Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Foreword
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Taxonomy (general)
- 3 Taxonomy (Sino-Tibetan)
- 4 Tibeto-Burman classification
- 5 Tibeto-Burman reconstruction (history)
- 6 Tibeto-Burman primary sources
- 7 Tibeto-Burman consonants (general; final)
- 8 Tibeto-Burman consonants (initial)
- 9 Tibeto-Burman consonant clusters
- 10 Tibeto-Burman vowels (finals; diphthongs)
- 11 Tibeto-Burman vowels (medials)
- 12 Tibeto-Burman tones
- 13 Tibeto-Burman morphology (history)
- 14 Tibeto-Burman morphology (categories)
- 15 Tibeto-Burman pronouns
- 16 Tibeto-Burman numerals
- 17 Tibeto-Burman morphology and syntax (general)
- 18 Tibeto-Burman affixes (special)
- 19 Tibeto-Burman affixes (general)
- 20 Tibeto-Burman dental suffixes
- 21 Tibeto-Burman prefixes (general)
- 22 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *s-
- 23 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *r-
- 24 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *b-
- 25 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *g-
- 26 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *d-
- 27 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *m-
- 28 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *a-
- 29 Tibeto-Burman alternation (consonantal, vocalic)
- 30 Karen (general)
- 31 Karen morphology (categories) and syntax
- 32 Karen pronouns
- 33 Karen numerals
- 34 Karen prefixes
- 35 Karen initial consonants and clusters
- 36 Karen final consonants and medial vowels
- 37 Karen final vowels and semi-vowels
- 38 Karen tones
- 39 Chinese (general, history)
- 40 Chinese morphology (prefixes, suffixes, alternation)
- 41 Chinese pronouns
- 42 Chinese numerals
- 43 Chinese phonology (history)
- 44 Chinese consonants (initials, finals)
- 45 Chinese consonant clusters
- 46 Chinese vowels and diphthongs
- 47 Chinese tones
- 48 Résumé (Chinese)
- Appendix I Tibeto-Burman roots
- Appendix II English–TB index
- Appendix III Primary Tibeto-Burman sources
- Appendix IV Author's and editor's bibliography
31 - Karen morphology (categories) and syntax
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 November 2010
- Frontmatter
- Foreword
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Taxonomy (general)
- 3 Taxonomy (Sino-Tibetan)
- 4 Tibeto-Burman classification
- 5 Tibeto-Burman reconstruction (history)
- 6 Tibeto-Burman primary sources
- 7 Tibeto-Burman consonants (general; final)
- 8 Tibeto-Burman consonants (initial)
- 9 Tibeto-Burman consonant clusters
- 10 Tibeto-Burman vowels (finals; diphthongs)
- 11 Tibeto-Burman vowels (medials)
- 12 Tibeto-Burman tones
- 13 Tibeto-Burman morphology (history)
- 14 Tibeto-Burman morphology (categories)
- 15 Tibeto-Burman pronouns
- 16 Tibeto-Burman numerals
- 17 Tibeto-Burman morphology and syntax (general)
- 18 Tibeto-Burman affixes (special)
- 19 Tibeto-Burman affixes (general)
- 20 Tibeto-Burman dental suffixes
- 21 Tibeto-Burman prefixes (general)
- 22 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *s-
- 23 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *r-
- 24 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *b-
- 25 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *g-
- 26 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *d-
- 27 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *m-
- 28 Tibeto-Burman prefixed *a-
- 29 Tibeto-Burman alternation (consonantal, vocalic)
- 30 Karen (general)
- 31 Karen morphology (categories) and syntax
- 32 Karen pronouns
- 33 Karen numerals
- 34 Karen prefixes
- 35 Karen initial consonants and clusters
- 36 Karen final consonants and medial vowels
- 37 Karen final vowels and semi-vowels
- 38 Karen tones
- 39 Chinese (general, history)
- 40 Chinese morphology (prefixes, suffixes, alternation)
- 41 Chinese pronouns
- 42 Chinese numerals
- 43 Chinese phonology (history)
- 44 Chinese consonants (initials, finals)
- 45 Chinese consonant clusters
- 46 Chinese vowels and diphthongs
- 47 Chinese tones
- 48 Résumé (Chinese)
- Appendix I Tibeto-Burman roots
- Appendix II English–TB index
- Appendix III Primary Tibeto-Burman sources
- Appendix IV Author's and editor's bibliography
Summary
Karen represents a relatively pure type of monosyllabic, isolating language. Categories of noun, pronoun, numeral, and verb-adjective can be distinguished, as in Tibeto-Burman. The object follows rather than precedes the verb, although in disjunction the object is placed at the head of the sentence. Modifying words follow verbs as well as nouns. Relating elements, some of which precede rather than follow, make for flexibility in word-order, e.g. the most important such element in Pwo is lö, as in ya le lö wį takhǫ ‘I go to Rangoon (city)’; ya phe sabwa lö li? la bį (or ya phe li? la bį lösabwa) ‘I give Sabwa a book’. Numerals are employed with numeral adjuncts or ‘classifiers’ (quantifiers), and the whole phrase is placed after the noun, much as in Burmese; cf. Pwo li? la bį ‘book one flat-thing (bį)’ = ‘one book’; γį ni phlǫ ‘house two round-things (phlǫ)’ = ‘two houses’; γį a phlǫ ‘many houses’. Karen syntax in general, however, with the object placed at or near the end of the sentence and with relating elements preceding as well as following, stands close to Chinese and even closer to unrelated Thai, which has perhaps exerted some influence here.
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- Chapter
- Information
- Sino-TibetanA Conspectus, pp. 129Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1972