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| ISBN-13: | 9781775581109 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Auckland University Press |
| Publication date: | 11/01/2013 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 206 |
| File size: | 17 MB |
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Let's Learn Maori
A Guide to the Study of the Maori Language
By Bruce Biggs
Auckland University Press
Copyright © 1998 Bruce BiggsAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-77558-110-9
CHAPTER 1
1. The phrase
1.1 The phrase as a pause unit of speech
(The examples in this section may be heard on Track 2 of the recordings.)
The phrase, not the word, is the unit of Maori speech which must be emphasised in learning. It is the natural grammatical unit of the language, and even more importantly, it is the natural pause unit of speech. Every sentence in Maori consists of one or more phrases. After every phrase it is permissible to pause briefly. On the other hand it is incorrect to pause after each word within a phrase.
To a native speaker of Maori the pause points come naturally. For our purposes, however, it will be helpful if phrases are marked off by commas, thus:
Haere mai, ki te whare.
Come to the house.
Ka pai, te whare nei.
This house is good.
Each phrase is said as a single intonation contour, the voice rising to a point of intensity which is called the phrase stress. The position of the phrase stress will vary from phrase to phrase, and it may shift position in the same phrase, according to that phrase's position in the sentence. Rules to determine the position of phrase stress are given in section 54.6. In the following examples phrase stress is marked by an acute accent. Elsewhere an appropriate positioning of phrase stress may be determined by listening carefully to the recording of the sentence concerned.
Haere mái, ki te wháre.
Come to the house.
Ka pai, te whare nei.
This house is good.
Teenaa koe, Raapata.
Good-day friend.
Kéi hea, too káainga?
Where is your home?
Kei Aakarána, tooku káainga.
My home is in Auckland.
Listen carefully to the recording of Track 2 until you can recognise the sound of phrase stress. Throughout the recordings each example will be said twice, then followed by a pause which will allow you to repeat it twice. Imitate the pronunciation carefully, paying special attention to phrase stress and to the flow and intonation of the instructor's voice.
1.2 The grammar of the phrase
A Maori phrase consists of two parts, a nucleus and a periphery. The nucleus may be thought of as the central part of the phrase, containing its lexical meaning. The periphery is that part of the phrase which precedes and follows the nucleus. The periphery of the phrase contains its grammatical meaning, indicating, for example, whether it is singular or plural, verbal or nominal, past or present, and so on. A phrase will always contain a nucleus. In some phrases there will be a word or words preceding the nucleus, in other phrases there will be a word or words following the nucleus, while in many phrases there will be words both preceding and following. In a few cases the nucleus will stand alone. The position preceding the nucleus of a phrase is called the preposed periphery; the position following the nucleus is called the postposed periphery.
Maori words may be classified into two kinds, bases and particles. Bases express lexical or real meaning. Thus the words whare 'house' and pai 'good' are bases. On the other hand ka is a particle. It occurs in the preposed periphery and indicates that the following base is being used verbally, so we may say that its meaning is grammatical rather than lexical. Some particles indicate grammatical relationships and functions such as subject, predicate, comment, and focus (see 38 for definition and discussion of these terms). Other particles, especially those occurring in the postposed periphery, limit and define (qualify) the meaning of the base in the nucleus. Bases always occur in the nucleus of the phrase, while particles, with certain exceptions, occur in the periphery.
In the first of the phrases in the above table, the base pai meaning 'good' is shown to be used verbally by the presence of the verbal particle ka in the periphery. So the phrase may be translated 'is good'. In the second phrase the nucleus contains the base whare 'house'. In the preposed periphery the particle te indicates that 'the (one)' house is being referred to. In the postposed periphery nei indicates 'proximity to the speaker', so the whole phrase may be translated 'this house'.
In the third phrase the base haere has a range of meaning which covers both of the English words 'come' and 'go'. In the postposed periphery, however, the particle mai 'motion towards speaker' indicates that in this case haere should be translated 'come', and the whole phrase has the meaning 'come hither' or 'come here'.
In the fourth phrase the base whare appears again in the nucleus position. In the preposed periphery we find two particles. Ki indicates 'motion towards' and, as we know, te means 'the (one)'. The phrase may be translated, therefore, 'to the house'.
In the fifth phrase the base hea 'where?' is preceded by the preposed particle kei which means 'present position'. The sixth phrase contains the base kaainga 'home' preceded by the particle to 'your'. Literally the two phrases mean 'at where your home?' or 'where is your home?' In the seventh and eighth phrases the base Aakarana 'Auckland' is preceded by the same particle kei'present position' and the base kaainga 'home' is preceded by tooku 'my'. The sentence therefore means 'my home is at Auckland.'
All Maori phrases are either verbal phrases or nominal phrases. A verbal phrase is marked as such by a preposed verbal particle as in ka pai, or by imperative intonation as in haere mail (see 8 for discussion of verbal particles). Certain postposed particles may also mark a phrase as being verbal (23.22–3). Any phrase which is not a verbal phrase is a nominal phrase.
Nominal phrases:
ki te whare to the house
te whare the house
kei hea? where?
kei Aakarana at Auckland
to kaainga your home
tooku kaainga my home
Verbal phrases:
ka pai (it is) good
haere mai! come here!
2. The articles
2.1 The indefinite article he
The indefinite article he is preposed to bases which are being used nominally and indefinitely. Number is not indicated by the indefinite article so he whare may mean 'a house' or 'some houses'. Notice that the Maori equivalents of English mass nouns (flesh, water, corn, milk, money, etc.) can occur with he. In such cases he will always translate as 'some'. So we get he kiko, he wai, he kaanga, he miraka, he moni, 'some flesh, some water, some corn, some milk, some money'. He almost always occurs at the beginning of the phrase in which it occurs, and a phrase containing he is identified as an indefinite nominal phrase.
He taane
a man, some men
he kootiro
a girl, some girls
he kaainga
a village, some villages
he aaporo
an apple, some apples
2.2 The definite articles te and nga
2.21 Te is singular, nga is plural
Te and nga are definite articles which are preposed to bases being used nominally. Te indicates that the base is in the singular number; nga indicates plural number. A phrase which begins with te or nga is a definite nominal phrase.
2.22 Te as a class marker
When a whole class of objects is being referred to, the singular definite article te is often used instead of the plural definite article nga. So te kereruu might mean 'the (one) pigeon' or 'the (class of) pigeons' as when we say 'the pigeon is a beautiful bird'.
2.23 Nga with English mass nouns
It must not be thought that because a Maori word is the equivalent of one of the English mass nouns that it will not occur with nga. Nga wai, nga moni, nga kaanga, nga kai, nga toto 'water, money, corn, food, blood' are all appropriate Maori phrases in certain contexts.
2.3 The proper article a
Personal nouns, such as the names of people, or the names of animals or things which are personified, do not occur with the definite or indefinite articles, unless the article is an integral part of the name as in Te Rauparaha, for example. In such cases the form no longer fulfils its function as an article, and it should be regarded simply as part of the name. All personal nouns, in certain situations which will be defined later (35.1), are preposed by the proper article a. Examples of this are to be found at 5.4, 6.32 and 10.2. The proper article always begins the phrase in which it occurs, and any phrase containing the proper article is a proper nominal phrase.
Kei hea, a Pita?
Where is Peter?
Kei Aakarana, a Pita.
Peter is at Auckland.
Kei hea, a Te Rauparaha?
Where is Te Rauparaha?
Kei tooku kaainga, a Te Rauparaha.
Te Rauparaha is at my home.
Kei hea a Mere, a Hoani, a Tiaki?
Where are Mary, John and Jack?
Kei Aakarana, a Mere, kei Pooneke, a Hoani, kei Whakataane, a Tiaki.
Mary is at Auckland, John is at Wellington, Jack is at Whakatane.
Ka pai, a Matiu; ka kino, a Ruka.
Matthew is good; Luke is bad.
Ka pai, teenei whare, a Tama-te-kapua.
This house Tama-te-kapua is good.
Ka kino, teeraa whare, a Maru poo.
That house Maru poo is bad.
3. The positional particles [nei, na, ra and the definitives teenei, teenaa, teeraa
3.1 Nei, na and ra postposed to bases
The particles nei, na and ra can be postposed to a base to indicate position near the speaker (nei), position near the person spoken to (na), and position distant from both (ra). In translating such phrases 'here, there' or 'this, that, these, those' are appropriate.
te pune nei
the spoon here, this spoon
nga pune nei
the spoons here, these spoons
te kapu ra
the cup (yonder), that cup
nga whare na
the houses there (near you), those houses
te whare ra
the house (yonder), that house
3.2 Pronunciation of na and ra
Na and ra are pronounced short before a full-stop and long elsewhere. As with other particles which alternate between short and long these two are always written short.
3.3 Nei, na and ra combined with the definite article
The positional particles may also be affixed to the definite article feto form a set of definitives (15). (Note that the e of te and the a of na and ra becom e long.) Teenei 'this', teenaa 'that (near you)', teeraa 'that (yonder)'. Definitives are preposed to bases, as in the following examples:
teenei pereti
this plate
teenaa pereti
this plate (near you)
teeraa kaapata
that cupboard (yonder)
There is little, if any, difference in meaning between teenei teepu and te teepu nei, both indicating 'one definite table near the speaker', hence 'this table'. The choice of one form rather than another can be regarded as optional.
To indicate plural number all definitives drop the initial t-, thus:
eenei naihi
these knives
eenaa tuuru
those chairs
eeraa hoopane
those pots
To summarise the previous paragraphs study the following examples carefully.
te teepu nei or teenei teepu
this table
nga teepu nei or eenei teepu
these tables
te naihi na or teenaa naihi
that knife (near you)
nga naihi na or eenaa naihi
those knives (near you)
te paoka ra or teeraa paoka
that fork (yonder)
nga paoka ra or eeraa paoka
those forks (yonder)
Kei hea, teeraa naihi? or kei hea, te naihi ra?
Where is that knife?
Kei hea, eeraa naihi? or kei hea, nga naihi ra?
Where are those knives?
Kei tooku kaainga, teeraa pereti or kei tooku kaainga, te pereti ra.
That plate is at my home.
Kei tooku kaainga, eeraa pereti or kei tooku kaainga, nga pereti ra.
Those plates are at my home.
Ka pai, teenaa tuuru or ka pai, te tuuru na.
That chair is good.
Ka pai, eenaa tuuru or ka pai, nga tuuru na.
Those chairs are good.
Kei Aakarana, teeraa kootiro or kei Aakarana, te kootiro ra.
That girl is at Auckland.
Kei Aakarana, eeraa kootiro or kei Aakarana, nga kootiro ra.
Those girls are at Auckland.
Haere mai, ki teenei whare or haere mai, ki te whare nei.
Come to this house.
Haere mai, ki eenei whare or haere mai, ki nga whare nei.
Come to these houses.
4. Nominal sentences
(The examples in this section may be heard on Tracks 3 & 4 of the recordings.)
4.1 Indefinite phrase and common definite phrase
As mentioned previously (2.1) we distinguish verbal phrases, which usually begin with a verbal particle, e.g. ka pai, from nominal phrases. Nominal phrases usually begin with a definitive (15), e.g. te whare, or a preposition (17), e.g. ki te whare.
Phrases combine to build sentences and, unexpectedly to speakers of English, many Maori sentences consist of two nominal phrases juxtaposed. Such verbless, or nominal sentences often correspond to English sentences containing the verb 'to be'. The sentence 'this fish is a snapper' is translated by the Maori nominal sentence he taamure, teenei ika.
Any sentence is a predication in which something is said about something. The thing being discussed is called the subject. What is said about the subject is called the predicate. In the English sentence quoted above 'this fish' is the subject and 'is a snapper' is the predicate. As is usual in English the subject precedes the predicate. English uses a part of the verb 'to be' but Maori makes the same statement by juxtaposing two nominal phrases to give us he taamure, teenei ika. In contrast to English the Maori subject (teenei ika)follows the predicate (he taamure).
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Let's Learn Maori by Bruce Biggs. Copyright © 1998 Bruce Biggs. Excerpted by permission of Auckland University Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction,1 The phrase,
2 The articles,
3 The positional particles nei, na, ra, and the definitives teenei, teenaa, teeraa,
4 Nominal sentences,
5 Active and stative verbal sentences,
6 Comments introduced by i and ki,
7 Passives,
8 Verbal particles,
9 Personal pronouns,
10 Use of the personal pronouns,
11 Locative particles ki, kei, i, hei,
12 Locative bases,
13 Dominant and subordinate possession: the particles a and o,
14 The possessive particles ta and to, and the T-class possessives,
15 The definitives,
16 Parts of speech: the base classes,
17 Prepositions,
18 The possessive prepositions na, no, ma, mo,
19 The imperative with universals,
20 Negative transforms of verbal sentences,
21 The directional particles mai, atu, iho, ake,
22 The manner particles rawa, tonu, kee, noa, pea, koa,
23 The verbal phrase,
24 The actor emphatic,
25 Negative transforms of nominal sentences,
26 Time,
27 Derived nouns,
28 The causative prefix whaka- and derived universals,
29 Kei meaning 'lest' or 'don't',
30 The pseudo-verbal continuous with i te and kei te,
31 Complex phrases,
32 The uses and meanings of i and ki in non-initial phrases,
33 The imperative with statives,
34 Subordinate clauses with kia,
35 The proper article a,
36 The continuative particle ana,
37 Interjections and interjectory phrases,
38 The structure of the simple verbal sentence,
39 No te and its various meanings,
40 Reduplication,
41 The biposed particle anoo,
42 Numerals,
43 Taua and teetahi,
44 The locatives koo, konei, konaa, koraa, reira,
45 Agreement of qualifying bases and manner particles with passives and derived nouns,
46 Hoomai, hoatu and hoake,
47 The postposed particle hoki,
48 The structure of the Maori phrase,
49 Subordinate constituents of complex sentences,
50 Explanatory predicates to stative sentences,
51 Reflexive-intensive pronouns and possessive pronouns,
52 Days, weeks, months and years,
53 More about conditional constituents: 'if' and 'when',
54 A brief guide to pronunciation,
Index and vocabulary,