Verbal Stem Formation

The Verb

The grammatical categories that are distinguished in Pārsīg verb morphology are person (first, second, and third), number (singular and plural), tense and mood.

Verbal Stem Formation

§ The Pārsīg verbal system is based upon two stems: the present stem and the past stems (in the following indicated by present: past). A primary past stem ends in -t (°f-t, °x-t, °š-t, °s-t) or -d (°V-d, °n-d, °r-d). A secondary past stem is formed by adding -īd (Parth. -ād), or -ist to the present stem. When the present stem of a verb is transitive or causative, the past stem is with active sense; when the present stem is intransitive or passive, the past stem is with passive sense.

i. present stem: primary past stem

bar-: burd ‘to bear, carry’ < *bar (Av. bara- pres., bərəta- ppp. OPers. bara- pres., °bRta- ppp.).

b-/ bav-: būd ‘to be, become’ < *bū (Av. bava- pres., būta- ppp., OPers. bava- pres.).

gōb-/ gōv-: guft ‘to say’ < *gub (OPers. gauba- pres., Sogd. γōβ-: γuβt-).

ii. present stem: secondary past stem

dōš-: dōšīd, dōšist ‘to love’ *zuš (Av. °zuš, zušta- ppp.; OPers. *duš, dauštar- ‘friend’, Parth. zōš ‘love’).

kām-: kāmist ‘to wish, desire’ *kām (OPers. kāma- pres.).

iii. present stem: primary and secondary past stem

bēš-: bišt, bēšīd/ bēšist ‘to hurt’ < *diš (Av. Tbiš/ G daibiš, Tbiš(ya)-/ G daibiš(ya)- pres., Tbišta-/ δbišta- ppp.).

iv. Suppletive stems

vēn-: dīd ‘to see’ (Av. vaēna- pres., OPers. vaina- pres., Av. dī, °dīta- ppp., OPers. dī).

āy-: mad/ āmad ‘to come’ (Av. ā-i, aē-/ i- pres., °ita ppp., OPers. ā-i-/ ai-; Av. gam, gata-/ gmata- ppp., OPers. °gmata- ppp.), cf. Parth. ās-: gad/ āgad, Sogd. ēs-: āγət.

v. °r-: °št

dār-: dāšt ‘to hold’ *dar (Av. dāraya- caus. pres., °dərəta- ppp., OPers. dāraya- caus. pres., Parth. dār-: dird).

kār-: kišt ‘to sow, plant’ < *kar (Av. kāraya- caus. pres., Sogd. kēr-/ kəš-: kišt).

vider-: vidurd/ vidašt *i-tar, i-tara- pres. (Av. vī-tərvətō° ppp., OPers. vi-taraya- caus. > Pers. vidār-).

The Causative

§ There exists a number of old causative stems surviving in Pārsīg, having, however, lost their causative function; they are considered as simple transitive.

franam-: franaft ‘to go forth, proceed’ *fra-nam (Av. fra-nəma- pres., fra-nata- ppp.), franām-: franāft ‘to conduct’ (Av. fra-nāmaya- caus. pres.).

vidar-: vidurd ‘to pass, cross’ *i-tara- (Av. vī-tarəta° ppp.), vidār-: vidārd ‘to convey across, transport’ *i-tāraa- (OPers. vi-taraya- caus. pres.).

vinir-: vinird ‘to take up position, be established’ *i-dRa- pres., vinār-: vinārd ‘to establish’ *i-dāraa- caus. pres. (Av. vī.dāraya- caus. pres.).

ušmār-/ ešmār-: ~d ‘to count’ *hmar, *hmāraa- caus. pres. (Av. mar, mara- pres., māraya- caus. pres.).

nišīy-: nišast ‘to sit (down)’ *ni-had (Av. nišhiδa- pres., °šta-, °šasta-, Paz. nišīn-, Parth. nišīδ-), nišāy-: nišāst ‘to set down, place’ (Av. ni-šāδaya- caus. pres., OPers. ni-šādaya- caus. pres.).

visīn-: visist ‘to tear, split’ *i-sid- (Av. °sista- ppp., Pers. abesīh-: abesist), visān-: visānd ‘to decompose’ *i-sādaa- caus. pres.

nibay-: nibey-: nibast ‘to lie down’ *ni-pad (Av. nipaiδya- pres.), nibāy-: nibāst ‘to lay down’ (Skt. ni-pādaya- caus.).

§ A normal causative stem is formed by adding -ēn-: -ēnīd to the present stem.

burz-: burzīd trans. ‘to esteem, honour’ *barj, *bRjaa- pres. (Av. bərəjya- pres., bərəxδa- ppp.), burzēn-: ~īd caus. ‘to cause to hold in esteem’ *bRjaan- caus.

zīv-: zīst intrans. ‘to live’ *jī, *jīa- pres. (Av. jva- pres., Parth. žīv-), zīvēn-: ~īd caus. ‘to give life, resuscitate’ *jīaana- caus. (Av. jaa- caus. pres.).

§ In the case of a few causatives the original stem is only used with preverbs.

°rāy-: °rāst (peyrāy-, virāy-) *raz ‘to draw a line; direct’ (Av. rāzaya- pres., rāšta- ppp.), rāyēn-: ~īd caus. *rāzaana- ‘to organize’.

The Passive

§ A small number of old passive stems have been preserved in Pārsīg.

kir-/ kirīy-/ kirīh- ‘to be done’ *kar, *kRa- passive pres. (Av. kirya- pass. pres., OPers. °kəriya-, Paz. kunih-, Parth. krh-).

ešmīr- ‘to be counted’ *hmara- pass. (Skt. smarya- pass.).

abesīh-: abesist/ abesīhīd ‘to be destroyed’ *apa-sid, *apa-sida- pass. pres. (Skt. chidya- pass., Av. °sista- ppp.).

§ A normal passive stem is formed by adding -īy- or -īh-: -īyist/ -īhist to the present stem.

barīh-: ~ist pass. ‘to be carried’ *bar-a- pass. pres. (OPers. bariya- pass. pres., Av. bairya-).

The Denominative

§ There exist a number of denominatives which, in principle, are brought back to old denominative present stems.

fšōn-: ~īd ‘to breed/ tend cattle’ (Av. fšu- m. ‘cattle’, fšuya- denom. ‘to tend cattle’, fšaoni- f. ‘prairie, cattle’, fšaonaya- mid. denom. ‘to take cattle to pasture’).

parr-: ~ist, ~īd intrans. ‘to fly (in the air)’ < *parnaa- denom. pres. (Av. parəna- nt. ‘feather, wing’).

duz(d): ~īd trans. ‘to steal’ (Av. duždāh- adj. ‘having/ giving evil gifts’).

§ Denominative stems are usually formed by the addition of -ēn-: -ēnīd to nouns and adjectives, they have an active meaning.

bīm n. ‘fear’ *bīma-, bīmēn-: ~īd ‘to frighten’.

pērōz adj. ‘victorious’ *pari-ajah-, pērōzēn-: ~īd ‘to make (somebody) victorious’.

xvēš possessive pronoun, also used as an adjective ‘own’ *haipaθa-, xvēšēn-: ~īd ‘to appropriate, make one’s own’.

abāg preposition/ postp. ‘with’, adv. ‘together’, also used as an adjective ‘associated with, joined’ *upāka, abāgēn-: ~īd ‘to put together, join’.

zīndag verbal adjective (present participle) ‘living’ *jīant-a-ka-, zīnagēn-: ~īd ‘to bring to life’.

bōxt verbal adjective (past participle) ‘saved’ *bauxta-, bōxtēn-: ~īd ‘to cause to be saved’.

§ With the ending –īh-: -īhist (instead of -ēn-: -ēnīd) denominatives are with a passive meaning.

nām n. ‘name’ *nāman-, nāmīh-: ~ist ‘to be names; assume a name’.

xvēš-īh-: ~ist ‘to be possessed’.

The old inchoative

There exist a number of present stems which indeed stem from old inchoatives.

dān-: dānist ‘to know’, šnās-: šnāxt ‘to get to know’ (OPers. dān-ā- pres., xšnāsa- inch. pres.).

tāb-: tāft ‘to heat’, tafs-: taft/ tafsīd ‘to grow hot’ (Av. tap, tafsa- inch. pres., tāpaya- caus. pres.).

xvafs-: xvaft ‘to sleep’ (Av. xvap, °xvabda- pres., xvafsa- inch. pres., Parth. vxasp-).

A special passive form

A number of past stems in -xt- ( *-x-ta-) and -ft- ( *-p/f/m-ta-) and also in -xs- and -fs- ( *-p/f/x-sa- inch. pres.) have present stems in -xt- and -ft- with a passive meaning.

xvaft-ed *haftaati ‘he is slept’ = xvafsed.

hamuxt-/ hamuxs- ‘to be taught’ *ham-uc (or *ham-muc?), °uxta-/ °uxsa-.

bōxt-/ bōxs- ‘to be saved, be delivered’ *buj, *būja- pres. (Pres. būz-), *bauxta-/ *bauxsa-.

gumixt-/ gumixs- ‘to be mixed’ *i-miz, *i-mixta-/ *i-mixsa- = āmixs- (Parth. vimixs-).

hanzaft-/ hanzafs- ‘to be finished’ *han-jamta-/ *han-jamsa-; also fra-zaft/ frazafs- ‘to become perfect’.

vīft/ vīfs- ‘to be deceived’ *i-dapta-/ *i-dapsa- (Parth. viδəfs-).

draxt/ draxs- ‘to endure’ *draxta-/ *draxsa-.

The Person-number markers

The present endings determine the first, second and third persons in singular and plural. The inflectional forms go back to the verb in -a- or in -aa-. The past stem has no ending.

§ Indicative

s. pl.

1 -Vm/ often –am *-āmi/ *-aāmi -Vm/ often -em *-āmahi/ *-aāmahi

2 -eh/ -ē *-aahi -ed/ older -eh *-aa-θa

3 (-d/ -t)/ -ed *-ati/ *-aati -end < *aa-nti

§ Subjunctive

s. pl.

1 –ān/ older -āni *-ā-ni -ām *-āma

2 –ā/ -āy (Parth. -āh) *-āhi -ād *-āθa

3 –ād *-āti, *-āt -ānd *-ānti

§ Optative

s. pl.

1 -ēm *-aaam -ēm *-aaama

2 -ēš *-aaš -ēd *-aata

3 -ē/ -ēh/ older -ēd *-aat -ēnd *-aaant

§ Imperative

s. pl.

2 -ø *-a -ed *-a-ata

The Auxiliary Verbs

Three verbs are used as auxiliaries in the periphrastic tenses.

§ h-/ Parth. ah- ‘to be, exist’ (Av. ah, ah-/ h- pres., OPers. ah-).

Indicative

1 s. ham/ hem/ hum (Av. ahmi/ G ahmī, OPers. ahmiy/ ahmiy, Parth. ahem, hem)

pl. hem/ hum (Av. hmahi/ G hmahī, OPers. ahmahi, Parth. hem, hemāδ)

2 s. hē (Av. ahi/ G ahī, Parth. ē)

pl. hed (Av. stā, Parth. hed)

3 s. ast/ est ‘is’ (Av. asti/ G astī, OPers. astiy), nēst ‘is not’

pl. hend (Av. həṇti/ G həṇtī, OPers. hantiy, Parth. ahend)

Subjunctive

1 s. hān (Av. aŋhā, Parth. ahān, OPers. ahaniy)

pl. hām (Av. åŋhāma, Skt. ásāma, Parth. ahām)

2 s. hā/ hāy (Av. aŋhō, OPers. a-h-ay /āhi/ < *ahahi, Parth. ahāh)

pl. hād

3 s. hād (AV. aŋhaT, OPers. ahatiy, Parth. ahād)

pl. hānd (Av. aŋhən, Parth. ahānd)

Optative

1 s. hēm (Av. G ym)

pl. hēm (Av. yāma)

2 s. hēš (Av. yå, Parth. ahēndēh)

pl. hēd (Av. yātā)

3 s. hē (Av. hyāT/ G yT, Parth. ahēndē)

pl. hēnd (Av. hyārə, Parth. ahēndēh)

Imperfect

Two forms of the imperfect of h- are attested: the third singular form anād and the third plural form anānd (OPers. āhat 3rd s. imperf., āhan 3rd pl. imperf., Parth. ahāz, ahāδ 3rd s. imperf.).

§ b-/ bav- ‘to be, become’ (Av. bū, bava- pres., OPers. bava-, Parth. bav-), būd past stem (Av. būta- ppp., Parth. būδ).

Indicative

1 s. bavam/ bavem (Av. °abaom/ OPers. abavam imperf., Parth. bavām)

pl. bavem

2 bavē/ bē/ baveh

pl. baved/ bed (Parth. bavēδ)

3 s. baved/ bed (Av. bavaiti, OPers. bavatiy, Parth. baveδ)

pl. bavend/ bend (Av. bavaiṇti, OPers. bavantiy, Parth. bavend)

Subjunctive

1 s. bavān (Av. bavāni, Parth. bavān)

pl. bavām (Av. bavāma, Parth. bavām)

2 s. bavā/ bavāy (Av. bavāhi, Parth. bavāh)

pl. bavād/ bād

3 s. bavād/ bād (Av. bavāT, OPers. bavātiy)

pl. bavānd (Av. bavāṇti)

Optative

3 s. bēh (OPers. biyā, Parth. bavēndēh)

Imperative

2 s. bāš *bāsd *bāušdi

pl. baved (Parth. baveδ)

§est/ ēst- ‘to be, stand’ *stā/ *adi-stā (Av. stā, hišta- pres., OPers. stā, išta-, ava-stā-ya- caus. pres., Parth. ešt-/ ēšt-).

Indicative

1 s. estam/ estem (Parth. eštām)

pl. estem (Parth. eštām)

2 s. estē (Av. hištahe Mid., Parth. eštēh)

pl. ested

3 s. ested (Av. hištaiti, Parth. ešted)

pl. estend (Av. hištəṇti, Parth. eštend)

Subjunctive

1 s. estān (Parth. ave-stān)

2 s. estā(y) (Parth. eštāh)

3 s. estād (Av. hištāT, °xštāT)

pl. estānd (Av. usə-hištąn)

Optative

2 s. estēš (Av. ava.hištōiš, Parth. eštēndēh)

3 s. estē (Parth. eštēndēh)

Imperative

2 s. est (Av. °hišta, Parth. avest)

pl. ested (Av. °hištata, Parth. avested)

The conjugational patterns of the verb

The main conjugational patterns of the verb are illustrated below with forms of the verbs.

šav-: šud intrans. ‘to go’ (Av. śu, śao-, śava-/ śyava- pres., °śuta- ppp., OPers. śiyava- pres.); bar-: burd trans. ‘to carry, bear’ (Av. bar, bar-, bara- pres., bərəta- ppp., OPers. bara- pres.); kun-/ kar-: kird ‘to do, act’ (Av. kar, kərənao-/ kərənu- pres., kərəta- ppp., OPers. kunau-/ kun- pres., kRta- ppp., Parth. kar-); gōb-/ gōv-: guft ‘to say’ (OPers. gub, gauba- pres.); dān-: dānist ‘to know’ (Av. zan, °zān- pres., °zaṇta- ppp., OPers. dān- pres., Parth. zān-); dah-/ day-: dād ‘to give, put’ (Av. dā, dad-/ daδā- pres., dāta- ppp., OPers. dadā- pres.); āfrīn-: āfrīd ‘to bless’ (Av. frī, ā-frīn- pres., ā-frita- ppp.).

• From the present stems

present stem-present ending: present

Indicative: bar-am ‘I carry’, šavē ‘you go’, gōbed/ plder gōbd ‘he/ she says’, kunem ‘we do’, dāned ‘you know’, dahend ‘they give’.

Subjunctive: barān ‘let me carry’, gōbā, šavād, kunām, dānād, dahānd.

Optative: barēm ‘I should carry’, šavēš, gōbē, kunēm, dānēd, dahēnd.

Imperative: bar! ‘carry!’, dahed! ‘give!’

• From the past stems

In the past tense, intransitive and transitive verbs are construed differently.

§ Past stem h – present ending: preterit

Indicative:

intransitive: šud ham ‘I went’, šud hē, šud, šud hem, šud hed, šud (hend).

transitive: i. agential. It is of ergative type. The agent is in oblique case and the patient (sometimes omitted) in oblique case. The patient determines verbal concord: an nēk būd ham, u-t nēktar bē kird ham ‘I was beautiful, and you made me more beautiful’; tū murvān bē burd hē ‘the birds carried you off’; dēn (P) īgman (A) vizīd ‘the religion that I have chosen’.

ii. non-agential. It is of passive type. ped hangām ō frahangestān dād ham ‘in due time I was given to the school’; burd hed ‘you were carried’.

Subjunctive:

intransitive: šud hān ‘I may/ would have gone’.

transitive: dēvān rāz bē dānist hād ‘the Daēva would have known the secret’; nēkīh dād hād ‘goodness wouls have been given’.

Optative:

intransitive: šud hē ‘(would that) he had gone’

transitive: bēzumān agar dānist hē ‘but if we had known’; kāc nēkīh dād hē ‘would that goodness had ben given’.

§ Past stem & present of b-/ bav-: periphrastic passive I

Indicative:guft baved ‘it is said’; ka hān mān kird baved ‘when that house will be built’.

Subjunctive: kird bavād ‘let it be done’.

Optative: āfrīd bēh yazd ‘blessed be God’.

§ Past stem & preterit of b-/ bav-: past anterior

Indicative:

intransitive: šud būd ham ‘I had gone’.

transitive: i. agential: ka-š hān guft būd ‘when he said that’.

ii. non-agential: nēkīh dād būd ‘goodness had been done’.

Subjunctive:

intransitive: šud būd hān.

transitive: u-š āfrīd būd hām.

Optative:

intransitive: šud būd hē.

transitive: kāc ōy amāh burd būd hēm.

§ Past stem & anād/ anānd: past imperfect

u-š az nas īg dēvān ud az rīm ī druxšān kird anād ēn nasāh ‘and from the nasal mucus of the demons and from the dirt of the she-demons she had made this corpse’; u-šā, xvēš zahag ud hannām ō ōy dād anānd ‘and they had given their own progeny and limbs to it’.

§ Past stem & present of est-/ ēst-: perfect

Indicative:

intransitive: šud estam ‘I have gone’.

transitive: i. agential: dānāgān guft ēsted ‘the wise said (it)’.

ii. non-agential: guft ēsted ‘it has been said’.

Subjunctive

Optative

§ Past stem & preterit of est-/ ēst-: pluperfect

Indicative

intransitive: šud estād ham ‘I had gone’.

transitive: i. agential: ped harv ēvēnag peristišn ī ardavān būd hān kenīzag kird estād ‘any kind of service which was (necessary) to Ardavān, that maid had performed’.

ii. non-agential: kird estād ‘it had been done’

Subjunctive

Optative

§ Past stem & past anterior of est-/ ēst-: perfect anterior

Indicative

intransitive: šud estād būd ham ‘I had gone’.

transitive: i. agential: u-m guft estād būd ‘and I had said (it)’.

ii. non-agential: nēkīh dād estād būd ‘goodness had been given’.

Subjunctive

Optative

§ Past stem& estād & present of b-/ bav-: periphrastic passive II

mardōm andar kāmag-zīvišnīh dāšt estād bavend ‘people shall have been stood in a happy life.’