Nov04

Just to post something, I've started working on a sort-of VSO sketch: the basic simplified order is

Tense Verb SubjectNP OBJ ObjectNP ....

However, if the subject is pronominal, it gets prefixed to the verb and the OBJ marker is dropped:

Tense Sub%#-Verb ObjectNP ....

If the object is also pronominal, it gets suffixed to the verb:

Tense Sub%#-Verb-Obj%# ....

3rd person pronouns include HA (HostAgent) and HP (HostPatient) which are used after conjunctions, in subordinate clauses, and in secondary predicates.

(1) PST drop man OBJ melon and HA-run.
(2) PST drop man OBJ melon and HP-burst.
(3) PRS want boy HA-see elephant. --- there's no complementizer.
(4) PST eat man OBJ meat HP-raw.
(5) PST eat man OBJ meat HA-nude.
(6) PST pound woman OBJ syntax-diagram HP-flat.

You don't need translations, do you?

Note: I'm not sure about definite and indefinite articles.

There are 2 passives, one for direct objects and one for indirect objects; the demoted agent takes the AGT preposition (non-promoted indirect objects take the DAT preposition).

(7) FUT give woman DAT boy OBJ book.
(8) FUT P1-give book DAT boy AGT woman.
(9) FUT P2-give boy OBJ book AGT woman.

There's also an applicative that moves the affectee into the direct object place; one use is for univalent host verbs of resultatives:

(10) PST 3AP-APP-laugh-RFX HP-silly. "They laughed themselves silly."

Relative clauses use a non-initial relative pronoun with no other relativizer; content question phrases also remain in place.

Adjectives are stative verbs. When attributive they take the relative pronoun without tense.

(11) book RP-black RP-little