There are two kinds of articles in Tundrian:
definite and indefinite.
The definite article (Eng.
the)
The definite article precedes the noun it qualifies. It
has eight different forms, one for each possible combination of gender, number
and case. The full paradigm is given below:
| |
SINGULAR |
PLURAL |
| |
NOM. |
ACC. |
NOM. |
ACC. |
| MASC. |
el |
lo |
li |
los |
| FEM. |
la |
lâ |
le |
las |
The prepositions a (to, at)
and de (of) combine with the article
lo to give: al, del.
The definite article is used as in English, except in the
following cases:
- Abstract nouns usually carry the definite article in Tundrian,
but not in English: La bellitza vene
avant lâ êtat (Beauty comes before
age).
- The definite article is usual before geographical and
astronomical entities (except for localities): La
Francia és un bêl payeiz (France is a beautiful country);
El Júpiter és la plus grand de las
planeitas (Jupiter is the largest of the planets). BUT: Pariys és la
capital franceisa (Paris is the French capital).
- After prepositions, however, the use of the definite
article with proper and abstract nouns is much less common in Tundrian than,
for example, in French. E.g.: la Estatzoun de
Nord (Northern Station) [cf. French Gare du
nord].
- The use of the definite article is optional with possessive
adjectives, more common in the acc. sing. than otherwise. Its presence usually
puts stress on the possessive relationship. E.g.: Mîa filha és bona
estûdzanta (My daughter is a good student); BUT:
La mîa filha és arripata primêra en sûa class
(MY daughter came first in her class). With the accusative: Hoy vist
lo tû filh en lâ banca hodzi (I saw your
son in the bank today). In the latter sentence it would be unusual to leave
off the definite article, because tû does
not indicate case distinctions.
The indefinite article (Eng.
a/an)
In form, the indefinite article in Tundrian is identical,
in the singular, to the numeral 'one'. It has plural forms as well, however,
which make case distinctions as well (unlike the singular forms). The complete paradigm is as follows:
| |
SINGULAR |
PLURAL |
| |
NOM./ACC. |
NOM. |
ACC. |
| MASC. |
un |
uni |
uns, es |
| FEM. |
una |
une |
unas, es |
In the singular the indef. art. is used pretty much as in
English: Hoy una qüessoun por lo
prêsident (I have a question for the president).
In the plural the indef. art. is used in most cases where
English uses no article at all (or uses 'some'), and the meaning is rather
indefinite: Uni caini lairavan al soldat
quand traversava los villatxos ([Some] dogs would bark at the soldier while
he crossed the villages).
The form es is used in
the acc. pl. in a way similar to the use of the French partitive article (du,
de la, des). E.g.: Hoy invitat
es amiycs por celâ seira (I have invited
(some) friends for tonight). If uns was used
instead of es, the meaning would be more
limiting (something like "two or three"): Hoy invitat
uns amiycs por celâ seira (I have
invited a couple of friends for tonight).
|