Uatakassi

by Nik Taylor

The Text

Iazil flasitanki tittaidaiziai

Fasiganki tinnalupiasal uafpatiskai.  Fakuilinki uafsagai uaftaspitai.  Fazgasunniki.  Luvdipasniki fittaki.
Plastli, fazgasuntanki tinnaluvdii sunpin.
Plastli, faskatas sukuaataki tinlupiasaz "Siga sunpiz bliilba vilasiniki!  Lasitannu tittaidaiziai plislassi piblaazgasun-paf."
Zi faskatas tinlupias "Utitimassanu uamislassa sunpaaz"
Plastli fazziaziutantu tittaidaiziai.  Zi futilasitastu tinlapias.

English version

When the evil ones prayed

The teachers told stories.  We believed the holy tradition.  We hid.  No one can protect us.
So the protectors hid with us.
So someone said to a teacher "Tell us what we should pray!  The evil ones have prayed to see our hiding!"
But the teacher said "You've already heard the entire prayer"
So the evil ones got angry.  But the teacher began to pray.

Grammar description

Every noun in Uatakassi has a gender prefix, which inflects for number.  For this text, you need only know two of them.  They are gender 1 and gender 6.  Gender one is for female sentient beings, and is t(i)- in the singular and ti*- in the plural.  * is an abstract marker for gemination, e.g., ti*-likani would be realized as tillikani.  Gender 6 is u(a)-, plural uaf-

Verbs have multiple affixes.  Those that are used in this text are f(a)- "past tense", vi- "should", plus the aspect and personal suffixes.

Personal suffixes are inflected according to the noun which is in the absolutive case, which is normally the subject for intransitive verbs, and the object for transitive verbs.  The suffixes used are:
-ni: 1st person plural, we/us
-tas: 3rd person singular, sentient
-la, -*a, -l: 3rd person singular, non-sentient
-tan: 3rd person plural, sentient
-n(a): 3rd person plural, nonsentient
Auxilary verbs are suffixed onto the main verb, with gramatical affixes being added attached to both ends of the verb-auxilary complex

Aspect suffixes used are:
-tu: Inceptive (begin to)
     Note: With stative verbs and verbal adjectives, this is used for
     "become"
-ki: Non-punctual (default)
-(no suffix): Punctual (instantaneous action or very brief)
-nu: Perfective (action whose effect is still going on)

Nouns
In addition to the gender prefixes, nouns also have a number of suffixes, most of which are not used in this text.  Those that are used are:
-i: Plural
-(no suffix): Absolutive
-(a)l: Ergative
-(a)z: Dative
-(a)f: Genetive
-n(an): Commitative (with X)
-ba: Illative
Also, the clitic -pa "our" is used in one line

Adjectives always follow the noun and agree in number, case, and gender

Some verbs and nouns have certain changes that may occur to the beginning or end.  I'll mark these in the vocabulary.  For example, "saga (ska)" means that "saga" may be found as "ska" in some forms, while "N(a)-" means that na- or n- may be used.

Vocabulary

Azgasun: Hide
Bla-: Act of
Bliil: What (relative marker)
Daizia: Evil
Fattaki: No one
Iazil: When (relative marker, period of time, rather than a specific
instant)
Kuili: Believe
Lasi: Pray
Lassa: Prayer
Lassi: See
Lupias: Teach
Luvdi: Protect
Mis-: All of, every
N(a)-: One who
-Pas: Can
Patiska (Ftiska): Story
Plastli: So, therefore, thus
Plis-: In order to, so that, for the purpose of
S(a)-/z-: Prefix which turns adjectives into verbs meaning "be X"
Saga (ska): Say
Saga (ska, skaa): Word
Siga: Tell (illative case used for what is being told)
Sukuaataki: Someone
Sunpaa: You (plural)
Sunpi: We (epicene)
Tai-: Person characterized by an adjective
Taspita: Holy
Uti-: Already, yet
Zi: But
Ziaziu: Angry