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Syntax

Avar Syntax (Синтаксис)

Version: 1.0
Last Updated: May 26, 2026

This section is part of our living public grammar of Avar and is regularly updated to reflect the latest linguistic research, database enhancements, and morphological analyses.

Avar syntax is highly intricate, relying on strict structural rules for agreement, alignment, and word order. Unlike many European languages that rely heavily on analytical conjunctions to link clauses, Avar has a synthetic preference, heavily utilizing non-finite verb forms (converbs, participles, and masdars) to do the heavy lifting of clause linkage.

1. Clause Structure and Alignment
1.1 Word Order and Head-Finality

Avar is a strict head-final language. The standard default word order is SOV (Subject-Object-Verb).

  • Intransitive: Вас векерула. (The boy [Subj] runs [Verb].)
  • Transitive: Васас кагъат хъвала. (The boy [Subj] writes a letter [Obj] [Verb].)

Because it is head-final, dependent elements strictly precede the head they modify:

  • Adjectives precede Nouns (берцинай яс "beautiful girl").
  • Genitives precede Nouns (инсул рукъ "father's house").
  • Subordinate clauses precede Main clauses.
1.2 Ergative-Absolutive Alignment

Avar follows an Ergative-Absolutive alignment system.

  • The subject of an intransitive verb and the direct object of a transitive verb are treated grammatically identically—they both take the base Absolutive (Nominative) case.
  • The agent (doer) of a transitive action is placed in the Ergative case.
1.3 Dative/Locative Experiencers

For verbs of perception, emotion, and internal state (e.g., to see, to hear, to want, to love), the logical subject (experiencer) is placed in the Dative or Locative case, not the Ergative.

  • Дида (Loc) бацI (Abs) бихьана. (I saw a wolf.)
  • Дие (Dat) гьей (Abs) йокьула. (I love her.)
1.4 Verb Class Agreement

Verbs (along with adjectives and some adverbs) must agree in Noun Class and Number with the noun in the Absolutive case. The verb never agrees with the Ergative or Dative subject.

  • Вас (Abs, Cl. I) векерула. (The boy runs.)
  • Васас (Erg) яс (Abs, Cl. II) йеццула. (The boy praises the girl.)

[!NOTE] Split Agreement: In specific Bi-absolutive analytic constructions, the main verb prefix agrees with the Object while the participial suffix and auxiliary prefix agree with the Nominative Subject.

2. Word Combinations (Словосочетания)

Word combinations in Avar are grammatical units consisting of two or more content words linked by subordination or coordination.

2.1 Types of Syntactic Links
  1. Agreement (Согласование): The dependent word matches the head noun in Class and Number, but remains case-invariant (always Nominative). борхатаб мегӀер (high mountain).
  2. Government (Управление): The head word dictates the specific case its dependent must take. носоца къотӀизе (to cut with a knife [Erg]).
  3. Adjunction (Примыкание): An invariant dependent (adverb) attaches to the head without case changes, though in Avar, adverbs can still contain class markers to agree with the subject/object. хӀеренго кӀалъай (speaking calmly).
2.2 Classification by Head Word
2.2.1 Nominal Head (Agreement-Based)
  • Adjective: берцинай яс (beautiful girl).
  • Participle: цӀалараб кагъат (read letter).
  • Numeral: анцӀго гӀеч (ten apples), тӀоцебесеб гӀазу (first snow).
  • Pronoun: дир дарсал (my lessons), доб машина (that car).
2.2.2 Nominal Head (Case-Government)
  • Genitive: Kinship (Мусал яс), possession (Кажлаевасул музыка), material (меседил ца).
  • Dative: Purpose or designation (васасе рукъ "house for the son").
  • Locative Series I-V: Spatial relations (мугӀрузе салам "greetings to the mountains").
2.2.3 Masdar-Headed

Verbal noun phrases taking dependents in various cases:

  • кечӀ ахӀи (singing a song [Nom-Obj]).
  • хӀамица баччи (transporting by donkey [Erg-Inst]).
2.2.4 Verbal-Headed (Comprehensive)

The most complex category, covering all major verbal dependencies:

  • Direct Object (Nominative): тӀехь босизе (to take a book).
  • Instrumental/Causal (Ergative): унтуца хвезе (to die from illness).
  • Objective (Genitive): Verbs of speech/inquiry - бицине (to tell about).
  • Recipient (Dative): васасе чу босизе (to buy a horse for the son).
  • Spatial (Locative I-V): столалда лъезе (to put on the table).
2.2.5 Adverb-Headed
  • Intensifiers: цӀакъ кутакалда (very strongly).
  • Comparative Similes: гӀазу гӀадин хъахӀго (white as snow).
3. The Simple Sentence (Простое Предложение)
3.1 Classification Axes

Avar sentences are classified along five axes:

  1. Polarity: Affirmative / Negative.
  2. Purpose: Declarative / Interrogative / Imperative / Exclamatory.
  3. Complexity: Simple / Complex.
  4. Main Members: One-member / Two-member / Three-member.
  5. Extension: Extended / Non-extended.

[!TIP] Three-member Sentences: Because of Ergative-Absolutive alignment, Avar grammatically treats the direct object as an indispensable main member of the sentence (since it controls verb agreement). This results in the prevalent "Three-member sentence" (Subject-Object-Predicate) classification.

3.2 Principal Parts
  • Subject (Подлежащее): Can appear in Nominative, Ergative, or Dative/Locative (perception verbs). Anchors the extreme left position.
  • Direct Object (Прямое дополнение): Always in Nominative. Positioned immediately pre-verbal. Governs class agreement.
  • Predicate (Сказуемое): Positioned at the end. Can be synthetic, Analytic, Compound Verbal, or Compound Nominal.
3.3 Indirect Objects (Косвенное дополнение)

Indirect objects are actants strictly governed by the verb's valency:

  • Ergative: Instrument/tool (гӀаршиналъ рорцунел руго - measure with an arshin).
  • Genitive: Possession, material, or subject of speech.
  • Dative: Addressee/recipient or limitation.
  • Locative I (-да): Object of physical impact, source/target of emotion, or point of comparison.
  • Ablative I (-даса): Source of emotion, object of deprivation or comparison (бергьине to win over).
  • Locative II (-хъ): Object of sensory/mental perception (гӀенеккизе to listen).
3.4 Adverbial Modifiers (Обстоятельства)
  • Manner: Expressed by adverbs, converbs, or similes (-гӀадин).
  • Place: Stationary (Series I-V locatives), Directional (Allative cases or -хун), Origin/Path (Ablative/Translative cases).
  • Time: Uses Ergative for duration (сордоялъ "during the night"), postpositions (цебе, хадуб), or participle + -гӀан ("until").
  • Cause: Uses Ergative (хӀинкъиялъ "from fear") or postposition сабаблъун.
  • Purpose: Uses Dative (кумекалъе), postposition гӀоло, or the Infinitive.
3.5 Attributive Modifiers (Определения)
  • Agreed: Adjectives, participles, pronouns. They agree in class/number but remain case-invariant.
  • Unagreed: Genitive attributes (possession, material, part-whole) or unmarked nouns of profession/kinship. Unagreed attributes usually precede agreed ones in a hierarchy (инсул кӀудияб рохел "father's [Unagreed] great [Agreed] joy").
4. Complex Sentences: Coordination

Coordinate sentences consist of syntactically independent parts forming a semantic whole.

4.1 Connective (Соединительные)
  • -ги: The primary conjunction. Often repeated in each clause. Denotes simultaneous (Imperfective symmetry) or sequential (Perfective symmetry) events.
  • ва: Formal/literary Arabic loanword.
  • я... я...: When repeated in affirmative contexts, acts as a connective-reinforcing conjunction ("both... and"). In negative contexts, it means "neither... nor".
4.2 Adversative (Противительные)
  • амма: Highlights contradiction/concession.
  • ва амма: Highly formal/literary compound.
  • абуни: Functions as "as for" or "while", highlighting a contrast between the parts.
4.3 Disjunctive (Разделительные)
  • яги / ялъуни: Standard "or".
  • цин... цинги...: Alternating events ("now... now...") or sequential ("first... then...").
4.4 Conditional Adversative
  • гурони: Functions as "otherwise" or "or else" (from the negative particle гуро + conditional).
5. Complex Sentences: Subordination

Avar subordinates primarily through infinite verb forms (Participles, Masdars, Converbs). Subordinate clauses almost always precede the main clause.

5.1 Subject & Adjective Clauses
  • Subject Clauses: Formed through substantivized participles. The case of the dependent subject is determined by the main clause verb (e.g., Nominative, Ergative).
  • Adjective (Relative) Clauses: A participial predicate defines a noun (equivalent to "who", "which", "whose").
    • Uses жиндир (his/her own) for possessive "whose" clauses.
    • Uses -щинаб (every/all) for generalizations.
5.2 Object Clauses

Function as the direct or indirect object, filling thematic roles for verbs of communication, cognition, volition, and emotion.

  • -лъи: Indicates a factual state ("knew that...").
  • букӀин: Future states or indirect facts.
  • -гутӀи: Negative fact (Negative Masdar).
  • -али / -яли: Indirect questions ("don't know why...").
  • -ан / -илан: Reported speech.
5.3 Time Clauses (Когда, Пока, После)
  • Immediate Sequence: Past participle + -го ("As soon as"), or Masdar + -гун.
  • Simultaneity: Present converb -унаго / -лаго ("While...").
  • Posteriority: Past participle/converb + postpositions хадуб / нахъе ("After", "Since").
  • Limit: Infinitive + -гӀан ("Until").
  • Restrictive: гурони ("Only when").
5.4 Cause and Result Clauses
  • Cause: Uses щайгурелъул (because), щай абуни, or often an asyndetic Masdar in the Ergative case for internal states.
  • Result: Uses гьединлъидал ("therefore"). Stands in postposition to the main clause.
5.5 Condition and Concession Clauses
  • Real Condition: Particle -ни attached to Aorist stems.
  • Unreal Condition: Participle + -ани / -аравани.
  • Concession: Uses -ниги / -ониги ("even if"). Interrogative + -ниги creates "no matter what/where" logic.
5.6 Purpose, Manner, and Comparison
  • Purpose: The Infinitive is the primary marker. Negative purpose uses Infinitive + гурилан ("so as not to").
  • Manner/Measure: Future participle + -духъ ("to the degree of"), or Converb + -хъе ("as shown").
  • Comparison: Particle гӀадин (as if / like) attached to a participle.
6. Asyndetic Complex Sentences (Бессоюзные предложения)

Sentences joined entirely by intonation and semantics, without explicit conjunctions.

  1. Comparative Relations: Antonymic symmetry ("He likes flowers, I like herbs"). Highly productive in Avar proverbs.
  2. Explanatory-Clarifying: The second clause decodes or justifies the first ("The meadow was full of flowers: roses were sparkling").
  3. Conditionality: Establishing a basis/condition purely via structure (e.g., Interrogative + Imperative: "Are you hungry? Eat.").
7. Negation Patterns

Avar approaches negation syntactically by mirroring the affirmative structure exactly. The affirmative sentence serves as the base, and negation is applied via suffixes or auxiliaries:

Tense / Role Form Example
Present / Future -ро хисуларо (will not trade)
Past -чӀо кӀалъачӀо (did not speak)
Copula / Nouns ("is not") гуро дун чи гуро (I am not a person)
Auxiliary verb ("does not exist") гьечӀо жаваб кьун гьечӀо (has not given an answer)
Imperative (Prohibitions) -ге воржунге (don't fly!)

Negation is often syntactically strengthened by clitics like -ниги or -го attached to pronouns to form double-negation patterns (щибниги лъаларо "knows absolutely nothing").

8. POS Tagging & Universal Dependencies (UD) Mapping

Avar computational linguistics utilizes the Universal Dependencies (UD) framework for syntactic annotation. The unique morphosyntactic features of Avar (Ergative alignment, extensive local cases) require specific mapping strategies.

8.1 Core Dependency Relations

Because Avar is head-final, dependency arcs generally point from right to left.

Relation Description Avar Application
root Root of sentence The main finite verb (or copula/participle predicate).
nsubj Nominal subject The Absolutive noun (intransitive), Ergative noun (transitive), or Dative/Locative noun (experiencer).
obj Direct object The Absolutive noun governed by a transitive verb.
iobj Indirect object Dative recipients.
obl Oblique nominal Nouns in Locative cases (Series I-V) or Instrumental (Ergative) uses.
nmod Nominal modifier Genitive possessors/materials modifying a noun.
amod Adjectival modifier Adjectives modifying a noun.
8.2 Case-to-Dependency Mapping

Avar's case system maps dynamically to UD relations depending on the governing verb:

  • Absolutive: Maps to nsubj (intransitive verbs) or obj (transitive verbs).
  • Ergative: Maps to nsubj (transitive verbs). However, if used as an instrument (хӀамица "by donkey"), it maps to obl:instr. If used for time (сордоялъ "at night"), it maps to obl:tmod.
  • Genitive: Maps to nmod:poss (possession) or nmod (material).
  • Dative: Maps to iobj (recipient) or nsubj (experiencer with perception verbs like to love or to see).
  • Locative Series: All spatial cases map to obl:lmod (locational oblique).
8.3 POS Tagging Strategies for Pronouns

Avar pronouns require context-aware POS tagging:

  • Demonstratives: When used attributively (дол чагӀи "those people"), they are tagged as PRON[PronType=Dem] with an det dependency. When used independently as 3rd person pronouns (дол унел руго "they are going"), they act as nsubj or obj.
  • Reflexives: Reflexives like живго are tagged PRON[PronType=Prs, Reflex=Yes]. The -го suffix is separated and tagged as an emphatic particle PART[PartType=Emp].
  • Negatives: Pronouns formed with -ниги are tagged PRON[PronType=Neg]. Avar requires negative concord (double negation), so the verb must also be tagged with negative polarity. If a negative pronoun appears with an affirmative verb (щивниги вачӀина), its meaning shifts to indefinite ("someone"), and it must be tagged PRON[PronType=Ind].
9. Verb Government Classes (Valency Patterns)

Avar verbs are strictly categorized by the case frames they require. Unlike many languages, Avar lacks morphological markers for transitivity; valency is purely syntactic.

9.1 Class I: Transitive (Ergative-Absolutive)
  • Structure: Agent [Erg] + Patient [Abs] + Verb
  • Agreement: Verb agrees with Patient (Absolutive).
  • Examples: Васас (Erg) кагъат (Abs) хъвана. (The boy wrote a letter.)
9.2 Class II: Intransitive (Absolutive)
  • Structure: Subject [Abs] + Verb
  • Agreement: Verb agrees with Subject (Absolutive).
  • Examples: Вас (Abs) ворчӀана. (The boy woke up.)
9.3 Class III: Affective / Inverted (Dative-Absolutive)
  • Structure: Experiencer [Dat] + Stimulus [Abs] + Verb
  • Semantics: Used for perception, emotion, or ability verbs (e.g., to love, to see, to want).
  • Examples: Дие (Dat) мун (Abs) йокьула. (I love you.)
9.4 Class IV: Potential / Locative (Locative-Absolutive)
  • Structure: Potential Agent [Loc: -да] + Patient [Abs] + Verb
  • Semantics: Denotes potentiality, accidental action, or "finding oneself" knowing/doing something.
  • Examples: Дида (Loc) гьеб жо (Abs) лъана. (I [came to] know that thing.)
9.5 Class V: Labile (Context-Dependent Transitivity)

Labile verbs can be either transitive or intransitive depending entirely on the syntactic frame provided.

  • Intransitive Use: КъотӀноб гӀазу биана. (The snow [Abs] melted.)
  • Transitive Use: Эбелалъ нах биана. (Mother [Erg] melted butter [Abs].)
10. Pronoun-Specific Syntactic Rules

Pronouns in Avar possess unique syntactic constraints that govern word order and structural validation.

10.1 Reflexive Postpositive Order

Reflexive pronouns (жив, жий, жиб, жал) are strictly limited to the 3rd person and must follow the noun or demonstrative pronoun they modify. They must also agree in case.

  • Correct: Дов живго вачӀана. (He himself [Nom] came.)
  • Correct: Долъул жиндирго тӀехь. (Her own [Gen] book.)
  • Incorrect: *Дун живго вачӀана. (Reflexives cannot be used for 1st person.)
10.2 Interrogative Suppletive Stems

Interrogative syntax distinguishes between animate and inanimate actors via suppletive stems when declining:

  • Animate (щив/щий/щал "who"): Oblique cases use the root лъи- (лъица хъвана? "who [Erg] wrote?").
  • Inanimate (щиб "what"): Oblique cases use the root сун- (сунца бахъана? "what [Erg] brought?").
10.3 Indefinite Pronoun Preservation

Indefinite pronouns are formed by attaching -алиго / -ялиго to interrogatives. Syntactically, they preserve the suppletive stem of the interrogative base:

  • лъица (who [Erg]) + -ялиго → лъицаялиго (someone [Erg]).
10.4 Demonstrative Spatial Orientation

Demonstrative pronouns double as 3rd person personal pronouns and syntactically encode physical spatial orientation relative to the speaker/addressee:

  • Horizontal System:
    • гьав (this, near speaker)
    • гьев (this, near addressee)
    • дов (that, far from both)
  • Vertical System:
    • лъов (that, above speaker)
    • гъов (that, below speaker) These demonstratives strictly govern class agreement with the verb when functioning independently as Subjects/Objects (Гьав вачӀана - "This one [male] came").
11. Syntax of Proverbs and Phraseology

Proverbs (мацӀал) in Avar are a unique syntactic category that requires special annotation treatment.

11.1 Structural Invariance

Unlike standard sentences, proverbs represent fixed forms that are highly resistant to grammatical modification.

  • Complete Predication: Proverbs are always full sentences, not noun phrases.
  • Fixed Word Order: Modifying the word order destroys the proverbial meaning.
    • Щивав чи жиндирго рукъалъул хан. (Every person is a khan in their own house.)
    • Incorrect: *Рукъалъул хан жиндирго щивав чи.
11.2 POS Tagging & MWE Strategy

For computational parsing, proverbs have a dual meaning (literal vs figurative). In UD annotation, the internal components are tagged normally (e.g., чи = NOUN[Case=Nom]), but the entire span is tagged in metadata as a multi-word expression (type="proverb") to prevent the parser from assigning literal semantics to the clause.

12. Syntax of Adverbs

Adverbs in Avar generally function as circumstantial modifiers (denoting place, time, cause, manner), but exhibit syntactic flexibility:

  1. Modifying a Verb: The primary function (advmod or obl). Хъалиян гӀодобе рехана. (Threw the pipe down.)
  2. Modifying an Adverb: Connected via adjoining (advmod). гӀемер рикӀкӀаде (very far).
  3. Substantivization: Adverbs can be converted to nouns to act as Subject or Object (obj). Дида лъала дур жакъа-метер. (I know your 'today-tomorrow' / procrastination).
13. Analytical and Derived Verbs

Avar builds complex verbal syntax through compounding, derivation, and morphologization.

13.1 Analytical Verbs (Phrasal Verbs)

Formed by combining a noun or adverb with a verb. They function as a single semantic predicate.

  • Noun + Verb: Frequently built using body parts. РакӀ хвезе (heart die → quarrel/be upset). Syntactically, the body part (ракӀ) is the grammatical Subject (nsubj), but the possessor is the logical subject/experiencer.
  • Preverbs (Adverb + Verb): Spatial adverbs morphologize into pre-verbal prefixes, altering valency. ТӀад къазе (on put → entrust). This combination acts as a single Transitive head.
13.2 Valency-Altering Derivations
  • Causatives (-забизе): Increase valency by adding an Ergative Causer. An Intransitive base becomes Transitive. A Transitive base becomes Ditransitive (adding a Dative Causee).
  • Iteratives (-д-): Often preserve the transitivity of the base root, but shift the aspect to continuous/frequentative action.
14. Verbal Reduplication

Avar uses morphological reduplication for a specific syntactic function: to convert a single-act verb into a multi-act (frequentative) verb.

  • бекизе (break) → бек-бекизе (smash repeatedly into pieces).
  • бахъизе (take off) → бахъ-бахъизе (disassemble piece by piece).
15. Contextual Class Determination

For nouns that do not have fixed biological gender or inherent class markers (especially agentive nouns formed with -хъан), the syntactic class is determined entirely by the surrounding context.

  • Neutral Bases: If the base noun is class-neutral (e.g., хур "field" → хурухъан "farmer"), the class is recovered from the auxiliary verb or adjective modifier.
    • Муса лъикӀав хурухъан вуго. (Musa is a good [I] farmer [Contextual I]).
    • Парзилат лъикӀай хурухъан йиго. (Parzilat is a good [II] farmer [Contextual II]).
  • Class-Bearing Bases: If the base contains a spatial class marker (цеве/цее/цебе), the noun inherits it permanently: цевехъан (Leader [I]).
16. Syntax of Substantivized Forms

When adjectives or participles undergo Substantivization (conversion into nouns), they assume the complete syntactic role of a noun.

  • Subject/Object Function: They take standard case declensions (Nominative, Ergative, etc.) and participate in valency frames exactly like nouns.
    • Хер-а-с бицана. (The old [Erg] man told.)
    • Дица херав вихьана. (I saw the old [Nom] man.)
  • Syntactic Ellipsis: Substantivization frequently occurs through ellipsis, where the head noun is omitted and the adjective absorbs its case indicators. ГьитӀиналги чӀахӀиялги гӀажаиблъана. (Small [ones] and big [ones] were surprised.)
17. Syntax of Compound Nouns

Compound words in Avar function as single lexical units, but their internal structure often reflects classical syntactic relationships.

  1. Subordinate Compounds (Determinative): Derived from phrases where an Attribute modifies a Head. Syntactically, the first component modifies the second, even though they are fused.
    • суматӀагъур (straw hat) ← сумал (straw-GEN) + тӀагъур (hat). The syntax mirrors the Genitive-Noun relationship.
  2. Coordinate Compounds (Copulative): Derived from phrases with equal heads.
    • эбел-эмен (parents ← mother-father). components are syntactically equal and copulative.
18. Syntax of Numerals

Avar utilizes a mixed decimal-vigesimal (base-20) counting system. Numerals possess highly unique syntactic properties that violate standard pluralization expectations.

18.1 Numeral-Noun Agreement (Singularity Rule)

A robust and unbreakable syntactic rule in Avar dictates that nouns governed by a quantitative numeral must remain in the Singular form.

  • Logic: The numeral itself provides the plurality; morphological pluralization of the noun is strictly forbidden.
  • Correct: лъабго чи ("three person" = three people)
  • Incorrect: *лъабго чагӀи ("three people")
18.2 The Syntax of "Цо" (One)

The numeral цо ("one") acts as a multifunctional syntactic marker:

  • Indefinite Article: Functions like "a/an" or "certain". Цо чи вачӀана (A certain person came).
  • Exclusive Modifier: Emphasizes singularity. Цо вугев вас (The only son).
  • Distributive Marker: Creates contrastive "one... another" structures. Цо иш дуца гьабе, цо иш дица... (You do one job, I'll do another).
18.3 Syntactic Roles of Other Numeral Forms
  • Ordinal: Act identically to adjectives, agreeing in Class and Number with the noun (кӀиабиле-в / 2nd Male).
  • Distributive: Formed by reduplication (цо-цо "one each"), functioning as adverbial modifiers.
  • Approximate: Modified by the postpositive particle -гӀан to indicate "about/approximately" (нусгогӀан "about 100").
19. Case Functions and Syntactic Roles

While morphological declension is covered in noun morphology, the syntactic roles of Avar cases dictate sentence structure and valency.

19.1 Nominative (Absolutive) Case
  • Subject of Intransitive Verbs: Вас векерула (The boy runs).
  • Direct Object of Transitive Verbs: Васас тӀехь цӀалана (The boy read a book).
  • Nominal Predicate: Дов вуго дир эмен (He is my father).
19.2 Ergative (Active) Case
  • Agent of Transitive Verbs: МугӀалимас дарс бицана (The teacher told the lesson).
  • Instrumental: Къалмица хъвазе (To write with a pencil).
  • Causal: ХӀинкъиялъ (Out of fear).
  • Temporal Duration: Сордоялъ (During the night).
19.3 Genitive Case
  • Possession (nmod:poss): Инсул рукъ (Father's house).
  • Material: Меседил сахӀат (Gold watch).
  • Part-Whole: ТӀохьол тӀамач (Leaf of a book).
19.4 Dative Case
  • Recipient (iobj): Васасе кьуна (Gave to the boy).
  • Experiencer (nsubj): For perception/emotion verbs. Дие йокьула (I love).
  • Purpose: Кумекалъе (For help).
19.5 Locative/Spatial Cases (Series I-V)

Avar's 5 spatial series (on, in, under, near, in a hollow) function syntactically as obl:lmod (oblique locational modifiers), but also carry abstract roles:

  • Locative I (-да): Used for involuntary agents (Potential valency class) and verbs of knowing (дида лъала "I know").
  • Locative II (-хъ): Used for possession ("at someone's place/hands").
20. Special Verbal Constructions

Avar syntax heavily utilizes non-finite verb forms to build clauses that would require complex conjunctions in other languages.

20.1 Masdar Constructions (Verbal Nouns)

The Masdar acts simultaneously as a noun and a verb. Syntactically, it takes cases like a noun, but governs its arguments like a verb.

  • Дие бокьула [васас кагъат хъвазе] (I want [the boy to write a letter]).
  • When substantivized fully, the Masdar often puts its logical object into the Genitive case instead of the Absolutive: кагъти-л хъвай (the writing of the letter).
20.2 Infinitive Clauses (Purpose/Target)

The infinitive is the primary syntactic mechanism for expressing purpose or goal.

  • Дун вачӀана [дарс цӀализе] (I came [to read the lesson]).
  • Syntactically, infinitive clauses function as adverbial modifiers of purpose (advcl), and they strictly precede the main finite verb.
21. Participle and Adverbial Participle Syntax
21.1 Participles (Причастия)

Participles combine verbal and adjectival properties.

  • Attributive: They modify a noun and agree in class/number (amod). Хъвараб тӀехь (The written [III] book [III]).
  • Predicative: They act as predicates in special interrogative sentences. Дуца щиб гьабулеб? (What are you doing? - lit. What by you being done?).
  • Substantivization: When the head noun drops, they take on full nominal declension. ЦӀалуле-с-да (To the one who reads [Locative]).
21.2 Adverbial Participles / Converbs (Деепричастия)

Converbs function as secondary predicates or adverbial modifiers (advcl) indicating an action that accompanies or precedes the main verb.

  • Past (-ун): Action completed before the main verb. Дарсги цӀалун, дов гьитӀа (Having read the lesson, he left).
  • Present (-аго): Action occurring simultaneously. КечӀги ахӀулаго, дов вачӀана (Singing a song, he came).
  • Transitivity: Converbs retain the full case government of their base verb.
22. Temporal Categories (Tense Syntax)

Avar builds analytic tenses using Participles/Converbs combined with the auxiliary verbs буго (is) or букӀине (to be).

  • Present Progressive: Present Participle + буго. Дун хъва-ле-в вуго (I am writing).
  • Past Perfect: Past Converb + букӀана. Дун хъва-н вукӀана (I had written).
  • Bi-absolutive State: When using analytic tenses, the subject of a transitive verb can optionally drop from Ergative to Absolutive. This frames the action as a state rather than a transition.
    • Ergative: Дица (Erg) кагъат (Abs) хъвалеб буго. (I am writing a letter.)
    • Bi-Absolutive: Дун (Abs) кагъат (Abs) хъвалев вуго. (I am in the state of letter-writing.)
23. Particle and Clitic Syntax

Particles (Частицы) do not have independent syntactic roles but modify the modal/emotional weight of a word or clause.

  • Interrogative Clitics (-ищ / -дай): Attach directly to the word in focus. Мун-ищ вачӀарав? (Was it YOU who came?).
  • Emphatic Clitics (-го / -ин): Лъаб-го (Exactly three).
  • Quotative Clitic (-али): Used for indirect speech.
24. Conjunction Syntax

Avar conjunctions are a relatively closed and unproductive class, as most subordinate logic is handled by infinite verb forms (Converbs/Masdars).

  • Coordinating: ва (and), яги (or), амма (but). Used to join syntactically equal nouns or main clauses (conj).
  • Subordinating: Avar rarely uses true subordinating conjunctions, preferring participle/converb constructions. However, some loan conjunctions like щайгурони (because) exist.
25. Interjection Syntax

Interjections (Гьай, Вабабай) exist entirely outside the syntactic structure of the sentence. They do not govern cases, nor are they governed. In dependency parsing, they are universally tagged as discourse and attached to the root of the sentence.

26. Typology of Sentence Members and Mood

The Avar grammatical tradition classifies sentence components and clausal moods with specific terminology.

26.1 Principal and Secondary Members

Unlike nominative-accusative languages, Avar traditional grammar considers the Direct Object (in the Absolutive case) to be a Principal Member of the sentence alongside the Subject and Predicate, due to the ergative alignment and class agreement it dictates.

  • Secondary Members (Второстепенные члены):
    • Indirect Object: Expressed via Dative, Locative, or postpositional phrases.
    • Attributive Modifier: Expressed via Adjectives, Genitive nouns, or Participles.
    • Adverbial Modifiers: Classified by semantic role: Manner, Place, Time, Measure/Degree, Cause, and Purpose.
26.2 Word Order Permutations (Inversion)

While SOV is the default, Avar frequently uses inversion for pragmatic focus.

  • Predicate Fronting: Moving the verb to the beginning emphasizes the action. Векерула вас! (Runs the boy!).
  • Object Fronting (OSV): Focuses the patient. ТӀехь васас цӀалана. (The book, the boy read).
26.3 Syntactic Properties of Moods

Beyond the indicative, specific moods impose rigid syntactic frames on the clause.

  • Conditional Mood (-ани / -ни): Forms the protasis (if-clause) of a complex conditional sentence. The conditional verb strictly terminates the subordinate clause.
  • Interrogative Mood (-ищ / -дай): Transforms a declarative sentence into a question without requiring wh-words. The clitic attaches to the focal point of the question, effectively acting as the syntactic head of the interrogation.