Sotho nouns

Notes: The orthography used in this and related articles is that of South Africa, not Lesotho. For a discussion of the differences between the two see the notes on Sesotho orthography.

Sesotho nouns signify concrete or abstract concepts in the language, but are distinct from the Sesotho pronouns.

Bantu languages are often said to have sentences which are "centred around the noun" due to the striking nature of the noun concordance system. In Sesotho, pronouns, verbs, copulatives, adjectives, relatives, enumeratives, and possessives all need to agree with the noun(s) associated with them.

Structure

Except for class 1a (which has a "null prefix"), nouns are composed of a noun prefix and a stem (which may in turn be derived from other parts of speech; see below under Derivation). Each noun belongs to one of several noun classes and the knowledge of noun classes and their concords is pivotal to composing coherent sentences.

Usually, the noun's class can be discerned by simply looking for the prefix, but there are many instances where this can become very complicated:

• The syllabic nasal prefix of class 9 is more often than not invisible
• Classes 1, 3, and 18 have similar prefixes but differing concords
• Classes 2a and 14 have similar looking prefixes, differing in the vowel's quality and tone
• Classes 15 and 17 have similar looking prefixes, differing only in tone
• Many class 1 and 3 nouns have stems beginning with vowels, often causing the to velarize to

  + → ('child' cf. Swahili ; Proto-Bantu *-jana)

• Similarly, many class 14 nouns with stems beginning with vowels cause the prefix to palatalize to

  + → ('grass' cf. Proto-Bantu *-janî)

• Often if the stem of a class 1 or 3 noun is derived from a verb beginning with , the is absorbed by the (the vowel is elided) to become

  ('govern') → ('government')

There are further complications caused by stems that begin with vowels when the vowels interact causing the quality and tone of the prefix vowel to change (this never happens if the stem comes from a vowel verb); in these cases it is often simply a matter of memorising the correct class and plural for each individual word.

Noun stems can range in length from monosyllabic as in ('person'), to very long stems formed either by duplication (e.g. ('great and fearsome thing', the swallowing monster) or derived from long and complex verbs, such as the seven-syllable ('the act of mutual giving and receiving'), derived from a verb which is in turn idiomatically and recursively and comes through four distinct steps — derived from the verb ('to close one's hand suddenly').

Noun prefix system

Sesotho, like all other Bantu languages, uses a set of "noun classes" and each noun belongs to one of the classes. The noun class that a noun belongs to is indicated by a prefix.

Nouns are divided somewhat arbitrarily between these classes, although a few of them contain nouns which mostly fall into clear categories. For example, all class 1 nouns are humans and verbal agents, most class 1a nouns are proper names and kinship terms, etc.

The noun classes and their respective prefixes are as follows:

The Sesotho noun prefix system

Class	Prefix	Spelling	Example(s)	Notes
1.			('person')	human nouns
2.			('people')
1a.	—		('father')	mostly human nouns including nouns of kinship. The is high tone
2a.			('fathers')
3.			('finger')	mostly non-human nouns
4.			('fingers')
5.			('day')	both human and non-human
6.			('days')
7.			('secret')	human and non-human
8.			('secrets')
9.	[N]-	(variable)	('thing')	miscellaneous
			('prayer')
10.		di[N]-	('things')
			('prayers')
14.			('bread')	abstract nouns belong here, therefore most class 14 words have no plural
			('ugliness')
15.			('to go')	infinitives and gerunds belong here
16.			('down')	this is the only word in this class
17.			('far away')
			('tomorrow')
18.			('behind')
			('overseas')

Notes:

1. [N] means that nasalization will occur to the following consonant.
2. Many class 5 words in Sesotho come from the original Proto-Bantu *du- class 11, whose plural is class 10 *dîN-, which is why some class 5 nouns may have two distinct plurals: one in class 6, and one in class 10. However, the di[N]- plural does not apply to all class 5 words, and when it does the meaning might be changed slightly (e.g. 'tongues', 'flattery'). For example, Setswana uses for Sesotho ('love'), as this class still exists in the language.
3. Classes 16, 17, and 18 are the locative classes. They are no longer productive in Sesotho (they cannot accept new nouns) but they are productive in many other Bantu languages.
4. Noun Classes 11 to 13, and 19 to 23 do not occur in Sesotho, but do occur in other Bantu languages (isiZulu has class 11, Silozi has Classes 11, 12, and 13, etc.).

Each basic noun in Sesotho has an inherent prefix (even if that prefix is a null prefix: segmentally empty). The speaker's mental lexicon includes the entire word, including the class prefix, which is usually enough to determine the class and therefore the concords as well.

('tree') has prefix , which is of class 7, therefore its plural must be

Up until class 10, the plural class for class n is class n + 1 (where n is odd). Most languages have these first ten classes, though there are many where some of the classes 1 to 10 are missing.

Though class membership is ultimately determined by morphology (the class prefix and the noun's concords) and not semantics, it is obvious from comparing the class contents of various languages that there are some tentative semantic trends. The strongest trend (which is basically a rule) is that all class 1 nouns are human, and non-human nouns that begin with the prefix are therefore in class 3 (in fact, there are no human class 3 nouns in Sesotho). In many other languages, however, class 1 contains "animate" nouns, and may therefore also contain some non-human nouns.

('friend'), in class 1, has an irregular plural in class 4 — . Also, ('king'), has a plural in class 6. Many class 1 words have a tendency of misbehaving, but we know that they belong to class 1 because of their concords. Quite a substantial number of class 1 words have their plurals in class 6.

All these irregularities with the plurals naturally lead to a system where each class is treated as a separate gender, instead of alternatives where the first twelve classes are grouped into six genders.

Often, when the prefix of a noun whose stem begins with a vowel (and is not derived from a vowel verb stem) is obscured by various phonological processes, prefix compounding may occur (instead of the usual prefix substitution) when forming plurals, or even in the singular itself. Some words may even end up in a different class

('grass') in class 14 is often heard as and has plural , both instances of prefix compounding since the is the palatalized class 14 prefix .

('daughter-in-law') was originally a class 1 word, whose prefix is velarized and is now treated as a class 9 noun with plural . In Setswana, however, it is still treated as a class 1 noun with plural

In idiomatic speech, the of class 5, the of class 7, and the of classes 8 and 10 are sometimes not rendered when the noun is followed by the appropriate concords. Some historical words, such as ('locust'), have completely lost their singular prefixes (and, in the case of , ended up in class 9). Others, such as ('family') are often rendered without the prefix even when not followed by any prefixes ("at my/the home" is always ). The class 5 noun ('next year') has completely lost its prefix, and has plural .

Class contents

What follows is a brief outline of the contents and functionings of the various classes.

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Class 1 (the "animate/human" class) contains most human nouns and is the default class for verbal agents (actors), which end in the vowel Template:Angbr.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *mu-. In standard Sesotho, the prefix appears as before stems beginning with .

('servant')

('king')

('friend')

('investigate') → ('investigator')

('speak on behalf of') → ('advocate')

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Class 1a (the "kin" class) has exactly the same concords as class 1, but differs from it in the lack of prefix. It contains proper names of people, kinship terms, as well as the names of some animals and plants.

The proper names and kinship terms generally have miscellaneous forms, but the names of animals, plants (possibly personifications), and some humans in this class begin with a or prefix.

Names of mothers, fathers, married women and men (in a system of prohibiting the use of nouns sounding like the names of certain family members), and initiated boys and girls may be formed from other nouns and proper names with the prefixes (or just ) and meaning "mother of" and "father of" respectively (though initiates often get prefixes of the opposite sex, for boys and for girls).

('elder uncle' literally "male mother" — the only Sesotho instance of the Bantu male suffix *-dume)

('desire') → will (of God) (class 9) → (proper name)

(proper name) → Thato's mother, and ('Thato's father')

(' secretary bird ')

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Class 2 is the plural class for class 1. There are, however, many class 1 nouns which have their plural in class 6 instead.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *ba-.

('servants')

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Class 2a is the plural class for class 1a. When used with human nouns it sometimes has the meaning of "X and them" or "the people/followers/kin of X." It uses exactly the same concords as class 2.

The class prefix is a high tone and comes from original Proto-Bantu *bo-.

('Mmathato and them')

('secretary birds')

In informal speech, the "X and them" meaning is often extended, with the prefix being compounded upon nouns in other classes to create words meaning "X and such."

('predators are animals such as lions and cheetahs and such, et cetera')

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Class 3 (the "tree" class) has miscellaneous content. Some nouns in this class also come from verbs, but are non-personal and usually end in the vowel Template:Angbr.

The class prefix is exactly the same as that of class 1, but the two classes use different concords. Like class 1 the prefix appears as before stems beginning with Template:Angbr in standard Sesotho.

('forest')

('resound') → ('noise')

('colour') stem )

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Class 4 contains the plurals of class 3 nouns.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *mi-.

('colours')

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Class 5 (the "natural phenomena" class) is very homogeneous in content. It has many terms of body parts which appear in pairs, natural phenomena, and certain special classes of people.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *di- as well as Proto-Bantu *du- (class 11, the "long-thin" class).

('tuberculosis')

('choose') → ('election')

('leg')

('reed') originally from class 11

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Class 6 (the "liquid masses" class) contains the plurals of class 5 nouns as well as the plurals of many class 1 nouns, class 9 nouns ("quantitive plurals"), and all class 14 nouns which may assume plurals. It also contains the names of some liquids which only appear in the plural.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *ma-.

('legs')

('blood')

('herds of cattle') quantitative plural of class 9

('kings') plural of class 1

('lobolo') plural of class 14

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Class 7 (the "special quality" class) is fairly homogeneous in content and also contains the names of the languages or cultures of various societies. This class also contains many abstract nouns derived from nouns in other classes.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *ki-.

('blind person')

('tree')

('French')

('friendship') abstract noun from class 1

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Class 8 contains the plurals of class 7 nouns. Note that language and culture names, as well as abstract nouns, do not have plurals.

The class prefix is (without nasalization) and comes from original Proto-Bantu *bî-.

('trees')

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Class 9 (the "inanimate/animal" class) is rather miscellaneous in content. Most foreign acquisitions end up here (it is the "default class").

The class prefix is [N]- and comes from either original Proto-Bantu *N- or *ni-. Note that for almost all nouns with stems of two or more syllables the syllabic nasal does not appear but the stem is still nasalized.

('eyelash')

('sing → ('song')

('cow')

('truth') the nasal is retained though the stem is two syllables long

('stomach') the high tone syllabic suggests that it's not part of the prefix, but rather part of the stem

This class also contains a curious set of nouns formed by the action of a class 1, 3, or 18 prefix losing its vowel and thus becoming a syllabic nasal. However, since this process often happens when constructing first names of people, the resulting noun then appears in class 1a.

('be left behind') → (class 1) ('the one left behind') → (class 9) → (class 1a) ('the one left behind [due to being born shortly after a relative's death]')

('to forcefully insert') → (compound class 9 noun) ('intruder')

(class 18) ('behind') → (quaint or technical way of saying 'behind')

When deriving non-personal nouns from monosyllabic verb stems, two strategies may be used. The first form creates objects, and simply nasalizes the verb stem, replaces the final vowel with Template:Angbr, and affixes the syllabic nasal. The second strategy is much less common and creates nouns indicating actions by first replacing the final vowel with before applying the nasalization.

('give') → ('gift')

('eat') → ('expense')

For non-monosyllabic stems the meaning obtained by replacing the final vowel with Template:Angbr and applying nasalization is generally only that of the action.

('expect') → ('expectation')

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Class 10 contains the plurals of class 9 nouns as well as the plurals of some class 5 nouns (from Proto-Bantu class 11).

The prefix is formed by adding to the full class 9 noun or adding di[N]- to the class 5 noun stem. Since the noun is formed by modifying the already modified class 9 stem (with the addition of Proto-Bantu prefix *dî-) this class is sometimes called 9a instead.

('eyelashes')

('songs')

(musical instrument made from reeds) plural of class 5

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Class 14 is the default class for abstract nouns, but it also contains some non-abstract nouns. Abstract nouns may be regularly formed from other nouns and from certain qualificatives (adjectives, relatives, and enumeratives). This class also contains many nouns which may be used as relatives (though nominal relatives do exist in almost all the noun classes).

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *bu-.

('loneliness')

('state of being a king') from the class 1 noun

('ugly') → ('ugliness')

('pain')

('lobolo' non-abstract)

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Class 15 exclusively contains verb infinitives and gerunds. These may be used syntactically as normal nouns with abstract meanings. Like English gerunds and infinitives, they may take direct objects and be inflected as other verbs, but they cannot be predicates (they do not complete a sentence like verbs and copulatives).

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *ku-. This is prefixed to the verbal complex without the subjectival concord or certain verbal auxiliary infixes. Infinitives denoting a negative meaning are formed by inserting an infix after the prefix and changing the final vowel to Template:Angbr.

('grow old') → ('to grow old') → ('to not grow old')

('see') → ('to see her') → ('to find her guilty' literally, 'to see her guilt'; this idiom preserves the archaic meaning "find" of , which is still present in Setswana)

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Class 16 in Sesotho is a locative class containing only one member — ('down') (Proto-Bantu *pa-ci, plus an irregular nasalization of the stem; it appears as the unnasalized in Setswana) — used almost exclusively as an adverb. In many other Bantu languages, including Setswana, this class is productive, but this is no longer the case in Sesotho.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *pa- (denoting near positions). It uses exactly the same concords as those of class 15.

Note that the class 5 noun ('earth') is formed from this noun through prefix compounding.

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Class 17 is a locative class containing few actual nouns (which are often used as adverbs). In many other Bantu languages, including Setswana, this class is productive, but this is no longer the case in Sesotho.

The class prefix is and comes from original Proto-Bantu *ku- (denoting remote positions). It uses exactly the same concords as those of class 15.

The class 5 noun ('heaven') is formed from one of the nouns in this class ( 'above') through prefix compounding.

('tomorrow')

('far away')

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Class 18 is a locative class containing a limited number of nouns (which are often used as adverbs). In many other Bantu languages, including Setswana, this class is productive, but this is no longer the case in Sesotho.

The class prefix is and comes from Proto-Bantu *mu- (denoting close or internal positions). It is distinguished from other classes (1 and 3) by its concords (it uses exactly the same concords as those of class 15).

('overseas') this is a contraction of ('on the other side of the sea') an instance of the adverbial use

The Sesotho locative adverbs of place are the demonstrative pronouns of this class. Note that in this case the pronouns correspond to a class prefix, instead of the class 15 concords which this class usually uses.

Concords

Every part of speech in Sesotho which is somehow connected with a noun (either by qualifying it, associating it with an action or state, or standing in its place in an utterance) needs to be brought into agreement with the noun. This is done by a set of concords whose forms loosely resemble the noun prefixes. The concords are attached to the front of the parts of speech and result in utterances which sound mildly alliterative.

Tones

Except for class 2a, the prefixes of the non-locative classes are null ("low") toned, while the set of possible tone patterns for the stem is large and obviously dependent on its length.

When certain high toned formatives (the conjunctive le-, the locative ho-, the possessive concord, and the subjectival concord for noun classes when forming positive copulatives) are prefixed to a noun with tonal pattern [ _ _ ] for the first two syllables including the noun prefix, the noun prefix's tone becomes high giving pattern [ ¯ ¯ _ ]. This does not happen if the second syllable of the noun is high. With monosyllabic stems the tone of the stem is raised as well.

[ _ _ _ ] ('king') → [ ¯ ¯ _ _ ] of (class 1 or 3 possessive concord) ('the king'), [ ¯ ¯ _ _ ] ('and the king')

[ _ _ ] ('village') → [ ¯ ¯ ¯ ] ('to the village')

Derivation

In the Bantu languages, nouns form an open class with new nouns regularly and actively being created from nouns and other parts of speech through predictable methods.

From nouns

Many nouns can be derived from other nouns, usually through the use of suffixes.

• Most abstract nouns can be created by substituting for the prefix:

  ('woman') → ('femininity')

• Proper names based on nouns belong to class 1a, no matter what the original class was
• Often parents assume the names of their children by prefixing the name with (for the father; note the Setswana and the Setswana noun father) or (for the mother; this is more often than not simply shortened to ). Also, a married woman may assume a name based on the prefix and her husband's surname/praise name.
• Most nouns can form new nouns with the diminutive suffixes (sometimes ), , and . Often stems ending in the high vowels undergo various phonetic changes (palatalization, alveolarization, and velarization) due to the initial vowel in the suffixes:

  *('shield') → ('small shield')

• The suffix is often used to create the feminine of some nouns and the augmentative of some other others:

  ('king') → ('queen')

• Sometimes the last 2 syllables of a noun may be repeated to indicate quantity, irregularity, or repetition:

  ('cows') → ('herds of cattle')

• A curious formation exists in Sesotho which creates nouns with the meaning of "pseudo-x" by employing the prefix (which also has the effect of placing the noun in class 5). The same prefix is also used in slightly non-standard speech to create similes.

  ('speak') → language → ('idiomatic speech')

From qualificatives

Qualificatives can be used to derive abstract nouns in class 14 by prefixing .

Adjective ('many') → ('quantity')

Relative ('hard') → ('difficulty')

Enumerative ('other') → ('otherness')

From ideophones

Some nouns are irregularly (and often idiomatically) derived from ideophones by reduplication:

('of striking') → ('big news')

From verbs

Nouns of most classes are very actively and regularly derived from verbs. What follows is only a brief and incomplete overview.

('love') → Template:Ordered list

Note that:

• The noun stem, with a few idiomatic exceptions, fossilizes the tone pattern of the infinitive of the verb (in this example it is [ ¯ _ ], giving [ _ ¯ _ ] for the complete noun including the prefix)
• Infinitives are strictly class 15 nouns (gerunds) derived from verb stems
• Class 14 nouns are almost always derived from other nouns, not from the verb directly
• With personal nouns, the difference between classes 1 and 7 is often that the class 7 agent performs the action habitually or with proficiency:

  drive → driver and professional driver

Generally, agents are formed in classes 1 and 7 by adding the prefix and changing the final vowel to , while impersonal nouns are formed in several classes by adding the prefix and changing the final vowel to :

('be rich') → class 1 rich person, and class 3 ('wealth')

There are, however, some impersonal nouns which end with . Even if they begin with the ambiguous class prefix , nouns denoting non-human entities cannot be in class 1.

flow → ('stream'), and ('waterway') both in class 3

Agents derived from passive verbs often use the full passive suffix , and never change the final vowel:

('love') → / ('be loved') → ('beloved')

Compound nouns

A rich source of nouns are nominal compounds formed (somewhat irregularly) from other parts of speech and even complete sentences. Note that the use of dashes to separate their parts is also irregular and usually based on the popularity and utility of the noun, and the Lesotho and South African orthographies tend to differ (with the Lesotho orthography tending to prefer dashes more).

('horse madness') → Aristida Burkei ('grass')

('to eat fish' traditionally considered taboo) → ('English person' derisive)

('to sit in a chair') → ('chairperson')

('to be carried by the wind') → ('radio receiver')

('I know') → class 2a ('doctors')

('pronoun') (cf. 'stand' → 'stand for') + ('ideophone of being absolute') → ('absolute pronoun')

As in many other languages, compounds indicating possession (genitive compounds) may be formed by following the possessee with the possessor ("X of Y" become "X-Y" — the English equivalent is "Y's X" or "Y-X"). This may also be done with the descriptive possessive.

('law') + ('foundation') → ('founding law') → ('constitution')

('grain basket') + ('sunshine') → ('database')

Foreign (non-Bantu nor Khoisan) acquisitions

Many Sesotho nouns (and other parts of speech) stem from contact with speakers of Indo-European languages, primarily French missionaries, Orange Free State Afrikaners, and, in modern times, English people. The very alien phonetics and phonologies of these languages mean that words are to be imported rather irregularly with varying phonetic transformations.

French → ('sweets')

English heathen → class 1 ('heathen')

Afrikaans → class 5 ('Afrikaner')

English teacher → class 9 ('male teacher') note that the English "silent r" is rendered

Afrikaans ('window' cf. Latin ) → class 9 (note the consonant cluster)

English speaker → class 7 ('loudspeaker') with class 8 plural as if the cluster Template:Angbr was a contraction of

Notes

Impolite

References

• Coupez, A., Bastin, Y., and Mumba, E. 1998. Reconstructions lexicales bantoues 2 / Bantu lexical reconstructions 2. Tervuren: Musée royal de l'Afrique centrale.
• Demuth, K. 2000. Bantu noun class systems: Loan word and acquisition evidence of semantic productivity. In G. Senft (ed.), Classification Systems. Cambridge University Press. pp. 270–292.
• Doke, C. M., and Mofokeng, S. M. 1974. Textbook of Southern Sotho Grammar. Cape Town: Longman Southern Africa, 3rd. impression. Template:ISBN.