Paya Kuna - An Introductory Grammar

333 Pages·2011·2.663 MB·English

by  D. Keith Forster

Language and Culture
DigitalResources Documentation and Description 14
®
PAYA KUNA

AN INTRODUCTORY GRAMMAR
D. Keith Forster
PAYA KUNA
AN INTRODUCTORY GRAMMAR

D. Keith Forster

SIL International®
2011
SIL Language and Culture Documentation and Description
14

©2011 D. Keith Forster and SIL International
ISSN 1939-0785

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Judy Benjamin
CONTENTS
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................................... ix
THE PAYA KUNA ALPHABET .......................................................................................................... x
1 BASIC GREETINGS AND TAKING LEAVE ............................................................................. 1
1.1 Dialogue ................................................................................................................................. 1
1.2 Pronunciation .......................................................................................................................... 1
1.2.1 Intonation (Ex. 1–2) ........................................................................................................ 1
1.2.2 Consonant pronunciation ................................................................................................ 2
1.2.3 Pronunciation of individual vowel and lenis consonant sounds ..................................... 2
1.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................... 8
1.4 Grammar ................................................................................................................................. 8
1.4.1 Mai versus chi................................................................................................................. 8
1.4.2 Use of personal pronouns ............................................................................................... 8
2 BASIC NEEDS EXPRESSED: FOOD AND SHELTER ............................................................ 10
2.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 10
2.2 Pronunciation ........................................................................................................................ 10
2.2.1 Intonation (Ex. 1–3) ...................................................................................................... 10
2.2.2 Fortis consonants .......................................................................................................... 11
2.2.3 Pronunciation of individual fortis consonant sounds (Ex. 4–8) ................................... 11
2.2.4 Vowel length (Ex. 9) .................................................................................................... 13
2.2.5 Distinguishing between fortis and lenis consonants (Ex. 10–27) ................................. 14
2.2.6 Consonant clusters (Ex. 28) .......................................................................................... 18
2.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 19
2.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................... 19
2.4.1 Word order (Ex. 29–30) ............................................................................................... 19
2.4.2 Desiderative (Ex. 31–35) .............................................................................................. 21
2.5 Vocabulary ........................................................................................................................... 23
3 CONVERSATIONAL REPLIES ................................................................................................. 24
3.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 24
3.2 Pronunciation ........................................................................................................................ 24
3.2.1 Intonation (Ex. 1–2) ...................................................................................................... 24
3.2.2 Pronunciation of consonant cluster with lenis consonant g or fortis consonant k before
nasals m and n (Ex. 3) .................................................................................................. 24
3.2.3 Intonation patterns of questions and answers (Ex. 4–10) ............................................. 25
3.2.4 Pronunciation of consonants at the beginning of a word .............................................. 26
3.2.5 Pronunciation of monosyllabic words (Ex. 11) ............................................................ 27
3.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 27
3.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................... 28
3.4.1 Yes/No questions .......................................................................................................... 28
3.4.2 Verb tense aspect - immediate future (Ex. 12–16) ....................................................... 28
3.4.3 Intransitive sentence word order ................................................................................... 30
3.4.4 Long and short forms of words..................................................................................... 30
3.4.5 Contrast of subject ........................................................................................................ 31
3.5 Vocabulary ........................................................................................................................... 32
4 QUESTIONS ................................................................................................................................ 33
4.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 33
4.2 Pronunciation ........................................................................................................................ 33
4.2.1 Intonation (Ex. 1–2) ...................................................................................................... 33
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iv Contents
4.2.2 Pronunciation of consonants at the end of words (Ex. 3) ............................................. 33
4.2.3 Pronunciation of labialized consonants (Ex. 4–7) ........................................................ 34
4.2.4 Pronunciation of transitional w ..................................................................................... 36
4.2.5 Fluctuation and phonological changes of fricatives, affricates and the semi-vowel j ........... 36
4.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 37
4.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................... 37
4.4.1 Verb tense in completive aspect ................................................................................... 37
4.4.2 Verb form in completive aspect (Ex. 8–10) ................................................................. 37
4.4.3 Content Questions (Ex. 11–18) .................................................................................... 39
4.5 VOCABULARY .................................................................................................................. 44
5 TRADE LANGUAGE.................................................................................................................. 45
5.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 45
5.2 Pronunciation and Intonation (Ex. 1–4) ............................................................................... 45
5.2.1 Conversation ................................................................................................................. 45
5.2.2 Listing ........................................................................................................................... 45
5.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 46
5.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................... 46
5.4.1 Numbers (Ex. 5–15) ..................................................................................................... 46
5.4.2 Listing ........................................................................................................................... 55
5.5 Vocabulary ........................................................................................................................... 56
6 POSITIONAL WORDS ............................................................................................................... 57
6.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 57
6.2 Pronunciation ........................................................................................................................ 57
6.2.1 Conversational intonation (Ex. 1–2) ............................................................................. 57
6.2.2 Disclaimer (nothing-special-is-happening) response (Ex. 3) ....................................... 57
6.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 58
6.3.1 Pointing ........................................................................................................................ 58
6.3.2 Counting with fingers ................................................................................................... 58
6.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................... 59
6.4.1 Positional verbs (Ex. 4–5) ............................................................................................ 59
6.4.2 Present progressive tense-aspect (Ex. 6–9) .................................................................. 63
6.4.3 Disclaimer (nothing-special-is-happening) response (Ex. 10) ..................................... 66
6.5 Vocabulary ........................................................................................................................... 66
7 BUYING AND SELLING ........................................................................................................... 67
7.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 67
7.2 Pronunciation ........................................................................................................................ 68
7.2.1 Intonation (Ex. 1) .......................................................................................................... 68
7.2.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 2–3) ................................................................................................ 68
7.2.3 Unit price intonation pattern (Ex. 4–5) ......................................................................... 68
7.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 68
7.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................... 69
7.4.1 Numbers (Ex. 6–19) ..................................................................................................... 69
7.4.2 Time words ................................................................................................................... 83
7.4.3 Quantity-related questions (Ex. 20) .............................................................................. 83
7.5 Vocabulary ........................................................................................................................... 84
8 CONVERSATIONAL POINTERS .............................................................................................. 86
8.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................... 86
8.2 Pronunciation and Intonation ............................................................................................... 86
8.3 Culture .................................................................................................................................. 87
Contents v
8.4 Grammar: Location .............................................................................................................. 87
8.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 100
9 BASIC HEALTH/MEDICAL DISCUSSION ............................................................................ 102
9.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 102
9.2 Pronunciation: Tracking and Mimicry (Ex. 1–3) ............................................................... 103
9.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 103
9.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 104
9.4.1 Word order of a noun phrase (Ex. 4–5) ...................................................................... 104
9.4.2 Negation of adjectives (Ex. 6) .................................................................................... 106
9.4.3 Colors (Ex. 7–10) ....................................................................................................... 108
9.4.4 Attributive sentence (Ex. 11–14) ................................................................................ 111
9.4.5 Useful expressions for personal needs ........................................................................ 113
9.4.6 Suffix of excess -rba .................................................................................................. 113
9.4.7 Existence sentence (Ex. 15) ........................................................................................ 113
9.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 114
9.5.1 Colors (# 1–6) ............................................................................................................. 114
9.5.2 Size (# 7–11)............................................................................................................... 114
9.5.3 Quality (# 12–13) ....................................................................................................... 114
9.5.4 Age (# 14–15) ............................................................................................................. 114
9.5.5 Temperature (# 16–19) ............................................................................................... 114
9.5.6 Humidity (# 20–21 ..................................................................................................... 115
9.5.7 Condition (# 22–27) ................................................................................................... 115
9.5.8 Body needs (# 28–29) ................................................................................................. 115
9.5.9 Capacity (# 30–31) ..................................................................................................... 115
9.5.10 Price (# 32–33) ........................................................................................................... 115
9.5.11 Food (# 34–38) ........................................................................................................... 115
9.5.12 Quantity (# 39–42) ..................................................................................................... 115
9.5.13 Useful expressions (# 43–45) ..................................................................................... 115
10 GROUPING OBJECTS, PEOPLE, OR ACTIONS ............................................................... 116
10.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 116
10.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–3) ...................................................................................................... 116
10.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 117
10.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 117
10.4.1 Verb tense-aspect (future) (Ex. 4–7) .......................................................................... 117
10.4.2 Including an additional participant in an action (Ex. 8–9) ......................................... 119
10.4.3 Associating one action with another action ................................................................ 121
10.4.4 Repetition of an attribute (state) (Ex. 10–11) ............................................................. 122
10.4.5 Order of suffixes following the verb (Ex. 12–13) ...................................................... 123
10.4.6 Vocative ...................................................................................................................... 124
10.4.7 Indirect object (Ex. 14) ............................................................................................... 125
10.4.8 Affected (interested) object ........................................................................................ 125
10.4.9 Habitual aspect (Ex. 15–16) ....................................................................................... 126
10.4.10 Adverbs (Ex. 17–18) .............................................................................................. 126
10.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 127
11 CONVERSATION CONTINUANCE ................................................................................... 129
11.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 129
11.2 Pronunciation: Intonation of Conversation Sustainers (Ex. 1–3) ....................................... 129
11.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 130
11.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 130
vi Contents
11.4.1 Greeting ...................................................................................................................... 131
11.4.2 Establishment of topic (Ex. 4) .................................................................................... 132
11.4.3 Sustaining the topic .................................................................................................... 132
11.4.4 Holding the floor ........................................................................................................ 134
11.4.5 Yielding-the-floor ....................................................................................................... 134
11.4.6 Waiving the floor ........................................................................................................ 135
11.4.7 Farewell (Ex. 5–14) .................................................................................................... 136
11.4.8 Obligatory answers to questions and proposals .......................................................... 139
11.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 139
12 EVENT TIME-COMMUNICATION .................................................................................... 141
12.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 141
12.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–3) ...................................................................................................... 141
12.3 CULTURE .......................................................................................................................... 142
12.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 142
12.4.1 Time-setting ................................................................................................................ 142
12.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 157
13 COMMUNICATING COMMUNITY TOGETHERNESS ................................................... 159
13.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 159
13.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–2) ...................................................................................................... 159
13.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 159
13.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 160
13.4.1 Male/female distinction .............................................................................................. 160
13.4.2 Possessives (Ex. 3–5) ................................................................................................. 160
13.4.3 Concept of pluralization (Ex. 6–18) ........................................................................... 162
13.4.4 Verb ku ‗to happen/become‘ ...................................................................................... 170
13.4.5 Conjunctions ............................................................................................................... 170
13.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 174
14 SOCIAL INTERACTION ...................................................................................................... 175
14.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 175
14.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–4) ...................................................................................................... 175
14.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 176
14.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 176
14.4.1 Inceptive aspect -al(i) (Ex. 5–6) ................................................................................. 176
14.4.2 Preparatory aspect –chogal/-zhogal/-jogal (Ex. 7–8) ................................................. 177
14.4.3 Habitual aspect condition (Ex. 9–10) ......................................................................... 178
14.4.4 Response to the habitual aspect condition (Ex. 11) .................................................... 178
14.4.5 Conditional with –le (Ex. 12) ..................................................................................... 179
14.4.6 Purpose suffix -gal/-kal (Ex. 13–15) .......................................................................... 180
14.4.7 Accompaniment suffix -bak/-pak (Ex. 16–19) ........................................................... 182
14.4.8 Instrument and means (Ex. 20–24) ............................................................................. 184
14.4.9 Speaking verbs (Ex. 25) ............................................................................................. 188
14.4.10 Direct speech .......................................................................................................... 190
14.4.11 Verbs of thinking .................................................................................................... 190
14.4.12 Exclusive noun suffix -bi/-pi (Ex. 26–27) .............................................................. 190
14.4.13 Exclusive action adverb unila ‗only‘ (Ex. 28) ........................................................ 191
14.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 192
15 COMMANDS ........................................................................................................................ 193
15.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 193
15.2 Pronunciation ...................................................................................................................... 193
Contents vii
15.2.1 Intonation of commands (Ex.1–2) .............................................................................. 193
15.2.2 Intonation of a sentence containing the reported speech suffix -chog/-zhog/-jog ...... 194
15.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 194
15.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 194
15.4.1 Commands: Direct/Polite (Ex. 3–21) ......................................................................... 194
15.4.2 Negatives (Ex. 22–30) ................................................................................................ 204
15.4.3 Reported speech suffix -chog/-zhog/-jog (Ex. 31) ...................................................... 209
15.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 209
16 RETELLING DETAILED ACCOUNTS ............................................................................... 211
16.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 211
16.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–4) ...................................................................................................... 213
16.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 213
16.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 214
16.4.1 Motion verbs (Ex. 5–13) ............................................................................................. 214
16.4.2 Adverbs of duration of stay ........................................................................................ 223
16.4.3 Goal of motion (Ex. 14–17) ........................................................................................ 223
16.4.4 Source of motion (Ex. 18–19) .................................................................................... 225
16.4.5 Other action verbs with verbs of motion (Ex. 20) ...................................................... 226
16.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 226
17 TELLING STORIES .............................................................................................................. 228
17.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 228
17.2 Pronunciation ...................................................................................................................... 228
17.2.1 Story-telling intonation (Ex. 1–3) ............................................................................... 228
17.2.2 Good story-telling style .............................................................................................. 229
17.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 230
17.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 230
17.4.1 Uses of postpredicate position (Ex. 4) ........................................................................ 230
17.4.2 Guidelines for placing elements in the postpredicate position (Ex. 5–28) ................. 232
17.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 243
18 SITUATIONAL EXPLANTION ........................................................................................... 245
18.1 Dialogue ............................................................................................................................. 245
18.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–3) ...................................................................................................... 245
18.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 245
18.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 246
18.4.1 Nominalization (Ex. 4–5) ........................................................................................... 246
18.4.2 Positional verb of motion (Ex. 6) ............................................................................... 247
18.4.3 Gerundial verb form (Ex. 7) ....................................................................................... 248
18.4.4 Qualitative suffix -gwa/-kwa ...................................................................................... 249
18.4.5 Postpredicate position of basic elements (Ex. 8–20) .................................................. 249
18.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 255
19 KUNA SPEECH TYPES ....................................................................................................... 257
19.1 Monologue .......................................................................................................................... 257
19.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–4) ...................................................................................................... 257
19.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 257
19.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 258
19.4.1 Obligation (Ex. 5–6) ................................................................................................... 258
19.4.2 Non-obligatory expressions ........................................................................................ 258
19.4.3 Futility ........................................................................................................................ 259
19.4.4 Ability (Ex. 7–9) ......................................................................................................... 259
viii Contents
19.4.5 Consequence of action (Ex. 10–11) ............................................................................ 261
19.4.6 Causative (Ex. 12) ...................................................................................................... 262
19.4.7 Causative commands .................................................................................................. 262
19.4.8 Impersonal passive suffix -le/-lle (Ex. 13) ................................................................. 263
19.4.9 Habitual behavior aspect ............................................................................................ 264
19.4.10 Past progressive suffix -ap ‗has/have been ____ing‘ (Ex. 14) ............................... 264
19.4.11 Naming ................................................................................................................... 265
19.4.12 Comparison (Ex. 15) .............................................................................................. 266
19.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 267
20 CLASSIFICATIONS ............................................................................................................. 269
20.1 Folktale ............................................................................................................................... 269
19.2 Pronunciation (Ex. 1–4) ...................................................................................................... 271
20.3 Culture ................................................................................................................................ 271
20.4 Grammar ............................................................................................................................. 273
20.4.1 Pronouns ..................................................................................................................... 273
20.4.2 First-person exclusive subject pronoun ...................................................................... 275
20.4.3 Demonstratives ........................................................................................................... 275
20.4.4 Indefinite and indeterminate pronouns ....................................................................... 276
20.4.5 Reference to group members ...................................................................................... 277
20.4.6 Reflexive pronouns ..................................................................................................... 278
20.4.7 Affirmation ................................................................................................................. 279
20.4.8 Contrary-to-fact (Ex. 5) .............................................................................................. 280
20.4.9 Past perfect aspect suffix -n ........................................................................................ 282
20.4.10 Probability/possibility ............................................................................................. 283
20.4.11 Alternatives............................................................................................................. 283
20.4.12 Types of text ........................................................................................................... 284
20.4.13 Discourse markers .................................................................................................. 285
20.5 Vocabulary ......................................................................................................................... 287
APPENDIX A: LONG AND SHORT WORD FORMS .................................................................... 288
APPENDIX B: FINGER NOMENCLATURE .................................................................................. 292
APPENDIX C: COUNTING MONEY .............................................................................................. 293
APPENDIX D: TIME WORDS ......................................................................................................... 294
APPENDIX E: TOPICS OF CONVERSATION ............................................................................... 295
APPENDIX F: FURTHER NOTES ON -BAL/-PAL ......................................................................... 297
APPENDIX G: IRREGULAR VERBS WITH LONG FORM -KE .................................................. 298
APPENDIX H: IRREGULAR VERBS WHICH END IN -KWE ...................................................... 300
APPENDIX I: SOLUTION TO EXERCISE 14 (see 10.4.5) ............................................................. 301
APPENDIX J: ANSWERS TO EXERCISE 6 (in section 16.4.1.2) ........................................................ 302
APPENDIX K: ORDERING OF STORY INTRODUCTIONS ........................................................ 303
APPENDIX L: A PROGRESSION OF CONTRARY-TO-FACT EXAMPLES .............................. 304
APPENDIX M: LONG AND SHORT FORMS OF SUFFIXES ....................................................... 305
APPENDIX N: LANGUAGE LEARNING ....................................................................................... 307
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................... 320
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this grammar is to help any interested person learn to speak and understand Paya Kuna,
which is spoken by the people of Paya, Pucuru, and Capetí in the Darién province of the Republic of Panama
and in the Kuna settlements of Arquía and Kudi on the Colombian side of the border. This volume deals with
some of the most basic characteristics of Kuna pronunciation and grammar, and it provides appendices on
various topics and a fairly extensive Paya Kuna vocabulary. Many important characteristics are not discussed
in this volume, but hopefully, after mastering these first twenty lessons the student will be equipped to
continue self-directed language learning. The grammar was designed primarily for use in a classroom where
the teacher is a native speaker of Kuna, but it also lends itself to learning Kuna in the informal situation of a
Paya Kuna village. Each section is not meant to be covered in a single class period, but normally consists of a
dialogue, pronunciation notes, notes on cultural etiquette, grammar aspects and exercises, and vocabulary
items for memorization. Emphasis is put on learning by mimicking in chorus and alone until the speech
patterns become automatic, thus, using a conversational approach to learning a language. An attempt is made
throughout to not only explain and drill the forms discussed, but also to enable language students to know in
which situational contexts their use is appropriate. An effort was also made to show the inseparability of the
Kuna language from its socio-cultural context.

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