(Meadow Mari)

AdpPP(PM) & AdpPPNonPM

AdpPP(PM): Person marking is optional for adpositions when they appear in personal pronominal function.

AdpPPnonPM: Adpositions in personal pronominal function cannot have person marking.

(1)məj-ənnergen-emgazet-əšt-atvoz-en-ət.
IGENabout1SGnewspaperINEevenwritePST23PL
’Even the newspaper wrote about me.’ (Riese et al. 2022: 160)

(2)təj-ənončəlnočeret-əštekumjeŋ.
youGENin_front_ofqueueINEthreeperson
’There are three people in the queue in front of you.’ (Riese et al. 2022: 160)

(3)məj-ənmarteil-etgən,vessemənšon-aštüŋal-at.
IGENuntillive2SGifotherwaythinkINFbegin2SG
’When you are as old as me you will start thinking differently.’ (Riese et al. 2022: 160)

In Meadow Mari adpositions are always postpositions. The personal pronoun appearing with the postposition is usually in genitive case, with person marking on the adposition being optional. Person marking in first and second person singular is much more frequent than in the other cases. There are postpositions (e.g. marte, nare) that cannot have person marking (3) (Riese et al. 2022: 160–161).

Author: Bogáta Timár


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