-nɨm

Function:

Ergative case. Inflects 3rd person singular subject nominals when the direct object is 1st or 2nd person. The verb agrees with i and the object is obligatorily coded by a 2nd position pronominal.

Examples:

  1. kúušnaš inmínɨm pišišnɨm isámx̣nax̣ana ‘thusly my aunt used to talk to me’;
  2. kúušnaš ɨ́nx̣ana inmínɨm nč̓ínɨm ‘my elder used to tell me thusly’;
  3. waxalxalíyanɨmš ipɨ́tyana ‘the spider bit me’;
  4. k̓ʷáynaš kúuš itɨmnanáx̣nawax̣ana inmínɨm káłanɨm ‘my grandmother used to tell me stories like that’;
  5. kúušnataš ɨ́nx̣ana inmínɨm pátnɨm ‘thusly my older sister kept telling us’;
  6. inmínɨmtaš káłanɨm kúuš itɨmnanáx̣nawax̣ana ataš kúuš míimi wíkux̣ana ‘my grandmother used to tell us how it we used to do things long ago’;
  7. ana k̓ʷapɨ́n itamánwiyayiya náaman aniłánɨm čná tiičámpa ‘that which the Creator legislated for us in this land’;
  8. čúušnɨmna inaknúwiyayiša náaman ƛ̓áax̣ʷ wáwnakʷšaš ‘water is taking care of all our bodies’;
  9. anam šínɨm ikútkutša ‘whoever is working you’;
  10. kunam kʷɨ́nɨm išapátkʷatata úyit ‘and that one will have you eat first’;
  11. panayšłánɨmnam ináyšta ‘the whirlpool will take you in’;
  12. tkʷátatpam iníta łmámanɨm ‘the old lady will give you food’;
  13. iq̓ínušapam łmámanɨm ‘the old lady sees you’.

See more:

In the NW dialects -nɨm also occurs with the 2nd position pronominal =pat ‘them’:

  1. kupat iwiyánawiyuuna čáwašnɨm ‘and the water arrived at them’ (Jacobs 1937:11.12.1, pg. 20).

[NP /-nm/ case marks 3rd person transitive subjects singular and plural and whatever the person of the direct object.]