Database
Somali
(Somali, Ethiopia, Kenya, etc.; Afro-Asiatic, Cushitic)
Summary:
In a few words, two middle consonants metathesize after syncope.
Summary:
In a few words, two middle consonants metathesize after syncope.
Examples:
culus + aa ---> cuslaa, 'he was heavy'
duman + ay ---> dunmay, 'got organized'
neceb + ayd ---> nebcayd, 'she disliked it'
culus + aa ---> cuslaa, 'he was heavy'
duman + ay ---> dunmay, 'got organized'
neceb + ayd ---> nebcayd, 'she disliked it'
Conditions:
Metathesis is conditioned by syncope.
Metathesis is conditioned by syncope.
Motivation:
No information currently available.
No information currently available.
Related Information:
a. Syncope
Nouns of Declension 3 and verbs of Conjugation 3b regularly lose the stem-final vowel.
In some verbs and adjectives, a final short vowel drops out when morphemes are added to the root.
Vowel loss does not occur if the resulting word would have three consonants together.
a. Syncope
Nouns of Declension 3 and verbs of Conjugation 3b regularly lose the stem-final vowel.
gabadh
'girl'
+ -o
>
gabdho
'girls'
hayso
'have'
+ -teen
>
haysteen
'they possessed'
In some verbs and adjectives, a final short vowel drops out when morphemes are added to the root.
hadal
'talk'
+ -ay
>
hadlay
'(he) talked'
ladan
'good'
+ ahay 'I am'
>
ladnahay
'I feel find'
Vowel loss does not occur if the resulting word would have three consonants together.
orod + -tay
>
orodday
*ordtay
'(she) ran'
Symbols:
c = voiced pharyngeal fricative
x = voiceless pharyngeal fricative
j = voiced or voiceless palato-alveolar affricate
Last Updated: 6/19/2007
c = voiced pharyngeal fricative
x = voiceless pharyngeal fricative
j = voiced or voiceless palato-alveolar affricate
Last Updated: 6/19/2007
References:
- Zorc, R. David Paul & Madina M. Osman. 1993. Somali-English dictionary with English index. Dunwoody Press: Kensington, Md.
