Abessive case
Encyclopedia
In linguistics
, abessive (abbreviated or ), caritive and privative (abbreviated ) are names for a grammatical case expressing the lack or absence of the marked noun. In English
, the corresponding function is expressed by the preposition without or by the suffix
-less.
The name abessive is derived from Latin abesse "to be away/absent", and is especially used in reference to Uralic languages
. The name caritive is derived from Latin carere "to lack", and is especially used in reference to Caucasian languages. The name privative is derived from Latin privare "to deprive".
, the abessive case is marked by -laa or "-la" and dropping all but the first syllable
on certain words For example:
, the privative case is formed with two suffixes, -wirriwa and -wirraa. What determines which suffix is used in a given situation is unclear.
, the abessive case is marked by -tta for back vowels and -ttä for front vowels according to vowel harmony
. For example:
An equivalent construction exists using the word ilman and the partitive
:
or, more uncommonly:
The abessive case of nouns is rarely used in writing and even less in speech, although some abessive forms are more common than their equivalent ilman forms:
The abessive is, however, commonly used in nominal forms of verbs
(formed with the affix -ma- / -mä-), such as puhu-ma-tta "without speaking", osta-ma-tta "without buying," välittä-mä-ttä "without caring:"
This form can often be replaced by using the negative form of the verb:
It is possible to occasionally hear what is considered wrong usage of the abessive in Finnish, where the abessive and ilman forms are combined:
There is debate as to whether this is interference from Estonian
.
also uses the abessive, which is marked by -ta in both the singular and the plural:
Tallinn
boasts a pair of bars that play on the use of the comitative and abessive, the Nimeta baar (the pub with no name) and the Nimega baar (the pub with a name).
The nominal forms of verbs
are marked with the affix -ma- and the abessive marker -ta:
is -tää in both the singular and the plural:
The abessive-like non-finite verb form (converb) is or -kani:
Unlike in Finnish, the abessive is still commonly used in Skolt Sámi.
is -táá. The corresponding non-finite verb form is -hánnáá, -hinnáá or -hennáá.
.
, the abessive case is marked by -talan for back vowels and -telen for front vowels according to vowel harmony
. Sometimes, with certain roots, the suffix becomes -tlan or -tlen. For example:
Ex: Evsiz (ev = house, houseless/homeless), barksız, görgüsüz (görgü = good manners, ill-bred), yurtsuz.
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
, abessive (abbreviated or ), caritive and privative (abbreviated ) are names for a grammatical case expressing the lack or absence of the marked noun. In English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, the corresponding function is expressed by the preposition without or by the suffix
Affix
An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes...
-less.
The name abessive is derived from Latin abesse "to be away/absent", and is especially used in reference to Uralic languages
Uralic languages
The Uralic languages constitute a language family of some three dozen languages spoken by approximately 25 million people. The healthiest Uralic languages in terms of the number of native speakers are Hungarian, Finnish, Estonian, Mari and Udmurt...
. The name caritive is derived from Latin carere "to lack", and is especially used in reference to Caucasian languages. The name privative is derived from Latin privare "to deprive".
Somali
In the Somali languageSomali language
The Somali language is a member of the East Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Its nearest relatives are Afar and Oromo. Somali is the best documented of the Cushitic languages, with academic studies beginning before 1900....
, the abessive case is marked by -laa or "-la" and dropping all but the first syllable
Syllable
A syllable is a unit of organization for a sequence of speech sounds. For example, the word water is composed of two syllables: wa and ter. A syllable is typically made up of a syllable nucleus with optional initial and final margins .Syllables are often considered the phonological "building...
on certain words For example:
- jeceyl "love"
- jeelaa "loveless"
- dar "clothes"
- darla "clothesless," i.e., naked
Martuthunira
In MartuthuniraMartuthunira language
-Phonology:Martuthunira has a fairly standard Australian phonology. R.M.W. Dixon uses it as a prototypical example in his 2002 book Australian Languages: Their nature and development.-Consonants:The laminal stop has a voiced allophone between vowels....
, the privative case is formed with two suffixes, -wirriwa and -wirraa. What determines which suffix is used in a given situation is unclear.
| Parla-wirraa | nganarna. |
| money-PRIV | 1PL.EX Clusivity In linguistics, clusivity is a distinction between inclusive and exclusive first-person pronouns and verbal morphology, also called inclusive "we" and exclusive "we"... |
| We've got no money. | |
Finnish
In the Finnish languageFinnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
, the abessive case is marked by -tta for back vowels and -ttä for front vowels according to vowel harmony
Vowel harmony
Vowel harmony is a type of long-distance assimilatory phonological process involving vowels that occurs in some languages. In languages with vowel harmony, there are constraints on which vowels may be found near each other....
. For example:
- raha "money"
- rahatta "without money"
An equivalent construction exists using the word ilman and the partitive
Partitive
In linguistics, the partitive is a word, phrase, or case that divides something into parts. For example, in the English sentence I'll have some coffee, some is a partitive determiner because it makes the noun phrase some coffee refer to a subset of all coffee...
:
- ilman rahaa "without money"
or, more uncommonly:
- rahaa ilman "without money"
The abessive case of nouns is rarely used in writing and even less in speech, although some abessive forms are more common than their equivalent ilman forms:
- tuloksetta "unsuccessfully, fruitlessly"
- Itkin syyttä. "I cried for no reason."
The abessive is, however, commonly used in nominal forms of verbs
Verbal noun
In linguistics, the verbal noun turns a verb into a noun and corresponds to the infinitive in English language usage. In English the infinitive form of the verb is formed when preceded by to, e.g...
(formed with the affix -ma- / -mä-), such as puhu-ma-tta "without speaking", osta-ma-tta "without buying," välittä-mä-ttä "without caring:"
- Juna jäi tulematta. "The train didn't show up."
This form can often be replaced by using the negative form of the verb:
- Juna ei tullut.
It is possible to occasionally hear what is considered wrong usage of the abessive in Finnish, where the abessive and ilman forms are combined:
- ilman rahatta
There is debate as to whether this is interference from Estonian
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
.
Estonian
EstonianEstonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
also uses the abessive, which is marked by -ta in both the singular and the plural:
- (ilma) autota "without a car" (preposition ilma is considered a mistake against textual style)
Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
boasts a pair of bars that play on the use of the comitative and abessive, the Nimeta baar (the pub with no name) and the Nimega baar (the pub with a name).
The nominal forms of verbs
Verbal noun
In linguistics, the verbal noun turns a verb into a noun and corresponds to the infinitive in English language usage. In English the infinitive form of the verb is formed when preceded by to, e.g...
are marked with the affix -ma- and the abessive marker -ta:
- Rong jäi tulemata. "The train didn't show up."
Skolt Sami
The abessive marker for nouns in Skolt SámiSkolt Sami
Skolt Sami is a Uralic, Sami language spoken by approximately 400 speakers in Finland, mainly in Sevettijärvi, and approximately 20–30 speakers of the Njuõˊttjäuˊrr dialect in an area surrounding Lake Lovozero in Russia. Skolt Sami used to also be spoken on the Neiden area of Norway,...
is -tää in both the singular and the plural:
- Riâkkum veä'rtää. "I cried for no reason."
The abessive-like non-finite verb form (converb) is or -kani:
- Son vuõ'lji domoi mõ'nt leäi puättam. "He/she went home without saying why he/she had come."
Unlike in Finnish, the abessive is still commonly used in Skolt Sámi.
Inari Sami
The abessive marker for nouns in Inari SámiInari Sami
Inari Sámi is a Uralic, Sami language spoken by the Inari Sami of Finland. It has approximately 300 speakers, the majority of whom are middle-aged or older and live in the municipality of Inari. According to the Sami Parliament of Finland 269 persons used Inari Sami as their first language. It is...
is -táá. The corresponding non-finite verb form is -hánnáá, -hinnáá or -hennáá.
Other Sami languages
The abessive is not used productively in the Western Sámi languages, although it may occur as a cranberry morphemeCranberry morpheme
In linguistic morphology, a cranberry morpheme is a type of bound morpheme that cannot be assigned a meaning or a grammatical function but nonetheless serves to distinguish one word from the other.-Etymology:...
.
Hungarian
In HungarianHungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, the abessive case is marked by -talan for back vowels and -telen for front vowels according to vowel harmony
Vowel harmony
Vowel harmony is a type of long-distance assimilatory phonological process involving vowels that occurs in some languages. In languages with vowel harmony, there are constraints on which vowels may be found near each other....
. Sometimes, with certain roots, the suffix becomes -tlan or -tlen. For example:
- pénz "money"
- pénztelen "without money"
- haza "home(land)"
- hazátlan "(one) without a homeland"
Turkish
The suffix -siz (variations: -sız,-suz,-süz) is used.Ex: Evsiz (ev = house, houseless/homeless), barksız, görgüsüz (görgü = good manners, ill-bred), yurtsuz.