Page:An Ainu-English-Japanese dictionary (including a grammar of the Ainu language).djvu/645

THE COMPOUND NOUN.

Compound nouns are extensively used by the Ainu and are formed as follows:—

(a)

By compounding two substantives together.

To, “the breast” Pe, “water”

Tope, “milk.”

(b)

By compounding verbs with nouns.

Uhui, “to burn.” Nupuri, “a mountain.”

Uhui-nupuri, “a volcano.”

E, “to eat.” Pe, “an article.”

Ep, “food.”

(c)

By compounding adjectives with pe “an article” contracted into p: e.g.

Pase, “heavy,”	Pasep, “a heavy thing.”
Poro, “large”	Porop, “a large thing.”

(d)

By adding p to the passive forms of the verbs, thus:—

verb.	noun.
Ae, “to be eaten.”	Aep, “food.”
Aye, “to be spoken.”	Ayep, “the thing said.”

(e)

By compounding verbs with katu “shape,” “mode,” “way” and ambe “a thing,” thus:—

An “to be”	An-katu, “existence,” “mode of being.”
,,    ,,	An-ambe, “existing thing.”
Itak, “to speak,”	Itak-katu, “language.”
,,     ,,     ,,	Itak-ambe, “a speech.”

Variety and diversity of subjects are expressed by prefixing usa or usaine an or neun-neun to nouns; Thus:—

Usa-wenburi, “a variety of bad habits.”
Usaine an itak ambe, “various or many diverse speeches.”
Neun-neun ambe, “various or many things.”

Diminutives are formed by prefixing pon or poi or suffixing po to nouns: thus: