agentive form of the verbal noun, tokyah ‘lancet’). The ultimate source of ah tzucyah is unknown, but it may
be derived from the transitive stem, tzucyah ‘to speak, scold with vulgar words.’ The -yah agentive suffix
does not occur in the dialect of Modern Yucatec spoken in Hocaba.
2.2. INSTRUMENTAL NOUNS. Most of the instrumental nouns listed as entries in the Calepino de Motul
were derived from transitive roots, of which the following are examples:
(37)
Transitive
Gloss
Instrumental
Gloss
bah
to nail with hammer; chisel
bahab
hammer, chisel
choo
to scrub, rub, wipe, polish
choob
cleaner, towel
haɔ
to whip, clear /bush/
haɔab
whip, knife, sword
hax
to bore, drill
haxab
drill, borer
hepp
to tighten, squeeze, cinch
heppeb
cord, rope for tying tightly
hol
to pierce, bore, perforate
holob
punch, awl, pick, drill
loh
to redeem, save, rescue
lohob
ransom
ppis
to measure, weigh
ppisib
scales, measuring stick,
compass, level
There are also a few examples of instrumental nouns derived from nominal roots in the Calepino:
(38)
Noun
Gloss
Instrumental
Gloss
chek
footstep, footprint
chekeb
foot measure
hal
edge, boundary, perimeter
halab
edge, boundary, perimeter
koh
mask, representative
kohob
mask made of gourd
mis sweeping
misib broom
NOUNS 201
But only two instrumental nouns are derived from intransitive roots:
(39)
Intransitive
Gloss
Instrumental
Gloss
hel
to rest
heleb
resting place
oc
to perforate, bore, drill
ocob
punch, awl
It is clear from the examples in (37)-(39) that -Vb was the instrumental suffix in Colonial times (V echoes
the vowel in the root). However, the Calepino de Motul lists two instrumental nouns in which -eb served as
an alternative to -Vb:
(40)
Instrumental-Vb
Instrumental-eb
Gloss
ɔalab
ɔaleb
seal, mold, pattern
kakab
kakeb
pit for roasting
In addition, the Calepino lists kocheb ‘bier with poles’ without a -Vb alternative. The source of ɔalab/ɔaleb
was the transitive root ɔal ‘to compress lightly, seal,’ and the nominal root, kak ‘fire,’ was the source of
kakab/kakeb. The source of kocheb may have been the transitive root, koch ‘to carry on shoulders /cross,
plank/ or cautiously.’
The treatment of -eb as an alternative to -Vb as the suffix for instrumental nouns has historical impli-
cations beyond what it can tell us about the relationship between Colonial and Modern Yucatec. Among
the Modern Yucatecan languages, only Mopan employs -eeb with instrumental nouns (Hofling 2008:8,
2011:26). The other Modern languages in this family — Yucatec, Itsaj, and Lacandon — have only -Vb’ as the
suffix that co-occurs with instrumental nouns. That only three instrumental nouns had the -eb suffix in
Colonial Yucatec suggests (1) that it must have been the instrumental suffix in Proto-Yucatecan, (2) that the
shift from -eb to -Vb had almost been completed by the second half of the sixteenth century, and (3) that
Mopan must have separated from Proto-Yucatecan some time before -Vb became an alternative to -eb in
instrumental nouns.
The Calepino de Motul also contains two examples of the “locational” instrumental suffix, -ebal:
(41a) tazex a nok tazex çuuc t u vich luum venebal padre
‘spread out your bedding, spread hay on the ground for the priest’s bed!’ (Ciudad Real 1600?:
fol. 401v).
(41b) v pachah can=pech culhebal
‘he chose Campeche for his residence’ (Ciudad Real 1600?: fol. 358r)
In the first example, -ebal is suffixed to the intransitive root, ven ‘to sleep.’ In the second, it follows the
positional root, cul ‘to sit’ and -h-.1
Only one suffix (-Vb’) marks instrumental nouns in the Hocaba dialect of Modern Yucatec. However,
unlike instrumental nouns in Colonial Yucatec, they are also marked with the clitic particle, š, which is the
Modern cognate of Colonial ix:
(42)
Colonial
Modern
Instrumental
Gloss
Instrumental
Gloss
bahab
hammer, chisel
š b’ahab’
hammer
haɔab
whip, knife, sword
š haȼ’ab’
whip
heleb
resting place
š héʔeleb’
station, resting place
202 NOUNS
heppeb
cord, rope for tying tightly š hep’eb’
strap
holob
punch, awl, pick, drill
š holob’
perforator, drill
ppisib
scales, measuring stick,
š p’isib’
scales, meter stick
compass, level
Obviously, the clitic particle serves as a noun classifier in this context, not a marker of feminine gender.
2.3. ABSTRACT NOUNS. Adjectival roots and stems were the most common sources of abstract nouns in
Colonial Yucatec. Nominal roots and stems also served as sources of many abstract nouns. Verbal and par-
ticle roots and stems are only rarely listed as sources of abstract nouns in the Calepino de Motul.
2.3.1. ABSTRACT NOUNS DERIVED FROM ADJECTIVAL ROOTS AND STEMS. Approximately 30 abstract nouns
derived from adjectival roots are mentioned in the Calepino de Motul, of which the following is a represen-
tative sample:
(43)
Adjectival
Abstract
Root
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
côc deaf
cocil deafness
com
short, brief
comil
brevity, shortness
çuhuy virgin
çuhuyil virginity
tzeem
thin, feeble, frail
tzeemil
thinness, emaciation, feebleness,
weakness, frailty
chacau
hot, warm
chacauil
fever
chich
hard, strong
chichil
strength, force, hardness, firmness
ek black
ekil blackness
lab
old, rotten
labil
corruption, putrefaction
noh
principal, great
nohil
greatness, grandeur, magnificence
poloc
fat, corpulent
polocil
corpulence
tam
deep, serious
tamil
depth, profundity
tu
stinky, rotten
tuuil
stench
utz
good, just
utzil
goodness, virtue, excellence, kindness
The derivational suffix in these examples is -il. However, -il seems to be in free variation with -al in some
abstract nouns derived from adjectival roots:
(44)
Adjectival
Abstract
Root
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
celem
strong, robust,
celemil
time in one’s youth when one was
vigorous
celemal
strong and vigorous
çiz
cold, cool
çizil
freshness
çizal freshness
yaab
much, many
yaabil
abundance, multitude, plenty
yaabal
abundance, multitude, plenty
Abstract nouns could also be derived from adjectival stems that had previously been derived from
nouns by suffixing -Vl or -an to the nominal root. For example, the abstract noun, canalil ‘height, altitude,’
was derived from the adjectival stem, canál ‘above, high,’ which had itself been derived by suffixing -al to
the nominal root, caan ‘sky, heaven.’ Similarly, the nouns, cal ‘taste [for beverages]’ and pet ‘disc,’ were the
NOUNS 203
ultimate source of the abstract nouns, calanil ‘drunkenness, intoxication’ and petanil ‘round part,’ that had
been derived from them by suffixing -an to their roots:
(45)
Adjectival
Abstract
Stem
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
petan
round, circular
petanil
round part
calan
drunk, intoxicated
calanil
drunkenness, intoxication
When suffixed to verbal roots, -a(a)n had a participial meaning, as in the following participles (followed
by their corresponding abstract nouns) derived from nay ‘to forget,’ tap ‘to adorn, decorate, embellish,
arrange,’ and tuub ‘to forget’:
(46)
Participial
Abstract
Stem
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
nayan
forgotten
nayanil
forgotten person
tapaan
adorned, decorated, tapaanil
decoration, ornament
embellished,
arranged
tuban
forgotten
tubanil
forgotten person or thing
The Hocaba dialect of Modern Yucatec distinguishes two kinds of nouns derived from adjectival roots
and stems: abstract nouns and nouns that have a partitive meaning. The first group is marked by -il, as in
(47) below (V. Bricker et al. 1998:366):
(47)
Adjective
Gloss
Abstract Noun
Gloss
ʔal
heavy
ʔàal-il
weight
ʔuȼ
good, just
ʔuȼ-il
goodness, justice
čič
hard
čič-il
hardness
čokow
hot
čokw-il
fever
č’óoč’
salty
č’óoč’-il
saltiness
hàah true
hàah-il truth
kéʔel
cold
kéʔel-il
winter
k’àas
bad, ugly
k’àas-il
evil, ugliness
k’oháʔan
sick, ill
k’oháʔan-il
illness, disease
sahak fearful
sàahk-il fear
sàak’
itchy
sàak’-il
itch
tuʔ
stinky, rotten
tuʔ-il
stench
wíʔih
hungry
wíʔih-il
hunger
The second suffixes -Ø to the adjectival stem (Bricker et al. 1998:366):
(48)
Adjective
Gloss
Partitive Noun
Gloss
ʔal
heavy
uy al-Ø
the heavy one
ʔuȼ
good, just
uy uȼ-Ø
the good one
čič
hard
u čič-Ø
the hard one
čokow
hot
u čokow-Ø
the hot one
č’óoč’
salty
u č’óoč’-Ø
the salty one
hàah
true
u hàah-Ø
the true one
204 NOUNS
kéʔel
cold
u kéʔel-Ø
the cold one
k’àas
bad, ugly
u k’àas-Ø
the bad one
k’oháʔan
sick, ill
u k’oháʔan-Ø
the sick one
sahak
fearful
u sahak-Ø
the fearful one
sàak’
itchy
u sàak’-Ø
the itchy one
tuʔ
stinky, rotten
u tuʔ-Ø
the stinky one
wíʔih
hungry
u wíʔih-Ø
the hungry one
Apparently, this was not also the case in Colonial Yucatec, where nouns derived from adjectival roots and
stems with -il could have both functions. For example, y utzil had an abstract meaning (‘his goodness’) in
(49a) and a partitive meaning (‘the good ones’) in (49b):
(49a) pot manan y utzil Dios y okol t u lacal hi=bahun vchac v tuclabal
‘the goodness of God exceeds everything that can be imagined’ (Ciudad Real 1600?: fol. 381v)
(49b) cħicħex v lobil hinah ca u cheh v ba y utzil
‘pick up the bad seeds so that the good ones may be separated!’ (Ciudad Real 1600?: fol. 139r)
The partitive function of -il was also evident in nouns derived from adjectival and participial stems in Colo-
nial Yucatec:
(50a) v petanil hostia
‘the round part of the wafer’ (Ciudad Real 1600?: fol. 374r)
(50b) v petanil kin
‘the round part of the sun’ (Ciudad Real 1600?: fol. 374r)
(50c) ma a tuclic a tubanil t in men v tal kinie
‘don’t think that you were a forgotten person of mine in the past!’ (Ciudad Real 1600?: fol. 409r)
2.3.2. ABSTRACT NOUNS DERIVED FROM NOMINAL ROOTS AND STEMS. The semantic relationship between
nominal roots and the abstract nouns that were derived from them in Colonial Yucatec is shown in (51):
(51) Nominal
Abstract
Root
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
ahau
king, emperor,
ahaulil
kingdom, empire, monarch
&
nbsp; monarch, prince
batab
chief, leader
batabil
leadership, territory of chief
cħahuc
fruit
cħahucil
sweetness
ku God
kuil divinity
muu
sister-in-law,
muuil
in-law relationship
brother-in-law
tumut
plan, advice
tumutil
consideration, sketch, prudence
vah
tortilla, bread
vahil
banquet, meal
vinic
man, woman
vinicil
human being, body, human condition
or quality
NOUNS 205
yam
interval, distance,
yamlil
interruption
concavity between
two things
The derivational suffix was -il or, occasionally, -lil in this group of abstract nouns (e.g., ahaulil, yamlil).
A few nominal stems of unknown origin also served as sources of abstract nouns, whose derivational
suffix was also -il:
(52) Nominal
Abstract
Stem
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
onel
consanguineal
onelil
consanguineal relationship
relative
pixan
soul
pixanil
beatitude, bliss, well-being
ppentac
slave, servant,
ppentacil
servitude
captive
tamacaz
seizure
tamacazil
craziness, madness, frenzy
The use of -il for deriving abstract nouns from nominal roots has also been documented in the Hocaba
dialect of Modern Yucatec:
(53) Nominal
Abstract
Root
Gloss
Noun
Gloss
ʔàak’
vine
ʔàakil2
patch of vines
čáak
rain
čáakil
rainy season
š č’up
woman, lady
š č’ùupil
female sex organs
k’íiwik
plaza, square,
k’íiw(i)kil
urbanite
market
nal
ear of corn
nalil
green corn season
šanab’
shoe
šan(a)b’il
shoe shop, town where shoes are made
wíinik
man, person
wíin(i)kil
body, warp [backstrap loom]
The same is true of abstract nouns derived from nominal stems (e.g., ʔóoȼilil ‘poverty, misery’ < ʔóoȼil ‘poor
A Historical Grammar of the Maya Language of Yucatan (1557-2000) Page 35