Quantifier Morphology

5.1 Structure of the Quantifier

Quantifiers are words that define the scope or quantity of a noun. They include basic determiners such as “all”, “some”, “many”; cardinal numerals; units of solid and liquid measurement as well as weight, such as “liter (of)”, “gram (of)”, “gallon (of)”; and ad-hoc units of measurement, such as “cups (of)”, “bottles (of)”, “barrels (of)”. Other types of measurement, such as length, cannot act as quantifiers in Očets unless modified by another noun (e.g., “five miles of road”).

The quantifier is typically considered a distinct class of words in Očets, owing to its mixed noun-like and adjective-like behavior. Like nouns, they can decline for case (though not for number or possession), and like adjectives, they modify nouns (though cannot appear as predicates by themselves).

The Očets quantifier has a fairly simple structure compared to the noun. The available slots are diagrammed as follows:

5.2 Cases

Quantifiers decline for the same eight cases that nouns do, though they have a very distinct set of endings. They are also far more regular and generally predictable than nominal paradigms. There is no division between animate and inanimate; the only variation in endings occurs predictably based on whether the quantifier stem is vowel-final or consonant-final.

5.2.1 Nominative Case

The nominative case is consistently formed with no ending, simply the bare quantifier stem.

The following table demonstrates the nominative of a number of different types of quantifiers: *kan- “many”, *as- “all”, *kyn- “two”, *lan- “hand(ful)” ¹ , *liitr- “liter”, *kilo- “kilogram”, *funt- “pound”, *ptel- “bottle”. These last four are Novegradian loans of varying ages.

5.2.2 Objective Case

The objective case of all quantifiers is formed with the strong ending *-Ì (-i for front-vowel stems and -y for back-vowel stems, though see the note below). With C-Final stems, this is perfectly regular (though CVCVC stems may contract to CVCC); with V-Final stems, however, either the final vowel of the stem or the objective ending will drop. If the stem ends in /i(ː)/ or /ɨ(ː)/, it and the objective ending will fuse together as /iː/ or /ɨː/. If the stem ends in /u(ː)/ or /y(ː)/, the objective ending becomes zero (and so the nominative and objective will be identical). In all other cases, the final vowel of the stem will drop and the objective ending will be added normally. If the stem ends in a falling diphthong, it will be treated as though it ends in a consonantal /j/ or /w/.

The -I ending when added to a C-final stem will usually trigger fronting ablaut in native monosyllabic roots (that is, back vowels will shift to their front counterparts), and which may trigger secondary consonant palatalization as well. This process does not affect polysyllabic roots, loanwords, and most ad-hoc quantifiers.

5.2.3 Genitive and Ablative Cases

The genitive and ablative cases are identical for quantifiers. They are formed with the suffix *-Ìd. With C-final stems, it is added regularly and may trigger ablaut and palatalization as described above. With V-final stems, the same rules of truncation apply: if the stem ends in /i(ː)/ or /ɨ(ː)/, it and the genitive ending merge into /iːd/ or /ɨːd/; if the stem ends in /o(ː)/ or /u(ː)/, simply -d is added; elsewhere, the final vowel is dropped and the ending *-Ìd is added.

Many younger speakers, however, will actually preserve the /i/ after /a e o ø/ (that is, vowels that can form a diphthong with /i/): килоид kiloid. This is considered nonstandard.

5.2.4 Instrumental Case

The instrumental is formed with the suffix *-Ìs. It functions in exactly the same way as the genitive, including the colloquial habit of keeping the /i/ after certain vowels.

5.2.5 Locative and Lative Cases

The locative and lative cases merge in the quantifier declension, taking the ending *-lA. This ending does not trigger any ablaut or truncation, but when added to a C-final stem, it may undergo sandhi. CVCVC roots will generally not undergo any sort of contraction. A schwa is inserted after the stem if it ends in a consonant cluster.

5.2.6 Translative Case

The translative is formed with the ending *-nA, which behaves in the same manner as the locative/lative.

5.2.7 Summary of Quantifier Declension

5.3 The Indirective Marker

Quantifiers may take the indirective marker just as nouns do. They use the same suffix, *-A, realized as -a in back vowel harmony conditions and -e in front vowel harmony conditions. It is completely regular except in the accusative case, where the accusative ending and the indirective marker fuse into -ee (preserving any ablaut caused by the original accusative ending).

Following is the complete declension of several of the previously-used example quantifiers including indirective markers.

Note the palatalization that appears in the genitive and instrumental forms when followed by a front vowel.

5.4 Declension Switching

The quantifier declension is exclusively used for any word fulfilling the role of a quantifier. Thus, when a common noun (such as “bottle” above) is used as a quantifier, it switches from a nominal to a quantifier paradigm. Conversely, when something normally used as a quantifier is used nominally or pronominally (e.g., “three” → “three [ones], “three [of them]”), it switches to a nominal paradigm. This conversion is generally unproblematic and quite regular, except for some of the oldest roots that have had the time to undergo divergent evolutions (and may have been influenced by other now-lost derivational morphemes).

5.5 The Distributive

The distributive is formed with the prefix sa-/se-. It is most often used with numerals and has “all” (which takes on the meaning “every”). When added to a stem beginning with a plosive, a homorganic nasal may be inserted in between. Other irregular alterations may occur, simply due to the age of these forms. In particular the distributive forms of the numeral “two” are based on the stem *ğyyn/ğiin.

The distributive of has is саас saas “every”. The distributive forms of the numerals are shown in section 5.7 below.

5.6 List of Quantifiers

These are some of the most common Očets quantifiers. Note that many of the forms distinguish between mass and count nouns, much as in English (less~fewer, some~several, etc.).

• һас has ‘all’
• кан kan ‘many’ (for count nouns)
• канча kanča ‘much, a lot of’ (for mass nouns)
• нолча nolča ‘the majority of, most of’
• һелче helče ‘the minority of, the lesser part of’
• қомат qomat ‘few, a few’ (for count nouns)
• қомача qomača ‘little’ (for mass nouns)
• вен wen ‘none, no’

• шеҥ šeŋ ‘enough’
• иес ies ‘the rest of, the remainder of’

• маккан makkan ‘more’ (for count nouns)
• моолс mools ‘more’ (for mass nouns) ²
• менел menel ‘fewer’ (for count nouns)
• мениц menits ‘less’ (for mass nouns) ³

There are also several common temporal quantifiers. These are commonly used with infinitives, participles, or other non-finite verbal forms: наунт тидеус naunt tideus ‘reading many times’, венче шавыс wenče šawys ‘never saying’.

• наунт naunt ‘many times, many iterations’
• шиен šien ‘several times’
• тон ton ‘once, one time’
• венче wenče ‘never, no time’

A small number of quantifiers are phrasal. The first element is the actual quantifier, while the second is separate particle which may appear either before or after the quantified noun:

• һаҥуды чинакох haŋudy činakox ‘any amount of’ (for animate nouns)
• һаҥоды чинакох haŋody činakox ‘any amount of’ (for inanimate nouns)
• һаҥоды выс haŋody wys ‘some’ (for animate nouns)
• һаҥуды выс haŋudy wys ‘some’ (for inanimate nouns)
• һаҥоды қуу haŋody quu ‘some’ (amount known to speaker; for animate nouns)
• һаҥуды қуу haŋudy quu ‘some’ (amount known to speaker; for inanimate nouns)

Most other quantifiers are clearly denominal. This class is open, and can include such words as:

• кар kar ‘cup (of)’
• цын tsyn ‘bowl (of)’
• һеред hered ‘row (of)’
• дыдалт dydalt ‘bundle (of)’
• чиц čits ‘generation (of)’ (lit. ‘root’)

5.7 Numerals

5.7.1 Cardinal Quantifying Numerals

The Očets number system is primarily base twenty, although for values over one hundred it uses a mixed decimal/vigesimal system. There are two distinct sets of numerals, one used when counting animate objects and one for inanimate objects.

All animate and inanimate numerals share a common root. For most numbers, the animate is marked by an affix -d attached to this root, and the inanimate by -s. However, one or both of these affixes may be absent if the phonetic structure of the root does not allow it. The one clear exception is the animate numeral 1, which has no visible barrier to taking the animate suffix -d and becoming *quud, but which nevertheless always appears as a bare root.

The units 1-10 are for the most part unanalyzable, with no definitive connections to non-quantifier morphemes. The numerals 8 and 9 are of Novegradian origin (ошми óśmi and девити déviti respectively). The derivation of the teens 11-19, however, is more transparent, although these forms too are old enough that their formation is not completely regular. Generally speaking, they consist of the unit form, a linking morpheme containing /k/, and the suffix -io- (a reduced form of *-iau- “ten”). The incorporated unit appears as a bare root, without final -d or -s, which instead is placed at the end of the compound. The origin of this linking morpheme is unclear, although a connection to the old Očets dative has been suggested. For 11 and 12, the unit incorporated is suppletive; for 11 it is heden, which is a loan from Novegradian едене iédene “one”; for 12, it is ǧyyn “pair”, identical to the dual morpheme used by some nouns.

Note that the more complex numeral stems, as in the teens, do not necessarily show any sort of word-internal harmony.

Examining higher numbers up through 99 shows a clear vigesimal pattern emerging:

All of these forms above 20 are completely transparent. 30 literally reads “10 [that is] on 20”; 40 reads “a pair of 20s”; 50 is “10 [that is] on a pair of 20s”; 60 is “three 20s”; 70 is “10 [that is] on three 20s”; and so on. Whenever the numeral “20” is quantified (i.e., 40 and above), it adopts a reduced form aš, which acts as though it were phonologically part of the preceding word. The animate/inanimate distinction is maintained on both the free numeral (e.g., iaud vs. iaus above) and on the relativized quantifier (although this is only really visible in dond/doŋ and šeed/šees).

All other natural numbers up to 99 are formed by placing the appropriate digit 1-19 after the proper relativized form:

For 100 and above, Očets speakers use either forms calqued from Novegradian (based on the noun/quantifiers сот sot “hundred” and тыышт tyyšt “thousand”, which are themselves Novegradian loans) or loaned Novegradian forms themselves. The latter lack an animate/inanimate distinction.

Tens and units are placed in apposition immediately after the hundred or thousand. There is no coordination or subordination of any sort present between the hundreds and smaller units, a result of calquing the Novegradian construction: кынд сот, ҕыылла ашылд иауд kynd sot, ǧyylla ašyld iaud “two hundred fifty (animate)” (cf. Novegradian дуѣсти пиздешити).

The only possible trace of the true vigesimal system that can be seen in numbers over 100 is the expression һаш аш haš aš (lit. “twenty twenties”), which nowadays is used to refer to a very large quantity of something and not the specific number 400.

5.7.2 Declension

With numbers below 100, all elements of complex numbers take case endings except for the locative form ашылд “that is on twenty”, which here is serving as a noun and not a quantifier. However, while the even multiples of twenty (40, 60, 80) should properly decline both elements, younger speakers have a tendency to treat it as a single unit: гыылла ашла X ǧyylla ašla (older), ҕыынашла X ǧyynašla (newer) “twenty X (loc)”.

The numerals “one”, “two”, “three”, “six”, “seven”, “ten”, and “twenty” all undergo ablaut when the objective, genitive/ablative, or instrumental endings are added, as is common with many quantifiers. Below are these five numerals (both animate and inanimate) in the nominative case without ablaut and the objective case with ablaut:

Similarly, the reduced form of “twenty” seen in higher numbers becomes еш- eš-.

5.7.3 Other Numeral Forms

In addition to the quantifying numerals, there also exist what are known as “nominal numerals”. As discussed above, the quantifier forms are used when directly quantifying something (e.g., “three chairs”). The nominal numerals, which decline as animate or inanimate nouns, are used more like pronouns, when the quantified object is implied or indirectly quantified (e.g., “I have three” or “the three of them”). Although they may take either animate or inanimate noun endings, they share a single set of stems for both, which are almost always identical to the inanimate quantifier stems.

The main exceptions are the numerals 1 and 2, which use suppletive stems.

The distributive forms will be included in the following tables due to their irregularity:

For the most part the distributive numerals are formed with the expected distributive prefix sa-/se-. However, there are a few exceptional forms. The most obvious is the additional of a non-palatalizing suffix *-Aŋ to all of the animate forms, which would appear to be a plural marker.

These forms serve as animate and inanimate quantifiers, while the inanimate forms alone can also serve as nouns (taking either animate or inanimate endings as appropriate). The only exceptions are of course the use of сееден seeden and саҕыын saǧyyn as nouns rather than saŋquus and saŋkyn.