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[lojban] Re: semantic primes
On 3/17/06, MorphemeAddict@wmconnect.com <MorphemeAddict@wmconnect.com> wrote:
> I'd like to see definitions of Lojban words in Anna Wierzbicka's Natural
> Semantic Metalanguage (NSM) terms, as well as definitions of Lojban words in
> the Lojban version of NSM.
You can find something along that direction in the Lojban-Lojban section
of jbovlaste.
Here are Wierzbicka's proposed semantic primes in English (as of 2002),
taken from <http://www.une.edu.au/arts/LCL/disciplines/linguistics/nsmpage1.htm#model>
and how they might go into Lojban:
Substantives:
I, YOU, SOMEONE, PEOPLE, SOMETHING/THING, BODY
I: mi
YOU: do
SOMEONE: lo pa prenu
PEOPLE: lo prenu
SOMETHING/THING: lo pa dacti
BODY: lo pa xadni
It is not clear to me whether SOMETHING/THING is meant to be
as restricted as {lo pa dacti} or as general as {da/de/di}.
Determiners:
THIS, THE SAME, OTHER
THIS: Nothing strictly equivalent, but {vi} as in {lo vi broda} comes closest.
THE SAME: {mintu} (but not really a determiner)
OTHER: {drata} (but not really a determiner)
Quantifiers:
ONE, TWO, SOME, ALL, MANY/MUCH
ONE: pa
TWO: re
SOME: su'o
ALL: ro
MANY/MUCH: so'i / pi so'i
Evaluators:
GOOD, BAD
GOOD: xamgu (zabna)
BAD: xlali (mabla)
( I think zabna/mabla should be the primes in Lojban, but xamgu/xlali
are the direct translations.)
Descriptors:
BIG, SMALL
BIG: barda
SMALL: cmalu
Intensifier:
VERY: mutce
Mental predicates:
THINK, KNOW, WANT, FEEL, SEE, HEAR
THINK: pensi/jinvi
KNOW: djuno/se slabu
WANT: djica
FEEL: cinmo/ganse
SEE: viska
HEAR: tirna
(It's hard to decide without context which one she sees as the prime
meaning in the cases of THINK, KNOW and FEEL.)
Speech:
SAY, WORDS, TRUE
SAY: cusku
WORDS: valsi
TRUE: jetnu
Actions, events, movement, contact:
DO, HAPPEN, MOVE, TOUCH
DO: zukte
HAPPEN: fasnu
MOVE: muvdu
TOUCH: pencu
(although {muvdu} only works for change in location, not for movement
in general)
Existence and possession:
THERE IS / EXIST, HAVE
These don't have any accurate Lojban equivalents.
It depends too much on the context.
Life and death:
LIVE, DIE
LIVE: jmive
DIE: mrobi'o
(Notice that DIE is not a primitive in Lojban.)
Time:
WHEN/TIME, NOW, BEFORE, AFTER, A LONG TIME, A SHORT TIME,
FOR SOME TIME, MOMENT
WHEN/TIME: ca
NOW: nau/ca ({nau} includes "here", {ca} is more general)
BEFORE: pu
AFTER: ba
A LONG TIME: ze'u/zu (depending on whether it's a duration or a displacement)
A SHORT TIME: ze'i/zi
FOR SOME TIME: ze'a
MOMENT: mokca (more or less)
Space:
WHERE/PLACE, HERE, ABOVE, BELOW; FAR, NEAR; SIDE, INSIDE; TOUCHING
WHERE/PLACE: bu'u (although many Lojbanists use {vi})
HERE: nau (Also {ti}, {vi} depending on context.)
ABOVE: ga'u
BELOW: na'i
FAR: vu
NEAR: vi
SIDE: te'e/ze'o/ne'a
INSIDE: ne'i
TOUCHING: re'o
"Logical" concepts:
NOT, MAYBE, CAN, BECAUSE, IF
NOT: na
MAYBE: ju'o cu'i
CAN: ka'e / kakne
BECAUSE: ki'u / ri'a / mu'i / ni'i
IF: ganai... gi..., but with lots of warnings
Augmentor:
VERY, MORE
VERY: mutce
MORE: zmadu
Taxonomy, partonomy:
KIND OF, PART OF
KIND OF: klesi
PART OF: pagbu
Similarity:
LIKE: simsa
mu'o mi'e xorxes
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