A Grammar of Tamashek (Tuareg of Mali)

6.1 Inventory of true prepositions 273

from, leave (a place)'. Allative 'to X' can likewise be expressed by the
transitive verb (PerfP) -vkku- 'go to'. With other verbs of motion or
conveyance, a non-directional locational adverb such as locative 'in the desert'
can be glossed contextually as ablative or allative. Preposition ror 'at the place
of, chez' is regular in the first half of parallel constructions of the type 'from X
to Y\ with har 'until, all the way to' (§6.7) in the second half.

(270) Prepositions

before noun before pronoun gloss

e, y, ι

S, 3S

d, 3d

daeten

n, an

dar

vor

-α-, -ha- (clitic) 'to, for' (Dative, §6.3)

'with' (Instrumental, §6.4.1)

'with; and' (Comitative, §6.4.2)

'with; and' (Comitative, §6.4.2)

'of (§5.2.1-2, §9.4)

'in, at' (§6.5.1)

'chez' (§6.5.2)

[arguably rür, but jou) indistinguishable before r]

saer-

daer-

[see §5.2.2]

daer-

ror-

daw, daegg daw-

jannaj jannaj-

[dialectally dannag]

fael faella-

dat data-

daraetι ι dara-

daedes (T-ka) daedes-

'under' (§6.5.3)

'above' (§6.5.4)

'on' (§6.5.5)

'in front of (§6.5.6)

'behind' (§6.5.7)

'next to' (§6.6.1)

[e-des (T-md), daegman (A-grm)]

jer jer-, jere- 'between'(§6.6.2)

[gaer (A-grm), before pronoun gaer- (A-grm) or gaere- (K)]

ebre ebre- 'toward'

[dialectally bre, Ibere, s ebre, s ^ae-bret, s et]

The variants of type {C, aC} involve an epenthetic schwa inserted when a
preposition consisting of a C is followed by a C-initial noun and is preceded by
pause or by another C.
Pronominal datives are always clitics. Other pronominal PPs can also be
clitics, particularly if the preposition has a monoysllabic (CvC-) shape. An
example with dav-as 'in 3Sg', where the position after Neg waer and before
the verb indicates clitic status (271).

(271) waerAdar-as 1-baddad 'a-jatt
Neg-\in-3Sg 3MaSg-stand.LoImpfN Sg-pole
'The pole doesn't stand in it' (=doesn't reach the bottom of the river)