Note: Agent Person Markers go directly onto the verb stem.
Examples :
hilha-li -- I am dancing.
iah-hilha-o? -- Are you dancing?
nowa-tuk --He;She;It: walked.
oklah nowa-tuk -- They walked. (Refers to people, rather than animals.)
hash-taloa-tuk kiyo --You (plural) didn't sing.
eho-taloa -- we (all) are singing.
Ilhpvk ish-chompa-tuk-o?
Did you buy groceries?
A , wak nipi micha palvska chompa-li-tuk?
Yes, I bought beef and bread.
Pilashash aiitvnaha has-ona-tuk-o?
Did you (plural) get to church yesterday?
Kiyo, tvmaha il-ilhkoli-tuk.
No, we went to town.
NOTES:
1st person plural has 2 forms:
1. Exclusive or Definite plural-includes only a fixed number, not all who are present.
2. Inclusive or Distinctive Plural- Embraces the speaker and all who are present, but ignores all others.
All personal and possessive pronouns have this double plural.
"E" and "Eho" stand before consonants; "il" and "iloh" before vowels.
The "H" on "ish" and "hvsh" is dropped when used before the letter "s."
Example utilizing the verb for "Walk," -nowa:
Nowa-lih -- I walk
Ish-nowah -- You walk
Nowah -- He; She; It; Walks
E-nowah -- We walk
Eho-nowah--We walk
Hvsh-nowah -- You walk
Nowah -- They Walk
The Choctaw Language has many ways to show plurality when it comes to "they."
1. To use "okla/oklah" in front of the verb:
Okla hihlah -- They are dancing
Ohoyo-vt okla ilhkoli
The women (They) are going.
Affected Person Markers
Singular
Is-sv-pisah -- You see me
E-chi-pisah -- We see you.
Pisa-lih -- I see him;her;it (Unmarked)
Plural
Ish-pi-pisah -- You see us
Ish-hvpi-pisah -- You see us.
E-hvchi-pisah -- We see you.
Pisa-lih -- I see them. (Unmarked.)
An affected subject is one that experiences something or is in some condition. It does not "do" anything.
Vlla-mut hohchvffoh -- That child is hungry.
Issuba-vt tikabi-tuk -- The horse was tired.
Singular
I -- (sv-, si-)
You -- (chi-, ch-)
He; She; It; -- (Unmarked)
Plural
We -- (pi-, p-)
We -- (hvpi-, hvp-)
You -- (hvchi-, hvch-)
They -- (Unmarked)
Recipient Person Markers
To or For Me -- (am-, a-)
To or For You -- (chim-, chi-)
To or For Him; Her; It; -- (im, i-)
To or For Us -- (Pim-, Pi-)
To or For Us -- (Hvpim-, Hvpi-)
To or For You -- (Hvchim-, Hvchi-)
To or For Them -- (Im-, i-)
The markers ending with "m" are used when the next sound is a vowel, and those ending in a nasal vowel are used when the next sound is a consonant.
Note: The indirect object of a verb is the second type of object. The indirect object often expresses the role of the recipient . The person to whom or for whom something is done.
English Examples:
John gave a book to Bill.
John is the subject.
Book is the direct object.
Bill is the indrect object.
Carla gave me a lot of money.
Carla is the subject.
a lot of money is the direct object.
Me is the indirect object.
When a recipient role appears in a Choctaw sentence, it is always marked on the verb with the recipient marker. Very often, person agreement markers substitute for noun phrases, just as pronouns substitute for nouns in English. When agreement markers replace noun phrases, the order of the markers is:
Subject Marker and Indirect Object Marker
Vlla nakni-vt towa chim-ishtvla-tuk.
The boy brought you a ball or The boy brought a ball to you.
Towa chim-ishtvla-tuk
He brought a ball to you.
The agent person marker "li," I always appears after the verb, and before the tense marker.
Holisso chi-holissochi-lih.
I'm writing you a letter.
Shulush himona e-chi-chumpah.
We are buying new shoes for you.
Possession
Possessive markers have the same form as the recipient markers. This means that when tense markers appear with nouns, they are possessive markers, and when they appear with verbs, they are recipient markers.
My -- (am-, a-)
Your -- (Chim, Chi-)
His; Her; Its; (im-, i-)
Our -- (Pim, pi-)
Our -- (Hvpim-, Hvpi-)
Your -- (Hvchim, Hvchi-)
Them -- (Im-, i-)
Agreement markers on verbs will be hyphenated and possessive markers on nouns will be directly attached. The possessive marker will be prefixed to the noun it possesses.
