A Grammar of Aicha

Introduction

Scope and Purpose

This grammar provides a systematic description of the Aicha language (the 94th one produced by the Language Creator), outlining its sound system, word formation and syntactic structure, with the aim of presenting a coherent account of the language as an integrated whole. Attention has been paid to both regular patterns and minor irregularities, as these together define the internal balance of the language.

The grammar is accompanied by a bilingual dictionary and a collection of illustrative texts, offering material for further study and comparison. The examples have been selected to demonstrate typical constructions and to give a sense of the language in extended use. The description is intended as a reference work for linguists and language enthusiasts alike, and as a foundation for any future research, teaching or creative adaptation of Aicha.

Typological Profile

It has not just singular and plural, but also dual, as well as a small but genuine set of click consonants and postpositions.

Phonology

Phoneme Inventory

Consonants

Aicha has a moderately large consonant inventory, with 33 phonemes.

It has a noticeable presence of pharyngealised phonemes, a small but genuine set of click consonants and a system with marginal but genuine retroflex contrasts.

The table below presents the full inventory of consonant phonemes in Aicha. The chart lists all places and manners of articulation attested in the language.

labialdentalphar. dentalalveolarphar. alveolarpostalveolaralveolo-palatallateralpalatalretroflexvelarglottal
stopb d t dˤ tˤ ɖ ʈ k ɡ
nasalm n ɲ ɳ ŋ
trill/tap/flapɽ
fricativef s ʃ ʂ h
approximantw ɾ j
affricatet͡ʃ t͡ɕ
implosiveɓ
clickᵏǀ ᵏǀˤ
click, nasalᵑǀ ᵑǀˤ

Vowels

Aicha has 12 vowel qualities, forming a relatively large inventory. The system distinguishes several vowel categories, as indicated in the chart, offering a wide range of vocalic contrasts.

It has phonologically distinctive back unrounded vowels and a triangular vowel system with few low vowels.

The table below presents the full inventory of vowel phonemes in Aicha. The system comprises the distinct vowel qualities listed in the chart.

frontcentralback unroundedback rounded
closei ɯ u
midə
opena

Stress and Tones

Aicha has neither phonemic stress nor lexical tone. Prosodic prominence and pitch variation are determined by pragmatic and discourse factors rather than by lexical contrasts.

Phonological Processes

Vowel Harmony

The language employs vowel harmony. To be specific, the following vowels change to match the first vowel of the root: /i/ becomes /ɯ/.

Writing System

Introduction

Aicha is normally written using the Arabic alphabet, a consonant-centred script whose forms vary according to position in the word. In this grammar, phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) are also provided to make the pronunciation fully explicit.

Orthography

Here are the various components of the orthography:

Simple letters

ب /b/ت /t/ح /h/د /d/
ر /ɾ/س /s/ش /ʃ/ص /sˤ/
ض /dˤ/ط /tˤ/ف /f/قۡ /ᵏǀ/
قۡٓ /ᵏǀˤ/ك /k/م /m/ن /n/
نٓ /nˤ/و /au, w/ي /ai, j/ٹ /ʈ/
ڃ /ɲ/چ /t͡ʃ/ڇ /t͡ɕ/ڈ /ɖ/
ړ /ɽ/ښ /ʂ/ڭ /ŋ/گ /ɡ/
ڹ /ɳ/ݐ /ɓ/

Multi-letter combinations such as digraphs

نقۡ /ᵑǀ/نقۡٓ /ᵑǀˤ/

Diacritics

◌ٓ /a̰, ḭ, ṵ, ə̰, ɯ̰/

Word Classes and Morphology

Number and Gender

Number

Aicha distinguishes singular, dual and plural.

Gender

Aicha has the following genders:

Gender fem – for instance: أ̰بة ‘breast’, أ̰ص ‘sharp’, أ̰ضٓ ‘dirty’, أ̰ڭ ‘fire’, أ̰ڭة ‘dull’, أ̰ڭٓ ‘mouth’, أت ‘smooth’, أرٓ ‘daughter’, أسة ‘far’, أضٓ ‘perfect’, أف ‘dry’, أك ‘green’, أوٓ ‘black’, أڇٓ ‘salt’, أښٓ ‘river’, إ̰دٓ ‘girl’, إ̰كة ‘thick’, إ̰م ‘happy’, إطة ‘nose’, إنٓٓ ‘rain’.

Gender masc – for instance: أ̰تٓ ‘book’, أ̰ضة ‘dialect’, أ̰ضٓ ‘belly’, أ̰ضٓ ‘speech’, أ̰كٓ ‘colour’, أ̰نة ‘feather’, أ̰ڭٓ ‘dust’, أحٓ ‘father’, أشٓ ‘root’, أك ‘sound’, أنٓة ‘slime’, أي ‘anus’, أيٓ ‘time’, أڇ ‘human being’, أړة ‘forest’, أڹٓ ‘wind’, إ̰ڈٓ ‘guts’, إم ‘smoke’, إيٓ ‘hunter’, إچٓ ‘son’.

Gender neut – for instance: أ̰تٓ ‘fat’, أ̰طٓ ‘neck’, أ̰طٓ ‘wheat’, أ̰ڃ ‘meat’, أ̰ڇ ‘cheese’, أ̰ڇة ‘sun’, أ̰ݐٓ ‘top’, أتٓ ‘fog’, أتٓ ‘sea’, أح ‘snake’, أص ‘penis’, أضة ‘mouse’, أية ‘louse’, أچٓ ‘manner’, أړ ‘stone’, أړة ‘bed’, إ̰مة ‘cat’, إ̰مة ‘lion’, إنٓ ‘house’, إڃة ‘mortar’.

The Nominal Phrase

Nominal phrases in Aicha can be exemplified by the following example:

طٓسٓص ڹڭ طٓسٓ ڹون ش طٓسٓص قۡٓٓمٓ دت مض صو ضٓ طيرٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵsˤə ɳəŋi tˤa̰sṵ ɳauni ʃa tˤa̰sṵsˤə ᵏǀˤɯ̰mṵ dati mudˤə sˤau dˤə̰ tˤaiɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-sˤə
fem
ɳ-
NOM
əŋi
woman
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
auni
knife
ʃa
COMIT
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-sˤə
fem
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
ɯ̰mṵ
blind
da
yon
-ti
plur
m-
ACC
udˤə
mouse
sˤau
three
dˤə̰
3.sing.fem.SUBJ
tˤai
catch
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“The woman with the knife caught those three blind mice.”

(1)

In the following, we shall look at the various components in more details.

There are no clitics in the nominal phrase.

The Noun

The noun in Aicha consists of an obligatory prefix expressing case, comprising ڹـ /ɳ-/ ‘NOM’, مـ /m-/ ‘ACC’, قۡٓـ /ᵏǀˤ-/ ‘GEN’, نٓـ /nˤ-/ ‘DAT’, ڈـ /ɖ-/ ‘INS’, فـ /f-/ ‘VOC’, ڭـ /ŋ-/ ‘ALL’, ښـ /ʂ-/ ‘LOC’, يـ /j-/ ‘ABL’ and قۡـ /ᵏǀ-/ ‘PART’ followed by the root.

The noun displays the following derivational morphology: two suffixes, namely ـٹة /-ʈa/ ‘little’ and ـڭ /-ŋi/ ‘big’

The Adjective

In Aicha, the adjective has the following structure: the root followed by an obligatory suffix expressing number, comprising ـٓ /-ḭ/ ‘sing’, ـة /-a/ ‘dual’ and ـٓ /-ṵ/ ‘plur’.

Numerals

The numeral in Aicha stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Determiners

In Aicha, the determiner has the following structure: first, the root; second, an obligatory suffix expressing number, comprising ـسٓ /-sṵ/ ‘sing’, ـدٓ /-dḭ/ ‘dual’ and ـت /-ti/ ‘plur’; and finally, third, an optional suffix expressing gender, comprising ـفٓ /-fə̰/ ‘masc’ and ـصة /-sˤə/ ‘fem’.

Pronouns

The pronoun in Aicha stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

طٓسٓ مڃ طٓ طٓرٓ ڈ ب ڹ ن ڃورٓ ڹٓم ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵ maɲa tˤa̰ tˤɯ̰ɾə̰ ɖə bi ɳi na ɲauɾə̰ ɳḭmu bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
m-
ACC
aɲa
tiger
tˤa̰
1excl.plur.SUBJ
tˤɯ̰
kill
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
ɳi
because
na
1incl.plur.SUBJ
ɲau
be
-ɾə̰
active
ɳ-
NOM
ḭmu
happy
bi
indicative

“Because the two of us [not including the listener] killed the tiger, we [including the listener] are all now happy.”

(2)

Here is an example where neither of the pronouns are stressed:

نٓي نرٓ ب۔

[nˤai nəɾə̰ bi]

nˤai
3.sing.fem

love
-ɾə̰
active
bi
indicative

“He (the boy) loves her (the girl).”

(3)

But here, the word corresponding to he is stressed:

ن نٓي نرٓ ب۔

[nɯ nˤai nəɾə̰ bi]


3.sing.masc
nˤai
3.sing.fem

love
-ɾə̰
active
bi
indicative

He loves her.”

(4)

And here, it is the one translated as her that is stressed:

نٓي نرٓ ب۔

[nˤai nəɾə̰ bi]

nˤai
3.sing.fem

love
-ɾə̰
active
bi
indicative

“He loves her.”

(5)

Proper Nouns

طٓسٓفٓ ڹٓڭ طٓسٓص مٹٓ گٓرٓ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ɳə̰ŋa tˤa̰sṵsˤə miʈṵ ɡɯ̰ɾə̰ bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ɳ-
NOM
ə̰ŋa
Anga
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-sˤə
fem
m-
ACC
iʈṵ
Itu
ɡɯ̰
hate
-ɾə̰
active
bi
indicative

“Anga hates Itu.”

(6)

Possession

طٓسٓفٓ قۡٓٓم طٓسٓ ڹيسة

[tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ᵏǀˤṵmu tˤa̰sṵ ɳaisa]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
ṵmu
boy
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
aisa
apple

“the boy’s apple”

(7)
ن طٓسٓ ڹيسة

[nɯ tˤa̰sṵ ɳaisa]


3.sing.masc
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
aisa
apple

“his (the boy’s) apple”

(8)
ح طٓسٓ ڹيسة

[hu tˤa̰sṵ ɳaisa]

hu
1excl.sing
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
aisa
apple

“my apple”

(9)
طٓسٓفٓ قۡٓيٓ طٓسٓص ڹرٓ قۡٓ طٓسٓفٓ قۡٓكٓ طٓسٓفٓ مچٓ ضٓ درٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ᵏǀˤija̰ tˤa̰sṵsˤə ɳəɾṵ ᵏǀṵ tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ᵏǀˤɯka̰ tˤa̰sṵfə̰ mit͡ʃḭ dˤə̰ dɯɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
ija̰
hunter
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-sˤə
fem
ɳ-
NOM
əɾṵ
daughter
ᵏǀṵ
2.sing
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
ɯka̰
neighbour
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
m-
ACC
it͡ʃḭ
son
dˤə̰
3.sing.fem.SUBJ

kiss
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“The hunter’s daughter kissed your neighbour’s son.”

(10)

Derivation

Aicha has a few derivational processes. To illustrate this, let us start with a simple noun phrase:

ڹٓح

[ɳḭhi]

ɳ-
NOM
ḭhi
lamb

“a lamb”

(11)

In the following, the word for little becomes an affix attached to lamb:

ڹٓحٹة

[ɳḭhiʈa]

ɳ-
NOM
ḭhi
lamb
-ʈa
little

“a little lamb”

(12)

Compounding

Verbs

Inflectional Categories

The verbal phrase clitics in Aicha fall into two categories, proclitics and enclitics: first, a clitic expressing subj, comprising كة /kə/ ‘1incl.sing’, تٓ /tṵ/ ‘1excl.sing’, حٓ /hə̰/ ‘2.sing’, ضٓ /dˤə̰/ ‘3.sing.fem’, وٓ /wḭ/ ‘3.sing.neut’, ښة /ʂə/ ‘1incl.dual’, بٓ /bə̰/ ‘1excl.dual’, چٓ /t͡ʃa̰/ ‘2.dual’, ضٓ /dˤṵ/ ‘3.dual.masc’, كة /ka/ ‘3.dual.fem’, وة /wa/ ‘3.dual.neut’, نة /na/ ‘1incl.plur’, طٓ /tˤa̰/ ‘1excl.plur’, قۡٓٓ /ᵏǀˤa̰/ ‘2.plur’, ضٓ /dˤḭ/ ‘3.plur.masc’, ښة /ʂa/ ‘3.plur.fem’ and رة /ɾə/ ‘3.plur.neut’; second, a clitic expressing ta, comprising ڈة /ɖə/ ‘PAST’; third, a clitic expressing mode, comprising ب /bi/ ‘indicative’, رٓ /ɾə̰/ ‘conditional’ and فة /fə/ ‘optative’; and finally, fourth, a clitic expressing negation, comprising دة /da/ ‘NEG’.

In addition, the verb is structured like this: the root followed by an obligatory suffix expressing voice, comprising ـرٓ /-ɾə̰/ ‘active’ and ـرٓ /-ɾṵ/ ‘passive’.

The verb displays the following derivational morphology: two suffixes, namely ـد /-du/ ‘begin’ and ـت /-ti/ ‘stop’

قۡٓ تٓ نرٓ ب۔

[ᵏǀṵ tṵ nəɾə̰ bi]

ᵏǀṵ
2.sing
tṵ
1excl.sing.SUBJ

love
-ɾə̰
active
bi
indicative

“I love you.”

(13)

Adverbs Minor Classes

Adpositions

There is one type of clitic in the adpositional phrase, namely an enclitic (placed finally), expressing root.

طٓسٓ ڹفٓ ڹيد ف

[tˤa̰sṵ ɳəfṵ ɳaida fɯ]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
əfṵ
table
ɳ-
NOM
aida
surface

in

“on the table”

(14)
طٓسٓ ڹنٓ ڹٓكٓ يي

[tˤa̰sṵ ɳənˤi ɳə̰kḭ jai]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ənˤi
box
ɳ-
NOM
ə̰kḭ
inside
jai
to

“into the box”

(15)
ح شة

[hu ʃa]

hu
1excl.sing
ʃa
COMIT

“with me”

(16)

Syntax

Basic Clause Structure

Constituent Order

Constituent order describes the typical arrangement of the subject (S), verb (V) and object (O) in simple declarative clauses. It is a fundamental parameter in grammatical description and forms one of the clearest ways of characterising the overall structure of a language’s clause system.

Aicha has basic Subject–Object–Verb (SOV) word order. The subject precedes the object, and the verb appears at the end of the clause. This is one of the most frequent patterns cross-linguistically.

The following examples illustrate the basic, unmarked, constituent order in Aicha.

طٓسٓ ڹٓفٓ طٓسٓفٓ ميٓ وٓ طٓرٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵ ɳṵfṵ tˤa̰sṵfə̰ mija̰ wḭ tˤɯ̰ɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ṵfṵ
jaguar
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
m-
ACC
ija̰
hunter
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
tˤɯ̰
kill
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“The jaguar killed the hunter.”

(17)
طٓسٓ ڹٓم طٓسٓفٓ قۡٓيٓ طٓسٓص قۡٓرٓ طٓسٓ مٓنٓٓ وٓ بٓرٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵ ɳḭma tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ᵏǀˤija̰ tˤa̰sṵsˤə ᵏǀˤəɾṵ tˤa̰sṵ mḭnˤṵ wḭ bɯ̰ɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ḭma
lion
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
ija̰
hunter
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-sˤə
fem
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
əɾṵ
daughter
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
m-
ACC
ḭnˤṵ
dog
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
bɯ̰
eat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“The lion ate the hunter’s daughter’s dog.”

(18)

The language has a fixed constituent order, and major phrases normally appear in a predictable position in the clause. Movement for discourse reasons is highly restricted: topics and foci are expressed not by rearranging elements, but through dedicated constructions such as clefts, focus clauses or topic–comment frames. Constituents remain continuous, and both the relative order of phrases and the internal structure of each phrase are stable. As a result, significant deviations from the basic word order are ungrammatical, and discourse structure is managed through these specialised constructions rather than through word-order variation.

Noun Phrases

Structure and Order

The internal structure of noun phrases in Aicha reveals typologically significant preferences in the ordering of nominal constituents. This includes the position of adjectives, numerals, and possessors relative to the noun, each of which can offer clues to the overall headedness of the language.

Possessive constructions are head-final: the possessor precedes the possessed noun. For example, Aicha expresses “the child’s toy” with the equivalent of “child toy”. This ordering is found in many SOV and postpositional languages and aligns with a broader tendency towards modifier-first structures.

قۡٓ طٓسٓفٓ قۡٓچٓ طٓسٓفٓ قۡٓٓيٓ طٓسٓفٓ ڹٓتٓ

[ᵏǀṵ tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ᵏǀˤit͡ʃḭ tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ᵏǀˤḭja̰ tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ɳə̰tḭ]

ᵏǀṵ
2.sing
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
it͡ʃḭ
son
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ᵏǀˤ-
GEN
ḭja̰
friend
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ɳ-
NOM
ə̰tḭ
book

“your son’s friend’s book”

(19)

Conjunctions

Here is an example of a conjunction.

طٓسٓفٓ ڹيٓ طٓت مٓفٓ ك طٓت مڃ ك طٓت مٓم طٓرٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ɳija̰ tˤa̰ti mṵfṵ ka tˤa̰ti maɲa ka tˤa̰ti mḭma tˤɯ̰ɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ɳ-
NOM
ija̰
hunter
tˤa̰
the
-ti
plur
m-
ACC
ṵfṵ
jaguar
ka
and
tˤa̰
the
-ti
plur
m-
ACC
aɲa
tiger
ka
and
tˤa̰
the
-ti
plur
m-
ACC
ḭma
lion
tˤɯ̰
kill
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“The hunter killed the jaguars, the tigers and the lions.”

(20)

Modifiers and Determiners

The ordering of demonstratives, articles (if present), and other modifiers in Aicha provides further insight into the structure of the noun phrase. These elements frequently exhibit fixed positions and may reveal whether the language favours head-initial or head-final patterns.

Complex Sentences

Relative Clauses

Aicha forms relative clauses by placing the relative clause after the noun it modifies. The clause follows the internal word order of ordinary finite clauses. A dedicated relativising marker introduces the clause and identifies the relationship between the head noun and its role inside the relative clause.

To illustrate how relative clauses work, let us begin with a simple sentence:

طٓسٓ مٓم تٓ ڇٓرٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵ mḭmə tṵ t͡ɕṵɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
m-
ACC
ḭmə
cat
tṵ
1excl.sing.SUBJ
t͡ɕṵ
pat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“I patted the cat.”

(21)

We can now add a relative clause modifying the noun:

تٓ ڇٓرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ ڹٓم، ص وٓ طيرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ مضة۔

[tṵ t͡ɕṵɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ ɳḭmə, sˤa wḭ tˤaiɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ mudˤə]

tṵ
1excl.sing.SUBJ
t͡ɕṵ
pat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ḭmə,
cat
sˤa
RELPRON
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
tˤai
catch
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
m-
ACC
udˤə
mouse

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse.”

(22)

Relative clauses may themselves contain other relative clauses:

تٓ ڇٓرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ ڹٓم، ص وٓ طيرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ ڹض، ص وٓ بٓرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ مٓڇ۔

[tṵ t͡ɕṵɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ ɳḭmə, sˤa wḭ tˤaiɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ ɳudˤə, sˤa wḭ bɯ̰ɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ mɯ̰t͡ɕu]

tṵ
1excl.sing.SUBJ
t͡ɕṵ
pat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ḭmə,
cat
sˤa
RELPRON
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
tˤai
catch
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
udˤə,
mouse
sˤa
RELPRON
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
bɯ̰
eat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
m-
ACC
ɯ̰t͡ɕu
cheese

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse that ate the cheese.”

(23)

Finally, here is an example containing several layers of embedding:

تٓ ڇٓرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ ڹٓم، ص وٓ طيرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ ڹض، ص وٓ بٓرٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓ ڹٓڇ، ص تٓ يورٓ ڈ ب ح۔

[tṵ t͡ɕṵɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ ɳḭmə, sˤa wḭ tˤaiɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ ɳudˤə, sˤa wḭ bɯ̰ɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵ ɳɯ̰t͡ɕu, sˤa tṵ jauɾə̰ ɖə bi hu]

tṵ
1excl.sing.SUBJ
t͡ɕṵ
pat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ḭmə,
cat
sˤa
RELPRON
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
tˤai
catch
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
udˤə,
mouse
sˤa
RELPRON
wḭ
3.sing.neut.SUBJ
bɯ̰
eat
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
ɳ-
NOM
ɯ̰t͡ɕu,
cheese
sˤa
RELPRON
tṵ
1excl.sing.SUBJ
jau
buy
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
hu
1excl.sing

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse that ate the cheese that I bought.”

(24)

Complementation Strategies

Aicha forms complement clauses by nominalising the embedded verb. The nominalised form lacks finite verbal categories and behaves as a noun phrase. Subjects of nominalised clauses occur in the genitive case, and the nominalised verb establishes the semantic content of the complement.

The following example illustrate how complement clauses function:

طٓسٓفٓ ڹٓم طٓسٓص نٓٓدٓ ميس درٓ ڈ ب طٓسٓفٓ نٓونٓ صرٓ ڈ ب۔

[tˤa̰sṵfə̰ ɳṵmu tˤa̰sṵsˤə nˤḭda̰ maisa duɾə̰ ɖə bi tˤa̰sṵfə̰ nˤaunˤə sˤiɾə̰ ɖə bi]

tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
ɳ-
NOM
ṵmu
boy
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-sˤə
fem
nˤ-
DAT
ḭda̰
girl
m-
ACC
aisa
apple
du
give
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative
tˤa̰
the
-sṵ
sing
-fə̰
masc
nˤ-
DAT
aunˤə
teacher
sˤi
surprise
-ɾə̰
active
ɖə
PAST
bi
indicative

“It surprised the teacher that the boy had given the girl an apple.”

(25)

Quotes

Here is an example of how quotations are expressed:

Miscellaneous

Supplementary Materials

A collection of illustrative texts and a bilingual dictionary (English–Aicha / Aicha–English) accompany this grammar. The complete work – comprising the grammar, dictionary and texts – may also be downloaded in ODT or DOCX format.

Readers are encouraged to share observations or corrections via the feedback form. The present page may be accessed directly at:

https://languagecreator.org/grammar/30ZVF

Behind the scenes, the Language Creator stores the generated language in a JSON-based format known as ELD. The corresponding ELD file may be downloaded, edited as required, and reuploaded in order to regenerate the grammar, dictionary and texts.

How to cite this grammar:

Language Creator. 2026. A Grammar of Aicha. Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.90, on 28 April 2026. https://languagecreator.org/grammar/30ZVF

In BibTeX format:

@misc{LC-30ZVF,
  year         = 2026,
  author       = {{Language Creator}},
  title        = {A Grammar of {Aicha}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://languagecreator.org/grammar/30ZVF}},
  note         = {Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.90, on 28 April 2026}
}

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