Libyan Arabic affixes in Siwi

Summary

Affix function number of borrowed affixes

Description

Information and examples are from Souag (2010), see also Souag (2009; 2020). There are five borrowed affixes/fusional patterns.

2 comparative/superlative (conventionally termed the elative) markers

  • C1C2əC3 template imposed on triliteral adjectives ‘comparative’, e.g. gzəl ‘shorter’ (from a-gzāl ‘short’), zṭəf ‘blacker’ (from azəṭtạ̄f ‘black’), zwər ‘bigger’ (from a-zuwwar ‘big’) (Souag 2020:481)
  • -hum ‘superlative’, e.g. zwərhum ‘the biggest’ (from a-z-uwwar ‘big’) (Souag 2010:159). Note that Souag (2010:38) speaks of “full productivity of the Arabic comparative/superlative template in Siwi.”

2 nominalizing root patterns

  • āCəCCēCī template ‘agent (habitual doer)’, e.g. aččēwī ‘glutton’ (from əčč ‘eat’), aruwwēlī ‘flee-er’ (from rwəl ‘flee’), ajəllēwī ‘someone who swears a lot’ (from jəll ‘swear’) (Souag 2010:422)
  • lə-/əl- + C1C2āC3ət template ‘deadjectival nominalizer’, e.g. ləmlālət ‘whiteness’ (from aməllāl ‘white’), zzṭāfət ‘blackness’ (from azəṭtạ̄f ‘black’), əzzwārət ‘bigness, size’ (from a-zuwwar ‘big’) (Souag 2010:161)

1 verbal derivational prefix

  • dā- ‘suggestive’, e.g. dā-təġḍəb! ‘let her get angry!’, dā-iẓnant! ‘let them ［Algeria and Morocco］ divide it!’ (Souag 2010:384). It probably comes from Classical Arabic imperative daʕ ‘leave, let’ (Souag 2010:379).

Additionally, there are two plural morphemes which are each only attested on one native Siwi (Berber) stem. Therefore, they are not counted here: it can be expected that Souag’s (2010) detailed study would have uncovered further hybrid formations if they existed: lə-CCaCəC, e.g. lŭgrazən ‘dogs’ (from agŭrzni ‘dog’) (Souag 2010:90), lə-kdew-a ‘squashes’ (from lə-kdew-iyy-at ‘squash’) (Souag 2010:88).