Iltârer has an unusual system of personal pronouns, connected intimately with sentence structure. Every sentence (except short exclamations and the like) contains a personal pronoun as its subject. The pronoun may stand alone, or may immediately follow its antecedent. The antecedent is almost always stated explicitly at first use of a pronoun, even in the first and second person. This is because the Iltârer concept of personal identity is very fluid. One may choose to identify with another person or even an inanimate object, and use the first-person pronoun. This is more common in poetic and religious discourse, but is not unknown in casual speech. The second person is considered customary for all persons, present or absent, probably deriving from an ancient custom of symbolically "inviting in" those of whom you speak in order to check the inclination toward gossip.
The first person refers to oneself, or more broadly to any person or object with which one chooses to identify. The Iltâr believe that it is possible (and frequently desirable) to identify oneself with the entire cosmos, as well as anything within it, living or nonliving. The routine use of the first person in the conventional sense (one's personal self) is thus augmented with a more mystical or figurative usage. It is customary, for example, to assume the first person in reference to the listener in circumstances of intimacy, such as between lovers or between parent and child. It can also serve as an expression of intense solidarity with the subject of one's discourse, as for example when referring to a family member who has gone do something on one's behalf. No distinctions of number are made in the first person pronoun.
The second person indicates that the speaker assumes an attitude of respect toward the person or thing named, symbolically addressing them, although they may be absent. It has thus become the usual pronoun for referring to persons, absent or present. Exceptions are made for intense identification, where the first person is used, or for deliberate depersonalization, which calls for the third person. The second person is also applied to non-persons, including inanimate objects, when the things involved are seen respectfully, as being in relationship with oneself, rather than as simple objects. Thus, it is not uncommon to refer to pets, favored garden plants, and personal items of sentimental value in the second person. No distinctions of number are made in the second person.
The third person is used when the antecedent is viewed impersonally, in a detached, objective fashion, and regarded as something to be described, rather than someone to identify with or offer respect to. This is the usual way of treating abstract nouns, and is common for inanimate objects as well. Used in reference to people, it suggests an artificial detachment, and may signal the expression of a particularly harsh reality or observation. The third person can even be applied to oneself in this sense. The traditional Iltârer apology (speaking one's own name followed by eth sâchiâtâ "it sinned") harshly confesses error, and also conveys that the speaker no longer identifies with the will to commit the wrong. The third person pronoun is inflected according to both case and number.
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absolutive |
casuative |
referential |
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1st person (identification) |
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2nd person (respect) |
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3rd person singular |
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3rd person plural |
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3rd person collective |
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There are two demonstrative pronouns in Iltârer, but there use is quite restricted compared with English.
The first pronoun, êph, is called the concrete demonstrative pronoun, is not used in narrative contexts, but only in real-time dialog where a concrete object presents itself to speaker and listener. It means roughly "this person or object here". It is most commonly encountered in a few set expressions, such as êph ña sar? ("Who is it?"/"Who are you?") and êph ña sael? ("What is that?"/"What is this?").
The second pronoun, ñeñ, is called the abstract demonstrative pronoun, and is used only to refer to concepts articulated by a previous or forthcoming block of discourse (clause, sentence, or larger segment):
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The abstract demonstrative pronoun is used in conjunction with the relative particle for indirect discourse and related expressions. When the antecedent is a single word or noun phrase, a personal pronoun is invariably used instead of the abstract demonstrative.
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absolutive |
causative |
referential |
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concrete singular |
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concrete plural |
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abstract singular |
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abstract plural |
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abstract collective |
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Copyright © 2001-2004 Tom Little