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🌏 Region(s): Ryukyu (Okinawa)

まーすん

maasun

Pronunciation: [maːsuŋ̍]

Definition

Verb

  1. To die; to perish; to pass away

Etymology

Cognate to Amami (Naze) もりすん morisun; Amami (Imazato) mooris(ï)-; Amami (Yuwan) もーしゅい mooshui; Tokunoshima もーいせぃ mooisï; Okinoerabu もいしゅん moishun; Okinawan (Shuri) まーすん maasun; Miyako まーすズ maasɿ ~ maasz; Tarama-Minna まーらすん maarasun; Yaeyama (Funauki) maaras-; Yaeyama (Shiraho) maroor-; Yaeyama (Kuroshima) mairas-; Yaeyama (Hatoma) まーらすん maarasun; Yonaguni まいるん mairun and まいすん maisun "to pass away, to die". Likely cognate to standard Japanese まわる【回る】 mawaru "to turn" and まわす【回す】 mawasu "to [go] around, to turn, to rotate".

In Shuri Okinawan, the compound けーまーすん keemaasun "to pass away, to die" is also recorded.

Reconstructions:

  • Zachary Read (2023) tentatively reconstructs *mawari 'turn' + *s- 'to do', but notes that some varieties may reflect *mawas- instead.
  • The Hatoma dialect database (鳩間方言音声語彙DB) suggests, for Hatoma, a connection to Old Japanese まかり【罷り】 makari, which was used as a euphemism for dying, and proposes the sound change *makari → * mahari → *maari and the addition of the verb すん sun "to do".

Discussion:

  • The vowel difference in Northern Ryukyuan suggests *Cawa-. The connection to Japanese まわる【回る】 mawaru "to turn" and まわす【回す】 mawasu  is based on Yuwan Amami and Miyako, where the verb "to turn" is phonologically the same.
  • The reconstruction of *mawari 'to turn' + *s- 'to do' is enticing based on the number of varietal forms with -r-. However, further research is needed to determine (1) why certain varieties like Okinawan don't result in *maaisun, (2) whether the different forms represent different reflexes of both *mawar- and *mawas-, and (3) what the transitive and intransitive forms of 'to turn' in each variety look like.
  • In The Honorific Forms of the Imazato Dialect in Amami, Northern Ryukyuan (2017), Hiromi Shigeno notes that the Imazato equivalent moori "to pass away" is never used on its own, but requires the auxiliary verb s(ï)- "to do".

意味:しぬ【死ぬ】、なくなる【亡くなる】

+ amend/report

Verb Paradigm

Central Okinawan su-type verb: maasunβeta

 

 

Imperfective

Perfective

Negative

Neg. Perfective

Plain

PRED

maasun

maachan

maasan

maasantan

ATT

maasuru

maacharu

Progressive

PRED

maachoon

maachootan

maacheewuran

maacheewurantan

ATT

maachooru

maachootaru

Causative

PRED

maashimiyun
maashimiin

maashimitan

maashimiran

maashimirantan

ATT

maashimiyuru
maashimiiru

maashimitaru

Passive, Potential

PRED

maasariyun
maasariin

maasaritan
maasattan

maasariran
maasaran

maasarirantan
maasarantan

ATT

maasariyuru
maasariiru

maasaritaru
maasattaru

Intransitivizing resultative (For transitive verbs only)

PRED

maacheen

maacheetan

maacheeneen

maacheeneentan

ATT

maacheeru

maacheetaru

In preparation/in advance (-te oku)

PRED

maachoochun

maachoochan

maacheeukan

maacheeukantan

ATT

maachoochuru

maachoocharu

Desidirative (adjective paradigm)

PRED

maashi-busan

maashi-busatan

maashi-bushikoo neen

maashi-bushikoo neeran

maashi-bushikoo neentan

maashi-bushikoo neerantan

ATT

maashi-busaru

maashi-busataru

 

Affirmative

Negative

Volitional-Presumptive
(“let’s”)

maasa

“seems”

maasuru-haji

maasan-haji

Imperative-Prohibitive

maashi

maasuna

Conjunctive-Participle
(“te form”)

maachi

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まーすん