1

MURAVYOVA I.A., DANIEL M.A., ZHDANOVA T.JU. Chukchi language and

folklore in texts collected by V.G.Bogoraz. A RSS/OSSF report (Research Support
Scheme of the Open Society Support Foundation, grant No 584/1999). Moscow: 2001.
600 p. (Unpublished).

CONTENTS:
Preface
Part one. Texts
Part two. Grammar
Part three. Dictionary
List of abbreviations
References

PART TWO

GRAMMAR

CHAPTER 1 . PHONOLOGY

CHAPTER 2. MORPHOLOGY

CHAPTER 3. SYNTAX
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CHAPTER 1 . PHONOLOGY

In the present phonological sketch we will describe the following two main
aspects of the Chukchi phonology: the static aspect, that is inventories of phonological
units (segments and suprasegmentals), and the dynamic aspect, that is phonological
processes (morphophonology). The static part deals with the Chukchi sounds phones
and phonemes (1.1), as well as rhythmic and syllable patterns (1.2). The dynamic part
deals with phonological processes found in Chukchi, they are presented in the form of
dynamic rules (1.3).
The approach we use here is close to that of the generative phonology. Two levels
of representing word-forms are distinguished: the underlying level, that is the level of
phonemes (it corresponds to the morphophonemic level in the Russian traditional
phonological theory) and the surface level, that is the level of phones (we omit some
minor details of Chukchi pronounciation, irrelevant for the phonetic system). The
dynamic rules apply to the underlying representation of a word-form, which is a sequence
of underlying representations of the corresponding morphemes; underlying
representations of Chukchi morphemes are shown in the Dictionary see Part three. The
result is the surface representation, or the phonetic transcription of a word-form.
In the present section the underlying representation of Chukchi word-forms and
morphemes is given in round brackets; the practical transcription of word-forms is
usually given without any brackets; in some special cases we write the phonetic
transcription in square brackets. The inventories of the underlying and the surface
representations are identical, that means we use one and the same alphabet for writing
phonemes and phones.
Cf. also some other desceiptions of the Chuckhi phonology in [Meljnikov 1948,
Skorik 1961, Assinovskij 1991].

1.1. Segments

The distinctive segments of Chukchi are 14 consonants and 6 vowels. Some more
segments are used in loan-words (see further). There also used to be some difference in
mens and womens pronunciation which is disappearing nowadays. All segments listed
below are illustrated by examples demonstrating the following phonological positions:
with consonants initial, intervocalic, before a consonant, after a consonant, final; with
vowels initial, after a consonant, final.

1.1.1. Consonants

The Alutor inventory of consonants is not large, it includes only 14 segments. The
consonants are distinguished in terms of p l a c e o f a r t i c u l a t i o n (labials vs.
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dentalveolars vs. palatals vs. velars vs. uvulars vs. glottal laryngeals vs. epiglottal
laryngeals), m a n n e r o f a r t i c u l a t i o n (obstruents vs. sonorants; plosives vs.
fricatives vs. vibrants vs. glides; central vs. lateral) and n a s a l i t y (oral vs. nasal).
Besides, consonants may be voiced and voiceless. All consonantal segments are
pulmonic egressive.
The classification of consonants is given below in Table 1.

TABLE 1. Classification of consonants

Place of labials dent- palatals velars uvulars laryng.

articulation and alveolars
other features
Manner of
articulation
obst- plosives p t k q

ruents simple c
fricatives
lateral
fricatives
sono- nasals m n

rants vibrants r

glides w j

The Chukchi consonants are divided into two subsystems obstruents and
sonorants which differ greatly.
Obstruents are represented by plosives and fricatives.
All plosives are voiceless. The fricative is voiced, it is close to sonorants.
The obstruents are:
1. Bi-labial voiceless p. Implosive and slightly aspirated in word-final position.
E.g.: pojn spear, wapaq fly-agaric, wopq elk, ajpn dam, watap reindeer
moss.
2. Apico-dental voiceless t. Implosive and slightly aspirated in word-final
position. E.g.: tamtam cone, qetaqet salmon, ktm sable, pont liver, warat
people.
3. Dorso-velar voiceless k. Slightly affricated in word-initial and intervocalic
position, strongly aspirated in word-final position, with an explosion. E.g.: kojn
mug, kuke pot, mkrn quantity, ktkt spring, itk to be.
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4. Dorso-uvular voiceless q. Usually affricated in word-initial and intervocalic

position. Implosive in word-final position. Does not occur in syllable-final position,
except before q, , or word-finally (see further). E.g.: qora reindeer, weqetk to
step, nniqqej little, wucqwuc darkness, jajaq sea-gull.
5. Glottal plosive . Does not occur in syllable-final position. E.g.: arek to
retain, taakojn a pipe, qorato a piece of reindeer meat, twt boat.
6. Apico-dental voiceless c. Affricated intervocalically. Varies from affricate [t]
to fricative [] depending on a dialect. Women used to pronounce it like [t]. Geminated
c starts with a plosive, which is usually written as tc. E.g.: caat lasso, ncacaqen
tasty, ncuwqin narrow, imcuq splash, enmec already, nitcqin heavy.
7. Apico-dental voiceless lateral . May be affricated word-initially and
intervocalically. In some positions alternates with c (see further). Geminate starts with a
plosive, which is written as tc. E.g.: ewt head, aa dew, qep nail, ini
heart, mim water, enetin he became.
8. Dorso-velar voiced . Becomes voiceless in clusters with voiceless consonants
and in word-final position. Close to glides in some respects (see further). E. g.: aak to
pass by, patk to come to surface, rat home, tn lake, meni material,
cloth.
All obstruents except may be geminated, the two parts of the geminate
belonging to different syllables: nppuqin littlel, ttuk to blow, ekkete by a son,
nniqqej little animal.
All fricatives may occur as geminates in the underlying structure, but on the
surface level the geminated voiceless fricatives appear with a plosive initial segment
which goes to the preceding syllable: metcmc (< mec-cmc) rather near
(geminated c is written as tc), manekp (< mane-p) from a cloth (geminated
appears as k). The lateral may occur as geminate in the underlying structure, but on the
surface level it appears with a plosive initial segment which goes to the preceding
syllable: ttt doors (geminated appears as t), atotrcqma (< a-tur-rcq--
ma) with a new sword. The geminate has a plosive initial segment k and appears as
k : manekp from a cloth.
Sonorants are represented by nassals, vibrants and glides:
1. Labio-labial voiced m. E.g.: maco breast, cimetk to break, mumk
button, tenmk to measure, nmnm village.
2. Apico-dental voiced n. E.g.: nen fell, penin the former, nanqn belly,
in wolf, renmn wall.
3. Dorso-velar voiced . E.g.: otqen this, pi splinter, pipi ashes,
tmewk to get lost, awa otherwise.
4. Apico-alveolar voiced trill r. Becomes voiceless in clusters with voiceless
consonants and in word-final position. Geminated r starts with a plosive, which is written
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as tr. Women used to pronounce tc instead of r. E.g.: rawe squirrel, rrak to cut,
tirktir son, janra separately, ktrakr foam.
5. Labio-labial voiced fricative w. Becomes voiceless after . E.g.: wa knife,
tewena oar, iwt below, wtwt leaf, awa otherwise, wanaw resin.
6. Dorso-palatal voiced j. Becomes voiceless in clusters with voiceless consonants
and in word-final position. E.g.: jara house, yurta, ajo brain, ajko bed, ratjo
bound to, inqej boy.
All consonants may occur in word-final position, except (see the examples
above). All consonants may appear word-initially (see the examples above).
In general, Chukchi avoids initial consonant clusters, except clusters of the type
C, cf. uk see.
As a rule, two initial consonants are separated by an epenthetic vocalic segment
(see further) : rpe- a hammer, cf. e-rpe-te by a hammer.
With some stems beginning with a cluster a syncoped form without epenthetic
may appear, which sometimes becomes the rule. This usually happens when the second
consonant is a fricative. Some dictionaries record such syncoped forms as the main
variant of pronunciation. E.g.: qaw (instead of qaw) man, mraqac (instead of
mraqac) on the right side. This phenomenon is more typical for western dialects.
Some other stems beginning with a cluster (mostly verbal stems) lose their initial
segment in word-initial position. This happens only to clusters with dentalveolars t, , n,
c , r as the first member and a labial, velar or uvular segment as the second member.
Since deletion is determined not only by phonological context, these stems form a certain
morphonological group and are usually listed in dictionaries. E.g.: qutk (< qut-k ) to
stand up, cf. t-qut-rk-n I am standing up; wak (< twa-k) to stay, cf. a-twa-en
he was.
There are no three-consonant clusters in word-medial position, except those of the
type CC. Thus, only two-consonant clusters and three-consonant clusters of the type
CC may appear word-medially, e.g. pin throat, mtun we saw it. In all other
cases, when there appears a three-consonant cluster in word-medial position and the third
consonant is not , the consonants are separated by an epenthetic segment at a
morpheme boundary (see further), e.g.: e-pint-in (< e-pint-in) he rushed at. In
case there are two morpheme boundaries, the segment is inserted only at one of them,
e.g. mt-n-tomaw-n (< mt-n-tomaw-n) we created it.
All nasals may be geminated, but the two parts of a geminate belong to different
syllables: mmej Mummy (a word for addressing), rnnn tooth; horn, epek
boots.
The resonant geminated w has also a plosive initial segment, e.g. ekwetk to
go. The geminate jj does not occur.
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1.1.2. Vowels

The vocalic system of Chukchi consists of 6 vowels; they are: i, u, e, o, , a.

The Chukchi vowels form a typical triangle system; we can distinguish them in
terms of the q u a l i t y and q u a n t i t y . The aspects of quality are: t o n g u e h e i g h t
(high vs. mid vs. low), t o n g u e f r o n t n e s s (front vs. central vs. back) and l i p
r o u n d i n g (rounded vs. unrounded).
The classification of vowels is given below in Table 2. The vowel , or the schwa,
differs from all the other vowels both in length (it is a supershort vowel, while all the
other vowels are treated as full vowels short or long) and in function (the
phonological status of this segment is discussed below).

ABLE 2. Classification of vowels

Tongue frontness front central back

Lip rounding unrounded unrounded rounded

Tongue height
high i u

mid e o

low a

The vowels are:

1. Nonlabialized front high vowel i. Slightly diphthongized after q, , with a
lower initial part. E.g.: iir island, iwin year, muri we, itn neck.
2. Labialized back high vowel u. Slightly diphthongized after q, , with a lower
initial part. E.g.: umq white bear, tumtum friend, tu as a father, urewk
to appear.
3. Nonlabialized front medium vowel e. More open than i. Slightly diphthongized
after q, , with a lower initial part. E.g.: ekk son, meremer tear, nte daughter-in-
law, qep ball.
4. Labialized back medium vowel o. E.g.: omom heat, koraw joy, jarano
as a house.
5. Nonlabialized low vowel a. E.g.: aq sea, jarar tambourine, koja by a
mug.
6. Supershort neutral medium vowel .
As a matter of fact, many native speakers are not aware of the segment as an
essential part of their pronunciation. They say that some syllables and even words have
no vowels at all. At the same time, they can divide words into syllables perfectly well, for
 7

example, they would pronounce |kt|kt| for |kt|kt| (the sign | marks the syllable
boundary) spring, |t||t| for |t||t| fish-scale. What is true is that actually the
segment is predictable in most positions, because in many cases it is used to divide
wrong consonant clusters and to vocalise syllables, cf. itk (< it-k) to be.
Yet there are a lot of words in which the segment is unpredictable and must be
considered as an essential part of a morpheme, e.g. wewe thimble, cf. wiwi
price. We will call such segments " lexical" in opposition to epenthetic , which are
automatically inserted according to the insertion rules (see further), for instance, it--k (<
it-k) to be, cf. -it-in he was, ite-k to look at. Besides, we find it convenient to
consider "vocabulary" those that always occur in a morpheme in one and the same
position, in spite of the fact that they may be predicted, e.g. qep nail.
As a rule, we omit epenthetic when writing morphemes, but in word-forms we
mark these vowels in all the positions they occur irrespective of their nature, just like
other scholars do. We will therefore write nkimqin for n-kim-qin slow, etc. E.g.:
1) "lexical" :
qq frost, retret dream, rrk walrus;
2) "epenthetic" :
pkir--k to arrive, cf. ite-k to look at;
n--ketu-qin strong, cf. n-om-qen warm;
n-i--qin white, cf. i-ew-k to become white.
With the exception of some special situations (paradigms and morphonological
rules, where we put epenthetic with hyphens), in word-forms with marked morpheme
boundaries we usually attach epenthetic to one-consonantal initial or final morphemes
or to the preceding morpheme, except the cases when it is inside a morpheme. Thus, we
write t-rkp--rk-n I am hitting him instead of t--rkp--rk--n.
Any vowel may appear word-finally, but such examples are not numerous, for in
general the final vowel is usually lost or reduced.
Most nominal stems ending in one consonant and a vowel (more rarely two
consonants and a vowel) lose their final vowel in word-final position (this usually occurs
in the absolute singular with a zero marker), e.g.: aacek (< aaceke) a youth, cf.
aaceke-t youths.
When a final vowel belongs to a short stem, it is usually preserved, but may be
reduced, e.g. wa (< waa) a knife, cf. waa-t knives.
In the absolute singular with a zero marker all final a and "recessive" e (see
further) those which are not lost are reduced to , e.g.: ep (< epe) grandfather, cf.
epe-te by a grandfather, pont (< ponta) lever, cf. ponta-ta by a lever.
Most nominal and some verbal affixes of nominal origin lose their final e (=
"recessive" e) and a, too, e.g. niqin (< n-i-qine) white (he), cf. n-i-qine-t
 8

white (they); tun (< t-u-ne) I saw him, cf. t-u-ne-t I saw them. But some
short affixes preserve their final vowels, cf. ococ-o as a chief, waa-ta by a knife.
Some final i, e, u, o originate from the diphthongoid combinations of a vowel
and a glide j or w (see further). Such strings may appear in a word-final position when
the final vowel is lost, e.g. nte (< ntj ntjo) a daughter-in-law, cf. ntjo-t
daughters-in-law.
Any vowel may appear word-initially.
A sequence of two vowels may appear in Chukchi only in a position where a
consonant is omitted (synchronically or historically), e.g.: qaa- ~ qora- reindeer,
caat (compare Koryak cawat ) lasso, uttuut (compare Koryak utt-ut) stick.
In all other cases when two vowels meet, one of them is omitted (the first segment
or the second one see further), e.g. iwin (< e-iw-in) he said.

1.2. Syllable and Rythmic Structure

The strictly regulated syllable structure is one of the principal features of the
languages of the Chukchi-Kamchatkan group (see also [Kodzassov, Muravyova 1980]).
The canonical syllable patterns are |CV| and |CVC|, but due to some peculiarities in the
Chukchi phonology there are also patterns |CV|, |CVC|, |V| and |VC|, and even |CCV|
and |CCVC| (only word-initially in some normalised syncoped forms), e.g.: |mi|m|
water, |a|q| sea, |po|po| fly-agaric, |en|me|em| rock, |qa|w| man.
The following regulations are observed for the canonical syllabic structure. A
single consonant segment goes with the following syllable. Two adjacent consonantal
segments (including the case of geminates) are assigned to the preceding and to the
following syllable respectively, when the second segment is not : |pi|kuk| to jump,
|ut|tu|ut| a stick. Of the three adjacent consonants of the type CC the first one is
assigned to the preceding syllable, the next two (C) to the following syllable:
|t|wt| a boat. Two adjacent vocalic segments are assigned to the preceding and to
the following syllable respectively: |qa|a|| reindeer.
A word-initial morpheme may have an initial cluster, not admitted word-initially.
A word-final morpheme may end in a cluster or in a vowel, not admitted word-finally. A
word-internal morpheme usually fits the word structure.
Syllabic division is usually independent of morphological structure, but in case of
reduplication the second part of it usually begins a new syllable: |a|no|an| spring.
Syllabic boundaries always coincide with word-boundaries, e.g. |ti|te| |p|kir|i|
when did-you-come?
The sequence of two vowels is usually divided into two vocalic segments
belonging to the preceding and to the following syllables respectively: |ca|at| lasso.
Stress does not play any contrastive role in Chukchi. But it does play some kind
of demarcative role, because together with the vowel harmony and other
morphonological processes it helps to separate one phonological word from another.
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The principal phonetic correlate of stress is that of the energy power. It should be
also noted that the basic unit for stress in Chukchi is rather a whole syllable than a single
vowel.
There is usually only one stress in a word, but in case of an incorporation there
may be a secondary stress (stresses) on a non-initial stem (stems).
The position of stress is not constant, but usually it is not further than the third
syllable of the word.
The position of stress in a word cannot be forecasted solely in terms of its
phonotactic structure, although the latter plays an important role in the placement of
stress. Since the accentuated material is rather scarce, here we will describe only some
observations.
The following principles of placing the stress are of the most importance: the
stress is preferred on the stem, not on the last syllable of the word and not on the syllable
of the type |C|.
The original stems usually have the stress on the last syllable of the root, i.e. on
the first, the second or the third syllable: poj-n spear, wkw-n stone, ret-k to
bring, iw-k to say; jara- house, weo-n ear, peat-k to rest, wiri-k to
defend, reqoka-n polar fox.
The stress in Chukchi is not constant under morphological processes and
compounding.
When the stem-final syllable is the final syllable in the word, the stress moves
onto the preceding syllable (one-syllable words are rare): qora- reindeer qora-t
reindeer (pl), warat-te peoples warat people (sg), jejwe-ti orphans jejwe
orphan, rrka-jp from a walrus rrk walrus.
In case of a reduplicated form the stress may be either on the first or on the
second syllable, usually on a more broad vowel: weni-wen bell, kei-ke book,
nute-nut land, pie-pi snowfall.
If the stem has a suffix with a full vowel, the stress moves onto this vowel:
micir-et-k to work. If the suffix has no full vowel (only the segment or no vowel at
all), the stress remains on the root: wa-r-n (root twa-, suffix r-) life, poj-c-
n (root poj-, suffix c-) stem.
When the original root has no vowel, the stress may be on the prefix: a-nm-en
(root tm-) he killed, a-tw-en (root tw-) he told.
In the incorporate complexes the main stress in on the initial stem, but there are
also secondary stresses on every non-initial stem, e.g. n-qora-nret-qen he is
guarding reindeer.
Some affixes derived from roots may also have a secondary stress, e.g.: mem-
to-a by a piece of seals meat (mem- seal (2), -tu- piece).
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1.3. Phonological processes

Chukchi demonstrates a great variety of phonological processes. Here we find

various changes of segments a l t e r n a t i o n s , as well as root copying
r e d u p l i c a t i o n s . Among alternations there are replacements (including assimilations
of different types, lenitions and fortitions, coalescence, etc.), insertions and deletions, and
also metathesis processes. The most important phonological process in Chukchi is that of
creating the right syllable and rythmic structure; some phonological processes help to
create the right structure, while others take place only after the right structure has been
created. Most Chukchi alternations occur in phonological contexts but there are also a lot
of alternations that occur in morphological contexts (the latter will be described in this
section too).
All phonological processes are represented here by means of formal rules. They
apply to the underlying representation of a word-form, that is a string of underlying
representations of morphemes constituting a word-form; the underlying representation of
morphemes is given in the Dictionary see Part Three. The result is the surface
represantation, that is the phonetic transcription of the given word-form. All the rules are
described here in the order they should apply to the underlying represantation.
All the rules given below are illustrated by Chukchi word-forms. For each word-
form we write its transcription and its derivational history , that is a sequence of one or
several strings of segments showing the steps of derivation relevant for this very rule
from the underlying representation to the surface one. The derivational history of a word-
form is shown (together with intermediate representations) in round brackets and is
marked with < (which means comes from).

1.3.1. Reduplications

Reduplication in Chukchi is represented mostly with nominal stems.

Reduplication of verbal and adjectival roots is very rare, it is used only as a means of
building a stem from a short root, see n-caca-qen tasty.
With nominal stems reduplication is used in the following two functions:
1) to form the absolute singular;
2) to form a nominal stem.
In the absolute singular the reduplicated form is derived from a 3-5-segment root .
Reduplication here consists in placing an additional morph consisting of no more than 2-
3 initial root segments after the principal root morph. The additional morph consists of
the following segments: the initial consonant (if the initial segment is a consonant), the
next vowel or the initial vowel, the next consonant (it may be the first or the second
consonant of the root), the next vowel (in case there is only one consonant before it), i.e.
the first two or three segments of the root, but not more than two consonants. Thus, the
additional morph may be of one of the following types: CVC, CC (then changing into
CC), VC. Reduplication here may be complete or partial depending on the length and
the segmental structure of a root.
E.g.:
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werqa-wer snow rock (root werqa-), cf. werqa-t snow rocks;

qu-qu (= qu--qu < qu-qu) a fish-scale (root qu-), cf. qu--t
fish-scales;
weni-wen a bell (root weni-), cf. weni-t bells;
jej (< je-j) fog (root je-), cf. je-t fogs, e-e-in covered with
fog;
uttuut (< utt-ut < utt-ut) a stick (root utt-), cf. utt--t sticks;
ano-an (root ano-) spring, cf. ano-t;
wi-wi (root wi-) a price, cf. wi--t prices.
Reduplicated stems are usually derived from roots containing not more than 2-3
segments. In such cases reduplication is always complete. Reduplicated stems are used in
all case forms, but other derivatives may have a single morph. With some roots the
historical dissimilation of two r is recorded.
E.g.: jara (< ja-ra-) house, yurta jara-t houses, yurtas (root ra-), cf.
mork-ra-k our house;
oc-oc (= oc-oc) a chief, cf. ococ-t chiefs, cotcot (= cot-cot) a pillow, cf.
cotcot-t pillows.

1.3.2. Deletions

Deletion processes in Chukchi are represented in two types of positions:

1) word-initially and word-finally;
2) word-medially in sequences of vowels at morpheme boundaries.
3) word-medially in intervocalic position.
Some stem-initial clusters (belonging mostly to verbal stems) lose their initial
consonant in word-initial position (all these clusters have a dental plosive as the first and
a labial, velar or uvular as the second member); roots of the described type are usually
listed in dictionaries, i.e.
C1 / #_C2 and C1 belongs to a root from the list
E.g.:
(t)w : wa-k to stay, cf. a-twa-en stayed
(t)k : kur-k to buy, cf. e-tkur-in bought
()p : po-k to suck, cf. e-po-en sucked
()q : qut-k to stand up, cf. e-qut-in stood up
(r)k : kaw-k to run, cf. a-rkaw-en ran
(n) : ini (< ni--ni) a net
Since some stems beginning with the same clusters do not lose the initial
consonant, and the members of the cluster are then separated by an epenthetic in word-
initial position, e.g. tke-k smell, cf. e-tke-in smelled.
Most nominal stems lose their final vowels in word-final position (mainly
recessive e or a); most nominal and adjectival suffixes, and some verbal suffixes of
 12

nominal origin as well, also lose their final vowel in word-final position (mainly
recessive e, and only in case an affix is not too short); morphemes of the described type
are usually listed in dictionaries or grammars, i.e.
V / _# and V belongs to a nominal root from the list
V / _# and V belongs to a nominal affix from the list
E.g.:
aacek (< aaceke) a youth, cf. aaceke-t youths (root aacek(e)-);
niqin (< n-i-qine) white (he), cf. n-i-qine-t white (they) (circumfix
n-...-qin(e));
atwaen (< a-twa-ena) he was, cf. a-twa-ena-t they were (circumfix
e-...in(e));
t-u-n (< t--u-ne) I saw him, cf. t-u-ne-t I saw them (object suffix -
n(e)).
Some roots preserve their final vowels, e.g. pont (< ponta) lever.
There are some rare cases when the final w of a two-consonant cluster, which is
supposed to be separated from the preceding consonant by an epenthetic according to
the insertion rules, is either reduced to with short roots or completely deleted with
longer roots in word-final position, i.e.
w *w / C_w belongs to a short stem from the list
w / C_# and w belongs to a long stem from the list
E.g.: win (< winw > winw) track, winw-e by a track; etn (< etn <
etnw < etnw) a host, cf. etnw-k at hosts.
Intervocalic consonants w, j, , r are often deleted in some roots, and the two
adjacent vowels do not undergo the deletion rules (see below) and may assimilate (see
further), i.e.
w / V_V
j / V_V
/ V_V
r / V_V
(NB: with some words deletion is optional)
E.g.: eekk (< ew-ekk) daughter, cf. ewmirn grandmother, jiii (<
ji-i < ji-ji) tongue; aaaen (< a-aa-en < e-aa-in) he passed by, cf.
aa-k to pass by; qiirk (< qrirk) to look for.
Of the two adjacent vocalic segments at a morpheme boundary of a simple word
(not a compound) only one is preserved (NB: the two vowels that become adjacent due to
the deletion of a consonant do not undergo this rule).
The deletion of vowels, with some exceptions, may be described in terms of
"steady" and "unsteady" vowels. The most unsteady segment is , it is usually deleted
when being adjacent to any other vowel, e.g. tapak (< ta-pa--k) to make soup, cf.
pa-a soup (but in some rare cases the stem- initial may be preserved, e.g. te
 13

(< e-t-e) alongside with ete with the father). Next goes recessivee and a,
then i and dominant e, and the most steady vowels are u and o. It should be also noted
that in most cases the "unsteady" vowels belong to affixes.
The hierarchy of the vowels runs as follows:
< recessivee, a < i, dominant e < u, o.
The deletion process is regulated by the following rule: of the two adjacent
vowels only the "steady" one is preserved (but, naturally, if the vowels are the same, any
of them is preserved), i.e.
V2 / V1+_ and V1 is more steady than V2
V1 / _+V2 and V2 is more steady than V1
E.g.: itin (< e-it-in) he was, okwanawma (< e-ut-wanaw-ma) with
wood resin.
The deletion usually does not take place in case of different kinds of compounds
reduplicated forms, incorporate complexes, some types of lexical compounds. E.g.: uttu-
ut stick, eme-ekk every son, piwre-ue a diving seal.

1.3.3. Insertions

The only segment that may be inserted into a Chukchi word is the segment . It is
inserted to shape the cannon syllabic structure, for very often original morphemic
structure does not correspond to the requirements of the cannon syllabic structure. In this
case the segment has a purely auxiliary function. But the segment may be an original
segment of a morpheme as well, see pa- soup, broth, n-i-qin wet.
The insertion rules for are the following:

1. Segment is inserted into a string of two word-initial consonants, regardless of

a morpheme boundary between them, except the strings of the type C and some
syncoped forms (see further) (NB: morphemes with initial consonantal clusters, of which
the first segment is deleted word-initially (see further), do not undergo this rule either),
i.e.:
/ #C1_(+)C2 and C2 is not , C1 does not belong to a root from the list
for initial consonant deletion
E.g.: pkirk (< pkir-k) to arrive, cf. e-pkir-in arrived; rpe (< rpe
hammer, cf. e-rpe-te by a hammer; nketuqin (< n-ketu-qin) strong, powerful,
cf. n-ip-qin truthful.

2. Segment is inserted into a string of two word-final consonants, regardless of a

morpheme boundary between them (NB: morphemes with final consonantal clusters, of
which the second segment is deleted (see further), do not undergo this rule), i.e.
| C1_(+)C2# and C2 is not w
 14

E.g.: ekk (< ekk < ekke ) son, cf. ekke-te by a son, itk (< it-k ) to be, cf.
it-tk you were, ite-k to look.

3. Segment is inserted into a string of three medial consonants, except the

strings of the type CC, at a morpheme boundary, i.e.
/ C1_+C2C3 and C3 is not
/ C1C2+_C3 and C3 is not
E.g.: niqin (< n-i-qin) white, cf. i-ew--k to become white, n-qi-qin
thick; itrkn (< it-rk-n) he exists, cf. wa-rk-n he stays.
If there are two morpheme boundaries within a string of three consonants (this
happens only when the medial segment is a one-consonant morpheme, eventually an
affix), one of the boundaries is considered "irrelevant", because in this case it does not
function as a boundary at all, and the segment is not inserted there., i.e.
/ C1+C2_+C3 and C2 is on the right of the stem, C3 is not
/ C1_+C2+C3 and C2 is on the left of the stem
The causative suffix r-(-n-) is of this type.
E.g.: mtntomawn (< mt-n-tomaw-n) we created it, cf. rtomawk (<
r-tomaw-k) to create.

4. Segment is also inserted after a two-consonant cluster before a vowel

belonging to a non-initial stem of a compound reduplication, incorporation or some
type of a lexical compound (see also [Muravyova 1986]), i.e.
/ C1C2_+V and V belongs to a non-initial stem
E.g.: uttuut (< utt--ut < utt-ut) a stick, cf. utt-e by a stick (cf. Koryak
uttut a stick, a tree); tanirn (< tan-ir--n) a good coat.

This rule reflects a historical process of inserting into a three-consonant cluster

with the last segment , which was omitted in Chukchi.
In some grammars, for example in [Skorik 1961, Skorik 1977], the segment is
usually treated a part of the morpheme close to which it occurs, and it is included into its
segmental structure. In our opinion, insertion processes correspond better to the intuition
of native speakers. Besides, there is a strict correspondence between the placement of the
segment and morpheme boundaries, that is why some scholars call the segment a
"morpheme padding". We may also add that deletion the rules are a little bit more
complicated than insertion ones, and in this case morphemes are longer (many of them
have as an additional segment), and the original morphonological structure of the word
is always longer than the one we can actually see in a sentence.
 15

1.3.4. Lenitions

1. In syllable-final position and word-medially, but not before q and , the

segment q becomes (and changes places with the preceding vowel see further), i.e.
Vq V ( V) / _| and not before q and
E.g.: rorat (< rora-t) < roqra-t) gadflies, cf. roqr (< roqr < roqra) a
gadfly.
2. In word-final position a and recessive e of nominal stems are reduced to (see
further), i.e.
a / _# and a belongs to a nominal stem
e / _# and e belongs to a nominal stem; e is recessive;
E.g.: wa (< waa) knife, cf. waa-ta by a knife; ep (< epe) grandfather,
cf. epe-te by a grandfather.

1.3.5. Coalescence processes

In some cases a segment cannot be followed by a syllable-final segment j or w.

Such diphthongoid combinations are transformed into a single vowel.
In syllable-final position the strings of segments j, w change into single vowels
i-e, u-o respectively, according to vowel harmony rule, i.e.
j i, e / _|
w u, o / _|
This usually takes place either at the end of a stem in word-final position (in some
cases when the final vowel is deleted) or at the beginning of a suffix; the segment is
often epenthetic in such combinations.
E.g.: tei (< tej < tej < teju) younger brother, cf. teju-ta by a
younger brother; mikim (< mik-jm) who am I, cf. ekke-jm I am a son;
maco (< macw < macw < macwe) breast, cf. macwe-te by the breast.

1.3.6. Methathesis processes

1. When glottal appears in a syllable-final position, it changes places with the

preceding vowel, i.e.
V V / _|
(Syllable-final in such cases usually originates from q see above) E.g.: jajaq
(< ja-jaq < jaq-jaq) sea-gull.
2. With some words an epenthetic segment appears not at a morpheme
boundary, where it should be according to the insertion rules (see above), but in a
position before or after this place. Such cases may be considered as methathesis of with
 16

the adjacent consonantal segment. This happens only when the two consonants, which
become adjacent as a consequence of this rule, are homorganic dentalveolars, i.e.
+C2 +C2 | C1_C3 and C1, C2 are homorganic
E.g.: aatn (< aar-n < aar-n < aar-n) star.

1.3.7. Contact assimilations and dissimilations

There are a lot of assimilatory processes of different types with consonant

clusters, most of them regressive. They all take place at syllable boundaries, in most
cases intervocalically. Some assimilatory processes with sequences of vowels are
observed(see below), but they are not numerous. Here is the list of the alternation
patterns for consonants.
1. Labio-labial plosive p becomes a corresponding nasal m before nasals, i.e. pm
mm
p m / _n
p m / _
E.g.: qamma (< qap-ma) nailing, emnein < e-pne-in) it is
sharpened, amoen (< a-po-en) he asked.
2. Apico-dental plosive t becomes a corresponding nasal n before nasals, i.e.
t n / _m
t n / _n
t n / _
E.g.: mtinmk (< mt-it-mk) we were, ejminnin (< ejmit-ni-n) he took it,
rejenk (< re-jet--k) they will come.
3. Dorso-velar k and become a labio-labial w before labio-labials p, m, w (there
is also some kind of dissimilation here), the geminate w then changing into kw according
to the dissimilation rule (see below), i.e.
k w / _p
w / _p
k w / _m
w / _m
*k w / _ w
* w / _w
(The last two transformations are given here only for the sake of demonstrating
the complete picture of alternations).
E.g. : mwpenwe (< mk-penwe) many reindeer bucks, wpojn (<
-poj-n) fathers spear, aacewmatan (< aacek-mata-n) wifes brother,
cewmak (< ce-mak) eggshell, akwaen (< a-wwa-en < a-wa-en) he stuck.
4. Dorso-velar k and become a corresponding nasal before , i.e.
 17

k / _
/ _
E.g.: tepek (< te-pek--k) to sew boots, etok (< e-to-k) to
hatch.
5. Dorso-velar is assimilated by the preceding w, and the geminated w then
changes into kw according to the dissimilation rule (see below), i.e.
*w / w_
*w w / _ w
E.g.: tkwrn (< tw-wr-n < tw-r-n) the news.
6. Dorso-velar k is assimilated by the following dorso-uvular q , i.e.
k q / _q
E.g. : nniqqej (< nnik-qej) little animal.
7. Apico-dental c is assimilated by the following dentalveolars t, , r and then
becomes a plosive t according to the rules of dissimilation (see below), i.e.
c t / _t
c * t / _
c *r t / _ r
E.g.: mattotet (< mac-totet) rather silly, oten (< -o-en < -oc-en)
answered with a snarl, matrak (< mar-rak < mac-rak ) a little bit farther.
8. Apico-dentallateral is assimilated by the following r, the geminated r then
changing into tr according to the dissimilation rule (see below), i.e.
*r t / _ r
E.g.: rotramkn (< ror-ramk-n < ro-ramk-n) the upper people.
9. Apico-alveolar vibrant r is assimilated by the following dentalveolars t, c, , n,
the geminates then altering according to the rules of dissimilation (see below), i.e.
r t / _t
r *c t / _ c
r * t / _
r n / _n
E.g.: pkittk (< pkir-tk) you arrived, qapatcn (< qapac-c-n <
qapar-c-n) glutton, aatn (< aa-n < aar-n) star, tunnen (<
tur-ne-n) new fell.
10. Dorso-velar nasal becomes a corresponding labio-labial m before bilabial p
and w, i.e.
m / _p
m / _w
E.g.: tamperak (< ta-perak) to look well, tamwaern (< ta-wane-
r-n) good work.
 18

11. Dorso-velar nasal becomes dental n before dentalveolars t, c, , r and dorso-

palatal j, i. e.
n / _t
n / _c
n / _
n / _r
n / _j
E.g.: antoen (< a-to-en) he went out, tancotcot (< ta-cotcot) good
pillow, einin (< ge-i-in) having a heart, teenremkn ( < tee-remk-n ) the
ancient people, teenjep ( < tee-jep) long ago.
The following contact assimilatory processes are observed with vowels.
1. Supershort is usually assimilated by any full vowel, i.e.
V1 / _V1
E.g.: enmeem ( < enm--em < enm-em) rock.
2. In some words (mostly at a boundary of reduplicated forms and other types of
compounds) a sequence of two supershourt changes into two full middle vowels, i.e.
ee
E.g.: nneen (< nn--n < nn-n) fish, oweern (< ow-r--n < ow-
jr--) milk(= what is sucked).
3. Two adjacent full vowels that appear in a place where a consonant was omitted
may assimilate (such strings are not fused into a single vowel see above), i.e.
V1 V2 / _V2
E.g.: qaat (< qoa-t < qora-t) reindeers (used alongside with qorat).
There is a certain number of dissimilatory processes in Chukchi. Here is the list of
them.

1. Dentalveolar geminates c, or r change into a corresponding cluster with the

initial apico-dental plosive t, i.e.
c t / _c
t / _
r t / _r
E.g.: metcmc (< mec-cmc) rather near, enetin (< e-ne-in) he
became, atotrcqma (< a-tur-rcq--ma) with a new sword.

2. Apico-dental trill r changes into apico-dental plosive t before palatal j, i.e.

r t / _j
E.g.: kotjo (< kor-jo) what is bought.
 19

3. Dorso-velar plosive k changes into a corresponding fricative before

apicodental and dentalveolars t, , n, r, i.e.
k / _t
k / _
k / _n
k / _r
E.g.: ntqin (< n-kt-qin) hard, mii (< mk-ii) a lot of eggs,
mnennet (< mk-nennet) a lot of otters, mramkn (< mk-ramk-n a lot of
people.

4. Dorso-palatal j changes into before apico-dental t, c and dentalveolars , n, r,

i.e.
j / _t
j / _c
j / _
j / _n
j / _r
E.g.: inqeti (< inqej-ti) boys, wecurmn (< wej-curm--n) a margin
of a meadow, wan (< waj-n) a piece of grass, man (< maj-n) a place
for storing, waran (<waj-ra-n) a grass-house.

5. Dorso-velar nasal changes into fricative before nasals m, n, , i.e.

/ _m
/ _n
/ _
E.g.: ntaramore (< n-tara-more) we are building a house, teinin (<
te-i-ni-n) he touched, rataanen (< ra-taa--ne-n) he will try it.

6. Dorso-velar fricative geminate changes into a cluster with the initial plosive
k, i.e.
k / _
E.g.: manekp (< mane-p) from a cloth.

7. Labio-labial fricative geminate w changes into a cluster with the initial plosive
k, i.e.
w k / _w
E.g.: tkwrn (< tw-wr-n < tw-r-n) the news.
 20

1.3.8. Vowel harmony

The phonological law of Chukchi called "vowel harmony" differs a great deal
from what we find in many other languages (like Turkic, Mongolian, Finnish-Ugrish,
etc.) in several aspects (for details see [Muravyova 1980b]).
First, the class of a morpheme (root vs. affix) does not play any decisive role in
shaping the vocalism of a word-form. In some cases it is the root that causes alternation
in affixal vowels, in some other cases it is an affix (a prefix, a suffix, or a circumfix) that
influences the vocalic appearance of the root.
Second, the position of a morpheme that determines the vocalic appearance of a
word-form (initial vs. non-initial) is irrelevant. Sometimes the vowels are changed due to
a morpheme that occupies the last position in a word-form with more than 10
morphemes.
Third, from the point of view of articulation the vowel harmony is based not on
the zone properties (forward vs. non-forward), but that of the rise (high vs. non-high).
Besides, unlike Turkish, for example, the original morph can be indicated for any
morpheme in Chukchi; it may alternate itself or cause alternation in other morphs of the
same word-form.
It should be also noted that on the synchronic level the alternation sometimes
cannot be described only in terms of the phonological structure and articulation.
A Chukchi word-form may contain only one of the following two sets of vocalic
segments:
1) i, u, e, the so-called "weak", or "recessive" vowels; these are mostly narrow
vowels;
2) e, o, a, the so-called "strong", or "dominant" vowels; these are mostly wide
vowels.
As one can see, the segments e and appear in both rows, but each variant
represents a functionally different morphonological unit correspondingly: "recessive" e
and "dominant" e, "recessive" and "dominant" .
All Chukchi morphemes, regardless of their morphological class ( a stem or an
affix) are divided into two morphonological groups: "recessive" and "dominant".
A dominant morpheme has only one vocalic variant with only dominant vowels
(or no vowels at all) . E.g.:
emo- to be bored, qora- reindeer, jara- house, mere- tear, -n (an
absolute case marker), -c (augmentative suffix).
A recessive morpheme has usually two vocalic variants, one with recessive
vowels and the other with dominant ones (or with no vowels at all). E.g.:
miute- / -meota- hare, nute- / nota- land, -te / -ta (an instrumental case
marker), -k (an infinitive marker).
With dominant morphemes their only variant should be considered the original
morph. With recessive morphemes the recessive variant should be considered the original
morph, as one can formulate the rules how vowels of a recessive variant should be
changed in certain positions, and not vice versa.
 21

In some cases we can tell whether a morpheme is recessive or dominant only by

the vocalic appearance of its original morph. When the original morph has vocalic
segments o or a, it is a dominant morpheme (for example, emo-, jara- ). When it has
vocalic segments i or u, it is a recessive morpheme (for example, miute-, nute). But
some dominant and recessive morphemes have only vocalic segments e or , or they have
no vocalic segments at all (for example, mere- , -n , -te , -k) , so they can belong to
any of the two groups. In such cases the group of a morpheme should be indicated in the
dictionary. As dominant morphemes having only e and , or with no vowels at all, are
less numerous, we will mark them further with the index (2), in the way many other
dictionaries do (cf. Moll, Inenlikej 1961), for example, mere- (2), -n (2). Thus, the
morphonological group of a morpheme can be either seen by its segmental structure or it
is indicated in a special way.
The fact that in many cases one must know the morphonological group of this or
that morpheme means that the vowel harmony in Chukchi is not a mere phonological
alteration.
The vocalic structure of the Chukchi word is regulated by the following rule:
if there is at least one dominant morpheme in a word-form (irrespective of its
position in the word-initial, medial, final, irrespective of its morphological class a root,
an affix, irrespective of the type of the word simple word, a reduplicated form, a lexical
compound, an incorporation), all recessive vowels (of recessive morphemes) shift to the
corresponding dominant ones, i.e.:

i e (= dominant e) / if there is a morpheme with dominant vowels

u o / if there is a morpheme with dominant vowels
e (= recessive e) a / if there is a morpheme with dominant vowels

E.g.:
n-om-qen (< n-om-qin) warm (om- is a dominant root, n-...-qin is a recessive
affix), cf. n-i-qin white (i- is a recessive root);
a-meota-ma (< a-miute-ma) with a hare (miute- is a recessive root, a-
...-ma is a dominant circumfix);
n-t-qen (< n--t--qin) hard (t- (2) is a dominant root, n-...-qin is a
recessive affix);
mere-ta (< mere-te) by a tear (mere- (2) is a dominant root, -te is a recessive
affix), cf. miute-te by a hare (miute- is a recessive root);
meota-n (< miute-n) a hare (miute- is a recessive root, -n (2) is a
dominant affix);
a-tor-na-ma (< a-tur-ne--ma) with a new fell (a-...-ma is a
dominant circumfix, tur- is a recessive root, ne- is a recessive root);
t-qora-nret-k (< t--qora-nrit--k) I guarded reindeers (qora- is a
dominant root, nrit- is a recessive root, t-, -k are recessive affixes).
 22

1.3.9. Other alternations

The traces of the consonant harmony in Chukchi may be seen in the historical
alternation /c. This alternation is registered both in roots and affixes.
With affixes the variants with and c often differ in meaning, so we can find split
affixes, and the number of affixes is doubled in this way. For example, nouns marked
with an affix -q- denote a places rich in certain objects, while nouns marked with cq-
denote the surface of an object, e.g. mim-q-n a place rich in water, mim-cq-n
the surface of the water.
With roots the variant with c is usually used when there is an affix of a certain
group in the same word. Since in the related languages (Koryak and Alutor) such affixes
cause the alternations l-l and n-n alongside with l-c, this kind of consonant variation my
be treated as distant palatalisation, and the affixes that cause it may be considered
"palatalising". E.g.: Chuk. veco-tkn (< viu-tken), Alut. vilu-tken (< vilu-tken) the
upper part of a ear (-tkn is a "palatalising" suffix).
Some palatalising affixes have themselves a segment c in their segmental
structure, so this segment may be considered the cause of alternation, e.g.: quci-cet-k
(root qui- voice, suffix -cet iterative suffix) make un uproar, ecwe-c-n (root
ewe- other, suffix -c nomena aentis marker) a stranger. But some palatalising
affixes have no segment c: qci-jr-n (root qik- man, suffix -jr a group of) a
group of men, mc-kw-n (root m- louse, suffix -kw a cover ) a shirt (=a cover
against lice).
With some words the alternation -c is accompanied by the alternation t-c, e.g.:
tt-tjoca alongside with ccc-cjoca (tt- door) before a door.
All these alternations are of relict character and cannot be described with the help
of standard rules.
 23

CHAPTER 2. MORPHOLOGY

2.1. Inflectional morphology

Verbal and nominal inflection follow derivational affixes. Since all affixes may
cause changes or change themselves according to the harmony of vowels (see 1.3),
"dominant" morphemes are marked here with the index (2) where necessary. Besides, in
the paradigms epenthetic segments (see 1.3.3) are sometimes separated by hyphens, but
in word-forms they are attached to the preceding morpheme.

2.1.1. Nouns

Noun stems are usually inflected either for case and number or for person and
number. Noun stems are not inflected when they are incorporated. Thus, all nouns have
two grammatical representations: autonomous (= a separate word) and incorporated (= a
stem used as a part of a compound).
The syntactic and semantic functions of noun phrases are expressed chiefly by
bound affixes, by derivational affixes (adjectivization), more rarely by postpositions in
combination with case-forms. A special way of expressing nominal functions is
incorporation.

2.2.1.1. Case-number forms

Case and number markers in Chukchi are fused into items forming two main
paradigmatic types: type 1 and type 2 (see the table below). Type 1 distinguishes number
only in the nominative case, type 2 both in the nominative and in most of the oblique
cases. These two sets of affixes are used to inflect three types of declension.
The type of declension is determined by the semantic properties of a noun, based
on "human non-human" distinction and also on "proper name common noun"
distinction. There are three noun class in Chukchi called declensions:
A. Common nouns denoting non-humans;
B. Proper names (including names of domestic animals) and some common nouns
denoting close elder relations used by the members of a family, i.e. "highly
individualised" persons;
C. All other common nouns denoting human beings (= not very familiar ones).
Loan words are assigned to different types of declension on the basis of their
semantics too.
The nouns of the 1st declension (common nouns denoting non-humans) are
inflected by the items of type 1, both for singular and plural. The nouns of the 2nd
declension (proper names including the names of domestic animals and some common
 24

names denoting elder relations) are inflected by the items of type 2, both for singular and
plural. The nouns of the 3rd declension (all other common nouns denoting persons) are
inflected by the items of type 1 for singular, and by the items of type 2 for plural, but the
plural forms are used only when the speaker has a special intention to express plural,
otherwise he uses the items of type 1. Thus, the items of the 3rd declension are a
combination of the 1st declension singular and 2nd declension plural. Besides, for the
nouns of this semantic group there is a variation between the 1st and the 3rd declension.
Nominal inflections form the following two paradigmatic types according to case
and number (see the comments below).

TABLE 3. Case-number inflections

type of declension Type 1 Type 2

number sg pl sg pl
case
1. Nominative -/-n/-n/ -t/-ti =type 1 -nti
/Red / -
2. Ergative -e/-te -ne -rk
3. Llocative -k/-k -ne -rk
4. Dative -t/-et -na -rk
5. Ablative -jp/-p/-ep -jp/-p/-ep -rp
6. Orientative -jit -jit -rjit
7. Comitative e-...-e/-te ---------- ---------
8. Associative a-...-ma ---------- (a-...-rma
only with the 3rd
declension)
9. Designative -u/-nu -u/-nu -u/-nu

The nominative singular markers are distinguished according to the

morphological types of stems.
The most productive inflections are - and -n. Loan-words are usually marked
with the zero ending, e.g. skoa school, deputat deputee.
Stems with the zero ending undergo different kinds of morphonological changes
(see 1.3.2 and 1.3.3):
1. "Long" stems usually lose their final vowels, e.g. ajko (< ajkoa) bedding,
cf. ajkoa-ta by a bedding.
2. In some stems the final a and recessive e are reduced to , e.g. umq
(<umqe) polar bear, cf. umqe-te by a polar bear; wa (< waa) knife), cf. waa-ta
by a knife.
3. Final consonant clusters are separated by an epenthetic , e.g. qep (< qep)
ball, cf. qep-e by a ball; erm (< erm < erme) chief, cf. erme-te by a chief.
 25

4. Some stems lose their final w (but the preceding epenthetic may be
preserved) , e.g. ajpn (< ajpnw) dam, cf. ajpnw-a by a dam, win (< winw <
winw) road, cf. by a road.
Inflection -n is added to stems ending either in a vowel or in a consonant, the
latter being followed by an epenthetic , e.g. kupre-n net, but ne-n (= ne--n)
fell, cf. ne-e by a fell, Inflection -n, added to some short stems ending in , may
be considered as a variant of -n, e.g. i-n wolf.
Inflection -n (2) has three variants distributed according to the type of stems :
-n, -n and -tn. The variant -n (originating from -n) is added to stems
ending in a vowel, a two-consonant cluster, or in a single consonant (in the last two
cases the ending is separated from the stem by an epenthetic ), e.g. tka-n leg,
mn-n (= mn--n) hand, cf. mn-a by a hand; te-n (= te--
n) a ski, cf. ti-e by a ski, The variant -n is added to stems ending in a single
consonant, except , e. g. mran-n mosquito, The variant -tn is usually added
to one-syllable stems ending in r and is separated from the stem by an epenthetic , e.g.
ar-tn (= ar--tn) thumb.
Some stems form the absolutive singular by means of reduplication. This
morphological type is indicated in the above table by "Red". As a rule, reduplication
consists in repeating the first three segments of the root, but not more than two
consonantal segments, i.e. CVC, CC (< CC), VC. The alternations in reduplicated forms
are described further. E.g. : mro-mr (root mro) laminaria, qu-qu (root qu-
) fish-scale, nute-nut (root nute-) land, wi-wi (root wi-) price, je-j (root
je-) mist, uttu-ut (root utt-) stick, ee-e (root ee-) summer, Thus, reduplication
as the means of building the nominative case form may be either complete or partial,
according to the length of the root. This type of reduplication should be distinguished
from the reduplication of short roots used to build a stem, which is usually complete:
pipni (stem pipni-, root pi) ashes, cf. pipin-t ashes (pl).
Inflection - is attached to a limited group of stems, e.g. jara- house, yurta,
joro- bed, qora- reindeer, pa-a soup.
The nominative plural of type 1 is formed by means of the inflections -t/-ti, the
latter being attached to the stems ending in a single consonant t, , c, r, n, j, e.g. jara-t
houses, ne-t (=ne--t) fells, but jajar-te tambourines, mem-te seals,
tintin-ti ices, e-ti (< ej-ti) hills.
The ergative and the designative case endings, and also the second part of the
comitative circumfix, have two phonological variants: -V and -CV. The first variant is
used after consonants and "vocabulary" , the second variant after vowels except :
mier-e by a gun, e-mier-e with a gun, mier-u a gun, but kupre-te by a
net, e-kupre-te with a net, kupre-nu as a net, cf. we-a (< we-a, stem we-)
thimble.
 26

With the locative case form the variant -k is used after stems ending in :
emnu-k in the tundra, cf. jara-k in a house, mn-k (=mn--k) in a hand.
With the dative case form the variant -t (2) is used after vowels except , the
variant -et (2) after one or two consonants or after a consonant plus : koka-t
(stem kuke-) to a pot, eer-et (stem iir-) to an island, kaj-et (stem kej-) to a
brown bear, cf. jara-t to a house.
With the ablative case form the variant -jp (2) is used after vowels except , the
variant -p (2) after stems that end in a single consonant r, , n, the variant -ep (2)
after one or two consonants or after a consonant plus : koka-jp (stem kuke-) from a
pot, eer-p (stem iir-) from an island, kaj-ep (stem kej-) from a brown bear,
ve-ep (stem ve-) from a thimble.
Type 2 has no markers for the comitative and associative cases for the nouns of
the 2nd declension, but it has the circumfix a-...-rma for the comitative plural of the
3rd declension.
There is also a special vocative form which is derived either from a stem (in
singular) or from a nominative case noun phrase in plural. All these forms are
characterised by prolonging the last vowel (sometimes accomponied by changing its
quality), due to which the stress is heard on the last syllable, so usually [Skorik 1961] it is
the stress moving that is considered to be the marker of the vocative form , e.g. kawaw
(Nom.) kawaaw (Voc.) Kawaw (pr.n.), jatjo (Nom.) jatjoo (Voc.) fox, But, in
our opinion, there is no stress at all in such cases, since these forms are affective. When
the stress in the nominative case is on the last syllable, there is still some difference in
pronouncing the nominative and the vocative form, e.g. enpew (Nom.) npeew
(Voc.) old woman.
In addition to this, there is a special vocative ending -j. In singular the marker -j is
added first of all to the stems which end in a vowel, e.g. epee-j (Voc.), cf. ep (Nom.)
Grandpa, wopqaa-j (Voc.), cf. wopq (Nom.) elk, The stems ending in two
consonants also acquire this marker. Since in such cases there is an epenthetic vowel
between the stem and the ending, this vowel is prolonged to a full vowel o, e.g. owt-oj
(< owt-j) Rowten!, cf. owt-n (Nom.), kej-oj bear!, cf. kej-n (Nom.).
Proper names ending in -ten regularly loose their final part in the vocative:
jette (Voc.) jetten (Nom.) Yettegen, For proper names ending in r-n this
way of expressing the vocative is optional, e.g. otr (Voc.) ~ otr-oj (Voc.)
otr-n (Nom.) Roltegergen.
In plural the stems ending in a vowel and inflected by the nominative case marker
-t are opposed to the nominative case forms only in the way of pronouncing these forms,
e.g. epe-t (Nom.pl) epee-t (Voc.pl) Grandpas, wopqa-t (Nom.pl) wopqaa-t
(Nom.pl) elks, The epenthetic before the ending -t is prolonged and changes into o-t,
e.g. aacek-t (Nom.pl) aaceko-t (Voc.pl) youths, kej-t (Nom.pl) kejo-t
(Voc.pl) bears.
 27

2.1.1.2. Case functions

A nominative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The subject of an intransitive verb; there is no distinction between agentive and
non-agentive subject:

ajwe ekk pkir-i

yesterday son-NOM:SG arrive-PF:3SG.S
Yesterday the son arrived

ekk jek-we
son:NOM:SG wake-PF:3SG.S
The son woke up

aq runtmek-wi
SEA:NOM:SG become.quiet-PF:3SG.S
The sea became quiet

2. The subject of a copular construction:

mnin ekk tara--n

my:3SG son:NOM:SG build-PN-NOM:SG
My son is a builder

3. The direct object of a transitive verb; there is no change in inflection when the
subject of the verb is expressed only by verbal inflection.

ekke-te tejk-ninet ti-t

son-ERG make-PF: 3SG.S: 3PL.O ski-NOM:PL
The son made the skies

t-jp-nat ti-t
1SG.S-put.on-PF:3PL.O ski-NOM:PL
[I] put on the skies

4. The agent of the antipassive construction (in case of a transitive verb with a
direct object):

t-n penr-tko-e kaj-et

father-NOM:SG rush.at-ANTI-PF:3SG.S brown.bear-DAT
Father rushed at the bear
 28

t-e utkuc-n tkec-a ena-pea-nen

father-ERG trap-NOM:SG bait-ERG ANTI-leave-PF:3SG.S:3SG.O
Father left the trap with a bait

5. The comitative counterparts with nouns of the the 2nd and 3rd declensions,
which have no comitative cases:

mur-i ropt-n
we-NOM Ropten-NOM:SG
me/we together with RopteN

mur-i tum-tum
we-NOM friend- NOM:SG
me/we together with my friend

tr-i tcaj
they-NOM aunt-NOM:SG
he/they together with his aunt

This construction is used to express both the subject or the direct object:

tur-i t-n ekwet-et aw-et

you-NOM father-NOM:SG go-PF:3PL herd-DAT
You and [your] father went to the heard

m-nan t-u-tk tur-i t-n

I-ERG 1SG.S-see-PF:2PL.O you-NOM father-NOM:SG
I saw you and [your] father

An ergative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The subject of a transitive verb is usually expressed (when not by verbal
inflection alone) by an ergative case noun phrase. There is no distinction between
agentive and non-agentive subject here:

ekke-te atan-nen ew
son-ERG drive-PF:3SG.S:3SG.O herd:NOM:SG
The son drove the herd

ktj-a rpan-nen ne-n

wind-ERG draw.away-PF: 3SG.S: 3SG.O fell-NOM:SG
The wind drew away the fell

2. The instrument of an action:

 29

m-nan ir-n t-wae-rk-n titi-te

I-ERG fur.coat-NOM:SG 1SG.S-sew-IPF-3SG.O needle-ERG
I am sewing a fur-coat with a needle

umqe-te je-e n-enanm-qen mem

polar.bear-ERG paw-ERG NRES-kill-NRES:3SG.O seal-NOM:SG
The polar bear kills a seal with its paw

3. An oblique object:

cmqk aa-t n-tejet-qine-t watkn-a

some bird-NOM:PL NRES-feed-NRES:3PL.S bud-ERGR
Some birds feed on buds

4. The agent of the antipassive construction (in case of a ditransitive verb):

t-e utkuc-n tkec-a ena-pea-nen

father-ERG trap-NOM:SG bait-ERG ANTI-leave-PF:3SG.S:3SG.O
Father left the trap with a bait

5. The agent of the passive construction (if expressed at all); the constructions
with resultative forms may be considered passive:

riquke-te e-nu-in takec-n

polar.fox-ERG RES-eat-RES:3SG meat-NOM:SG
The meat was eaten by the polar fox

A locative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. General location, regardless orientation and motion, is the locative case (cf.
kupre-k in the net, enm-k on the rock, nmnm-k in the village, jeo-na at the
uncles, kawaw-k at Kawaws, enaa-k at neighbours, emnu-k in the
tundra):

weem-k n-mk-qin nne-en wa-rk-n

river-LOC ADJ-numerous-ADJ:3SG fish-NOM:SG be-IPF-3SG.S
There is a lot of fish in the river

mur-nan mt-pea-nat inqe-ti aw-k

we-ERG 1PL.S-leave-PF:3PL.O boy-NOM:PL herd-LOC
We left the boys in the herd

2. General location in time:

ji- month as the dominant component of an incorporative complex with the
name of the month incorporated (in the locative case);
 30

a construction consisting of a compound numeral (some of them are borrowed

from Russian) and the word iwi- year is used to express a year: 1980 iwi-k in
1980;
the native terms of the seasons: ktkt-k in spring, ee-k in winter.

3. The object of comparison.

ton tum-k pn- wa--n

he:NOM:SG friend-LOC old-COMP be-PN-NOM:SG
He is older than [his] friend

ton cakett-k ta- n-tipeje-qin

(s)he:NOM:SG sister-LOC good-COMP NRES-sing-NRES:3SG.S
She sings better than [her] sister

3. An oblique object:

t-e atnwan-nen ekk mn-k

father-ERG hurt-PF:3SG.O son:NOM:SG hand-LOC
The father hurt the son at [his] hand

4. The usual way of expressing the associative relation is the construction

consisting of a locative case noun phrase (both in singular or plural) and the postposition
reen with:

aacek jeo-na reen n-jat-qena-t

youth:NOM:SG uncle-LOC:SG with NRES-roam-NRES-3PL
The youth roams together with his uncle

aacek jeo-rk reen n-jat-qena-t

youth:NOM:SG uncle-LOC:PL with NRES-roam-NRES-3PL
The youth roams together with his uncles

The same construction may be used when the head noun belongs to the 1st
declension:

wkw-n kuwtku-i inqej-k reen

stone-NOM:SG roll-PF:3SG boy-LOC with
The stone rolled down together with a boy (=at the same time)

A dative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The indirect object.
 31

aacek-a rint-ninet omqa-t ii-t

youth-ERG throw-PF:3SG.S:3PL.O polar.bear-DAT mitten-NOM:PL
The youth threw the mittens to the polar bear

t-e akka-t tka-n me-nin

father-ERG son-DAT leg-NOM:SG break-PF:3SG.S: 3SG.O
The father broke the leg of [his] soN

2. "Motion to":

mo ktntat-at jara-t
everybody:NOM:PL run-PF:3PL house-DAT
Everybody ran to the house

3. A benefactive function:

mir-e tejk-nin enqaj-et rtqej

grandfather-ERG make-PF:3SG.S:3SG.O boy-DAT little.bow:NOM:SG
Grandfather made a little bow for the boy

4. Purpose:

ewcqet pkir-i tete-t

girl:NOM:SG come-PF:3SG needle-DAT
The girl came for the needle

cawcwa-t ekwet-et wetkora-t kemet-et

nomad-NOM:PL go-PF:3PL.S shop-DAT goods-DAT
The nomads went to the shop for goods

An ablative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. An oblique object

tt-e juu-nin umq tka-jp

dog-ERG bite-PF:3SG.O polar.bear:NOM:SG leg-ABL
The dog bited the polar bear at its leg

2. "Motion from", "motion past", e.g. aw-ep from the herd, along the
herd (cf. aw-et to the herd), amno-et to the tundra, amno-p from the
tundra, along the tundra.

3. Source is usually expressed by an ablative case noun phrase:

 32

ine cawcwa-rp qorato e-ret-in

early reindeer.breeder-ABL:PL venison:NOM:SG RES-bring-RES:3SG.O
In the morning the venison was brought from the reindeer-breeders

p a-waom-en wkwa-rp
news:NOM:SG RES-hear-RES:3SG.O Wekwenan-ABL:PL
The news was heard from the Wekwenans

4. Material:

jara- wykw-epy ga-ntomgaw-len

house-NOM:SG stone-ABL RES-create-RES:3SG.O
The house was made of stones

5. Cause:

ewcqet tepajar-ep erpat-e

girl:NOM:SG singing-ABL become.famous-PF:3SG.S
The girl became famous for her singing

caca-p mim e-qit-in

frosy-ABL water:NOM:SG RES-get.frozen-RES:3SG.S
The water got frozen because of the frost

An orientative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The object of equation:

q-tejk-n wa epe-nin waa-jet

OPT:2-make-3SG.O knife:NOM:SG grandpa-POSS:3SG knife-ORT
Make a knife according to Grandpas knife!

2. A special type of location denoting location with respect to a certain point of

orientation (cf. aw-jet with the herd as a point of orientation, towards the herd):

ew n-twa-qen t-jet
herd:NOM:PL NRES-be-NRES:3SG lake-ORT
The herd is situated towards the lake

A comitative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The equal comitative relation both for the subject and the direct object (with the
words of the 1st declension):

inqej e-tum-e pkir-i

boy:NOM:SG COM-friend-COM come-PF:3SG.S
 33

The boy came with [his] friend

riquke-te a-jatjo-a penr-nenat pipiq-t

polar.fox-ERG COM-fox-COM rush-PF:3SG.S:3PL.O mouse-NOM:PL
The polar fox and the fox rushed at the mice

umqe-te rrniiw-nin jatjo e-riquke-te

bear-ERG meet-PF: 3SG.S:3SG.O fox:NOM:SG COM-polar.fox-COM
The bear met a fox and a polar fox

2. A circumstantial relation:

ton pkir-i a-poj-a

he-NOM arrive-PF:3SG COM-spear-COM
He arrived with a spear

An associative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The associative relation both for the subject and the direct object (with the
words of the 1st declension):

tt-n a-qajttqaj-ma jara-k n-twa-qen

dog-NOM:SG ASC-puppy-ASC house-LOC NRES-stay-NRES:3SG.S
The dog was in the house together with its puppies

uur pintqet-i umq a-qajomqaqaj-ma

suddenly appear-PF:3SG bear:NOM:SG ASC-bear.cub-ASC
Suddenly a bear with a bear cub appeared

mor-nan mt-jo-an umq a-qajomqaqaj-ma

we-ERG 1PL.S.-reach-PF:3SG.O bear:NOM:SG ASC-bear.cub-ASC
We reached a bear with a cub

aacek tocqcat-e a-mear-ma

youth:NOM:SG run.out-PF:3SG COM-gun-COM
The youth ran out with a gun

tum-e -otkona-ma penr-nen emcacoka-n

friend-ERG ASC-stick-ASC rush-PF: 3SG.S:3SG.O ermine-NOM:SG
The friend rushed at the ermine with a stick

With the 3rd declension the subordinate comitative relation is expressed by a

associative case noun phrase, inflected by special endings of type 2):
 34

kawaw pkir-i a-cawcwa-rma

Kawaw:NOM:SG arrive-PF:3SG ASC-nomad-ASC:PL
Kawaw arrived together with the nomads

A designative case noun phrase is used to express the following functions:

1. The object of equation:

otqen nne-en weem-kine-nn-u n-pera-qen

this:3SG fish-NOM:SG river-REL-fish-DESG NRES-look.like-NRES:3SG.S
This fish looks like a river-fish

je-k wkw-n jara-no n-pera-qen

mist-LOC stone-NOM:SG house-DESG NRES-look.like-NRES:3SG.S
In the mist the stone looked like a house

2. A complement of the copular construction (with the verb become and some
others):

ekk aacek-o e-net-in

son:NOM:SG youth-DESG RES-become-RES:SG.S
The son became a youth

aacek winret--u n-it-qin

youth:NOM:SG help-ATR-DESG NRES-be-NRES:3SG.S
The youth is a helper

3. The subject-complement:

ton cawcwa-no e--in

he:NOM:SG reindeer.breeder-DESG RES-consider-RES:3SG.S
He is considered a reindeer-breeder

4. The object-complement is expressed by a designative case noun phrase:

pnnac-a uttq keunee-nu rtc-nin

old.man-ERG stick:NOM:SG staff-DESG make-PF:3SG.S:3SG.O
The old man converted the stick into a staff

5. Function:

npnac-a tanne-n ricit-u n-enajaa-qen

old.man-ERG rope-NOM:SG belt-DESG NRES-use-NRES:3SG.O
The old man uses the rope as a belt
 35

6. Translative:

m-nan tr-i ne-nu n-ine-i-m

I-ERG they-NOM elder.brother-DESG NRES-3PL.O-consider-1SG.S
I consider them elder brothers

A great deal of nominal functions are expressed by means of denominal adjectival

forms (see 2.1.2).

2.1.1.3. Expressing locative functions

The most general means of expressing location, regardless orientation and motion,
is the locative case, "motion to" is expressed by the dative case, "motion from" and
"motion past" by the ablative case (see above).
In order to specify the type of location a locative case noun phrase woth a
postposition is used, e.g. t-k (Loc.) qaca (postp.) near the lake, Most postpositions
are used. The following locative postpositions are used in Chukchi: qaca near, cmce
close to, ttjoca in front of, rmat behind jaa further, roca over,
above, ewca under, opposite and others. There is also a postposition reen together
used with a locative noun phrase to express the comitative meaning with the nouns of the
3rd declension (see above). Postpositions may have some case forms (see below).
Some types of location are expressed by nominal suffixes. These forms represent
very productive models and have no restrictions regarding the type of stems they are
attached to, so may be considered case-markers of the second range. The locative
markers are (the nominative singular endings are given in brackets):
-qaca (Nsg -n) the place near an object
-cku (Nsg -n) the place inside an object
-te()n (Nsg -) the place in front of an object
-cq (Nsg -n) the suface of an object
-tkn (2) (Nsg -) the upper part of an object
-i (Nsg -) the lower part of an object
-jikwi (Nsg -n) the extent of an object
-curm (Nsg -n) the side of an object
-ku (Nsg -n) among, between objects
Below we will consider some specific types of location.
Proximate is usually expressed by means of a locative case noun phrase followed
by a postposition qaca near or cmce close to:

t-k qaca
lake-LOC near
near the lake
 36

qora-k qaca
reindeer-LOC near
near the reindeer

Although qaca is considered a postposition, it may have several case forms, like
an ordinary noun, which express the following types of location: "motion to" the dative
case, "motion from" the ablative case, "motion past" the ergative case, "motion
towards (a point of orientation)" the orientative case. E.g.:

t-k qaca-jp
lake-LOC near-DAT
to the place near the lake

t-k qaca-t
lake-LOC near-ABL
from the place near the lake

t-k qaca-ta
lake-LOC near-ERG
past the place near the lake

t-k qaca- jet

lake-LOC near-ORT
towards the place near the lake

The alternative way of expressing this type of location is a noun marked with the
suffix -qaca the place near an object (followed by the ending -n in the nominative
singular), e.g. jara- house jara-qaca-n a place near a house, t-n lake
t-qaca-n a place near a lake, Such nouns have all case forms.
Interior (the inner part of the object) may be expressed by means of a special
suffix -cku (with the ending -n in the nominative singular). In principal such words
have all nominal forms, but the nominative case form is more typical for hollow objects
(or at least for those that can be thought of as hollow) E.g.: kuke- boiler kuke-
cku-n the inner part of the boiler, jara- house jara-cko-n the inner part of the
house, The locative case has no marker with such nouns, e.g. kuke-cku inside the
boiler, jara-cko inside the house, ja-cko in the mist, wkw-cko in the
stone.
Anterior is expressed by means of a locative noun phrase, followed by a
postposition ttjoca in front of, before, E.g.:
 37

miute-k ttjoca
hare-LOC in.front.of
in front of the hare

tmk-k ttjoca
hummock-LOC in.front.of
in front of the hummock

The postposition ttjoca has also several case forms, with the help of which
the following types of location may be expressed: "motion to" the dative case, motion
from" the ablative case, "motion past" the ergative case, "motion towards (a point of
orientation)" the orientative case. E.g.:

tmk-k ttjoca-t
hummock-LOC in.front.of-DAT
to the place in front of the hummock

tmk-k ttjoca-jp
hummock-LOC in.front.of-ABL
from the place in front of the hummock

The alternative way of expressing this type of location is the suffix -te()n the
place in front of, added to different kinds of nominal stems. In the nominative singular it
is followed by a zero ending. E.g.: i-i ice i-ten the place in front of the ice,
t-n lake t-tan the place in front of a lake, enme-em rock enm-
tan the place in front of a rock.

tmk-k ttjoca-ta
hummock-LOC in.front.of-ERG
past the place in front of the hummock

tmk-k ttjoca- jet

hummock-LOC in.front.of-ORT
towards the place in front of the hummock (as a point of orientation)

Posterior is expressed by means of a locative noun phrase, followed by a

postposition rmat behind or jaa further:

t-k rmat
lake-LOC behind
behind the lake
 38

The postposition rmat has several case forms, used to express different types
of motion: "motion to" the dative case, "motion from", "motion past" the ergative
case, "motion towards (a point of orientation)" the orientative case. E.g.:

t-k rmat-et
lake-LOC behind-DAT
to the place behind the lake

t-k rmat-ep
lake-LOC behind-ABL
from the place behind the lake

t-k rmat-ta
lake-LOC behind-ERG
past the place behind the lake

t-k rmat-jet
lake-LOC behind-ORT
towards the place behind the lake (as a point of orientation)

Superior is expressed by means of a locative case noun phrase, followed by a

postposition roca over, above:

jara-k roca
house-LOC above
above the house

ej-k roca
hill-LOC above
above the hill

The postposition roca has several case forms, used to express different types
of motion: "motion to" the dative case, "motion from" the ablative case, "motion
past" the ergative case, "motion towards (a point of orientation)" the orientative case.
E.g.:

ej-k roca-t
hill-LOC above-DAT
to the place above the hill

ej-k roca-jp
hill-LOC above-ABL
from the place above the hill
 39

ej-k roca-ta
hill-LOC above-ERG
past the place above the hill

ej-k roca-jet
hill-LOC above-ORT
towards the place above the hill (as a point of orientation)

Superior-contact (the surface of an object) may be expressed by the suffix -cq

surface (with the ending -n in the nominative singular). Such words have all nominal
forms. E.g.: nute-nut land nute-cq-n the surface of land, mim water
mim-cq-n the surface of water.
The upper part of an object may be expressed by the suffix -tkn (2) the top of,
the upper part of (followed by a zero ending in the nominative singular), which also may
be treated as a second-case marker, e.g.: e-n mountain ej-tkn the top of a
mountain, t-n lake t-tkn the upper part of a lake, rew whale
raw-tkn the upper part of a whale.

Inferior is expressed by a locative case noun phrase, followed by a postposition

ewca under:

tw-k ewca
boat-LOC under
under the boat

wkw-k ewca
stone-LOC under
under the stone

The postposition ewca has several case forms, used to express different types of
motion: "motion to" the dative case, "motion from" the ablative case, "motion past"
the ergative case", "motion towards (a point of orientation)" the orientative case.

Interior-Contact may be expressed by means of the suffix -i (followed by a

zero inflection in the nominative singular), which denotes the lower part of an object, e.g.
e-n mountain ej-i the lower part of a mountain, wkw-n stone wkw-
e the lower part of a stone, the place near the lower part of a stone, Such nouns may
be derived from any appropriate nominal stems. They may have all case forms.

Lateral-Contact (the extent of the object) is expressed by the suffix -jikwi

(followed by the ending -n in the nominative singular), e.g. e-n mountain e-
 40

jikwi-n the extent of a mountain, a string of mountains, weem river weem-jikwi-

nthe extent of a river, Such nouns have a special word form marked with - (2), which
may be lost, but the trace of it is seen in the alternation of vowels, e.g. waam-jekwe()
along the river, ott-jekwe-() along the extent of a tree.

Citerior-contact is expressed by means of the suffix -curm the side of, followed
by the ending -n in the nominative singular, e.g. t-n lake t-corm-n the
shore of a lake, jkr-n mouth jkr-corm-n the sides of a mouth, umk-n
wood umk-curm-n the side of a wood.

Medial is expressed by means of the suffix -ku among, between, followed by

the ending -n in the nominative singular). Nouns marked with this suffix have all case
forms. The locative case has a zero ending. E.g.: uttu-ut tree utt-ku-n the place
among the trees utt-ku among the trees, qora- reindeer qora-ko-n the
place between the reindeer qora-ko between the reindeer.
Citerior-anterior is expressed by means of a locative noun phrase, followed by a
postposition ranaw opposite:

nmnm-k ranaw
village-LOC opposite
opposite the village

The postposition ranaw has several case forms used to express different types of
motion: "motion to" the dative case, "motion from" the ablative case, "motion past"
the ergative case, "motion towards (a point of orientation)" the orientative case.

2.1.1.4. Person-number forms

Nominal person-number inflection form the following paradigm, the 3rd person
forms being homonymous to the nominative case-number forms (cf. 2.1.1.1). The fused
person-number items are shown in Table 4:

TABLE 4. Person-number items of nominal forms

number sg pl
person
1 -jm -muri
2 -jt- -turi
3 = items are identical with those of case-number forms
 41

Endings -jm, -jt, -muri, -turi are similar to the corresponding personal
pronouns m, t, muri, turi. Variants -jm, -jt appear only after vowels. In
position after one or two consonants an epenthetic segment is inserted between the stem
and the ending and the syllable-final j then changes into a single vowel i or e according
to the harmony of vowels (see 1.3.8), e.g.: epe-jt grandfather-thou, but inqej-it
(< inqej--jt) boy-thou, pnnac-e (< pnnac--jt) old-man-thou.
Person-number forms are used to express the following syntactic functions:
1. The complement of a copular construction:

m ewcqet-im
I:NOM woman-1SG
I am a womaN

m tnanto-jm
I:NOM Tenanto(p.n.)-1SG
I am Tenanto

m cawcwa-jm
I-NOM reindeer.breeder-1SG
I am a reindeer-breeder

2. A construction consisting of a personal pronoun and an appositional person-

number noun phrase may be considered expressing topic when placed sentence-initially:

mur-i pnnac-more mt-ena-ntenmaw-mk wanw-et

we-NOM old.man-1PL 1PL.S-ANTI-prepare-PF:1PL.S place-DAT
We, old men, were engaged in preparing a place

mor-nan pnnac-more mt-ntenmaw-mk wan

we-ERG old.man-1PL 1PL.S-prepare-PF:1PL.S place:NOM:SG
We, old men, prepared a place

2.1.1.5. Noun Incorporation

In order to express certain syntactic and semantic functions a subordinate noun

may be incorporated into a verbal or a nominal word form without any category marking.
In such cases the nominal stem always precedes the corresponding dominant stem, so the
Chukchi incorporation is of the prepositive type. The incorporation complex is then
marked according to the grammatical class of the head verb or the head noun (for details
see Chapter 3).
 42

2.1.2. Adjectives

Adjectives form a specific grammatical class in Chukchi. As many other

languages, Chukchi distinguishes between qualitative and non-qualitative (relative)
adjectives. Most of relative adjectives are denominal, so in some grammars (for example,
in [Skorik 1961]) qualitative adjectives are treated as separate part of speech "noun
phrases of qualitative state". But since qualitative and non-qualitative adjectives have
much in common in their morphological and syntactical features, here we will consider
both classes.

2.1.2.1. Qualitative and relative adjectives

Qualitative adjectives are marked with the circumfix n-...[-qin(e)] with the
suffixal part used only for the 3rd person (for the 1st and the 2nd the pronominal person-
number markers are used see below).

Relative adjectives have different markerage according to the semantic group they
belong. There are relative adjectives proper marked with -kin(e), possessive adjectives
marked with -in(e)/-nin(e)/-rin(e), habitive adjectives marked with e-...[-in(e)]
and some others (for details see 2.1.1.5). All these markers loose their final vowel in
word-final position.
Adjectives may be used both predicatively and attributively. The grammatical
binding between the adjective and the modified noun is expressed either by agreement or
by incorporation (see further 2.1.2.7). Thus, as well as nouns, adjectives have two
grammatical representations: autonomous and incorporated. Adjectives used
autonomously usually agree with nouns in person and number, sometimes in case and
number. Thus, they have person-number forms and occasional case-number forms.

2.1.2.2. Adjectives used attributively and predicatively

Any adjective may be used as predicate. In this case it has a marker of the
adjective, which differs according to the group of the adjective.
Being used predicatively, adjectives agree in person and number with the
dominant noun. E.g.:

ton n-erme-qin
he:NOM ADJ-strong-ADJ:3SG
He is strong

tr-i n-erme-qine-t
they-NOM ADJ-strong-ADJ-3PL
They are strong
 43

mur-i n-erme-muri
we-NOM ADJ-strong-1PL
We are strong

otqen qep ut-nin

this:3SG ball:NOM:SG Rulten-POSS:3SG
This ball is Rulten's

mike-kine-jt m emnu-kine-jm
where-REL-2SG I-NOM tudra-REL-1SG
Where are you from ? I am from tundra

tr-i waj a-poj-ena-t

they-NOM (int.) HAB-spear-HAB:3-3PL
They are with spears

The same predicative form is used in oppositional constructions with personal

pronouns, e.g.:

tur-i=m n-erme-turi qeeqn q-miciret--tk

you-NOM:PL=PTL ADJ-strong-2PL some.more OPT-work-OPT:2-PF-2PL
You, [who are] strong, work some more

mur-i emnu-kine-muri kemet-et mt-pkir-mk

we-NOM tundra-REL-1PL goods-DAT 1PL-come-PF:1PL
We, [who are] from the tundra, have come for the goods

When the adjective is used as attribute to a predicative noun, it is in the

predicative form:

mur-i emnu-kine-muri nmtwa-muri

we-NOM tundra-REL-1PL dweller-1PL
We are dwellers from the tundra

When the adjective is used as attribute and the dominant noun is a nominative
case noun phrase, the same grammatical form is used as in case of predicate:

ajwe n-i-qin qora- ntek-wi

yesterday ADJ-white-ADJ:3SG reindeer-NOM:SG run-PF:3SG.S
Yesterday the white reindeer ran away
 44

npnac-en mier renm-k n-jmetwa-qen

old.man-POSS:3SG gun-NOM:SG wall-LOC NRES-hang-NRES:3SG
The old mans gun is hanging on the wall

uur t-u-en wopq-en rnn-n

suddenly 1SG.S-see-PF:3SG.O elk-POSS:3SG horn-NOM:SG
Suddenly I saw the elks horN

jara-k qaca roq weem-kine-t wkw-t

house-LOC near three river-REL-3PL stone-NOM:PL
n-twa-qena-t
NRES-be-NRES:3PL
There are three stones from the river near the house

ajwe t-u-et emnu-k umk-kine-t aa-t

yesterday 1SG.S-see-PF:3PL.O tundra-LOC forest-REL-3PL bird-NOM:PL
Yesterday I saw the birds from the forest in tundra

But when the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase, the adjective is
usually incorporated (for the more detailed rules see Chapter 3). In case of incorporation
the qualitative adjective loses its marker, but the non-qualitative adjectives preserve their
suffixes. E.g.:

e-qora-ta t-r-ekwet-ek
white=reindeer-ERG 1SG.S-POT-go-PF-1SG
I will go by the white reindeer

aacek-t qt-et t-et a-npnac-rena=kopra-ma

youth- go-PF:3PL.S lake-DAT ASC-old.man-POSS:PL.S=net-ASC
NOM:PL
The youths went to the lake with the old mens nets

aqa-kena-e-p aeqat-e tt-n

sea-REL=ice.floe-ABL swim-PF:3SG.S dog-NOM-SG
The dog swam from the sea ice-floe

For this reason the adjective used autonomously (in various syntactic positions
listed above) is usually treated as predicative (or predicative-attributive), and only the
incorporated adjective is considered attributive (see, for example, [Skorik 1961:427]).
Here, however, we consider both types of adjectives in different syntactic positions as
representatives of one and the same grammatical class.
There exist two more grammatical forms for the qualitative adjective. One of
them is the so-called "participle-noun". It is derived from the qualitative stem by means
 45

of the suffix -- (with -n in the nominative singular). This form is used to denote an
object characterized by the quality expressed by a stem. E.g.:

n-erme-qin strong erme--n the one [who is] strong

n-i-qin white i--n the one [who is] white

Almost the same meaning may be expressed by the analytical construction

consisting of an adverbial form, derived from the qualitative stem and marked with the
suffix -t/-et (which is homonymous to the dative case marker) plus the noun-
participle of the verb to be wa--n, e.g.:

n-erme-qin strong - arma-t wan the one being strong

n-i-qin white - e-et wan the one being white

2.1.2.3. Person-number marking

Autonomous adjectives used predicatively agree in person and number with the
noun they modify. It can be also stated that autonomous adjectives, being used
attributively with a nominative case noun phrase, agree in person and number (or in case
and number, since these forms are homonymous), with the dominant noun. When
adjectives are used autonomously with an oblique case noun phrase, they may sometimes
agree in case or number, or both, with the dominant noun.
Qualitative adjectives always agree in number with the dominant nominative case
noun phrase, e.g.: n-erme-qin (3sg) tt-n (sg) a strong dog n-erme-qine-t (3pl)
tt-t (pl) strong dogs,
Possessive adjectives, as a rule, do not agree in number with the dominant
nominative case noun phrase, e.g. inqej-in (poss.) jeo (sg) the boys uncle
inqej-in (poss.) jeo-nte (pl) the boys uncles,
Relative adjectives usually agree in number with the dominant nominative case
noun phrase, e.g. umk-kin (3sg) at (sg) a bird from the forest umk-kine-t (3pl)
aa-t (sg) birds from the forest,
All types of person-number adjectival forms are inflected by special fused person-
number items given in Table 5.

TABLE 5. Person-number items of adjectival forms

number sg pl
person
1 -jm -muri
2 -jt -turi
3 - -t
 46

The 3rd person markers shown in the Table are identical with the nominal number
markers. With qualitative adjectives the suffix -qin(e) may be treated as the 3rd person
marker, and with relative subjective relative adjectives the suffix -in(e).

2.1.2.4. Case-number marking

There are some rare examples when an attributive adjective used autonomously
agrees in case with the dominant noun. The rules that regulate such situations are
different for different types of adjectives.
Qualitative adjectives are inflected for case rather rarely, mostly for the ergative
and locative case. They are inflected then according to the type of declention of the
dominant noun, e.g.

n-mej-qine-k tw-k wako-at

ADJ-big-ADJ:3-LOC boat-LOC board-PF:3PL.S
knken oraweta-t
ten man-NOM:PL
Ten persons boarded a big boat

Possessive adjectives, that are usually used autonomously, do not agree in case
with the dominant oblique case noun phrase, e.g.:

qora- t-knu-en npnac-en caa-ta

reindeer-NOM:SG 1SG.S-catch-PF:3SG.O old.man-POSS-3SG lasso-ERG
I caught the reindeer with the old man's lasso

rrk-en waqt-te n-iw-qine-t

walrus-POSS:3SG tusk-NOM:PL ADJ-long-ADJ-3PL
The walruss tusks are long

Relative adjectives are used autonomously with the dominant oblique case noun
phrase only when they are emphasised. In this case they may agree in case with the
dominant word (this is more typical for the ergative and locative case), e.g.:

emnu-kine-k nmnm-k irece mt-tkiw-mk

tundra-REL-LOC settlement-LOC twice 1PL.S-spend.night-PF:1PL.S
We spend the night twice in the `tundra settlement

When an adjective is used without the dominant word, it it inflected for case and
number like an ordinary noun, e.g.:
 47

ra=qora-ta r-ekwet-e n-i-qine-te

what=reindeer-ERG 2SG.S-fut-go-PF-2SG.S white-ERG
By what reindeer will you go? By the white [one]

mik-nin miler-e tm-nin meml

who-POSS:3SG gun-ERG kill-PF:3SG.O seal:NOM:SG
epe-nine-te
grandpa-POSS-ERG
With whose gun did you kill the seal ? With the Grandpas [one]

re=kine-i-e e-kwut-in tt-n

what-REL=belt-ERGR RES-tie-RES:3SG dog-NOM:SG
tw-kine-te
boat-REL-ERG
By what belt was the dog tied up? By that [one] from the boat

2.1.2.5. Functions expressed by adjectives

Qualitative adjectives usually express different types of quality.

Quality may be also expressed by a participle-noun, derived from a orresponding
qualitative adjective or verb, e.g. tte--n the one who is cunning (cf. n-tte-qin
cunning).

Relative adjectives proper are used to express the following functions:

1. General relation:

mir-kin mier
grandfather- REL:3SG gun:NOM:SG
a gun related to a grandfather, a gun from a grandfather

Cf. the possessive relation expressed in the following example:

mir-in mier
grandfather- POSS:3SG gun:NOM:SGs
grandfathers gun

2. Source:

weem-kine-t wkw-t weem-kine-wkw-t

river-REL-3PL stone-NOM:PL river-REL-stone-NOM:PL
the stones from the river river stones

3. Partitive relation (with collective nouns):

 48

ireq inqej-mk-kin
two boy-GROUP-REL:3SG
two of the boys

Cf.:

ireq inqe-ti
two boy-NOM:PL
two boys

The same with non-numeral quantifiers and with partitive negative quantifiers:

qut-ti inqej-mk-kin
some-NOM:PL boy-GROUP-REL:3SG
some of the boys

qrmen mein inqej-mk-kin

no who:NOM:SG boy-GROUP-REL:3SG
none of the boys

Possessive adjectives are used to express the following functions:

1. Possession proper:

ut-nin mier
Rulten-POSS(SG):3SG gun:NOM:SG
Rultens gun

ut-rin mier
Rulten-POSS(PL):3SG gun:NOM:SG
the Rultens gun

t-in mier
father- POSS:3SG gun:NOM:SG
fathers gun

2. Part whole:

wopq-en rnn-n
elk-POSS:3SG horn-NOM:SG
the elks horN

utt-in rt
tree-POSS:3SG brach:NOM:SG
a branch of a tree (trees)
 49

utt-ine-t rt-t
tree-POSS-3PL brach-NOM:PL
branches of a tree (trees)

3. Material:

wkw-en jara-
stone-POSS:3SG house-NOM:SG
a house made of stones

murin jara- utt-in

our:3SG house-NOM:SG wood-POSS:3SG
Our house is [made] of wood

4. Reference quality:

aacek-en ror-n
youth-POSS:3SG experience-NOM:SG
the youths experience

5. The subject of the nominalized verb:

mo-ren war-n te-twi-i

everybody-POSS:3PL.S:3SG life-NOM:SG be.good-INH-PF:3SG.S
Everybodys life has become better

Habitive adjectives are used to express the following functions:

1. A circumstantial relation:

ton pkir-i a-poj-en

he-NOM arrive-PF:3SG HAB-spear-HAB:3SG
He arrived with a spear

2. Reference quantity:

koj-n e-mimt-in
mug-NOM:SG HAB-water-HAB:3SG
a mug of water

Caritive adjectives are used to express the following functions:

1. Negative quality:
 50

e-tte-kin
CAR-water-CAR:3SG
the one who is not cunny

2. Negative possession:

a-poj-kin
CAR-water-CAR:3SG
the one who has no spears

2.1.2.6. Degrees of comparison and degrees of quality

Equalty may be expressed with a noun-participle marked with -l and the object
of equalty marked with an adverbial suffix -mi, e.g.:

wajnqen t-n weem-mi jq=mim--n

this:3SG lake-NOM:SG river-ADV quick=water-NP-NOM:SG
The water in the lake is as quick as in the river

The comparative degree is expressed by means of the analytic construction,

consisting of an adverbial comparative form derived from the qualitative stem and
marked with the suffix - and the noun-participle of the verb to be wa--n, e.g.:

n-i-qin e- wa--n
ADJ-white-ADJ:3SG white-ADV be-PART-NOM:SG
white the one that is more white

n-erme-qin arma- wan

ADJ-strong-ADJ:3SG strong-ADV be-PART-NOM:SG
strong the one that is more strong

The superlative degree is expressed by means of a special noun-participle form,

derived from the qualitative stem and marked with the prefix ynan- and the suffix -c
(instead of -). The nominative case singular of this form is inflected by -n. E.g.:

n-mej-qin nan-maj-c-n
big the biggest

n-np-qin nan-np-c-n
old the oldest
 51

n-ttep-qin nan-ttap-c-n
clever the cleverest

Large measure of quality is expressed by means of the prefix i- really, very,

placed before the qualitative adjective and preceded by another marker n- , e.g.:

n-me-qin n-i-n-me-qin
good very good

n-jero-qen n-e-n-jero-qen
clever very clever

Small measure is expressed by means of the prefixes mac- to some extent, cik-
rather, kn- rather, added before the prefix of an adjective, e.g.:

n-ikw-qin mec-n-ikw-qin
high rather high

n-in-qin ci-n-in-qin
young rather young

n-nrr-qin kn-n-nrr-qin
sharp-eyed rather sharp-eyed

The comparatively large measure may be expressed by the following prefixes,

added to the comparative form marked with -, e.g.: ptq- much more, kt-
considerably, i- really, ja- much more, e.g.:

n-irw-qin ptq-erw- wan

sharp much more sharp

n-ete-qin kt-ata- wan

sweet considerably more sweet

n-jero-qen e-jero- wan

clever- uncomparably more clever

n-i-qin j-e- wan

white much more white
 52

2.1.2.7. Adjective incorporation

When the adjective is used attributively, it may be incorporated into a nominal

stem without any category marking. Possessive and relative adjectives preserve their
suffixes. When the dominant noun is a nominative case noun phrase and the adjective is
qualitative or relative, the adjective may be used both in autonomous and incorporated
variants. Possessive adjectives are incorporated rather rarely. Habitive adjectives marked
with e-...[in(e)] are not incorporated. For details see Chapter 3.

2.1.3. Verbs

Although there is no strict distinction between verbal derivational affixes and

aspectual markers, we may state that judging by the derivational affixes Chukchi is a
purely agglutinative language, whereas in the system of verbal inflection the fused mood-
aspect-person-number markers prevail, so the verbal inflection is one of the most
complicated part of Chukchi morphology.
Verbal forms are devided into finite and non-finite ones. We will consider them
seperately.

2.1.3.1. Finite forms

2.1.3.1.1. Mood-aspect forms

Finite forms distinguish mood, aspect and resultativeness (see also [Nedjalkov
1993]).
According to the tradition, there are three principal moods in Chukchi, which
form the regular morphological system: Indicative, Conjunctive and Imperative. As the
Imperative mood distinguishes person and number forms and expresses some special
meanings, we prefer to treat it as the Optative mood (see also [Muravyova 1990]).
Besides, we treat forms with the future meaning as the Potential mood (see below).
According to the tradition, there are three main tenses in Chukchi: present, past
and future. Here we prefer another way of describing these forms. Since the meaning of
traditional present and past forms is usually combined with the aspectual meaning of
imperfective/perfective respectively, we will treat them as aspectual forms, but they may
also denote absolute tenses present and past. Besides, as future forms distinguish
imperfective / perfective forms and are morphologically similar to traditional
"present"/"past" forms, we treat the future meaning of these forms as a separate mood
the Potential Mood.
The meaning of mood can be combined with the meaning of aspect, so there are
eight mood-aspect forms: the Indicative imperfective, the Indicative perfective, the
Potenial imperfective, the Potenial perfective, the Optative imperfective, the Optative
perfective, the Conjunctive imperfective, the Conjunctive imperfective. By their
morphological properties these forms may be treated as "canonical" mood-aspect forms.
 53

There are also non-resultative and resultative forms that express non-actual
tenses, for the actions and states they denote do not have immediate relation with the
moment of speech (for details see [Nedjalkov, Inenlikej, Rakhtilin 1983]). Such forms are
found only in the Indicative mood. By their morphological structure non-resultative and
resultative forms are similar to "present" and "past" participles used as predicates, for
they have the same markers as qualitative and relative adjectives (see 2.1.2).
There is a great difference in morphology between canonical mood-aspect verbal
forms and adjectival resultative/non-resultative forms, that is why we will consider them
separately.
Of the four moods only the Conjunctive and the Potential mood have their special
markers the prefix - for the Conjunctive mood and the prefix re- for the Potential
mood. The future perfective form has either a zero marker or a suffixal marker -- (it
appeares before the subject endings -tk, -t and before all the object endings except -t,
-e ). But in fact most of mood forms are opposed to each other only by person-number
items (mostly prefixes). Some 2sg Optative mood forms have a connecting morpheme -
- that precedes a person-number item, e.g.: q-ejmit--n take it!.
The suffix -rk- and a special set of person-number items are used to mark the
imperfective forms. The suffix -rk- is sometimes followed by a connecting morph -ni.
This happens only before the person-number endings -m , -t , -mk , -tk , tk or
before the object marker of the 3rd person -n(e) , when the subject is in the 3rd person
singular. Traditionally the suffix -rkn is considered to be the marker of the present tense
form, but since in some forms -rk- may be combined with the pluralizer -t (-rk--t), the
string rkn should be devided into two morphs separated by the epenthetic segment : -
rk--n , where -n is a separate person-number ending (instead of a zero ending), typical
for other forms as well. Here are some present tense forms (an epenthetic is written
here together with the preceding morph or with a one-consonant initial and final morph):

t-ktntat-rkn I am running
ktntat-rkn he is running
mt-ktntat-rkn we are running
ktntat-rkne-tk you are running
ktntat-rk-t they are running

t-winret-rkni-t I am helping thee

t-winret-rkni-tk I am helping you
t-winret-rk-n I am helping him
t-winret-rkne-t I am helping them
winret-rk-ni-n he is helping him

The perfective forms have no special affixal marker (they have a zero marker), it
is expressed together with person-number items. Since its person-number items are often
 54

the same as with imperfective forms, these two aspectual forms are practically opposed
only by the presence / absence of the marker -rk-. Compare the following perfective
forms with the corresponding imperfective forms:

t-ktntat-a-k I ran
ktntat-e he ran
mt-ktntan-mk we ran
ktntat-tk you ran
ktntat-at they ran

t-winret-t I helped thee

t-winret-tk I helped you
t-winret-n I helped him
t-winret-net I helped them
winren-ni-n he helped him

The the non-resultative forms are marked with the circumfix n-...-[qin(e)] , with
the suffixal part used only with the 3rd person and person-number markers used for the
1st and 2nd person.
The resultative form is marked by the circumfix e-...- [in(e)], with the suffixal
part used only for the 3rd person and person-number markers used for the 1st and 2nd
persons.

2.1.3.1.2. Usage of mood-aspect forms

The Indicative mood usually expresses a real action. The non-resultative/

resultative forms are used only in the indicative mood.
The usage of the perfective and imperfective Potential forms may be illustrated by
the following dialogue:

ir re-jqet-e ee , macnan t-re-jqet-rk-n

now POT-sleep-PF:2SG all.right better 1SG-POT-sleep-NRES-1SG
Now thou will fall asleep. All right, I shall better sleep

The Optative mood has all possible person-number forms. It expresses either
imperative ot optative meaning, cf.:

opop mo-more mn-jew-rk-n ep ine

better everybody-1PL OPT:1SG-wake-NRES-1PL early in.the.morning
Let us wake up early in the morning!
 55

n--jqet-e-n opop t wiin

2SG-CONJ-sleep-PF-2SG better thou:NOM (part.)
If only thou fell asleep!

The Optative mood may also express a hortatory meaning:

ire-neu mn-wiri-mk aqa-corm-et

two-COLL OPT:1PL-descend-PF:1PL sea-side-DAT
Let us two descend to the sea-shore

Special impersonal imperative forms marked with the circumfix e-...-e/te are
also used to express imperative meaning:

amn-m a-nto-ta , tt-t e-ite-te

PTL-PTL IMR-go.out-IMR dog-NOM:PL IMR-look.at-IMR
It is necessary to go out, to look at the dog (= We, you, he should ...)

Intention may be also expressed by means of the Optative mood, e.g.: m-jqet-rk-n
(opt,1sg) now I shall sleep!,

The Conjunctive mood can be used in both parts of CONJitional sentences, e.g.:

mn--re-mk ewr mm-tore n--ekwet-tk ?

1PL-CONJ-do.what-PF:1PL if everybody-2PL 2PL-CONJ-go-2PL
What would we do if you all went away?

The imperfective form is used to denote an imperfective aspect for all the moods.
E.g.:

t-jet-e-k m , mikri qun t-tet-rk-n

1SG-come-PF:1SG I:NOM because 1SG-be.hungry-IPF-1SG
I have come because I am hungry

iwke kitkit q-knju-rk-n

(part.) a.bit OPT:2SG-nurse-NRES-2SG
Please, nurse a child for some time!

Progressive aspect is usually expressed by the imperfective form, so this form is

sometimes called present-progressive, e.g.:

nraq ne-cwi-rk-n cmqk ew

now 3PL.S-cut-IPF-3SG.O partly herd:NOM:SG
 56

And now [they] are cutting off a part of the herd

The imperfective forms may express actual present actions, they are used mostly
in dialogues:

naqam req-rkni-tk
(conj.) do.what-IPF-2PL
Well, what are you doing?

amn , mt-itew-rk-n
(conj.) 1PL-wash-IPF-1PL
Here, we are washing

This form can be also used to denote a action under consideration in the past, that
follows another past action:

eqpe ne-nrejwew-n jara- ,

quickly 3PL.S-put.up-PF:3SG.O tent-NOM:SG
nraq ne-cwi-rk-n cmqk ew
now 3PL.S-devide-IPF-3SG.O into.two herd-NOM:SG
Quickly they put up a tent, and now they are deviding the herd into two parts

The words cit earlier, eci as soon as, used with the imperfective form, denote
an uncarried action, e.g.:

wne cit piku-rk-n , nraq=m e-pqet-in

(part.) earlier jump-IPF-3SG but=PTL RES-sink-RES:3SG
[He] was going to jump, but went down the water

With oblique moods habitual aspect is expressed by the imperfective forms, e.g.:

m mir-n nk- n-qt-qin -

(part.) grandfather-NOM:SG he-DAT NRES-go-NRES:3SG
macnan n-qt-rk-n
(part.) OPT:3SG-go-NRES-3SG
And grandfather also usually goes to him. - Well, let him go there

The continuous aspect is usually expressed by the imperfective form for all the
moods. E.g.:

waj-waj , nan-oweq-qaa-t t-itit-rk-n

(int.) one-body-side-DAT 1SG-boil-IPF-1SG
Oh, I am boiling only at one side
 57

q-qametwa-rk-n
OPT:2SG-eat-NRES-2SG
Eat! (=continue to eat!)

The perfective form usually expresses the perfective aspect for all the moods.
E.g.:

jew-jew , m-ajm-ak
(int.) OPT:1SG-bring-water-PF:1SG
Oh, wait, let me bring some water!

nmjop-m n--iw-n
earlier-PTL 2SG.S-CONJ-say-PF:3SG.O
If only [thou] have told this earlier

Perfective aspect may be accompanied by the adverb qnwer at last,

The perfective form is often used to denote an action that took place not long ago
before the moment of speach, that is why this form is widely used in dialogues:

t nram re-i m t-cettet-ek

thou:NOM (conj.) do.what-PF:2SG I:NOM 1SG-get.frighteed-PF:1SG
What happened to you ? I got frightened

In the narration such form denotes a completed action that took place in the past:

eqpe mt-wiri-mk nkam mt-ktntan-mk nmnm-et

quickly 1PL-go.down-PF:1PL and 1PL-run-PF:1PL village-DAT
We went down [the hill] quickly and ran to the village

The perfective form of certain lexical items may express the ingressive aspect,
e.g. jqet-i (he) fell asleep, tipeje-i (he) began to sing, terat-i (he)
began to cry, Such verbs are usually intransitive and stative or durative.
The perfective form of certain lexical items may express the terminal aspect, e.g.
wi-i (he) died, kjew-i (he) woke up, jet-i (he) came, t-nin (he) poured
[it] out,
A durative action may be expressed by the perfective form with those lexical
items that denote durative actions themselves, e.g.:

ton m-nke-ret cimu-i mecerat-nw

(s)he:NOM whole-night-time think-PF:3SG work-SUP
For the whole night she thought about the work

The non-resultative forms usually express non-actual present actions:

 58

n-re-qine-t nin tum-t t t-ma

NRES-do.what-NRES-3PL thy:3SG friend-NOM:PL thou:NOM be.ill-CONV
What do your friends do when you are ill ?

inqej amqn-co ine n-jet-qin

boy-NOM:SG every-day in.the.morning NRES-come-NRES:3SG
The boy comes every day in the morning

ta-k t-e n-neten-muri qoe=nm-et kaetkoja-nw

autumn-LOC father-ERG NRES-take-1PL.0 other=village-DAT study-SUP
In autumn father takes us to another village to study

In the indicative mood habitual aspect is usually expressed by the non-resultative

form. It may be used together with adverbs like qonp always, emqn-wuqtwi-k
every evening, amqn-erat-k every morning , amqn-co every day, always,
etc. E.g.:

ejweqej qonp n-tet-qin , qonp

orphan:NOM:SG always NRES-be.hungry-NRES:3SG always
n-terat-qen trec emqn-wuqtwi-k n-tipeje-qin
NRES-cry-NRES:3SG but every-evening-LOC NRES-sing-NRES:3SG
The poor orphan is always hungry, always cries, but she sings every evening

The non-resultative form may have a universal meaning:

qora- watap-a n-ewii-qin

reindeer-NOM:SG reindeer.moss-ERG NRES-feed.on-NRES:3SG
The reindeer feeds on reindeer moss

m-nan inqe-ti n-inejuew-im qora-nret-k

I-ERG boy-NOM:PL NRES-teach-1SG reindeer=graze-INF
I teach boys to graze reindeers

But more often the non-resultative forms refer to the past (see below).
Durative or iterative actions referring to the past are usually expressed by the non-
resultative form:

ajwe n-iw-it ...

yesterday NRES-say-2SG
Yesterday thou was saying ....

ajwe t qonp n-ntew-i

yesterday thou:NOM always NRES-run-away-2SG
 59

m nkam n-atc-egyt
I-NOM and NRES-hide-2SG
Yesterday thou constantly ran away from me and hid

ktur otqen caat n-inejmit-im qonp

last.year this:3SG lasso:NOM:SG NRES-take-1SG always
Last year I always took this lasso with me

When the speaker wants to distinguish an action from a series of other past
actions, he usually uses the resultative form. E.g.:

uur renut wrr-ru-i . ewcqet

suddenly something:NOM:SG stir-INCP-PF:3SG woman-NOM:SG
to-e , ewn e-pkit-in qaw
go.out-PF:3SG it-turned-out(part.) RES-arrive-RES:3SG man-NOM:SG
Suddenly a noise was heard. The woman went out, it turned out that a man had arrived

Pluperfect meaning is usually expressed by the resultative (=pluperfect) forms:

qo it-k ton wa=ee-nw-ep pkir-i ,

once he:NOM reindeer=hunt-PLACE-ABL come-PF:3SG
ewn joro- e-tejk-in
(part.) bed.side-NOM:SG RES-make-RES:3SG
Once he came from wild-reindeer-hunting , it turned out that the bed-side had been
already made

The perfect form may also express a durative action that took place for some time:

ter sekunda-t ton awjetknka a-twetcatwa-en

some second-NOM:PL he:NOM in.silence RES-stand-RES:3SG
He stood in silence for some seconds

A past situation that has present relevance may be expressed by both the
perfective and resultative forms. The resultative form is used here when the speaker
wants to express the cause of the situation. E.g.:

mto , waom-tk , nenene-t ? ii , mt-waom-mk

(part.) hear-PF:2PL child-NOM:PL yes 1PL-hear-PF:1PL
Well, have you heard [this], children? Yes, we have heard

q-jet-i , mn-qametwa-mk , otqen kej-n

OPT:2SG-come-PF:2SG OPT:1PL-eat-PF:1PL this:3SG bear-NOM:SG
m-nan a-nm-en
I-ERG RES-kill-RES:3SG.O
 60

Come here, let us eat, I have killed this bear

emi nin wequc ? -iwini-in

m
where thy:3SG husband RES-go.hunting-RES:3SG
Where is your husband ? He has gone hunting

There is no passive voice in Chukchi as such, but resultative and non-resultative

forms of transitive verbs that sometimes agree only with a nominative case noun phrase
may have a passive meaning (this is more typical for perfect forms). In such cases the
noun in the nominative case appears as subject of the passive, and the whole construction
should be considered nominative. It should be also noted that morphologically perfect
and imperfect forms are very close to adjectives, so these forms are in fact participles
used as predicatives, the same situation being observed in many other languages. E.g.:

t a-pea-jt
thou:NOM RES-leave-2SG
You were left

ton a-nm-en
he:NOM RES-kill-RES:3SG
He was killed

But in many cases perfect and imperfect forms agree both with an ergative case
noun phrase (subject) and a nominative case noun phrase (object) and have an active
meaning, the construction thus being active and ergative:

-nan m -ine-u-jt
thou-ERG I:NOM RES-1SG.O-see-2SG.S
You saw me

The subject of the active may be expressed in the passive construction by means
of an ergative case noun phrase, irrespective whether it is agentive or not:

met pontacq-n -ejp-in pwnt-a

the.whole body-NOM:SG RES-cover-RES:3SG iron-ERG
The whole body was covered with iroN

Passive forms are usually static.

In the subordinate clause the same tenses may be used as in the main clause, but
more often non-finite forms are used here.
 61

2.1.3.1.3. Person-number agreement

Subject and object are usually coded in the Chukchi verb when not incorporated
(for incorporation see further).
The subject must be coded in all types of verbal finite forms, whether the verbal
form is impersonal, intransitive, transitive or bitransitive. The only exception are some
transitive resultative / non-resultative adjectival forms, in which the subject is not marked
at all (and that may be an argument to consider these forms passive). The subject is not
marked on non-finite forms.
Of different objects only the direct object, i.e. the nominative case form referent,
is obligatory marked on verb.
The agreement is marked only on finite verbal forms by means of prefixal and
suffixal items.
In general, the subject of a canonical verbal form (i.e. perfective/imperfective
forms) is marked in a different way than that of an adjectival form.
The zero subject of an impersonal verb is coded like the 3rd person singular of an
intransitive verb.
The subject of an intransitive verb is usually marked both by prefixal and suffixal
items (which may be considered circumfixes), in adjectival forms only by a suffixal
item.
The subject of a transitive (or bitransitive) verb is marked mainly by a prefixal
item, in some rare cases both by prefixal and suffixal items; in adjectival
resultative/non-resultative forms the subject of a transitive verb is usually not expressed,
but in some cases it is expressed by means of a prefix ine-, suffix -tku and/or suffixal
items.
The object of a canonical verbal finite form is usually marked by a suffixal item,
in some rare cases by a prefix ine-.
The object of an adjectival form is usually marked by a suffixal item.
The only features of subject and object that are coded in the verb are person and
number. There is a great difference in marking subject and object in canonical and
adjectival verbal forms, that is why they are listed here in different tables.
In canonical verbal forms these meanings are fused into items, forming an
extremely complicated system of markerage, because these items vary not only according
to subject-object distinction, but also to their combinations and to tense-mood
distinctions. This system consists of the two main sets of items, traditionally called
subject conjugation (for intransitive verbs) and subject-object conjugation (for transitive
verbs). In the subject conjugation the subject person-number marker is a circumfix
consisting of two parts prefixal and suffixal and occupying the ultimate word-initial
and word-final positions. In the subject-object conjugation, as a rule, the subject person-
number marker is a prefix and the object person-number marker is a suffix, both
occupying the ultimate positions in a word. The only two classes of exceptions are the
following:
1) when the object is in the sg and the subject is in the 2sg, 2pl or 3sg, the object
(1sg) is expressed by a prefix ine-, which precedes the stem, and a person-number suffix
 62

codes not the object, as it is in all other forms of this conjugation, but the subject, the
marker being identical to the subject conjugation;
2) when the object is in thepl and the subject is in the 2sg or 2pl, the object is
expressed by a suffix -tku, which follows the stem, and a person-number suffix expresses
not the object, but the subject.
These exceptions are not registered in the tables given below.
Since prefixal parts of subject markers in the subject conjugation are often
identical to prefixes of the subject-object conjugation, it is more convenient to list
prefixal and suffixal parts in separate tables. Thus, we have four tables of items for
canonical verbal forms: Table 6 prefixal parts of subject markers (subject conjugation),
Table 7 suffixal parts of subject markers (subject conjugation), Table 8 subject
prefixes (subject-object conjugation, Table 9 object suffixes (subject-object
conjugation).

TABLE 6. Prefixal parts of subject markers

(subject conjugation)

mood ind/pot opt conj ind/pot opt conj

number sg pl
person
1 t- m- t- mt- mn- mn-
2 - q- n- - q- n-
3 - n- n- - n- n-

TABLE 7. Suffixal parts of subject markers

(subject conjugation)

mood ind pot opt/conj

aspect ipf pf ipf pf ipf pf
number /
person
1 - -e-k, - -e - -e-k,
-k -k
sg 2 - -i - -e - -e
3 - -i - -e - -e-n,
-n
1 - -mk - -e - -mk
pl 2 -tk -tk -tk -tk -tk -tk
3 -t -et -t -net -t -net
__________________
 63

* The item -t may be treated as the plural marker for the 3rd person form (compare the
nominal pluralizer -t).

TABLE 8. Subject prefixes

(subject-object conjugation)

mood ind/pot opt conj ind/pot opt conj

number sg pl
person
1 t- m- t- mt- mn- mn-
2 - q-/-* n- - q-/-* n-
3 -/ne-* n-/n-* n- ne- n- nen-
_______________________________
* Of the two morphs the first one is used when the object is inferior and the second one
when the object is superior than the subject according to the following hierarchy:
1sg,1pl > 2sg,2pl > 3sg > 3pl
(with exception of cases when the object is expressed by a prefix).

TABLE 9. Object suffixes

(subject-object conjugation)

number sg pl
person aspect
1 -m* -mk
2 -t -tk
3 ipf -n -ne-t
pf -e-n*, -n -ene-t*, -t
____________________________________
* In some cases the prefixal marker is used to express the 1st singular see above.
** The part -e may be omitted.

Two kinds of adjectival forms are used in Chukchi: imperfect forms, marked with
n-...[qin(e)], and perfect forms, marked with e-...[in(e)] . The suffixal part of these
markers is used only for the 3rd person; it it followed by the 3rd person markers -0 for
singular and -t for plural, identical with nominal number markers. For the 1st and 2nd
person the usual person-number items are used:
 64

TABLE 10. Person-number items

(adjectival forms)

number sg pl
person
1 -jm -muri
2 -jt -turi
3 - -t

Intransitive verbs, naturally, have only subject marking. Only the suffixal items
are used here, e.g.: n-ktntat-em (I) run, n-ktntat-qena-t (they) run, a-
ktntat-et (thou) ran, a-knntat-en (he) ran.
Transitive verbs have a more complicated system of markerage which is different
for imperfect and perfect forms. Two more markers are used here: the prefix ine- and the
suffix -tku, which precedes the person-number marker (compare the canonical verbal
forms see above).
In case of perfect forms the prefix ine- is used to express thesg object when the
subject is in the 2sg, 2pl or 3sg (thus, the only exception is 3pl), and the suffix -tku is
used to express the 1pl object when the subject is in the 2sg. Since the distrubution of this
prefix is ather complicated, we prefer to treat such forms as inverse froms (see also
[Comrie 1980; Comrie 1983]). In such cases a common person-number suffix codes the
subject. In all other cases a common person-number suffix codes the object. E.g.:

-nan m -ine-u-jt thou saw me

-nan mur-i e-u-tku-jt thou saw us
tor-nan mur-i e-u-muri you saw us
r-nan m e-u-jm they saw me
m-nan tr-i e-u-ine-t I saw them
-nan t e-u-jt he saw thee

In case of imperfect forms the suffix -tku is used to express the 1pl object when
the subject is in the 2sg or 2pl. The prefix ine- is used more widely, practically in all
other cases except the following: 3sg subject 1pl or 2pl object, 3pl subject any object.
Some traces of the hierarchy of persons may be seen here too (cf. canonical verbal
forms). When the object is expressed by the markers ine- or -tku, the common person-
number suffix codes the subject, but when there is no ine- or -tku, the common person-
number suffix codes the object. E.g.:

-nan mur-i n-u-tku-jt thou see us

tor-nan mur-i n-u-tku-turi you see us
-nan m n-ine-u-qin he sees me
 65

-nan tr-i n-ine-u-qine-t he sees them

r-nan ton n-u-qin they see him

2.1.3.2. Non-finite forms

There are several non-finite forms in Chukchi, but they do not distinguish aspects
and moods. Nor do they agree in person and number with any of the actants. The non-
finite forms and their markers are given below.
The infinitive is marked with -k, e.g. wa-k to be, to stay, imti-k to carry,
uwicwet-k to play, miciret-k work, The subject of an infinitive may be co-
referent or non-coreferent to the subject of the dominant word.
The supine has the marker -nw (2) (cf. the nominal suffix -nw- in 2.2.), e.g.
rea-nw (stem rie- ) in order to fly, ajaw-nw (stem ejew-) in order to call,
The subject of a supine may be either co-referent or non-coreferent to the subject of the
dominant finite verbal form.
There are several adverbial participles converbs in Chukchi. The subject of an
adverbial participle may be either co-referent or non-coreferent to the subject of the
dominant finite verbal form. Most of adverbial participle markers are homonymous to the
corresponding case markers.
The following participles are used here:
1. The converb of simultaneous action, marked with -ma, a-...-ma (cf. the
associative case marker), -t/-et (cf. the dative case marker). E.g.:

tttan-ma aj-et , uur -nan u-nin rew

climb-CONV hill-DAT suddenly he-ERG see-PF:3SG.O whale-NOM:SG
Climbing up the hill, he saw suddenly a whale

tr-i a-meartko-ma n-penrtko-qena-t

they-NOM CONV-shoot-CONV NRES-attack-NRES-3PL
They attacked, shooting

pea-t new , -nan u-nin maa

leave-CONV herd:NOM:SG he-ERG see-PF:3SG.O dog.team:NOM:SG
When he was leaving the herd, he saw a dog-team

2. The converb of preceding action, marked with -k (cf. the locative case marker),
-ine-u (cf. the nominal suffix -ine, denoting an instrument, and the designative case
marker -u). E.g.:

recqiw-k jara-k , t-ji-e tt-n

enter-CONV house-LOC 1SG.S-touch-PF:3SG.O dog:NOM:SG
Having entered the house, I touched the dog
 66

pkir-ineu ew-k , qaw-te qaa-ko-t qt-e-t

arrive-CONV herd-LOC man-ERG reindeer-INTER-DAT walk-PF:3PL
Having arrived in the herd, the men walked between the reindeer

3. The converb of cause, marked with -p/-jp (cf. the ablative case marker), -
e/-te (cf. the ergative case marker), em-...-e/-te (cf. the prefix em- only and the
ergative case marker). E.g.:

tur-i rawo-jp remk-n n-ta-qametwa-qen

you-NOM whale.kill-CONV people-NOM:SG NRES-eat-good-NRES:3SG
Since you have killed a whale, the people are eating good

ton pikutku-te ejmek-wi rrka-t

he:NOM jump-CONV get.near-PF:3SG seal-DAT
He got nearer to the seal because he jumped

m em-peiwe-te , rpet even

I:NOM CONV-get.tired-CONV even 1SG-cry-PF:1SG
I even began to cry because of being tired

4. The concessive converb marked with -mac. E.g.:

atqa-mac wei t-ekwet-rk-n aw-et

limp-CONV nevertheless 1SG-go-IPF-1SG herd-DAT
I am going to the herd in spite of limping

5. The converb of purpose, em-re-...--e (cf. the prefix em- only, the future
form marker re-...- and the ergative cade marker -e ), -jut. E.g.:

amr-omaw-a mur-i n-ktntan-more orw-k qaca

CONV-get.warm-CONV we-NOM NRES-run-1PL sledge-LOC near
We ran about near the sledge in order to get warm

qaw-te ekwet-et ret-jut ew

man-NOM:PL go-PF:3PL bring-CONV herd:NOM:SG
The men went away in order to bring the herd [here]

6. The converb of accordance, marked with -jit (cf. the orientative case marker).
E.g.:

en tamennwae-jet t--mata-n ewcqetqej

let sew-CONV 1SG.S-CONJ-marry-3SG.O girl:NOM:SG
 67

Let me marry a girl in accordance with how she sews

7. Adverbial participle of possibility, marked with ta-...- (cf. the qualitative

stem te- good). E.g.:

mo tiur-memi-t ta-pere- ne-tri-net

all:NOM:PL bow-arrow-NOM:PL CONV-take-CONV 3PL.S-put-PF:3PL.O
They put all the arrows so that it was possible to take [them]

ate ta-qaaw- wako-e

bird:NOM:SG POSS-shoot-POSS sit-PF:3SG
The bird sat so that it was possible to shoot at it

The adverbial participle of possibility is also used to express the potential

meaning, e.g.:

t-e tiur-memi-t ta-pere- wa-rk-t

father-ERG bow-arrow-NOM:PL CONV-take-CONV be-IPF-3PL
It is possible for the father to take the arrows (= Father can take the arrows)

8. The converb of impossibility, marked with aqa-...- (cf. the qualitative stem
eqe- bad). E.g.:

aqa-pere- tt-e t-re-tri--n tekic-n

CONV-take- CONV dog-ERG 1SG.S-POT-put-PF:3SG.O meat-NOM:SG
Ill put the meat so that it would be impossible for the dogs to take [it]

The converb of impossibility may also express the negative potential meaning,
e.g.:

t aw-et aqa-qt- wa-rk-n

thou:NOM herd-DAT CONV-go-CONV be-IPF-2SG
It is impossible for thee to go to the herd (= Thou cannot go to the herd)

2.1.3.3. Verb incorporation

In incorporation verbs usually appear as the dominant element of an incorporation

complex. They usually incorporate nouns with different syntactic roles and sometimes
adverbs (see Chapter 3).
Verbs expressed in a separate usage as non-finite forms may be also incorporated
into a verbal stem, e.g.:
 68

(a) aa-t rie-te n-ekwet-qine-t

bird-NOM:PL fly-CONV NRES-go-NRES-3PL
Birds are going away, flying

(b) aa-t n-rie-ekwet-qine-t

bird-NOM:PL NRES-fly=go-NRES-3PL
Birds are fly-going away

2.1.4. Adverbs
2.1.4.1. Types of adverbs

Adverbs are divided in several groups, among them qualitative, relative and some
others (for details see [Inenlikej 1966]).
Some adverbs are not derived from any other part of speech, e.g. : ir today.
Qualitative adjectives are usually derived from qualitative stems by means of the
circumfix n-...-ew which marks the part of speech, e.g. n-erm-ew strongly, n-itc-
ew heavily, Some qualitative adjectives are marked with the suffix -et, e.g.: kor-et
merrily.
Most relative adverbs are denominal.

2.1.4.2. Degrees of comparison and degrees of quality

Qualitative adverbs may express differernt types of equalty, comparison and

degrees of quality.
Equalty is expressed by a special construction, consisting of a denominal
adverbial form marked with the suffix -mil like and a noun-participle, derived from a
qualitative stem, e.g.:

wajnqen t-n weem-mi jq-mim--n

this:3SG lake-NOM:SG river-ADV quick-water-PART-NOM:SG
The water in the lake is as quick as in the river

The most common means of expressing the comparative degree of qualitative

adverbs is the suffix -, attached to a qualitative stem, e.g.:
n-jq-ew quickly - jq- more quickly
n-ip-ew honestly - ep- more honestly
n-pte-?aw bravely - pt- more bravely
n-ut-ew easy - ot- more easy

Different degrees of comparison may be expressed with the prefixes ptq- and
ja-, e.g.:
 69

jq- quickly ptq-jq- much more quickly ja-jq- even much more
quickly.

The comparative degree and the superlative degree (see below) may be expressed
with some other semantic groups of adverbs as well, e.g.:

n-mk-ew numerously, in abundance mk- more numerous ptq-mk-

much more numerous ja-mk- much more numerous nan-mk- most
numerously;

cmce near cmca- nearer ptq-cmca- much more near ja-cmca-

much more near nan-cmca- most near.

The superlative degree is expressed by means of the prefix nan- and the suffix -
, e.g.:

n-pto-ew bravely - nan-pto- most bravely

n-jq-ew quickly - nan-jq- most quickly

Large measure is expressed in the same way as in case of adjectives (see 2.1.2.),
i.e. by means of the prefix i- preceded by another marker n-, e.g. n-i-n-me-ew
very well.
Small measure is expressed with the same prefixes as in case of adjectives, e.g.:

n-itc-ew heavily mac-n-itc-ew rather heavily

n-iwp-ew shyly cek-n-iwp-ew rather shyly

2.1.4.3. Adverb incorporation

In some rare cases, when a noun is not incorporated, a qualitative stem of an

adverb may be incorporated. Being used as a separate word, it is usually marked with n-
...-ew, e.g.:

npnac-n n-untm-ew n-wakotwa-qen wkw-k

old.man-NOM:SG ADV-silently-ADV NRES-sit-NRES:3SG stone-LOC
The old man was sitting silently on the stone

npnac-n n-ontm-wako-twa-qen wkw-k

old.man-NOM:SG NRES-silent-sit-CONT-NRES:3SG stone-LOC
 70

The old man was silently-sitting on the stone

2.1.5. Numerals
2.1.5.1. Cardinal numerals

The native terms of Chukchi are based on finger-counting (for details see [Moll
1947]). There are only eight elementary non-compound numerals. The first four terms are
likely to be original. They are: nnen one, ire-q two, ro-q three, ra-q four,
The last -q of some numerals may be considered a special cardinal numeral marker, since
it is omitted in some other types of numeral forms (see below). The other four elementary
terms originate from nouns. They are: mt-en five (cf. mn-tnn (2) a hand),
mnt-ken ten (cf. mn-t hands), kn-ken fifteen (cf. k-k to mark),
qik-kin twenty (cf. qik- man, male). These numerals have adjectival markers -in(e)
and -kin(e) which are omitted in some types of numeral forms.
All other terms are either synthetic or analytic compounds.
Numerals from six to nine are synthetic compounds, they consist of an
elementary numeral from one to four as the first component and the numeral
mten five as the second component, the final /q/ turning into // and then changing
its position with the preceding vowel (see 1.3), e.g.: nnan-mten six, era-
mten (< ireq-mten) seven. Numerals eight and nine have alternative way
of expressing: amrootken eight (= only three from the other [hand]),
qonacnken nine (= one apart).
Numerals from eleven to fourteen are analytic compounds, they consist of the
elementary term mntken ten as the first component, an elementary numeral from
one to four as the second component and the word paro the rest, extra as the third
component, e.g.: mntken nnen paro eleven, mntken roq paro thirteen,
The first component of these numerals may be omitted. Thus, ynnen parol means eleven,
ireq paro (or ire paro in the fluent speech) twelve and so on.
Numerals from sixteen to nineteen are analytic compounds too. They consist
of the elementary term knken fifteen, an elementary term from one to four and
the word paro, e.g.: knken nnen paro sixteen. Numerals preceding the
elementary terms may be expressed alternatively:

a-mnt-qaw-k--en nine (=without the 10th)

a-kn-qaw-k--en fouteen (=without the 5th )
e-qiq-qew-k--in nineteen (=without the 20th)

Numerals from twenty-one to twenty-nine consist of the lementary term

qikkin twenty, a numeral from one to nine and the word paro , e.g. qikkin
nnanmten paro twenty six.
 71

All other numerals have the numeral twenty as the basis of numeration. Thus,
numeral thirty is an analytical compound consisting of the elementary term twenty,
elementary term ten and the word paro: qikkin mntken paro; thirty-five is
expressed like qikkin (20) knken (15) paro. All numerals with a multiple
twenty from 20 up to 400 are expressed by means of a synthetic compound with the
first element showing the number of twenties (the elementary numerals loose their
adjectival suffixes in this position), e.g.: ireq-qikkin forty (=4x20), mt-qekken
one hundre (=5x20), qik-qikkin four hundred (=20x20), Any other numeral after
twenty comsists of the synthetic compound with the first part showing the number of
twenties and the rest, expressed with elementary terms, e.g.: ireq-qiqqin (2x20)
knken (15) ireq (2) paro fifty-seven, roq-qekken (3x20) mntken (10)
raq (4) seventy-four.
Numeral four hundred is the last in the original Chukchi counting. Numbers
more than that are called jiw-ten the border of the known. To express larger
numbers (and also numbers with a multiple 100) the Russian terms sto one hundred and
tsjaca one thousand are used. The system of counting using these two Russian terms is
taught at school together with the native one. But both these system are being supplanted
nowadays by the Russian system of counting.
All these terms are used only for counting objects. To express abstract
mathematical figures noun-participles with the suffix -c (instead of -) are used,
derived from the numeral stems: nnen-c-n 1, mt-c-n 5.
Here are the original Chukchi numerals listed:

1 nnen 21 qikkin nnen paro

2 ireq 22 qikkin ireq paro
3 roq 23 qikkin roq paro
4 raq 24 qikkin raq paro
5 mten 25 qikkin mten paro
6 nnanmten 26 qikkin nnanmten paro
7 eramten 27 qikkin eramten paro
8 romten 28 qikkin romten paro
(amrootken) 29 qikkin ramten paro
9 ramten 30 qikkin mntken paro
(qonacnken) 35 qikkin knken paro
10 mntken 40 ireqqikkin
11 mntken nnen paro 45 ireqqiqqin mten paro
12 mntken ireq paro 50 ireqqikkin mntken paro
13 mntken roq paro 60 roqqekken
14 mntken raq paro 70 roqqekken mntken paro
15 knken 80 raqqekken
 72

16 knken nnen paro 90 raqqekken mntken paro

17 knken ireq paro 100 mtqekken
18 knken roq paro 200 mntqeqqen
19 knken raq paro 300 knqekken
20 qikkin 400 qikqikkin

2.1.5.1.1. Cardinal numerals used as attributes

Any cardinal numeral may be used as attribute. The grammatical binding of the
numeral and the dominant noun is expressed either by the word order and agreement
(semantic) in number or by incorporation. Thus, cardinal numerals have two grammatical
representations: autonomous and incorporated (see below).
When the dominant noun is a nominative case noun phrase, the cardinal numeral
is always expressed as a separate word: nnen oraweta-n one man, ireq
oraweta-t two men, nanmten jara-t six houses, knken nnen paro
riquke-t sixteen polar foxes.
When the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase, the cardinal numeral is
always incorporated (see further).
When cardinal numerals are used as attributes with adjectival denominal forms
(possessive or relative), they are always incorporated, e.g.: ron=tt-en renre the
food of three dogs, ran=waam-ken nne-en the fish from four rivers.

2.1.5.1.2. Cardinal numerals used as predicates

Any cardinal numeral in Chukchi (except one) may be used as predicate. In this
case they are inflected for person and number (only for plural). For the 1st and 2nd
person the items are the same as with nouns and adjectives, but for the 3rd person a
special marker is used, see Table 11 below:

TABLE 11. Person-number items of cardinal numerals

number pl
person
1 -muri
2 -turi
3 -reri

Elementary numeral lose the final -q and adjectival markers before person-
number markers. The interrogative pronoun ter how many? also acquires person-
number markers. E.g.:
 73

tur-i ter-turi mur-i ire-muri

you-NOM how-numerous-2PL we-NOM two-1PL
How numerous are you? We are two

mur-i ireqqikkin nnen paro-muri

we-NOM forty one rest-1PL
We are forty-one

tr-i eramt-rare
they-NOM seven-3PL
They are seveN

The same person-number form is used when the numeral is a component of the
oppositional construction with a personal pronoun as the other component, e.g.:

mur-i ire-muri mt-re-qt-e -et

we-NOM two-1PL 1PL-POT-go-PF:1PL lake-DAT
We both will go to the lake

tur-i ire-turi t-u-tk emnu-k

you-NOM two-2PL 1SG.S-see-PF:2PL.O tundra-LOC
I saw you both in the tundra

2.1.5.2. Ordinal numerals

Ordinal numerals are derived from cardinal ones by means of the suffix -qew.
Elementary numerals lose the marker -q and adjectival suffixes before -qew , e.g. nnen-
qew the first, ire-qew the second, mt-qew the fifth, In case of the analytic
compound the marker is added to the last component: qikkin nnen paro-qaw the
twenty-first.
Ordinal numerals are usually used as attributes. Being used attributively, they
may be either autonomous or incorporated. When the dominant element is a nominative
case noun phrase, the numeral is not incorporated, e.g.: nnenqew jara- (abs.) the
first house, mntken nnen paro-qaw jatjo (abs.) the sixteenth fox, When the
noun is in plural, the numeral is marked for plural as well: nnenqew-t jara-t the first
houses, mntken nnen paro-qaw-t ii-t the sixteenth mittens.
When the dominant element is an oblique case noun phrase, the ordinal numeral is
usually incorporated (for details see below).
Ordinal numerals may be also used as predicates, or as attributes to predicative
nouns. In this case they are marked for person and number. For the st and 2nd person the
common person-number markers are used. E.g.:
 74

ter-qaw-it ro-qaw-em
how.many-ORD-2SG three-ORD-1SG
Which are you? (=What is your number?) am the third

ter-qew-turi mntken nnen paro-qaw-more

how.many-ORD-2PL fifteen one rest-ORD-1PL
Which are you? (=What is your number?) We are the sixteenth

The 3rd person has no special marker, but numerals are inflected for number in
the usual way: - for singular, -t for plural, e.g. mt-qaw the fifth (he)
mtqaw-t the fifth (they).
Ordinal numerals may have possessive and relative adjectival forms (see also
2.1.2). The possessive form is usually used when the dominant noun is a person and is
not expressed at all, e.g. ire-qew-in t-n the father of the third (person), ro-
qaw-ren tw-t the boat of the third (persons), Being used as attribute to a
predicative noun, this form may be inflected for person and number, e.g.:

ter-qew-ine-jt ekke-jt ire-qew-ine-jm

how.many-ORD-POSS-2SG son-2SG two-ORD-POSS-1SG
Which ones son are thou (=Whose son are thou?) The second ones's

The relative form is usually used to express the order of referential objects, e.g.
ro-qaw wkw-n the third stone ro-qaw-ken wkw-n the third stone (of
those ones).
These adjectival forms are used either as autonomous or incorporated. When the
dominant noun is a nominative case noun phrase, the adjective is always expressed as a
separate word. When the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase, the adjective is
usually used autonomously and, as a rule, does not agree in case with the noun. But it
may sometimes agree with the noun in the ergative or locative case. E.g.:

ro-qaw-en awan-et q-tw-n

three-ORD-POSS:3SG wife-DAT OPT:2SG.S-tell-3SG.O
Tell [this] to the wife of the third

mt-tkiw-mk ro-qaw-kena-k jara-k

1PL-spend.night-PF:1PL three-ORD-REL-LOC house-LOC
We spend the night in the 'third house

2.1.5.3. Other derivatives of numerals

Numerals may have also disjunctive forms. The disjunctive form is marked with
the circumfix em-...-jut with an amount of ... (each), e.g. em-ire-jut with two
 75

(each), am-mnt-jot with ten (each), In case of an analytical compound the prefixal
part is added to the first component and the suffixal part to the last, e.g. am-
mntken nnen paro-jot with eleven (each), This form is used as attribute to a
nominative case noun phrase. E.g.:

aacek-a a-nm-ena-t em-qikkin ireq paro-jot aa-t

youth-ERG RES-kill-RES-3PL DISJ-twenty two rest-DISJ duck-NOM:PL
The youths killed twenty two ducks each

2.1.5.4. Numeral incorporation

When the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase, the cardinal numeral is
always incorporated. This incorporation is of the syntactic type. The following additional
rules are observed here:
1) elementary numerals ending in -q loose this marker and acquire a new one
the marker -n ; thus, the incorporated variant of ireq is iren-, of roq ron- and
of raq ran-, e.g. ran-poj-a (instr.) by three spears, a-ron-tom-a
together with three friends;
2) numerals with adjectival suffixes loose these markers when being incorporated,
e.g.: mt-en five mt-orw-et to five sledges;
3) in case of the analytic compound only the last element is incorporated, e.g.
mntken nnen paro-orw-a by sixteen sledges;
4) when the numeral is an analytic compound and the case marker is a circumfix,
the prefixal part of it is added to the first component of the compound, the last component
is incorporated, and the suffixal part is added to the nominal stem; such compounds are
called analytic incorporative complexes, e.g. e-qikkin roq paro-aakka-ta with
twenty three daughters.
An ordinal numeral is usually incorporated when the dominant element is an
oblique case noun phrase, e.g.: roqaw-na-a (instr.) by the third fell, a-
mtqaw-jatjo-a with the fifth fox, e-qikkin nnen paro-qaw-jatjo-a with
the twenty-first fox, But when the numeral is emphasised and the case marker is not
prefixal, the numeral may be not incorporated. In this case it may agree with the
dominant word in case and number, e.g.:

ro-qaw-a kupre-te nntto-e

three-ORD-ERG net-ERG begin.fishing-PF:3SG
He began to fish with the `third net

An ordinal numeral used without the dominant word is inflected for case and
number like an ordinary noun, e.g.:
 76

tar-qaw-orw-k n-twa-qen ro-qaw-k

how.many-ORD-LOC NRES-be-NRES:3SG three-ORD-LOC
On which sledge is [it]? On the third

With adjectival ordinal numeral forms incorporation is obligatory when a case

form has a prefix:

a-ro-qaw-ena-cakett-a
COM-three-ORD-POSS-sister-COM
with the sister of the third

a-ro-qaw-kena-mem-ma
COM-three-ORD-REL-seal-COM
with the third seal

a-mntken nnen paro-qaw-kena-mem-ma

COM-ten one rest-ORD-REL-seal-COM
with the eleventh seal

2.1.6. Pronouns
2.1.6.1. Personal pronouns
2.1.6.1.1. General

Free pronouns for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd person, both singular and plural, occur in
Chukchi. They are usually optional as subject or direct object in situations when these
arguments are expressed by verbal inflection, but are obligatory for indirect object in
oblique cases. E.g.:

m-nan t t-u-t
I-ERG thou:NOM 1SG.S- see-PF:2SG.O
I saw thee

aw-et t-pkir-ek
herd-DAT 1SG-come-PF:1SG
I came to the herd

aw-et t-niw-tk
herd-DAT 1SG.S- send-PF:2PL.O
I sent you to the herd

-n-ma m-iwini-cqiw-k
ASC-he- ASC OPT:1SG -go.hunting- PF:1SG
Let me go hunting with him
 77

nk- roq ne-t t-re-j--net

thou-DAT three fell-NOM:PL 1SG.S- POT-give-POT-3PL.O
I shall give three fells to thee

Free pronouns for the 2nd and 3rd person singular may be used to disambiguate
between 2nd and 3rd person singular inflections when these fall together in some of the
verbal forms:

t ktntat-rk-n
thou:NOM run-IPF-2SG
Thou is running

ton ktntat-rk-n
he:NOM run-IPF-3SG
He is running

On the other hand, free pronouns are usually required in copular/cleft

constructions:

m npnac-em
I:NOM old.man-1SG
I am an old maN

In constructions with numerals, marked for person and number, the personal
pronouns are optional:

ter-turi ra-more
how.many-2PL four-1PL
How numerous are you? We are four

There are no special anaphoric pronouns in Chukchi. The 3rd person pronouns
ton he and tri they are used in the anaphoric sense. Unlike nouns and some other
groups of pronouns, these pronouns have no person/non-person distinction, see:

inqej uje jara-k it-ka , ton wa-rk-n tum-k

boy:NOM not house-LOC be-NEG he:NOM be-IPF-3SG friend-LOC
The boy is not at home, he is at [his] friends

m-k mier uj , ton wa-rk-n tum-k

I-LOC gun:NOM not he:NOM be-IPF-3SG friend-LOC
I have no gun, it is at [my] friends
 78

There is an opposition between the 1st, 2nd and 3rd person pronouns, expressed
by different pronominal stems for singular and plural, cf. m I muri we, t thou
turi you, ton he tri they (the pronouns are given here in the nominative case
form).
All personal pronouns have plural forms which are obligatory. The number
distinction in pronouns is expressed mainly by the difference of the pronominal stems
(see above). Besides, in the nominative case plural the personal pronouns are marked by a
special pluralizer -i : mur-i we, tur-i you, tr-i they.
A personal pronoun in the nominative case plural may be used in combination
with a numeral, the latter being marked for person and number by means of the suffixes -
muri 1pl, -turi 2pl, -reri 3pl, see: ra-more we-four, ro-rare they-three,
If a numeral consists of more than one component, the marker is added to the last one:
knken roq paro-tore you-eighteen. Personal pronouns are optional in such
constructions. E.g.:

mur-i ire-muri mt-pkir-mk

we-NOM two-1PL 1PL-come-PF:1PL
We two came

ir ire-muri mt-re-qt-e t-et

today two-1PL 1PL-POT-go-PF:1PL lake-DAT
Today we two shall go to the lake

tur-i mntken nnen paro-tore r-ekwen--tk

you-NOM ten one rest-2PL POT-go-POT-PF:2PL
You eleven will go

ro-tore n-ejew-rk-nitk -ca--

three-2PL ococ-a chief-ERGR
The chief is calling you three

There is no obvious limit to the size of the numerous component, though high
numbers are rarely found in these constructions. Besides, large numbers are usually loan-
words.
A personal pronoun in plural may be combined with an oppositional nominative
case noun phrase in plural, the combination having the same reference as the pronoun.
Such combinations are used with no restrictions for pronouns, but only
when the pronoun is in the nominative or ergative case, i.e. subject or direct object. The
noun phrase is marked for person in such constructions. E.g.:

mur-i inqej-muri mt-ekwen-mk aw-et

we-NOM boy-1PL 1PL-go-PF:1PL herd-DAT
We, the boys, went to the herd
 79

mor-nan inqej-muri mt-tejk-ne-t ra-t

we- ERG boy-1PL 1PL-go-PF:1PL snow.house-NOM:PL
We, the boys, made snow-houses

mur-i inqej-muri ne-niw-mk aw-et

we-NOM boy-1PL 3PL.S-send-PF:1PL.O herd-DAT
[They] sent us, the boys, to the herd

tur-i tum-turi emnu-k mt-u-tk

you-NOM friend-2PL tundra-LOC 1PL.S-ee-PF: 2PL.O
We saw you, friends, in the tundra

A personal pronoun in the nominative case plural may be combined with a

nominative case noun phrase. Such combinations are used to denote a set of two
referents: a pronominal referent in singular or plural and a nominal referent. The
pronouns are usually used with proper names or with interrogative pronouns, but some
groups of common nouns (mostly kinship terms) and even 3rd person pronouns are also
possible here:

mur-i kawaw
we-NOM Kawaw-NOM:SG
me/we together with Kawaw

tur-i mein
you-NOM who-NOM:SG
you with whom ?

mur-i tum-tum
we-NOM friend-NOM:SG
me/we together with my friend

mur-i ytlon
we-NOM he:NOM
me/we together with him

2.1.6.1.2.Case system in personal pronouns

All personal pronouns are inflected for case. There is some divergence from the
case system of nouns as regards both realisation and the set of cases. The dative-
directional case of nouns corresponds to two different pronominal cases: the dative case,
marked by - (or -rk for plural forms in some groups of demonstrative pronouns),
which is a strong morpheme and changes weak vowels, and the directional case, marked
in the same way as nouns. The ergative case has a different marking a special
 80

pronominal ending -nan ; besides, it may refer only to animate objects and has no
instrumental meaning, so it would be more correct to call it "ergative". The instrumental
meaning for the 3rd person may be expressed by demonstrative pronouns, e.g. otqena-
ta by this, In the nominative case plural personal pronouns have a pluralizer -i. All
other cases have the same meanings and markers as in the nominal declension. Unlike
nouns denoting persons, personal pronouns may be used in the comitative and associative
cases, being marked by the items of the type.
The personal pronouns have the following stems: 1sg m-, 2sg n- (but t
in the nominative), 3sg n- (but ton in the nominative),pl mur-, 2pl tur-, 3pl
r- (but tri in the nominative, with the geminate /r/). In the ergative case the 2sg and 3sg
stems are cut off to - and -, and the plural stems are enlarged by - . In all cases
except nominative, ergative and locative, the stem bases are enlarged by -k (dative,
comitative, associative, designative) or -ke (directional, ablative, coordinative); since -
ke is a weak morpheme, it changes into -ka according to the harmony rule under the
influence of the dominant morphemes -t and -jp in the directional and ablative cases;
besides, k changes into before m in the associative.
In the paradigms given below the strings enlarging the original stems and
epenthetic segments // are are separated here by hyphens; later on we will write them
together with the adjacent morphs.
Here are the paradigms:

TABLE 13. Personal pronouns paradigms.

Singular
person 1 2 3
case
1. Nominative m t ton
2. Ergative m-nan -nan -nan
3. Locative m--k n--k n--k
4. Dative m-k- n-k- n-k-
5. Directional m-ka-t n-ka-t n-ka-t
6. Ablative m-ka-jp n-ka-jp n-ka-jp
7. Coordinative m-ke-jit n-ke-jit n-ke-jit
8. Comitative e-m-k-e e-n-k-e -n-k-e
9. Assiciative a-m--ma a-n--ma -n--ma
10. Designative m-k-u n-k-u n-k-u
 81

Plural
person 1 2 3
case
1. Nominative mur-i tur-i tr-i
2. Ergative mor--nan tor--nan r--nan
3. Locative mur--k tur--k r--k
4. Dative mor-k- tor-k- r-k-
5. Directional mor-ka-t tor-ka-t r-ka-t
6. Ablative mor-ka-jp tor-ka-jp tor-ka-jp
7. Coordinative mur-ke-jit tur-ke-jit r-ke-jit
8. Comitative e-mur-k-e e-tur-k-e -r-k-e
9. Assiciative a-mor--ma a-tor--ma -r--ma
10. Designative mur-k-u tur-k-u r-k-u

2.1.6.1.3. Other forms of personal pronouns

There are two more categories expressed in personal pronouns. They are the
limiting form and the sequence form.
The limiting form is marked by the prefix em- added to the case form: em-m-
k only at my place, Unlike nouns, the limiting prefix cannot be combined with the
nominative case form of the pronouns, the ergative case form being used instead. E.g.:

nqen qejuu em-nka-t n-ejmew-qin

that:3SG calf:NOM LIM-he-DAT NRES-come-near-NRES:3SG
That calf comes near only to `him

ir am-mor-nan mt-r-ekwet-e amno-et

today LIM-we-ERG(NOM) 1PL- POT-go-PF:1PL tundra-DAT
Today only `we shall go to the tundra

The prefix em- may be also combined with the possessive forms: em-murin
only our.
The sequence form is marked by suffixes -ram (singular) and -nram (plural),
added to the stems used in the locative case form: m-ram now me, n-ram now
him, t-nram them, This form is used only instead of the nominative case form, i.e.
both as subject and direct object. E.g.:

mor-nram utin=tw-e mt-r-iwini-e

we-SEQ(NOM) this=boat-ERG 1PL- POT-go.hunting-PF:1PL
 82

Now `we shall go hunting on this boat (=it is our turn)

tor-nram mn-nwakow-tk tw-tkn-k

you- SEQ(NOM) OPT:1PL.S- seat-PF:2PL.O boat-top-LOC
Now `you will be seated in the boat (=it is your turn)

The word nram is also used in the meaning of an adverb now in combination
with all other pronominal case forms:

nram -nan q-r-n penwe

now thou-ERG OPT:2SG.S-catch-PF:3SG.O reindeer.kid:NOM:SG
Now `you catch a reindeer kid (=it is your turn)

2.1.6.2. Possessive pronouns

2.1.6.2.1. Possessive pronouns listed

Chukchi distinguishes two types of possessive pronouns: possessive pronouns

proper and relative-possessive pronouns. The difference between them is marked by the
corresponding affixes (see below). Relative-possessive pronouns are used in the
situations when the referents of pronouns are only related to the referents of nouns, but
are not their true "possessors", see: m-nin mier my gun (possessive proper), but
m-ke-kin mier the gun related to me (relative-possessive).
Like other adjectives, each possessive pronoun (possessive proper or possessive-
relative) has two grammatical representations: autonomous (= separate word) and
incorporated, the incorporated variant being sometimes different in appearance from the
autonomous one.
The autonomous representation of a possessive pronoun proper is derived from a
personal pronominal stem by adding the following adjectival suffixes: -nin(e) for
singular stems (in the 2nd and 3rd person singular the stem-final consonants are cut off
respectively to - and -), -in(e) for plural stems. Incorporated representation is
derived from a personal stem by means of the suffix -k (compare the pronominal
declension), which changes into - before certain consonants.
Relative-possessive pronouns have an adjectival suffix -kin(e), and all the stems
are enlarged by the string -ke (compare the string -ke in the paradigm of the personal
pronouns); these pronouns are thus marked by -ke kin(e). The incorporated variant has
the same marking.
All these suffixes lose their final vowel in word-final position.
 83

TABLE 13. Possessive pronouns stems.

Possessive pronouns proper

number singular plural
autonomous incorporated autonomous incorporated
person
1 m-nin(e)- m-k- mur-in(e)- mur-k-
2 -nin(e)- n-k- tur-in(e)- tur-k-
3 -nin(e)- n-k- r-in(e)- r-k-
Relative possessive pronouns
number singular plural
autonomous incorporated autonomous incorporated
person
1 m-ke-kin(e)- =autonomous mur-ke-kin(e)- =autonomous
2 n-ke-kin(e)- form tur-ke-kin(e)- form
3 r-ke-kin(e)- r-ke-kin(e)-

An adjective derived from the stem cinit- by oneself by adding an adjectival

suffix -kin(e) may be used as a reflexive pronoun: cinitkin(e)- belonging to oneself;
ones own.
There exists a special form of "negative" possession , which is exocentic by its
meaning, because it denotes the possessor of a person, expressed by the personal stem.
This form is derived from the original personal stem enlarged by the string -k by means
of the circumfix e-...-ke: e-nk-ke without thee, e-murk-ke without us, rk-ke
without them, (the initial e- in the last word is omitted before the initial stem vowel //).
E.g.:

m qrm nk-ke m-ekwet-k

I:NOM not he-NEG OPT:1SG-go-PF:1SG
I will not go without him

There are also parallel forms of "positive" possession, marked by the circumfix
e-...[-in(e)], but they are not represented in personal pronouns.

2.1.6.2.2. Case, number and person in possessive pronouns

Since all types of possessive pronouns are marked by adjectival suffixes, they are
usually used adjectively, either as an attribute or as a predicative. When the dominant
noun is omitted, they are substantivized and are declined like nouns (see above).
When the dominant noun is a nominative case noun phrase, only the autonomous
representation of a possessive pronoun is used. It is usually marked only for number of
 84

the possessed (and sometimes for case and number, see below): -- singular, -t
plural. Number of the possessor is expressed by the pronominal stem. E.g.:

m-nin mier
I-POSS:3SG gun:NOM:SG
my gun

mn-ine-t mier-t
I-POSS-3PL gun:NOM:PL
my guns

rke-kin umq
they-REL:3SG polar.bear-NOM:SG
a polar bear, related to them

rke-kine-t umqe-t
they-REL-3PL polar.bear-NOM:PL
polar bears, related to them

When the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase, a possessive pronoun is
usually incorporated into a nominal stem without any category marking (see further).
When the dominant noun is omitted, the possessive pronoun is substantivized and
is then marked for case like an ordinary noun, e.g.:

ma-en-orw-k mt-ri-n tejuc-n m-nine-k

who-POSS=sledge-LOC 1PL.S-lay-PF:3SG.O sack-NOM:SG I-POSS-LOC
On whose slege shall we put the sack? On mine

mi-kkine-te a-nm-en umq murke-kine-te

who-REL-ERG RES-kill-RES:3SG polar.bear:NOM:SG we-REL:ERG
By whose [people] was the polar bear killed? By ours

When the dominant noun is marked for person and number (this happens when it
is used as a predicative and in some other positions), a possesive pronoun is also marked
for person and number and agrees with the dominant noun, e.g.:

m -nine-jm ekke-jm
I:NOM thou-POSS-1SG son-1SG
I am thy son

mur-i tur-ine-muri tum-muri mt-pkir-mk torka-t

we-NOM thou-POSS-1PL friend-1PL 1PL-come-PF:1PL you-DIR
We, your friends, came to you
 85

2.1.6.2.3. Possessive pronouns incorporated

When the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase, a possessive pronoun is
usually incorporated into a nominal stem without any category marking:

m=mier-e
I:POSS=gun-ERG
by my gun

nk=tum-et
his:POSS=friend-DAT
to his friend

mork=orw-k
our-POSS=sledge-LOC
on our sledge

nka-kena=mear-et
thou-REL=gun-DAT
to the gun, related to you

torka-kena=orw-k
you-REL=sledge-LOC
on the sledge, related to you

The rule of incorporation is absolute when an oblique case form is marked by a

prefix (such are the comitative and associative case forms). E.g.:

a-m=mear-ma
ASC-I:POSS=gun-ASC
with my gun

a-nka-kena=mear-ma
ASC-thou-REL=gun-ASC
with the gun, related to you

But if a possessive pronoun is emphasized , it may be used as a separate word and

is sometimes even marked for case, in spite of the fact that the dominant noun is an
oblique case noun phrase. Case marking is more typical for relative-possessive pronouns,
while possessive pronouns proper are marked for case very rarely. E.g.:

m-nin mier-e a-nm-en umq

my-POSS:3SG gun-ERG RES-kill-RES:3SG polar.bear:NOM:SG
 86

The polar bear was killed by `my gun

jep ireq tejuc-n pea-at m-nine-k orw-k

more two sack-NOM:SG remain-PF:3PL I-POSS-LOC sledge-LOC
Two more sacks remained on `my sledge

nkekin [nka-kena-jp] orw-ep

thou-REL [thou-REL-ABL] sledge-ABL
roq tt-t t-et
three dog-NOM:PL tear.off-PF:3PL
From the sledge related to `thee, three dogs tore off

2.1.6.3. Demonstrative pronouns

2.1.6.3.1. General

All demonstrative pronouns display the person/non-person distinction, typical for

nouns. This distinction is expressed by the type of declension (see also 2.1.1). The
parametres that specify demonstrative pronouns are the following: relative distance from
the speaker / from the hearer / from both of them, location behind or at the side of the
speaker/ the hearer, visible/invisible objects.
Two main degrees of distance from the speaker and the hearer are marked in
demonstrative pronouns: near and far. This distinction is expressed by the demonstratives
otqen(a)- this (near to the speaker and and the hearer) and nqen(a)- that (far from
the speaker and the hearer).
When an object is at the side of the speaker or behind him, the demonstrative
otqen(a)- is used.
When the object is at the side of the hearer or behind him, the demonstrative
rajqen(a)- is used (compare a demonstrative particle raj there).
The demonstrative wajqen(a)- is used to indicate the object which is nearer to
the speaker than some other object (compare a demonstrative particle waj here).
Most of the demonstratives are used in the situations when the object is visible to
both the speaker and the hearer. When the object is visible only to the hearer, the
demonstrative pronoun nqen(a)- that is used.
The demonstratives otqen(a)- this and nqen(a)- that and their adverbial
derivatives are registered as being used in reference to the previous discourse:

qut-rk reen pkir-et rotan-t

other-LOC:PL together arrive-PF:3PL Gergoltagnen-NOM:PL
opop nqena-nte mur-k n-tkiw-net
better that-NOM:PL we-LOC OPT:3PL-pass.the.night-PF:3PL
The Gergoltagnens arrived together with the others, let them pass the night at our
[place]
 87

ajwe inqe-ti e-npkiret-ine-t ,

yesterday boy:NOM:PL RES-bring-RES-3PL
otqena-t m-nan t-ret-net
this-NOM:PL I-ERG 1SG.S-bring-PF:3PL.O
Yesterday the boys were brought [here],`I brought them

The following demonstrative pronouns are used in Chukchi (the final vowel of the
demonstratives is lost in word-final position):

otqen(a)- this near to both the speaker and the hearer or at least
nearer to the speaker than to the hearer; visible to
both of them or at least to the speaker

nqen(a)- that not very near to the speaker, nearer to the hearer
than to the speaker; visible to both of them or at
least to the hearer

anqen(a)- that over there ar from both the speaker and the hearer; visible to
both of them

aanqen(a)- that over more far than anqen(a)-

there
oonqen(a)- that over there even more far than aanqen(a)-

aanqen(a)- that over there very far, more far than oonqen(a)-

wajqen(a)- that over there far from both the speaker and the hearer; visible to
both of them; the nearest of the two objects

otqen(a)- that over there located at the side or behind the speaker, but before
the hearer

rajqen(a)- that over there located at the side or behind the hearer

The demonstrative pronoun anqen(a)- that (far from both the speaker and the
hearer) vary iconically according to the degree of long distance: the second degree after
anqen(a)- is expressed by prolonging the stem vowel /a/, which results in long /aa/
aanqen(a)-, the third degree by prolonging original the stem vowel and changing its
quality into a more closed segment /o:/, which gives oonqen(a)-, the forth degree by
prolonging the original stem vowel accompanied by changing a nasal consonantal
segment // into a noised one //, which gives aanqen(a)-.
 88

Demonstrative pronouns display the same person/non-person distinction as other

nouns and some groups of pronouns. This distinction is expressed by the type of
declension: the demonstrative pronouns denoting non-persons are inflected by the items
of the type, denoting persons by the items of the type 2 (when inflected for case at all).
Animals known by their names and personified objects are qualified as persons.

2.1.6.3.2. Number, person, case in demonstrative pronouns

Since demonstrative pronouns are morphologically adjectives (they have the

markers of adjectives, ending in -in(e)- ), they are usually used as attributes or
predicatives like other adjectives. Like other adjectives they have two grammatical
representations: autonomous (=separate word) and incorporated. The autonomous
demonstrative adjectives are marked for number (rarely for case and number) or for
person and number.
When the demonstrative is used as an attribute and the dominant noun is a
nominative case noun phrase, the demonstrative is a separate word and has the same
number-marking as other adjectives. E.g.:

otqen inqej
this:3SG boy:NOM:SG
this boy

otqena-t inqe-ti
this-3PL boy:NOM:PL
these boys

When the dominant noun is marked for person and number (this happens when
the dominant noun is used as a predicative and in some other situations), the
demonstrative pronoun is also marked for person and number:

tur-i nqena-turi ewcqet-turi

you-NOM:PL that-2PL woman-2PL
you are those womeN

When the dominant noun is omitted, the demonstrative is marked for case and
number (or for person and number) as an ordinary noun:

otqen-na ne ejmew-ke
this-DAT not come.up-NEG
Do not come up to this [one]
 89

When the demonstrative pronoun is an attribute, modifying a nominative case

noun phrase, it is marked for number like any other adjective: - for singular, -t for
plural (in case of the 3rd person see below). In singular the final vowel is lost:

otqen ewcqet
this:3SG woman:NOM:SG
this womaN

otqena-t ewcqet-ti
this-3PL woman-NOM:PL
these womeN

When the demonstrative is marked for person and number, the means of
expressing number are also the same as with adjectives. When the demonstrative pronoun
is marked for number and case, it has the same fused case-number items as nouns. Before
endings beginning with // the final /a/ is usually lost: Notqena-yna => otqen-na at
this (loc.).
The demonstrative is optionally marked for case when it is emphasized and the
dominant noun is a person and obligatory when the dominant noun is omitted.
Demonstrative pronouns are inflected by the same items as nouns, which belong to the
type 1 or 2 according to the noun they modify, cf.:

req-jit qt--q-muri aw-et

what-ORT go-NP-DUB-1PL herd-DAT
waj otqena-jet
(part.) this-ORT
By what point of orientation must we go to the herd? By this [one]

mek-yrypy to-at ytri otqen-rypy

who-ABL:SG go.out-PF:3PL they:NOM this-ABL:PL
Who did they go out from? From these [persons]

2.1.6.3.3. Demonstrative adjectives incorporated

When the demonstrative is an attribute and the dominant noun is an oblique case
noun phrase, the demonstrative pronoun is usually incorporated into a nominal stem
without any category marking. The incorporated variant for otqen(a)- is utin-and for
nqen(a)- nin-, e.g.:

utin=inqej-k
this=boy-LOC
at this boy's
 90

nin=npnac-k
that=old.man-LOC:SG
at that old mans

When a case form has a prefix (such are the comitative and associative cases), the
incorporation is obligatory:

e-utin-inqej-e
COM-this=boy-COM
with this boy

But if the demonstrative is emphasized and the dominant noun phrase denotes a
person and has no prefixal marking, the demonstrative is not incorporated and appears as
a separate word. In such situations the demonstrative is marked only for number or for
case and number, e.g.:

otqen-na inqej-k
this-LOC:SG boy-LOC
at this boys

2.1.6.4. Interrogative Pronouns

There are two principal interrogative pronouns in Chukchi: mein who? and
renut what?.
There are also some other question words, they are:

mik where?, mikri how?, mikri() where, to what place?, mikejit in

what direction?, meko(r) from where?, mikemi for how much?, tite when?,
mekatanep from what time?, mekatanet up to what time?, ter how much?
how many?, terce how many times?
The interrogative pronoun renut what? may have two grammatical
representations: autonomous (=separate word) and incorporated. The pronoun mein
who? has only the autonomous representation.
When the interrogative pronouns denote objects, they are used as seperate words
and are inflected like nouns: they are marked for case and number, and in some situations
for person and number, e.g.:

Singular Plural
mein mik-nti
who:NOM:SG(3SG) who-NOM:PL(3PL)
who (he, she) ? who (they) ?
 91

mik-it mik-turi
who-2SG who-2PL
who (thou) ? who (you) ?

renut renute-t
what:NOM:SG(3SG) what-NOM:PL(3PL)
what (it) ? what (they) ?

The interrogative pronouns mein who? and renut what? display the same
person/non-person distinction as other nouns and some groups of pronouns. The pronoun
mein refers to persons, the pronoun renut to non-persons (both animate and
inanimate). Animals well-known to the speaker by their names and personified objects
are qualified as persons. This distinction is marked by the type of declension.
When the interrogative pronouns mein and renut are used as separate words,
they are inflected for case and number like nouns.
The interrogative pronouns are inflected for case by the items of the type 1 or 2
according to the person /non-person distinction. The pronoun renut is inflected by the
items of the type. It has the variant renute- in the nominative plural. That means that the
stem of the nominative should be treated as renut(e)-, with the vowel lost in word-final
position. In the oblique case forms the variant req- is used, that changes into re- in
syllable-final position (see 1.3.6). The pronoun mein is inflected by the items of the
type 2, it has the stem mik- (in some cases miky) in the oblique cases and in the plural
forms.
Here are the paradigms.

TABLE 14. Interrogative pronouns paradigms.

renut what? mein who?

sg pl sg pl
1. Nominative renut renute-t mein mik-nti
2. Ergative req-e mik-ne mik-rk
3. Locative req--k mik-ne mik-rk
4. Dative ra-t mek-na mek-rk
5. Ablative ra-p mek-p mek-rp
6. Orientative req--jit mik-jit mik-rjit
7. Comitative e-req-e ------- -------
8. Associative a-ra-ma ------- -------
9. Designative req-u mik-nu mik-nu

There are no special relative pronouns in Chukchi. This function is performed by

the interrogative pronouns and other question words.
 92

2.1.6.4.2. Forms derived from the interrogative pronouns

The interrogative pronoun mein who? and renut what? have two types of
possessive adjectival forms:
1. possessive forms proper mik-nin(e)- whose? (the possessor is in singular),
mik-rin(e)- whose ? (the possessor is in plural), req-in(e)- belonging to what? (the
possessor may be either in singular or in plural);
2. relative-possessive forms mike-kin(e)- related to whom?, rekin(e)-
related to what?.
Like other denominal adjectival forms, each of these forms can be used either as a
separate word or as an incorporated stem, the latter when the dominant noun is an oblique
case noun phrase (see below).
There are also two other forms, derived from the interrogatives: forms of
"positive" possession (= with whom? with what?) and of "negative" possession (=
without whom? without what?). These forms are exocentric by their meaning, because
they denote or modify the possessor and the referent of the pronoun is only the object of
the possession the possessed. The "positive" possession form is an adjectival form,
inflected by the circumfix e-...[-in(e)], with the suffixal part used only for the 3rd
person in combination with nominal number markers and the canonical person-number
markers used for the 1st and 2nd persons. E.g.:

e-mik-im
SUB-who-1SG
with whom am I?

2.1.6.4.3. Interrogative pronouns incorporated

When the interrogative pronoun renut what? is used as an attribute, it is always

incorporated. In such cases it has the variant req- or re- (the latter in syllable-final
position). E.g.:

ra=war-n
what=life-NOM:SG
what life?

req=orw-k
what=sledge-LOC
on what sledge?
 93

re=ni-k
what=belt-LOC
on what belt?

Possessive interrogative pronouns can be used either as a separate word or as an

incorporated stem, the latter when the dominant noun is an oblique case noun phrase:

mik-nine=ni-k
who-POSS=belt-LOC
on whose belt?

re-kine=ni-k
what-REL=belt-LOC
on the belt related to what?

The word ter is incorporated when used as attribute of an oblique case noun
phrase.

2.1.6.5. Specific indefinite pronouns

In Chukchi there are two pronouns that are usually called "pronouns of
remembering", becase they are used when the speaker cannot remember the name of a
person or the word for an object. These pronouns may be qualified as specific indefinite
pronouns. They demonstrate the same person/non-person distinction as nouns: nirke-
(Nsg nirkut) that one (a person), nike- (Asg nikut) that one (an object), They
are declined like interrogative pronouns. E.g.:

irke-ne an wa-rk-n mnin mier anaw-na

that.one-LOC (part.) be-IPF-3SG my:3SG gun:NOM:SG Ranaw-LOC
My gun is at that one ... at Ranaw

nike-t wne ii-t u-k t-waw-rk-nat

that.one-NOM:PL PTL mitten-NOM:PL find-INF 1SG.S-fail-IPF-3PL.O
I cannot find those ones ... the mittens

2.1.6.6. Reflexive pronouns

There are no special reflexive pronouns as such. This function is performed by the
common noun uwik body, which is used pronominally for all persons and has the same
set of case-number forms as an ordinary noun, e.g.:

t-e atanwan-nen cinit-kin uwik

 94

father-ERG hurt-PF:3SG.O own-REL:3SG body:NOM:SG

The father hurt himself (=his own body)

2.1.7. Auxiliary parts of speech

Chukchi also has some groups of words belonging to auxiliary parts of speech.
There are no prepositions in Chukchi, but there are several postpositions used to
specify the type of location. They are:

qaca near
cmce close to
ttjoca in front of
rmat behind
jaa further
roca over, above
ewyca under
ranaw opposite

All these postpositions are used in combination with a locative case noun phrase
(see 2.1.1).
There are also a lot of parttocles, some of them with vague meaning.
The only obvious clitic in Chukchi is the particle m in fact, really , which is
sometomes written together with the preceding word, e.g.:

renut-m
what:NOM:SG-PTL
Well, what ?

tum-t-m enmec ekwet-et

friend-NOM:PL-PTL already go-PF:3PL
In fact the friends have already left

There are a lot of interjections in Chukchi. Some of them do not conform the
regular principles regarding the phonological structure of words in various aspects.
Interjections may contain long vowels that do not occur in ordinary words, e.g. iii
(expressing pain), oooj (expressing regret). The phonological structure of interjections
may be of the type CV or CVCV, which is rare with ordinary words, see a (expressing
pain), uuuu (expressing disgust). Besides, many original interjections are likely to have
no stress at all, since they are affective in their meaning (see also vocative forms 2.1.1).
Some interjections distinguish mens and womens language, e.g.: kako
(expressing astonishment with men) kke (expressing astonishment with women).
 95

2.2. Derivational morphology

In order to derive a new word Chukchi uses mostly affixation, but sometimes
conversion too. Affixation is used for deriving words both within one category
(intracategorial derivation) and of another category (intercategorial derivation).

2.2.1. Intracategorial derivation

2.2.1.1. Deriving nouns from nouns

Nominal suffixes may express some types of location. These forms represent very
productive models and have no restrictions regarding the type of stems they are attached
to, so may be considered case-markers of the second range (see also [Muravyova
1994c]). The locative markers are (the nominative singular endings are given in
brackets):

-qaca (Nsg -n) the place near an object

-cku (Nsg -n) the place inside an object
-te()n (Nsg -) the place in front of an object
-cq (Nsg -n) the suface of an object
-tkn (2) (Nsg -) the upper part of an object
-i (Nsg -) the lower part of an object
-jikwi (Nsg -n) the extent of an object
-curm (Nsg -n) the side of an object
-ku (Nsg -n) among, between objects

Collective nouns are derived from ordinary nouns by means of various collective
suffixes (the nominative singular ending is given in brackets):

-mk (Nsg -n) a group of, a lot of

-iniw (Nsg -) a group of
-tku (Nsg -n) a number of
-ret (Nsg -) a set of

E.g.: inqej boy inqej-mk-n a group of boys, tw-t boat tw-

iniw a group of boats, gil-gil ice i-tku-n a group of ice-blocks, tum-tum
friend tum-ret a group of friends.

Other types of affixes are shown in the Dictionary.

 96

2.2.1.2. Deriving verbs from verbs

Some aspectual meanings are expressed by means of verbal affixes. Here we will
enumerate some of them (others are shown in the dictionary).
The ingressive aspect may be expressed by the ingressive suffix -o, e.g.:

amqn=co rajocac-o-e rtku-k

every=day train-INCP-PF:3SG shoot-INF
He began to train in shooting every day

The terminal aspect may be expressed by the aspectual suffix -ptku, e.g.:

m jawrena t-re-keitku-ptku-e
I:NOM next.year 1SG-POT-study-finish-PF:1SG
I shall finish to study next year

The iterative aspect can be expressed either by certain lexical items or by the a
series of suffixes: -et (foe details see [Nedjalkov, Muravyova, Rakhtilin 1997]), e.g.:

tt-e n-ine-piku-et-qin ott-n

dog-ERG NRES-ANTI-jump-ITER-NRES:3SG stick-NOM:SG
The dog jumped and jumped over the stick

Durative aspect may be expressed by means of the suffix -et , attached to

certain lexical items, e.g. jto-k to pull out jto-at-k to pull out constantly,

Intention may be expressed by the desiderative form marked with the circumfix
te-...- , e.g.:

ekk tor-k re-winren--rk-n

son:NOM:SG you-DAT DES-help-DES-IPF-3SG
[My] son wants to help you

Some verbal affixes decrease or increase the valency of the verb.

The reciprocal suffix -w-, added to a transitive verb, changes it into an
intransitive one:

(a) r-nan n-ukwet-rk-ne-t

they-ERG 3PL.S-kiss-IPF-3PL.O
They are kissing [them]

(b) tr-i n-ukwet-w-rk--t

they-NOM 3PL-kiss- REC-IPF-3PL
 97

The are kissing each other

When the same affix is added to an intransitive verb, the verb remains
intransitive:

(a) ton ejeet-rk-n

he:NOM quarrel-IPF-3SG
He is quarrelling

(b) tr-i ejeet-rk-t

they-NOM quarrel-IPF-3PL
They are quarrelling

The valency of a verb in Chukchi may be decreased by means of adding an

intransitivizing affix to a transitive verb (for details see [Kozinsky, Nedjalkov,
Polinskaya 1988]). The inransitivizing affixes are:

-et : ejup-k to prick smth ejup-et-k to prick one

-tku : piri-k to hold smth piri-tku-k to hold
ine- : ejmit-k to take smth in-ejmit-k to hold
ine-...-et : r-k to count smth ine-r-et-k to do counting

There are several causative affixes that increase the valency of an intransitive
verb. All of them have a prefixal part with the alternating variants r-/-n-, of which r
occurs word-initially, and n word-medially. E.g.:

r-/-n- : ejmew-k to come nearer r-ejmew-k to get smb/smth nearer

r-/-n-...-ew : ekwet-k to leave for r-ekwet-ew-k to send smb smwh
r-/-n-...-et pkir-k to arrive r-pkir-et-k to bring smb/smth
r-/-n-...-et pirq-k to bend dowN r-pirq-et-k to bend smb down

A transitive verb is made causative practically with the same affixes as an

intransitive, mostly with r-/-n-...-ew and r-/-n- ...-et :

u-k to see smth r-uet-k to show smth to smb

pea-k to leave smth. r-pea-w-k to leave smth at smbs
 98

2.2.2. Intercategorial derivation

2.2.2.1. Deriving nouns from other categories

Nominalized verbs of the type "nomena actionis" are marked with the suffix -
r (with - in the nominative singular), e.g.: qiwriet-k hurry up qiwri-et-
r- hurry.
Nominalized verbs of the type "nomena agentis" are noun-participles, so they are
marked with the suffix -- (with - in the nominative singular), e.g. tew-k to run
away tew-- the one who is running away, a runner; cejw-k to walk by
foot cejw-- the one who is walking by foot, a walker.
Nominalized verbs with passive meaning are marked with -jo (with a zero ending
in the nominative singular), e.g.: kur-k to buy kot-jo what is bought, a purchase.
All these nouns have all nominal forms.

The noun-participle form marked with the suffix -q (with the ending -n in the
nominative singular) can express the debitive meaning, e.g.:

tipej--n the one who is singing tipejn--q the one who must sing
jet--n the one who is coming jet--q the one who must come

This form can be derived from both positive and negative noun-participles, e.g. e-
winret-k--q the one who must not help,
The debitive forms may be used predicatively:

t winret--q-it npnac-et
thou:NOM help-NP-DEB-2SG old.man-DAT
Thou must help the old maN

2.2.2.2. Deriving adjectives from other categories

There are several types of denominal adjectives in Chukchi.

The most common types are adjectival forms expressing positive possession and
relation.
Possessive adjectival forms are inflected by the suffix -in(e) for type 1, -nin(e)
for type 2 singular (of the possessor) and -rin(e) for type 2 plural (of the possessor),
the final vowel being lost in word-final position. E.g.: tt-in renre dogs food,
eekkeqej-in qep girls ball, tato-nen mier Tatos gun tato-ren mier
Tatos gun.
Relative adjectival forms are inflected by the suffix -kin(e) for both types type
1 and type 2, the final vowel being lost in word-final position. E.g.: emnu-kin nnik
 99

tundras animal, animal from the tundra, ee-kin ewir-n winter clothes, clothes
for winter.
Possessive and relative denominal adjectives may be used either as separate
words or incorporated. Denominal forms of negative possession are inflected by the
circumfix e-...-ke for type 1 and also for type 2 sungular (of the possessor), e-...-rke
for type 2 plural (of the possessor). E.g.: e-inqej-ke without a boy/boys, a-rrka-ka
without a walrus/walruses, a-jeo-ka without an uncle, a-jeo-rka without
uncles.
Besides, there are two more regular denominal forms that modify not the
possessed, but the possessor. One of them is an adjectival form with the meaning having,
possessed of , which is similar to the verbal perfect form and is inflected by the
circumfix e-...[-in(e)], with the second part used only for the 3rd person. The final
vowel of the suffixal part is lost in word-final position. E.g.: a-poj-en (he) having a
spear, -ekke-jm (me) having a son.
One more nominal form derived from nominal stems is the so-called "participle-
noun". This form may be derived not only from nouns, but from other parts of speech as
well. It is inflected like nouns, but, unlike nouns, it may be used as an oppositional noun
phrase with some other noun phrase. In this case it agrees with the dominant noun in case
and number or in person and number (cf. adjectives that usually do not agree with the
dominant noun in case and number ). The participle-noun form has two variants: positive
and negative. Participle-nouns of positive possession are inflected by the suffix --,
followed by the nominative case ending -n and other case-number or person-number
inflections. Participle-nouns of negative possession are inflected by the suffix e-...k--
[in(e)], with the last morph used only for the 3rd person and person-number items used
for the 1st and 2nd persons. The circumfix e-...-k may be treated as a medium-word
variant of a negative nominal marker e-...-ke (see below). The 3rd person inflection may
be followed by a zero nominative case marker and other case-number items. The final
vowel of the morph -in(e) is lost in word-final position. E.g.: mier--n the one
having a gun, ekke--n the one having a son, ekke--im (me) having a soN; e-
mier-k--in the one who has no gun, ekke-k--in the one who has no son,
ekke-k--im (me) having no son.
Negative possession may be also expressed by a denominal adverbial form
marked with e-..-ke, e.g. e-mier-ke without a gun, a-poj-ka without a spear,
This form should be treated as adverbial, because it does not agree with the noun and is
likely to modify a verbal form.
A special form derived from nominal stems is the so-called "participle-noun" (see
also 2.1.2). This form may be derived not only from nouns, but from other parts of speech
as well. It is inflected like nouns, but, unlike nouns, it may be used as an oppositional
noun phrase with some other noun phrase. In this case it agrees with the dominant noun
in case and number or in person and number (cf. adjectives that usually do not agree with
the dominant noun in case and number ). The participle-noun form has two variants:
positive and negative. Participle-nouns of positive possession are inflected by the suffix
 100

-, followed by the nominative case ending -()n and other case-number or person-
number inflections. Participle-nouns of negative possession are inflected by the suffix e-
...k--[in(e)], with the last morph used only for the 3rd person and person-number
items used for the 1st and 2nd persons. The circumfix e-...-k may be treated as a
medium-word variant of a negative nominal marker e-...-ke (see below). The 3rd person
inflection may be followed by a zero nominative case marker and other case-number
items. The final vowel of the morph -in(e) is lost in word-final position. E.g.: mier-
-n the one having a gun, ekke--n the one having a son, ekke--im (me)
having a soN; e-mier-k--in the one who has no gun, ekke-k--in the one who
has no son, ekke-k--im (me) having no son.
Negative possession may be also expressed by a denominal adverbial form
marked with e-..-ke, e.g. e-mier-ke without a gun, a-poj-ka without a spear,
This form should be treated as adverbial, because it does not agree with the noun and is
likely to modify a verbal form.
The relativized form of a verb is marked with -kin (cf. the relative adjective
marker), e.g.:

q-qrir-n pac-en
OPT:2SG.S-look.for-PF:3SG.O old.man-POSS:3SG
paw-ken koj-n
drink-REL:3SG mug-NOM:SG
Look for the mug the old man uses for drinking

2.2.2.3. Deriving verbs from other categories

Verbs can be easily derived from nominal and quality adjectival stems, the most
common affixes are -at and -aw (see the Dictionary).

2.2.2.4. Deriving adverbs from other categories

The following special adverbial functions are expressed by denominal adjectives.

A negative instrumental function is expressed by a denominal form of negative
possession:

aacek-a e-mier-ke n-nrit-qin ew

youth-ERG NEG-gun-NEG NRES-guard-NRES:3SG.O herd:NOM:SG
The youth is guarding the herd without a gun

A negative comitative relation is expressed by a denominal form of negative

possession:
 101

cakett-a a-ta-ka tejk-ninet ie-t

sister-ERG NEG-mother-NEG make-PF: 3SG.S:3PL.O mitten-NOM:PL
The sister made the mittens without Mother

A negative circumstantial relation is expressed by another denominal form the

adverbial form of negative possession:

ton pkir-i a-poj-ka

he-NOM arrive-PF:3SG NEG-spear-NEG
He arrived without a spear

Negative possession is expressed by means of an adverbial denominal form of

negative possession, e.g.: e-mier-ke without a gun/guns, a-poj-ka without a
spear/spears, e-inqej-ke without a boy/boys.

Negative material is expressed by a denominal form of negative possession:

jara- a-wkw-ka a-ntomaw-en

house-NOM:SG NEG-stone-NEG RES-create-RES:3SG
The house was made without stones

Manner is usually expressed by an adverbial form of manner, derived from a

qualitative stem or a verb. Such adverbs may be used either autonomously or
incorporated. E.g.:

(a) r-nan n-ite-net ewcqetqe-ti ewp-et

they-ERG 3PL.S-look.at-PF:3PL.O girl-NOM:PL shy-ADV
They looked at the girls shyly (=with shyness)

(b) r-nan n-iwp-ite-net ewcqetqe-ti

they-ERG 3PL.S-look.at.-PF:3PL.O girl-NOM:PL
They looked-with-shyness at the girls

Negative manner may be expressed by a negative adverbial participle, e.g.:

remk-n e-nwi-ke n-taaqo-qen

guest-NOM:SG NEG-stop-NEG NRES-smoke-NRES:3PG
The guest smoked without stopping

Extent is usually expressed by a denominal adverbial form marked with the suffix
-mi like, to a given extent:

jara- qikkin metr-me ikw--n

house-NOM:SG twenty twenty-EXT high-PN-NOM:SG
 102

a house twenty metres high

koworo-or ron=metr-me iw--n

truck-NOM:SG three=metre-EXT long-PN-NOM:SG
a truck three metres long

Anterior-duration is expressed by means of a nominal form marked with the

suffix -ten before, about and a dative case ending: woq-tan-et by the evening,
aa-et by the winter, ktor-tan-et until the last year.

Posterior-duration is expressed by means of a nominal form marked with the

suffix -ten before, about and an ablative case ending: aa-p since winter,
erro-tan-ep since dawn, et-tan-ep from now on.
 103

CHAPTER 3. SYNTAX

In the present chapter we will consider some of the important topics of the
syntactic structure in Chukchi.
The main problems discussed in the sketch are: basic syntactic structures found in
simple sentences, including the nominative and the ergative strategies of marking verbal
arguments, sentences with a verbal predicate, sentences with a nominal predicate
(taxonomic, identification sentences and some other types), the verbal valency and
argument derivation (including causative and antipassive constructions), relative
constructions, word order in different syntactic groups, compound and complex
sentences. Special attention is paid to incorporation, which plays an important role in the
syntactic structure of Chukchi sentences.

3.1. Basic syntactic structure

3.1.1. Sentences with a verbal predicate

Chukchi has a strict distinction of transitive and intransitive verbs.

An intransitive verb has only one core argument a subject argument (S-
argument). An S-argument is inflected for the nominative and controls both agreement
slots (prefix and suffix) in polypersonal conjugation and the suffix agreement slot in
monopersonal conjugation.
E.g.:

ajwe ekk pkir-i

yesterday son-NOM:SG arrive-PF:3SG.S
Yesterday the son arrived

inqej amqn=co ine n-jet-qin

boy-NOM:SG every=day in.the.morning NRES-come-NRES:3SG.S
The boy comes every day in the morning

A transitive verb has two core arguments: a subject argument (S-argument) and an
object argument (O-argument). An S-argument is inflected for the ergative and controls
the prefix agreement slot of polypersonal conjugation, while an O-argument is inflected
for nominative and controls the suffix agreement slot of polypersonal conjugation. In
monopersonal conjugation it is the O-argument of a transitive verb that controls the suffix
agreement slot.

m-nan t-jp-nat ti-t

I:ERG 1SG.S-put.on-PF:3PL.O ski-NOM:PL
I put on the skies
 104

t a-pela-jt
thou:NOM RES-leave-2SG.O
You were left

3.1.2. Sentences with a nominal predicate

The following types of nominal clauses are distinguished: existential, taxonomic,

characterising, and identification nominal clauses.
Existential clauses in Chukchi are opposed to all other types of nominal clauses,
they are not merely nominal ones. They have the verb it- be, be found governing the
nominative S-argument.
E.g.:

enmen qo -it-in, teenjep m am. -

then one RES-be- in.old.times PTL PTL
RES:3SG.S
The was one (person), in the old times
ktaw qun, mikri n-it-qin ?
PTL PTL how NRES-be-NRES:3SG
Well then, how was he?

Since in nominal clauses this verb is not used as an auxiliary verb, there are
grounds to consider existential clauses as verbal ones.
Taxonomic clauses indicating the membership of a nominal argument in a class of
objects have two main patterns.
The first pattern, the most natural one, is a combination of two adjacent noun
phrases, one of them being the S-argument, the other the predicate, cf.:

mnin ekk tara--n

my:3SG son:NOM:SG build.PN-NOM:SG
My son is a builder

The second pattern uses the verb it-, that in this context has the meaning serve
as. This verb is compatible with all categorial values in accordance with semantics of a
clause. In predicate position the noun is inflected for the designative, cf.:

wjo-o n-it-qin
servant-DESG NRES-be-NRES:3SG.S
He was a servant

Characterizing clauses add individual properties to the nouns referent. In the

predicate position it is most natural the usage of adjective.
 105

ewen n-te-qin jarat

wife:NOM:SG ADJ-good-ADJ:3SG PTL
(His) wife was very pretty

Identification clauses have the same structure as the other nominal clauses do:
they consist of two adjacent noun phrases being in the relation of referential identity. The
auxiliary verb it- be, be found inflected for resultative is also possible here. Cf.

kako, mitiw ee-it.

INTJ I.thought shaman-2SG
Oh, I thought you are a shaman!

3.2. Verb valency and argument derivation

3.2.1. Lability

Labile verbs license one-place as well as two-place government pattern, the first
one realising an intransitive and the latter a transitive usage, without adding any
markers to the verb. Thus, such verbs allow two diatheses intransitive and transitive
ones.
The most typical example is the frequently used verb iw- say that has two
government patterns: with one S-argument and with two arguments: an S-argument and
an O-argument (the latter expresses the addressee), cf.

qaw.qaj ik-wi ...

man.little:NOM:SG say-PF:3SG.S
The man said: ...

rrka-t ire.q iw-ni-net ...

walrus-NOM:PL two say-3SG.S:3.O-3PL.O
(He) said to the two walruses: ...

Another typical example is a pronominal verb req- / re what is X doing? which

may be used either as intransitive or a transitive verb, cf.

o, re-i me arnen qocetknat-e

oh what.do-PF:3SG.S again outer.world:NOM:SG make.noise PF:3SG.S
Oh, that is the matter (with the world), again the world is full of noise

req-rk-n, kimew-rk-n.
what.do-IPF-3SG.O cause.delay-IPF-3SG.O
What are you doing, you are causing him to be late!
 106

3.2.2. Causative constructions

Chukchi is a language with a typical morphological causative. That means that the
causativization itself is expressed by the affix. There are different causative affixes in
Chukchi, but all of them start with the prefix
All of them have a prefixal part with the alternating variants r-/-n-, of which r
occurs word-initially, and n word-medially. Both intransitive and transitive verbs can
be made causative ones. The causer, that is the S-argument, is marked for the ergative,
while the causee becomes the O-argument, it is marked for the nominative, cf.

enmen rat-e, metek-wi.

then come-PF:3SG.S cannot.do- PF:3SG.S
At last she came home, she could not do anything

enmen an awc-n na-n.rat.at-an.

then PTL herd-NOM:SG LOW.S.bring.home-3SG.O
The they brought home the herd

req-k m qiket-i, kee-k m qiket-i.

what.creature PTL marry-PF:3SG.S kele-LOC PTL marry-PF:3SG.S
What creature she married? a demon she married

kaa-t -ine-neikew-it.
kele-DAT RES-1SG.O-make.marry-RES:2SG.S
You made me marry a demon

Since the Chukchi verb always agrees with the object, a causative transitive verb
always agrees with the causee, so it can be omitted, cf.:

m-nan t-r.ekwet.ew-n aw -ety

I-ERG 1SG.S-make.depart -PF:3SG.O herd-DAT
I sent [him] to the herd

The omittance of the causee for a bitransitive verb is not registered, since the
causee is usually expressed here by a dative or locative case noun phrase:

npew-e r.tenm-ne-n ir-n aakka-t

old.woman-ERG make.try.on-PF:3SG.O fur.coat-NOM:SG girl-DAT
The old woman tried the fur coat on the girl
 107

3.2.3. Antipassive constructions

Increasing the syntactic status of a noun phrase is possible in the context of multi-
place verbs due to the fact that the single argument of a one-place verb initially occupies
the highest position the position of a nominative case noun phrase. Increasing is marked
by the antipassive marker ine-, identical to the agreement marker 1SG.O. In most cases
it increases the status of an S-argument of a transitive verb, cf.:

t-e qora- qrir-ni-n

father-ERG reindeer-NOM:SG look.for-3SG.S:3.O-3SG.O
The father looked for the reindeer

t-n ine-rir-i
father-NOM:SG ANTI-look.for-PF:3SG.S
The father did some seaching

In many of cases the antipassive construction is motivated by the communicative

structure of a sentence, namely by the speakers desire to focus attention on an argument
occupying the non-central position in the verbal government pattern, or, conversely, to
remove an argument from the pragmatically salient position.
For details see [Kozinsky, Nedjalkov, Polinskaya 1988], and also [Comrie 1979].

3.3. Relative constructions

The main means of relative clause formation in Chukchi is a participial

construction with different types of participles.
The participial strategy is often represented by a deverbal adjective marked with
the relative suffix -kin(e), while the subject of the relative clause is marked with the
possessive suffix -in(e), cf.:

ewen-in m pat=ret u-nin

wife-POSS:3SG PTL sledge=way:NOM:SG see-3SG.S:3.O-
3SG.O ntew-kin.
run-REL
He saw the trace of the slege his wife went by

The past participle marked with the suffix -jo can also be used here, cf.

enmen ewr pea-jo rrk ttooca

then PTL leave-PP walrus:NOM:SG in.front.of
n-ne-qin.
NRES-become-NRES:3SG
Then also the walrus which he had passed came up in front
 108

Denominal forms with attributivizer -l or its negative counterpart e-...-klin are

also rather frequent:

pakoc-n rnen-ni-n a-t=mot-a

womans.knife carry-3SG.S:3-3SG.O COM-hard=blood-COM
ktuwet-a-n.
cover-ATR-NOM:SG
She carried her woman's knife, which was covered with coagulated blood

enmen waqt=ra.c-n ne-u-en, penin

then jaw=house.big LOW.S-see-3SG.O former
uje oraweta-ken.
not man-NEG:3SG
At last they saw a jaw-bone house, which for a long time had remained uninhabited

3.4. Reflexivization

The argument reflexivization (affecting the argument position) is expressed in

Chukchi with the help of the reflexive pronoun uwik oneself (lit. body), and
possessive reflexivization (affecting the possessive position) uses the pronoun cinitkin
/cinit ones own (the second variant is used in the case of incorporation), cf.:

o, wi-i, uwik tm-ne-n.

INTJ die-PF:3SG.S body:NOM:SG kill-3SG.S:3.O-3SG.O
O, he died, he killed himself

nkam cinit-kin karet-n n-ena-cekaare-qen.

and own palm-NOM:SG NRES-INV-cover.with. saliva-
NRES:3SG.S
And he covered his own palm with saliva

3.5. Word Order

In verbal clauses the word order is either SOV or SVO, but the first one is more
frequent, cf.

r-nan jarac-n ne-tejk-en.

they-ERG tent-NOM:SG LOW.S-make-3SG.O
They made a tent
 109

qametwa-at, neme en ne-nw-en

have.meal again PTL LOW.S-put.away-3SG.O
qeme-
plate-NOM:SG
They eat again, and put away the dish

A subject noun phrase usually occupies the initial position, but it can also follow
an onject noun phrase, cf.

ke ewen-e iw-ni-n ...

demon:NOM:SG wife-ERG say-3SG.S:3.O-3SG.O
The wife told the demon ...

In noun phrases the modifier either precedes or follows the head of the noun
phrase, the first order is more frequent, cf.

imcecu-kin ne.qe-ti
ermine-REL:3SG skin.little-NOM:PL
little skins from ermines

.nin uwik cinit.kin

his body own
his own body

ttep.c-n kee-kin ik-wi ...

the.elderst-NOM:SG demon-REL:3SG say-PF:3SG.S
The eldest of demons said ...

Word order has no strictly grammatical functions except in the following

situations:
1. The nominal subject of the copular constructions must stand before the
complement, e.g.:

mur-i cawcwa-more
we-NOM reindeer.breeder-1PL
We are reindeer breeders

2. The head personal pronoun of the oppositional construction must stand before
the oppositional modifier, e.g.:

-nan inqej-iyt q-tiu--tk il-n

thou-ERG boy-2SG OPT:2PL.S-tighten-OPT:2-3SG.O belt-NOM:SG
You boy, tighten the belt !
 110

3.6. Compound and complex sentences

Clausal coordination is not accompanied by any strict rules of coreferential noun

phrases marking. Practically all possible strategies (repetition of full nominations,
replacement of full nomination by a pronoun or its deletion) are realized, cf.

ajwana.j-n a-ktmat-en,
aywan-NOM:SG RES-extend.hands-RES:3SG.S
enmen cawcwa-ta penr-ne-n.
then reindeer.breeder-ERG assault-3SG.S:3.O-3SG.O
The Aywan extended his hands, the the reindeer-breeder assaulted him.

Strings of verbs occuring together do not loose any features. Strings of

subordinate verbs are often expressed by non-finite verbal forms, e.g.:

ajaw-ma m-nan ta , am-koraw-ma ajmaw-ma

call-CONV I-ERG mother:NOM:SG CONV-rejoice-CONV come-CONV
tl-n jara-t , caket m tocqcet-e
father-NOM:SG house-DAT sister:NOM:SG PTL run.out-PF:3SG.S
When I called [my] mother, rejoicing that [my] father was coming up to the house, [my]
sister also ran out

3.7. Incorporation
3.7.1. Types of incorporation

Different types of syntactic relations in Chukchi can be expressed by means of

incorporation. The subordinate word is incorporated into a word-form of a dominant
word without any category marking. Chukchi displays a great variety of different types of
incorporation. There are verbal complexes (with a verb as a dominant stem), as well as
nominal complexes (with a noun as a dominant stem). Verbs incorporate different
syntactic subordinates, such as subjects, direct objects, oblique objects and even
adverbial modifiers, while nouns ususally incorporate different types of attributes,
expressed by adjectives, nouns, numerals and pronouns. The subordinate stem of an
incorporation complex always precedes the corresponding dominant stem, so the Chukchi
incorporation is of the left-side type. Incorporation complexes are marked according to
the grammatical class of the dominant stem a verb or a noun.
According to the meaning it expresses, incorporation in Chukchi may be of two
different types: semantic, used to express different shades of meaning, and syntactic
(obligatory in some syntactic context).
In case of the semantic incorporation the incorporated noun is used to express
specific semantics, and it is characterised by the following semantic features (or a
combination of them):
1) it is usually a non-referential noun phrase;
 111

2) it cannot be the theme or the rheme of the utterance;

3) it refers to the background information of the utterance.
In case of the syntactic incorporation the noun phrase (or some grammatical other
unit) is incorporated only due to its syntactic position, so incorporation does not express
any specific semantics at all (if not the background information). For example, a
subordinate noun is usually incorporated into a participle-noun phrase (see below).
See general papers on incorporation [Sapir 1911], [Kroeber 1910], [Mithun 1986],
[Koptjevskaja, Muravyova], and special papers on Chukchi and Chukchi-Kamchatkan
incorporation [Korsakov 1939], [Skorik 1948], [Nedjalkov 1976; Nedjalkov 1977;
Nedjalkov 1979; Nedjalkov 1982], [Polinskaya, Nedjalkov 1987], [Muravyova 1994a;
Muravyova 1994b], [Koptjevskaja, Muravyova 1993].

3.7.2. Verbal complexes

According to the subordinate stem and its syntactic function, the following types
of verb incorporation occur with verbal complexes:
1) subject incorporation (incorporation of the 1st actant);
2) direct object incorporation (incorporation of the 2nd actant);
3) direct object incorporation (incorporation of the 2nd actant);
4) adverb incorporation;
5) verb incorporation;
All these cases demonstrate incorporation of the semantic type.

3.7.2.1. Noun subject incorporation

The subject incorporation is attested for only one-actant intransitive verbs, and
with a non-agentive noun subject. This type is usually observed in situations when the
noun denotes an entity belonging to nature and the verbal construction describes an event
typical for this entity. Besides, in case of incorporation the subject is not the theme of the
utterance, and the speaker wants to describe the situation as a whole. E.g.:
When the subject is expressed as a separate word, it is an nominative case noun
phrase and the verb agrees with the subject. In case of incorporation the verb looses its
only actant, the construction becomes impersonal and the verb agrees in person and
number with a zero subject as if it were a 3rd person singular actant. E.g.:

tirk-tir amecat-e
sun-NOM:SG rise-PF:3SG.S
The sun rose

terk=amecat-e
sun-rise-PF:3SG.S
It sun-rose
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ji-n inini-i
moon-NOM:SG appear-PF:3SG
The moon appeared

ji=inini-i
moon=appear-PF:3SG
It moon-appeared

we-ti inini-e-t
grass-NOM:PL appear-PF:3PL
The grass appeared

wej=inini-i
grass=appear-PF:3SG
It grass-appeared

3.7.2.2. Noun direct object incorporation

The direct object incorporation is observed both for transitive and bitransitive
verbs.
When the direct object of a two-actant (=transitive) verb is used as a seperate
word, the verb agrees both with the subject (an instrumental case noun phrase) and the
direct object (an nominative case noun phrase) and the construction is personal and
ergative. But when the direct object is incorporated, the verb becomes one-actant
(=intransitive) and agrees only with the subject (an nominative case noun phrase), so the
construction becomes nominative. E.g.:

1. Common direct object.

m-nan qora-t t-nrit-et

I-ERG reindeer-NOM:PL 1SG.S-guard-PF:3PL.O
I guarded the reindeer

m t-qora-nret-ak
I:NOM 1SG-reindeer=guard-PF1SG
I reindeer-guarded (= I was engaged in guarding reindeers)

ataw wa m-mne-rk-n
let(int.) knife-NOM:SG OPT:1SG.S-sharpen-IPF-3SG.O
Let me sharpen the knife
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ataw m-waa-mna-rkn
let(int.) OPT:1SG.S-knife-sharpen-IPF
Let me do knife-sharpening

In case of a bitransitive verb (i.e. a verb having a direct and some other object)
only the direct object may be incorporated. In this case the syntactic structure of the
whole sentence may be changed (see further).

Incorporation also takes place when the direct object is a possessed of an indirect
object (or some other element), e.g.:

2. Direct object is a body part of the subject.

m-nan jkr-n t-w-en

I-ERG mouth-NOM:SG 1SG.S-burn-PF:3SG.O
I burnt [my] mouth

m t-jkr=w-ek
I:NOM 1SG.S-mouth-burn-PF:1SG.S
I mouth-burnt

3. Direct object is the other participant's body part.

qnwer m-nan nin veo-n t-re-cwitku--n

look(intj. I-ERG your:3SG ear-NOM:SG 1SG.S-POT-cut-POT-3SG.O
)
Look, I will cut off your ear

qnwer m t t-re-wiu-cwitku-t
look(intj. I-NOM thou:NOM 1SG.S-POT-ear-cut-2SG.O
)
Look, I will cut you the ear/ears

m-nan nin awt t-ra-rkp-an

I-ERG thy:3SG head:NOM:SG 1SG.S-POT-strike-PF:3SG.O
I'll strike your head

m-nan t t-ra-awt-rkp-t
I-ERG thou:NOM 1SG.S-head=strike-PF:2SG.O
I'll head-strike you
 114

When the direct object is incorporated, some other noun phrase may be promoted
to its syntactic position (see further).

3.7.2.3. Noun oblique object incorporation

Different kinds of indirect objects of two-actant verbs may be incorporated:

locations (expressed by a locative proper, dative or ablative case noub phrase),
instruments (usually expressed by an instrumental case noun phrase), parts of body
(usually expressed by an instrumental case noun phrase).
When the indirect object is used as a separate word, the verb is two-actant, but
intransitive. The verb agrees only with the subject, which is a nominative case noun
phrase, and the construction is personal and nominative. When the oblique object is
incorporated, the verb becomes one-actant, but it agrees with the subject in the same way
as without incorporation, so that the construction remains personal and nominative and
no visible changes are observed. E.g.:
The following types of oblique objects may be incorporated:

1. Oblique object is an instrument of the action.

inqe-ti kenm-e n-peca-qena-t

boy-NOM:PL palm-ERGR NRES-clap-NRES-3PL.S
The boys clapped [their] hands

inqe-ti n-kanm=peca-qena-t
boy-NOM:PL NRES-palm-clap-NRES-3PL.S
The boys applauded

mur-i qep-e mt-uwicwet-rkn

we-NOM ball-ERG 1PL.S-play-IPF
We are playing with a ball

mur-i mt-qep-uwicwet-rkn
we-NOM 1PL.S-ball=play-IPF
We are ball-playing

2. Oblique object is a location (expressed by a dative, ablative or locative case

noun phrase).

inqej t-et qt-i

boy:NOM:SG lake-DAT go-PF:3SG.S
The boy went to the lake
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inqej t=qt-e
boy:NOM:SG lake=go-PF:3SG.S
The boy lake-went

m aw-et t-ekwet-ek
I:NOM herd-DAT 1SG-go-PF:1SG
I went to the herd

m t-aw=akwat-ak
I:NOM 1SG-herd=go-PF:1SG
I herd-went (= I went to some herd)

3. Oblique object is a body part.

t pi-e t-rkn
thou:NOM throat-ERG ache-IPF
You are not well with your throat

t pi=t-rkn
thou:NOM throat=ache-IPF-2SG
You are throat-aching

3.7.2.4. Adverb incorporation

When an noun is not incorporated, a qualitative stem may be incorporated. Being

used as a separate word, it is usually marked with n-...-ew, e.g.:

npnac-n n-untm-ew n-wakotwa-qen wkw-k

old.man-NOM:SG ADV-silently-ADV NRES-sit-NRES:3SG stone-LOC
The old man was sitting silently on the stone

npnac-n n-ontm=wakotwa-qen wkw-k

old.man-NOM:SG NRES-silent=sit-NRES:3SG stone-LOC
The old man was silently-sitting on the stone

3.7.2.5. Verb incorporation

Verbs expressed in a separate usage as non-finite forms may be also incorporated,

e.g.:
 116

aa-t rie-te n-ekwet-qine-t

bird-NOM:PL fly-CONV NRES-go-NRES-3PL
Birds are going away, flying

aa-t n-rie-ekwet-qine-t
bird-NOM:PL NRES-fly=go-NRES-3PL
Birds are fly-going away

3.7.2.6. Changes caused by incorporation

Since an incorporated element is no more a syntactic actant, incorporation may

cause changes both in marking agreement with subject and object and in the general
syntactic structure of a sentence. Some changes caused by incorporation (chiefly
morphological) were described above. Here we will describe some syntactic changes
when the position formely occupied by the incorporated word is filled in with some other
subordinate element.
When the subject of an intransitive verb is incorporated, some other noun phrase
may be promoted to the position of a subject. This happens only when the relation
between the "new" subject and the "old" one may be qualified as possession (in the broad
sence of this term). This type of incorporation was described in [Nedjalkov 1976; 1977].
E.g.:

murin nanq-t n-t-qine-t

our:3SG belly-NOM:PL NRES-ache-NRES-3PL
Our bellies ache

mur-i n-nanq=t-more
we-NOM NRES-belly=ach-1PL
We belly-ache

t-in qora-t wi-et

father-POSS:3SG reindeer-ABL:PL die-PF:3PL
Father's reindeer died

t-n qora-we-e
father-NOM:SG reindeer=die-PF:3SG
Father reindeer-died

ej-k - t-i
hill-LOC snow-NOM:SG melt-PF:3SG
The snow melted on the hill
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e-n --i
hill-NOM:SG snow=melt-PF:3SG
The hill snow-melted

When the direct object of a bitransitive verb is expressed as a separate word, the
verb agrees both with the subject (an instrumental case noun phrase) and the direct object
(a nominative case noun phrase), so the construction is ergative.
When the direct object of a bitransitive verb is incorporated, the verb becomes
two-actant. In this situation there are two different ways of expressing the non-
incorporated syntactical object:
1) it may preserve its status of the indirect object (an oblique case noun phrase);
in this case the verb is two-actant, but intransitive, the subject is in the nominative case
and the verb agrees only with the nominative case noun phrase, so the construction is
nominative;
2) it may be promoted to the status of a "new" direct object (a nominative case
noun phrase); in this case the verb is two-actant and transitive, the subject is in the
instrumental case and the verb agrees both with the subject and the "new" object, so the
construction is ergative.
Both possibilities may be realized in Chukchi. E.g.:

t-e akka-t qora-t tm-ninet

father-ERG son-DAT reindeer-NOM:PL kill-PF:3PL.O
The father killed (the) reindeer for his son

t-n akka-t qaa=nmat-e

father-NOM:SG son-DAT reindeer=kill-PF:3SG.S
The father did reindeer-killing for his son

t-e ekk qaa=nm-nen

father-ERG son-NOM kill-PF:3SG.O
Ther father reindeer-killed [for] his son

3.7.3. Nominal complexes

3.7.3.1. Noun incorporation

Nominal complexes may have either a noun or a participle-noun as a dominant

stem.
A special non-finite form of the Chukchee verb is participle-noun. The participle
noun is usually used as an appositional noun phrase to the head noun, which is the subject
of the verb, e.g.:

uwicwet.l-t ninqe-ti n-li-qulilet-qine-t

play.ATR-NOM:PL boy-NOM:PL NRES-very-cry-NRES-3PL.S
 118

The playing boys were crying very loudly

Together with the head noun it may be used in different oblique cases (but not
prepositional cases comitative and associative, when the participle-noun is incorporated
into the head noun form), e.g.:

uwicwet.-et inqej-et e-jt-ine-t kenti-t

play.PN-DAT boy-DAT RES-give-RES-3PL.S sweet-NOM:PL
They gave the sweets to the playing boy/boys

Other actants are usually incorporated into a participle-noun word form, e.g.:

tur-i ajmak=emte-k-tore wne q-rat-tk

you-NOM NEG:carcass=carry-NEG-2PL (int.) OPT:2PL-go.home-PF:2PL
You, [who] do not carry the carcasses, go home

When the dominant stem is a noun proper, incorporation is used to express

specific semantics, i.e. it is of the semantic type. E.g.:

wkw-en poj-n wkw=poj-n

stone-POSS:3SG spear-NOM:SG stone-spear-NOM:SG
a spear made of a stone a stone spear

ewcqet-in ewir-n ewcqet=ewir-n

woman-POSS:3SG dress-NOM:SG woman-dress-NOM:SG
a dress of a woman women's dress, dress for women

When the dominant component is a participle-noun, the subordinate noun is

usually incorporated, so this type of incorporation may be considered syntactic, e.g.:

umk=nrit--n pnnac-n tara-e

wood-guard-PN-NOM:SG old.man-NOM:SG house.build-PF: 3SG.S
t-roc-k
lake-other.side-LOC
The old man guarding a wood built a house on the other side of the lake

tur-i a-wkw=ece-k-tore inqej-turi

you- NEG-stone-gather-NEG-2PL boy-NOM:PL
NOM
weer q-cajpat--tk
at.least OPT:2PL.S-make.tea-CON-2PL.S
You, boys who do not gather stones, make tea at least
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3.7.3.2. Adjective incorporation

When the dominant noun is a nominative case noun phrase and the adjective is
used autonomously, this means that the characteristic feature of the object is stressed and
the autonomy of the adjective expresses its thematic or rhematic prominence. In case of
the incorporated variant the adjective is merely a semantic extension of the notion
expressed by the noun. Thus, such examples demonstrate incorporation of the semantic
type. E.g.:

n-erme-qin aacek arm=aacek

ADJ-strong-ADJ:3SG youth-NOM:SG strong=youth-NOM:SG
a strong youth, a youth who is strong a strong-youth

aqa.kena-t aa-t aqa.kena=aa-t

sea.REL-3PL bird-NOM:PL sea.REL=bird-NOM:PL
birds [that are from] the sea sea-birds

In all other cases, when the dominant element is an oblique case noun phrase,
incorporation may be judged syntactic, since it is determined mostly by the syntactic
position of an adjective.
Incorporation is obligatory for prefixal cases, that is for the comitative and
associative cases. This type of incorporation is undoubtedly syntactic. E.g.:

t-pkir-ek a-ta=tom-ma
1SG.S-arrive-PF:1SG.S ASC-good=friend-ASC
I came with [my] good friend

m n-wae-jm a-otqen-nena=cakett-a
I:NOM NRES-sew-1SG.S COM-this(person)-POSS=sister-COM
I sew together with this person's sister

itu-it rie-i a-t-kena=aa-ma

goose-NOM:SG 3SG.S-fly-PF-3SG.S ASC-lake-REL=bird-ASC
The goose flew away with the lake-birds

If the dominant element is some other oblique case noun phrase, the qualitive and
relative adjectives are usually incorporated, e.g.:

maj=tw-k wako-at knken oraweta-t

big=boat-LOC board-PF:3PL.S fifteen man-NOM:PL
Fifteen persons boarded a big boat
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emnu-kine=nmnm-k n-twa-qen
tundra-REL=settlement-LOC NRES-stay-NRES:3SG
He stays in the tundra's settlement

But when the feature expressed by the adjective is emphasized, the autonomous
variant should be used. This is more typical for the instrumental and locative cases and
mostly for relative adjectives. E.g.:

emnu-kine-k nmnm-k n-twa-qen

tundra-REL-LOC settlement-LOC NRES-stay-NRES:3SG
He stays in the `tundra's settlement

n-mej-qine-k tw-k wako-at

ADJ-big-ADJ-LOC boat-LOC 3PL.S-board-PF:3PL.S
knken oraweta-t
fifteen man-NOM:PL
Fifteen men boarded a `big boat