For autodidact students of Assamese, "of" is not a word but an ending. Assamese puts the letter ৰ (r) on the end of the noun that English puts after "of", and that noun comes first:
- অসমৰ ৰাজধানী (oxomor razdhani): the capital of Assam - গছৰ পাত (gosor pat): the leaves of the tree - ৰামৰ ঘৰ (ramor ghor): Ram's house
This ending is the genitive case. It does the work of English "of", of English 's, and of the possessive words "my", "your", "his": মোৰ (mür), "my", is মই (moi), "I", with the same ending. You have been using it since Lesson 1: in মোৰ দেশ, "my land", and মৰমৰ দেশ, "beloved land", literally "land of love", in the state song; in নৈৰ পাৰত, "on the bank of the river" (1.23); and in Lesson 4 in বজাৰৰ পৰা, "from the market", and মৰমৰ আইতা, "dear Grandmother".
The ending is always written ৰ, joined to the word with no vowel sign. It is pronounced in two ways:
- after a vowel, -r: মালতী → মালতীৰ (malotir), "Malati's"; মা → মাৰ (mar), "mother's" - after a consonant, -or: ঘৰ → ঘৰৰ (ghoror), "of the house"; অসম → অসমৰ (oxomor), "of Assam"
There are four things that English speakers do not expect.
First, the order is the reverse of English "of". The owner or the whole comes first, with ৰ, and the thing owned or the part comes after it: অসমৰ ৰাজধানী, "Assam's capital". A chain of genitives reads from the outside in: মোৰ বন্ধুৰ ভনীয়েকৰ নাম, "my friend's sister's name".
Second, many words for "near", "in front of", "for" and "before" are nouns, and they take a noun in the genitive: স্কুলৰ ওচৰত (skulor üsorot), "near the school", literally "at the nearness of the school"; আপোনাৰ বাবে, "for you"; বিহুৰ আগতে, "before Bihu".
Third, words for family members change with the person whose relative they are. মোৰ মা is "my mother", but "his mother" or "her mother" is তেওঁৰ মাক (teü̃r mak), with the ending -ক, and "your mother", to a friend, is তোমাৰ মাৰা (tümar mara). So the title of the tale in Section F, মেকুৰীৰ জীয়েকৰ সাধু, "the tale of the cat's daughter", has জীয়েক (ziyek), "her daughter", not জী.
Fourth, Assamese uses the genitive for feelings and states that happen to a person: মোৰ ভোক লাগিছে (mür bhük lagise), "I am hungry", literally "hunger has struck of me".
Script note: ৰ is the Assamese letter for /ɹ/. It is the letter that most clearly sets Assamese writing apart from Bengali, which writes র for the same sound; the other is ৱ (w). Do not write the Bengali letter in Assamese.
Key Takeaways: - "Of" is the ending ৰ on the noun, which comes first: অসমৰ ৰাজধানী, "the capital of Assam" - Pronounced -r after a vowel (মাৰ), -or after a consonant (ঘৰৰ) - The same ending makes "my", "your", "his": মোৰ, তোমাৰ, তেওঁৰ - Words of place and purpose take the genitive: স্কুলৰ ওচৰত, আপোনাৰ বাবে - Family words change with the person: মোৰ মা, তোমাৰ মাৰা, তেওঁৰ মাক - Feelings are "of" the person: মোৰ ভোক লাগিছে, "I am hungry"
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5.1a মোৰ my কিতাপ book
5.1b mür (MUUR) I-GEN kitap (KI-tap) book
5.2a ৰামৰ of-Ram ঘৰ house
5.2b ramor (RA-mor) Ram-GEN ghor (GHOR) house
5.3a এইডাল this কাৰ whose কলম pen
5.3b eidal (EI-dal) this-CL.LONG kar (KAR) who-GEN kolom (KO-lom) pen
5.4a অসমৰ of-Assam ৰাজধানী capital দিশপুৰ Dispur
5.4b oxomor (O-xo-mor) Assam-GEN razdhani (RAZ-dha-ni) capital dixpur (DIX-pur) Dispur
5.5a গছৰ of-the-tree পাতবোৰ the-leaves সেউজীয়া green
5.5b gosor (GO-sor) tree-GEN patbür (PAT-buur) leaf-PL xeuziya (XEU-zi-ya) green
5.6a মোৰ my বন্ধুৰ of-friend ভনীয়েকৰ of-sister নাম name মীনা Mina
5.6b mür (MUUR) I-GEN bondhur (BON-dhur) friend-GEN bhoniyekor (BHO-ni-ye-kor) sister-3POSS-GEN nam (NAM) name mina (MI-na) Mina
5.7a আমি we নৈৰ of-river পাৰত on-bank বহি sitting আছোঁ are
5.7b ami (A-mi) we noir (NOIR) river-GEN parot (PA-rot) bank-LOC bohi (BO-hi) sit-CONV asü̃ (A-sun) be-PRES.1
5.8a স্কুলৰ of-school ওচৰত at-near এখন one-CL দোকান shop আছে is
5.8b skulor (SKU-lor) school-GEN üsorot (UU-so-rot) nearness-LOC ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT dükan (DUU-kan) shop ase (A-se) be-PRES.3
5.9a আজি today মোৰ of-me বৰ very ভোক hunger লাগিছে has-struck
5.9b azi (A-zi) today mür (MUUR) I-GEN bor (BOR) very bhük (BHUUK) hunger lagise (LA-gi-se) strike-PERF.3
5.10a দেউতাৰ of-father গাড়ীখন the-car পুৰণি old হৈছে has-become
5.10b deutar (DEU-tar) father-GEN garikhon (GA-ri-khon) car-CL.FLAT puroni (PU-ro-ni) old hoise (HOI-se) become-PERF.3
5.11a গুৱাহাটী Guwahati অসমৰ of-Assam আটাইতকৈ than-all ডাঙৰ big চহৰ city
5.11b guwahati (GU-wa-ha-ti) Guwahati oxomor (O-xo-mor) Assam-GEN ataitkoi (A-tait-koi) all-than dangor (DANG-or) big sohor (SO-hor) city
5.12a তোমাৰ your দেউতাৰা your-father কি what কাম work কৰে does
5.12b tümar (TUU-mar) you-FAM-GEN deutara (DEU-ta-ra) father-2POSS ki (KI) what kam (KAM) work kore (KO-re) do-PRES.3
5.13a মোৰ my এটা one-CL সোণৰ of-gold আঙঠি ring হেৰাইছে has-got-lost
5.13b mür (MUUR) I-GEN eta (E-ta) one-CL xünor (XUU-nor) gold-GEN angothi (ANG-o-thi) ring heraise (HE-rai-se) be-lost-PERF.3
5.14a শংকৰদেৱৰ of-Sankardev জন্ম birth নগাঁৱৰ of-Nagaon বৰদোৱাত in-Bordowa হৈছিল happened
5.14b xonkordewor (XON-kor-de-wor) Sankardev-GEN zonmo (ZON-mo) birth nogãwor (NO-gaan-wor) Nagaon-GEN bordüwat (BOR-duu-wat) Bordowa-LOC hoisil (HOI-sil) become-PLUPERF.3
5.15a লক্ষ্মীনাথ Lakshminath বেজবৰুৱাৰ of-Bezbaroa বুঢ়ী old আইৰ of-grandmother সাধু tales অসমৰ of-Assam শিশুৰ of-children বাবে for লিখা written এখন one-CL কিতাপ book
5.15b lokhinath (LO-khi-nath) Lakshminath bezboruwar (BEZ-bo-ru-war) Bezbaroa-GEN burhi (BUR-hi) old-FEM air (AIR) grandmother-GEN xadhu (XA-dhu) tale oxomor (O-xo-mor) Assam-GEN xixur (XI-xur) child-GEN babe (BA-be) for likha (LI-kha) write-PTCP ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT kitap (KI-tap) book
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5.1 মোৰ কিতাপ। (mür kitap) "My book." 5.2 ৰামৰ ঘৰ। (ramor ghor) "Ram's house." 5.3 এইডাল কাৰ কলম? (eidal kar kolom?) "Whose pen is this?" 5.4 অসমৰ ৰাজধানী দিশপুৰ। (oxomor razdhani dixpur) "The capital of Assam is Dispur." 5.5 গছৰ পাতবোৰ সেউজীয়া। (gosor patbür xeuziya) "The leaves of the tree are green." 5.6 মোৰ বন্ধুৰ ভনীয়েকৰ নাম মীনা। (mür bondhur bhoniyekor nam mina) "My friend's sister's name is Mina." 5.7 আমি নৈৰ পাৰত বহি আছোঁ। (ami noir parot bohi asü̃) "We are sitting on the bank of the river." 5.8 স্কুলৰ ওচৰত এখন দোকান আছে। (skulor üsorot ekhon dükan ase) "There is a shop near the school." 5.9 আজি মোৰ বৰ ভোক লাগিছে। (azi mür bor bhük lagise) "I am very hungry today." 5.10 দেউতাৰ গাড়ীখন পুৰণি হৈছে। (deutar garikhon puroni hoise) "Father's car has got old." 5.11 গুৱাহাটী অসমৰ আটাইতকৈ ডাঙৰ চহৰ। (guwahati oxomor ataitkoi dangor sohor) "Guwahati is the largest city of Assam." 5.12 তোমাৰ দেউতাৰা কি কাম কৰে? (tümar deutara ki kam kore?) "What work does your father do?" 5.13 মোৰ এটা সোণৰ আঙঠি হেৰাইছে। (mür eta xünor angothi heraise) "I have lost a gold ring." 5.14 শংকৰদেৱৰ জন্ম নগাঁৱৰ বৰদোৱাত হৈছিল। (xonkordewor zonmo nogãwor bordüwat hoisil) "Sankardev was born at Bordowa, in Nagaon." 5.15 লক্ষ্মীনাথ বেজবৰুৱাৰ "বুঢ়ী আইৰ সাধু" অসমৰ শিশুৰ বাবে লিখা এখন কিতাপ। (lokhinath bezboruwar "burhi air xadhu" oxomor xixur babe likha ekhon kitap) "Lakshminath Bezbaroa's Grandmother's Tales is a book written for the children of Assam."
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5.1 মোৰ কিতাপ। 5.2 ৰামৰ ঘৰ। 5.3 এইডাল কাৰ কলম? 5.4 অসমৰ ৰাজধানী দিশপুৰ। 5.5 গছৰ পাতবোৰ সেউজীয়া। 5.6 মোৰ বন্ধুৰ ভনীয়েকৰ নাম মীনা। 5.7 আমি নৈৰ পাৰত বহি আছোঁ। 5.8 স্কুলৰ ওচৰত এখন দোকান আছে। 5.9 আজি মোৰ বৰ ভোক লাগিছে। 5.10 দেউতাৰ গাড়ীখন পুৰণি হৈছে। 5.11 গুৱাহাটী অসমৰ আটাইতকৈ ডাঙৰ চহৰ। 5.12 তোমাৰ দেউতাৰা কি কাম কৰে? 5.13 মোৰ এটা সোণৰ আঙঠি হেৰাইছে। 5.14 শংকৰদেৱৰ জন্ম নগাঁৱৰ বৰদোৱাত হৈছিল। 5.15 লক্ষ্মীনাথ বেজবৰুৱাৰ "বুঢ়ী আইৰ সাধু" অসমৰ শিশুৰ বাবে লিখা এখন কিতাপ।
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These are the grammar rules for expressing "of" in Assamese.
The genitive ending ৰ. "Of" is the genitive case, made with the ending ৰ on the noun. The noun in the genitive comes before the noun it belongs to, as English 's does: অসমৰ ৰাজধানী (5.4), গছৰ পাতবোৰ (5.5). It is written ৰ in every case and pronounced -r after a vowel and -or after a consonant: - after a vowel: দেউতাৰ (deutar, 5.10), বন্ধুৰ (bondhur, 5.6), শিশুৰ (xixur, 5.15), আইৰ (air, 5.15) - after a consonant: ৰামৰ (ramor, 5.2), গছৰ (gosor, 5.5), সোণৰ (xünor, 5.13), নগাঁৱৰ (nogãwor, 5.14)
The pronouns. The genitive of each personal pronoun is the word for "my", "your", "his", "her": - মই (moi), I → মোৰ (mür), my (5.1) - তই (toi), you, very familiar → তোৰ (tür), your - তুমি (tumi), you, familiar → তোমাৰ (tümar), your (5.12) - আপুনি (apuni), you, respectful → আপোনাৰ (apünar), your - সি (xi), he → তাৰ (tar), his; তাই (tai), she → তাইৰ (tair), her - তেওঁ (teü̃), he or she, respectful → তেওঁৰ (teü̃r), his, her - আমি (ami), we → আমাৰ (amar), our - কোন (kün), who → কাৰ (kar), whose (5.3) In the state song of Lesson 1, মোৰ আপোনাৰ দেশ, আপোনাৰ is a different word: the genitive of আপোন, "one's own".
With the classifier and the plural. When a noun has its classifier ("the", Lesson 1) or a plural ending, ৰ goes on the very end: মেকুৰীজনীৰ, "of the cat" (Section F); ঘৰটোৰ, "of the house" (Lesson 4, 4.18); গছবোৰৰ, "of the trees".
Chains of genitives. Each owner takes ৰ, and the chain reads from the outside in, as English 's does: মোৰ বন্ধুৰ ভনীয়েকৰ নাম, "my friend's sister's name" (5.6); বুঢ়ী আইৰ সাধু, "the tales of the old grandmother" (5.15).
Family words. A word for a relative changes with the person whose relative it is: - my: no ending: মোৰ মা, মোৰ দেউতা, মোৰ আইতা - your (familiar, তোমাৰ): -ৰা: তোমাৰ মাৰা (5.19), তোমাৰ দেউতাৰা (5.12) - his, her, and your (respectful, আপোনাৰ): -এক, after a vowel -ক: তেওঁৰ মাক, মোৰ মাৰ মাক, "my mother's mother" (5.23); ভনীয়েক, "his sister" (5.6); পুতেক, জীয়েক, "his son, his daughter" (5.21); দেউতাক, "her father" With a noun as the owner, the relative takes -এক as for "his": মোৰ দেউতাৰ ভায়েক, "my father's brother" (5.20); মেকুৰীৰ জীয়েক, "the cat's daughter" (Section F).
Words of place and purpose. Many Assamese words of place are nouns, which take the genitive before them and a case ending themselves: স্কুলৰ ওচৰত, "near the school" (5.8); মাৰাৰ কাষত, "beside your mother" (5.19); নৈৰ পাৰত, "on the riverbank" (5.7). The same goes for বাবে, "for" (5.15), আগতে, "before" (Lesson 4, 4.29), and পৰা, "from", after a noun of place: বজাৰৰ পৰা (Lesson 4, 4.7).
What it is made of. A material is a genitive: সোণৰ আঙঠি, "a gold ring", "a ring of gold" (5.13); মুগাৰ চাদৰ, "a chador of muga silk" (Lesson 4, 4.28).
Feelings and wants. A person who feels hunger, fever or a wish is put in the genitive: মোৰ ভোক লাগিছে, "I am hungry" (5.9); মোৰ মাছ খাবৰ মন গৈছে, "I want to eat fish" (Section F). খাবৰ is the verb form খাব, "to eat", with ৰ: "a mind of eating".
"Of love": adjectives from nouns. A noun with ৰ often does the work of an adjective: মৰমৰ, "dear", from মৰম, "love" (Lesson 4, 4.16); চেনেহৰ, "beloved", from চেনেহ, "affection" (Section F); হাতৰ, "home-made", literally "of the hand" (5.30).
Where English has "of" and Assamese has none. - Quantities: এক কেজি আলু, "a kilo of potatoes" (Lesson 3, 3.18) - A name with its kind: গুৱাহাটী চহৰ, "the city of Guwahati" - "Of" after verbs and adjectives, as in "think of", "afraid of", is expressed in other ways, which later lessons will teach
Common Mistakes: - Putting the owner second, as in English "of". "The capital of Assam" is অসমৰ ৰাজধানী, never \*ৰাজধানী অসমৰ. - Writing the ending with a vowel sign. The ending is ৰ alone even where you hear -or: ঘৰৰ, not \*ঘৰোৰ. - Writing the Bengali র for ৰ. - Forgetting the family ending. "His mother" is তেওঁৰ মাক, not \*তেওঁৰ মা; "Ram's sister" is ৰামৰ ভনীয়েক. - Leaving the genitive out before a word of place: স্কুলৰ ওচৰত, not \*স্কুল ওচৰত. - Translating "I am hungry" with মই: say মোৰ ভোক লাগিছে.
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The genitive is everywhere in Assamese titles and names. Bezbaroa's collection itself is বুঢ়ী আইৰ সাধু, "the tales of the old grandmother", and its tales are named in the same way: মেকুৰীৰ জীয়েকৰ সাধু, "The Tale of the Cat's Daughter", চিলনীৰ জীয়েকৰ সাধু, "The Tale of the Kite's Daughter", and ভেকুলীৰ সাধু, "The Tale of the Frog". The word সাধু, "tale", with a genitive before it is how an Assamese story announces itself.
Assamese speech is warm with genitives of feeling. মৰমৰ, "of love", opens a letter, as Malati's did in Lesson 4, and চেনেহৰ, "of affection", is said of a child or a pet. The state song of Lessons 1 and 2 calls Assam মৰমৰ দেশ, "the beloved land". Home cooking is praised as "of the hand" of the one who made it, as Malati says at the end of the Genre Section, আইতাৰ হাতৰ পিঠা, "Grandmother's own pitha". Pitha are the rice cakes made in every Assamese home for Bihu.
The family endings matter in conversation. An Assamese speaker hears at once whether the mother being spoken of is the speaker's own (মা), the listener's (মাৰা), or someone else's (মাক). The form with -এক is also the respectful form for "your", and in polite speech you will hear আপোনাৰ মাক, "your mother", to an elder.
Sankardev (শংকৰদেৱ, 1449–1568) of 5.14 is the saint, poet, dramatist and reformer whose Vaishnava movement shaped Assamese religion, music and theatre. He was born at Bordowa in Nagaon district, which is a place of pilgrimage today.
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লক্ষ্মীনাথ বেজবৰুৱা (Lakshminath Bezbaroa, 1864–1938), "মেকুৰীৰ জীয়েকৰ সাধু" — "The Tale of the Cat's Daughter," the first tale in বুঢ়ী আইৰ সাধু (Burhi Aair Xadhu, "Grandmother's Tales"), first published in 1912
The opening of the tale:
এঘৰ মানুহৰ এজনী বৰ চেনেহৰ মেকুৰী আছিল। তাই গাভিনী হৈছিল। ঘৰৰ গিৰিহঁতনীও ঠিক সেই সময়তে গা-ভাৰী আছিল। মেকুৰীজনীৰ বৰকৈ মাছ খাবৰ মন যোৱাত তাই, "মোৰ মাছ খাবৰ মন গৈছে" বুলি গিৰিহঁতনীক কলে।
F-A: Interlinear
F.1a এঘৰ one-household মানুহৰ of-people এজনী one-CL বৰ very চেনেহৰ of-affection মেকুৰী cat আছিল was
F.1b eghor (E-ghor) one-house manuhor (MA-nu-hor) person-GEN ezoni (E-zo-ni) one-CL.FEM bor (BOR) very senehor (SE-ne-hor) affection-GEN mekuri (ME-ku-ri) cat asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
F.2a তাই she গাভিনী pregnant হৈছিল had-become
F.2b tai (TAI) she gabhini (GA-bhi-ni) pregnant hoisil (HOI-sil) become-PLUPERF.3
F.3a ঘৰৰ of-the-house গিৰিহঁতনীও mistress-also ঠিক just সেই that সময়তে at-time গা-ভাৰী body-heavy আছিল was
F.3b ghoror (GHO-ror) house-GEN girihõtniü (GI-ri-hont-ni-uu) mistress-also thik (THIK) exactly xei (XEI) that xomoyote (XO-mo-yo-te) time-LOC-EMPH ga-bhari (GA-bha-ri) body-heavy asil (A-sil) be-PAST.3
F.4a মেকুৰীজনীৰ of-the-cat বৰকৈ greatly মাছ fish খাবৰ of-eating মন mind যোৱাত on-going তাই she মোৰ of-me মাছ fish খাবৰ of-eating মন mind গৈছে has-gone বুলি saying গিৰিহঁতনীক to-the-mistress কলে said
F.4b mekurizonir (ME-ku-ri-zo-nir) cat-CL.FEM-GEN borkoi (BOR-koi) great-ADV mas (MAS) fish khabor (KHA-bor) eat-INF-GEN mon (MON) mind züwat (ZUU-wat) go-VN-LOC tai (TAI) she mür (MUUR) I-GEN mas (MAS) fish khabor (KHA-bor) eat-INF-GEN mon (MON) mind goise (GOI-se) go-PERF.3 buli (BU-li) say-CONV girihõtnik (GI-ri-hont-nik) mistress-ACC kole (KO-le) say-PAST.3
F-B: Original and Translation
এঘৰ মানুহৰ এজনী বৰ চেনেহৰ মেকুৰী আছিল। তাই গাভিনী হৈছিল। ঘৰৰ গিৰিহঁতনীও ঠিক সেই সময়তে গা-ভাৰী আছিল। মেকুৰীজনীৰ বৰকৈ মাছ খাবৰ মন যোৱাত তাই, "মোৰ মাছ খাবৰ মন গৈছে" বুলি গিৰিহঁতনীক কলে।
"A household had a much-loved cat. She was expecting young. The mistress of the house was with child at that very time too. When the cat came to long for fish, she said to the mistress, 'I want to eat fish.'" (Translation: Latinum Institute.)
F-C: Original
এঘৰ মানুহৰ এজনী বৰ চেনেহৰ মেকুৰী আছিল। তাই গাভিনী হৈছিল। ঘৰৰ গিৰিহঁতনীও ঠিক সেই সময়তে গা-ভাৰী আছিল। মেকুৰীজনীৰ বৰকৈ মাছ খাবৰ মন যোৱাত তাই, "মোৰ মাছ খাবৰ মন গৈছে" বুলি গিৰিহঁতনীক কলে।
F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
Four sentences, and the genitive ending ৰ seven times, in every use this lesson teaches. মানুহৰ is the owner: "a cat of a household of people", where English says "a family had a cat". চেনেহৰ is the noun as adjective: "a cat of affection", a dear, much-loved cat. ঘৰৰ গিৰিহঁতনী is "of" in its plainest sense, "the mistress of the house". মেকুৰীজনীৰ and মোৰ are the genitive of feeling: the wish is "of the cat", "of me", and the verb is "the mind has gone", মন গৈছে. খাবৰ, twice, is the verb "to eat" in the genitive: "a mind of eating fish".
The title adds the family ending: মেকুৰীৰ জীয়েকৰ সাধু, "the tale of the cat's daughter", with জীয়েক, "her daughter", because the daughter is the cat's and not the speaker's. It is a chain of two genitives, read from the outside in: the cat's, the daughter's, tale.
এঘৰ is এ-, "one", with ঘৰ, "house", in the place of a classifier: এঘৰ মানুহ, "one household of people", "a family". The cat is এজনী, with the female classifier of Lesson 4, and then মেকুৰীজনী, "the cat", with the classifier after the noun, as Lesson 1 taught. গিৰিহঁতনী is the woman of the house, the feminine of গিৰিহঁত, "householder". The tale says গাভিনী of the cat and গা-ভাৰী, "heavy in body", of the woman. যোৱাত is যোৱা, "going", with the locative -ত: "on (the mind's) going", "when she longed". বুলি, "saying", closes the quotation, as Assamese closes every quotation.
The cat steals fish from the neighbours and brings it home, but the mistress cooks it, eats it, and gives the cat only the bones. The rest of the tale grows out of that unkindness.
The text is quoted from Bezbaroa's 1912 edition as transcribed on Assamese Wikisource. Its spelling is in places older than today's, as Lesson 3 noted: the tale has কলে for the modern ক'লে, "said".
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
Malati, whose letter to her grandmother you read in Lesson 4, has put a photograph on her desk. Her new colleague ৰাজীৱ (Rajib), the good man from Jorhat, asks her about it. The two are of an age and use the familiar তুমি with each other.
5.16a ৰাজীৱ Rajib মালতী Malati এইখন this কাৰ whose ফটো photo
5.16b rajiw (RA-jiw) Rajib maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati eikhon (EI-khon) this-CL.FLAT kar (KAR) who-GEN photü (PHO-tuu) photo
5.17a মালতী Malati এইখন this মোৰ my পৰিয়ালৰ of-family ফটো photo
5.17b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati eikhon (EI-khon) this-CL.FLAT mür (MUUR) I-GEN poriyalor (PO-ri-ya-lor) family-GEN photü (PHO-tuu) photo
5.18a মাজত in-the-middle মোৰ my দেউতা father আৰু and মা mother বহি sitting আছে are
5.18b mazot (MA-zot) middle-LOC mür (MUUR) I-GEN deuta (DEU-ta) father aru (A-ru) and ma (MA) mother bohi (BO-hi) sit-CONV ase (A-se) be-PRES.3
5.19a ৰাজীৱ Rajib তোমাৰ your মাৰাৰ of-your-mother কাষত at-side কোন who থিয় standing হৈ being আছে is
5.19b rajiw (RA-jiw) Rajib tümar (TUU-mar) you-FAM-GEN marar (MA-rar) mother-2POSS-GEN kaxot (KA-xot) side-LOC kün (KUUN) who thiyo (THI-yo) upright hoi (HOI) become-CONV ase (A-se) be-PRES.3
5.20a মালতী Malati তেওঁ he মোৰ my দেউতাৰ of-father ভায়েক his-brother মোৰ my খুৰা uncle
5.20b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati teü̃ (TE-un) he-HON mür (MUUR) I-GEN deutar (DEU-tar) father-GEN bhayek (BHA-yek) brother-3POSS mür (MUUR) I-GEN khura (KHU-ra) uncle
5.21a সোঁফালে on-the-right তেওঁৰ his পুতেক his-son আৰু and জীয়েক his-daughter
5.21b xü̃phale (XUUN-pha-le) right-side-LOC teü̃r (TE-unr) he-HON-GEN putek (PU-tek) son-3POSS aru (A-ru) and ziyek (ZI-yek) daughter-3POSS
5.22a ৰাজীৱ Rajib আৰু and এইগৰাকী this বয়সীয়াল elderly মহিলা lady
5.22b rajiw (RA-jiw) Rajib aru (A-ru) and eigoraki (EI-go-ra-ki) this-CL.HON boyoxiyal (BO-yo-xi-yal) elderly mohila (MO-hi-la) woman
5.23a মালতী Malati তেওঁ she মোৰ my আইতা grandmother মোৰ my মাৰ of-mother মাক her-mother
5.23b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati teü̃ (TE-un) she-HON mür (MUUR) I-GEN aita (AI-ta) grandmother mür (MUUR) I-GEN mar (MAR) mother-GEN mak (MAK) mother-3POSS
5.24a এই this ফটোখন photo আইতাৰ of-grandmother ঘৰৰ of-house চোতালত in-courtyard তোলা taken
5.24b ei (EI) this photükhon (PHO-tuu-khon) photo-CL.FLAT aitar (AI-tar) grandmother-GEN ghoror (GHO-ror) house-GEN sütalot (SUU-ta-lot) courtyard-LOC tüla (TUU-la) take-PTCP
5.25a ৰাজীৱ Rajib আইতাৰ of-grandmother ঘৰটো the-house ক'ত where
5.25b rajiw (RA-jiw) Rajib aitar (AI-tar) grandmother-GEN ghortü (GHOR-tuu) house-CL kot (KOT) where
5.26a মালতী Malati নলবাৰীৰ of-Nalbari এখন one-CL সৰু small গাঁৱত in-village
5.26b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati nolbarir (NOL-ba-rir) Nalbari-GEN ekhon (E-khon) one-CL.FLAT xoru (XO-ru) small gãwot (GAAN-wot) village-LOC
5.27a ৰাজীৱ Rajib মোৰ my মাৰ of-mother ঘৰো home-also নলবাৰীত in-Nalbari
5.27b rajiw (RA-jiw) Rajib mür (MUUR) I-GEN mar (MAR) mother-GEN ghorü (GHO-ruu) house-also nolbarit (NOL-ba-rit) Nalbari-LOC
5.28a মালতী Malati সঁচাকৈ really তেন্তে then আমি we একেখন same জিলাৰ of-district মানুহ people
5.28b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati xõsakoi (XON-sa-koi) true-ADV tente (TEN-te) then ami (A-mi) we ekekhon (E-ke-khon) same-CL.FLAT zilar (ZI-lar) district-GEN manuh (MA-nuh) person
5.29a ৰাজীৱ Rajib বিহুৰ of-Bihu সময়ত at-time আমি we দুয়ো both নলবাৰীলৈ to-Nalbari যাব go পাৰোঁ can
5.29b rajiw (RA-jiw) Rajib bihur (BI-hur) Bihu-GEN xomoyot (XO-mo-yot) time-LOC ami (A-mi) we duyü (DU-yuu) two-also nolbariloi (NOL-ba-ri-loi) Nalbari-DAT zabo (ZA-bo) go-INF parü̃ (PA-run) be-able-PRES.1
5.30a মালতী Malati হয় yes আইতাৰ of-grandmother হাতৰ of-hand পিঠা pitha খাবলৈ to-eat
5.30b maloti (MA-lo-ti) Malati hoy (HOY) yes aitar (AI-tar) grandmother-GEN hator (HA-tor) hand-GEN pitha (PI-tha) rice-cake khaboloi (KHA-bo-loi) eat-INF-DAT
5.16 ৰাজীৱ: মালতী, এইখন কাৰ ফটো? (rajiw: maloti, eikhon kar photü?) "Rajib: Malati, whose photo is this?" 5.17 মালতী: এইখন মোৰ পৰিয়ালৰ ফটো। (maloti: eikhon mür poriyalor photü.) "Malati: This is a photo of my family." 5.18 মাজত মোৰ দেউতা আৰু মা বহি আছে। (mazot mür deuta aru ma bohi ase.) "My father and mother are sitting in the middle." 5.19 ৰাজীৱ: তোমাৰ মাৰাৰ কাষত কোন থিয় হৈ আছে? (rajiw: tümar marar kaxot kün thiyo hoi ase?) "Rajib: Who is standing beside your mother?" 5.20 মালতী: তেওঁ মোৰ দেউতাৰ ভায়েক, মোৰ খুৰা। (maloti: teü̃ mür deutar bhayek, mür khura.) "Malati: He is my father's brother, my uncle." 5.21 সোঁফালে তেওঁৰ পুতেক আৰু জীয়েক। (xü̃phale teü̃r putek aru ziyek.) "On the right are his son and daughter." 5.22 ৰাজীৱ: আৰু এইগৰাকী বয়সীয়াল মহিলা? (rajiw: aru eigoraki boyoxiyal mohila?) "Rajib: And this elderly lady?" 5.23 মালতী: তেওঁ মোৰ আইতা, মোৰ মাৰ মাক। (maloti: teü̃ mür aita, mür mar mak.) "Malati: She is my grandmother, my mother's mother." 5.24 এই ফটোখন আইতাৰ ঘৰৰ চোতালত তোলা। (ei photükhon aitar ghoror sütalot tüla.) "This photo was taken in the courtyard of Grandmother's house." 5.25 ৰাজীৱ: আইতাৰ ঘৰটো ক'ত? (rajiw: aitar ghortü kot?) "Rajib: Where is your grandmother's house?" 5.26 মালতী: নলবাৰীৰ এখন সৰু গাঁৱত। (maloti: nolbarir ekhon xoru gãwot.) "Malati: In a small village in Nalbari." 5.27 ৰাজীৱ: মোৰ মাৰ ঘৰো নলবাৰীত! (rajiw: mür mar ghorü nolbarit!) "Rajib: My mother's home is in Nalbari too!" 5.28 মালতী: সঁচাকৈ? তেন্তে আমি একেখন জিলাৰ মানুহ! (maloti: xõsakoi? tente ami ekekhon zilar manuh!) "Malati: Really? Then we are from the same district!" 5.29 ৰাজীৱ: বিহুৰ সময়ত আমি দুয়ো নলবাৰীলৈ যাব পাৰোঁ। (rajiw: bihur xomoyot ami duyü nolbariloi zabo parü̃.) "Rajib: At Bihu we could both go to Nalbari." 5.30 মালতী: হয়, আইতাৰ হাতৰ পিঠা খাবলৈ! (maloti: hoy, aitar hator pitha khaboloi!) "Malati: Yes, to eat Grandmother's own pitha!"
5.16 ৰাজীৱ: মালতী, এইখন কাৰ ফটো? 5.17 মালতী: এইখন মোৰ পৰিয়ালৰ ফটো। 5.18 মাজত মোৰ দেউতা আৰু মা বহি আছে। 5.19 ৰাজীৱ: তোমাৰ মাৰাৰ কাষত কোন থিয় হৈ আছে? 5.20 মালতী: তেওঁ মোৰ দেউতাৰ ভায়েক, মোৰ খুৰা। 5.21 সোঁফালে তেওঁৰ পুতেক আৰু জীয়েক। 5.22 ৰাজীৱ: আৰু এইগৰাকী বয়সীয়াল মহিলা? 5.23 মালতী: তেওঁ মোৰ আইতা, মোৰ মাৰ মাক। 5.24 এই ফটোখন আইতাৰ ঘৰৰ চোতালত তোলা। 5.25 ৰাজীৱ: আইতাৰ ঘৰটো ক'ত? 5.26 মালতী: নলবাৰীৰ এখন সৰু গাঁৱত। 5.27 ৰাজীৱ: মোৰ মাৰ ঘৰো নলবাৰীত! 5.28 মালতী: সঁচাকৈ? তেন্তে আমি একেখন জিলাৰ মানুহ! 5.29 ৰাজীৱ: বিহুৰ সময়ত আমি দুয়ো নলবাৰীলৈ যাব পাৰোঁ। 5.30 মালতী: হয়, আইতাৰ হাতৰ পিঠা খাবলৈ!
Three mothers. The dialogue has the word for "mother" in three forms. Malati's own is মা (5.18); Rajib asks after তোমাৰ মাৰা, "your mother" (5.19), with the familiar -ৰা, then in the genitive, মাৰাৰ কাষত, "beside your mother"; and the grandmother is মোৰ মাৰ মাক, "my mother's mother" (5.23), where মাৰ is মা in the genitive and মাক is "her mother". Rajib's own mother is মোৰ মাৰ ঘৰ, "my mother's home" (5.27): ঘৰ here, as often, is the family home a woman came from.
"His" in the family word. In 5.20 and 5.21 the uncle's children are তেওঁৰ পুতেক আৰু জীয়েক, and the uncle himself is মোৰ দেউতাৰ ভায়েক, "my father's brother", with -এক because he is the father's brother, not Malati's. Assamese has a single word for him too, খুৰা, "father's younger brother", and Malati gives both.
Words of place. মাজত, "in the middle", কাষত, "beside", and সোঁফালে, "on the right", are nouns with a case ending; with an owner they take the genitive: মাৰাৰ কাষত (5.19).
The genitive with no owned noun. একেখন জিলাৰ মানুহ (5.28) is "people of the same district", and হাতৰ পিঠা (5.30), "pitha of the hand", is food made at home by someone's own hand.
Questions. কাৰ (5.16) is the genitive of কোন, "who", which also appears in 5.19. ক'ত, "where" (5.25), you met in Lesson 1; its apostrophe marks the vowel /o/, as Lesson 1 explained.
তোলা, "taken". তোলা (5.24) is the participle of তোল-, "to lift, to take (a photo)", used here as an adjective: "this photo (is) taken in the courtyard".
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
The romanisation follows the system of the earlier lessons: ü for the short /ʊ/ of English "book", o for /ɔ/, x for the /x/ of Scottish "loch", s for চ and ছ, z for জ and য, a tilde for a nasal vowel. In the respellings, UU is the short vowel of "book", and the stressed first syllable is in capitals.
ৰ (-r, -or) — IPA: /ɹ/, /-ɔɹ/ — an English r, not trilled; after a consonant the ending is pronounced with the vowel /ɔ/ of "hot". মোৰ (mür) — IPA: /mʊɹ/ — ো is the short vowel of "book". ঘৰৰ (ghoror) — IPA: /ɡʱɔɹɔɹ/ — ঘ is g with a puff of breath. তোমাৰ (tümar) — IPA: /tʊmɑɹ/. কাৰ (kar) — IPA: /kɑɹ/. অসমৰ (oxomor) — IPA: /ɔxɔmɔɹ/ — স is /x/, as in Scottish "loch". সোণৰ (xünor) — IPA: /xʊnɔɹ/ — ণ is pronounced as an ordinary n. ভনীয়েক (bhoniyek) — IPA: /bʱɔnijɛk/. মাক (mak) — IPA: /mɑk/. মাৰা (mara) — IPA: /mɑɹɑ/. চেনেহৰ (senehor) — IPA: /sɛnɛɦɔɹ/ — চ is /s/. গিৰিহঁতনী (girihõtni) — IPA: /ɡiɹiɦɔ̃tni/ — the second vowel is nasal, from ঁ. খাবৰ (khabor) — IPA: /kʰɑbɔɹ/. যোৱাত (züwat) — IPA: /zʊwɑt/ — ৱ is /w/. চোতালত (sütalot) — IPA: /sʊtɑlɔt/. সোঁফালে (xü̃phale) — IPA: /xʊ̃pʰɑlɛ/ — a nasal vowel, then ফ as aspirated p. শংকৰদেৱ (xonkordew) — IPA: /xɔŋkɔɹdɛw/ — শ is /x/, ং is /ŋ/.
✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾ ✾ ❦ ✾ ❦ ✾
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Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)