O C-kowaidew,
Akow ebar BABAHA!!!
Yeah, you are right. The preference for the negation after the verb, (e.g. dekha nasilw) is a very western Assamese and Indian feature. In Xiboxagoriya or Uzoniya we use it only to emphasize the act(dekha). Actually preference for the negation before the verb is not very common in the Indian languages (though Oriya usues it optionally). In Uzoniya as well in East Bengali languages like Chatgiya (Chattagram), Shiletti, negation preceeds the verb (e.g. aai no-jaiyyum (I wont go)in Chatgiya. People say that it is a very non-Indo Aryan property in these languages. The problem is that we have been analyzing Assamese only from a very Indo-Aryan perspective!( How do you explain the rich classifier system (as it is in Bodo)in Assamese ? How do you explain the xa sound (as it occurs in Sema Naga Language) in Assamese?Everything in Assamese, as if, HAS to come from Sanskrit.
Talking about the Uzoniya and Namoniya Assamese, I was quite clueless when one of my elekor-pelek Khuris started looking for a KORAS in our kitchen. Once again I was bowled by one of my elekor-pelek Khuras' demand that "Rati uriboloi kiba ekhon de" (A Hellicopter, A MIG 21??)
But these differences make Linguistics and languages interesting.
Another issue that occupied pages of Assamese newspapers a few years ago, is the writing of English words in Assamese script. A noted buddhijiwi of Assam was arguing that while writing a word like "stop" in Assamese script , one should only use DONTIYA XA and DONTIYO TO. I mean, how does it matter? No matter in what way you write it its gonna sound the same (I mean why not keep the existing way of writing it with MURDDHONYO letters?) because: 1.There is no DONTIYO and MURDDHONYO distinction in Assamese (Except in Bhupen-mama's [not using -da,generation-gap!!] songs! "Dug dug dug dug domboru", for example!!) 2.Assamese sounds in no way can come closer to many English sounds. My argument is that if in Japanese you can write ICECREAM as AISUKIRIMO (considering the fact that Japanese only allows CONSONANT followed by VOWEL structure or vice-versa)why should not other languages modify a foreign word in their language with respect to the PHONETICS and PHONOLOGY of that language? Thankfully we still have words like ISKUL, PEN-SOLA in Assamese, which are modified according to the convenience of the speakers.
Oh! When it comes to language/s I really dont want to stop!
Sorry netters!
Best
Priyankoo
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