Going from Nouns to Verbs

 

Here we will introduce another series of inanimate objects, and verbs that can be made from them:

 

nec = water	neecííni' = it is wet
hóxes = mud	hooxesííni' = it is muddy
wóxec = swamp	wooxecííni' = it is swampy
ho' = dust	hoo'uuni' = it is dusty
be' = blood	bee'ííni' = it is bloody
ben = pus	beenííni' = it is pus-filled
wó'ow = ice	woo'owuuni' = it is icy
téce' = night	teece'ííni' = it is night
nóóbe' = sand	nonoobe'éíni' = it is sandy
be'énoo = fog	bee'enóuni' = it is foggy
híísi'= day	heníísiini' = it is day
koh'uusi' = noon	kooh'uusiiní' = it is noon
3ío'tox = nine	3íi'otóxuuni' = nineteen

 

Here, for the first time, we see how nouns can be transformed into verbs in Arapaho. In this particular case, a suffix -íí- is added, roughly equivalent to the English -y in "muddy." Then the ending -ni' (a standard II ending) is added to form the verb.

Notice also that the noun root is lengthened when it becomes part of a verb. Up to this point, we have been talking about the "shortening" of verb stems when they are preceded by prefixes. Yet in the above example, it seems more reasonable to think of the noun as the basic form of the root. In the long run, it is more useful to think of the "short" form of the root as the basic form, for all verbs. This form is then "lengthened" when it begins the verb (except the imperative).

The noun-to-verb examples are a very common procedure in Arapaho - nouns can be transformed into verbs, verbs into nouns, verbs into adjectives, and so forth.

 

Vowel Harmony

 

Another important thing to notice about Arapaho is what linguists call "vowel harmony." What this means is that in many cases, one or more vowels may be affected by the vowels before or after them. In particular, -e- and -i- tend to cause other vowels to become -e- and -i-, while -o- and -u- tend to cause other vowels to become -o- and -u-. In the above examples, the usual -ii- suffix becomes -uu- in a number of cases, always following the other vowels -o- and -u-. This change is very widespread in Arapaho, but it is also irregular and unpredictable to some extent. Learning to expect it will help you greatly in understanding Arapaho.

 

 

No exercises are available for this section yet, but you can:

Continue on to Lesson Nine