Thursday 27 June 2013

Xeerarka fagaasa labada Shibbane

Hordhac Sida laga wada dheregsanyahay, labada dhawaaq ee ‘dh’-a iyo ‘r’-a waxay ka mid yihiin laba-iyo-labaatanka shibbane ee afsoomaaliga. Haddana ereyo ay ku jiraan baa muran xoogle abuura. Tusaale ahaan labada erey ee ‘gabadh’ iyo ‘gabar’ oo isku ujeed -do ah, hayeeshe ku kala geddisan labada dhawaaq ee u dambeeya, baa ka mid ah kuwa muranka abuura. Haddii aan soo qaadanno wadarta ereygaasi waxay noqonaysaa ‘gabdho’. Waxa haddaba isweydiin leh qofka marka horaba ereyga ugu dhawaaqay ‘gabar’ muxuu kolka dambe u odhanayaa ‘gabdho’ ee uu u odhanwaayey, waa halkii Muuse Galaale, ‘gabro’?

Monday 24 June 2013

On Arabic loan verbs in Somali

Like many languages the Somali language has borrowed words from the Arabic language . Although Somali is not in the same language group as Arabic language’s, geographic proximity and Islam have made borrowing from Arabic possible for Somalis. Arabic loan verbs in Somali have followed three of the patterns identified by linguists: 1-Verbs have been imported from Arabic and adapted to the conjugation groups for spelling and pronunciation. 2- There are composite Arabic loan verbs made up of an Arabic noun and a Somali verb. Since it is the Arabic noun that made the use of the Somali verb possible ( i.e. partial substation), this book calls this type of verb an Arabic loan verb. 3- Somalis have coined Arabic loan verbs such as bismillee (to taste something –from bismillah, meaning ‘in the name of Allah’). All Arabic loan verbs in Somali are regular verbs. Since Arabic loan verbs in Somali are from Arabic nouns and verbs Arabic language speakers may be able to figure out the meaning of many loan verbs. Somali Arabic loan verbs such as feker translated into English as ‘to think’, does not mean the same as malee ‘to think’ as in waxaan u malaynayaa in…”( I think that…) Somalis use the verb feker in a more abstract sense e.g. Waan fekerayaa ( I am worrying/ contemplating ) or Waan ka fekeri doonaa ( I will think about it). This book contains two hundred commonly used Arabic loan verbs in Somali in sentences. Where an Arabic loan verb has a variant spelling it is stated. There is information about each loan verb— the type of the verb and its conjugation group. If a loan verb was brought into existence by partial substitution the abbreviation p.s. follows the conjugation group of the verb; if the verb is a loan coinage the abbreviation l.c. comes after the conjugation group of the verb. This book assumes a knowledge of standard Somali grammar. 200 Arabic Loan Verbs in Somali By Liban Ahmad eBook (PDF), 18 Pages

Monday 10 June 2013

The Standard Somali Grammar and Pareto Principle

In October 2012 Somali language speakers celebrated the fortieth anniversary of written Somali. Since 1972 Somali has been used as a medium instruction, for judiciary and public administration. Research into Somali – modernisation and the grammar of the language, and the use of Somali for fiction writing— constitute the most seminal but least-celebrated aspect of Somali Studies. This essay contends that Somali is easy to learn partly because the Pareto Principle is operating in the Somali grammar. Pereto Principle, also known as 80/20 Principle, was named after Vilfredo Pareto, the Italian economist. The Pareto Principle “asserts that a minority, a small number, of causes inputs or efforts usually leads to a majority of the results, outputs or rewards, so most of the outputs result from a very small part of the causes or inputs.” Applied to standard Somali grammar, the verb and adjective, 20% of Somali grammatical categories, constitute 80% of written and spoken Somali because use of tenses affects both grammatical categories.

Somali: Writing history

The following article appeared in the Chartered Institute of Linguists' magazine.

Gothenburg: Bandhigga Buugagga, Dhaqanka iyo Codka hal-abuurka

Waxa magaalada Gothenburg ka furmay barnaamijka bandhigga Buugagga iyo Dhaqanka. Wuxuu socon doonaa maalmaha Jimcaha, Sabtida iyo Axadda.
Buug naxwe ah ayaa dib loo soo saaray. Haddii aad leedahay Kindle ama kombiyuutarkaagu ama telefoonkaagu leeyahay Kindle software, waad iibsan kartaa buugga. Sidoo kale waxa jira buug la soo saaray 1999kii--Barashada Naxwaha af Soomaaliga (A Somali School Grammar).

Laaxinjire

Ku dhowaad afartan sanadood ayaa ka soo wareegtay markuu marxuum Maxamed Xaashi Dhamac (Gaarriye) daaha ka rogay miisaanka maansada. Maqaalladii taxanaha ahaa oo ku soo baxay wargeyskii Xiddigta Oktoobar waxay abuureen dood iyo cilmibaarisyo. Cabdiraxmaan Faarax (Barwaaqo), oo wax ka qoray miisaanka maansada una fududeeyay dadka inay maqaalladii Gaarriye aqristaan , ayaa kaalin wayn ka geystay barnaamijaynta miisaanka maansada. Qof kasta wuu tijaabin karaa in maanso leedahay ama la'dahay laaxin ama deelqaaf.