ainu lesson 4

7/30/2019 Ainu Lesson 4

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Lesson 4: Direct objectsLesson 4 original page (April 23, 2006)

(my comments are in blue)

Title

How to say "subject ~ verb ~ object"

As will become clear in .3 seconds, Ainu uses "subject object verb" word order, as does Japanese.

That is, the sentence "the cat ate the ham" would be "the cat the ham ate".

Model sentences:

1. Hekaci itanki eyapkir. The boy throws [threw] away his bowl.

2. Unarpe suma oterke.Auntie steps [stepped] on a stone.

Vocabulary

cep: fish

cikap: bird

cikir: leg/foot

ermun: mouse, rat

etor: snot, nasal mucus

eyapkir: to throw/cast away

hekaci: boyitanki: wooden bowl

kar: to make

ker: shoes

kikir: insect

korkoni: clumsiness

oterke: to step on

pirka: good, fine [in the radio broadcasts, the instructor says "pirka pirka" when the learner says

something correctly.]

sinep: one (the number)

suma: stone

terke: to jumpunarpe: auntie [The Japanese word here is "obasan," which can mean one's aunt, or generally refer

to a middle-aged-to-elderly woman. Whether the Ainu word has both of these meanings or only one,

I cannot tell you. See also "acapo."]

About The Words

We have already learned that Ainu has no subject-marking particle. In this lesson, we see that Ainu

does not use a particle to mark the direct object, either.


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In Ainu, often a sentence will just be the subject - object - verb words lined up in order. This makes

construction of basic sentences fairly simple.

We learned in Lesson 3 that there is no real difference between sentences constructed in present

and past tense. Thus, in the examples for this lesson, both possible translations are given.

Caution re. Pronunciation

[How to pronounce a "pk" and a final "p", an "rp" and a final "r". I reccomend repeating "trapcat slap

a larp star" to yourself.]

With the exception ofn, Japanese consonants are always followed by a vowel, so in katakana, Ainu

words like "oterke" or "unarpe" are written "o-te-ru-ke" or "u-na-ru-pe." While the first pronunciation

section schools us on how to notpronounce these vowels, the second suggests that sometimes they

are pronounced in Ainu: Depending on the region and the individual, these may be pronounced [and

katakana-ized] in various ways, such as "unarape" and "oterape." (The roman spellings do not

change.)

e.g.:

ermun could be erumun or eremun

korkonicould be korukoni or korokoni

Exercises

Use the vocabulary provided to translate these sentences into Ainu.

1. Uncle buys sak. ( ______ ) ( ______ ) ( ______ ).

tonopo: alcohol, sak

hok: to buy

acapo: uncle [The Japanese word here is "ojisan," which can mean one's uncle, or generally refer to

a middle-aged-to-elderly man. See "unarpe."]

2. The dog ate [eats] a bone. ( ______ ) ( ______ ) ( ______ ).

pone: bone

sita: dog

e: to eat

Samani and the Ainu People ~ Parents-and-Child Rocks

There are several interestingly-shaped crags in the ocean around Samani, and several interesting

legends attached to them.

The rocks on the cover of the Ainu Language Radio textbook are called the "Parents-and-Child

Rocks" because they are three rocks of different sizes standing in a line in the ocean.

Long ago, goes the legend, there was a war in the east, and the losing village chief fled here with his

family. When the chief ran into the sea he turned into a stone, but the arrows of his pursuers struck

and split him into three pieces. (as told by Mr/s. Kirita Suma in The History of Samani).


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Furthermore, the name the Ainu gave these rocks is recorded on Edo-period maps as

"Honrefushihe", which is thought to have been pronounced "Ponrehusipe" (pon = small, rehusipe =

rock in the sea).

On the other hand, in The History of Samanithere are other rocks labelled "Unperepunke" (unpe

means a river near the sea, and repunke was perhaps originally "repunike" which means a rock inthe sea), so this may be another name for them.

Lesson 3 Practice Exercise Answers

1. Niman rera ruy

2. Hoskanuman upas as

ainu lesson 4

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