phrases is tewag [tèe’wahg] (also pronounced tebag [tèe’bahg] and tegwag [tèe’gwahg]). Here are some “no” phrase sentences:

(Once again, “any” phrases are often used instead of “no” phrases in English.) Here’s the pattern for subject “no” sentences like Tewag tu mnadi lua and Tewag xi biabdi.

Tewag tu means “no one” or “nobody” and tewag xi means “nothing”. These “no” sentences are negative, so the particle –di must follow the verb after tewag tu or tewag xi.

Here’s a more complicated “no one” subject sentence from one of the readings in section S-26:

(In S-26, this sentence is translated “Neither one (of us) knew…”, because the narrator is using it to refer to just two people.) These sentences tell us that the speaker believes that no one or nothing exists of which the following sentence is true.

Now, here is the pattern for non-subject tewag tu and tewag xi sentences like Tewag tu mnadya loni and Tewag xi nyunydyëng:

In these sentences, tewag and the question word are followed by a verb, –di, the verb’s subject, and the rest of the sentence. If the “no” word is the object of a native preposition in the sentence, as in the first example, the native preposition must be followed by the special pronoun –ni, just as in the question pattern you learned in Lecsyony Galy.

“No” with other question words. The same non-subject “no” pattern that you just learned can be used with other question words in addition to xi and tu. The most common “no” phrase is probably tewag cali “nowhere”, as in

Once again, this sentence follows the non-subject “no” pattern, with the verb, –di, and the subject following tewag cali.

“No” plus noun phrases. Another way we use “no” in English is before a noun, in phrases like “no books” or “no teachers”. You can do the same thing with tewag plus tu or xi in Zapotec, in sentences like

Do you see what is different about these sentences? The negative particle –di comes after the noun following tewag tu or tewag xi, rather than after the verb.

Here is the subject “no” plus noun pattern:

And here is the non-subject pattern:

The same negative plus question word plus noun plus –di pattern is used in the expression tewag xi problemdi “no problem”, which you saw in section S-26.

Other ways to express “no”. Two other words can be used as the negative in a “no” pattern. The first of these is queity, the familiar negative word you first learned in Lecsyony Gaz. Queity substitutes can substitute for tewag in any of the sentences above:

The other negative word that can be used in sentences like these is nyec. Previously, you’ve seen nyec used to mean “even”, but this word can also express the negative in “no” sentences:

Do you see what’s different about these sentences? When you use nyec as the negative, you don’t need –di! Otherwise, though, the patterns are just the same.

§24.7. “Not even one”

There’s another type of negative sentence starting with nyec that you might hear:

Here’s the pattern. Notice that you don’t use –di.

In English, we start this type of sentence with “not”. But the “not” in the Zapotec sentence is the queity. In these sentences, nyec teiby means “not even“, so these sentences seem to be saying literally, for example, “even one teacher will not come tomorrow” (which makes less sense in English).

The last example above is from the Valley Zapotec translation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, selections from which are given at S-26.

Abbreviations

dim. diminutive

Endings and Particles

-e [e’eh] (diminutive ending)

-ëng [ëng] him, her, it (bound object pronoun)

-ëny [ëny] (diminutive ending)

-i [ih] him her, it (bound object pronoun)

-i [i’ih] (diminutive ending)

-ru more (particle)

-we [we’eh] (diminutive ending)

-yi [yi’ih] (diminutive ending)