Atudab

About the language

Atudab (/?atudab/, /ŋɑ̃ːtudab/) is a language isolate spoken by the native inhabitants of the Southern continent of the planet Nardron. It is the second most important language in the planet, coming right after Kemfou.

One of the most characteristic features of the language is the almost complete absence of verbs and adjectives and the consequent dependence of the language on nouns and particles. Another point of interest is the wide use of nasality for grammatical purposes. The absence of velar stops and of fricative consonants (except for two affricates) is also of notice.

Phonology

Consonants

The following consonants are present in standard Atudab:

/t/ /d/	/p/ /b/	/c/ /dz/
/?/	/h/ / /x/
/r/	/l/
/j/	/w/

The following clusters are considered as single consonants:

/tr/
/pr/
/xr/

/tj/
/dj/
/pj/

/cj/
/dzj/

/bw/

The complete absence of velar consonants (/k/, /g/ and the almost complete absence of fricative consonants (/s/, /f/ and so on) are the most peculiar phonetic characteristic of the language. The only sibilants found are the affricates /ts/ (represented by /c/) and /dz/.

Note: In some dialects the affricates /c/ and /dz/ actually correspond to palatal plosives [c] and [ɟ].

Vowels

There are eight vowel qualities, each with a short and a long version, plus a schwa:

Short	Long
/a/	/aː/
/e/	/eː/
/ɛ/	/ɛː/
/i/	/iː/
/o/	/oː/
/ɔ/	/ɔː/
/u/	/uː/
/y/	/yː/
/ə/

Nasality

Nasality plays an important morphological role in the language. Both vowels and consonants may be nasalized, according to the following table. When becoming nasals, consonants lose the voiced/voiceless distinction, while vowels lose the distinction of length: some speakers pronounce nasal vowels long, while others pronounce them short, without regard for the length of the original vowel, but length for nasalized vowels is not distinctive.

Consonants	Vowels
/t/ -> /n/ /d/ -> /n/ /p/ -> /m/ /b/ -> /m/ /c/ -> /ns/ (also /nc/) /dz/ -> /nz/ (also /ndz/) /?/ -> /ŋ/ /h/ / /x/ -> /ŋx/ /r/ -> /r\`n/ /l/ -> /ln/ /j/ -> /ɲ/ /w/ -> /mw/ /tr/ -> /ndr/ /pr/ -> /mbr/ /tj/ -> /ɲ/ /dj/ -> /ɲ/ /pj/ -> /mbj/ /bw/ -> /mbw/ /xr/ -> /ŋxr/ /cj/ -> /nsj/ (also /ncj/) /dzj/ -> /nzj/ (also /nzj/)	/a/, /aː/ / /ɑ̃(ː)/ /e/, /eː/ -> /ɛ̃(ː)/ /ɛ/, /ɛː/ -> /ɛ̃(ː)/ /i/, /iː/ -> /ĩ(ː)/ /o/, /oː/ -> /ɔ̃(ː)/ /ɔ/, /ɔː/ -> /ɔ̃(ː)/ /u/, /uː/ -> /ũ(ː)/ /y/, /yː/ -> /ĩ(ː)/ /ə/ -> /ɑ̃(ː)/

Morphology

Atudab uses prefixes, infixes and circumfixes for expressing grammatical functions. One of the most productive affixes is the nasal, which can be used as a prefix (affecting only the first syllable of the root), a suffix (affecting only the last syllable of the root) and as a transfix (affecting all syllables of a word). Other affixes may have nasality as one of their elements.

Nouns

Definition

For making a noun definite, the nasal prefix is used. It consists in nasalizing the first syllable of the noun. E.g.:

/hɛːdjiː/ "house", /ŋxɛ̃ːdjiː/ "the house"
/cɔdɔbu/ "tree", /nsɔ̃ːdɔbu/ "the tree"
/trɛːjəd/ "head", /ndrɛ̃ːjəd/ "the head"
/ʔartɛʔuː/ "sun", /ŋɑ̃ːɻntɛʔuː/ "the sun"

Case

The accusative case consists in a nasal transfix, that is, all syllables of the noun are nasalized. The other two cases, the genitive/possessive and the receptive (dative), are built with circumfixes.

Accusative

The accusative case is indicated by turning all vowels and consonants of the word to nasals. E.g.:

/hɛ:dji:/ "house", /ŋxɛ̃:ɲĩ:/ "(the) house" (accus.)
/cɔdɔbu/ "tree", /nsɔ̃:nɔ̃:mũ:/ "(the) tree" (accus.)
/trɛ:jəd/ "head", /ndrɛ̃:ɲɑ̃:n/ "(the) head" (accus.)
/ʔartɛʔu:/ "sun", /ŋɑ̃:ɻnɛ̃ŋũ:/ "(the) sun" (accus.)

Note that, in the accusative case, there is no distinction between definite and indefinite nouns. Definite is assumed by default, and a periphrastic construction is used if an indefinite direct object is required, like e.g.: /(wij) cɔhəcod teʔihəh, (ju:lo) jɛ:phob jɛ:pNA~:mbwO~:r\`n/ "(There is) a new car, he bought it" for "He bought a new car".

Genitive/Possessive

To indicate possession, a combination of the prefix /te-///nɛ̃-/ and the suffix /-ʔi/ is used. The nasal version of the prefix is used with nouns in the definite form. E.g.:

/tehɛ:dji:ʔi/ "of a house", /nɛ̃nxɛ̃:dji:ʔi/ "of the house"
/tecɔdɔbuʔi/ "of a tree", /nɛ̃ncɔ̃:dɔbuʔi/ "of the tree"
/tetrɛ:jədʔi/ "of a head", /nɛ̃ndrɛ̃:jədʔi/ "of the head"
/teʔartɛʔu:ʔi/ "of a sun", /nɛ̃ŋɑ̃:ɻntɛʔu:ʔi/ "of the sun"

Number is indicated regularly:

/ncɛ̃:bwi: teʔocja?i tedi:/ "the toy of (some) boys"
/ncɛ̃:bwi: nE~:NO~:cja?i tedi:/ "the toy of the boys"
/ncɛ̃:bwi: tedi: teʔocja?i/ "the toys of a boy"
/ncɛ̃:bwi: tedi: nE~:NO~:cja?i/ "the toys of the boy"
/ncɛ̃:bwi: tedi: teʔocja?i tedi:/ "the toys of (some) boys"
/ncɛ̃:bwi: tedi: nE~:NO~:cja?i tedi:/ "the toys of the boys"

"Half Genitive"

The prefix alone is also used to indicate a relationship between two nouns and to turn nouns into adjectives. In this construction, called "half genitive", only the indefinite form of the noun may be used, which is irrelevant to the meaning as the expression refers to a class rather to an individual. E.g.:

/pibe texrojɔ:c/ "a sick person" (from /pibe/ "person" and /xrojɔ:c/ "illness")
/ncɛ̃:bwi: teʔocja/ "the toy created for boy(s)"

This construction is similar to the "construct case" found in Semitic languages. It is important to note that this prefix /te-/ does not correspond exactly to the preposition "of". It makes the noun completely dependent on the preceding noun, establishing a relationship of a "static" nature, that is, something more or less permanent, inherent. In the example above, /ncɛ̃:bwi: teʔocja/, the idea is that it is a toy (/cɛ:bwi:/ which is suitable for boys (/ʔocja/), a small truck for example. It is an intrinsic relationship, one which is part of the toy from the moment it was created. It can indicated also something temporary, like in /pibe texrojɔ:c/ "a sick person"; this indicates that the "sickness" (/xrojɔ:c/) infects the person's body as part of its (the sickness') nature. So, "intrinsic" applies to the second noun (the one with the /te-/ prefix, not to the first noun, to which the relationship may be permanent or temporary.

Receptive/Dative

The receptive case, also called dative case, indicates a "dynamic" relationship between two nouns. It partially corresponds to the notion of indirect object, conveying the idea of a relationship which is not intrinsic but which comes in terms of effects, consequences of the result of an action.

It consists in a combination of the prefix /lu-///nũ-/ and the suffix /-(ʔ)ət/ is used. The nasal version of the prefix is used with nouns in the definite form. E.g.:

/luhɛ:dji:ʔət/ "to a house", /nũnx̃ɛ:dji:ʔət/ "to the house"
/lucɔdɔbuʔət/ "to a tree", /nũns̃ɔ:dɔbuʔət/ "to the tree"
/lutrɛ:jədʔət/ "to a head", /nũndr̃ɛ:jədʔət/ "to the head"
/luʔartɛʔu:ʔət/ "to a sun", /nũŋɑ̃:ɻntɛʔu:ʔət/ "to the sun"

Some examples of the notions expressed by this case:

/jopədja nũnx̃ɛ:dji:ʔət/ "colour to the house", "painting to the house" (i.e., "the house is going to be painted", "the house needs painting", "I will paint the house" and so on)

Number

Plural and dual are indicated only if necessary, by means of the following adjectival constructions:

/tebwɛ:/ (dual)
/tedi:/ (plural)

So:

Dual
- /hɛ:dji: tebwɛ:/ "two houses", /nxɛ̃:dji: tebwɛ:/ "the two houses"
- /cɔdɔbu tebwɛ:/ "two trees", /nsɔ̃:dɔbu tebwɛ:/ "the two trees"
- /trɛ:jəd tebwɛ:/ "two heads", /ndrɛ̃:jəd tebwɛ:/ "the two heads"
- /ʔartɛʔu: tebwɛ:/ "two suns", /ŋɑ̃:ɻntɛʔu: tebwɛ:/ "the two suns"
Plural
- /hɛ:dji: tedi:/ "(some) houses", /nxɛ̃:dji: tedi:/ "the houses"
- /cɔdɔbu tedi:/ "(some) trees", /nsɔ̃:dɔbu tedi:/ "the trees"
- /trɛ:jəd tedi:/ "(some) heads", /ndrɛ̃:jəd tedi:/ "the heads"
- /ʔartɛʔu: tedi:/ "(some) suns", /ŋɑ̃:ɻntɛʔu: tedi:/ "the suns"

In the accusative, the nasal forms /nẽ:mbwɛ̃:/ (dual) and /nẽ:nĩ:/ (plural) are used:

Dual
- /ŋxɛ̃:ɲĩ: nɛ̃:mbwɛ̃:/ "(the) two houses" (accus.)
- /nsɔ̃:nɔ̃:mũ: nɛ̃:mbwɛ̃:/ "(the) two trees" (accus.)
- /ndrɛ̃:ɲɑ̃:n nɛ̃:mbwɛ̃:/ "(the) two heads" (accus.)
- /ŋɑ̃:ɻnɛ̃ŋũ: nɛ̃:mbwɛ̃:/ "(the) two suns" (accus.)
Plural
- /ŋxɛ̃:ɲĩ: nɛ̃:nĩ:/ "(the) houses" (accus.)
- /nsɔ̃:nɔ̃:mũ: nɛ̃:nĩ:/ "(the) trees" (accus.)
- /ndrɛ̃:ɲɑ̃:n nɛ̃:nĩ:/ "(the) heads" (accus.)
- /ŋɑ̃:ɻnɛ̃ŋũ: nɛ̃:nĩ:/ "(the) suns" (accus.)

The following words also provide notions related to numbers and quantity:

/tedah/ "all" (all the elements of a group)
/tedebɾu/ "the whole", "all" (something in its entirety)
/tetjotɾa/ "almost all"
/teʔɛ:la/ "the most part of"
/tedu:wɔ/ "a few"
/tepodyɾ/ "each", "every"
/tedzjohe:/ "half a"
/tetju:/ "many"
/teʔaʔa/ "much", "a lot of"

These words do not agree with the noun for the accusative, however:

/cɔdɔbu tedah/, /nsɔ̃:dɔbu tedah/ "all the trees"
/nsɔ̃:nɔ̃:mũ: tedah/ "all the trees" (accus.)
/hɛ:dji: tedu:wɔ/, /nxɛ̃:dji: tedu:wɔ/ "a few houses"

When exact numbers are used, no one of these indicators may be used along with them (see "Numbers", below).

Derivation

There are several affixes used to create nouns from other words.

/-prɔ/: indicates an agent, someone that practices the action indicated in the root. E.g.: /cjɛ:jəbprɔ/ "teacher", /trixta:prɔ/ "student"
/-tax/: indicates a group of people, generally in the role of agent. E.g.: /cjɛ:jəbtax/ "schollars", /wotʔawtax/ "army"
/-cod/: indicates a tool or instrument, an object used to carry out the action expressed in the root. E.g.: /ʔɔʔacod/ "pen", "pencil", /dɛhrɛcejcod/ "weapon"
/-cɔr/: indicates an object that is the result of an action. E.g.: /ʔɔʔacɔr/ "book", "letter"

Noun Relations

Two or more nouns may be linked in several ways, depending on the meaning intended.

	Phrase	Gloss	Translation
"Half Genitive", Adjectival function	/ʔɔʔacɔr telede:d/	"book of child"	"children's book"

"Full Genitive", Possessive	/ʔɔʔacɔr telede:dʔi/	"book of a child"	"a book of a child"
	/ŋɔ̃:ʔacɔr telede:dʔi/	"the book of a child"	"the book of a child"
	/ʔɔʔacɔr nɛ̃:lnɛ̃:de:dʔi/	"a book of the child"	"one of the kid's books"
	/ŋɔ̃:ʔacɔr nɛ̃:lnɛ̃:de:dʔi/	"the book of the child"	"the kid's book"
	/ŋɔ̃:ʔacɔr nɛ̃:lnɛ̃:de:dʔi tedi:/	"the book of the children"	"the book of the kids"
	/ŋɔ̃:ʔacɔr tedi: nɛ̃:lnɛ̃:de:dʔi/	"the books of the child"	"the kid's books"
	/ŋɔ̃:ʔacɔr tedi: nɛ̃:lnɛ̃:de:dʔi tedi:/	"the books of the children"	"the books of the kids"

"Receptive"	/ʔɔʔacɔr lulede:dʔət/	"a book for a child"	"a book for some child"
	/ʔɔʔacɔr tedi: lulede:dʔət/	"books for a child"	"some books for some child"
	/ʔɔʔacɔr tedi: lulede:dʔət tedi:/	"books for a child"	"some books for some children"
	/ŋɔ̃:ʔacɔr lulede:dʔət/	"the book for a child"	"the book for some child"
	/ʔɔʔacɔr nũnɛ̃:de:dʔət/	"a book for the child"	"a book for the kid"

Postpositions

Postpositions are originally nouns with the /te-/ prefix in the so-called “half genitive” construction. In the actual state of the language, they are used exclusively with /te-/ or with a pronominal prefix.

The most common are:

/tetja:/ “about”
/teʔo/ “by” (passive voice)
/tecɛ:/ “to”
/tedyh/ “at”
/teʔu/ “in”
/teda:b/ “above”
/teprɔ:/ “on”
/tedzo:/ “from”
/tedjub/ “under”
/teʔic/ “beneath”
/tepjɛ:c/ “next to”
/teprɛb/, /teʔɛb/ “besides”
/tewe:r/ “with” (instrument)
/teʔucu/ “with” (company)
/tedɛwɛ/ “without”
/tetjɔ:t/ “across”
/tepaʔyr/ “outside”
/tebidy:/ “upon”
/tecup/ “into”
/telu/ “onto”
/tedo:h/ “against”
/teʔɛ:wi/ “between”
/tewa:d/ “among”
/tedewap/ “amidst”
/teʔɛ:h/ “towards”
/teʔy:/ “after” (place)
/teʔɛ:ʔi/ “before” (place)
/teʔəʔy:/ “after” (time)
/teʔol/ “before” (time)
/teby:j/ “up to”
/tepil/ “despite”
/tecjɔj/ “thanks to”
/tewOprO/ “thanks to”
/teləw/ “off” (in the outside of)
/tecjeto:/ “through”
/teprɔber/ “around”
/teʔeb/ “according to”

The postposition comes after the number indicator, if any is present. If applied to a word linked to another word by the genitive case, the postposition comes after the whole expression. When used with personal prefixes, the /te-/ prefix is dropped.

Some examples:

/ŋxɑ̃:ŋxte tecjɔj/ “thanks to the guard”
/ŋxɑ̃:ŋxte tedi: tecjɔj/ “thanks to the guard”
/cɔbcjɔj/ “thanks to you”
/xrɛcə teʔol/ “before dinner”
/xrɛcə teʔəʔy:/ “after dinner”
/mɛ̃:by nɛ̃:ŋxɛ̃:mribʔi tepjɛ:c/ “next to the door of the room” (cf. /mɛ̃:by nɛ̃:ŋxɛ̃:mribʔi/ “the door of the room”, /mɛ̃:by tepjɛ:c/ “next to the door”, /pɛ:by tepjɛ:c/ “next to a door”)
/prapjɛ:c/ “next to us”

Adjectives

There are no true adjectives in Atudab. Adjectival expressions can be obtained by means of the "half genitive", that is, the use of the first half of the genitive circumfix (/te-/). So:

/hibprup/ "red" (the color)
- /dzotjo tehibprup/ "a red flower"
/wɔhputre:/ "courage", "bravery"
- /wotʔawprɔ tewɔhputre:/ "a brave warrior"

Numbers

Cardinal

Cardinal numbers in /?atudab/ are a special class of words in which, even considered as nouns, they do not need the link /te-/ to be attributed to other nouns. The number zero is regularly used to mean "no", "none", "no one". Ex.:

/cOdObu ?Edj@/ "no tree(s)"
/hɛ:dji: ?ary/ "(only) one house"
/?O?acOr ca:bo/ "two books"
/pibe cOllo/ "three people"
etc.

With numbers, the plural indicator /tedi:/ is not used. For the number two, it is mostly indifferent to use the number /ca:bo/ or the dual number indicator /tebwɛ:/, although the dual indicator gives the idea of a somehow coherent group, while the number /ca:bo/ gives information only about the quantity. Ex.:

/pibe tebwɛ:/ "two people", "both people", "a couple"
/pibe ca:bo/ "two people"

0	/?ɛdjə/
1	/?ary/
2	/ca:bo/

3	/cɔllo/
4	/prodz/
5	/?y?y:/

6	/jɛjtɔt/
7	/hidaw/
8	/pɛ?ad/

9	/lɛcɔ?u/
10	/cixru/

Ordinal

Ordinal numbers consist in the definite full genitive form of the corresponding cardinal numbers; generally, the noun also is in the definite form:

/Nxɛ~:dji: nE~:NA~:ry?i/ "the first house"
/NO~:?acOr nE~:ncA~:bo?i/ "the second book"
/mbi~:be nE~:ncO~:nllo?i/ "the third person"

1st	/nE~:NA~:ry?i/
2nd	/nE~:ncA~:bo?i/
3rd	/nE~:ncO~:nllo?i/

4th	/nE~:mbrO~:dz?i/
5th	/nE~:Ni~:?y:?i/
6th	/nE~:Jɛ~:Jtɔt?i/

7th	/nE~:Nxi~:daw?i/
8th	/nE~:mbɛ~:?ad?i/
9th	/nE~:lnɛ~:cɔ?u?i/
10th	/nE~:nci~:Nxru?i/

Pronouns

Personal

There are two types of personal pronouns: full (independent) pronouns and attached (dependent) pronouns.

The distinction of person is the same as in most Earth languages: 1st, 2nd and 3rd, both in singular and in plural. No distinction of gender is made.

Independent

The dependent pronouns are treated regularly as nouns:

	Singular	Plural
1st	/ʔe:bo:/	/lawɛ:/
2nd	/ʔodz/	/lodzu:/
3rd	/ju:lo/	/cediw/

Dependent

The dependent pronouns have three main uses:

marking the subject of verbs
marking the possessor of nouns
indicating the object of a postposition

	Singular	Plural
1st	/ʔe:-/	/pra-/
2nd	/cɔb-/	/lɛ:-/
3rd	/jɛ:p-/	/cɔ-/

Examples:

Demonstrative

The demonstrative pronouns are /ce/ and /py?/. They may be used as prefixes or following the noun, with the "half-genitive" prefix /te-/. In both cases, the noun is in the definite form. Ex.:

/cenxE~:dji:/, /nxE~:dji: tece/ "this house"
/py?nxE~:dji:/, /nxE~:dji: tepy?/ "that house"
/cenxE~:dji: tedi:/, /nxE~:dji: tedi: tece/ "these houses"
/py?nxE~:dji: tedi:/, /nxE~:dji: tedi: tepy?/ "those houses"

The second form (separated, with /te-/) is preferred in the current standard language.

An independent form is also in use, optionally nasalized:

/ce/, /ncE~:/ "this", "this one", "this thing"
/py?/, /mi~:N/ "that", "that one", "that thing"

E.g.:

/ce wij cOdObu/ "This is a tree."
/my~:N wij te?e:bo:?i/ "That is mine."

Interrogative

/?ephat/ "which"
/weprob/ "who"
/weha/, acc. /mwE~:NxA~:/ "what"
/wɔxru:/ "where"
/?edhaj/ "when"
/?ojte/ "how"
/ʔetpal/ "why"

These are used as nouns and make no alteration in word order.

E.g.:

/weprob JO~:ncɛ~:m/ "Who (subj.) command (obj.)" -> "Who is in charge?"
/cObhob mbri~:n teweprob?i/ "You do seeing of who" -> "Whom are you seeing?", "Whom can you see?"
/ju:lo mwE~:NxA~:/ "He (subj.) what (obj.)" -> "What does he have?", "What is he doing?"
/cOhob NhO~:lnA~:m luwɔxru:?@/ "They do/have a going to where?" -> "Where are they going?"

Relative

The relative pronoun in Atudab is /hy:/, accus. /Nxi~:/. There is always a pause before the sentence in which it appears. E.g.:

/ce (wij) cɔdɔbu, po?e:hob NA~:NxmbwE~: tehy:?i/ "This is a tree that/which I planted."

However, this particle is gradually falling out of use, in favour of expressions with the personal pronouns, both independent and dependent form:

/ce (wij) cɔdɔbu, po?e:hob NA~:NxmbwE~: tejE:p?i/ (lit. "This is the tree, I did the sowing of it") or /ce (wij) cɔdɔbu, po?e:hob jE:pNA~:NxmbwE~:/ (Lit.: or "This is the tree, I did its sowing") "This is a tree that/which I planted."

There is also another construction with /hy:/, but which is rarely used. It incorporates both sentences into a single sentence. E.g.:

/ce (wij) cɔdɔbu tepo?e:hob NA~:NxmbwE~: hy:/ "This is a tree that/which I planted."

Although common in older texts, this construction is not currently used in speech, and rarely used in writing.

Verbs

Properly speaking, Atudab has only two verbs:

/wij/ "be"
/hob/ "make", "do" and also "have"

The verb /wij/ is actually a linking element (copula) and requires a complement in the nominative case, while /hob/ requires a complement in the accusative case.

All other notions are expressed by means of nouns. For example:

Sentence	Gloss	Translation
/hopəh wij prabidy:./	"Rain is upon us"	"It is raining."
/ʔe:ŋũnslar powij lujɛ:pʔət./	"My speech was to him"	"I spoke to him."
/cɔɲɔ̃:ʔuhwal wij cjocab./	"Their travel is tomorrow"	"They will travel tomorrow."
/cɔhob ɲɔ̃:ŋũŋxmbwɑ̃ln cjocab./	"They make (a) travel tomorrow"	"They will travel tomorrow."
/nɛ̃ŋxrɛcej nɛ̃mbũnʔɔʔi tedi: powij jɛ:pʔo./	"The killing of the enemies was by him"	"He killed the enemies."
/pojɛ:phob nɛ̃ŋxɻnɛ̃nsẽɲ nɛ̃mbũnʔɔʔi tedi:./	"He did the killing of the enemies"	"He killed the enemies."
/nzɔ̃:tjo powij nũ:mwɔ̃:co:ʔət ŋĩ:be:do: teʔo./	"The flower was to the woman by the man."	"The man gave the flower to the woman."
/jɛ:phob ɲɑ̃:mwɛ̃:ŋxɑ̃: ŋxrɛ̃:lɔlɔ: tece tedzo:./	"He does/has suffering from this disease"	"He suffers from this disease."

When both subject and complement are expressed by means of full nominal expressions (that is, an expression having a noun as its nucleus), the verb may be omitted, provided it does not carry any information that may not be understood from context. E.g.:

Sentence	Gloss	Translation
/cɔɲɔ̃:ʔuhwal cjocab./	"Their travel tomorrow"	"They will travel tomorrow."
/nɛ̃ŋxrɛcej nɛ̃mbũnʔɔʔi tedi: jɛ:pʔo./	"The killing of the enemies by him"	"He kills/killed the enemies."
/nO~:ndɔp nɛ̃ŋxɻnɛ̃nsẽɲ nɛ̃mbũnʔɔʔi tedi:./	"The soldier (subj.) the killing (obj.) of the enemies"	"The soldier kills/killed the enemies."
/nzɔ̃:tjo nũ:mwɔ̃:co:ʔət ŋĩ:be:do: teʔo./	"The flower to the woman by the man."	"The man gives/gave the flower to the woman."
/Nɛ~:bwodz ɲɑ̃:mwɛ̃:ŋxɑ̃: ŋxrɛ̃:lɔlɔ: tece tedzo:./	"The boy (subj.) suffering (obj.) from this disease"	"The boy suffers from this disease."

Person and Number

Grammatical persons are indicated by means of the following prefixes:

Singular

Plural

1s	/ʔe:-/
2s	/cɔb-/
3s	/jɛ:p-/

1p	/pra-/
2p	/lɛ:-/
3p	/cɔ-/

These prefixes may be dropped in the case of an explicit indication of the subject. So:

/hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ or /hopəh wij prabidy:/ "It is raining"
/ʔodz cɔbwij prandɾĩŋxprɔ/ or /ʔodz wij prandɾĩŋxprɔ/ "You are our leader"

Time and Aspect

General past time is indicated by the prefix /po-/, which comes before the personal prefix. In this case, the personal prefix is mandatory. E.g.:

/hopəh pojɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "It was raining"
/ʔodz pocɔbwij prandɾĩŋxprɔ/ "You were our leader"

A kind of aorist tense, that is, a single action in a definite moment in the past, may be expressed by the modified prefix /mO~:-/ which is attached to and the first syllable of the verb, making it nasal. Personal prefixes come before this prefix. E.g.:

/hopəh jɛ:pmO~:mbi~ñ prabidy:/ "It rained (once)"
/?odz cɔbmO~:mbi~ñ prandɾĩŋxprɔ/ "You were (once) our leader"

Other indicators of tense are:

/ʔo ... ji:/: placed around the verb in the past, indicates a kind of past perfect (pluperfect) tense. Most times the notion of "already" is implied, but not necessarily. Ex.:
- /hopəh ʔo jɛ:pmO~:mbi~ñ ji: prabidy:/ "It had (already) rained."
- /ʔodz ʔo cɔbmO~:mbi~ñ ji: prandɾĩŋxprɔ/ "You had (already) been our leader."

/catrux/, placed at the end of a sentence, gives a future meaning. Note that this particle is not required to indicate future tense if there is a future time indication on the sentence. With this particle, the verb /wij/ may be left off. E.g.:
/hopəh (jɛ:pwij) prabidy: catrux/ "It will rain", "It is going to rain"
/ʔodz (cɔbwij) prandɾĩŋxprɔ catrux/ "You will be our leader", "You are going to be our leader"

Modality

The so-called "sentence heads" (/trɛ:jəd tejɛ:?ojpu/) have this name because they must always be the first element in a sentence. They function mostly like English modal verbs ("can", "must", "may" and so on). The most common are the following:

/cotri/ "can" (indicates physical ability, like in "he can lift this stone")
/li:bi/ "can", "know how" (indicates intellectual ability, like in "he can speak English")
/?a?o:/ "may" (indicates permission)
/tje?el/ "should" (indicates a kind of advice)
/watja/ "must" (indicates obligation)
/?ipjar/ "need" (indicates some kind of necessity)
/lilo/ "want" (indicates a desire)
/had/ "guess" (indicates something that is not certain)

Examples:

/cotri hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "It can rain" (at any moment)
/?a?o: hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "It may rain" (not so probable)
/tje?el hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "It was supposed to rain"
/watja hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "It must rain" (weather forecast said it would be raining now)
/?ipjar hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "Rain is needed" (e.g. we are in a drought)
/lilo hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "It wants to rain" (indicates rain is imminent)
/had hopəh jɛ:pwij prabidy:/ "I guess it is going to rain"

Mood

The imperative mood consists of the root in the accusative form, optionally preceded by /hob/. The expletive particle /to/ may be used at the end of the sentence. Ex.:

/(hob) ŋɔ̃:ɲɔ̃: (to)/ "come!" (lit. "do a coming")
/(hob) mwɑ̃:ɲɛ̃: (to)/ "wake up!" (lit. "have/do an awakening")

Voice

Technically speaking, there is only the active voice. Anyway, if used without a direct object, a passive meaning may be understood. There is also a construction similar to our passive voice, built with the word /riʔel/ "people":

/po?e:hob mwA~:JE~:/ "I woke up", "I was woken up"
/r\`ni~:ʔel pocOhob ?e:mwA~:JE~:/ "People woke me up" -> "I was woken up"
/pocOhob nE~:r\`nmbwE~:/ "They wounded" -> "They were wounded"
/r\`ni~:ʔel pocOhob cOnE~:r\`nmbwE~:/ "People wounded them" -> "They were wounded"

Negation

The negative form of /hob/ is /hobe:l/, and the negative form of /wij/ is /tidje:l/. These are conjugated regularly. In the negative form the personal prefixes must always be used. Ex.:

/hopəh jE:ptidje:l prabidy:/ "It is not raining."
/cɔhobe:l ɲɔ̃:ŋũ:ŋxmbwɑ̃:ln cjocab/ "They will not travel tomorrow."

In spoken form, mostly considered incorrect, the shortened forms /we:l/ (for /hobe:l/) and /tje:l/ (for /tidje:l/) are used, the personal prefixes being optional if the meaning is clear:

/hopəh tje:l prabidy:/ "It is not raining."
/(cɔ)we:l ɲɔ̃:ŋũ:ŋxmbwɑ̃:ln cjocab/ "They will not travel tomorrow."

In pure nominal constructions the particle /xɾe/ is used:

/xɾe hopəh prabidy:/ "It is not raining."

Syntax

Sentence Structure

Atudab language is based on nouns. The relations between nouns are indicated by means of prefixes and the two "nominal cases", the genitive (both "full" and "half") and the dative. The only two verbs in use are the equivalent to "be" and to "have" or "do". All actions are expressed by means of phrases consisting basically of one of these verbs plus a noun.

The verb /hob/ "have", "do", "make" requires its complement to be in the accusative case, obtained by means of what is called a "nasal transfix", which consists in the nasalization of every phoneme in a word (vowels and consonants).

So, in principle, a sentence in Atudab is radically different from a sentence in, lets say, English. See the following examples:

Gloss of the Sentence in Atudab	Sentence in English
"I do your seeing."	"I see you."
"I do the seeing of the film."	"I watch the film."
"The race does the beginning in minutes ten."	"The race will start in ten minutes."
"This language once had a featuring."	"This language has once been featured."
"Do their death complete!"	"Kill them all!"

So, to simplify things, we could consider that, to obtain a verb from a noun, you must prefix /hob/ and apply a full nasalization on the noun:

Noun	Verb
/prɛc/ "(the (act of)) singing"	/hob mbrɛ~:nc/ "to sing"
/dzɛtad/ "(the (act of)) fighting", "a fight"	/hob ndzɛ~:nA~:n/ "to fight"
/?ilcyhwi/ "(the (act of)) researching", "a research"	/hob Ni~:lnci~:Nxmwi~:/ "to research"

One must keep in mind, however, that this is not the way the language works. Internally these words are always nouns and the sentence structure must be in accordance with this fact. For instance, if you are to say “she sings beautifully”, you must use a structure like “her singing is of beauty” (/jɛ:pmbɾɛ̃:nc wij tewitjed/) or “she and her beautiful singing” (/ju:lo pɾu jɛ:pmbɾɛ̃:nc tewitjed/). The structure “she does a singing of beauty” (/jɛ:phob mbɾɛ̃:nc tewitjed/) is also possible, although not the most common for cases like this.

Samples

Text / Gloss	Translation	Vocabulary
/mwO~:cu:?ə tece jE:pmO~:NxO~:m r\`ni~:JA~:NA~:Nx./ "the language (of) this had once (a) featuring"	"This language was once featured."	/wocu:?ə/ "a language" /ce/ "this" /hob/ "have" /ritja?a:h/ "a featuring"
/jE:pJi~:mtatəh tedzyjuwut tecjOj, jE:pNA~:Nxpjo: tecjOj, jE:pNO~:du tedi: tedjerji?Edz tecjOj,/ "Thanks to its level of quality, thanks to its plausibility, thanks to its usage capabilities,"	"Thanks to its level of quality, plausibility and usage capabilities"	/djiptatəh/ "a level" /dzyjuwut/ "quality" /?ahpjo:/ "plausability" /?odu/ "capability" /djerji?Edz/ "usage"
/r\`ni~:?el pocOhob NxrE~:mbwE~: nu~:r\`ni~:tja?a:hʔət teju:lo./ "the people had vote in benefit of the featuring of it."	"it has been voted as featured."	/ri?el/ "people" /xrE:pbwe/ "a vote"

The North Wind and the Sun

Text	Gloss	Translation
/nɛ~:ʔabʔy tepjol pru NA~:r\`ntɛʔu:/	"The wind of north and the sun"	The North Wind and the Sun
/nɛ~:ʔabʔy tepjol pru NA~:r\`ntɛʔu: (pocOhob) mE~:mbjɔ~:ncju~: nu~:nci~:lɛj?@ teʔɛ:tlaby?i, mɛ~:Nxbwə te?ephat?i (po(jE:p)wij) mɛ~:hbwə tepu:lcə?i teda:b/	"The wind of north and the sun (did) a dispute to the objective of definition, the power of which (was) above the the power of other one."	The North Wind and the Sun disputed as to which was the most powerful.
/cOpro:tɔhwel (po(jE:p)wij), cotri ?ary (jE:phob) Jɛ~:lni~: nE~:JA~:bab?i tedi: tepibe?i, ?ary (wij) bɛtpjɔ:prO/	"Their agreement (was), can one (do) the stripping of the clothes of a man, one (is) winner."	They agreed that he should be declared the victor who could first strip a wayfaring man of his clothes.
/nɛ~:ʔabʔy tepjol (po(jE:p)hob) NO~:r\`nmA~: tejE:pmɛ~:Nxbwə teNA~:ry?i. ju:lo (po(jE:p)hob) mwA~:mbrɛ~:mA~: tejE:pmɛ~:Nxbwə telɛ:jely tewe:r./	"The wind of north (did) an attempt of his power first. He (did) the blowing with his might in full."	The North Wind first tried his power and blew with all his might,
/trɛ:hɔt, ju:lo (po(jE:p)hob) nA~:mwi~:Nx tepE:hbwə, Jɔ~:ʔuhwalprO (po(jE:p)hob) nA~:mwi~:Nx tewɔhco tejE:pJA~:bab jE:pwOprO./	"But, he (does) an increment of power, the traveller (does) an increment of wrapping of his cloth around himself."	but the keener his blasts, the closer the Traveler wrapped his cloak around him.
/pjɔ:da tedyh, nɛ̃:ʔabʔy tepjol pru jɛ:pmbwɛ̃:tro:d/	"At end the wind of north and his giving up."	And at last the North Wind gave up the attempt.
/ʔɛ:, ŋɑ̃:ɻntɛʔu: pru jɛ:pɲɔ̃:dzjy: tewotʔuj/	"Now, the sun and his shining of warm."	Then the Sun shined out warmly,
/pru ɲɔ̃:ʔuhwalpɾɔ (po(jɛ:p)hob) ɻnɛ̃:ŋũ: tejɛ:pɲɑ̃:bab teca:cʔa:/	"And the traveler (did) a taking off of his cloak of immediate."	and immediately the traveler took off his cloak.
/lobaji:, watja nɛ̃:ʔabʔy tepjol (po(jɛ:p)hob) lnɛ̃:ncmũ:ɲ/	"Consequence, must the wind of north (did) a confession:"	And so the North Wind was obliged to confess
/mɛ̃:ŋxbwə nɛ̃:ŋɑ̃:ɻntɛʔu:ʔi (po(jɛ:p)wij) jɛ:pmɛ̃:ŋxbwə teda:b/	"the force of the sun (was) above his force."	that the Sun was the stronger of the two.