obj: direct object
Typically, the object is the noun phrase that denotes the entity acted upon or which undergoes a change of state or motion (the proto-patient). In Classical Armenian, the object is marked by the accusative case. Classical Armenian is usually discribed as a language with a flexible (S)VO word order, and the position of the direct object is not fixed.
Classical Armenian has a differential object marking. The referentially prominent direct object is marked by an adposition զ= / z= (see Case).
Ի սկզբանէ արար Աստուած զ երկին եւ զ երկիր : \n In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth .
obj(արար, երկին)
obj(արար, երկիր)
obj(created, heaven)
obj(created, earth)
Եւ ընթացեալ մի ոմն ելից սպունգ մի քացախով : \n And one ran and filled a spunge with vinegar .
obj(ելից, սպունգ)
obj(filled, spunge)
If there are two core arguments in the accusative, only one of them has the obj relation, while others are iobj.
հարցից եւ ես զ ձեզ բան մի \n I will ask you one question
obj(հարցից, բան)
iobj(հարցից, ձեզ)
obj(ask, question)
iobj(ask, you)
Dependents in the accusative, which are not core arguments, take the obl relation.
բազում անգամ [Acc] անկանի ի հուր \n many times he falls into the fire
obl(անկանի, անգամ)
References
Jensen, Hans. 1959. Altarmenische Grammatik. Heidelberg: Winter.
Klein, Jared. 2017. The syntax of Armenian. In: J. Klein et al. (eds.), Handbook of comparative and historical Indo-European linguistics. Berlin, Boston: Walter de Gruyter: 1097‒1115.
Samvelian, Pollet, Pegah Faghiri, Victoria Khurshudyan. 2023. On the persistence of SVO: the case of Modern Eastern Armenian. Linguistics 61/3: 459‒497.
obj in other languages: [bej] [bg] [bm] [cop] [cs] [de] [el] [en] [es] [ess] [et] [eu] [fi] [fr] [fro] [ga] [gsw] [hy] [it] [ja] [ka] [kk] [kmr] [ky] [mr] [no] [pcm] [pt] [qpm] [ro] [ru] [sl] [ssp] [sv] [swl] [tr] [u] [uz] [vi] [xcl] [yue] [zh]