A Grammar of Shib

Introduction

Scope and Purpose

This grammar provides a systematic description of the Shib language (the 243rd 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 Shib.

Typological Profile

It has the typologically rare OSV basic word order and four genders.

Phonology

Phoneme Inventory

Consonants

Shib has 21 consonant phonemes, a size that falls within a broadly average range.

It has has no particularly unusual consonantal features.

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

labialalveolarpostalveolaralveolo-palatallateralpalatalvelarglottal
stopp b d t k ɡ
nasalm n ɲ ŋ
fricativef s ʃ h
approximantʋ ɾ j
affricatet͡ʃ t͡ɕ
implosiveɓ

Vowels

Shib has more than 14 vowel qualities. This constitutes an exceptionally rich vowel inventory, with numerous distinct categories represented in the chart.

It has phonologically distinctive back unrounded vowels.

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

frontcentralback unroundedback rounded
closei ɯ u
mide ɤ o
opena

Stress and Tones

Shib 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/, /e/ becomes /ɤ/.

Writing System

Introduction

Shib 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/ف /f/
ك /k/م /m/ن /n/و /au, ʋ/
ي /ai, j/پ /p/ڃ /ɲ/چ /t͡ʃ/
ڇ /t͡ɕ/ڭ /ŋ/گ /ɡ/ݐ /ɓ/

Diacritics

◌ٓ /a̰, ḛ, ḭ, o̰, ṵ, ɤ̰, ɯ̰/

Word Classes and Morphology

Number and Gender

Number

Shib does not have grammatical number.

Gender

Shib has the following genders:

Gender cl.1 – for instance: بش ‘house’, بمڇ ‘lamb’, ديس ‘idea’, رش ‘animal’, سي ‘bird’, فٓود ‘breath’, فڇ ‘cat’, كم ‘chair’, مشٓر ‘lion’, ني ‘day’, نٓوٓك ‘louse’, نچ ‘bed’, ون ‘girl’, پك ‘night’, ڇت ‘daughter’, ڇنڃ ‘tiger’, ڭگ ‘fish’, گسيگ ‘worm’, گفف ‘student’, گچ ‘people’.

Gender cl.2 – for instance: بييح ‘river’, تف ‘boy’, دف ‘husband’, رٓش ‘name’, رڃون ‘bottle’, شٓس ‘sound’, فوٓپ ‘ice’, فٓشد ‘bank’, ور ‘north’, يٓوين ‘grass’, پكن ‘money’, ڃت ‘city’, ڃچ ‘friend’, چرف ‘hunter’, چنٓن ‘smoke’, ڇت ‘colour’, ڇڭ ‘sea’, ڭي ‘man’, گٓمك ‘sand’, ݐوم ‘son’.

Gender cl.3 – for instance: بسݐ ‘cheese’, تڇٓم ‘root’, دون ‘moon’, دٓڇ ‘tree’, دٓگس ‘mountain’, دڃ ‘fire’, سس ‘sky’, سݐ ‘egg’, شݐوچ ‘stick’, فف ‘star’, فين ‘fruit’, كتس ‘market’, وس ‘inside’, وچ ‘land’, پڇس ‘fog’, ڃب ‘west’, چم ‘meat’, چݐوڭ ‘cloud’, گٓݐ ‘knife’, ݐب ‘rain’.

Gender cl.4 – for instance: تت ‘hair’, تدو ‘liver’, حيش ‘penis’, دو ‘face’, رڃ ‘mouth’, شچ ‘tongue’, شگݐ ‘bark’, كن ‘leg’, كڃٓك ‘medicine’, مبٓو ‘bosom’, مگ ‘eye’, نشر ‘vagina’, وگيد ‘dialect’, پٓپم ‘anus’, ڇر ‘south’, ڇسم ‘breast’, ڇي ‘hand’, گٓڇيب ‘neck’, ݐو ‘bone’, ݐڃ ‘speech’.

The Nominal Phrase

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

رٓم ك نك كشيرٓي حم كٓتڃي تپ حر مگٓݐي مگٓرٓ۔

[ɾɯ̰mu ki nako keʃajuɾḭje hɤmu kḭtoɲeje tapɤ hɤɾu muɡḭɓeje moɡḭɾo̰]

ɾɯ̰
yon
-mu
cl.1
ki
three
nako
blind
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
ʃajuɾ
mouse
-ḭ
plur
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ḭ-
ERG
toɲ
woman
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
tapɤ
COMIT

the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
u-
LOC
ɡḭɓ
knife
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST

catch
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“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 Shib consists of first, an obligatory prefix expressing gender, comprising كـ /k-/ ‘cl.1’, ڇـ /t͡ɕ-/ ‘cl.2’, مـ /m-/ ‘cl.3’ and چـ /t͡ʃ-/ ‘cl.4’; second, an obligatory prefix expressing case, comprising إـ /e-/ ‘NOM’, إ̰ـ /ḭ-/ ‘ERG’, إ̰ـ /ḛ-/ ‘ACC’, أ̰ـ /o̰-/ ‘DAT’, أ̰ـ /a̰-/ ‘INS’, إـ /i-/ ‘VOC’, أـ /a-/ ‘ALL’, أـ /u-/ ‘LOC’, أـ /o-/ ‘ABL’ and إنٓـ /ena̰-/ ‘PART’; third, the root; fourth, an obligatory suffix expressing number, comprising ـ /-e/ ‘sing’ and ـٓ /-ḭ/ ‘plur’; and finally, fifth, an obligatory suffix expressing possessor, comprising ـدٓ /-dṵ/ ‘1incl.sing’, ـدٓ /-dḛ/ ‘1excl.sing’, ـف /-fo/ ‘2.sing’, ـفة /-fa/ ‘3.sing.cl.1’, ـتٓ /-tḛ/ ‘3.sing.cl.2’, ـحة /-ha/ ‘3.sing.cl.3’, ـدٓ /-da̰/ ‘3.sing.cl.4’, ـفٓ /-fḭ/ ‘1incl.plur’, ـڃٓ /-ɲṵ/ ‘1excl.plur’, ـر /-ɾo/ ‘2.plur’, ـك /-ki/ ‘3.plur.cl.1’, ـي /-jo/ ‘3.plur.cl.2’, ـي /-ju/ ‘3.plur.cl.3’, ـݐ /-ɓu/ ‘3.plur.cl.4’ and ـي /-je/ ‘no.owner’.

The noun displays the following derivational morphology: two suffixes, namely ـح /-ih/ ‘little’ and ـڭ /-aŋ/ ‘big’

The Adjective

The adjective in Shib stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Numerals

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

Determiners

In Shib, the determiner has the following structure: the root followed by an obligatory suffix expressing gender, comprising ـم /-mu/ ‘cl.1’, ـݐ /-ɓo/ ‘cl.2’, ـر /-ɾu/ ‘cl.3’ and ـم /-me/ ‘cl.4’.

Pronouns

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

In Shib, subject pronouns (but not object pronouns ones) are dropped unless they are stressed. Here is an example where neither of the pronouns are stressed:

دٓ كڭٓرٓ۔

[dɤ̰ koŋḭɾo̰]

dɤ̰
3.sing.cl.1
k-
PRES

love
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“He (the boy) loves her (the girl).”

(2)

But here, the word corresponding to he (i.e., the subject) is stressed:

دٓ مٓ كڭٓرٓ۔

[dɤ̰ mɤ̰ koŋḭɾo̰]

dɤ̰
3.sing.cl.1
mɤ̰
3.sing.cl.2
k-
PRES

love
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

He loves her.”

(3)

Proper Nouns

حم كٓرچمي حݐ ڇتفسي كٓݐپٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu kɤ̰ɾɯt͡ʃɤmɤje hɤɓo t͡ɕetafoseje kɯ̰ɓɯpɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ̰-
ACC
ɾɯt͡ʃɤm
Ricahm

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
tafos
Tafos
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
k-
PRES
ɯ̰ɓɯp
hate
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“Tafos hates Ricahm.”

(4)

Possession

حر مݐسݐتٓ حݐ ڇتفي

[hɤɾu meɓesoɓetḛ hɤɓo t͡ɕetifeje]


the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
e-
NOM
ɓesoɓ
apple
-e
sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
tif
boy
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

“the boy’s apple”

(5)
حر مݐسݐتٓ مٓ

[hɤɾu meɓesoɓetḛ mɤ̰]


the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
e-
NOM
ɓesoɓ
apple
-e
sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS
mɤ̰
3.sing.cl.2

“his (the boy’s) apple”

(6)
حر مݐسݐدٓ

[hɤɾu meɓesoɓedḛ]


the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
e-
NOM
ɓesoɓ
apple
-e
sing
-dḛ
1excl.sing.POSS

“my apple”

(7)
حݐ ڇݐومتٓ حݐ ڇݐچڃف حم كٓڇتتٓ حݐ ڇچرفي مبدٓرٓ۔

[hɤɓo t͡ɕeɓaumetḛ hɤɓo t͡ɕeɓut͡ʃaɲefo hɤmu kḭt͡ɕetetḛ hɤɓo t͡ɕet͡ʃuɾefeje mebadḭɾo̰]


the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
ɓaum
son
-e
sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
ɓut͡ʃaɲ
neighbour
-e
sing
-fo
2.sing.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ḭ-
ERG
t͡ɕet
daughter
-e
sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
t͡ʃuɾef
hunter
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ebad
kiss
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

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

(8)

Derivation

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

كبمڇي

[kɤbɤmɯt͡ɕɤje]

k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
bɤmɯt͡ɕ
lamb

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

“a lamb”

(9)

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

كبمڇحي

[kebɤmɯt͡ɕɯheje]

k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
bɤmɯt͡ɕ
lamb
-ɯh
little
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

“a little lamb”

(10)

Compounding

Verbs

Inflectional Categories

The verbal phrase clitics in Shib fall into two categories, proclitics and enclitics: a clitic expressing mode, comprising چ /t͡ʃo/ ‘imperative’, نٓ /no̰/ ‘conditional’ and فٓ /fo̰/ ‘optative’ followed by a clitic expressing negation, comprising م /mi/ ‘NEG’.

In addition, the verb is structured like this: first, an obligatory prefix expressing ta, comprising كـ /k-/ ‘PRES’ and مـ /m-/ ‘PAST’; second, the root; third, an obligatory suffix expressing voice, comprising ـٓ /-ḭ/ ‘active’ and ـٓ /-ṵ/ ‘passive’; and finally, fourth, an obligatory suffix expressing question, comprising ـنٓ /-nḭ/ ‘Q’ and ـرٓ /-ɾo̰/ ‘not.Q’.

The verb displays the following derivational morphology: two suffixes, namely ـٓچ /-o̰t͡ʃ/ ‘begin’ and ـب /-ub/ ‘stop’

ح كڭٓرٓ۔

[hu koŋḭɾo̰]

hu
2.sing
k-
PRES

love
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“I love you.”

(11)

Adverbs Minor Classes

Adpositions

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

رٓ حم كچيشي

[ɾḛ hɤmu kut͡ʃaiʃeje]

ɾḛ
in_surface

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
u-
LOC
t͡ʃaiʃ
table
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

“on the table”

(12)
ڃٓ حم كفٓچدي

[ɲṵ hɤmu kufḛt͡ʃadeje]

ɲṵ
to_inside

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
u-
LOC
fḛt͡ʃad
box
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

“into the box”

(13)
تپ ن

[tapɤ ne]

tapɤ
COMIT
ne
1excl.sing

“with me”

(14)

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.

Shib adopts Object–Subject–Verb (OSV) as its unmarked word order. The object precedes the subject, and the verb appears clause-finally. OSV is a rare ordering pattern but is attested in a small number of languages.

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

حݐ ڇچرفي حر مٓمسڃي مسٓرٓ۔

[hɤɓo t͡ɕet͡ʃuɾefeje hɤɾu mḭmusuɲeje misḭɾo̰]


the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
t͡ʃuɾef
hunter
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
ḭ-
ERG
musuɲ
jaguar
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
is
kill
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“The jaguar killed the hunter.”

(15)
حم كپڭف حم كڇتتٓ حݐ ڇچرفي حم كٓمشٓري متٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu kepuŋefa hɤmu ket͡ɕetetḛ hɤɓo t͡ɕet͡ʃuɾefeje hɤmu kḭmuʃḛɾeje mɯtɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
puŋ
dog
-e
sing
-fa
3.sing.cl.1.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
t͡ɕet
daughter
-e
sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
t͡ʃuɾef
hunter
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ḭ-
ERG
muʃḛɾ
lion
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯt
eat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

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

(16)

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 Shib 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-initial: the possessed noun precedes the possessor. For instance, Shib expresses “the child’s toy” with the equivalent of “toy child”. This structure is typologically rarer and often co-occurs with verb-initial syntax or with grammatical marking on the noun.

حݐ ڇبرتٓ حݐ ڇڃچتٓ حݐ ڇݐومف

[hɤɓo t͡ɕebeɾetḛ hɤɓo t͡ɕɤɲɤt͡ʃɤtḛ hɤɓo t͡ɕeɓaumefo]


the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
beɾ
book
-e
sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
ɤ-
NOM
ɲɤt͡ʃ
friend

sing
-tḛ
3.sing.cl.2.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
e-
NOM
ɓaum
son
-e
sing
-fo
2.sing.POSS

“your son’s friend’s book”

(17)

Case Marking

Shib uses split case marking. In the present tense, the grammar follows a nominative–accusative pattern, where intransitive and transitive subjects are treated alike and objects are marked with the accusative. In the past tense, however, it follows an ergative–absolutive pattern, here called ergative–nominative, where intransitive subjects and transitive objects are treated alike and transitive subjects are marked with the ergative. This makes sense because present-tense clauses often describe events as ongoing, habitual or controlled by an active participant, so the grammar treats the subject as the central argument. Past-tense clauses, by contrast, often present an event as completed, making the affected participant especially salient. The ergative marking then singles out the transitive agent as the additional participant responsible for bringing about that result.

حم كفڇي كوسٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje kausḭɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
k-
PRES
aus
sleep
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“The cat is sleeping.”

(18)
حم كفڇي كدٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje kudḭɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
k-
PRES
ud
run
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“The cat is running.”

(19)
حم كٓشيري حم كفڇي كدݐٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu kḛʃajuɾeje hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje kɤdɤɓɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ḛ-
ACC
ʃajuɾ
mouse
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
k-
PRES
ɤdɤɓ
chase
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“The cat is chasing the mouse.”

(20)
حم كشيري حم كٓفڇي مگٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu keʃajuɾeje hɤmu kɯ̰fɯt͡ɕɤje moɡḭɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
ʃajuɾ
mouse
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɯ̰-
ERG
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST

catch
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“The cat caught the mouse.”

(21)

Conjunctions

Here is an example of a conjunction.

حر ممسڃٓي ڇ حم كڇنڃٓي ڇ حم كمشٓرٓي حݐ ڇٓچرفي مسٓرٓ۔

[hɤɾu memusuɲḭje t͡ɕe hɤmu ket͡ɕunoɲḭje t͡ɕe hɤmu kemuʃḛɾḭje hɤɓo t͡ɕḭt͡ʃuɾefeje misḭɾo̰]


the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
e-
NOM
musuɲ
jaguar
-ḭ
plur
-je
no.owner.POSS
t͡ɕe
and

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
t͡ɕunoɲ
tiger
-ḭ
plur
-je
no.owner.POSS
t͡ɕe
and

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
muʃḛɾ
lion
-ḭ
plur
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
ḭ-
ERG
t͡ʃuɾef
hunter
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
is
kill
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

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

(22)

Modifiers and Determiners

The ordering of demonstratives, articles (if present), and other modifiers in Shib 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

Shib forms relative clauses by placing them before the noun they modify. The modifier takes the form of a finite clause that precedes the head noun without any relative pronoun. The clause shows ordinary clausal structure, with the role of the head noun recoverable from the syntactic position inside the clause.

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

حم كفڇي مشٓمٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje mɯʃo̰mɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯʃo̰m
pat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“I patted the cat.”

(23)

We can now add a relative clause modifying the noun:

حم كشيري مگٓرٓ حم كفڇي مشٓمٓرٓ۔

[hɤmu keʃajuɾeje moɡḭɾo̰ hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje mɯʃo̰mɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
ʃajuɾ
mouse
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST

catch
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯʃo̰m
pat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse.”

(24)

Relative clauses may themselves contain other relative clauses:

حر مبسݐي متٓرٓ حم كشيري مگٓرٓ حم كفڇي مشٓمٓرٓ۔

[hɤɾu mɤbasɯɓɤje mɯtɯ̰ɾo̰ hɤmu keʃajuɾeje moɡḭɾo̰ hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje mɯʃo̰mɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
ɤ-
NOM
basɯɓ
cheese

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯt
eat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
ʃajuɾ
mouse
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST

catch
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯʃo̰m
pat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

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

(25)

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

موشٓرٓ ن حر مبسݐي متٓرٓ حم كشيري مگٓرٓ حم كفڇي مشٓمٓرٓ۔

[mauʃḭɾo̰ ne hɤɾu mɤbasɯɓɤje mɯtɯ̰ɾo̰ hɤmu keʃajuɾeje moɡḭɾo̰ hɤmu kɤfɯt͡ɕɤje mɯʃo̰mɯ̰ɾo̰]

m-
PAST
auʃ
buy
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q
ne
1excl.sing

the
-ɾu
cl.3
m-
cl.3
ɤ-
NOM
basɯɓ
cheese

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯt
eat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
e-
NOM
ʃajuɾ
mouse
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST

catch
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
ɤ-
NOM
fɯt͡ɕ
cat

sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯʃo̰m
pat
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

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

(26)

Complementation Strategies

Shib 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:

حݐ ڇٓگتري مݐسݐي حم كٓوني مٓحٓرٓ حݐ ڇٓتفف منٓفٓرٓ۔

[hɤɓo t͡ɕo̰ɡiteɾeje meɓesoɓeje hɤmu ko̰ʋeneje ma̰hḭɾo̰ hɤɓo t͡ɕḭtifefa mɯnɤ̰fɯ̰ɾo̰]


the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
o̰-
DAT
ɡiteɾ
teacher
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
cl.3
e-
NOM
ɓesoɓ
apple
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
o̰-
DAT
ʋen
girl
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST
a̰h
give
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
ḭ-
ERG
tif
boy
-e
sing
-fa
3.sing.cl.1.POSS
m-
PAST
ɯnɤ̰f
surprise
-ɯ̰
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

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

(27)

Quotes

Shib expresses quoted or reported speech without a dedicated quotative particle. Quotations appear as ordinary clauses, distinguished only by the surrounding syntactic context or by the use of verbs of speaking.

Here is an example of how quotations are expressed:

ح كڭٓرٓ ن حم كٓوني حݐ ڇٓتفي مگٓرٓ۔

[hu koŋḭɾo̰ ne hɤmu ko̰ʋeneje hɤɓo t͡ɕḭtifeje meɡḭɾo̰]

hu
2.sing
k-
PRES

love
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q
ne
1excl.sing

the
-mu
cl.1
k-
cl.1
o̰-
DAT
ʋen
girl
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS

the
-ɓo
cl.2
t͡ɕ-
cl.2
ḭ-
ERG
tif
boy
-e
sing
-je
no.owner.POSS
m-
PAST

tell
-ḭ
active
-ɾo̰
not.Q

“The boy told the girl that he loved her.”

(28)

How to cite this grammar

Language Creator. 2026. A Grammar of Shib. Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.91, on 8 June 2026. https://languagecreator.org/grammar/3X0KA

In BibTeX format:

@misc{LC-3X0KA,
  year         = 2026,
  author       = {{Language Creator}},
  title        = {A Grammar of {Shib}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://languagecreator.org/grammar/3X0KA}},
  note         = {Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.91, on 8 June 2026}
}

Supplementary Materials

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

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https://languagecreator.org/grammar/3X0KA

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