Appendix:Egyptian predicates
This chart summarizes the constructions used with the various types of Egyptian predicates to form questions, negations, and clauses. Mostly it lists (after each ‘with’) the possible particles that can be used to form each construction; these particles are generally proclitic, preceding the clause in question. Where multiple particles are listed under separate bullet points, only one needs be used. The empty set symbol ∅ is used to indicate the absence of any proclitic particle. The chart mostly follows Allen 2010; there are significant differences of opinion among Egyptologists regarding some of these constructions.
For relative clauses, constructions with a particle (‘marked clauses’) generally indicate a definite antecedent, whereas those without (‘unmarked clauses’) indicate an indefinite one. For adverbial clauses, marked clauses can precede main clauses, whereas unmarked clauses usually cannot — except when the predicate is an emphatic form or when the clause is the protasis of a conditional sentence. For noun clauses, marked clauses have realis mood, whereas unmarked clauses are unmarked for mood but often irrealis.
| type of predicate | in main clauses | in subordinate clauses | negated | in yes-no questions[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| in adverbial clauses | in relative clauses | in noun clauses | |||||
| nonverbal | nominal | with ∅ | with:
(or use preposition + noun clause) |
with ∅ | with: | generally with:
in later Egyptian sometimes with: |
with: |
| adjectival | usually with:
occasionally with: |
with:
(or use preposition + noun clause) |
usually with:
rarely with: |
with: | generally with:
(rare; usually convert to nominal) in sentences of possession with nj, with: |
with: | |
| adverbial | usually with:
uncommonly with:
|
with:
(or use preposition + noun clause) |
with: | with: | with nn | with jn jw | |
| pseudoverbal (syntactically adverbial) | periphrastic imperfective with ḥr | with: | with: | with: | with: | with nn
(rare; usually use nj + perfect) |
with jn jw |
| periphrastic imperfective with m | with: | with: | with: | with: | with nn
(rare) |
with jn jw | |
| periphrastic prospective with r | with: | — | with: | earlier with:
in the New Kingdom with: |
with:
(rare; usually use nn + subjunctive) |
with jn jw | |
| subject-stative construction | with:
with non-perfect meaning, also with: |
with:
(sometimes with resultative meaning) |
with: | with: | with nn
(rare; usually use nj + perfective) |
with jn jw | |
| verbal | infinitive | with ∅ | — | — | with ∅ | (use tm + negatival complement) | — |
| imperative | with ∅ | — | — | — | (use m + negatival complement |
— | |
| stative | with ∅ | with ∅
(sometimes with resultative meaning) |
with ∅
(direct clauses only; can be used with definite antecedents) |
— | — | — | |
| perfect | with: | with: | with:
|
with:
(apparent uses with ∅ are probably nominal form) |
with nj
(with gnomic/imperfective meaning; for perfect meaning, use nj + perfective) |
with jn jw | |
| synthetic perfect passive | with: | with: | with ∅
(indirect clauses only) |
with:
(apparent uses with ∅ are probably other forms) |
with nj
(with gnomic/imperfective meaning) |
with jn jw | |
| terminative | — | with:
(always negated, with ‘before’ meaning) |
with:
(always negated, with ‘not yet’ meaning) |
with: | with nj | — | |
| perfective | with: | (usually use stative or perfect) | with:
|
with:
(rare; usually use nominal form) |
with nj
(sometimes with perfect meaning) |
with jn | |
| imperfective | with: | with:
(with concomitant meaning) |
with ∅
(can be used with vocatives or proper nouns as antecedents) |
(usually use nominal form) | possibly with nj (rare and debated)
(usually use nj + perfect, but tm + negatival complement in subordinate clauses) |
with: | |
| subject-imperfective construction | with: | with concomitant meaning, with:
with necessitative meaning, with: with subsequentive meaning, with: |
with ntj
(rare; usually use verbal adjective) |
with: | (usually use nj + perfect) | with jn jw | |
| prospective (incl. its passives) | with:
|
with:
in a protasis, with: with consequential meaning, with: |
— | with ∅ | with nj | with jn | |
| subjunctive | with: | expressing contingent action (purpose, result, jussive, etc.), with:
in a protasis, also with: with optative meaning, also with: with inevitable meaning, with: with consequential meaning, with: |
— | with: | with nn (main clauses with future meaning only)
(use jm + negatival complement with optative/jussive meaning, |
with jn | |
| consecutive | with ∅ | — | — | — | — | — | |
| obligative | with ∅ | — | — | — | (rarely use tm.ḫr + negatival complement) | — | |
| potentialis | with ∅ | — | — | — | (use nn + subjunctive
OR nj + prospective OR tm.kꜣ + negatival complement) |
— | |
| participle | — | — | with ∅
(generally in direct clauses; can be used with definite antecedents) |
— | (use inflected tm + negatival complement
OR, less often, inflected tm + infinitive) |
— | |
| relative form | — | — | with ∅
(generally in indirect clauses; can be used with definite antecedents) |
— | (use inflected tm + negatival complement
OR, less often, inflected tm + infinitive) |
— | |
| nominal form | — | — | — | with ∅ | (use tm + negatival complement) | — | |
| emphatic form | with:
|
with:
in a protasis, with:
|
— | with: | for a negated rheme, with:
(for a negated verb, use tm + negatival complement) |
with jn jw | |
- ^ All possible particles can optionally be followed by … tr. Questions of all forms can also be unmarked (with ∅).
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 Followed by jw with an attached suffix pronoun if the subject is pronominal. Never followed by jw if the subject is nominal.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Other proclitic particles such as nḥmn, ḥꜣ, jsw, or smwn.
References[edit]
- James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN.
- Uljas, Sami (2007) The Modal System of Earlier Egyptian Complement Clauses: A Study in Pragmatics in a Dead Language