nsubj:pass:
Middle Persian does not have a grammaticalized passive diathesis (at least in all centuries of its attestations). There are the following patterns that can be expressed by a passive in the target language of translation:
- intransitivization by the suffix -īh- : this suffix is used to form intransitive verbs from nouns or other parts-of-speech, and to reduce the valency of a verb by -1. With transitive verbs, this can result in a passive reading, with intransitive verbs, it may be a middle. Some texts apply this suffix so regularly to transitive verbs that it can be considered a grammaticalized passive suffix.
- middle verbs: verbs ending in °xtan can form a middle in the so-called present tense (e.g. hammōxtan with hammōz- ‘to teach’ and hammōxt- ‘to learn’).
- subject demotion in the active: the subject referent can left unexpressed and the verb is a 3sg. or 3pl. This corresponds to English constructions with ‘one’ or ‘you’ without specific reference.
- ergative construction: if the oblique subject referent is not expressed, the construction allows for an active reading assuming subject omission (topic drop) or a passive reading.
- participle + būdan ‘to become’: Combining the resultative (aka past) participle with the verb ‘to become’ results in various readings among which the terminative reading is close to a passive interpretation.
Patterns 1+2 represent intransitive constructions, 3+4 transitive constructions, 5 is a copular construction including an external-subject relation.
It is only for pattern 4 that the relation nsubj:pass is applied to ensure a correct interpretation of the semantic roles. The passive reading is certain when the agent is encoded by a preposition phrase with az.
- “If an amortisation (of a debt) is to be made by a family”
ka az dūdag tōzišn bē kunišn \n if from family amortisation off do.NEC mark(kunišn, ka) case(dūdag, az) obl:agent(kunišn, dūdag) nsubj:pass(kunišn, tōzišn) advmod(kunišn, bē)
nsubj:pass in other languages: [axm] [bg] [cs] [de] [el] [en] [es] [fr] [gd] [gsw] [he] [hy] [id] [it] [jv] [ka] [lt] [naq] [no] [oge] [pa] [pal] [ps] [pt] [qpm] [ro] [ru] [sv] [tn] [tr] [u] [vi] [xcl] [yue] [zh]