A Grammar of Tamashek (Tuareg of Mali)

4.1 Noun morphology 163

4.1.2.1 Number (vocalic) and gender prefixes

As we have just seen, gender and number are marked in nouns by a
combination of prefixes and suffixes (or prefixes and ablaut). The productive
nominal prefixes are those in (141). Note that there are several, lexically
determined variants of the unreduced Sg prefix seen in MaSg and FeSg
combinations. The feminine forms are basically identical to the masculine ones
with the addition of Fe t-.

(141) Nominal prefixes

absolute state dependent state (Prefix Reduction)

MaSg a- or e-

ae-/a-

MaPl

FeSg

FePl

1-

t-α- or t-e-

t-as-/t-9-

t-i-

ae- or a-

ae-/a-

V (before CC) or zero (before CV)

't-ae- or nt-a-

t-£B-/t-3-

nt-a- (dialectally also nt-0-)

The majority of noun stems either begin with a vowel, or (if C-initial) are

preceded by a vocalic prefix, which is a lexical choice between -ae-/-a-, -α-, or

-e- in the singular, but invariable -i- in the plural. The short allomorph -ae-/-a-

of the vocalic prefix probably has a basic pandialectal form -ae-, but in T-ka

Short-V Harmony requires -a- when the following syllable has a high V

(§3.2.6). In some other dialects like A-grm the prefix is always -ae-.

For masculine forms, the vocalic prefix is word-initial. For feminines, the

vocalic prefix (Sg or PI) is itself preceded by Fe t-. Nearly all nouns that have

both masculine and feminine forms have the same vocalic prefix allomorph

(-ae-/-3-, -α-, or -e-) that appears in both gender forms. For example, if the

masculine has e- the feminine has t-e-.

Some examples of the different Sg prefix allomorphs follow,

a- prefix: ά-dhaj 'aardvark', t-a-dhan-t 'Bossia shrub', ά-baeka 'jujube

fruit', a-laebasjja 'a fine meal', a-sedad 'a disease', a- is also regular in the

VblN of heavy stems, including prefixal derivatives (causative, mediopassive,

and reciprocal). Examples: α-bakbak 'shaking off, ά-bkammi 'lying low',

and causative α-s-irad 'washing'. Overall, a- occurs in a wider range of

environments than the other allomorphs.

e- prefix: e-dahi 'sand', t-e-laebaew-t 'cormorant', t-e-laeftes-t 'rib cut of

meat', e-taefaer 'sole (of foot)', e-kaekk 'spur-winged goose', e-baegv

'floodplain', e-sed 'donkey'. Except for the type e-CeC, one notices that e- is