1 Introduction

Kalaba is a language spoken in an unspecified country. This paper gives a preliminary sketch of Kalaba morphology following a basic item-and-arrangement model. The sketch covers the following topics:

• Phonemes in section 2.
• Morpheme types in section 3.
• Word categories in section 4.
• Inflection in section 5.
• Derivation in section 6.
• Compounding in section 7.
• Allomorphy in section 8.
• Residue in section 9.

There also are three appendices. The first, Appendix A, lists morphemes arranged by morpheme type. The second, Appendix B, lists morphemes arranged by lexical category. Finally, the third, Appendix C, lists morphemes arranged by gloss.

2 Phonemes

Kalaba has the following phonemes (the first column shows the orthographic representations):

3 Morpheme types

Words in Kalaba are formed from morphemes of 9 types. The following table lists the types along with a count of how many instances are listed in the lexicon in Appendix A.

4 Word categories

In this analysis of Kalaba there are 13 major syntactic categories for words. Some of these in turn have subcategories. The following is a complete list of the categories and subcategories that are posited (along with a count of how many instances of each are found in the accompanying lexicon in the appendix).

• Adjunct
• Article (0)
  • Definite article
  • Indefinite article
• Disc
• Interjection
• Marker (0)
  • Aspectual
  • Case marker
  • Focus marker
  • Honorific marker
  • Modal
  • Mood
  • Negation
  • Number
  • Person
  • Quotative
  • Rank marker
  • Switch reference marker
  • Tense marker
  • Topic marker
  • Voice marker
• Modifier (0)
  • Adjective (3)
  • Adverb (4)
• Negator (1)
• Noun (11)
  • Common noun
  • Concrete noun (4)
  • Nominal
  • Possessive noun
  • Proper noun
• Particle (4)
• Precategorial
• Pronoun (0)
  • Demonstrative pronoun
  • Indefinite pronoun
  • Interrogative pronoun
  • Personal pronoun
  • Posessive pronoun
  • Relative pronoun
• Relator (0)
  • Adposition (0)
    • Postposition
    • Preposition
  • Conjunction
• Verb (2)
  • Auxiliary verb
  • Infinitive
  • Intransitive verb (6)
  • Participle
  • Reflexive
  • Stative (1)
  • Transitive verb (7)
  • Bitransitive verb (2)

The categories are defined as follows:

4.1 Adjunct [adjunct]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.2.)

4.2 Article [art]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.5.)

4.3 Definite article [def]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.13.)

4.4 Indefinite article [indef]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.18.)

4.5 Disc [disc]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.15.)

4.6 Interjection [interj]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.21.)

4.7 Marker [mkr]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.24.)

4.8 Aspectual [asp]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.6.)

4.9 Case marker [case]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.9.)

4.10 Focus marker [foc]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.16.)

4.11 Honorific marker [hon]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.17.)

4.12 Modal [mod]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.25.)

4.13 Mood [mood]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.27.)

4.14 Negation [neg]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.28.)

4.15 Number [num]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.32.)

4.16 Person [pers]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.35.)

4.17 Quotative [quo]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.44.)

4.18 Rank marker [rank]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.45.)

4.19 Switch reference marker [sw ref]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.50.)

4.20 Tense marker [tens]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.51.)

4.21 Topic marker [top]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.52.)

4.22 Voice marker [voice]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.55.)

4.23 Modifier [mod]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.26.)

4.24 Adjective [adj]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.1.)

4.25 Adverb [Adv]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.4.)

4.26 Negator [neg]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.29.)

4.27 Noun [N]

(This category does not yet have a description.) The noun category has 1 template: Possessed noun. This template is valid for not only this category, but also all of its subcategories: common noun, concrete noun, nominal, possessive noun, and proper noun. (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.31.)

4.28 Common noun [comm]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.10.)

4.29 Concrete noun [conc]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.11.)

4.30 Nominal [nom]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.30.)

4.31 Possessive noun [poss]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.38.)

4.32 Proper noun [prop]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.43.)

4.33 Particle [part]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.34.)

4.34 Precategorial [precat]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.40.)

4.35 Pronoun [Pro]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.42.)

4.36 Demonstrative pronoun [dem]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.14.)

4.37 Indefinite pronoun [ind]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.19.)

4.38 Interrogative pronoun [int]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.22.)

4.39 Personal pronoun [pers]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.36.)

4.40 Posessive pronoun [pos pron]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.37.)

4.41 Relative pronoun [rel]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.47.)

4.42 Relator [rel]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.48.)

4.43 Adposition [adpos]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.3.)

4.44 Postposition [post]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.39.)

4.45 Preposition [prep]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.41.)

4.46 Conjunction [conj]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.12.)

4.47 Verb [V]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.54.)

4.48 Auxiliary verb [aux]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.7.)

4.49 Infinitive [inf]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.20.)

4.50 Intransitive verb [intrans]

Verb with one participant The intransitive verb category has 1 template: Intransitive verb. (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.23.)

4.51 Participle [part]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.33.)

4.52 Reflexive [ref]

(This category does not yet have a description.) (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.46.)

4.53 Stative [sta]

(This category does not yet have a description.) The stative category has 1 template: Stative verb. (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.49.)

4.54 Transitive verb [trans]

Verb with two participants The transitive verb category has 1 template: Transitive verb. (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.53.)

4.55 Bitransitive verb [bitrans]

Verb with three participants The bitransitive verb category has 1 template: Bitransitive verb. (See instances in the lexicon in appendix B.8.)

5 Inflection

In Kalaba the following word categories are inflected:

Noun in section 5.1.

Verb in section 5.2.

In the inflectional templates expressed below, parentheses indicate that a slot is optional.

5.1 Noun inflection

This section lists all inflectional templates for the noun category.

5.1.1 Possessed noun

This inflectional template for noun has the following slot after the stem. This template is valid for not only the noun category, but also all of its subcategories: common noun, concrete noun, nominal, possessive noun, and proper noun.

5.1.2 Slots and fillers

The following is a complete listing of the fillers of the slots involved in noun inflection:

5.1.2.1 Possessor

These are the morphemes in the Possessor slot.

5.2 Verb inflection

This section lists all inflectional templates for the verb category.

5.2.1 Bitransitive verb

This inflectional template for bitransitive verb has the following slots before and after the stem.

5.2.2 Intransitive verb

This inflectional template for intransitive verb has the following slots before and after the stem.

5.2.3 Stative verb

This inflectional template for stative has the following slots before and after the stem.

5.2.4 Transitive verb

This inflectional template for transitive verb has the following slots before and after the stem.

5.2.5 Slots and fillers

The following is a complete listing of the fillers of the slots involved in verb inflection:

5.2.5.1 Object

These are the morphemes in the Object slot.

5.2.5.2 Subject

subject prefixes

5.2.5.3 Tense

tense suffixes

5.2.5.4 Tense

These are the morphemes in the Tense slot.

6 Derivation

The lexicon currently contains 8 derivational affixes. A number in the table below indicates the number of derivational affixes that attach to a stem of the syntactic category named in the row label to the left and produce a stem of the syntactic category named in the column label above it. Click on the number to see a list of the actual affixes.

The following are the derivational affixes of Kalaba:

6.1 From adj to Adv

6.2 From bitrans to bitrans

6.3 From bitrans to trans

6.4 From intrans to intrans

6.5 From intrans to trans

6.6 From N to adj

6.7 From N to Adv

6.8 From N to trans

6.9 From trans to bitrans

6.10 From trans to intrans

6.11 From trans to trans

6.12 From V to Adv

6.13 From V to N

7 Compounding

In this analysis of Kalaba there are 6 forms of compounding.

7.1 Adj-noun with linker

Adjective with noun and an "a" linker   A compound is formed by combining a stem of the category on the left with a stem of the category on the right:

This is a headed construction in which the right-hand stem is the head. Thus the resulting compound has the category of N.

7.2 Adverb-noun --> intransitive verb, ic:2

This compound rule does not have a description. Please add one explaining the nature of this compound rule.  A compound is formed by combining a stem of the category on the left with a stem of the category on the right:

This is a non-headed construction; the resulting compound has the category of intrans.

7.3 Noun-adverb -> intransitive verb, ic:2

This compound rule does not have a description. Please add one explaining the nature of this compound rule.  A compound is formed by combining a stem of the category on the left with a stem of the category on the right:

This is a non-headed construction; the resulting compound has the category of intrans.

7.4 Noun-Intransitive verb

This compound rule does not have a description. Please add one explaining the nature of this compound rule.  A compound is formed by combining a stem of the category on the left with a stem of the category on the right:

This is a headed construction in which the right-hand stem is the head. Thus the resulting compound has the category of intrans.

7.5 Noun-transitive verb

This compound rule does not have a description. Please add one explaining the nature of this compound rule.  A compound is formed by combining a stem of the category on the left with a stem of the category on the right:

This is a headed construction in which the right-hand stem is the head. Thus the resulting compound has the category of trans.

7.6 Verb-adverb

Adverb incorporation   A compound is formed by combining a stem of the category on the left with a stem of the category on the right:

This is a headed construction in which the left-hand stem is the head. Thus the resulting compound has the category of V.

8 Allomorphy

Kalaba has phonological conditioning of allomorphs.

8.1 Natural Classes

The following natural classes of phonemes are involved in the conditioning environments:

8.2 Phonological Environments

The following is a complete list of the phonological environments that condition allomorphs in this analysis:

The following is a complete list of the phonological environments that condition infix positioning in this analysis:

The following is a complete list of the phonological environments that are not being used:

8.3 Inflection Classes

Kalaba also has allomorphy that is lexically conditioned by inflection class.

The category Noun has the following inflection classes:

The category Verb has the following inflection classes:

9 Residue

9.1 Unclassified Affixes

Kalaba has the following unclassified affixes. (Unclassified affixes are those which have not yet been classified as being either inflectional or derivational.) Any categories which the affix can attach to are shown. If none are shown, then the affix can attach to any category.

9.2 Ad hoc constraints

The following sets of morphemes or allomorphs never co-occur in the same wordform, but the morphological description given above does not yet offer an explanation. They are listed as follows:

• Grouped ad hoc sequences
• Morpheme ad hoc sequences
• Allomorph ad hoc sequences

9.2.1 Grouped ad hoc sequences

The following sets of ad hoc constraints are grouped together with some kind of common factor.

9.2.1.1 3rd Objects

these are not supposed to make sense, it's just for testing

9.2.1.2 Co-indexed subject and object prefixes

9.2.2 Morpheme ad hoc sequences

The following table delineates the sets of morphemes which may not co-occur:

9.2.3 Allomorph ad hoc sequences

The following table delineates the sets of allomorph/morpheme pairs which may not co-occur:

A  Kalaba lexicon:Morphemes by type

This appendix lists morphemes by morphological type. Only the first ten morphemes will be listed for each morphological type.

• Bound root (3).
• Bound stem
• Circumfix
• Enclitic (2).
• Infix (2).
• Infixing interfix
• Particle (2).
• Prefix (13).
• Prefixing interfix
• Proclitic (2).
• Root (12).
• Simulfix
• Stem (11).
• Suffix (15).
• Suffixing interfix
• Suprafix

A.1 Bound root

This subsection lists all the instances.

A.2 Bound stem

A.3 Circumfix

A.4 Enclitic

This subsection lists all the instances.

A.5 Infix

This subsection lists all the instances.

A.6 Infixing interfix

A.7 Particle

This subsection lists all the instances.

A.8 Prefix

This subsection lists the first ten instances.

A.9 Prefixing interfix

A.10 Proclitic

This subsection lists all the instances.

A.11 Root

This subsection lists the first ten instances.

A.12 Simulfix

A.13 Stem

This subsection lists the first ten instances.

A.14 Suffix

This subsection lists the first ten instances.

A.15 Suffixing interfix

A.16 Suprafix

B  Kalaba lexicon:Morphemes by category

This appendix lists morphemes by category. Only the first ten morphemes will be listed for each category.

• Adjective (3).
• Adjunct
• Adposition
• Adverb (4).
• Article
• Aspectual
• Auxiliary verb
• Bitransitive verb (2).
• Case marker
• Common noun
• Concrete noun (4).
• Conjunction
• Definite article
• Demonstrative pronoun
• Disc
• Focus marker
• Honorific marker
• Indefinite article
• Indefinite pronoun
• Infinitive
• Interjection
• Interrogative pronoun
• Intransitive verb (6).
• Marker
• Modal
• Modifier
• Mood
• Negation
• Negator (1).
• Nominal
• Noun (11).
• Number
• Participle
• Particle (4).
• Person
• Personal pronoun
• Posessive pronoun
• Possessive noun
• Postposition
• Precategorial
• Preposition
• Pronoun
• Proper noun
• Quotative
• Rank marker
• Reflexive
• Relative pronoun
• Relator
• Stative (1).
• Switch reference marker
• Tense marker
• Topic marker
• Transitive verb (7).
• Verb (2).
• Voice marker

B.1 Adjective

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.2 Adjunct

B.3 Adposition

B.4 Adverb

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.5 Article

B.6 Aspectual

B.7 Auxiliary verb

B.8 Bitransitive verb

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.9 Case marker

B.10 Common noun

B.11 Concrete noun

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.12 Conjunction

B.13 Definite article

B.14 Demonstrative pronoun

B.15 Disc

B.16 Focus marker

B.17 Honorific marker

B.18 Indefinite article

B.19 Indefinite pronoun

B.20 Infinitive

B.21 Interjection

B.22 Interrogative pronoun

B.23 Intransitive verb

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.24 Marker

B.25 Modal

B.26 Modifier

B.27 Mood

B.28 Negation

B.29 Negator

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.30 Nominal

B.31 Noun

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.32 Number

B.33 Participle

B.34 Particle

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.35 Person

B.36 Personal pronoun

B.37 Posessive pronoun

B.38 Possessive noun

B.39 Postposition

B.40 Precategorial

B.41 Preposition

B.42 Pronoun

B.43 Proper noun

B.44 Quotative

B.45 Rank marker

B.46 Reflexive

B.47 Relative pronoun

B.48 Relator

B.49 Stative

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.50 Switch reference marker

B.51 Tense marker

B.52 Topic marker

B.53 Transitive verb

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.54 Verb

This subsection lists all the instances.

B.55 Voice marker

C  Kalaba lexicon:Morphemes by gloss

This appendix lists morphemes arranged by gloss. It only lists those which have an overt gloss. Only the first ten morphemes are listed.