Noimi Notes: Mood, Aspect, Time

[qiihoskeh]

The previous post took too long to convert .... will fix the format later.

Notes On A New Language Project "Noimi"

        ZMood.TXT       qiihoskeh 
        2005.May.26     file started
        2005.Aug.01     current

        This version of Noimi has ditransitive verboids.

MOOD, ASPECT, AND TIME
----------------------

        Secondary Aspect        ^ closest to stem
        Primary Aspect          |
        Mode (?)                |
        Mood                    |
        Time Reference          v farthest from stem

Modes: (?)

Affirmative
Negative (?)
Indeterminate

Moods
-----

Indicative (Actual)
        either Affirmative or Negative
        The speaker asserts that the situation is actual.
        This is used for:
        (a) queries (i.e. WH-questions) and (semantically) embedded queries,
        (b) normal conditions???,
        (c) result clauses.
            Note: in the accompanying clause, the same marker for
            satisfactives is used.

Hypothetical (Interrogative)
        Indeterminate
        The speaker asserts that both the situation and its negation are
        possible, and (usually?) a desire on someone's part to know which is
        actual.
        This is used for yes/no questions and (semantically) embedded yes/no
        questions (whether-clauses).

Hypothetical (Subjunctive)
        either Affirmative or Negative
        The speaker asserts that the situation is hypothetical, and is used
        for:
        (a) fulfillable wishes etc.,
        (b) the semantic complement portion of satisfactives,
        (c) possible conditions, and
        (d) possible conclusions???.
        The time reference depends on the auxiliary, which must be present.

        Note: the Affirmative and Negative (subjunctive) hypotheticals, must
        be distinct from the interrogative hypothetical (which otherwise acts
        like an indicative).

Contrafactual (Optative???)
        either Affirmative or Negative
        The speaker asserts that the situation is not only hypothetical, but
        impossible. This is used for:
        (a) unfulfillable wishes etc.,
        (b) the semantic complement portion of excessives???,
        (c) contrary-to-fact conditions, and
        (d) contrary-to-fact conclusions???.

Imperative
        either Affirmative or Negative
        The speaker commands (or prohibits) that the situation be actual.
        The most common primary aspect is perfective. The time is relatively
        future and, outside of indirect speech, absolutely future as well.

        Usually, R2 actants are limited to 2nd person (2XL, 2NL, 2X, 2N),
        hence no _inverse_ or _mutual_ forms, although _reflexive forms are
        possible. 3rd person usages are imaginable, but a subjunctive
        construction could be used for these instead, with 3P marking
        representing *extended-only* persons. In this mood, the _limited_
        forms are less marked than the _extended_ forms, and the exclusive
        more than the inclusive.

Relative Time:

The different

Time
----

Noimi doesn't have _tense_ in the strict sense. Instead, it has a system of
relative time indication involving aspect, mood, temporal reference points,
temporal adverbs, and context. There are 3 kinds of temporal references:
(a) context-relative
    This is not marked.
(b) definite relative
    This makes the time relative to some reference point already mentioned
    (usually). Possibly, this is subdivided into:
    * definite and specific
    * indefinite and specific
    * definite and non-specific
    * indefinite and non-specific
    When used with perfectives, a period of time is indicated instead.
(c) absolute present
    This makes the time relative to the present moment and is used mainly with
    subordinate elements, but can also be used at the main level to terminate
    the scope of any previous main level definite relative marking, or any
    main level temporal adverbs.

There are 2 kinds of temporal adverbs. One indicates a period of time within
which the situation occurs and is used mostly with perfectives. The other kind
provides some point of reference similar to the definite relative markers.

Aspects
-------

These aspects are formally independent of the moods and modes, even though
resultive and projective are partly modal semantically. The secondary aspects
may be considered derivational, and are used in conjunction with the primary
aspects. Some combinations aren't used, however.

    Primary:
        Present (Imperfective)
        Aorist  (Perfective)
        Perfect (Resultive)
        Future  (Projective or Prospective?)

    Secondary:
        -Cont-  Continuative
        -Iter-  Iterative
                This denotes the repetition of an action on a single occasion
                and applies only to dynamic word stems. The [significance of
                the aspect classifier] applies to the series of actions
                collectively.
        -Habt-  Habitual
                This signifies that a situation occurs on multiple occasions
                over a period of time. The [significance of the aspect
                classifier] applies to the whole period.
        Process Phases:
            -Ince-  Inceptive
            -Paus-  Pausative
            -Rsmp-  Resumptive
            -Cess-  Completive (= cessative ?)
            These apply only to dynamic word stems, and are most often
            perfective.

Derivational:

    Based on original form of adjectoid only:
        Static:
            -Opp- Opposite quality (may be suppletive)
            -Neu- Neutral quality
        Dynamic:
            -Evo- Evolutive:  toward original quality (away from opposite)
            -Dev- Devolutive: toward opposite quality (away from original)

    Based on any static, including original, opposite, or neutral form of
    adjectoid:
        Dynamic:
            -Inc- Inchoative: entry into a state
            -Trm- Terminative: exit from a state
            -Via- Viative???: via (entry into, then exit from) a state