1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
|
# Parts of speech
## Nouns
### Nominal phrases
1. Head noun
2. Totality
3. Quantifier/Number
4. Classifier
5. Attributive modifiers
6. Demonstrative
7. Prepositional phrase
## Pronoun
### Neutral
Neutral pronouns are similar to how they are in English. It is however mainly
used in formal speech or formal writing. Using it on an one-on-one
conversation implies either unfriendliness or distance.
| Person | Pronoun |
|--------|---------|
| 1st | hwa |
| 2nd | ti |
| 3rd | nu |
Neutral pronouns can be pluralized by numerals and quantifiers as if they are
nouns. Note that first plural personal pronoun is always exclusive.
### Familiar
Gendered pronouns are chiefly used among people who are equal and close to one
another, but not blood-related.
| Person | Male | Female | Male (intimate) | Female (intimate)|
|--------|--------|--------|-----------------|------------------|
| 1st | min | dwi | na | mì |
| 2nd | hon | hja | san | kun |
| 3rd | hàn | mù | ba | njan |
Note: "intimate" pronouns are used between lovers.
There is no gender-neutral pronouns in this category. Nonbinary people usually
pick the one they're most comfortable with or invent neopronouns, though that
meets several criticism from many linguistic purists. Another option for them
is to use kinship pronouns, which include gender-neutral pronouns for sibling
(though, not age-neutral).
### Hierarchical
There are not many non-familial hierarchies in Zì community, but the contrast
in such relationships is showed clearly via pronouns. These pronouns lack
third person pronoun.
Hierarchical pronouns comes in pair, with one in the higher position and one in
the lower:
- chieftain (kjá) - denizen (tò)
- teacher (se) - student (him)
- leader (zi) - follower (him)
One can be in several of these relationships at once.
For example, one of the denizen can be the chieftain's teacher, in which case
each party uses the lower pronoun for oneself and the higher for the other.
### Kinship
- great-grandparent: sjà
- grandfather: fu
- grandmother: bu
- father: ba
- father's elder brother: fa
- father's elder brother's wife: nàn
- father's elder sister: bǎ
- father's elder sister's husband: gon
- father's younger sibling: hju
- father's younger sibling's spouse: tin
- mother: ma
- mother's elder brother: fá
- mother's elder brother's wife: nàn
- mother's elder sister: zǐ
- mother's elder sister's husband: gon
- mother's younger sibling: vǎ
- mother's younger sibling's spouse: mjé
- elder brother: kje
- elder sister: dje
- younger sibling: nen
- child: sǔn
- niece/nephew: swá
- grandchild: gun
- great-grandchild: ngi
Note:
- Pronoun for parents' spouses who are not biological parents are the same as
parents
- Pronoun for parent's elder brother's husband is lacked because homosexual
relationships weren't acknowledged before, but he would use the same
pronoun as the parent's elder brother. Likewise, the parent's elder
sister's wife also use the same pronoun as her wife.
- Pronouns for father's elder brother, mother's elder sister, father's younger
sibling, mother's younger sibling
## Verbs
## Adjective
## Classifiers
- human: ngan
- respectful: nga
- derogatory: ngǐ
- diminutive: ngí
- animal: man
- four-legged: khú
- winged: tǐ
- plant: ci
- flower: khje
- fruit-like (fruit, ball, egg): khwi
- thing: kí
- book-like (dictionary, newspaper): hin
- blade-like (knife, scissor, sword): zé
- street-like (river, stream): lwin
- yard-like (pond, lake): son
- very large (sky, ocean, forest): lon
- house-like: ngwo
- clothes: bù
- food: bá
- abstract: tjen
- phenomenon: mwan
## Numerals and Quantifiers
### Numeral
DjanZi numerals is biquinary.
To refer to number zero (0), one use the negation particle *khan*.
| Number | DjanZi |
|--------|------------|
| 1 | khì |
| 2 | fwo |
| 3 | sa |
| 4 | bǔ |
| 5 | nǎ |
| 6 | nǎ khì |
| 7 | nǎ fwo |
| 8 | nǎ sa |
| 9 | nǎ bǔ |
| 10 | ljá |
| 11 | ljá khì |
| 12 | ljá fwo |
| 13 | ljá sa |
| 14 | ljá bǔ |
| 15 | ljá nǎ |
| 16 | ljá nǎ khì |
| 17 | ljá nǎ fwo |
| 18 | ljá nǎ sa |
| 19 | ljá nǎ bǔ |
| 20 | fwo lja |
| 100 | sǎ |
| 1000 | hwèn |
| 1048 | hwèn khan sǎ bǔ lja nǎ sa |
| 10000 | mǎ |
10000 is a very big number already. In daily speech this number is synonymous
with infinity. The next big word is *cwé*, 1000000000000 (trillion) if you
really insist.
### Quantifier
- several, few: ní
- many: fjè
- plenty: mǎ mǎ
- all: khǎ
## Preposition
- at: zjà
- inside: tjǒ
- outside: ngà
- next to: nèn
- against: tá
- on, above: tan
- under, below: dú
- to: khá
- from: khè
- with: vjén
- of: kě
- between: nì
## Conjunction
Conjunctions are words that connects two phrases to form some logical
connection between them. Two conjunctions in a pair can switch place. Ones
inside the parentheses in the below list can be omitted.
- because… so…: dà… so…
- though… but…: mà… nha…
- (either)… or…: (vo)… vo…
- (neither)… nor…: (cǎ)… cǎ…
- (both)… and…: (na)… na…
- … in order to…: ni… lun…
## Particles
### Modal
- imperative mood: ha
- interrogative mood: né
- possibility: sà
- acceptability: là
- admiration: san
- pity: ní
### Adverbial
Adverbial particles indicates tenses and aspects.
- future: kja
- past: lwì
- continuous: can
- perfective: són
- perfect: ljě
|
