satu kitav - Noun Sentences & Modifier Clauses

Noun sentences

Below is an example of a grammatically correct noun sentence in Satu Kitan.

= That difficult problem.

A noun sentence starts with a noun followed by zero or more modifiers. In Satu Kitan, this simple form of noun sentence is rarely used except as an answer to a question (similar to replying “apple.” to “What will you eat?”). The main role of noun sentences is to form topic sentences, which are explained in the next section.

Topic sentences and modifier clauses

Verb sentences in Satu Kitan generally express an objective state. The example used so far, “giputus hanyu fov. (giputús Hanyu Fon) / That problem is understood,” also describes an objective state and does not specify who understands it.
To indicate who understands it, we do the following.

= I understand that problem.

Note that ' and , are pronounceable characters.
A sequence surrounded by ' and , is called a modifier clause and functions grammatically like a modifier. The noun modified by a modifier clause is called the clause's topic and behaves similarly to a subject.

A noun sentence whose final modifier is a modifier clause is called a topic sentence. Most noun sentences in Satu Kitan are topic sentences.

Function of modifier clauses

As the name suggests, modifier clauses function as modifiers: they add meaning or properties to nouns or verbs when used in a sentence.

= I, who understand that problem, am called Minori.

In this sentence the property “that the problem is understood” is attributed to “I”, and it also shows that “I” is the agent of the action “understand”. You can think of the topic sentence at the start of this section as being extracted from the first object of this sentence.

The Relationship between Topic and Modifier Clause

Compare a verb sentence and its modifier-clause form in Satu Kitan and English:

The verb giputus, which was translated as a passive (the action is received) in the verb sentence, is translated as an active (the action is performed) in the modifier clause. In this way, the topic of a modifier clause represents the agent of the action, while a plain verb sentence that is not a modifier clause lacks an agent (i.e., reads as passive).
Conversely, an object in a verb sentence does not become the agent of the action. Therefore, for many verbs, a person or living thing placed in the object position does not necessarily carry the sense of intentionally causing the action.
The following example illustrates this well.

= I go to Gifu. ([literally] I move myself to Gifu.)

In Satu Kitan, “go” is expressed using fabakas (Fabakas) / move. If you used a plain verb sentence instead of a topic sentence and said “fabakas a gifu tev.”, it would carry the nuance of being moved to Gifu by somebody or something.
Therefore, this sentence always requires both the topic that indicates the agent of the action (“a / I”) and the object that indicates the thing being moved (“a / I”).

“A is B”–type Topic Sentence

You can also make the contents of a modifier clause into a noun sentence; in that case it becomes a sentence like “A is B”. However, it is often more appropriate to use verbs that express how A is B, such as petas (be called) or gatas (equal).

= I am Minori.

Topic swapping

Modifier clause whose topic is the object

Normal modifier clauses take as their topic the thing that is the agent of the action. However, in some contexts you may want to use a modifier clause to indicate that the topic is actually the object of an action. In such cases, a suffix is added to the predicate verb inside the modifier clause to show that the topic is the object.

= The problem that I understand is difficult.

The suffix sya (sha) indicates that the verb's first object is syntactically omitted and that the topic is that object. Use syu (shu) to do the same for the second object. When the agent of the action needs to be indicated in such sentences, add the auxiliary word kuv as an oblique/auxiliary object.

Similarly, modifier clauses whose topic represents time or place can be expressed using suffixes.