18 



ETYMOLOGY AND SYNTAX. 



mostly employed. Of inflexion, properly so called, the language exhibits but 

 faint traces. 



§ Y3. The verb is the most important part of speech, and that from which most, 

 if not all, the other words in Yoruba may be considered as derived. It would 

 therefore be proper to commence this division of the Grammar with the verb. 

 But the verb cannot be conjugated except by means of the pei-sonal pronouns ; and 

 hence it is most convenient to begin with the pronouns. 



PRONOUNS. 

 Personal Pronomns. 



NOMINATIVES. 



§ Y4. The primary forms of the personal pronouns are : emi, /; iwo, thou ; oq, 

 he, she, or it. Each of these pronouns is inflected, or varied in form, to distinguish 

 the plural from the singular number ; as, emi, I ; awa, we ; but there is no variation 

 of form to express gender. 



§ 75. Besides the primary forms just mentioned, each of the singular personal 

 pronouns, when employed as the subject of a proposition, has two contracted or 

 secondary forms, the use of which depends on the principle of euphonic concord 

 laid down in a previous section (§ 13) ; and the pronouns of the first and third per- 

 sons have each two additional contracted forms, founded on other considerations, 

 which will presently be explained. The plurals are likewise subject to contraction. 



§ 76. The contracted or secondary forms of these pronouns may be classified as 

 follows : 



1. The euphonic forms, which are divided into, 



a. The close form ending in ' o,' which is used before the close vowels. 



b. The open form, ending in ' o,' which is used before the open vowels. 



2. The citatvve form, the pronouns of which, mi, I, and i, lie, slie, it, appear to be 

 contractions of ' emi ' and ' yi.' 



3. The future form, so called because employed chiefly in the future tense. 



4. All the plural nominatives are sometimes abridged in form by the suppression 

 of the entire second syllable, to allow of their being more closely connected with 

 the following verb. 



§ 77. The various forms of the personal pronouns, m what may be called the 

 nominative case, are then as follows : 



