Case: case
| Values: | Nom | Acc | Dat | Abl | Loc | Gen | Ins |
In Classical Armenian, case is an inflectional feature of nouns, including proper nouns, adjectives, determiners, numerals, pronouns, and some personal forms of verbs and auxiliaries.
The morphology of Classical Armenian differentiates seven cases: Nom, Gen, Dat, Acc, Abl, Loc and Ins. The case system has many syncretic forms. The patterns of syncretism differ across declensions and numbers (singular vs. plural). Only the first person pronoun in the singular has seven distinct case forms. Any case, except for the nominative, can be combined with adpositions.
The descriptions of the individual case values below highlight the prototypical meanings of case. See further details in Meillet 1913, Jensen 1959, Aṙakelyan 2010.
Nom: nominative
The base form of the nominal, also used as citation form (lemma). This is the default case for subjects of clauses (see below on the genitive for exceptions). The vocative does not have a dedicated form and is expressed by the nominative. The nominative typically does not take adpositions with one exception: when the particle զ=/z= specifies a sentential argument expressed by a relative clause, it can be added to the noun phrase expressing the subject of the clause in the nominative.
Examples
- Ասէ ց=նա հրեշտակ=ն: / Asē cʻ=na hreštak=n. “The angel said unto him.”
- ահաւանիկ աշակերտքն քո գործեն՝ զ=որ ոչ էր արժան գործել ի շաբաթու / ahawanik ašakertkʻn kʻo gorcen; z=or očʻ ēr aržan gorcel i šabatʻow “thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day” (Mt. 12:2)
Acc: accusative
The accusative case most typically expresses the direct object of a transitive sentence. In this function, either a bare accusative form is used, or it is combined with the proclitic determinative particle զ=/z=, when the direct object is referentially prominent (the differential object marking pattern).
Examples
- Զի ի լրութենէ անտի նորա մեք ամենեքին առաք շնորհս փոխանակ շնորհաց: / Zi i lrowtʻenē anti nora mekʻ amenekʻin aṙakʻ šnorhs pʻoxanak šnorhacʻ. “And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.” (Jn. 1:16)
- Աբրահամ ծնաւ զ=Իսահակ: / Abraham cnaw z=Isahak. “Abraham begat Isaac.” (Mt. 1:2)
Gen: genitive
The genitive is only distinct from the dative in personal pronouns and in the singular of demonstrative pronouns. A nominal in the genitive typically functions as an attribute of another nominal. There is no partitive genitive in Classical Armenian; the partitive semantics is expressed by the ablative. The logical subject can be in the genitive in the perfect and pluperfect periphrastic tenses (mostly with transitive verbs), expressed by the past participle and a copula. The copula typically does not agree with the logical subject in number. When the secondary predication is expressed by a verbal noun, the logical subject is also expressed by the genitive.
Examples
- անուն նորա / anown nora “his/her/its name”
Dat: dative
This is the word form often used for indirect objects of verbs.
Examples
- Եւ տաց քեզ փականս արքայութեան երկնից: / Ew tacʻ kʻez pʻakans arkʻayowtʻean erknicʻ. “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven.” (Mt. 16:19)
Abl: ablative
The ablative case typically describes a motion from the source or an agent in the passive voice construction. In these functions it is used in conjunction with the preposition ի/i.
Examples
- զի լցցի որ ասացաւն ի Տեառնէ / zi lcʻcʻi or asacʻawn i Teaṙnē “that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord” (Mt. 1:22)
Loc: locative
The locative case typically expresses the location in space or time. It is used with different adpositions, most typically ի/i.
Examples
- ընդէ՞ր խորհիք դուք չարիս ի սիրտս ձեր / əndē?r xorhikʻ dowkʻ čʻaris i sirts jer “Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?” (Mt. 9:4)
Ins: instrumental
The instrumental case is typically used withan an adposition to express an instrument.
Examples
հոգւով Աստուածոյ հանեմ ես զդեւս / hogwov Astowacoy hanem es zdews “I cast out devils by the Spirit of God” (Mt. 12:28)
References
Առաքելեան, Վարագ. 2010. Գրաբարի քերականութիւն. Երևան: Վիամիր․ [Araqelian, Varag. 2010. Grammar of Grabar. Yerevan: Viamir]
Jensen, Hans. 1959. Altarmenische Grammatik. Heidelberg: Winter.
Meillet, Antoine. 1913. Altarmenisches Elementarbuch. Heidelberg: Winters (Internet Archive)
Meillet, Antoine. 1962. Études de linguistique et de philologie arméniennes. I: Recherches sur la syntaxe comparée de l’arménien. Suivies de la composition en arménien. Lisbonne: Imprensa Nacional de Lisboa.
Case in other languages: [am] [apu] [arr] [bej] [bg] [cs] [el] [eme] [en] [es] [ess] [et] [fi] [ga] [gn] [grc] [gub] [hu] [hy] [ka] [kmr] [koi] [kpv] [ky] [mdf] [myu] [myv] [pcm] [ps] [pt] [qpm] [ru] [sl] [sv] [tl] [tpn] [tr] [tt] [u] [uk] [urb] [urj] [uz] [xcl]