Classical Nahuatl

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Classical Nahuatl

• Transitive Verbs

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TRANSITIVE VERBS
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Present Tense of Transitive Verbs

• Up to now we have seen two types of Predicates
  nominal predicates and intransitive predicates.
• Each of these predicates have in common the fact
  that they both possess a subject and do not have
  a complement.
• Transitive verbs, which we will analyze now, are
  verbs which have both a subject and an object.

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• In Nahuatl, the direct object is marked by an
  object prefix which is situated in the word
  directly following the subject prefix.
• For Example for the verb itta to see
• Nimitziita I see you
• mitziita he, she, it sees you
• Niquiita I see him, her, it
• Quiita He, she, it sees him, her, it
• Tinechiita You see me
• Namechitta I see you all
• Tiquitta You see him, her, it
• Niquimitta I see them
• Nechiita He, she, or it sees me
• Titechiita You see us

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• As you see in the previous verb, the object
  prefixes are

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• These prefixes are the same for all verbs in all
  times.
• Before the vowel a of amech- we evidently have
  the form of the subject prefix without the I
  (namechiita I see you all) or (tamechittah We
  see them)
• Unlike what happens with the subject, a plural
  object does not need a plural suffix.
• Verbs in Nahuatl agree in number with the
  subject, not the object

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• Quiita He, she it, sees him, her, it.
• Quimitta He, she, it sees them
• Quiitah They see him, her, it
• Quimittah They see them
• NOTE The reflexive forms of verbs utilize
  special prefixesSo you would never have
• Ninechitta I see myself

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• The 3rd person qu- is only one of the possible
  3rd person particles for object pronouns.
• Before a vowel or consonant that is not e or
  i, it is written as c. Example (verb ana to
  trap, make a prisoner)
• Nimitzana I trap you/ I take you prisoner
• Nicana I trapped him, her it, I took him,
• her, it a prisoner
• Nimitztlazotla I love you
• Nictlazotla I love him, her, it

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• Just like the n-, y, t the object prefix qu-
  also often uses a helping vowel. There are two
  cases when this happens
• 1). When the verb root begins with a consonant
  and the subject is in the 2rd person.
• Example cana he traps, takes a prisoner
• Quitlazotla he, she, it loves (ctlazotla is
  impossible).

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• 2). The verb root begins with a consonant and the
  subject is in the 2nd person plural which takes
  the form an-This helps to avoid three internal
  consonants.
• Ancanah You all trap him, her, it
• Anquitlazotla You all love him, her, it
• NOTE That anctlazotla is impossible

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Indefinite Prefixes

• Sometimes the speaker may want to use a
  transitive verb, but not specify a specific
  subject.
• This is done in Nahuatl by using prefixes that
  generally mean someone or something.
• Nitetlazotla I love someone, some people
• Nitlacua I eat something

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• -te- Is the indefinite prefix used for
• people meaning someone
• -tla- is the indefinite prefix used for
• non-humans (things or indefinite animals)
• These prefixes say nothing about number or
  plurality. They are translated depending on the
  specific case

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Examples

• Ni-te-ana
• Niteana I take a prisoner
• or I take prisoners
• Ni-tla-caqui
• Nitlacaqui I hear something(s)
• Ni-te-itta
• Niteitta I see people

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Exceptions

• When using the tla- particle, when the root of
  the Nahuatl verb begins with i and is followed
  by 2 consonants, the i disappears.
• Ni-mitz-itta I see you
• Ni-tla-tta I see something(s)
• Ni-qu-itoa I say it
• Ni-tla-toa I say something(s)
• Ni-qu-icuiloa I paint it, I write it
• Ni-tla-cuiloa I paint/write something(s)

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The same is not true for the te- indefinite
particle

• Ni-te-itta I see someone/people
• Ni-te-itoa I speak to someone

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Word order in transitive sentences in Nahuatl

• 1). When the subject is expressed by a name and
  not only a simple pronoun particle, we usually
  have the order V-S (verb-Subject) or S-V
  (Subject-Verb).
• The first manner (V-S) is the neutral form, and
  the second S-V is used to emphasize or mark the
  subject.

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• The same rules are observed with the compliment.
  
• We usually have the neutral form being
  Object-Verb (O-V)
• Niquitta in calli I see the house
• Ni-qu-itta in cal-li

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• But, you can also make the object the central
  theme or emphasize it by reversing the word
  order.
• In calli niquitta The house, I see it

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• If we have both a subject and an object, then the
  most common word order in Nahuatl would be V-S-O
  (Verb-Subject-Object)
• Quitta in cihuatl in calli
• The woman sees the house
• Literally She sees it, the woman, the house

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• Emphasizing the object is possible in nahuatl,
  but not common
• In calli quitta in cihuatl
• the house, she sees it, the woman
• It is also possible to see the order S-O-V
• In cihuatl in calli quitta
• The woman, the house, she sees it
• The word order of Object-Subject-Verbs is not
  used in Nahuatl
• NEVER in calli, in cihuatl quitta
• The house, the woman, she sees it

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Examples

• Quicua nacatl in cihuatl
• the woman eats meat
• Quichihua calli in Pedro
• (Chihua-to make, build, construct)
• Pedro constructs houses

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• Quimitta cocohuah in pilli
• The child sees several serpents
• In cihuatl quicua nacatl
• The woman (she) eats meat

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• Niquitta in pilli I see the child
• Here in pilli is the object, because there is a
  first person subject and a third person object.
  The same with
• Nechitta in pilli The child sees me
• But if both the subject and the object are in the
  third person

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• Quitlazotla in pilla
• This can mean either
• He, she it loves the child or
• The child is loved by he, she it

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• Quitlazotlah in pilli They love the child
• Quintlazotla in pilli The child loves them
• Quitlazotlah in pipiltin They love the
  children
• But there is ambiguity about the meaning of the
  following
• Quintlazotlah in pipiltin
• It could mean
• They love the children or The children loves
  them
• You can avoid this ambiguity by using the O-V-S
  word order

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• In cihuatl quitta in pilli
• the women sees the child
• And it does not mean The woman, the child sees
  her