User:Juelos/High Valyrian Word Order
In High Valyrian, the general word order in a sentence is SOV, i.e. subject–object–verb. High Valyrian is a strongly head-final language. Direct objects and adverbs generally precede verbs they modify; adjectives, demonstratives, relative clauses and adpositional phrases generally precede nouns they modify; possessors precedes the possessee; adverbs and adpositional phrases precede the adjectives they modify; and most adpositions are postpositions.
Verb phrases
In verb phrases with transitive verbs, the direct object precedes the verb.
In verb phrases with ditransitive verbs, which take both a direct object and an indirect objects, the indirect object generally precedes the direct object. However, it may also follow:
- Taobot rūklon tepan. — "I give the boy a flower."
- Rūklon taobot tepan. — "I give the boy a flower."
Pronouns
High Valyrian is a pro-drop language, that is, subject pronouns are generally omitted, since they are indicated through verbal morphology. Including the subject pronoun places emphasis on the subject.
- Gevī ȳdrā. — "You are speaking beautifully."
- Ao gevī ȳdrā. — "You are speaking beautifully."
Relative clauses
- For more in-depth information, see Pronouns § Relatives.
Relative clauses are followed by a relative adjective and noun or a relative pronoun. They are generally gapped, that is, the noun shared between the relative and matrix clause is left out. However, in cases where gapping creates ambiguity, a resumptive pronoun may be used for clarity.
Questions
Yes–no questions have the same syntax as declarative clause. The only difference is a that yes–no questions have a rising pitch toward the end.
Wh-questions display wh-fronting, which means that the interrogative pronoun or adjective is moved to the front of the clause:
- Skorverdon jēdaro azantys ūndas? — "How old is the knight?"
- Azantys izule izulēpsā jēdari ūndas. — "The knight is forty-four years old."