by Max Wheeler
Such a previous mention may well be via a paraphrase rather than with the same word or words:
Estengué la mà com per afrontar tota la misèria del lloc amb el seu gest.
She put out her hand as if to confront with her gesture all the wretchedness of the place.
Much more commonly the identity of the referent of the definite noun phrase is derived by inference (and is expected by the speaker to be so derived) from general or specific knowledge of scenes or situations:
… el piset tenia tres peces diminutes. El menjador a/ mig, on s’obria directament la porta de fora …
… the flat had three tiny rooms. The dining room in the middle, into which the front door opened directly … (by inference from general knowledge one knows that a flat will have a dining room and a front door; similarly, if there are three rooms, one will be in the middle, approximately anyway).
In some instances the recognition of a particular referent by inference is virtually unavoidable; the reference of the noun phrase is taken to be unique for everybody: la lluna ‘the moon’, el Papa ‘the Pope’, el mar ‘the sea’.
The third way of establishing definiteness is through an explicit modifying phrase, such as a relative clause, or a prepositional phrase complement:
-Em fa vergonyava dir ella amb / ‘accent obert de la gent d els pobles de Lleida.
Ί am ashamed,’ she said with the open accent of the people from the villages of Lleida.
Here we have a series of interlocking phrases which are definite via explicit modification: l’accent … de la gent, la gent dels pobles, els pobles de Lleida.
3.1.4.2 Generic noun phrases and the definite article
With the exceptions noted below (and 3.1.4.3–4), the definite article is used before all Catalan nouns used generically, whether they are singular or plural, countable or mass (i.e. uncountable) nouns. This contrasts with English usage, where in a generic sense only singular count nouns may have the definite article:
El nen segueix un llarg procés d’aprenentatge.
The child undergoes a lengthy learning process.
Els nens segueixen un llarg procés d’aprenentatge.
Children undergo a lengthy learning process.
Els polítics han de ser alhora cauts i atrevits.
Politicians have to be cautious and bold at the same time.
L’elefant és un mamífer herbívor./Els elefants són mamífers herbívors.
The elephant is an herbivorous mammal./Elephants are herbivorous mammals.
Reivindiquem els drets de la mare soltera/de les mares solteres.
We stand up for the rights of the unmarried mother/of unmarried mothers.
This rule covers
(i) abstract nouns used generically:
La castedat és una condició envejable. Chastity is an enviable condition.
Feu l’amor i no la guerra. Make love not war.
(ii) Mass nouns denoting a substance understood generically:
La mel és bona per a la salut. Honey is good for health.
M’agrada la cervesa més que el vi. I like beer more than wine.
(iii) Count nouns used (generically) to refer to all the members of their class:
Les dones tenen més sentit comú que els homes.
Women have more common sense than men.
Els llibres ocupen molt d’espai.
Books take up a lot of room.
No m’agraden els menjars picants.
I don’t like spicy food. (lit. Spicy food is not pleasing to me.)
3.1.4.3 Generic or indefinite?
An English mass or plural noun phrase without an article may be either generic or indefinite. If the sense is generic, a definite article will be needed in Catalan; if it is indefinite, an indefinite article (un), some other indefinite quantifier (such as algun ‘some’), or a noun phrase with no determiner will be required.
Els especialistes alemanys han refutat aquesta teoria.
German specialists have refuted this theory.
Especialistes alemanys han refutat aquesta teoria./Aquesta teoria ha estat refutada per especialistes alemanys.
(Some) German specialists have refuted this theory.
The definite article in the first sentence has a generic function and conveys that ‘all German specialists (in the context of discourse)’ are referred to: absence of the article corresponds to the indefinite sense of the noun phrase in the second sentence. (As we mention below a subject noun phrase with no article, as in the first alternative here, is stylistically marked; 3.2.3.)
More often than not a mass or plural count noun as the object of a verb will be indefinite:
No tens paciència. You have no patience.
El director fa visites. The boss is making calls.
La premsa té reaccions exagerades. The press has extreme reactions.
Ara que s’ha jubilat escriu tractats d’astronomia. Now he has retired he writes treatises on astronomy.
Menja patates fregides. She’s eating chips./She eats chips.
In the last example, although there is a kind of generic sense to ‘chips’ (in the second translation, at least), the important thing is that the sense ‘all’ is not appropriate, and it is this sense ‘all’ which is part and parcel of the definite generic noun phrase.
Verbs of consumption, desire, use, or production show a strong tendency to govern noun phrases used indefinitely:
No mengen ni carn ni peix.
They eat neither meat nor fish.
Volem pa amb oli, pa amb oli volem, (children’s refrain)
We want bread with oil; bread with oil we want.
Compon simfonies i música de cambra.
He composes symphonies and chamber music.
Faig servir massatge facial i desodorant Floïd.
I use Floïd aftershave and deodorant.
On the other hand, verbs which express preference, taste, emotion, prohibition, censure, etc., tend to refer to their objects as totalities or total inclusive sets, whence the appearance of the generic definite article:
Odio les patates fregides. I hate (all) chips.
Adoro les muntanyes. I love mountains.
M’han prohibit el cafè i el te. I’ve been forbidden to drink coffee and tea.
Temo les reaccions exagerades. I’m afraid of extreme reactions.
No entenc els tractats d’astronomia. I do not understand treatises on astronomy.
In sentences like these ‘all’ is understood. This is also true for agradar translating ‘like’ (M’agrada la cervesa Ί like beer’) although la cervesa is not the object but the subject of agradar.
Nominal complements of prepositions appear with the definite article when what they denote is either definite or generic:
Han parlat de les vagues.
They spoke about the strikes/about strikes.
No es preocupa gens pels altres.
He’s not at all concerned about the others/other people.
les meves opinions sobre el desarmament
my opinions on disarmament/the disarmament (in a context where some specific disarmament can be understood)
As in English, indefinite noun phrases after a preposition will often have no article at all.
Lloguen apartaments per a turistes.
They rent out apartments for tourists.
Organitzen classes sobre literatura anglesa contemporània.
They run classes on contemporary English literature.
In the last example classes sobre la literatura anglesa contemporània would mean ‘classes covering the whole of contemporary English literature’. Presence or absence of the definite article in a context like this will reflect the perspective of the speaker or writer: quatre conferències sobre arquitectura romànica implies ‘four lectures on (aspects of) Romanesque architecture’, whereas … sobre l’arquitectura romànica would imply the scope was the total phenomenon.
3.1.4.4 Other aspects of presence or absence of the definite article
> We can summarize other aspects of presence or absence of the definite article under the following headings: (i) with nouns combined with de, (ii) with nouns restricted by a qualifier, (iii) dates and days, (iv) miscellaneous.
(i) Nouns joined with de
When two nouns are joined by de to form what is effectively a compound noun, the definite article does not appear before the second noun (effectively indefinite here):
una/la bola de neu a/the snowball
la carn de vedella(cf. la carn de la vedella veal‘the meat from the calf’)
un/el mal de ventre a/the stomach ache
cursos de lingüística aplicada courses in applied linguistics
Note, however, la parada de l’autobús ‘the place where the bus stops/the bus stop’ but una parada d’autobús ‘a bus stop’, la nit de la festa ‘the night of the party’ but una nit de festa ‘a party night’, el dia de la festa ‘the day of the festivity’ but un dia de festa ‘a holiday’.
(ii) Nouns restricted by a qualifier
As in cursos de lingüística aplicada above, or classes sobre literatura anglesa in 3.1.4.3, the presence of a qualifier does not always make a noun definite. Qualified nouns often function thus as compounds, without an article in the complement phrase:
aquell llibre de tapes de cuiro that leather-bound book
exercicis de meditació transcendental transcendental meditation exercises
The following examples illustrate how, as in English, a noun which lacks an article when used indefinitely may be definite (and used with a definite article) when it is qualified or restricted by a following word or phrase (3.1.4.1):
Portaven regals.
They brought presents.
Portaven els regals que havien comprat a Portugal.
They brought the presents they had bought in Portugal.
Desitjo pau i tranquil·litat.
I desire peace and tranquillity.
Desitjo la pau de la meva llar i la tranquil·litat de la rutina familiar.
I desire the peace of my own home and the tranquillity of familiar routine.
A similar effect occurs with proper names, which may have a definite article when used with a qualifying phrase:
la Barcelona de la postguerra
post-war Barcelona
El Verdaguer èpic és més imponent que el Verdaguer líric.
Verdaguer is more imposing as a writer of epics than as a lyric poet.
(iii) Definite article in time expressions
The definite article (with no preposition) introduces a year, either with the noun any following it or directly followed by the number (see 10.11 for more detail on expressing years):
Mossèn Alcover morí I’any 1932. = Mossèn Alcover morí el 1932.
Mossèn Alcover died in 1932.
The same happens with the names of months:
El mes de maig de 1968 ells estudiaven a París. = El maig de 1968 ells estudiaven a Paris.
In May 1968 they were studying in Paris.
A year qualifying a month may also be introduced by del: 31 de març de(l) 1998 ‘31 March 1998’; the article is never omitted after de when the year has been abbreviated: el juliol del 36, ‘July ‘36’ (*el juliol de 36). Similarly with days: el dia X, el X:
El dia 20 de març ens vam trobar a Londres.
On March 20th we met in London.
El dia de Nadal ens vam llevar molt tard.
On Christmas Day we got up very late.
With centuries a is used with the definite article:
Al segle XX hi ha hagut dues guerres mundials.
In the 20th century there have been two world wars.
The singular definite article introduces the names of the days of the week when the sense is generic: El dilluns vaig a pescar I’ go fishing every Monday’, but Dilluns aniré a pescar ‘I will go fishing on Monday’, Dissabte no va venir a veure’m ‘He did not come to see me last Saturday’. See 13.3 for more detailed exemplification of time expressions.
Note the optional absence of the definite article after the preposition a when indicating the age of persons:
Α tres anys ja sabia llegir./Als tres anys …
At three years I could already read.
Α divuit anys ja poden votar./Als divuit anys …
At eighteen they have the vote.
(iv) Miscellaneous
Cases (a)-(h) below relate to absence of an expected definite article; (j) and (k) are perhaps unexpected cases of the presence of the definite article.
(a) In many proverbs, with generic phrases:
Mules i dones, garrot les fa bones.
Mules and women only understand a good hiding. (lit. Mules and women, stick makes them good!)
(b) The definite article is absent in vocatives, that is, when addressing a person directly, but the definite article is used before a title in a referring expression:
Si, senyor Mates. Yes, Sr Mates.
El senyor Mates dinarà amb nosaltres. Sr Mates will have lunch with us.
Vostè és molt astut, doctor Ferrer. You are very shrewd, Dr Ferrer.
El doctor Ferrer és molt astut. Dr Ferrer is very shrewd.
The same applies when addressing relatives: Si, papà/mamà ‘Yes, daddy/ mummy’, Que tens foe, mare? ‘Have you got a light, mother?’ Observe, however, that the article is used when talking about relatives:
El pare arribarà aviat. (Your) father will arrive soon.
La iaia està malalta. Granny is ill.
l’oncle Pau Uncle Pau
(c) The (generic) definite article is optional in the case of parlar ‘speak’ + the name of a language (and likewise with entendre ‘understand’, escriure ‘write’, estudiar ‘study’):
No sap parlar el rus. = No sap parlar rus.
She can’t speak Russian.
But note:
Comparat amb l’euskera el català és poc complicat.
Compared with Basque, Catalan is uncomplicated.
Domina perfectament l’alemany.
She has a complete command of German.
(d) The definite article is absent before the following nouns in prepositional phrases depending on verbs of location or movement: casa ‘home’, classe ‘class’, escola/estudi ‘school’, missa ‘Mass’, plaça ‘market’, muntanya ‘mountain’, terra (m.) ‘floor’. Notice that in some, but not all, cases the English corresponding expressions also lack an article:
Sóc a casa. I’m at home.
Vaig a classe. I’m going to school.
Vinc d’escola. I’m coming from school.
Són a estudi. They are at school.
Visc a muntanya. I live in the mountains.
Vas a plaça? Are you going shopping?
Seu a terra. She is sitting on the ground.
etc.
(e) The definite article is absent in prepositional phrase idioms like: en teoria ‘in theory’, en definitiva ‘in short’, en lloc de ‘instead of’, en benefici de ‘in favour of’, en concepte de ‘by way of’, per part de ‘on the part of’, per raó de ‘by reason of’, de part de ‘on behalf of’, a càrrec de ‘within the responsibility of’, a expenses de ‘at the expense of’, a força de ‘by dint of’, etc.
(f) The definite article is absent in certain other idiomatic expressions (where again the noun phrase is object of a verb or a preposition): nedar, llençar(-se), caure or ésser dins mar ‘swim, jump, fall, be in the sea’, seure a taula ‘sit at (the) table’, parar/desparar taula ‘lay/clear the table’; per terra ‘by land’, per mar ‘by sea’, per aire ‘by air’, with names of games after jugar a: jugar a cartes ‘play cards’, jugar a futbol ‘play football’, jugar a tennis ‘play tennis’, etc.
(g) In signs: Entrada ‘Way In’, Sortida ‘Exit’, Excusat ‘Toilet’, etc.
(h) In simple apposition the definite article is normally absent:
Grècia, terra de filòsofs, fou el bressol de la civilització occidental.
Greece, (the) land of philosophers, was the
cradle of western civilization.
una biografia de Prat de la Riba, primer President de la Mancomunitat
a biography of Prat de la Riba, the first president of the Catalan Mancomunitat
The definite article is retained, however, if apposition serves to individuate the noun in question (in practice by use of a comparative or superlative, or by a restrictive qualification):
en Ferran, el més llest d’aquell grup
Ferran, the cleverest in that group
Josep Carner, el ‘Príncep dels poetes’
Josep Carner, the ‘Prince of poets’
Fleming, el científic que va descobir la penicil·lina
Fleming, the scientist who discovered penicillin
The article also appears if apposition is used to avoid possible confusion of reference, as in: Franklin, el polític i filòsof ‘Franklin, the politician and philosopher (not the explorer)’.
(j) To be noted is use of the definite article with numbered nouns: una disposició de Particle 69 de la Constitució ‘a provision in Article 69 of the Constitution’; Això s’explica en el capítol IV ‘This is explained in Chapter IV’; and after firstand second-person plural pronouns in phrases like nosaltres els valencians ‘we Valencians’, vosaltres els rics ‘you wealthy people’.
(k) The masculine singular definite article always introduces the name of a sports team: el Barça ‘Barcelona FC’ el València, el Sheffield Wednesday.
Section 3.4 describes other idiomatic expressions involving articles. Further coverage of the definite article is given elsewhere as follows: in nominalization of adjectives, etc., 9.1; before an infinitive, 20.5; followed by a relative clause, 31.6.2; as the neuter article, 9.2.