Konso passive

1. Konso passive Maarten Mous

2. Passive derivation -am. • The passive makes the object subject. • The passive differs from the middle in that the passive presupposes the existence of an agent,

3. Existence of an agent • urmalaa i aan-am-émarket 3 go-pas-pfGoing to the market was done by somebody. • inna i dam-s-am-é-nboy 3 eat-caus-pas-pf-plThe boy was fed (by someone).

4. Any object passivized • ishá kaaja kaasat-am-éhe money ask-pas-pfHe was asked money. • isha-qara/kapa kaajá kaasat-am-éhe-from money ask-pas-pfMoney was asked from him.

5. Any object passivized • anti inna kataata (in) erg-éI boy food 1 send-pfI sent the boy food • kataata inna i érg-am-t-éfood.f boy 3 send-pas-f-pfFood was sent to the boy • inna kataata i érg-am-éboy food 3 send-pas-pfThe boy was sent food

6. Causee passivized • inna i dam-s-am-é-nboy.pl 3 eat-caus-pas-pf-plThe boy was fed.

7. Intransitives passivized • urmalaa i áan-am-émarket.pl 3 go-pas-pfThe market was frequented.

8. “Impersonal” passives constructions • N V-am-subject example • N V-am example • ....V-am-subject example

9. N V-am-subject example i xosal-am-é there was laughter, somebody laughted

10. N V-am example urmalaa i áan-am-émarket.pl 3 go-pas-pfThe market was frequented.

11. ....V-am-subject example qiimayya-nne i xosal-am-éold.people-instr 3 laugh-pas-pfhe was laughed at by the old people

12. Examples • kareta-sé i duttan-éstomach.m-def 3 satisfied-pfThe stomach is satisfied • kareta-sé i duttan-am-éstomach.m-def 3 satisfied-pfThe stomach is satisfied • i duttan-t-é3 satisfied-f-pfIs she satisfied? • i duttan-am-t-é3 satisfied-pas-f-pfIs there satisfaction?

13. Examples • i xaxad-é he sworei xaxat-am-é the matter is sworn, somebody swore • i qah-é he fledi qah-am-é someone fled • i aff-é he can not get airi aff-am-é he got no air (by something)

14. Impersonal passive <> Middle • i kee’ he burbedi kee’-am-é something burbedi kee’-ad-é he burbed for himself • i yaapaapul-é he became abnormal* i yaapaal-am-éi yaapaapul-am-t-é abnormality has taken place

15. Impersonal passive <> Middle • i kallaad-é he livedi kallaat-ad-é he lived for himself*i kallaat-am-éi kallaat-am-t-é the life has taken place (kallaata (f) ‘life’)

16. Impersonal passive <> Middle • i jaqq-ad-é he washed < jaqq‑ ‘rinse out’i jaqq-am-é he has been washed by others, he became free from faults • i shen-é he reclined, leaned • waaka i shen-am-énstatue.pl 3 recline-pas-pf:pthe wooden statue reclined

17. Inventory of impersonal passives • detrimental state • positive state • separation or body movement

18. detrimental state lose terminal bud, (for grain) grow old (person); wear out (thing), kneel; 2. become unsuccessful (with middle)fall behind (in going or working) commit incest stop begetting or giving birth (man, woman, animal) be “spoiled” become dangerous be restless be destroyed, spoiled rained; become spoiled in behavior (with middle) become poor go hungry for a particular thing, get an insufficient amount (food or drink) 1. die; 2. be in trouble; impersonal passive for meaning [2] 1. hang down (intr), slope; 2. be uncomfortable because of lying on a slope; impersonal passive for meaning [2] 1. stutter; 2. not be able to recount what one was told to tell someone; impersonal passive: ‘the words’ 1. blow (of wind); 2. cause to have abnormal behaviour1. become ruined (terrace wall); 2. not have an heir; 3. be sold at a loss (with middle) 1. be squeezed between two things; 2. get insufficient food, feel hunger; 3. be troubled, be harmed, more than opponent in fight, swell (in general), “swell” with anger; impersonal passive: ‘become fat’ (neg. sense);be ruined; go astray; lose one s way; lose belonging, grow (less, fewer) in number; become poorer (with middle)

19. positive state mellow in conduct, become agreeable (person), control self and not go against rules (with middle) be strong (but not look strong) be tender-hearted, want to do the “right thing” (with middle) do successfully, go higher (with middle)laugh, (be happy) (with middle)

20. separation or body movement migrate (with middle) move (intr.), work, thieve (with middle) be separate, leave, move away (with middle) eat to satiation, become satisfied; 2. (intens) leave a wide space between seeds when planting (with middle),spread (things, people) (intr) spread, spread out (like creeper or vine or branches) have many descendants (with middle) 1. go out, emerge (e.g. stick head out of hole); 2. go out for first time after giving birth (3 months for first child, 2 months oherwise) (with middle) go out to the field or to the market; 4. (with middle:) produce the amount you are willing to pay, when bargaining roll (intr) fall 1. flow (e.g. river); 2. go (snake); 3. disappear quickly (person) (with middle)flee, run away (with middle)

21. first person affected • i ker-am-t-i 3 old-pas-3f-pfI became old (it became old on me). • i jeer-am-t-i3 shame-pas-3f-pfI became ashamed of something

22. Cognate object • ahatasí riirá riir-t-iwife-dem yelling yell-3f-pfthe wife yelled a yell. • riira i riir-am-i-n yelling 3 yell-pas-pf-plthere was yelling. • aysha desáa riir-am-t-iwhich side yell-pas-3f-pffrom which was there yelling? • *aysha desáa riirá riir-am-i-nwhich side yelling yell-pas-pf-pl

23. Cognate object • ahatasí riirá riir-t-iwife-dem yelling yell-3f-pfthe wife yelled a yell. • riira i riir-am-i-n yelling 3 yell-pas-pf-plthere was yelling. • aysha desáa riir-am-t-iwhich side yell-pas-3f-pffrom which was there yelling? • *aysha desáa riirá riir-am-i-nwhich side yelling yell-pas-pf-pl

24. “Impersonal” subject construction • mataafaa shelfeeta kara xaay-e-nbook shelf on put-pf-plA book is on the shelf. (They've put a book on the shelf).

25. Conclusion The Konso construction does not fall into any of the usual categories of impersonal passives: there is subject marking on the verb, there is no dummy subject and there is no unspecific pronoun, but there is passive morphology on the verb. The term impersonal passive is not completely satisfactory because the construction is not one that involves an “impersonal subject”. The construction is not different from the “personal” passive in any sense. The passive is simply not restricted to transitive verbs in Konso.

26. Conclusion The passive in Konso expresses: • there is an agent, • the identity of the agent is irrelevant, • there may be an affected participant. The Konso passive seems to be primarily agent demoting rather than patient promoting since it allows passives of intransitives. The passive is a lexical derivation in Konso and not a syntactic rule; it is a morphological passive and not a (morpho-)syntactic passive. In this respect it is very different from agent demoting passives of intransitives in languages such as German and Dutch in which the passive is a syntactic construction and the passive morphology primarily serves other functions.