For autodidact students of Assamese, the first thing to know about "the" is that Assamese has no separate word for it. A bare noun such as কিতাপ (kitap) can mean "book", "a book" or "the book", depending on the context. When Assamese wants to say "this particular one, the one we both mean", it adds a classifier to the end of the noun. The commonest of these is -টো (-tü):
- ল'ৰা (lora): boy → ল'ৰাটো (loratü): the boy - কুকুৰ (kukur): dog → কুকুৰটো (kukurtü): the dog
Which classifier you use depends on what kind of thing the noun names: - -টো (-tü): most things, animals, and boys or men spoken of without respect - -খন (-khon): flat, broad or large things: books, cars, letters, tables, rivers, villages, countries - -জন (-zon): a man, spoken of politely - -জনী (-zoni): a woman or girl, and female animals - -গৰাকী (-goraki): a person of either sex, spoken of with respect - -বোৰ (-bür) and -বিলাক (-bilak): plurals: ল'ৰাবোৰ (lorabür), the boys
So "the book" is কিতাপখন (kitapkhon), "the girl" is ছোৱালীজনী (süwalizoni), and "the doctor" is ডাক্তৰগৰাকী (daktorgoraki).
The same classifiers make "a" when they come after এ- (e-, "one") and stand before the noun: এখন কিতাপ (ekhon kitap), "a book"; এটা কুকুৰ (eta kukur), "a dog"; এজন মানুহ (ezon manuh), "a man". (Before the noun, -টো becomes -টা: এটা.) The difference between "a" and "the" in Assamese is therefore a difference of position: the classifier before the noun is "a", the classifier after the noun is "the".
Classifiers also attach to "this" and "that": এইটো (eitü), "this one"; সেইখন (xeikhon), "that one" (of a flat or large thing); এইখন গাঁও (eikhon gãü), "this village".
Some nouns need no classifier at all to be definite, because there is only one of them: বেলি (beli), "the sun"; আকাশ (akax), "the sky".
This course teaches standard written Assamese, the spelling of Hemchandra Barua's dictionary Hemkosh and the tradition that follows it.
Script note: টো is the consonant ট (ṭ), followed by the vowel sign ো, written on both sides of the consonant: the part before it is ে, the part after it is া. In Assamese ট is pronounced as an alveolar /t/, as in English "top", not as the retroflex sound of Hindi or Bengali, and ো is a short /ʊ/, as in English "book". The romanisation in this course writes that vowel ü.
Key Takeaways: - Assamese has no word for "the"; it adds a classifier to the end of the noun - -টো (-tü) is the commonest classifier; -খন (-khon) is for flat, broad or large things - -জন (-zon), -জনী (-zoni), -গৰাকী (-goraki) are for people - The classifier after the noun = "the"; এ- + classifier before the noun = "a" - -বোৰ (-bür) and -বিলাক (-bilak) make definite plurals - Unique things (sun, sky) need no classifier
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1.1a কিতাপখন the-book নতুন new
1.1b kitapkhon (KI-tap-khon) book-CL.FLAT notun (NO-tun) new
1.2a ল'ৰাটো the-boy সৰু small
1.2b loratü (LO-ra-tuu) boy-CL xoru (XO-ru) small
1.3a কুকুৰটো the-dog ক'ত where
1.3b kukurtü (KU-kur-tuu) dog-CL kot (KOT) where
1.4a গাড়ীখন the-car ৰঙা red
1.4b garikhon (GA-ri-khon) car-CL.FLAT ronga (RONG-a) red
1.5a ছোৱালীজনী the-girl স্কুললৈ to-school গ'ল went
1.5b süwalizoni (SUU-wa-li-zo-ni) girl-CL.FEM skulloi (SKUL-loi) school-DAT gol (GOL) go-PAST.3
1.6a মানুহজন the-man মোৰ my দেউতা father
1.6b manuhzon (MA-nuh-zon) man-CL.MASC mür (MUUR) I-GEN deuta (DEU-ta) father
1.7a কিতাপখন the-book টেবুলখনৰ of-the-table ওপৰত on-top আছে is
1.7b kitapkhon (KI-tap-khon) book-CL.FLAT tebulkhonor (TE-bul-kho-nor) table-CL.FLAT-GEN üporot (UU-po-rot) top-LOC ase (A-se) be-PRES.3
1.8a ল'ৰাটোৱে the-boy মাছটো the-fish খালে ate
1.8b loratüwe (LO-ra-tuu-we) boy-CL-ERG mastü (MAS-tuu) fish-CL khale (KHA-le) eat-PAST.3
1.9a বেলি sun পূবফালে in-the-east উঠে rises
1.9b beli (BE-li) sun pubphale (PUB-pha-le) east-side-LOC uthe (U-the) rise-PRES.3
1.10a ডাক্তৰগৰাকী the-doctor আজি today নাহিল did-not-come
1.10b daktorgoraki (DAK-tor-go-ra-ki) doctor-CL.HON azi (A-zi) today nahil (NA-hil) NEG-come-PAST.3
1.11a ছোৱালীজনীয়ে the-girl চিঠিখন the-letter লিখিলে wrote
1.11b süwalizoniye (SUU-wa-li-zo-ni-ye) girl-CL.FEM-ERG sithikhon (SI-thi-khon) letter-CL.FLAT likhile (LI-khi-le) write-PAST.3
1.12a মই I এখন one-CL কিতাপ book কিনিলোঁ bought কিতাপখন the-book বৰ very ভাল good
1.12b moi (MOI) I ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT kitap (KI-tap) book kinilü̃ (KI-ni-luun) buy-PAST.1 kitapkhon (KI-tap-khon) book-CL.FLAT bor (BOR) very bhal (BHAL) good
1.13a ল'ৰাবোৰ the-boys পথাৰত in-the-field খেলি playing আছে are
1.13b lorabür (LO-ra-buur) boy-PL potharot (PO-tha-rot) field-LOC kheli (KHE-li) play-CONV ase (A-se) be-PRES.3
1.14a এইখন this-CL গাঁৱৰ of-village নৈখন the-river বৰ very ডাঙৰ big
1.14b eikhon (EI-khon) this-CL.FLAT gãwor (GAAN-wor) village-GEN noikhon (NOI-khon) river-CL.FLAT bor (BOR) very dangor (DANG-or) big
1.15a মাকে his-mother ল'ৰাটোক to-the-boy ৰঙা red কিতাপখন the-book দিলে gave
1.15b make (MA-ke) mother.3POSS-ERG loratük (LO-ra-tuuk) boy-CL-DAT ronga (RONG-a) red kitapkhon (KI-tap-khon) book-CL.FLAT dile (DI-le) give-PAST.3
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1.1 কিতাপখন নতুন। (kitapkhon notun) "The book is new." 1.2 ল'ৰাটো সৰু। (loratü xoru) "The boy is small." 1.3 কুকুৰটো ক'ত? (kukurtü kot?) "Where is the dog?" 1.4 গাড়ীখন ৰঙা। (garikhon ronga) "The car is red." 1.5 ছোৱালীজনী স্কুললৈ গ'ল। (süwalizoni skulloi gol) "The girl went to school." 1.6 মানুহজন মোৰ দেউতা। (manuhzon mür deuta) "The man is my father." 1.7 কিতাপখন টেবুলখনৰ ওপৰত আছে। (kitapkhon tebulkhonor üporot ase) "The book is on the table." 1.8 ল'ৰাটোৱে মাছটো খালে। (loratüwe mastü khale) "The boy ate the fish." 1.9 বেলি পূবফালে উঠে। (beli pubphale uthe) "The sun rises in the east." 1.10 ডাক্তৰগৰাকী আজি নাহিল। (daktorgoraki azi nahil) "The doctor did not come today." 1.11 ছোৱালীজনীয়ে চিঠিখন লিখিলে। (süwalizoniye sithikhon likhile) "The girl wrote the letter." 1.12 মই এখন কিতাপ কিনিলোঁ; কিতাপখন বৰ ভাল। (moi ekhon kitap kinilü̃; kitapkhon bor bhal) "I bought a book; the book is very good." 1.13 ল'ৰাবোৰ পথাৰত খেলি আছে। (lorabür potharot kheli ase) "The boys are playing in the field." 1.14 এইখন গাঁৱৰ নৈখন বৰ ডাঙৰ। (eikhon gãwor noikhon bor dangor) "The river of this village is very big." 1.15 মাকে ল'ৰাটোক ৰঙা কিতাপখন দিলে। (make loratük ronga kitapkhon dile) "His mother gave the boy the red book."
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1.1 কিতাপখন নতুন। 1.2 ল'ৰাটো সৰু। 1.3 কুকুৰটো ক'ত? 1.4 গাড়ীখন ৰঙা। 1.5 ছোৱালীজনী স্কুললৈ গ'ল। 1.6 মানুহজন মোৰ দেউতা। 1.7 কিতাপখন টেবুলখনৰ ওপৰত আছে। 1.8 ল'ৰাটোৱে মাছটো খালে। 1.9 বেলি পূবফালে উঠে। 1.10 ডাক্তৰগৰাকী আজি নাহিল। 1.11 ছোৱালীজনীয়ে চিঠিখন লিখিলে। 1.12 মই এখন কিতাপ কিনিলোঁ; কিতাপখন বৰ ভাল। 1.13 ল'ৰাবোৰ পথাৰত খেলি আছে। 1.14 এইখন গাঁৱৰ নৈখন বৰ ডাঙৰ। 1.15 মাকে ল'ৰাটোক ৰঙা কিতাপখন দিলে।
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These are the grammar rules for expressing "the" in Assamese.
There is no article; the classifier does the work. Assamese marks a noun as definite by adding a classifier to its end. The classifier is chosen by the kind of thing the noun names: - -টো (-tü): the general classifier, used for most objects, for animals, and for boys. কুকুৰটো (the dog), মাছটো (the fish), ল'ৰাটো (the boy) - -খন (-khon): flat, broad or extended things. কিতাপখন (the book), গাড়ীখন (the car), চিঠিখন (the letter), টেবুলখন (the table), নৈখন (the river), দেশখন (the country) - -জন (-zon): men, spoken of politely. মানুহজন (the man) - -জনী (-zoni): women and girls, and female animals. ছোৱালীজনী (the girl) - -গৰাকী (-goraki): a person of either sex, spoken of with respect. ডাক্তৰগৰাকী (the doctor) - -টি (-ti): a diminutive, affectionate form of -টো, used for small and dear things and for babies - -ডাল (-dal): long, thin, solid things, such as a stick or a bamboo
Definite plurals. -বোৰ (-bür) and -বিলাক (-bilak) make a plural that is definite at the same time: ল'ৰাবোৰ (the boys), কিতাপবোৰ (the books). They replace the singular classifier; do not stack them.
"A" and "the": the position of the classifier. - Before the noun, after এ- (one): indefinite. এখন কিতাপ (a book), এজন মানুহ (a man), এজনী ছোৱালী (a girl). With এ-, the general classifier takes the form -টা: এটা কুকুৰ (a dog) - After the noun: definite. কিতাপখন (the book), মানুহজন (the man), কুকুৰটো (the dog)
Example 1.12 shows the usual pattern of a story or a conversation: a thing is brought in with এখন (a), then named again with -খন (the). মই এখন কিতাপ কিনিলোঁ; কিতাপখন বৰ ভাল.
Demonstratives take the classifier too. এই (this) and সেই (that) join to the classifier: এইটো (this one), সেইটো (that one), এইখন (this one, of a flat thing), সেইজন (that man). Before a noun, এইখন গাঁও (this village, 1.14) is the usual way to say "this village"; the classifier matches the noun.
Case endings come after the classifier. The classifier stays attached to the noun, and the case ending follows it: - Ergative -এ (-e), the subject of a transitive verb: ল'ৰাটোৱে (1.8), ছোৱালীজনীয়ে (1.11). After a vowel the ending is written -ৱে after ো (টোৱে) and -য়ে after ী (জনীয়ে) - Accusative and dative -ক (-k): a definite person or animal as object, and the person to whom something is given: ল'ৰাটোক (to the boy, 1.15) - Genitive -ৰ (-r): টেবুলখনৰ (of the table, 1.7) - Locative -ত (-t): পথাৰত (in the field, 1.13) - Dative -লৈ (-loi), "to, towards": স্কুললৈ (to school, 1.5)
A definite thing as object usually takes no ending: মাছটো খালে (ate the fish, 1.8), চিঠিখন লিখিলে (wrote the letter, 1.11).
No classifier where English "the" means "the only one". বেলি (the sun, 1.9) and আকাশ (the sky) take no classifier. Kinship words also usually stand without one, because they carry their possessor: মোৰ দেউতা (my father, 1.6); মাকে (his mother, ergative, 1.15).
Present-tense "is" is usually left out in sentences that describe: কিতাপখন নতুন (the book [is] new, 1.1). Where something is in a place, Assamese uses আছে (is, exists): কিতাপখন টেবুলখনৰ ওপৰত আছে (1.7).
Common Mistakes: - Looking for a word for "the". There is none; put a classifier on the end of the noun. - Using -টো for every person. ল'ৰাটো (the boy) is normal, but -টো with a grown man sounds rude. Say মানুহজন, or with respect মানুহগৰাকী. - Using -টো for books and cars. Flat and large things take -খন: কিতাপখন, not \*কিতাপটো, for "the book". - Putting the classifier after the noun when you mean "a". কিতাপখন is "the book"; "a book" is এখন কিতাপ. - Adding a classifier to a unique thing: say বেলি উঠে, not \*বেলিটো উঠে, for "the sun rises". - Putting the case ending before the classifier. The order is noun + classifier + case: ল'ৰাটোৱে, never \*ল'ৰাৱেটো.
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The classifier is the place where Assamese shows respect. The same man can be মানুহটো (said dismissively), মানুহজন (said politely), or মানুহগৰাকী (said with respect). Choosing -টো for an adult can give offence, and choosing -গৰাকী for an elder, a teacher, a doctor or an official is a mark of good manners. -গৰাকী serves for women as well as men, and in formal writing and in the news it is the usual choice for a woman spoken of with respect, where -জনী could sound too familiar.
The classifier system is one of the features that set Assamese apart from the rest of the Indo-Aryan family. Its neighbour Bengali also uses classifiers for definiteness, but Assamese makes finer distinctions: by shape, by sex and by degrees of respect. Linguists have linked this to centuries of contact with the Tibeto-Burman languages of the Brahmaputra valley, which have rich classifier systems of their own.
Because a classifier is needed almost wherever English says "the" or "a", an Assamese speaker is always sorting the world into kinds: flat things and other things, people and animals, men and women, and those who are owed respect and those who are not.
When you count, the classifier comes again: দুখন কিতাপ (two books), তিনিজন মানুহ (three men). You will meet these forms in the lessons on numbers.
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লক্ষ্মীনাথ বেজবৰুৱা (Lakshminath Bezbaroa, 1864–1938), "অ' মোৰ আপোনাৰ দেশ" — "O My Own Dear Land," first published in 1910 (some sources give 1909) in the magazine বাঁহী (Banhi) under the title "মোৰ দেশ" and the pen name শ্ৰীকৃপাবৰ (Srikripabor); set to music by Kamala Prasad Agarwala, and sung today as the state song of Assam
The opening lines:
অ' মোৰ আপোনাৰ দেশ অ' মোৰ চিকুণী দেশ এনেখন সুৱলা, এনেখন সুফলা এনেখন মৰমৰ দেশ
F-A: Interlinear
F.1a অ' O মোৰ my আপোনাৰ own দেশ land
F.1b o (O) O mür (MUUR) I-GEN apünar (A-puu-nar) own-GEN dex (DEX) land
F.2a অ' O মোৰ my চিকুণী lovely দেশ land
F.2b o (O) O mür (MUUR) I-GEN sikuni (SI-ku-ni) lovely dex (DEX) land
F.3a এনেখন such-a সুৱলা melodious এনেখন such-a সুফলা fruitful
F.3b enekhon (E-ne-khon) such-CL.FLAT xuwola (XU-wo-la) melodious enekhon (E-ne-khon) such-CL.FLAT xuphola (XU-pho-la) fruitful
F.4a এনেখন such-a মৰমৰ of-love দেশ land
F.4b enekhon (E-ne-khon) such-CL.FLAT moromor (MO-ro-mor) love-GEN dex (DEX) land
F-B: Original and Translation
অ' মোৰ আপোনাৰ দেশ / অ' মোৰ চিকুণী দেশ / এনেখন সুৱলা, এনেখন সুফলা / এনেখন মৰমৰ দেশ
"O my own dear land, / O my lovely land, / so melodious a land, so fruitful a land, / so beloved a land!" (Translation: Latinum Institute.)
F-C: Original
অ' মোৰ আপোনাৰ দেশ অ' মোৰ চিকুণী দেশ এনেখন সুৱলা, এনেখন সুফলা এনেখন মৰমৰ দেশ
F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
The word দেশ (dex), "country, land", is a খন noun: "the country" is দেশখন. Bezbaroa never writes দেশখন in these lines. Instead he puts the classifier where it can carry feeling: on এনে (ene), "such, like this". এনেখন, said three times, means "such a (land)": the classifier -খন stands for দেশ before the word itself arrives at the end of the line. This is the same pattern as এইখন গাঁও (this village) in 1.14, with এনে, "such", in place of এই, "this". A learner who knows that দেশ takes -খন hears the land in every এনেখন.
The rest of the lines need no classifier. মোৰ দেশ, "my land", is definite already, because the possessive shows which land is meant, as মোৰ দেউতা (my father) is in 1.6. আপোনাৰ is the genitive of আপোন, "one's own, dear"; মোৰ আপোনাৰ দেশ is "my own land". চিকুণী (sikuni) means "lovely, fine". সুৱলা and সুফলা are a rhyming pair: সুৱলা means "melodious, sweet to hear", and সুফলা "rich in fruit, fruitful". মৰমৰ is the genitive of মৰম, "love, affection": "a land of love", that is, a beloved land.
অ' (o) is the vocative "O". It is written with the apostrophe that Assamese uses to mark the vowel /o/, as in ল'ৰা (boy), ক'ত (where) and গ'ল (went) in this lesson.
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A short story in the simple past, of the kind told to children. Watch how each person and thing is brought in with এ- + classifier ("a") and named again with the classifier after the noun ("the").
1.16a এখন one-CL গাঁৱত in-village এজনী one-CL সৰু little ছোৱালী girl আছিল was
1.16b ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT gãwot (GAAN-wot) village-LOC ezoni (E-zo-ni) one-CL.FEM xoru (XO-ru) small süwali (SUU-wa-li) girl asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
1.17a ছোৱালীজনীৰ of-the-girl নাম name আছিল was মালতী Malati
1.17b süwalizonir (SUU-wa-li-zo-nir) girl-CL.FEM-GEN nam (NAM) name asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3 maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati
1.18a মালতীৰ of-Malati এটা one-CL মেকুৰী cat আছিল was
1.18b malotir (MA-lo-tir) Malati-GEN eta (E-ta) one-CL mekuri (ME-ku-ri) cat asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
1.19a মেকুৰীটো the-cat বগা white আৰু and বৰ very ধুনীয়া pretty আছিল was
1.19b mekuritü (ME-ku-ri-tuu) cat-CL boga (BO-ga) white aru (A-ru) and bor (BOR) very dhuniya (DHU-ni-ya) pretty asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
1.20a এদিন one-day মেকুৰীটো the-cat হেৰাই getting-lost গ'ল went
1.20b edin (E-din) one-day mekuritü (ME-ku-ri-tuu) cat-CL herai (HE-rai) be-lost-CONV gol (GOL) go-PAST.3
1.21a ছোৱালীজনীয়ে the-girl মেকুৰীটোক the-cat সকলোতে everywhere বিচাৰিলে searched
1.21b süwalizoniye (SUU-wa-li-zo-ni-ye) girl-CL.FEM-ERG mekuritük (ME-ku-ri-tuuk) cat-CL-ACC xokolüte (XO-ko-luu-te) all-LOC bisarile (BI-sa-ri-le) search-PAST.3
1.22a তাই she নৈৰ of-river পাৰলৈ to-bank গ'ল went
1.22b tai (TAI) she noir (NOIR) river-GEN parloi (PAR-loi) bank-DAT gol (GOL) go-PAST.3
1.23a নৈৰ of-river পাৰত on-bank এখন one-CL নাও boat আছিল was
1.23b noir (NOIR) river-GEN parot (PA-rot) bank-LOC ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT naü (NAU) boat asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
1.24a নাওখনত in-the-boat এজন one-CL বুঢ়া old মানুহ man বহি sitting আছিল was
1.24b naükhonot (NAU-kho-not) boat-CL.FLAT-LOC ezon (E-zon) one-CL.MASC bura (BU-ra) old manuh (MA-nuh) man bohi (BO-hi) sit-CONV asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
1.25a মানুহজনে the-man ক'লে said মই I এটা one-CL বগা white মেকুৰী cat দেখিছোঁ have-seen
1.25b manuhzone (MA-nuh-zo-ne) man-CL.MASC-ERG kole (KO-le) say-PAST.3 moi (MOI) I eta (E-ta) one-CL boga (BO-ga) white mekuri (ME-ku-ri) cat dekhisü̃ (DE-khi-suun) see-PERF.1
1.26a মেকুৰীটো the-cat সেই that ঘৰটোৰ of-the-house ওচৰত near আছে is
1.26b mekuritü (ME-ku-ri-tuu) cat-CL xei (XEI) that ghortür (GHOR-tuur) house-CL-GEN üsorot (UU-so-rot) nearness-LOC ase (A-se) be-PRES.3
1.27a মালতী Malati ঘৰটোৰ of-the-house ওচৰলৈ to-near দৌৰি running গ'ল went
1.27b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati ghortür (GHOR-tuur) house-CL-GEN üsorloi (UU-sor-loi) nearness-DAT douri (DOU-ri) run-CONV gol (GOL) go-PAST.3
1.28a মেকুৰীটো the-cat এখন one-CL চকীৰ of-chair তলত under শুই sleeping আছিল was
1.28b mekuritü (ME-ku-ri-tuu) cat-CL ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT sokir (SO-kir) chair-GEN tolot (TO-lot) underside-LOC xui (XUI) sleep-CONV asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
1.29a ছোৱালীজনীয়ে the-girl মেকুৰীটোক the-cat কোলাত in-lap তুলি lifting ল'লে took
1.29b süwalizoniye (SUU-wa-li-zo-ni-ye) girl-CL.FEM-ERG mekuritük (ME-ku-ri-tuuk) cat-CL-ACC külat (KUU-lat) lap-LOC tuli (TU-li) lift-CONV lole (LO-le) take-PAST.3
1.30a তাই she মানুহজনক to-the-man ধন্যবাদ thanks দিলে gave আৰু and ঘৰলৈ to-home উভতি returning গ'ল went
1.30b tai (TAI) she manuhzonok (MA-nuh-zo-nok) man-CL.MASC-DAT dhonyobad (DHON-yo-bad) thanks dile (DI-le) give-PAST.3 aru (A-ru) and ghorloi (GHOR-loi) home-DAT ubhoti (U-bho-ti) return-CONV gol (GOL) go-PAST.3
1.16 এখন গাঁৱত এজনী সৰু ছোৱালী আছিল। (ekhon gãwot ezoni xoru süwali asil.) "In a village there was a little girl." 1.17 ছোৱালীজনীৰ নাম আছিল মালতী। (süwalizonir nam asil maloti.) "The girl's name was Malati." 1.18 মালতীৰ এটা মেকুৰী আছিল। (malotir eta mekuri asil.) "Malati had a cat." 1.19 মেকুৰীটো বগা আৰু বৰ ধুনীয়া আছিল। (mekuritü boga aru bor dhuniya asil.) "The cat was white and very pretty." 1.20 এদিন মেকুৰীটো হেৰাই গ'ল। (edin mekuritü herai gol.) "One day the cat got lost." 1.21 ছোৱালীজনীয়ে মেকুৰীটোক সকলোতে বিচাৰিলে। (süwalizoniye mekuritük xokolüte bisarile.) "The girl looked for the cat everywhere." 1.22 তাই নৈৰ পাৰলৈ গ'ল। (tai noir parloi gol.) "She went down to the riverbank." 1.23 নৈৰ পাৰত এখন নাও আছিল। (noir parot ekhon naü asil.) "On the riverbank there was a boat." 1.24 নাওখনত এজন বুঢ়া মানুহ বহি আছিল। (naükhonot ezon bura manuh bohi asil.) "In the boat an old man was sitting." 1.25 মানুহজনে ক'লে, "মই এটা বগা মেকুৰী দেখিছোঁ।" (manuhzone kole, "moi eta boga mekuri dekhisü̃.") "The man said, 'I have seen a white cat.'" 1.26 "মেকুৰীটো সেই ঘৰটোৰ ওচৰত আছে।" ("mekuritü xei ghortür üsorot ase.") "'The cat is near that house.'" 1.27 মালতী ঘৰটোৰ ওচৰলৈ দৌৰি গ'ল। (maloti ghortür üsorloi douri gol.) "Malati ran over to the house." 1.28 মেকুৰীটো এখন চকীৰ তলত শুই আছিল। (mekuritü ekhon sokir tolot xui asil.) "The cat was asleep under a chair." 1.29 ছোৱালীজনীয়ে মেকুৰীটোক কোলাত তুলি ল'লে। (süwalizoniye mekuritük külat tuli lole.) "The girl picked the cat up into her arms." 1.30 তাই মানুহজনক ধন্যবাদ দিলে আৰু ঘৰলৈ উভতি গ'ল। (tai manuhzonok dhonyobad dile aru ghorloi ubhoti gol.) "She thanked the man and went back home."
1.16 এখন গাঁৱত এজনী সৰু ছোৱালী আছিল। 1.17 ছোৱালীজনীৰ নাম আছিল মালতী। 1.18 মালতীৰ এটা মেকুৰী আছিল। 1.19 মেকুৰীটো বগা আৰু বৰ ধুনীয়া আছিল। 1.20 এদিন মেকুৰীটো হেৰাই গ'ল। 1.21 ছোৱালীজনীয়ে মেকুৰীটোক সকলোতে বিচাৰিলে। 1.22 তাই নৈৰ পাৰলৈ গ'ল। 1.23 নৈৰ পাৰত এখন নাও আছিল। 1.24 নাওখনত এজন বুঢ়া মানুহ বহি আছিল। 1.25 মানুহজনে ক'লে, "মই এটা বগা মেকুৰী দেখিছোঁ।" 1.26 "মেকুৰীটো সেই ঘৰটোৰ ওচৰত আছে।" 1.27 মালতী ঘৰটোৰ ওচৰলৈ দৌৰি গ'ল। 1.28 মেকুৰীটো এখন চকীৰ তলত শুই আছিল। 1.29 ছোৱালীজনীয়ে মেকুৰীটোক কোলাত তুলি ল'লে। 1.30 তাই মানুহজনক ধন্যবাদ দিলে আৰু ঘৰলৈ উভতি গ'ল।
"A" first, "the" after. Every new person or thing in the story arrives with এ- + classifier, and is named again with the classifier after the noun: - এজনী সৰু ছোৱালী (a little girl, 1.16) → ছোৱালীজনী (the girl, 1.17, 1.21, 1.29) - এটা মেকুৰী (a cat, 1.18) → মেকুৰীটো (the cat, 1.19 onward) - এখন নাও (a boat, 1.23) → নাওখনত (in the boat, 1.24) - এজন বুঢ়া মানুহ (an old man, 1.24) → মানুহজন (the man, 1.25, 1.30) Notice that the classifier of "a" and of "the" is the same one: -জনী for the girl, -খন for the boat, -জন for the man. Only the cat changes between -টা (with এ-) and -টো.
One cat, two descriptions (1.25–1.26). The old man says এটা বগা মেকুৰী, "a white cat": he does not know it is Malati's. In the next sentence he says মেকুৰীটো, "the cat": now it is the cat they are both talking about.
"There was" and "had": আছিল. আছিল (asil) is the past of আছে, "is, exists". With a place it means "there was" (1.16, 1.23); with a genitive owner it means "had": মালতীৰ এটা মেকুৰী আছিল, "Malati had a cat" (literally "of Malati a cat was", 1.18).
Verb + -ই/-ি + আছিল: "was doing". The progressive past is made from the converb in -ই or -ি followed by আছিল: বহি আছিল (was sitting, 1.24), শুই আছিল (was sleeping, 1.28). In the present the same pattern takes আছে: খেলি আছে (are playing, 1.13).
Two verbs, one action: হেৰাই গ'ল, দৌৰি গ'ল, তুলি ল'লে, উভতি গ'ল. Assamese often joins a converb to a second verb. The second verb, গ'ল (went) or ল'লে (took), gives the direction or completion: হেৰাই গ'ল (got lost, "losing went"), দৌৰি গ'ল (ran off, "running went"), তুলি ল'লে (picked up, "lifting took"), উভতি গ'ল (went back, "returning went").
The ergative with transitive verbs only. ছোৱালীজনীয়ে (1.21, 1.29) and মানুহজনে (1.25) take the ergative -এ because their verbs, বিচাৰিলে (searched), ল'লে (took) and ক'লে (said), have an object. মালতী in 1.27 has none, because দৌৰি গ'ল (ran) is a verb of motion with no object.
-ক on people and animals. When the cat is the object, it takes -ক: মেকুৰীটোক বিচাৰিলে (looked for the cat, 1.21), মেকুৰীটোক কোলাত তুলি ল'লে (picked the cat up, 1.29). The man in 1.30 takes -ক as the one who receives the thanks: মানুহজনক ধন্যবাদ দিলে. Things need no -ক: the fish eaten in 1.8 is মাছটো, and the letter in 1.11 is চিঠিখন.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
The romanisation in this course follows Assamese pronunciation, not the letters of the script letter for letter. ü stands for the short vowel /ʊ/ of English "book", written with ো or ও; o stands for /ɔ/ or /o/ (the inherent vowel, and ' as in ল'ৰা); x stands for the velar fricative /x/ of Scottish "loch", written with শ, ষ or স; s stands for /s/, written with চ or ছ; z stands for /z/, written with জ, ঝ or য; r stands for ৰ; w stands for ৱ. A tilde marks a nasal vowel (ঁ). In the respellings, OO is the short vowel of "book", U is the vowel of "rule" said short, and X is the "ch" of "loch". The stress falls on the first syllable, which the respellings write in capitals.
টো (tü) — IPA: /tʊ/ — Assamese has no retroflex consonants: ট is an alveolar /t/, as in English "top". The vowel is short /ʊ/. খন (khon) — IPA: /kʰɔn/ — খ is an aspirated k, with a puff of air, as in English "kin". The vowel is /ɔ/, as in British "hot". জন (zon) — IPA: /zɔn/ — জ is /z/ in Assamese, not the "j" of English "jam". জনী (zoni) — IPA: /zɔni/. গৰাকী (goraki) — IPA: /ɡɔɹaki/ — ৰ is an approximant /ɹ/, close to English "r". ছোৱালী (süwali) — IPA: /sʊwali/ — ছ is /s/ in Assamese, not "ch". সৰু (xoru) — IPA: /xɔɹu/ — স is the velar fricative /x/. দেশ (dex) — IPA: /dɛx/ — শ is /x/; the final inherent vowel is not pronounced. চিকুণী (sikuni) — IPA: /sikuni/ — চ is /s/; ণ is pronounced /n/. সুৱলা (xuwola) — IPA: /xuwɔla/ — ৱ is /w/.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
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