182 Chapter 7 Nominals and noun phrases
They are surveyed here.
2.1 Nominal inflection
Other than perhaps the definite morpheme -na, which has an uncertain morpho-
logical status, reduplication is the only productive inflection of noun stems. As
noted in Chapter 5 section 3.2, reduplication of a noun stem without any addi-
tional morphology indicates plurality, as in the examples in (3).
(3) korse ‘chair’ se-korse ‘chairs’
kothak ‘box’ thak-kothak ‘boxes’
koceng ‘cat’ ceng-koceng ‘cats’
sape ‘cow’ se-sape ‘cows’
The b-sentences in (4) and (5) illustrate.
(4) a. Koceng rowa ngeco' juko'.
cat that AV.steal fish
‘That cat stole some fish.’
b. Ceng-koceng rowa ngeco' juko'.
RED-cat that AV.steal fish
‘Those cats stole some fish.’
(5) a. Geddhang jiya kodu e-massa' gallu.
banana this should OV-cook before
‘This banana should be cooked first (before being eaten).’
b. Dhang-geddhang jiya kodu e-massa' gallu.
RED-banana this should OV-cook before
‘These bananas should be cooked first (before being eaten).’
Reduplication of the noun is not the sole means for denoting more than one
entity. Aside from the use of quantifiers and numerals, which is discussed in
sections 6 and 7, there are two options for indicating plurality in the noun
phrase. First, if there is an adjective modifying the noun, preferably in a relative
clause, reduplication of the adjective can denote that the noun is plural, as in (6)
and (7).
(6) Koceng (se) ros-koros rowa ngeco' juko'.
cat REL RED-thin that AV.steal fish
‘Those skinny cats stole some fish.’