Aratasa

Participles

Yivrian does not have adjectives as a distinct word class. The function filled by adjectives in most languages is handled in Yivrian by participles – non-finite verb forms that function as modifiers. There are three participle endings:

• -il, the stative participle
• -en, the active participle
• -es, the passive participle

All three participle endings attach directly to the noun root from which a verb is derived, in the same manner as the verb-forming suffixes described in Yivrian verbs. The finitive element -y- found in all finite verb forms (except the habitual -vva) does not appear in participles.

The stative participle -il

The stative participle is the most common of the three participles and is the form that corresponds to simple adjectives in most other languages. It describes a state or quality associated with the noun root from which it is derived.

Formation

The stative participle -il is formed from the noun root following the same attachment rules as other suffixes:

• After roots ending in a consonant, -il is added directly. Ex: lav ~ lavil “tall”; thol ~ tholil “afraid”
• After roots ending in -a, the -a is dropped. Ex: hara ~ haril “beautiful”; kenda ~ kendil “royal”
• After roots ending in other vowels, -il is added following the vowel. Ex: gaime ~ gaimeil “gentle”

Semantics

The meaning of the stative participle is equivalent to that of the corresponding stative verb. Just as haraya means “to be beautiful,” haril means “beautiful.” For verbs whose stative form is copular, the stative participle corresponds to the copular meaning: kendainya “to be royal” and kendil “royal” are both derived from the root kenda “king.”

For roots that primarily form active verbs, the stative participle describes the most salient quality associated with the root, and its meaning may be less predictable. For example, rokil “cunning, treacherous” is derived from the root rok “falcon.”

Because the stative participle retains the argument structure of the corresponding stative verb, transitive stative participles can take a dative argument to indicate the object. Just as one says Kiirith thoyyaa walus “Kiirith fears the wolf” (with walus, the dative of wel “wolf”), one can use the participle: Kiirith tholil walus “Kiirith, afraid of the wolf.”

Examples

Root	Stative verb	Stative participle
hara	haraya “to be beautiful”	haril “beautiful”
thol	thoyya “to fear”	tholil “afraid”
lav	lavenya “to be tall”	lavil “tall”
kenda	kendainya “to be royal”	kendil “royal”
rok	rokiinya “to be cunning”	rokil “cunning”

The active participle -en

The active participle describes the agent or performer of an action. It attaches to the noun root following the same rules as the stative participle.

Formation from base verbs

Root	Active verb	Active participle
kenda	kendya “to rule”	kenden “ruling”
miith	miithya “to strike”	miithen “striking”
essu	essuya “to build”	essuen “building”

Formation from derived stems

The active participle can also be formed from derived verb stems. In these forms, the finitive -y- is dropped from the derivational suffix and -en is added in its place. (The habitual -vva does not contain -y-, so -en replaces its final vowel directly.)

Derived verb	Active participle
kendanya “to cause to rule”	kendanen “causing to rule”
peranya “to cause to speak”	peranen “causing to speak”
tholahya “to frighten”	tholahen “frightening”
kendavva “to rule habitually”	kendavven “habitually ruling”
kendainya “to be royal”	kendainen “becoming royal”

The passive participle -es

The passive participle describes the patient or recipient of an action – the one affected by the action described by the verb. It is formed in the same way as the active participle, but with the ending -es instead of -en.

Formation from base verbs

Root	Active verb	Passive participle
kenda	kendya “to rule”	kendes “ruled”
miith	miithya “to strike”	miithes “struck”

Formation from derived stems

Derived verb	Passive participle
kendanya “to cause to rule”	kendanes “caused to rule”
tholahya “to frighten”	tholahes “frightened”
kendavva “to rule habitually”	kendavves “habitually ruled”

Copular verbs, being stative, do not form passive participles.

The agent of a passive participle can be indicated by a noun in the ablative case, following the same pattern as finite passive verbs:

• miithes Kiirithon “struck by Kiirith”

Modal prefixes with participles

The modal prefixes described in Yivrian verbs can be applied to participles, with the same range of meanings. This allows participles to express modality while functioning as modifiers. For example, with the conditional prefix ro-:

• Kiirith rotholil walus fayyal “Kiirith, who would be afraid of the wolf, left.”

The intensive prefix vo- is used to strengthen the quality expressed by a participle, equivalent to English “very”:

• voharil “very beautiful”
• volavil “very tall”

Comparison

Yivrian does not have synthetic comparative or superlative forms. Comparison is indicated by the conjunction iin, which follows the stative verb, participle, or adverb being compared.

Comparatives

The comparative is formed by placing iin after the element being compared, followed by the standard of comparison (the thing compared against). This construction is used equally with stative verbs and stative participles:

• Kiirith thoyyaa iin Datho “Kiirith is more afraid than Datho.”
• Kiirith haril iin Datho peratya “Kiirith, who is more beautiful than Datho, begins to speak.”

Transitive stative verbs retain their dative argument in the comparative:

• Kiirith thoyyaa walus iin Datho “Kiirith is more afraid of the wolf than Datho is.”

Superlatives

The superlative is indicated by using iin with nothing following it:

• Kiirith thoyyaa iin “Kiirith is the most afraid.”
• Kiirith haril iin “Kiirith, the most beautiful.”
• Kiirith lavil iin “Kiirith, the tallest.”

Comparison of adverbs

The same constructions apply to adverbs:

• Kiirith waron iin Datho fayyal “Kiirith left more quickly than Datho.”
• Kiirith waron iin fayyal “Kiirith left the most quickly.”

Adverbs

Adverbs are formed from noun roots using the ending -on, following the same attachment rules as the participle endings:

• After roots ending in a consonant, -on is added directly.
• After roots ending in -a, the -a is dropped. Ex: wara “speed” ~ waron “quickly”
• After roots ending in other vowels, -on is added following the vowel.

The intensive prefix vo- may be applied to adverbs: vowaron “very quickly.”