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Ojibwe grammar

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Grammar of the Ojibwe language
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TheOjibwe language is anAlgonquianNorth American indigenous language spoken throughout theGreat Lakes region and westward onto the northern plains. It is one of the largest indigenous language north of Mexico in terms of number of speakers, and exhibits a large number of divergent dialects. For the most part, this article describes the Minnesota variety of the Southwestern dialect. The orthography used is theFiero Double-Vowel System.

Like many North American languages, Ojibwe ispolysynthetic, meaning it exhibits a great deal ofsynthesis and a very highmorpheme-to-word ratio (e.g., the single word for "they are Chinese" isaniibiishaabookewininiiwiwag, which contains six morphemes: leaf-liquid-make-man-be-PLURAL, or approximately "they are leaf-drink [i.e., tea] makers"). It isagglutinating, and thus builds up words by stringing morpheme after morpheme together, rather than having several affixes which carry numerous different pieces of information.

Like most Algonquian languages, Ojibwe distinguishes two different kinds of third person, aproximate and anobviative. The proximate is a traditional third person, while the obviative (also frequently called "fourth person") marks a less important third person if more than one third person is taking part in an action. In other words, Ojibwe uses the obviative to avoid the confusion that could be created by English sentences such as "John and Bill were good friends, ever since the day he first saw him" (who saw whom?). In Ojibwe, one of the two participants would be marked as proximate (whichever one was deemed more important), and the other marked as obviative.

Gender

[edit]

Thegender distinction in Ojibwe is not a masculine/feminine contrast, but is rather betweenanimate andinanimate. Animate nouns are generally living things, and inanimate ones generally nonliving things, although that is not a simple rule because of the cultural understanding as to whether a noun possesses a "spirit" or not (generally, if it can move, it possesses a "spirit"). Objects with great spiritual importance for the Ojibwe, such as rocks, are very often animate rather than inanimate, for example. Some words are distinguished purely by theirnoun class; for example,mitig, if it is animate (pluralmitigoog), means "tree;" if it is inanimate (pluralmitigoon), it means "stick."

Number

[edit]

Number in Ojibwe is a simple singular/plural contrast. Nouns and pronouns can be either singular or plural, and verbs inflect for the number of their subject and object, although some nouns and verbs lack singular forms. Plural forms differ from word to word depending on the word's gender, root, and historical stress. By examining the plural form of the word, one can generally determine the word's gender and root. Animate plurals end in-g, while inanimate plural nouns (and obviative nouns) end in-n. Theunderlying form of a root determines the "linking vowel" — the vowel that appears before the plural suffix (-g or-n) but after the root itself.

Person

[edit]

There are seven Ojibwe inflectional categories expressingperson/gender combinations for each of the two numbers (singular and plural).[1] However, the singular and plural categories do not always exactly correspond. The total number of 14 "persons" arises from taking into consideration all the contrasts of animate/inanimate, proximate/obviative, and singular/plural.

Animate gender (singular)Animate gender (plural)Inanimate gender

Characteristics of the resulting 14 persons are built into Ojibwe nouns and pronouns, thus dictating which verb forms would be used in speech. In nouns and verbs, all 14 forms of persons may or may not present themselves, as words are divided as either animate or inanimate genders and very few words exist as both, but all 14 forms of persons generally do appear with pronouns.

Pronouns

[edit]

Ojibwe pronouns, along with distinguishing singular and plural number and first, second, third, and fourth (obviative) persons, also carry a distinction between inclusive and exclusive first person plural. Pronouns may present themselves either as independent words or as series of prefixes and suffixes.

Aninclusive first person plural indicates that the pronoun includes the addressee, i.e., "we including you" (giinawind). Anexclusive first person plural indicates that the addressee is not included, i.e., "we excluding you" (niinawind).

The other personal pronouns are the first singularniin, second singulargiin, third singularwiin, second pluralgiinawaa, and third pluralwiinawaa.

Like the independent words, Ojibwe pronominal prefixes indicate first person withn-, second person withg- and third person withw-. However, the associated suffixes for these persons will be different depending on if the word is a verb or a noun.[8]

Word begins with...1 or
"n-"
2 or
"g-"
3 or
"w-"
o((n)i)ndo-gido-odo-
a aa e i((n)i)nd-gid-od-
aa (by some Red Lake speakers)niy-giy-ow-\oy-
oon-g-od-
iin-g-w-
b(n)im-gi-(o)-
d g ' j z zh(n)in-gi-(o)-
p t k h ch m n s sh w yni-gi-(o)-

In many Ojibwe-speaking communities, the first person prefix is used without the initialn. Due to vowel syncope in some communities, those prefixes are further reduced without the initiali. However, among Saulteaux communities, the first person prefixnim- andnin- are instead reduced toni-,nind- tonid- andnindo- tonido-.

Ojibwe also has a set ofdemonstrative pronouns, distinguishing animate/inanimate, here/there/yonder/over here, singular/plural, and proximate/obviative. The demonstratives differ in their phonetic forms very significantly across Ojibwe dialects and communities, so this table, based on the Minnesota dialect of Southwestern Ojibwe, will not be entirely correct for many speakers:

AnimateInanimate
SingularPluralObviativeSingularPlural
DemonstrativeProximal (Nearest)Here(wa')awo(n)gowonow(o')owonow
MesioproximalOver here(wa')awedio(n)gowedi(g)onowedi(n)o'owedionowedi(n)
MesiodistalThere(a')awi(n)giwiniw(i')iwiniw
Distal (Farthest)Over there/Yonder(a')awedii(n)giwedi(g)iniwedi(n)(i')iwediiniwedi(n)
Dubitativeawegwenawegwenagawegwenanwegodogwenwegodogwenan
Interrogativeawenenawenenagawenenanawegonenawegonenan

Ojibwe also has a set of "indefinite" pronouns (awiiya, "someone",gegoo, "something," both of which can be preceded bygaawiin orakina to mean "no one, nothing" and "everyone, everything," respectively).

In contrast to the Southwestern Ojibwe's demonstrative pronouns, Central Ojibwe, Northwestern Ojibwe and Western Ojibwe—which includes a larger set of obviatives—have a larger set of demonstratives:

AnimateInanimate
SingularPluralSingular ObviativePlural ObviativeSingularPluralSingular ObviativePlural Obviative
DemonstrativeNearest
.
.
.
.
.
Farthest
Herewa'a(we)ogo(we)/
ogoweniwag
ono(we)/
onoweniwan
ono(we)/
onoweniwa'
o'o(we)/
owe
ono(we)/
onoweniwan
o'oweniono(we)/
onoweniwan
Over herewa'a(we)diogo(we)di(g)/
ogowediniwag
ono(we)di(n)/
onowediniwan
ono(we)di(')/
onowediniwa'
o'o(we)di/
owedi
ono(we)di(n)/
onowediniwan
o'owediniono(we)din/
onowediniwan
Therea'a(we)/
awe
igi(we)/
igiweniwag
ini(we)/
iniweniwan
ini(we)/
iniweniwa'
i'i(we)/
iwe
ini(we)/
iniweniwan
i'iweniini(we)/
iniweniwan
Over there/Yondera'a(we)di/
awedi
igi(we)di(g)/
igiwediniwag
ini(we)di(n)/
iniwediniwan
ini(we)di(')/
iniwediniwa'
i'i(we)di/
iwedi
ini(we)di(n)/
iniwediniwan
i'iwediniini(we)din/
iniwediniwan

Verbs

[edit]

Ojibwe verbs mark information not only on the subject (their animacy, person, and plurality) but also on the object. There are several different classes of verbs in the language, which differ based on whether they aretransitive orintransitive and whether they take animate or inanimate subjects. These are the main classes:

FunctionSubjectTypeObjectThemeAbbreviated
verbinanimateintransitivenoneVII[9][10][11]
verbinanimateintransitivenoneinherently pluralVIIp[11]
verbanimateintransitivenoneVAI[9][10][11]
verbanimateintransitivenonepseudo-VAIVAI2[9][10]
verbanimateintransitivenoneoptional objectVAIo[9][10][11]
verbanimateintransitivenoneinherently pluralVAIp[11]
verbanimatetransitiveinanimate-am stemVTI[9][10][11]
verbanimatetransitiveinanimate-oo stemVTI2[9][10]
verbanimatetransitiveinanimate-i stemVTI3[9][10]
verbanimatetransitiveinanimate-aam stemVTI4[9]
verbanimatetransitiveanimateVTA[9][10][11]
verbanimatetransitiveanimateinverse onlyVTAi[11]

Verbs mark tenses with prefixes (a'-, aorist past,gii'-, simple past,ga(d)- andda-, future, andwii'-, desiderative future), but also can take a myriad of affixes known as "preverbs", which convey a great amount of additional information about an action. For example, the preverbizhi- means "in such a way," and so its addition to the verb root-ayaa-, "to be," makes the verbizhi-ayaa, "to be a certain way." The preverbbimi-, "along," combines with the verb root-batoo-, "to run," to formbimibatoo, "to run along, run by." The preferred order of these prefixes are personal prefix, tense prefix, directional prefix, relative prefix, any number of preverbs, and finally the verb.[12] In addition, the initial syllable may be modifiedby an initial vowel change or by an initial syllable reduplication.[13][14][15]

Furthermore, there are three so-called "orders" of Ojibwe verbs. The basic one is calledIndependent Order, and is simply theindicative mood. There is also aConjunct Order, which is most often used with verbs insubordinate clauses, in questions (other than simple yes–no questions), and with participles (participles in Ojibwe are verbal nouns, whose meaning is roughly equivalent to "someone who is (VERB), does (VERB)," for example, the word for "traveler,"bebaamaadizid, is the third singular conjunct ofbabaamaadizi, "to travel about," and literally means "someone who travels about"). The final order is theImperative Order, used with commands and corresponding to theimperative mood.

Negatives are generally introduced by the leading wordgaawiin, which is usually translated as "no," before introducing the actual words in their negative form. Negatives are generally formed by addingsii (orzii) for independent order andsi (orzi) for conjunct order, both adding the negative element immediately after the root but before other suffixes. Thesii/si are found after vowels while thezii/zi are found aftern. In some words, the final consonant is dropped and thesii/si are added to the remaining vowel, in other words the finalm is converted ton before addingzii/zi, yet in other words a linking voweli (oraa) is added after the final consonant and then thesii/si added. Imperatives do not follow thesii (zii)/si (zi) pattern.

There are three imperatives in Ojibwe: theimmediate imperative, used to indicate that the action must be completely right away (nibaan!, "Sleep (right now)!"), thedelayed imperative, used to indicate that the action should be completely eventually, but not immediately (nibaakan!, "Sleep (in a little bit)!"), and theprohibitive imperative, used to indicate that the action is prohibited ((gego) nibaaken!, "Don't sleep!"). Like the negatives, the "k" in-k,-ken,-keg and-kegon take on the lenis form and become "g" aftern. Also like the negatives, the general the connector vowel between the imperative suffix and the terminal consonant here isi; however, fork/g, the connector vowel instead iso.

All verbs can also be marked for four "modes:" indicative (neutral),dubitative (the speaker is unsure about the validity of what they are saying, for example:bakade, "he is hungry," butbakadedog, "he must be hungry; he could be hungry"), preterit (which emphasizes that the action occurred in the past, and is also used to refer to attempted or intended but uncompleted actions, for example:imaa ninamadab, "I'm sitting there," butimaa ninamadabiban, "I was sitting there; I meant to sit there"), or preterit-dubitative (which expresses doubt about a past action:imaa namadabigoban, "she must have sat there; she could have sat there").

Intransitives

[edit]

As an example of some of the Ojibwe verbal distinctions at work, consider the conjugation of positive and negative indicative long-vowel-final VAI verbs (using the examplenibaa, "to sleep"):

SubjectIndependent
PositiveNegative1
ConjugationExampleGlossConjugationExampleGloss
Giin (2s)g_Øginibaa"You sleep"g_sii(n)2ginibaasiin"You don't sleep"
Giinawaa (2p)g_m3ginibaam"You guys sleep"g_siim3ginibaasiim"You guys don't sleep"
Giinawind (21)g_mi(n)2ginibaamin"We (inclusive) sleep"g_siimi(n)2ginibaasiimin"We (inclusive) don't sleep"
Niinawind (1p)n_mi(n)2ninibaamin"We (exclusive) sleep"n_siimi(n)2ninibaasiimin"We (exclusive) don't sleep"
Niin (1s)n_Øninibaa"I sleep"n_sii(n)2ninibaasiin"I don't sleep"
Indefinite (X)Ø_mnibaam"Someone sleeps"Ø_siimnibaasiim"Someone doesn't sleep"
Wiin (3s)Ø_Ønibaa"S/he/it sleeps"Ø_sii(n)2nibaasiin"S/he/it doesn't sleep"
Wiinawaa (3p)Ø_wagnibaawag"They sleep"Ø_siiwagnibaasiiwag"They don't sleep"
Obviative (3')Ø_wannibaawan"S/he/it (obviate) sleeps"Ø_siiwannibaasiiwan"S/he/it (obviate) doesn't sleep"
SubjectConjunct
PositiveNegative1
ConjugationExampleGlossConjugationExampleGloss
Giin (2s)Ø_yan4nibaayan"That you sleep"Ø_siwannibaasiwan"That you don't sleep"
Giinawaa (2p)Ø_yegnibaayeg"That you guys sleep"Ø_siwegnibaasiweg"That you guys don't sleep"
Giinawind (21)Ø_yangnibaayang"That we (inclusive) sleep"Ø_siwangnibaasiwang"That we (inclusive) don't sleep"
Niinawind (1p)Ø_yaangnibaayaang"That we (exclusive) sleep"Ø_siwaangnibaasiwaang"That we (exclusive) don't sleep"
Niin (1s)Ø_yaannibaayaan"That I sleep"Ø_siwaan(h)5nibaasiwaan"That I don't sleep"
Indefinite (X)Ø_ngnibaang"That someone sleeps"Ø_singnibaasing"That someone don't sleep"
Wiin (3s)Ø_dnibaad"That s/he/it sleeps"Ø_signibaasig"That s/he/it don't sleeps"
Wiinawaa (3p)Ø_waadnibaawaad"That they sleep"Ø_siwaanibaasiwaa"That they don't sleep"
Obviative (3')Ø_nidnibaanid"That s/he/it (obviate) sleeps"Ø_sinid/sinignibaasinid
nibaasinig
"That s/he/it (obviate) don't sleep"
SubjectImperative (Immediate)Imperative (Prohibitive)
ConjugationExampleGlossConjugationExampleGloss
Giin (2s)Ø_nnibaan"You! Sleep!" (now)Ø_kennibaaken"You! Don't Sleep!"
Giinawaa (2p)Ø_(o)k/(o)gnibaag
nibaayok
"You guys! Sleep!" (now)Ø_kegonnibaakegon"You guys! Don't Sleep!"
Giinawind (21)Ø_daa6nibaadaa"Let's sleep!" (now)Ø_siidaa6nibaasiidaa"Let's not sleep!"
SubjectImperative (Delayed)
PositiveNegative1
ConjugationExampleGlossConjugationExampleGloss
Giin (2s)Ø_(:)kan7nibaakan"You! Sleep!" (soon)Ø_siikannibaasiikan"You! Don't sleep!" (soon)
Giinawaa (2p)Ø_(:)keg7nibaakeg"You guys! Sleep!" (soon)Ø_siikegnibaasiikeg"You guys! Don't sleep!" (soon)
Giinawind (21)Ø_(:)kang7nibaakang"Let's sleep!" (soon)Ø_siikangnibaasiikang"Let's not sleep!" (soon)
1s followingn becomes az.
2 InOdaawaa, the finaln is absent.
3 Instead ofm,naawaa is used inAlgonquin andSevern Ojibwe.
4 InOdaawaa and someAlgonquin,yin is used instead ofyan.
5 InOdaawaa,nh is used instead ofn.
6 Instead ofdaa,daan is used by someAlgonquin speakers,daag is used by someSaulteaux speakers, andga-__min is used by someSevern Ojibwe andSaulteaux speakers.
7 Short vowels are lengthened before adding the suffix.

Also as an example of some of the Ojibwe verbal distinctions at work, consider the conjugation of positive and negative indicative long-vowel-final VII verbs (using the exampleozhaawashkwaa, "to blue"). Note that unlike VAI verbs, VII do not have imperatives:

SubjectIndependent
PositiveNegative1
ConjugationExampleGlossConjugationExampleGloss
Singular (0s)Ø_(w)2ozhaawashkwaa"It blues"Ø_sinoo(n)3ozhaawashkwaasiinoon"It doesn't blue"
Plural (0p)Ø_wan/oon5,6ozhaawashkwaawan"They blue"Ø_sinoonozhaawashkwaasiinoon"They don't blue"
Singular Obviative (0s')Ø_ini(w)2ozhaawashkwaani"It (obviate) blues"Ø_sinini(w)2,4ozhaawashkwaasinini"It (obviate) doesn't blue"
Plural Obviative (0p')Ø_iniwanozhaawashkwaaniwan"They (obviate) blue"Ø_sininiwanozhaawashkwaasininiwan"They (obviate) don't blue"
SubjectConjunct
PositiveNegative1
ConjugationExampleGlossConjugationExampleGloss
Singular (0s)Ø_gozhaawashkwaag"That it blues"Ø_sinogozhaawashkwaasinog"That it don't blue"
Plural (0p)Ø_g7ozhaawashkwaag"That they blue"Ø_sinogozhaawashkwaasinog"That they don't blue"
Singular Obviative (0s')Ø_inigozhaawashkwaanig"That it (obviate) blues"Ø_sininigozhaawashkwaasininig"That it (obviate) don't blue"
Plural Obviative (0p')Ø_inigozhaawashkwaanig"That they (obviate) blue"Ø_sininigozhaawashkwaasininig"That they (obviate) don't blue"
1s followingn becomes az.
2 In some words, a finalw is present.
3 InOdaawaa, the finaln is absent.
4 InOdaawaa,sinooni instead ofsinini(w).
5wan for vowel finals;oon for consonant finals.
6 InOdaawaa, vowel finals can take eitherwan ornoon; in someNorth of Superior Ojibwe,wanoon is used.
7 InOdaawaa,gin instead ofg.

Passives in intransitives can be expressed by using theINVERSE markerigw, which may undergo a minor structural modification. Some examples of verb final containing theINVERSE markerigw are:

activepassive
VAIVIIglossVAIVIIgloss
endamN/Athinks Xendaagoziendaagwadthought of X
imaasoimaatesmells Ximaagoziimaagwadsmelled of X

Transitives

[edit]

Ojibwe, as with other Algonquian languages, also exhibits adirect–inverse system, in which transitive verbs are marked for whether or not the direction of the action follows a "topicality hierarchy" of the language. The topicality hierarchy in Ojibwe is2 > 1 > X > 3 > 3’ > 0, determined by 1) person, 2) gender, and 3) obviation.[16] Ojibwe has nocase distinctions among agent, patient and experiencertheta roles, so in a transitive verb with two participants, the only way to distinguish subject from object is through direct/inverse/goal suffixes.

Note: C, N, nN, S and Y are used in some of the tables below to indicate a genericconsonant, n\zh varying consonant, n\nzh varying consonant, s\sh varying consonant, and Ø\i varying palatializer, respectively.

Direction
Type
ACTORDIRECTIONGOALTheme
local1-GOAL(2)1-Y-
2-GOAL2(1)-iN-
non-localDIRECT3-aa-
INVERSE3-igw-

The local goals, non-local goals and reflective cause the stem to undergo minor adjustments:

VT
Stem
1-GOAL
Y
1-GOAL
iN-Y1
2-GOAL
iN
DIRECT
aa
INVERSE
igw
RECIPROCATIVE
idw
REFLECTIVE
idw-izw
POSSESSIVE
im
-C-C--Cizh--Cin--Caa--Cigw--Cidiw--Cidizw--Cim-
-d-j--dizh--din--daa--jigw--jidiw--jidizw--dim-
-t-ch--tizh--tin--taa--chigw--chidiw--chidizw--tim-
-m-m--mizh--min--maa--ngw--ndiw--ndizw--mim-
-m1-m--mizh--min--maa--migw--midiw--midizw--mim-
-n-n--nizh--nin--naa--ngw--ndiw--ndizw--nim-
-N-zh--nizh--nin--naa--nigw--nidiw--nidizw--nim-
-nN-nzh--nizh--nin--naa--nigw--nidiw--nidizw--nim-
-S-sh--sizh--sin--saa--sigw--sidiw--sidizw--sim-
-Cw-C--Cozh--Con--Cwaa--Cogw--Codiw--Codizw--Com-
-CVw-CVw--CVVzh--CVVn--CVwaa--CVVgw--CVVdiw--CVVdizw--CVwim-
-Caw-Caw--Coozh--Coon--Cawaa--Caagw--Caadiw--Caadizw--Cawim-
-CVVw-CVVw--CVVzh--CVVn--CVVwaa--CVVgw--CVVdiw--CVVdizw--CVVm-

1. InOji-Cree (Severn Ojibwe) language, inAlgonquin language, and in someCentral Ojibwa language (especially inNorth of Superior Ojibwe)

Transitive verbs can become VAI class of verbs by adding the actor-focusedDETRANSITIVE markerige, which modifies the stem in a similar fashion as theINVERSE markerigw. However, due to differences in dialects, how the actor-focusedDETRANSITIVE markerige may show up differently.

DialectVTAVAI
(RECIPROCATIVE
with plural ending)
VAI
(REFLEXIVE)
VAIVTIVAI
(actor-focused
DETRANSITIVE)
Oji-Creeenimenimidowagenimidizoenindamenindaneninjige
Algonquinenimenindiwagenindizoenindamenindaneninge
Southwestern Ojibweenimenindiwagendizoendamendanenjige
Odaawaa and Eastern Ojibweenimendiwagendizoendamendanenge
glossthink X
about S.O.
think X
about each other
think X
about oneself
think Xthink X
about S.T.
think X
about things

For the first person and second personGOALs, theirACTORs are specified if the words are in theirIndependent Order, and can also be known aslocal direct (first personGOAL) andlocal inverse (second personGOAL). ADIRECT suffix indicates that the action is performed by someone higher on the person hierarchy on someone lower on the person hierarchy (e.g., by the addressee on the speaker, or by a proximate third person on an obviative):

obizindawaan

o-

3-

bizindaw

listen.to

-aa

-DIRECT

-n

-3OBVIATIVE

o- bizindaw -aa -n

3- listen.to -DIRECT -3OBVIATIVE

"He listens to the other one."

An inverse suffix indicates that the action is performed by someone lower on the person hierarchy on someone higher on the person hierarchy (e.g., by the speaker on the addressee, or by an obviative third person on a proximate):

obizindaagoon

o-

3-

bizindaw

listen.to

-igoo

-INVERSE

-n

-3OBVIATIVE

o- bizindaw -igoo -n

3- listen.to -INVERSE -3OBVIATIVE

"The other one listens to him."

As can be seen, the only difference between these two verbs is the direct–inverse opposition, rather than case markers (or word order, when distinct nominals are used). An inverse verb isnot equivalent to apassive verb. There is a separate passivity marker, denoted in literature as "indefinite person (X)", ranked in topicality hierarchy below first and second persons, but higher than animate and inanimate third persons:

bizindawaa

 

X-

bizindaw

listen.to

-aa

-DIRECT

{} bizindaw -aa

X- listen.to -DIRECT

"He is listened to."

To illustrate this, a generic VTA and VTI paradigm table, arranged by person hierarchy, is shown below. Note that the reflexive forms shown in a darker background with the reflexive theme/-idizo/ happen to be VAI. The table depicts only the paradigm for Independent Order, Positive Voice, Neutral Mode. Letters omitted in a particular form are indicated with that letter struck-through.

SubjectAnimate ObjectInanimate Object1
2s2p211p1sX3s3p3'0s0p
2sg__idizo————g__(Y)in2
g__(Y)imin
g__(Y)iminOTW
g__(Y)inaamOJB,OJW
g__izhinaam3,ALQ,OJS,PIC
g__izhinim3,OJS(4)
g__(Y)i
g__izh3,PIC
g__izhinan3,ALQ,OJS
g__aawi2g__aag__aagg__aan
g__aaOTW
g__imaanBLK,CIW,PIC
g__(:)ng__(:)nan
2p——g__idizom
g__idizonaawaaALQ,OJS
——g__(Y)imin
g__(Y)iminOTW
g__(Y)inaamOJB,OJW
g__izhinaam3,ALQ,OJS,PIC
g__izhinim3,OJS(4)
g__(Y)im
g__izhim3,ALQ,OJS,PIC
g__aawim2g__aawaag__aawaagg__aawaa
g__aawaanPOT
g__imaawaaCIW,PIC
g__imaawaanBLK
g__(:)naawaag__(:)naawaan
21————g__idizomin
g__idizominOTW
————g__aawimin2g__aanaan
g__aanaanOTW
g__aaminPAR, POT
g__aanaanig
g__aaminPAR, POT
g__aanaan
g__aanaanOTW
g__aaminPAR, POT
g__imaanaanBLK,CIW,PIC
g__(:)naan
g__(:)naanOTW
g__(:)minCIW, PAR
g__(:)naanin
g__(:)minCIW,PAR
1pg__inin2
g__inimALQ
g__iniminWAL, POT
g__iniminOTW
g__igoo
g__iniminWAL, POT, 2
g__iniminOTW
g__igoom
——n__idizomin
n__idizominOTW
——n__aawimin2n__aanaan
n__aanaanOTW
n__aaminPAR, POT
n__aanaanig
n__aaminPAR, POT
n__aanaan
n__aanaanOTW
n__aaminPAR, POT
n__imaanaanBLK,CIW,PIC
n__(:)naan
n__(:)naanOTW
n__(:)minCIW,PAR
n__(:)naanin
n__(:)minCIW,PAR
1sg__ing__inim
g__ininimBLK,CIW, PIC
————n__idizon__aawi2n__aan__aagn__aan
n__aanOTW
n__imaanBLK,CIW,PIC
n__(:)nn__(:)nan
Xg__igoo
g__igowi2
g__igoom
g__igowim2
g__igoomin
g__igoominOTW
g__igowimin2
n__igoomin
n__igoominOTW
n__igowimin2
n__igoo
n__igowi2
Ø__idizomØ__aa
Ø__aaganiiALQ
Ø__aaw2
Ø__aawag
Ø__aaganiiwagALQ
Ø__aawan
Ø__aaganiiwanALQ
Ø__imaawanBLK,CIW,PIC
Ø__(:)mØ__(:)m
3sg__igog__igowaag__igonaan
g__igonaanOTW
g__igominPAR
n__igonaan
n__igonaanOTW
n__igominPAR
n__igoØ__igo
Ø__igow2
Ø__idizo
w__aanALQ,BLK
      ——
w__aanALQ,BLK
w__aanw__(:)nw__(:)nan
3pg__igoogg__igowaagg__igonaanig
g__igominPAR
n__igonaanig
n__igominPAR
n__igoogØ__igowag      ——
w__aawaanALQ,BLK
Ø__idizowag
w__aawaanALQ,BLK,OJC
w__aawaanw__(:)naawaaw__(:)naawaan
3'g__igoon2
g__igo
g__igowaan2
g__igowaa
g__igonaanin2
g__igonaan
g__igonaanOTW
g__igominPAR
n__igonaanin2
n__igonaan
n__igonaanOTW
n__igominPAR
n__igoon2
n__igo
Ø__igowanw__igoonw__igowaan
w__igoonALQ
Ø__idizowan
w__igoonALQ
w__(:)nini
w__iniOJG,OTW
w__(:)nini
w__iniOJG,OTW
0sg__igong__igonaawaag__igonaan
g__igonaaOTW
g__igominPAR,PIC
n__igonaan
n__igonaanOTW
n__igominPAR,PIC
n__igonØ__igom2
w__igoniniCIW
w__igonw__igonaawaaw__igonini
w__igonOJG,OTW
————
0pg__igonang__igonaawaang__igonaanin
g__igominPAR,PIC
n__igonaanin
n__igominPAR,PIC
n__igonanØ__igom2
w__igoniniCIW
w__igonanw__igonaawaanw__igonini
w__igonanOJG,OTW
————

1. VTI1-am +(:)m or(:)n-aam or-aan.
    VTI2-oo +(:)m or(:)n-oom or-oon.
    VTI3-i +(:)m or(:)n-im or-in.
    VTI4-aam +(:)m or(:)n-aam or-aan.

2. In theory.
3.iN-Y form instead ofY form.
4. In someSevern Ojibwe.

ALQ :Algonquin
CIW :Southwestern Ojibwe
OJB :Northwestern Ojibwe
OJC : Central Ojibwe

OJG :Eastern Ojibwe
OJS :Severn Ojibwe
OJW :Saulteaux
OTW :Odaawaa

BLK :Border Lake Ojibwe
PAR : Parry Island Eastern Ojibwe
PIC :Pic River Central Ojibwe
WAL : Walpole Island Eastern Ojibwe
POT :Potawatomi language

Preverbs

[edit]

Ojibwe language is rich in its use ofpreverbs, which is a prefix that comes before verbs, nouns, and particles, to provide an additional layer of meaning. In Ojibwe, there are four classes of preverbs ranked in importance by six degrees:

  • class 1—tense, aspect, mode, or syntactic prefix appearing on verbs
    • mode-subordinator:
      • subordinator: e-, gaa-, waa-
      • modal: ga[d]-, da-, daa-, ji-, ge[d]-.
    • tense-negativity
      • tense: a'- [e'-], gii'- [gaa'-], wii'- [waa'-].
      • negativity: aano-, bwaa-.
  • class 2—directional prefix occurring on verbs
  • class 3—relational prefix occurring on verbs (and on some nouns and particles): ako- [eko-], onji- [wenji-], izhi- [ezhi-], apiichi- [epiichi-], dazhi- [endazhi-], daso- [endaso-].
  • class 4—lexical prefix occurring on verbs, nouns, or particles.
    • aspectual
    • manner, degree, quality/evaluative, quantitative/numeric

Preverbs, when they occur before a noun, are called aprenoun. Preverb class units when written are separated with a hyphen, with the exception of the class 4 preverb indicating manner, degree, quality/evaluative, or quantitative/numeric, which can also serve as functional part of a word stem as an initial. If several preverbs of the same class occur, they are written as a single block in order of rank of importance, with the most important preverb located closest to the word. Pronominal prefixes are written directly onto the head of the word group, so it may be found attached directly to the preverb if a preverb is present. When constructed, an Ojibwe word (in the example below, a verb) may have some or all of the pieces in the following form:

prefixword stemsuffix
pronominal
prefix
preverb-
(class 1)
preverb-
(class 2)
preverb-
(class 3)
preverb-
(class 4)
verb (initial)verb (medial)verb (concrete final)verb (abstract final)negativitypronominal
suffix
mode

Example, usingnibaa, "to sleep"

OjibweEnglishComment
nibaahe/she sleepshas no preverb
ninibaaminwe sleeplikewise, with pronominal prefix and pronominal suffix
gii'-nibaahe/she slepthas past tense preverb (class 1)
ningii'-nibaaminwe sleptlikewise, with pronominal affixes
gii'-maajii-nibaahe/she started to sleephas past tense preverb (class 1), and a lexical preverb (class 4)
ningii'-maajii-nibaaminwe started to sleeplikewise, with pronominal affixes

Nouns

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Nouns distinguish plurality, animacy, obviation, and case with suffixes. Animacy is only overtly marked on plural nouns. There are no core cases to distinguish categories such as "subject" or "object", but rather variousoblique cases, including alocative (e.g.,wiisiniwigamig, "restaurant",wiisiniwigamigong, "in the restaurant") and avocative plural (e.g.,Ojibwedog, "(you) Ojibwes!"). Other suffixes are: pejorative (e.g.,jiimaan, "canoe",jiimaanish, "worthless canoe"), diminutive (e.g.,zhooniyaa, "money",zhooniyaans, "coin"), contemptive (e.g.,odaabaan, "car",odaabaanenh, "just some old car"), preterit (which marks a deceased or no-longer existent person or object, e.g.nookomis, "my grandmother",nookomisiban, "my late grandmother"), and preterit-dubitative (which marks a deceased or no-longer existent person or object which was never known by the speaker, e.g.a'aw mindimooyenh, "that old woman",a'aw mindimooyenyigoban, "that late old woman I never knew").

Some nouns are considered "dependent" and cannot be presented by themselves. Instead, these dependent nouns are presented with pronoun prefixes/suffixes attached to them. An example of a dependent noun isnookomis ("my grandmother") where the dependent root-ookomis- ("grandmother") must be presented with a pronoun affix, which in this case isn-.

Verb to noun transforms

[edit]

Other nouns are derived from verbs by transforming them to their participle form. Of the choices, third person (and thus third person plural) is the most common form. Though each class of verbs may have their own participle-forming patterns, for simplicity, only the VAI neutral mode, positive participles are shown in the example, again, usingnibaa ("sleep").

Note: C, V, and VV are used in some of the tables below to indicate a genericconsonant, a generic shortvowel, and a generic long vowel, respectively.

SubjectVAI (ending in -V or -VV) Neutral Mode, PositiveParticiplesVAI2 (ending in -am) Neutral Mode, PositiveParticiples
Conjugation
OTW, CIW
Conjugation
OJB, OJC, OJW
Conjugation
OJS
Conjugation
ALQ
Conjugation
OTW, CIW
Conjugation
OJB, OJC, OJW
Conjugation
OJS
Conjugation
ALQ
Example
CIW
Gloss
Giin (2s)Ø*yanØ*yanØ*yanØ*yanØ*amanØ*amanØ*amanØ*amannebaayan"Sleeper"
Giinawind (21)Ø*yangØ*yangØ*yangØ*yangØ*amangØ*amangØ*amangØ*amangnebaayang"Sleepers"
Giinawaa (2p)Ø*yegØ*yegØ*yegØ*yegØ*amegØ*amegØ*amegØ*amegnebaayeg"Sleepers"
Niin (1s)Ø*yaan(h)1Ø*yaanØ*yaanØ*yaanØ*amaan(h)1Ø*amaanØ*amaanØ*amaannebaayaan"Sleeper"
Niinawind (1p)Ø*yaangØ*yaangØ*yaangØ*yaangØ*amaangØ*amaangØ*amaangØ*amaangnebaayaang"Sleepers"
Indefinite (X)Ø*ngØ*ngØ*ngØ*ngØ*amingØ*amingØ*amingØ*amingnebaang"Sleeper"
Wiin (3s)Ø*dØ*dØ*jØ*jØ*angØ*angØ*angØ*angnebaad"Sleeper"
Wiinawaa (3p)Ø*jigØ*waadØ*waajØ*waajØ*angigØ*amowaadØ*amowaajØ*amowaajnebaajig"Sleepers"
Obviative singular (3's)Ø*nijinØ*nidØ*nijØ*njØ*aminijinØ*aminidØ*aminijØ*aminjnebaanijin"Sleeper(s)"
Obviative plural (3'p)Ø*nijinØ*nijinØ*njinØ*aminijinØ*aminijinØ*aminjin

* For participles, the word experiencesinitial vowel change.
1 -nh inOdaawaa.

Verbs additionally can be transformed into nouns representing concepts by adding-win, or into nouns representing an object by adding-gan or-n, or if a VAI into a gerund by dropping the final vowel or if VAI2 by adding-o.

Plurals and obviative

[edit]

Plurals and obviative suffixes are the easiest to add to Ojibwe words. By examining the plural, one can generally determine the underlying root of the word. Generally, animate plurals end with-g, while inanimate plurals and obviatives end with-n. Often, a linking vowel is required to join the root to one of these endings. Underlying-w or-y or an augment may affect the choice of linking vowels. A few plurals do not follow this rule, for example,mishi,misan "piece(s) of firewood".

SingularInanimate
Plural
Animate
Plural
Obviative1Singular
Example
Plural
Example
Gloss
Consonant Stem
CCanCagCanmiinmiinan"blueberries"
Long-vowel Stem
CVVCVVnCVVgCVVnajidamooajidamoog"squirrels"
CVVCVVwanCVVwagCVVwanbinebinewag"partridges"
CVwCVwanCVwagCVwanwadowwadowag"bloodclots"
CVVwCVVwanCVVwagCVVwanniwiiwniwiiwag"my wives"
CVVCVVyanCVVyagCVVyannimaamaanimaamaayag"my mamas"
CVVnhCVVnyan2CVVnyag2CVVnyan2giigoonhgiigoonyag"fishes"
Short-vowel Stem
CVCVwanCVwagCVwanininiininiwag"men"
CVwCVwanCVwagCVwanbigiwbigiwan"gums"
W Stem
CCoonCoogCoonmitigmitigoon"sticks"
CCwanCwagCwannigignigigwag"otters"
CwaCwanCwagCwanmakwamakwag"bears"
CwaCwanCwagCwanikwaikwag"lice"
Y Stem
CCiinCiigCiinaniibaniibiig"elms"
CiCiinCiigCiinanwianwiin"bullets
CCwiinCwiigCwiinniningniningwiin"my armpits"
Augment Stem
CCanCagCanninowninowan"my cheeks"
CCoonCoogCoonnikatignikatigoon"my foreheads"
CaCawanCawagCawanoodenaoodenawan"towns"
CayCayanCayagCayanomoodayomoodayan"bottles"
CCanCagCannindengwaynindengwayan"my faces"
CanCananCanagCananma'iinganma'iinganag"wolves"
CanCananCanagCanannindooskwannindooskwanan"my elbows"
CanaCananCanagCananmikanamikanan"roads"
Participle Stem
CCinCigCinmaaniwangmaaniwangin"fruits"
d3jinjigjinnaawogaadednaawogaadejig"quadrupeds"

1 InCentral Ojibwa,Northwestern Ojibwa andWestern Ojibwa, singular obviative ends with " n " while plural obviative ends with " ' ". This distinction in obviative is not made in other Ojibwe language dialects.
2 InEastern Ojibwe language and in theOttawa language,contemptive plurals are CVVnyig and CVVnyin instead of CVVnyag and CVVnyan.
3 InOji-Cree language, this is a " j " and not a " d ".

Diminutives and contemptives

[edit]

Diminutives in Ojibwe express an idea of something that is smaller or younger version of the noun. All diminutives are treated as aConsonant Stem when made into one of the plural forms or into the obviative form, thus taking on the linking vowel-a-. Contemptives are formed in a similar fashion as diminutives and are used to express negative or depreciative attitude the speaker may have of the noun. Contemptive plurals and obviatives remain as contemptives, but can take on the linking vowel-i- to add a possible pejorative. Many words to express fauna are often in contemptive forms. In theOjibwemowin spoken inWisconsin and certain areas of northwesternOntario, often contemptives are reduced from-nh/-ny- forms to/-y-; in Algonquin and in most Northwestern Ojibwe, the contemptives instead is reflected by-nzh. In Odaawaa, the frequency of contemptives in fauna are higher than in otherAnishinaabemowin dialects. For example, it is from theDaawaamwin wordjidmoonh ("red squirrel") where the English word "chipmunk" has its origins, while the same word inOjibwemowin isajidamoo. When contemptive suffix is added for terms of endearment, any other d, t, z and s in the word are changed to j, ch, zh and sh respectively.

SingularDiminutiveContemptiveSingular
Example
Diminutive
Example
Gloss
Consonant Stem
CCensCenhmiinmiinens"little blueberry"
Long-vowel Stem
CVVCVVnsCVVnhajidamooajidamoons"little squirrel"
CVVCVVnsCVVnhbinebinens"little partridge"
CVwCVnsCVnhwadowwadons"little bloodclot"
CVVwCVVnsCVVnhniwiiwniwiins"my little wife"
CVVCVVnsCVVnhnimaamaanimaamaans"my little mama"
CVVnhCVVnsCVVnhgiigoonhgiigoons"little fish"
Short-vowel Stem
CVCVVnsCVVnhininiininiins"little man"
CVwCVVnsCVVnhbigiwbigiins"little gum"
W Stem
CCoonsCoonhmitigmitigoons"twig"
CCoonsCoonhnigignigigoons"little otter"
CwaCoonsCoonhmakwamakoons"bear cub"
CwaCoonsCoonhikwaikoons"little louse"
Y Stem
CCiinsCiinhaniibaniibiins"young elm"
CiCiinsCiinhanwianwiins"little bullet"
CCwiinsCwiinhniningniningwiins"my little armpit"
Augment Stem
CCensCenhninowninowens"my little cheek"
CCwensCwenhnikatignikatigwens"my little forehead"
CaCawensCawenhoodenaoodenawens"hamlet"
CayCayensCayenhomoodayomoodayens"vial"
CCaansCaanhnindengwaynindengwayaans"my little face"
CanCaansCaanhma'iinganma'iingaans"little wolf"
CanCaansCaanhnindooskwannindooskwaans"my little elbow"
CanaCaansCaanhmikanamikaans"trail"
Participle Stem
CCoonsCoonhmaaniwangmaaniwangoons"little fruit"
ddoonsdoonhnaawogaadednaawogaadedoons"little quadruped"

Locatives, possessives and obviation possessor theme

[edit]

Locatives indicate a location, and are indicated with-ng. Locatives do not take on any plurals or obviative suffixes, but obviation possessor or the number can be added before the locative suffix. Another set of affixes in the Anishinaabe language is indicated by the possessive theme-m or the obviative possessor theme-ni. Generally, dependent nouns and nouns ending with either-m or-n do not take the possessive theme-m. A small group of nouns also do not ever take the possessive theme suffix.

SingularLocativePossessive
Theme
Obviative
Possessor
Theme
Singular
Example
Locative
Example
Gloss
Consonant Stem
CCingCimCinimiinmiining"by/on the blueberry"
Long-vowel Stem
CVVCVVngCVVmCVVni / CVVniniajidamooajidamoong"by/on the squirrel"
CVVCVVngCVVmCVVni / CVVwinibinebineng"by/on the partridge"
CVwCVngCVmCVni / CVVniniwadowwadong"by/on the bloodclot"
CVVwCVVngCVVmCVVni / CVVwininiwiiwniwiing"by/on my wife"
CVVCVVyingCVVmCVVyininimaamaanimaamaaying"by/on my mama"
CVVnhCVVnyingCVVmCVVnyinigiigoonhgiigoonying"by/on the fish"
Short-vowel Stem
CVCVVngCVVmCVVni / CVVniniininiininiing"by/on the man"
CVwCVVngCVVmCVVni / CVVninibigiwbigiing"by/on the gum"
W Stem
CCongComConi / Cooninimitigmitigong"by/on the tree"
CCongComConi / Coonininigignigigong"by/on the otter"
CwaCoongCoomCooni / Cooninimakwamakoong"by/on the bear"
CwaCongComConi / Cooniniikwaikong"by/on the louse"
Y Stem
CCiingCiimCiini / Ciininianiibaniibiing"by/on the elm"
CiCiingCiimCiini / Ciininianwianwiing"by/on the bullet"
CCwiingCwiimCwiini / Cwiininininingniningwiing"by/on my armpit"
Augment Stem
CCaangCaamCaanininowninowaang"by/on my cheek"
CCwaangCwaamCwaaninikatignikatigwaang"by/on my forehead"
CaCaangCaamCaanioodenaoodenawaang"by the village"
CayCaangCaamCaaniomoodayomoodaang"by/on the bottle"
CCaangCaamCaaninindengwaynindengwayaang"by/on my face"
CanCaningCanimCaninima'iinganma'iinganing"by/on the wolf"
CanCanaangCanaamCanaaninindooskwannindooskwanaang"by/on my elbow"
CanaCanaangCanaamCanaanimikanamikanaang"by/on the road"
Participle Stem
CCongComConi/Coyanimaaniwangmaaniwangong"by/on the fruit"
ddongdomdoni/doyaninaawogaadednaawogaadedong"by/on the quadruped"

Rarely do either the possessive theme-m or the obviative possessor theme-ni stand by themselves. The above examples for the possessive theme-m were for the first person singular. For other persons or number, again using the possessive theme-m as an example, the word is conjugated as following:

SubjectPossessive
Conjugation3s ExampleGloss
3s
Possessum
3p
Possessum
3'
Possessum
3"
Possessum4
0s
Possessum
0p
Possessum
Locative
Possessum
Giin (2s)g_mg_magg_mang_manang_mg_mang_minggizhiishiibim"your (sg.) duck"
Giinawaa (2p)g_miwaag_miwaagg_miwaang_miwaanang_miwaag_miwaa(n)2g_miwaanggizhiishiibimiwaa"your (pl.) duck"
Giinawind (21)g_minaang_minaanig1g_minaaning_minaaninang_minaang_minaanin1g_minaaninggizhiishiibiminaan"our (inclusive) duck"
Niinawind (1p)n_minaann_minaanig1n_minaaninn_minaaninann_minaann_minaanin1n_minaaningnizhiishiibiminaan"our (exclusive) duck"
Niin (1s)n_mn_magn_mann_manann_mn_mann_mingnizhiishiibim"my duck"
Wiin (3s)w_manw_mananw_mw_manw_mingozhiishiibiman"his/her/its duck"
Wiinawaa (3p)w_miwaanw_miwaananw_miwaa(n)2,3w_miwaa(n)2w_miwaangozhiishiibimiwaan"their duck"
Obviative (3'(s/p))w_mini(in)5w_mini(in)5,6w_miniwan7

1 In theAlgonquin, the plural suffix remains as-an/-ag, rather than becoming-in/-ig.
2 Terminal-n is not found in Algonquin language.
3 Terminal-n is not found inPotawatomi,Eastern Ojibwe andOttawa languages.
4 In thePotawatomi language
5-in is used in Algonquin andOji-Cree (Severn Ojibwe) languages
6 Only in Algonquin and in OjiCree is the inanimate possessed by an obviate marked.
7 Historically

Pejoratives and vocative plurals

[edit]

Pejoratives, marked with the-sh suffix, generally indicates a stronger negative feelings a speaker may have than that of the contemptive. However, pejorative may also indicate a term of affection. Some words take on different meaning in the pejorative, such asaniibiish, which means "no good elm" but also means "leaf". In some dialects, some words are always shown in their pejorative forms, such asanimosh for "dog".

Vocative plurals mimic pejorative conjugation patterns. It is identified with the-dog suffix, which in the Ottawa dialect shows up instead as-dig suffix.

SingularAffectivePejorativeVocative PluralSingular
Example
Pejorative
Example
Gloss
Consonant Stem
CCisCishCidogmiinmiinish"no good blueberry"
Long-vowel Stem
CVVCVVsCVVshCVVdogajidamooajidamoosh"no good squirrel"
CVVCVVsCVVshCVVdogbinebinesh"no good partridge"
CVwCVsCVshCVdogwadowwadosh"no good bloodclot"
CVVwCVVsCVVshCVVdogniwiiwniwiish"my no good wife"
CVVCVVsCVVshCVVdognimaamaanimaamaash"my no good mama"
CVVnhCVVsCVVshCVVdoggiigoonhgiigoosh"no good fish"
Short-vowel Stem
CVCVwisCVwishCVwidogininiininiwish"no good man"
CVwCVwisCVwishCVwidogbigiwbigiwish"no good gum"
W Stem
CCosCoshCodogmitigmitigosh"no good tree"
CCosCoshCodognigignigigosh"no good otter"
CwaCoosCooshCoodogmakwamakoosh"no good bear"
CwaCosCoshCodogikwaikosh"no good louse"
Y Stem
CCiisCiishCiidoganiibaniibiish"no good elm"
CiCiisCiishCiidoganwianwiish"no good bullet"
CCwiisCwiishCwiidogniningniningwiish"my lousy armpit"
Augment Stem
CCaasCaashCaadogninowninowaash"my no good cheek"
CCwaasCwaashCwaadognikatignikatigwaash"my no good forehead"
CaCaasCaashCaadogoodenaoodenawaash"damn village"
CayCaasCaashCaadogomoodayomoodaash"no good bottle"
CCaasCaashCaadognindengwaynindengwayaash"my no good face"
CanCanisCanishCanidogma'iinganma'iinganish"no good wolf"
CanCanaasCanaashCanaadognindooskwannindooskwanaash"my no good elbow"
CanaCanaasCanaashCanaadogmikanamikanaash"no good road"
Participle Stem
CCosCoshCidogmaaniwangmaaniwangosh"no good fruit"
ddosdoshjidognaawogaadednaawogaadedosh"no good quadruped"


When the diminutive suffixens or the affective suffixis, is followed by the other, thes becomesz, as inizens orenzis. When the pejorative suffixish is added to the diminutive suffixens, combination yieldsenzhish, while adding the diminutive suffixens to the pejorative suffixish, just as with any other Consonant Stem patterns, yieldsishens. In Northwestern Ojibwe dialect when the pejorative suffixish is added, any otherd,t,z ands in the word are changed toj,ch,zh andsh respectively.

Singular vocatives do not follow a systematic pattern like plural vocatives do, with various strategies in achieving the vocative case:

nominativevocativeglossmechanism for vocative
noosnoose!my fatheradding a vowel
Aanji-binesiAanji-bines!Changing Birddropping the final vowel
NoodinookweNoodinook!Wind-womandropping the final vowel and medialw
ningashininga!my motherdropping the final vowel and affective suffix
ningwizisningwis!my sondropping of affective suffix
nookomisnooko!my grandmotherdropping of affective suffix and the possessive themem
noozhishenhnoozis!my grandchilddropping of contemptive suffix and de-palatalize effected affective suffix consonants

However, many irregular forms of achieving the vocative case also exist, including in some dialects unchanged forms such asnoozhishenh! (my grandchild) used as a vocative, and vocative beyond the regular changed forms such asninge! (my mother).

Adjectives

[edit]

Ojibwe has no adjectives per se but verbs that function as adjectives. Thus, instead of saying "the flower is blue," Ojibwe says something like to "the flower blues" (ozhaawashkwaa waabigwan) or "be a blueing flower" (waabigwan-ozhaawashkwaa). Ojibwe has acopula, in some situations, which has a verb (several, in fact) that can be translated as "to be" and used in situations to equate one thing with another. However, a copula is not always used in Ojibwe, such as ifdemonstrative pronouns are used (jiimaan o'ow, "this is a canoe").

Adverbs

[edit]

Particles

[edit]

Ojibwe language with itsiambic accent system and relatively atonal word stresses, has any nuance of expressing word emphasis, stress, mood, etc., being expressed by particles like these:

  • mii — discourse sequencer, topical focuser
  • (i)dash — topical shift indicator; may even appear as-sh
  • (i)go — emphasises heightened assertiveness
  • (i)sa — emphasises novelty
  • (i)sha — emphasises contradiction
  • (i)maa — emphasises cooperation (either actual or desired)
  • (i)naa — emphasises evaluative information
  • wii — unexpectedness indicator

The short initial 'i' is omitted typically when following a word or particle ending in a vowel or ending in 'n'.

Other particles may beinterjections like these:

  • ambe — "come on..."
  • (a)tayaa — "indeed"
  • (a)was — "go away"
  • boozhoo — "hello"
  • enh — "yes"
  • gaawiin — "no"
  • (i)kawe — "hold on..."
  • miigwech — "thank you"

The short initial vowel may be omitted typically in excited speech.

Counting

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Ojibwe numbers are classified as abiquinarybase-10 system.

OnesHundreds
1bezhig [(n)ingod1,3,8]6(n)ingodwaaswi3,7100midaasimidana7 / (n)ingodwaak3600(n)ingodwaaswaak3
2niizh7niizhwaaswi7200niizhwaak700niizhwaaswaak
3niswi8(n)ishwaaswi3,7300niswaak800(n)ishwaaswaak3
4niiwin49zhaangaswi6,7400niiwaak900zhaangaswaak
5naanan10midaaswi7500naanwaak1,000midaaswaak
TensThousands
10midaaswi7 [(n)ingodana1]60(n)ingodwaasimidana3,5,71,000midaaswaak [(n)ingodanaak1,3]6,000(n)ingodwaasimidanaak3,5,7
20niishtana [niizh((m)i)dana2]70niizhwaasimidana5,72,000niishtanaak7,000niizhwaasimidanaak5,7
30nisimidana580(n)ishwaasimidana3,5,73,000nisimidanaak58,000(n)ishwaasimidanaak3,5,7
40niimidana490zhaangasimidana5,74,000niimidanaak9,000zhaangasimidanaak5,7
50naanimidana5100midaasimidana5,75,000naanimidanaak510,000midaasimidanaak5,7

1In theory
2Historically, eitherniizh midana orniizhidana.
3Many speakers omit the initialn (shown in parentheses).
4In Algonquin and Algonquin-influenced communities,new andnewin midana are used instead ofniiwin andniimidana, respectively.
5InNorthwestern Ojibwe,Oji-cree, andAlgonquin,o is used instead ofi as the connector vowel for the suffixes-midana and-midanaak.
6In some dialects, such as in parts ofEastern Ojibwe,zhaang is used instead ofzhaangaswi; the shorter form was historically recorded as being the more pervasive form, but it now is rarely used.
7Richard Rhodes reports that some Algonquin speakers use a connector,-di, before-swi,-somidana, and-somidanaak.
8(n)ingod is "one" inPotawatomi but "something" in Ojibwe.

Modifications of sound

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Ojibwe initials of words may experience morphological changes under three modification strategies:initial consonant change,initial vowel change andinitial syllable reduplication.

Initial consonant change

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Ojibwe consonants are divided into lenis and fortis values:

  • lenis-fortis pairs:h (if distinguished),bp,dt,gk,jch,zs,zhsh
  • unpaired fortis:h (if not distinguished),m,n,w,y

When either the past tense preverbgii'- or the desiritive future tensewii'- is added to a verb, if the verb begins with a lenis consonant, it may change to its fortis counterpart; it is common for many writers to omit the writing of the glottal stop, so they graphically indicate this consonant shift by writing the fortis consonant counterpart. In some dialects, such as with the Red Lake Ojibwe in Minnesota, this rule is suspended if the consonant in the verb's second syllable already contains a fortis consonant. In some dialects as in Odaawaa, this rule is not applied.

Ojibwe (withoutgii-)EnglishOjibwe (withgii-)EnglishComment
ayekozihe/she is tiredgii-ayekozihe/she was tirednot applicable, as this word begins with a vowel
nibaahe/she sleepsgii-nibaahe/she sleptinitial consonant is already a fortis
jiibaakwehe/she cooksgii-chiibaakwehe/she cookedinitial consonant changes to its fortis counterpart
jaka'igehe/she pokesgii-jaka'igehe/she pokedRed Lake: initial consonant is not changed due to a fortis consonant (in this case,k) in the second syllable
zhaabobidehe/she drives throughgii-zhaabobidehe/she drove throughOdaawaa: this dialect does not implement the initial consonant change

Initial vowel change

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In general, verbs in Conjunct and Participial orders and nouns of Subjunctive order change the vowel quality of the first syllable in the manner shown in the table below.

unchangedchanged
-a--e-
-aa--ayaa-
-e--aye-
-i--e-
-ii--aa-
-o--we-
-oo--waa-

However, in some words beginning indan-,dazh-,das-,dash- ordaa- instead take on the prefixen- to formendan-,endazh-,endas-,endash- orendaa-. The directional prefixbi-, meaning "over here," instead becomesba-.

Initial syllable reduplication

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Words typically conveying repetitive actions have their very first syllable experience reduplication. Reduplication may be found in both verbs and in nouns. Vowel syncope process Eastern Ojibwe and Odaawaa experiences happen after the word has gone through reduplication. The most general reduplication pattern for the initial syllable isC1V1C1V2C2V1 but the table below shows the most common reduplication strategies.

unchangedreduplicatedunchangedreduplicated
a-aya-Ca-CaCa-
aa-aayaa-Caa-CaaCaa-
e-eye-Ce-CeCe-
i-ayi-Ci-CaCi- orCeCi-
ii-aayii-Cii-CaaCii- orCeCii- orCiiCii-
o- (reduced from*wa)wawe- orwaye-Co-CaCe-
o- (reduced from*wi)wawo-1 orwawi-Co-CaCo-
oo-oo'oo-Coo-CaaCoo- orCeCoo- orCooCoo-

1ayo- inAlgonquin.

In some words, the reduplicated consonant shifts from their lenis value to their fortis value. Yet in some stems, initialCw- retains the-w- while others do not. Those words experiencing the prefixen- may change toin- before experiencing reduplication. Other prefixes such asgino- (long) does not follow the typicalC1V1C1V2C2V1 pattern, and instead becomesgagaano-.

Syntax

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As Ojibwe is highly synthetic, word order and sentence structure is relatively free, since a great deal of information is already encoded onto the verb. The subject can go before or after the verb, as can the object; however, the subject and the object together cannot go before the verb. In general, whichever participant is deemed more important or in-focus by the speaker is placed first, before the verb, and the less important participant follows the verb. Ojibwe tends to prefer a VS order (verb–subject) when subjects are specified with separate nominals or pronouns (e.g.,bakade a'aw asabikeshiinh, be.hungry that.there.ANIMATE net.make.PEJORATIVE.CONTEMPTIVE, "that spider is hungry").

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^(Valentine 2001, p. 122)
  2. ^abcdefghijklmKegg, 1990, pp. 143–144
  3. ^abcdefghijklmn(Valentine 2001, pp. xxxv–xxxvii)
  4. ^abcdefghijklmNichols, 1998, pp. 291–292
  5. ^abcdefghijklmnOntario Ministry of Education,Native Languages: A Support Document for the Teaching of Language Patters—Ojibwe and Cree, p. 97
  6. ^(Valentine 2001, p. 219)
  7. ^Valentine,Theft of Fire, as3pObv
  8. ^Kegg, 1990, p. 136
  9. ^abcdefghiKegg, 1990, pp. 141–143
  10. ^abcdefghNichols & Nyholm, 1995, pp. xii–xiii
  11. ^abcdefghRhodes, 1985, pp.xiv–xv
  12. ^Kegg, 1990, p. 135
  13. ^Kegg, 1990, p. 137
  14. ^Nichols and Nyholm, 1995, p. xv
  15. ^(Valentine 2001, pp. 155–156, 508–510, 913–915)
  16. ^(Valentine 2001, pp. 266–265)

References

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  • Artuso, Christian (1998).Noogom gaa-izhi-anishinaabemonaaniwag: Generational Difference in Algonquin (MA thesis). University of Manitoba.
  • Kegg, Maude (1990).Nookomis Gaa-inaajimotawid: What my grandmother Told Me. Bemidji, MN: Indian Studies Publications.
  • Mithun, Marianne (1999).The Languages of Native North America. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Nichols, John D., ed. (1988).An Ojibwe Text Anthology. London, ON: Centre for Research and Teaching of Canadian Native Languages.
  • Nichols, John D.; Nyholm, Earl (1995).A Concise Dictionary of Minnesota Ojibwe. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
  • Picard, Marc (1984). "On the Naturalness of Algonquian ɬ".International Journal of American Linguistics.50 (4):424–437.doi:10.1086/465851.
  • Rhodes, Richard A. (1985).Eastern Ojibwa-Chippewa-Ottawa Dictionary. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
  • Valentine, J. Randolph (2001). Written at The Ojibway Heritage Center, Walpole Island.Nishnaabemwin Reference Grammar. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.ISBN 0-8020-4870-6.

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