View source for Valthungian/Nouns

[[Category: Valthungian]]

Noun classes differ by suffix vowel and by gender. They may also differ by glides (/j/ or /w/) suffixed to the stem and/or the presence of infixive /n/. The main classes are those stems in /a/ or /ō/, in /i/, in /u/, or in /n/ (as described below: See [[Valthungian#A_Note_on_Terminology:_.E2.80.9CStrong.E2.80.9D_vs._.E2.80.9CWeak.E2.80.9D|“Strong” vs. “Weak”]]). There is also a small class of nouns in /r/ having to do with familial relations. Some former noun classes in Gothic (such as consontant‑stem and nd‑stem nouns) have been regularised in Valthungian through paradigmatic levelling, and their declensions have been assimilated into other classes.

Every noun in Valthungian (and many of the older Germanic languages, as well as modern German and Icelandic) has eight possible forms. These are the singular and plural forms of the nominative (those nouns which comprise the subject of the sentence), genitive (those used to indicate possession or relation), dative (the indirect object), and accusative (the direct object).

Masculine and feminine nouns usually take an ending of ‑s or ‑a for the nominative singular, while neuter nouns take no ending. The genitive is almost universally indicated by ‑is (this is equivalent to the “’s” of the English possessive). The dative usually takes ‑a. The accusative usually does not take any ending.

In the plural, Masculine and feminine nouns usually take ‑as as an ending; neuter takes ‑a. The genitive plural takes ‑aro, borrowed from Latin. The dative plural takes ‑am, but in many cases this ending undergoes a process of metathesis, rendering it ‑ma. Finally, the accusative plural of masculine and feminine nouns is usually ‑ans, but again may metathesise to ‑nas; neuter accusative plurals generally take ‑a.

Most of the actual declensions of nouns are fairly standard – much more standardised, in fact, than Gothic – however, the various phonological rules governing the language create a great deal of variation (See [[Valthungian#Phonology|Phonology]]). It is important to be familiar with the rules set forth in the Phonology section of this document in order to fully understand some of the otherwise unexpected variants that emerge.

==a‑Stems (Masculine & Neuter)==
This is by far the most common noun class, and technically includes the feminine ō‑stems as well, though we describe those here separately. The masculine and neuter forms of all a‑stems differ only in the nominative and accusative.

===a‑Stems===
These nouns end in a consonant and are followed by a simple ending with no drama. There are some minor variations, more of which will be detailed [[#a‑Stem Variations|below]].

Historically, this is the development of the standard a‑stem from Proto‑Germanic:

{| class="wikitable mw‑collapsible" style="text‑align: center;"
! colspan=9 style="text‑align: left;"| Strong Masculine a‑stem: ''[[slēps#Valthungian|slēps]]'' ‘sleep’
|-
! &nbsp;
! colspan=4| Singular
! colspan=4| Plural
|-
! width=150 style="text‑align: left;"| n.st.m.a
! width=100| Nominative
! width=100| Genitive
! width=100| Dative
! width=100| Accusative
! width=100| Nominative
! width=100| Genitive
! width=100| Dative
! width=100| Accusative
|-
! style="text‑align: right;" | Proto‑Germanic
| *slǣp‑'''az'''
| *slǣp‑'''is'''
| *slǣp‑'''ai'''
| *slǣp‑'''ą'''
| *slǣp‑'''ōz'''
| *slǣp‑'''ǫ̂'''
| *slǣp‑'''amaz'''
| *slǣp‑'''anz'''
|-
! style="text‑align: right;" | (Gothic)
| slēp‑'''s'''
| slēp‑'''is'''
| slēp‑'''a'''
| slēp‑'''∅'''
| slēp‑'''ōs'''
| slēp‑'''ē'''
| slēp‑'''am'''
| slēp‑'''ans'''
|-
! style="text‑align: right;" | Griutungi
| *slēp‑'''s'''
| *slēp‑'''is'''
| *slēp‑'''a'''
| *slēp‑'''∅'''
| *slēp‑'''ōs'''
| *slēp‑'''ē'''
| *slēp‑'''am'''
| *slēp‑'''ans'''
|-
! style="text‑align: right;" | Old Valthungian
| *sleip‑'''s'''
| *sleip‑'''is'''
| *sleip‑'''a'''
| *sleip‑'''∅'''
| *sleip‑'''ous'''
| *sleip‑'''ouruv'''<ref>The genitive plural ending was replaced by the Latin ending ''ōrum'' sometime around the 6<sup>th</sup> or 7<sup>th</sup> century.</ref>
| *sleip‑'''am'''
| *sleip‑'''ans'''
|-
! style="text‑align: right;" | Middle Valthungian
| sleip‑'''s'''
| sleip‑'''is'''
| sleip‑'''a'''
| sleip‑'''∅'''
| sleip‑'''os'''
| sleip‑'''oru'''
| sleip‑'''ᴍ'''
| sleip‑'''ɴs'''
|-
! style="text‑align: right;" | Valthungian
| slēp‑'''s'''
| slēp‑'''is'''
| slēp‑'''a'''
| slēp‑'''∅'''
| slēp‑'''as'''
| slēp‑'''aro'''
| slēp‑'''ma'''
| slēp‑'''nas'''
|}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.a|slēp|slēp|sleep}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.a|plat|plat|tie}}

====a‑Stem Variations====
=====ba‑ and da‑Stems=====
Stems which end in ‑ba or ‑da in Proto‑Germanic become unvoiced in the nominative and accusative singular in Valthungian. Specifically, ba‑stems end in '''‑f''' in the nominative and accusative, and have '''‑v‑''' elsewhere.
Historically, the Valthungian ba‑stems also include the fa‑stems, while the da‑stems include the þa‑stems, which have come to follow the same voicing patterns.
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.ba|vlu|wolf}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.ba|dra|job}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.da|mō|disposition}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.da|vro|word}}

=====ga‑Stems=====
Stems ending in ‑gaz are regular except for the masculine nominative singular which has an ending of '''‑ǧ''' where we would otherwise expect '''‑gs'''. However, in Old Valthungian this stem patterned like the ba‑ and da‑stems, because /ɡ/ also became spirantised in the same environments as /b/ and /d/ (spellt ⟨gy⟩). (Neuter g‑stem nouns are regular.)
{{Valthungian/n.st.m.ga|da|day}}

=====ha‑Stems=====
(skōfs) nom & acc sg have f; gu elsewhere
======iha‑Stems======
iha‑stems (slīs) it gets weird...
=====ma‑Stems=====
Masculine and neuter ma‑stem nouns are regular except that the dative plural ends in '''‑am''' rather than '''‑ma'''.
{{Valthungian/n.st.m.ma|drǭ|dream}}
{{Valthungian/n.st.n.ma|rū|space}}

=====mba‑Stems=====
The mba‑stems are largely regular, but the nasal‑stop combination prevents the stop (/b/) from being spirantised. (The same thing happens to the nda‑stems.) Further, the cluster '''mb''' cannot exist word‑finally or before a consonant, so the masculine and neuter nominative and accusative singular are reduced to an ending of '''‑m''' rather than the expected **‑mb, and the dative plural and masculine accusative plural do not show metathesis (i.e. they are '''‑am''' and '''‑ans''', respectively, rather than the expected **‑ma and **‑nas.)
{{Valthungian/n.st.m.mba|la|sheep}}
{{Valthungian/n.st.n.mba|kra|cabbage}}

=====na‑Stems=====
*na‑stems (himins, lapins) – no metathesis in dative or accusative plural
=====nda‑Stems=====
*nda‑stems (hunǧ, ganǧ) nom. sg. has ‑nǧ instead of **‑nds
=====ra‑Stems=====
*ra‑stems (wer, bēr) – no nominative singular ‑s
=====sa‑Stems=====
*sa‑stems (drus, ams) – no nominative singular ‑s
=====za‑Stems=====
*za‑stems (mims, gǣs) – s in nom and acc; ž elsewhere, no nominative singular ‑s
=====Geminate a‑Stems=====
*geminate‑stems (puls, swams) single sonorant in nom and acc sg; extended syllabic reflex elsewhere
=====Syllabic a‑Stems=====
*syllabic stems (bagmas, naglas) – no metathesis, ‑a(‑) gets added where necessary
=====Syllabic ra‑Stems=====
**syllabic ra‑stems (þundra, naðra) – syllabic, also no nominative singular ‑s

===ja‑Stems===
The ja‑stem nouns contain a short vowel followed by a single consonant which is followed by ‑j‑ which is in turn followed by the a‑stem endings. At least that’s how it was two millennia ago, but now the ‑j‑ has vanished, the endings disappeared, the vowel (usually) subjected to umlaut, and the stem’s final consonant (usually) subjected to palatalisation. 
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.ja|tap|tep|carpet}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.ja|kaf|kef|coffee}}

===ija‑Stems===
The ija‑stems are a variation of the ja‑stems, but these follow stems with long vowels or multiple consonants or syllables before the ending. (This is the modern Valthungian reflex of something called [[wiki: Siever's Law#Sievers's_law_in_Germanic|Siever’s Law]].) The main difference between ja‑stems and ija‑stems in Modern Valthungian is that there is no palatalisation in the nominative and genitive singular, though there is still umlaut. (This same pattern occurs in the class 1 weak verbs.) 
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.ija|mīr|mīr|observer}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.ija|futl|fytl|full moon}}

===wa‑Stems===
The wa‑stems nouns have ‑w‑ after the stem instead of ‑j‑, and they tend to be a lot less dramatic than the j‑stems because there is no palatalisation or umlaut or Siever’s Law to worry about. They are, however, plagued by another rule called [[wiki: Holtzmann's Law|Holtzmann’s Law]] – or an extension of it, anyway – which causes an unexpected ‑g‑ to pop up in a few of the declensions. 
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.wa|skað|shadow}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.wa|mil|flour}}

===wja‑Stems===
The wja‑stems combine all of the worst aspects of the w‑ and j‑stems, but fortunately they’re a pretty small group.

==ō‑Stems (Feminine)==
The ō‑stems are really just the feminine version of the a‑stems, historically speaking. 

===ō‑Stems===
The pure ō‑stems have even less drama than the masculine and neuter a‑stems. No metathesis, no umlaut, no palatalisation: pretty straightforward, really.
{{Template: Valthungian/n.st.f.ō|snuž|daughter‑in‑law}}

===jō‑Stems===
The jō‑stems have umlaut, but it is persistent throughout the paradigm, so there are no extra steps to learn. There are the usual palatal variations as well, but they are also consistent.
{{Template: Valthungian/n.st.f.jō|hen|hen}}

===ijō‑Stems===
The ijō‑stems are a bit weird, mainly because the nominative singular seems to have collapsed in Proto‑Germanic into a single ‑ī (more of [[wiki: Siever's Law|Siever’s]] shenanigans), leaving a modern reflex of a simple ‑e following an unumlauted, unpalatalised stem. Otherwise, the ijō‑stems are indistinguishable from the jō‑stems in modern Valthungian.
{{Valthungian/n.st.f.ijō|hundr|hyndr|century}}

===wō‑Stems===
The wō‑stems are uneventful, differing from the standard ō‑stems only in that a /u/ shows up in some of the endings instead of the standard /a/.
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.f.wō|band|symbol}}

==i‑Stems (Masculine & Feminine)==
===i‑Stems===
The i‑stems are very similar to the a‑stems – the singular declension is identical to the masculine a‑stems – but the plural resembles the ja‑stems, and the nominative plural has umlaut. The i‑stems can be masculine or feminine, and their declensions are identical. There are no neuter i‑stem nouns.

Most nouns which were part of the “consonant‑stems” in Gothic (such as '''''[[miluks#Valthungian|miluks]]''''' or '''''[[mēnaþs#Valthungian|mēnaþs]]''''' were assimilated into the i‑stem class.
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.f.di|dlu|dly|feast}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.i|mat|met|meal}}

==u‑Stems (all genders)==
===u‑Stems===
The u‑stems are similar to the i‑stems except – you guessed it! – the stems have /u/ instead of /i/. The masculine and feminine declensions are identical (like the i‑stems), but there are also neuter u‑stems. A large number of u‑stems are made up of borrowed Latin words ending in ‑us and Greek words ending in ‑ος (‑os). The genitive and dative singular of the u‑stems has been assimilated from the wa‑stems, and there is both umlaut and palatalisation in the nominative and genitive plural.
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.su|þā|þǣ|badger}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.f.ndu|ha|he|hand}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.tu|šal|šel|peach}}

===ju‑Stem===
The ju‑stems are to the u‑stems as the ja‑stems are to the a‑stems. There is umlaut and palatalisation throughout the paradigm. Once again, the masculine and feminine declensions are identical.

The neuter u‑stem only exists in newly‑borrowed Latin or Latinate words ending in ‑ium (e.g. '''''[[aluminio#Valthungian|aluminio]]''''' ‘aluminum’), while earlier borrowings of neuter nouns in ‑ium tend to be ja‑ or ija‑stems (e.g. '''''[[ōraloge#Valthungian|ōraloge]]''''' ‘clock’, from ''[[wikt: horologium|hōrologium]]'')
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.ju|dryn|voice}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.f.ju‑pal|wǣǧ|wall}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.ju|krœum|chrome}}

==r‑Stems (all genders)==
The r‑stems are a very small class of nouns consisting of family members. Here is the full list:
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.m.r|fað|feð|father}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.f.r|mōð|mœuð|mother}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.st.n.r|ǧut|ǧut|grandchild}}

==n‑Stems (all genders)==
The n‑stems, sometimes known as “weak nouns,” decline in the same manner as weak adjectives. Like the a‑, ō‑, and u‑stems, they have various reflexes depending on the presence of glides between the stem and the endings. Weak neuter nouns are very rare, and mostly refer to parts of the body.
===ōn‑Stem===
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.m.ô|gum|person}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.f.ǭ|drjus|cliff}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.n.ô|hret|heart}}
===jōn‑Stem===
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.m.jô|sinþ|traveller}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.f.jǭ|sinþ|traveller}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.n.jô|lip|lip}}

===wōn‑Stem===
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.m.wô|ank|butter}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.f.wǭ|þīf|thunder}}
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.n.wô|teg|toe}}

===īn‑Stem===
The īn‑stems are exclusively feminine, and are comprised largely of nominalized adjectives.
{{Template:Valthungian/n.wk.f.į̄|ǣð|mother}}

==r/n‑Stems (“Heteroclitic Nouns”)==
The r/n‑stems, also known as “heteroclitic nouns” or “heteroclites,” are a small group of weak neuter nouns in which the typical ‑n‑ of the ending is replaced by ‑r‑ in some declensions. This is an old, ''old'' relic likely from Pre‑Indo‑European. There is no evidence that heteroclites were present in Gothic. ''[[fōr#Valhungian|Fōr]]'' ‘fire’ and ''[[watra#Valhungian|watra]]'' ‘water’ only occur in the singular.
{{Template: Valthungian/n.wk.n.ǧikur}}
{{Template: Valthungian/n.wk.n.fōr}}
{{Template: Valthungian/n.wk.n.watra}}