Learn Oneida

Module 6

NOTE: This page is still under construction!

Introduction

Module 5 covered stative verbs which describe the state or condition of someone or something. They have 5 possible tenses:
TenseTranslationEnglish
Present
wakatlaʔswiyó
I am lucky
Past
wakatlaʔswiyo·hné·
I was lucky
Future
ʌwakatlaʔswiyóhakeʔ
I will be lucky
Conditional (Indefinite Future)
a·ukwatlaʔswiyóhakeʔ
I might be lucky
Command
satlaʔswiyóhak
Be lucky!
The verbs in module 6 are active verbs which decribe actions, events, or activities. They have as many as 14 possible forms. The 11 that will be covered by this curriculum are the following:
TenseTranslationEnglish
Active Habitual
kekhu·níhe̲ʔ
I cook
Active Habitual Past
kekhu·níhahkweʔ
I used to cook
Active Habitual Future
ʌkekhu·níhekeʔ
I will keep on cooking
Active Definite Past
waʔkekhu·ní̲·
I cooked
Active Indefinite Future
akekhu·ní̲·
I might cook
Active Definite Future
ʌkekhu·ní̲·
I will cook
Active Perfective
wakekhuní
I have cooked
Active Progressive
wakekhuniháti
I am going along cooking
Active Perfective Past
wakekhuni·hné·
I had cooked
Active Perfective Indefinite
a·ukkhuni·keʔ
I should have cooked
Active Command
sekhú·ni̲ʔ
Cook!
This module will cover these six:
If you are confused by the differences between these tenses, that is okay! While some of the tenses may look redundant, they are used in different contexts. This will be demonstrated later.

Oneida Terms for Tenses

At this point in the program‘s lectures, more Oneida should be incorporated to create a more immersive classroom. Below shows the Oneida terms to describe the different tenses.

Attempts at literal terms

Below are the best attempts at "literal" terms for the tenses.
TenseTranslation
Habitual
tsiʔ nikatyélhaʔ
Definite (Past)
utu·kohte
Indefinite (Future)
teyotuhutsyóhu
Future
ʌskahawíhte
Perfective
yotukóhtu
Command
shehlo·líˍ

It is happening

TenseTranslationEnglish
Habitual
thó niya·wʌ́·seʔ
That is what happens
It's the way it happens
Definite
thó na·wʌ́neʔ
That happened
Indefinite
thó naya·wʌ́neʔ
That would happen
Future
thó nʌya·wʌ́neʔ
That will happen
Perfective
thó niyawʌ́·u
That has happened
Progressive
Stative
thó niyawʌʔuháti
That is happening now
Command
thó niʔya·wʌ́n
Let it happen

That is what I am doing

TenseTranslationEnglish
Habitual
Stative
thó nikatyélhaʔ
That is what I do
That is what I am doing now
Definite Past
thó nkátyeleʔ
That is what I did
Indefinite Future
thó nakátyeleʔ
That is what I would do
Definite Future
thó nʌkátyeleʔ
That is what I will do
Perfective
thó niwakatyelʌ́
That is what I have done
That is what I'm doing right now
Progressive
Stative
thó niwakatyelʌhátiʔ
That is what I am going along doing right now
Command
thó nahsátyel
Do that!

How Active Verbs Are Constructed

TensePrepronominalColoursEnding
Command
shehlo·líˍ
red
blue
purple
root
Habitual
tsiʔ nikatyélhaʔ
red
blue
purple
roothabitual ending
Definite
utu·kohte
waʔ
wa
we
red
blue
purple
rootpunctual ending
Indefinite
teyotuhutsyóhu
a
ae
red
blue
purple
rootpunctual ending
Future
ʌskahawíhte
ʌ
red
blue
purple
rootpunctual ending
Perfective
yotukóhtu
blue
purple
rootperfective ending
Examples of habitual, punctual, and perfective endings can be found on page 20 of the Oneida-English dictionary.

Active Verb Examples

Below is a table with each of the six tenses we‘re looking at, their negations, and descriptions as to how they‘re used.
TenseDescriptionWordNegation
Command
shehlo·líˍ
Used to tell someone to do something right now.
sekhú·ni̲ʔ
Cook!
Tákʌʔ ʌsekhuni
Don't cook!
Habitual
tsiʔ nikatyélhaʔ
Describes events that happen regularly, whether once an hour or once a year. There is an expectation that the event will occur again.
Describes "what people do" or "what they are."
Sometimes describes actions that are happening right now.
kekhu·níhe̲ʔ
I cook
Yáh teʔkekhu·níheʔ
I do not cook
Definite
utu·kohte
Describes a completed event (verbs that end in -ed in English)
Describes an event in which someone is en route or going to do something
waʔkekhu·ní̲·
I cooked
Yáh teʔwakekhu·ní·
I did not cook
Indefinite
teyotuhutsyóhu
Describes an event that might or could happen in the future
Describes an event that might or could have happened in the past
akekhu·ní̲·
I might cook
Yáh thakekhu·ní·
I will not cook
Future
ʌskahawíhte
Describes an event that likely will occur in the future
ʌkekhu·ní̲·
I will cook
Yáh thakekhu·ní·
I might not cook
Perfective
yotukóhtu
Describes one (or many) events that have been completed, either recently or long ago
Describes a change that has occurred
Describes an event that is happening right now
wakekhuní̲
I have cooked
Yáh teʔwakekhu·ní·
I have not cooked
There are two things to note here:
  1. The "Indefinite Future" and "Future" negations are the same, just like in previous modules
  2. The "Perfective" and "Definite" negations are the same, and use blue pronominals (the Perfective form)

Daily Activities

Paradigms for Select Active Verbs

This section covers paradigms for a select number of verbs from the previous section.

-lihwaʔslakwanswer, reply

This word has a C stem with a t/te prefix.

t-...-atahsawhbegin (to do something)

This word has an A stem with a t prefix.

-khunicook

This word has a CC stem.

ni-...-atyeldo (something)

This word has an A stem with a ni prefix.

-atkekskwget (raise) self up

This word has an A stem.

atusay (something)

This word is irregular, and its conjugations depend on context.

itasleep, go to

This word has an I stem.

te-...-hwishʌheyutired, get

This word has a C stem with a te prefix.

-yoʔtʌ-work

This word has a C stem.

Translation Exercises

1
Yáh teʔwakekhuní nuʔú·waʔ, yáh náhteʔ teʔkatyélha̲ʔ
2
Tá·t akenho·tú·, ʌhsatatewyʌnʌ·táneʔ kʌ́
4
Waʔtkatohtálhoʔ né· tshahutyaʔtóhale̲ʔ
5
Wahʌ́·luʔ kʌ́ tʌhya·túte̲ʔ
6
Waʔakyatslu·ní· né· ayukniyo·tʌ́· átste̲ʔ
7
Yáh tehakhlolí kánke tshahoyo·té̲·
8
Wahshakotiyaʔtakénhaʔ akutinhotu·kóˍ
9
Waʔakwatkáhthoʔ né· shakoyoʔokúha tsiʔ nahútyele̲
10
Yáh tehuwayaʔtakénhʌ ahatatlihunyʌ·ní
11
Thó naʔa·wʌ́neʔ tshaʔokʌ·nóle̲ʔ
13
Ahatisletóhaleʔ kaló· tsiʔ niyo·lé tshaʔokʌ·nóle̲ʔ
14
Satahúhsatat tsiʔ náhteʔ yu·tú·he̲
15
Knú·wehseʔ kʌs akatló·loke nʌ wataʔklókwas
1
We (you and I) should wake up and get ready before noon.
2
Do you ever get tired of taking a bath?
3
He says that she didn’t begin it.
4
They (females) won’t say when they studied.
5
It has snowed every day but it won’t happen tomorrow.
6
We (they & I) got tired but we didn’t sleep.
7
They can’t help you now, they’re taking a break.
8
She can’t cook now because she’s not up.
9
Why didn’t you open the door? Weren’t you dressed?
10
They didn’t do anything when they (Ms) woke up.
11
You didn’t ask me, you just told me.
12
The dog won’t eat when it rains.
13
Listen you two, I want you to get up right now.
14
We (all of you and I) should take a break when we get tired.
15
I would have tidied up, but I was too tired.