Editing Ghotuo language (section)

== Grammar ==

=== Noun morphology ===
Ghotuo nouns are composed of a [[prefix]] and a [[Word stem|stem]]. Stems usually consist of the structures "-V," "-CV," "-CVV," and "-CVCV." Prefixes typically consist of the structures "V-," "VV-," and "CV-." Across both types of [[morpheme]], "V-" and "CV" are the most common structures. Nouns with the "u-" prefix in the singular, have a plural "i-" prefix. Similarly, nouns with a singular "o-" prefix have a plural "i-" prefix if the stem [[vowel]] is [[Close vowel|close]]. If the vowel is not close, then these nouns have a singular "-e" prefix. The prefix "-e" is also used as a plural prefix if the singular prefix of the noun is "-ɔ" and the stem vowel is not close.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Bankale |first1=Oyetayo |last2=Elugbe |first2=Ben |date=2019 |title=Ghotuọ Noun Morphology |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/355432995 |url-status=live |journal=Journal of the Linguistic Association of Nigeria |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=264–280 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214205520/https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Oyetayo-Bankale-3/publication/355432995_Ghotuo_Noun_Morphology/links/61700ccc435dab3b75833638/Ghotuo-Noun-Morphology.pdf |archive-date=February 14, 2024 |via=[[ResearchGate]]}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+Singular/Plural Prefix Endings
!Singular
!Plural
!Example
!Definition
|-
|u-
|i-
|ù-kì 
|moon
|-
|o-
|i-
|ò-fì 
|footpath
|-
|o-
|e-
|ō-tíé 
|a cherry like fruit
|-
|ɔ-
|e-
|ɔ-bè 
|enemy, evil
|-
|ɛ-
|e-
|ɛ-rùɛ 
|[[deer]], [[duiker]]
|-
|ɛɛ-
|io-
|ɛɛ-wè
|[[kola nut]]
|-
|ɛɛ-
|ee-
|ɛɛ-kɛ ēē
|egg
|}
Prefixes in Ghotuo are not exclusively determined by [[phonology]], they are also defined by the grammatical class of the noun.<ref name=":0" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Prefixes by Grammatical Class
!Singular
!Plural
!Function
!Example
!Definition
|-
|ɛɛ-
|a-
|Body parts
|ɛɛ- ò (à-) 
|eye
|-
|a-
|i-
|Primarily man-made objects
|à-bì 
|a kind of mat
|-
|a-
|io-
|
|à-mɛ 
|water
|-
|gha-
|i-
|Insects and small birds found in homes
|ɡhā-hìhì 
|ant
|-
|gha-
| -io
|Utensils and animals
|ɡhā-wà
|a dog
|-
|gho-
| -i
|
|ɡhò-kì 
|market
|-
|gho-
| -e
|
|ɡhō-bè 
|leaf, book
|}
There are numerous examples of Ghotou nouns with unpaired prefixes.<ref name=":0" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Unpaired Nouns
!Prefix
!Example
!Definition
|-
|i-
|ì-lhè
|insult
|-
|e-
|ē-nhù
|pounded [[Yam (vegetable)|yam]]
|-
|ɛ- 
|ɛ-khɔ 
|shame, shyness
|-
|a-
|à-fɛ 
|home, house
|-
|o-
|ō-fà 
|stinginess
|-
|u-
|ū-sɔ
|head
|-
|ghi-
|ɡhì-kpō
|forehead
|-
|ɡha- 
|ɡhà-kpā 
|[[Hair loss|Bald head]]
|-
|gho-
|ɡhō-ɛ 
|path, road
|}
[[Demonstrative|Demonstratives]] are conveyed using prefixes. For instance, the prefix "ɔ-" is used when referring to a singular entity while "è-" is used for plural entities. Prefixation in Ghotuo is used for [[Agreement (linguistics)|agreement markers]]; all plural nouns share the same agreement marker, and all the singular nouns share the same agreement marker. In some instances, prefixation may be used to transform a [[verb]] into an [[abstract noun]]. The verb "ɟâ," meaning "laugh," can be transformed into "ē-ɟà," meaning laughter, using prefixes. Stative nouns may also be formed by applying the prefix "ɔnhi-" to a [[stative verb]]. The word "obi," meaning "darkness," can be transformed to "ɔnhōbì," meaning "a black one." Sometimes this prefix can also be applied to a non-[[Ideophone|ideophonic]] [[adverb]]. For instance "dùkɛ," meaning short, can be transformed into "ɔnhī dùkɛ," meaning "a short one." Nouns may also be derived from verbs in [[Relative clause|relative clauses]]. In Ghotuo, Verbs interact with nouns to form [[Locative case|Locative]] nouns. Prefixing a specific set of three body parts to another place noun creates more complex sentences in Ghotuo. The body parts involved are ūsɔ(mhì), meaning "head," ūdò, meaning "stomach," and àvɔ, meaning "legs." One example is the phrase "ūdóvbàɡhì," meaning "inside of the room."<ref name=":0" />

The phrase "ɔnhī" can sometimes be used to indicate the origins of a married woman. For instance, the phrase "ɔnhī  ɣɔnhíɣõ," means "a [[Yoruba people|Yoruba]] woman." The phrase "ōnyẽ" is used to indicate that an individual is from a certain region For instance, "ōnyẽ ìɡbò" means "an [[Igbo people|Igbo]] person." "ɔnhī" and "onhi" may also be used to indicate time. The word " àmɛ," meaning "water," when transformed to "ɔnhīɣèmɛ" means "rain season." Placing the form "omhi" before a noun can transform it into a [[diminutive]]. If applied to "ɛ-wè," meaning "[[goat]]," it becomes "omhi ɛwè," meaning "little goat." Literally, the word "omhi" means child. It may be used in phrases such as "ōmhī mhɛ," meaning "my child." The words "vbāí," "kpɛɛkpɛ," and "ɡbei" can be applied to nouns to express a sense of totality. For example, the phrase "ìtīsá ɡbēī" means "all teachers."<ref name=":0" /> 

[[Tone (linguistics)|Tonal reflexes]] are sometimes utilized to convey [[Gerund|gerunds]], [[Verbal noun|verbal nouns]], and [[Agent noun|agent nouns]]. For example, by applying a low tone to the phrase "ɔ dɛɡhōbè," meaning "he buys a book," it transforms into "one who buys a book." This rule only applies to simple [[Clause|clauses]] with one verb. In clauses with multiple verbs, the letter "m" is added to the end of the noun. Prefixes can also be applied to express the plurality of a phrase. For instance, the prefix "i-." when applied to the phrase "ɔwìƞʷàhɛkūhɛdā," transforms it into "ì wìƞʷàhɛkūhɛdā." This transforms the meaning from "one who throws clothes into the river," to "those who throw clothes into the river." [[Proper noun|Proper nouns]] in Ghotuo are often whole clauses or statements, typically they refer to circumstances of birth, philosophical statements, or the events in the subject's life.<ref name=":0" />

=== Tone ===
Ghotuo is a terraced three-[[Tone (linguistics)|tone]] language. The three basic tones in Ghotuo are high, mid, and low. It experiences the [[downstep]] in the low and mid-tone levels, which means that in these tone levels, if two [[Syllable|syllables]] have the same tone then the second syllable is lower than the first one. One analysis of tone in Ghotuo conducted by Kolawole Adeniyi, a researcher from [[Obafemi Awolowo University]], found that Ghotuo speakers tended to remove downstep from their speech when speaking with non-native speakers. This indicates the downstep in Ghotuo is speaker-controlled.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Adeniyi |first=Kolawe |year=2012 |title=The role of Discourse in the typology of downsteps: Evidence from Ebira and Ghotuo |url=https://exlingsociety.com/wp-content/uploads/proceedings/exling-2012/05_0001_000207.pdf |url-status=live |journal=International Society of Experimental Linguistics |pages=1–5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231216010145/https://exlingsociety.com/wp-content/uploads/proceedings/exling-2012/05_0001_000207.pdf |archive-date=December 16, 2023}}</ref> [[Downdrift]] is also present in Ghouto; the mid and high tones are progressively lowered by the low tones preceding them. Downdrift is not automatically present in every Ghotuo word with mid or high tones following low tones. However, it is present in every word where a low tone follows a mid or high tone. Ghotuo contains [[Falling tone|falling tones]]; the low tone falls if it is placed after a mid or high tone. There are also "mid-falling" and "high-falling" tones found in the language.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bogers |first1=Koen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iZZsDwAAQBAJ |title=The Phonological Representation of Suprasegmentals: Studies on African Languages Offered to John M. Stewart on his 60th Birthday |last2=Hulst |first2=Harry van der |last3=Mous |first3=Marten |date=2016-09-26 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |isbn=978-3-11-086629-2 |pages=51–62 |language=en}}</ref>