A Grammar of Tamashek (Tuareg of Mali)

162 4 Nominal and pronominal morphology

ambiguous-number reference. For example, t-ae-das-t 'mosquito(es)' is

normally used in singular form with collective reference. The high-frequency

noun a-razzej '(domestic) animal' has a plural i-razzej-asn, but the singular

can be used with collective as well as singular reference. 'Sheep', 'cows',

'camels' and other terms for domestic animals have plural forms except when

the reference is specifically singular.

4.1.2 Morphology of gender and number marking

The maximal structure of an inflected noun is (140), in the linear order shown.

(140) Nominal Inflection

1. Fe prefix t-


2. vocalic prefix: Sg (-aS-/-3-, -α-, or -e-), PI -i-
   (full vowel shortened in dependent stale by Prefix Reduction)


3. noun stem (subject to PI ablaut for some nouns)


4. inner Fe suffix -t-


5. outer suffixes: FeSg -t, MaPl -asn (-taen), FePl -en (-ten)

This structure is idealized. The following departures occur:
a. Many nouns pluralize by stem ablaut without suffixation, in which case
slots 4 and 5 are empty (§4.1.2.15). Some nouns have both ablaut and plural
suffixes (§4.1.2.14), and some have suffixes plus phonological modifications
of the stem that fall short of normal ablaut (§4.1.2.7 through §4.1.2.12).
b. Some nouns entirely lack vocalic prefixes.
c. Some feminine nouns lack FeSg -t (and therefore, even if V-final, also
lack inner Fe suffix -t-). A very few feminine nouns lack both Fe prefix t- and
FeSg suffix -t, so they have no morphological gender-marking, while requiring
feminine agreement: addunya 'world' (variant asddunya, <Arabic), eile
'daughter'.
Some feminine nouns take a different Fe suffix -aet (instead of -t). Its
plural varies between -en and -aet-en (§4.1.2.5).
There are some problems involving morphemic segmentation and
identification when a t appears at the junction between stem and suffix. As we
will see, a t in this position can be taken as a separate morpheme (Fe inner
suffix -t-) or as a mere allomorphic increment between stem-final and suffix-
initial C's. I take it as Fe suffix -t- for feminine nouns with which it appears
before both FeSg -t and FePl -en, hence singular -t-t and plural -t-en. Where
the t appears only with a PI suffix, I transcribe it as a suffix-initial C (MaPl
-tasn, FePl -ten). The awkwardness of the analysis is that feminine plural
suffixal [ten] is transcribed variously as bimorphemic -t-en or as
monomorphemic -ten depending on the form of the corresponding Sg.