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Grammar

13 Negation

Like several other Indo-European languages, in particular Indo-Iranian, Armenian and Greek, Albanian has different negators depending on whether or not the verb is in the indicative mood. When the verb is in the indicative mood, either nuk or s' is used in negating the verb. Nuk and s' are synonymous, e.g. nuk ha = s'ha 'I do not eat'. The negator mos is used with subjunctives, imperatives, optatives, and any participial formation, e.g., mos ha! 'don't eat!', për të mos ngrënë 'in order not to eat', etc.

14 Subordination

14.1 Indicative Subordination

The most common subordinators in indicative clauses are se or që, which have the same meaning and function (both translate to 'that'). Camaj (1984) claims that se originally held this function, but që (originally used with subjunctives and as a relative pronoun) has become used under these conditions as well.

Consider the following examples from Lesson 2's text. The first, "...it was written that in Albania autumn is...," uses the subordinator se, while the second, "The general knew that in Albania autumn is...," uses the subordinator që.

		të shkruhej		SE		në		Shqipëri		vjeshta		është
		it-was-written		that		in		Albania		the-autumn		is

		Gjenerali		e		dinte		QË		në		Shqipëri		vjeshta		është
		the-general		it		knew		that		in		Albania		the-autumn		is

14.2 Subjunctive Subordination

As discussed in Lesson 1, the subjunctive always occurs preceded by the subordinator të. Clearly, të is the subordinator for subjunctive clauses. Recall that Tosk Albanian, like many of the other languages of the Balkan Sprachbund, does not have an infinitival form that can be the complement of a verb. For example, in a sentence like 'I want to learn Albanian," an infinitival form of "to learn" would be used in English, Russian, French and most other European languages (even Geg Albanian, see below). However, in Tosk/Standard Albanian, a structure would have to be used that would roughly translate to "I want that I learn Albanian," with the second verb in the subjunctive.

		Dua		TË mesoj		gjuhën		shqipe
		I-want		(that) I-learn		the-language		Albanian

In saying something like "It is not difficult to learn Albanian," a similar construction is used. Instead of an infinitive, a finite verb is used.

		nuk		është		e veshtirë		TË mesojë		gjuhën		shqipe
		not		it-is		difficult		that learn		the-language		Albanian

In some cases, a construction që + SUBJECT + të + VERB is used. This would be roughly equivalent to a construction like "for SUBJECT INFINITIVE" in English. For example, "It is not difficult for John to learn Albanian" would be expressed as the following:

		Nuk		është		e veshtirë		QË		Gjoni		TË mesojë		gjuhën		shqipe
		not		it-is		difficult		that		John		learns		the-language		Albanian

Note that the constructions above, while representative of Tosk and Standard Albanian, are rare in Geg. In these situations, an infinitival form would be used in Geg. For example, the Geg equivalent of Standard Albanian Dua të flas gjuhën shqipe. 'I want to speak Albanian' would be Due me folë gjuhën shqipe, where me folë is the infinitive of flas 'speak'. More information about the Geg infinitive (along with other participial constructions) is given in Lesson 4.

14.3 Relative Clauses

In Standard Albanian, the relative pronoun is declined. The following are the forms of the relative pronoun; the genitive forms must take an additional nyje particle.

		masculine						feminine
		singular		plural				singular		plural
nominative		i cili		të cilët				e cila		të cilat
accusative		të cilin		të cilët				të cilën		të cilat
gen/dat.		të cilit		të cilëve				së cilës		të cilave
ablative		të cilit		të cilëve				së cilës		të cilave

The relative pronoun appears in first position in the relative clause, and has the case that is appropriate to its use in the relative clause, but with the gender and number determined by the head noun (the noun that is modified by the relative clause). For example, from the text in Lesson 1, "The flag, the seal, and the anthem are... symbols... that reflect..."

		Flamuri,		stema		dhe		himni		janë		simbolet,		të cilat		pasqyrojnë...
		the-flag		the-seal		and		the-anthem		are		symbols		that		reflect...

In this example the form of the relative pronoun is të cilat, and is feminine nominative plural. It modifies the noun simbolet, which is the nominative plural form of the ambigeneric noun simbol (which, being ambigeneric and plural, has feminine agreement).

Note that, in spoken Albanian, it is more common to use invariant që (Geg qi) instead of the relative pronoun cili, e. This is much more common in the texts presented in these lessons, for example in the following phrase from Lesson 2:

		në		librin		QË		kishte lexuar
		in		the-book		that		he-had read

15 Demonstrative Adjectives/Pronouns

When the object being described is not specified for gender, the default form of the pronouns is the feminine form. Thus, in an impersonal construction in which there is an adjective predicated of an understood (unexpressed) expletive subject along with a clausal complement (thus equivalent to English "extraposed" sentential subject), the adjective takes the feminine form, e.g. është e veshtirë të mesoni shqip '(it)-is difficult/FEM that you-learn Albanian' (that veshtirë is feminine is shown by the nyje e rather than masculine i -- see Lesson 1).

15.1 Distal Demonstratives

Forms of ai, ajo 'that' are used when the object being described is not near the speaker. These are also used as the third person personal pronouns.

		masculine						feminine
		singular		plural				singular		plural
nominative		ai		ata				ajo		ato
accusative		atë		ata				atë		ato
gen/dat.		atij		atyre				asaj		atyre
ablative		atij		atyre				asaj		atyre

15.2 Proximal Demonstratives

When the object discussed is near the speaker, forms of ky, kjo 'this' are used.

		masculine						feminine
		singular		plural				singular		plural
nominative		ky		këta				kjo		këto
accusative		këtë		këta				këtë		këto
gen/dat.		këtij		këtyre				kësaj		këtyre
ablative		këtij		këtyre				kësaj		këtyre

16 Personal Pronouns

As discussed above, the function of the 3rd person personal pronouns is filled by the distal demonstrative pronouns. Unlike 3rd person pronouns, the rest of the personal pronouns are not marked for gender.

		1st person						2nd person
		singular		plural				singular		plural
nominative		unë		ne				ti		ju
accusative		mua		ne				ty		ju
gen/dat.		mua		neve				ty		juve
ablative		meje		nesh				teje		jesh

17 Weak Pronouns

17.1 Forms of Weak Pronouns

The following are the forms of the Albanian weak pronouns (also commonly called "clitic pronouns"):

		singular		plural
1st person		më		na
2nd person		të		ju
3rd person		e (acc.)		i (acc.)
		i (dat.)		u (dat.)
reflexive		u

17.2 Position of weak pronouns

With the exception of imperatives (on which see below), weak pronouns always come before the verb, regardless of mood, tense, etc. For example, in the following examples meaning "I eat it" and "I have eaten it," the weak pronoun e comes directly before the verb.

		Unë		e		ha.								Unë		e		kam ngrënë.
		I		it		eat								I		it		have-eaten

When using a verb form obligatorily preceded by a particle of some sort, such as të in the subjunctive or do të in the future and conditional, the clitics still occur directly before the verb (i.e., between the particle and the verb). For example, in the sentence "I will eat it," the clitic e is positioned between the subordinator të and the verb ha. The combination of të and e actually gives a contraction ta (on such contractions, see below).

		Unë		do		ta		ha
		I		FUT		TË+it		eat

Weak pronoun placement is more complicated in the imperative, where there is some variability as to where they appear. In negative imperatives, weak pronouns still come directly before the verb (i.e., between the negator and the verb). In positive imperatives, weak pronouns can come either before or after the verb: if they come before the verb, they are written as separate words; if they come after the verb, the clitics are attached to the verb. If clitics come after a plural imperative, they are placed between the stem and the 2nd person plural imperative ending -ni. In the following examples meaning "Open the door for me!" from Newmark et al. (1982), where the weak pronouns are capitalized, the example on the left has the clitic combination ma (dative më plus accusative e) as a separate word placed before the verb, while the example on the right has the clitic combination ma attached to the end of the verb.

		MA		hap		derën				OR				hapMA		derën
		for me-it		open!		the-door								open!-for me-it		the-door

In the following examples meaning "Write to me!" the clitic either comes before the verb (as in the example on the left) or between the stem and the 2PL imperative ending -ni (as in the example on the right).

		MË		shkruani				OR				shkruaMËni
		to me		write!								write!-to me

17.3 Use of clitic pronouns

Direct object weak pronouns are not obligatory, but optional when the direct object is overtly expressed. For example, both of the following are acceptable for "I saw the dog."

		Unë		pashë		qenin				OR				Unë		e		pashë		qenin
		I		saw		the-dog								I		it		saw		the-dog

If the direct object is not overtly expressed, then the weak pronoun is obligatory. For example, if saying "I saw it" (where 'it' is 'the dog'), the clitic must be present.

		Unë		e		pashë
		I		it		saw

Indirect object weak pronouns are obligatory when there is an indirect object, even if it is overtly expressed. For example, in the sentence "I wrote to John," the indirect object weak pronoun is required.

		Unë		i		shkrova		Gjonit
		I		to-him		wrote		to-John

Where the indirect object is a pronoun, an overt form of the pronoun is optional but not obligatory. For example, in the sentence "I wrote to you all," both of the following are acceptable:

		Unë		ju		shkrova				OR				Unë		ju		shkrova		juve
		I		to-you (pl.)		wrote								I		to-you (pl.)		wrote		to-you (pl.)

17.4 Weak Pronoun Combinations, Combinations With të

When a dative and an accusative weak pronoun are used together, they often combine. The dative weak pronoun always comes before the accusative weak pronoun. The following chart shows the different possible combinations.

								Acc.
						e		i		u
		Dat.
		më				ma		m'i		m'u
		të				ta		t'i		t'u
		i				ia		ia		iu
		na				na e		na i		na u
		ju				jua		jua		ju
		u				ua		ua		ju

In addition to weak pronouns combining to give special forms, weak pronouns (or combinations thereof) can combine with the subordinator të:

• të plus accusative e gives ta
• If the weak pronoun (or the combination of pronouns) begins with a vowel or j, the vowel of the subordinator is lost and it becomes t', e.g. të + i gives t'i, të + jua gives t'jua, etc.
• If the weak pronoun (or the combination of pronouns) begins with any other sound, there is no special combination, e.g., të + m'i gives të m'i, të + na gives të na

18 Possessive Pronouns

18.1 Forms of Possessive Pronouns

These forms are originally the combination of a nyje particle and a pronoun. In most instances they have combined to form a single word, but in others they have not. The following are the forms for the 1st and 2nd person possessive pronouns. Note that e preceding some forms signals that an appropriate nyje particle is required: in some instances it will actually be e, in others it will not.

						1SG		1PL		2SG		2PL
Masc.		Sg.		nom.		im		ynë		yt		juaj
				acc.		tim		tonë		tët		tuaj
				gen/dat/abl.		tim		tonë		tët		tuaj
		Pl.		nom.		e mi		tanë		e tu		tuaj
				acc.		e mi		tanë		e tu		tuaj
				gen/dat/abl.		e mi		tanë		e tu		tuaj
Fem.		Sg.		nom.		mie		jonë		jote		juaj
				acc.		time		tonë		tënde		juaj
				gen/dat/abl.		sime		sonë		sate		suaj
		Pl.		nom.		e mia		tona		e tua		tuaja
				acc.		e mia		tona		e tua		tuaja
				gen/dat/abl.		e mia		tona		e tua		tuaja

The third person possessive adjectives tij, e 'his', saj, e 'her', tyre, e 'their' are treated like typical adjectives.

18.2 Placement of Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns nearly always follow the noun they modify, e.g. gjuha jonë 'our language', miku im 'my friend', etc. The only cases where the possessive pronouns can precede the noun they modify is with a small group of kinship terms (e.g., vella 'brother', motër 'sister', and several others). When the possessive pronoun follows the noun, the noun is always in the definite form (e.g., vëllai im 'my brother', motra jotë 'your (pl.) sister'). In the rare cases where it can precede the noun, the noun is in the indefinite form (e.g., im vëlla, jotë motër). The 3rd person possessive pronouns never precede the noun.

19 The Future Tense

19.1 Future

As briefly discussed in Lesson 1, the Albanian future tense is formed from the particle do followed by the subordinator të and a present subjunctive form of the verb.

Future paradigm of shkruaj 'write':

		singular		plural
1st person		do të shkruaj		do të shkruajmë
2nd person		do të shkruash		do të shkruani
3rd person		do të shkruajë		do të shkruajnë

19.2 Future Perfect

The future perfect is formed with the invariant particle do followed by the subordinator të and a present perfect subjunctive form of the verb. The future perfect is used to describe events that will occur in the future before another specified point in the future. For example, it would be used in a phrase like ai do të ketë shkruar librin... "he will have written the book..."

Future perfect paradigm of shkruaj 'write':

		singular		plural
1st person		do të kem shkruar		do të kemi shkruar
2nd person		do të kesh shkruar		do të keni shkruar
3rd person		do të ketë shkruar		do të kenë shkruar

19.3 The Future Tense in Geg

Note that there is substantial variation across Albanian dialects in the formation of the future tense. In other (non-standard) Tosk dialects, the subordinator të is often omitted, and even in the standard language it can be omitted in colloquial usage or fast speech. Constructions with the future marker do are seen in Geg dialects. They are used to show obligation, rather than future time reference (as seen in the texts presented in Lessons 4 and 5). Geg dialects have a completely different future tense construction, which is composed of a conjugated present tense form of kam 'have' followed by the infinitive, which is formed from the preposition me followed by the participle (note that the Geg infinitive is a distinct formation from the Tosk/Standard Albanian "infinitive," discussed in Lesson 4). The equivalent of do të jenë in Geg would be kanë me qenë, where kanë is the 3rd person plural present form of kam 'have' and me qenë is the infinitive of jam 'be'. The Geg future perfect is formed with a present perfect form of kam plus the infinitive.

20 The Conditional Mood

20.1 The Present Conditional

The conditional is formed in the same way as the future, except that an imperfect subjunctive form of the verb is used. The present conditional is also often referred to as the "Future Imperfect" due to the fact that its formation is similar to that of the future. The conditional is used to describe a potential or hypothetical event, and verbs in the conditional mood are often translated into English as 'would VERB', e.g. 'I would read the book' would be Do të lexuaja librin.

Present conditional paradigm of shkruaj 'write':

		singular		plural
1st person		do të shkruaja		do të shkruanim
2nd person		do të shkruaje		do të shkruanit
3rd person		do të shkruante		do të shkruanin

20.2 The Past Conditional

The Albanian past conditional is formed with do plus the subordinator të plus a past perfect subjunctive verb form. The past conditional is translated into English as 'would have VERBed', e.g. 'I would have read the book' would be Do të kisha lexuar librin.

Past conditional paradigm of shkruaj 'write':

		singular		plural
1st person		do të kisha shkruar		do të kishim shkruar
2nd person		do të kishe shkruar		do të kishit shkruar
3rd person		do të kishte shkruar		do të kishin shkruar

20.3 The Conditional Mood in Geg

Similar to the Geg future tense, the Geg conditional is formed from a conjugated imperfect form of kam plus the infinitive. For example, the Geg equivalent of do të lexoja librin 'I would read' would be kisha me lexuë librin (where me lexuë is the infinitive of lexoj).

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