ALTERATION OF THE ROOT. 255 



1. Change hy substitution. 



The primitive vowels a, i, u are sometimes substituted to each other to 

 indicate a change in the local or temporal relation of the words of which 

 they form a component part. They represent tlie pronominal roots: 



a, hA here, on hand, by hand; temj^orally: now, just now. 



i, hi on the ground, at home, for somebody; temporally: at the time of. 



u, hii up, above, far off, on the person, in the water; temporally: in the 

 past, previously. 



Thus the personal pronouns ni, nish, pash change to nu, nush, pish, 

 push and in particles and suffixes the change through all the three vowels 

 is sometimes observed: 



-ksdksi, -kshakshi, a locative nominal suffix of the northern dialect, is 

 altered to -ksi'ksi in Nak(5sksiks(i), nom. pr., "right where the pile- 

 dam is"; to -ksu'ksi in Slankoshksu'ksi, nom. pr., "where the old 

 bridge once wasT 

 tchd now, presently, tchl'k (or tche'k) at last, finally, until; tchiik at last 

 out there. 



We may also compare the changes observed in the pronominal roots 

 ka, ki (ke), ku ; ta, ti, tu. 



Vocalic changes in predicative and pronominal roots are the following: 

 kpddsha to extinguish hy hand, kpitchtchna, Mod. to spit, kpiitcha Kl. 



to squirt from' the mouth. 

 spatcha to tear asunder, spitcha to pull to the ground, extinguish the fire, 



spiitchta to cause somebody to part or lift the legs : to frighten. Cf. 



pddsha, pitcha, puedsha. 

 spatAdsha to stretch out, spitAdsha to stretch out a piart of the body. Cf. 



put6ga, put6va, sputuya. 

 pAha to be and to make dry ; puka to roast, bake. 

 sma'k hair on belly, smo'k hair of heard, mukash down, dotvny feather. 

 litki evening, viz. "decline;" liitxi to come down to the ground. 

 ska cold, adv., sgu'mla hoar frost forms ; cf. skukla. 

 tchak- in tchaktchakli sharp, pointed ; tchi%tchi;^a to tickle; cf tchAkela, 



shtchiyakeka, shtchi'kt^ish. 



