LIM:limitative case LMT:limitative case DV:direction voice PRN:pronominaliser SIM:similitude case EQU:equivalence case EQV:equivalence case INTENT:intention state INDIR:indirect statement mood HEARSAY:hearsay mood SUBJASS:subjective assessment mood OBJASS:objective assessment mood
This article uses both the Arabic script (official for the language) and Latin script for Uyghur words.
General characteristics
The typical word order in Uyghur is subject–object–verb, as in the sentence "men uyghurche oquymen", lit., "I Uyghur study" Compare this to English, where the sentence would be expressed with subject–verb–object order: "I study Uyghur".
Uyghur is an agglutinative language, meaning that potentially many suffixes (denoting person, number, case, mood, etc.) are usually all attached to one word stem. For example "to your house," the main word, house, occurs first, and the modifying elements are attached directly to the right and written all in one word:
ئۆيىڭىزگە
öy-ingiz-ge
home-2sg.POSS-DAT
ئۆيىڭىزگە
öy-ingiz-ge
home-2sg.POSS-DAT
"to your home"
ئىشلەۋاتقان
ishle-wat-qan
work-CONT-INDEF.PAST
ئىشلەۋاتقان
ishle-wat-qan
work-CONT-INDEF.PAST
"having worked"
Nouns are not distinguished for gender (e.g. male, female), unlike in such languages as French, Spanish and German. Nouns are usually pluralized (with the suffix +lAr) except when preceded by a numeral: compare "atlar" ("horses") and "ikki at" (two horses). Instead of using articles (like English "a", "the"), Uyghur uses demonstrative pronouns ("this", "that") and no marker or the numeral one (bir) to indicate definiteness and indefiniteness, respectively, "this cat/the cat" vs. بىر مۈشۈك(bir müshük) "a/one cat" or مۈشۈك(müshük) "cat/cats."
Uyghur verbs take, usually at least for tense (present, past) and person (I, you, s/he, they, etc.), for example
ئوقۇيمەن
oqu-y-men
read-PRES.FUT-1sg
ئوقۇيمەن
oqu-y-men
read-PRES.FUT-1sg
"I read/study."
Uyghur verbs can also take other suffixes to mark voice (causative, passive), aspect (continuous), mood (e.g. ability), as well as suffixes that change verbs into nouns—sometimes many all together:
ئوقۇۋاتقانىمدا
oqu-wat-qan-im-da
read-CONT-PCP.PST-POSS.1sg-LOC
ئوقۇۋاتقانىمدا
oqu-wat-qan-im-da
read-CONT-PCP.PST-POSS.1sg-LOC
"When I was studying"
Negation usually also appears as a verb suffix, e.g.
ئوقۇمايمەن
oqu-ma-y-men
read-NEG-PRES.FUT-1sg
ئوقۇمايمەن
oqu-ma-y-men
read-NEG-PRES.FUT-1sg
"I don't read."
Uyghur has vowel and consonant harmony, a system where vowels or consonants in a word come to match or become similar to each other, especially as suffixes and other elements are attached. Many but not all words and grammatical elements in Uyghur behave according to these harmonic principles. If a suffix is written with one or more capital letters (e.g. +DA, +lAr, +GA, etc.), these capital letters indicate that these sounds are harmonic, that is, variable: D= d/t, G= gh/q/g/k; K= k/q; A= a/e; I= i/u/ü or ø/i/u/ü.
Sound system
There are 32 basic sounds in Modern Uyghur.
Consonants
Uyghur has 24 consonants (listed here according to the Arabic-script alphabet): b, p, t, j, ch, x, d, r, z, zh, s, sh, gh, f, q, k, g, ng, l, m, n, x, h, w, y (and 25 consonants if the glottal stop ‘ is counted). Most are not pronounced much differently than their English counterparts (e.g. Uyghur j in baj "tax" is pronounced like j in judge; Uyghur ch in üch "three" is pronounced like ch in itch; Uyghur h in he’e "yes" is pronounced like h in hello), except that l has palatal or velar variants. A few sounds are not found in English: q gh and x. The voiceless uvular stop q [q] is pronounced like a back k, with the back of the tongue touching the soft palate, as in aq "white," Qeshqer "Kashgar." The sound gh [ʁ]~[ɣ] is typically a voiced fricative version of q, also pronounced at the very back of the mouth and sounds like French or German r, as in Roissy or Ruhr. (Near front vowels, gh is often pronounced more front, like French Rue or German Rübe.) Finally, the Uyghur voiceless velar or uvular fricative x [x]~[χ] is pronounced like ch in Scottish loch, or further back in the mouth, like a back version of German ach.
The four sounds k, g, q and gh are subject to consonant harmony: (1) within a stem (main word), they potentially determine its backness and (2) within a variable suffix, they conform to the backness and voicing of the preceding stem. Consonant harmony is discussed below.
The ژ zh [ʒ] (sounds like English garage), is only for foreign and onomatopoeic words like zhurnal ‘magazine, journal’ and pizh-pizh "sizzling." The letter ج j (normally pronounced [dʒ] as in baj ‘tax’) is in southern Xinjiang often pronounced [ʒ]. Initial y [j] can also be pronounced [ʒ] before i, e.g. yilan [ʒilan] ‘snake’.
In Uyghur words of Turkic origin, sh is rare, except as a suffix; similarly, since f was borrowed into Uyghur from Arabic and Persian, it is often replaced by p, especially in colloquial and rural usage: fakultët~pakultët ‘academic department’.
Vowels
Uyghur has eight vowels. Vowels are rounded (o, u, ü, ö) and unrounded (a, i, e, ë); this distinction is sometimes termed labial vs. non-labial; they are front (ü, ö, e, ë) or back (u, o, a). These distinctions are critical for harmonic purposes, since Uyghur words are subject to vowel harmony. The orthographic vowel i represents both a front [i] and a back [ɨ] and is not subject to vowel harmony.
Stress
Uyghur accent (stress or high pitch, which this article will for convenience call stress) is not well understood, yet some general remarks can be made to aid language learning. In Uyghur, stress is mostly determined by the length of syllables. This means that a syllable which is closed (i.e., ends in consonants [CVC or CVCC]) tends to attract stress, while a syllable which is open (i.e. ends in a vowel [CV]) does not. A rule of thumb is: stress the last syllable of the stem, e.g. ayagh "foot," Turpan'gha "to Turfan."
Words without closed syllables are likely to have the final syllable stressed.
Certain suffixes attract and repel stress.
Attract stress: -GAn, -Gu, (A)m, -(I)wat.
Repel stress (to the preceding vowel): -(I)wer.
Harmonic Rules
Word-internal harmony is relatively weak in Uyghur, but when suffixes are added to a word stem, certain suffix vowels and consonants harmonize with those of the stem. There are three variable vowels in Uyghur, A (a/e), I (i/u/ü), and U (u/ü). There are three harmonically variable consonant types: G (k/g/q/gh), K (k/q) and D (d/t). Uyghur's harmony system has three relevant components: voicing, backness and roundness harmony. Note that -AK will always be either -ek or -aq, and -IK can only be ik, iq, uq, or ük.
Archiphoneme table
Preceding
vowel
A
I
U
G
ö
e
ü
ü
k/g
ü
e
i
u
ë
i
a
q/gh
a
o
u
u
Remember that i represents both a front [i] and a back [ɨ], and is a neutral vowel and thus this can affect vowel harmony in suffixes. For instance:
ئىشىككە
ishik-ke
door-DAT
ئىشىككە
ishik-ke
door-DAT
"to the door"
Takes the front versions of archiphonemes G and A, as the word is solely made up of [i]s, but:
كاتىپقا
katip-qa
secretary-DAT
كاتىپقا
katip-qa
secretary-DAT
"to the secretary"
Takes the back versions, as the word is phonetically [kɑtɨpqɑ], with the /i/ turning to the back vowel [ɨ], due to the /ɑ/.
A-raising
When a stem ends in unstressed a or e (as part of the archiphoneme A), and it is followed by a consonant (i.e. suffixes), this a/e is usually raised to i. When a monosyllabic stem ends in a/e, and is followed by a consonant, its a/e is usually raised to ë. This is reflected in the orthography. Other vowels do not change.[1]
For example:
چوكا،
choka,
chopstick,
چوكىلار
choki-lar
chopsticks
چوكا، چوكىلار
choka, choki-lar
chopstick, chopsticks
Here the -a of /ˈtʃo.kɑ/ is raised to /i/ to make the plural, /ˈtʃo.ki.lɑr/. Here is an example of a monosyllabic stem changingː
ماڭ،
mang,
walk,
مېڭىۋاتىدۇ
mëng-iwat-idu
walk-CONT-3sg
ماڭ، مېڭىۋاتىدۇ
mang, mëng-iwat-idu
walk, walk-CONT-3sg
walk, s/he is walking
While the stem /mɑŋ/ is not an open syllable, as Uyghur syllable structure is onset-mandatory, when the stem takes the suffix -(I)wat- the /ŋ/ of the stem breaks off to form a syllable with the /i/ of the suffix, like soː /me.ŋi.wɑ.ti.du/ (here the [me] is not stressed). Where the a or e is stressed, the vowel does not raise, for instance with:
ئاۋاز،
awaz,
voice,
ئاۋازىم
awazim
voice-POSS.1sg
ئاۋاز، ئاۋازىم
awaz, awazim
voice, voice-POSS.1sg
voice, my voice
As the syllable is stressed, it does not raise: /ʔɑ.ˈwɑz/, /ʔɑ.ˈwɑ.zim/. Words like this with a stressed final syllable are known as strong nouns and add a y or r between their stem and first/second person personal suffixes. Monosyllabic words ending in a rounded verb always add y.
Names, unfamiliar place names, and non-nativised loan words do not change. Loan words are frequent sources of stressed open final syllables, such as the Arabic loan /dun.ˈjɑ/, from Arabic: دُنْيَا, romanized:dunyā.
Sound changes not reflected in writing
A-raising also takes place across word boundaries, but this is not reflected in writing, see:
لاتا
lata
cloth
خەج
xej
shoe
لاتا خەج
lata xej
cloth shoe
Which is pronounced /ˈlɑ.ti xɛdʒ/.
Some loan words ending in p and b change that p/b to w when a vowel-initial suffix is added to them. This is not reflected in any orthography other than Cyrillic.
The table below shows some other sound changes in words that are not reflected in writing.
Orthographic
Pronounced
Notes
-nb-
mb
-lm-
mm
-ln-
ll
-ts-
ss
-zs-
-ghq-
qq
when the dative -GA is attached to a stem ending in -gh it is orthographically written as -ghqA and pronounced as -qqa
-gh
q
only word-final
-q
x
only in some words
VkV
g
VqV
gh
ch(t/k)
sh
-b
p
only word-final
Vr(C/.)
/Vː/
this lengthens the preceding vowel
i(t/k)
/ɪ̥ʃ/(t/k)
ë in the initial syllable
i
o in a syllable before u
u
ö in a syllable before ü
ü
Pronouns
Personal pronouns
In Uyghur there is one set of personal pronouns used for the first- and third person, while there are three in the second person. The use of the three sets in the second person depends on the formality and politeness.[2]
The personal pronouns are inflected for number and case. Follow the links of each of the personal pronouns to see them inflected.
The second person personal pronoun mostly used among people is the polite سىز, siz, while the informal سەن, sen is used between very close friends or when parents are addressing their children. The informal سەن, sen is also used when the speaker has a higher social rank than the addressed person.
The respectful سىلى, sili is used for respectfully addressing elders, grandparents or other notable persons of a community. Royalty is also addressed using سىلى, sili and sometimes even customers in stores.[2]
The declension of the pronouns is outlined in the following chart, with some exhibiting irregularities (in bold):[3]
Uyghur has several demonstrative pronouns with some of them being used for emphasis or as intensifiers, while others have less specific uses. Common for all of the demonstrative pronouns is that their use depends on the distance between the speaker and the thing or person to which is referred.[4][5]
The demonstrative pronouns are inflected for number and case, but must take the genitive case suffix -ning first before other cases (other than in the genitive and accusative case). In the table below, the demonstrative pronouns can be seen, although only in the singular. Follow the links of each of the demonstrative pronouns to see them inflected.
The most common demonstrative pronouns are بۇ, bu, ئۇ, u and شۇ, shu, the first being translated as this and the remaining two as that. The first is used when referring to an object or person which is visible and close to the speaker, the second is used when referring to an object or person which is away from the speaker and the third is used when referring to a previously mentioned object or person which is not particular close to the speaker in an affirmative statement.
The two first-mentioned demonstrative persons each have an intensifiedderived form ending in ۋۇ, -wu, ماۋۇ, mawu and ئاۋۇ, awu, respectively. These are used when it is necessary to make it clear that the object or person the demonstrative pronoun is referring to really is the object or person which the speaker means. The two first-mentioned demonstrative persons both also have another derived form, ending in شۇ, -shu, مۇشۇ, mushu and ئاشۇ, ashu, respectively. These are often used for confirming something the speaker is already familiar with.[4]
The examples below illustrate the use of بۇ, bu and its derived forms.
بۇ
bu
قەلەم
qelem
بۇ قەلەم
bu qelem
"This pen"
ماۋۇ
mawu
قەلەم
qelem
ماۋۇ قەلەم
mawu qelem
"This pen (and not any other pen)"
مۇشۇ
mushu
قەلەم
qelem
مۇشۇ قەلەم
mushu qelem
"This pen (which you are familiar with)"
Nouns
Nouns in Uyghur have no grammatical gender or definite marking, although the number 'one' bir can be used to mark indefiniteness. Plurals are marked by -lAr, with the vowel following the rules of vowel harmony.[6] The plural is not used after numbers.
Cases
Uyghur has ten cases, all of which except the nominative are marked by suffixation after possible plural or possessive suffixes.[7][3] Case always comes after plurals and possessive suffixes. Note that the locative-qualitative, limitative, equivalence, and similitude cases are sometimes not considered to be cases.
Note that as the example word, كىتاب/kitab, has its final consonant devoiced to phonetically be /kiˈtɑp/, it uses the unvoiced variants of suffixes.
Nominative
The nominative indicates the subject; that which is predicated in the sentence. It can also indicate the target of address, and names for qualified objects. For example:
ئۇيغۇر
uyghur
Uyghur:NOM
ئوقۇغۇچى
oqughuchi
student
ئۇيغۇر ئوقۇغۇچى
uyghur oqughuchi
Uyghur:NOM student
a Ugyhur student
It can also function as a predicate, for example:
مەن
men
1sg
ئوقۇغۇچى
oqughuchi
student:NOM
مەن ئوقۇغۇچى
men oqughuchi
1sg student:NOM
I am a student
Genitive
The genitive indicates the thing that possesses, and is primarily a qualifier but can function as a predicate, for example:
بۇ
bu
that
لۇغەت
lughet
dictionary
ئەخمەتنىڭ
Exmet-ning
Akhmat-GEN
بۇ لۇغەت ئەخمەتنىڭ
bu lughet Exmet-ning
that dictionary Akhmat-GEN
that dictionary is Akhmat's
The genitive can also be pronominalised, allowing the noun it indicates as possessed to be dropped. The use of the suffix -ki after it for this is optional, unless the word it is qualifying is not in the nominative case. For example:
مېنىڭ
më-ning
1sg-GEN
لۇغەتىم
lughet-im
dictionary-POSS.1sg
ياخشى
yaxshi
good
ئەمەس،
emes,
is-not,
قاسىمنىڭ
qasim-ning
Kasim-GEN
ياخشى
yaxshi
good
مېنىڭ لۇغەتىم ياخشى ئەمەس، قاسىمنىڭ ياخشى
më-ning lughet-im yaxshi emes, qasim-ning yaxshi
1sg-GEN dictionary-POSS.1sg good is-not, Kasim-GEN good
My dictionary is no good, Kasim's is better
Not using -ki here is fine as Kasim's dictionary would also be in the nominative, but:
As here Tursun's article would also take the accusative case, -ki must be used. Some nouns in the nominative act like genitive nouns, and require the nouns they qualify to take a possessive suffix. These are known as nouns in the nature of the possessive case, and produce closely bound noun phrases that are usually used in the place of one word. Qualifiers (i.e. adjectives) that come before the phrases qualify the entire phrase, not just the head word. For example:
ئۇزۇن
uzun
long
تارىم
tarim
Tarim:GEN
دەرياسى
derya-si
river-POSS.3sg
ئۇزۇن تارىم دەرياسى
uzun tarim derya-si
long Tarim:GEN river-POSS.3sg
the long Tarim river (not "the Tarim's long river")
Dative
Dative nouns are usually subordinate to verbs or verbal phrases and act as adverbial modifiers. They can also be adjectival modifiers. For example, the dative case can indicate the target of an action (usually preceded by "to" in English):
بىز
biz
1pl
بېيجىڭغا
Bëyjing-gha
Beijing-DAT
كەلدۇق
kel-duq
come-PST.1pl
بىز بېيجىڭغا كەلدۇق
biz Bëyjing-gha kel-duq
1pl Beijing-DAT come-PST.1pl
we came to Beijing
It can also indicate:
The object of actions expressed by certain intransitive verbs
The subject of verbs in the causative voice formed from transitive verbs
The purpose of an action
The instrument or price of certain actions
Accusative
Accusative-case nouns are subordinate to transitive verbs and indicate the object of their action, for example:
بۇ
bu
this
ئاتنى
at-ni
horse-ACC
مەن
men
1sg
مىنىمەن
min-i-men
ride-PRES.FUT-1sg
بۇ ئاتنى مەن مىنىمەن
bu at-ni men min-i-men
this horse-ACC 1sg ride-PRES.FUT-1sg
I will ride this horse
Sometimes nouns in the nominative case are the subject of transitive verbs, these are known as nouns in the nature of the accusative case and generalise the nature of the object, making its relation with the verb closer, and creating an object-verb phrase used in place of a simple verb. For example:
كىنو
kino
film
كۆرمەك
kör-mek
watch-INF
كىنو كۆرمەك
kino kör-mek
film watch-INF
to watch films
Locative
These nouns function as qualifiers (for mostly verbs, but sometimes adjectives) and signify the action's temporal or physical location. They indicate:
The place where an action occurs.
The time at which an action occurs, or the time for which it lasts.
The circumstances or atmosphere in which an action occurs.
The instrument of an action.
ئۇلار
ular
3pl
ئايىروپىلاندا
ayiropilan-da
aeroplane-LOC
كەلدى
kel-di
come-PST.3pl
ئۇلار ئايىروپىلاندا كەلدى
ular ayiropilan-da kel-di
3pl aeroplane-LOC come-PST.3pl
They came by aeroplane.
When subordinate to an adjective, they indicate the place or field of an activity.
بۈگۈن
bügün
today
مەكتەپتە
mektep-te
school-LOC
كىنو
kino
film
يوق
yoq
is.NEG
بۈگۈن مەكتەپتە كىنو يوق
bügün mektep-te kino yoq
today school-LOC film is.NEG
There is no film at school today.
When used as a predicate, they indicate the location or source of the subject.
سېنىڭ
sëning
2sg.GEN
لۇغەتىڭ
lughet-ing
dictionary-POSS.2sg
ئەخمەتتە
Exmet-te
Akhmat-LOC
سېنىڭ لۇغەتىڭ ئەخمەتتە
sëning lughet-ing Exmet-te
2sg.GEN dictionary-POSS.2sg Akhmat-LOC
Akhmat has your dictionary.
Ablative
Ablative nouns are subordinate to verbs and sometimes adjectives and adverbs, and they mostly act as adverbial modifiers. It is usually associated with the pronoun "from" in English
When acting as an adverbial modifier, they can indicate:
The point of departure/separation of the subject/recipient, or the object that is passed through.
Things which are mentally distanced from the subject of an action.
The source of an action.
The starting point of a limit connected with an action.
The material/components of the subject/recipient.
A generality/group from which one or some are related to the action.
The field covered by the action.
The reason for the action (cause).
Ablative nouns subordinate to adjectives indicate unequal comparison. Some adjectives also sometimes require the ablative case for noun modifiers, for example:
ئۇلارنىڭ
ular-ning
3pl-GEN
ئۆيى
öy-i
house-POSS.3pl
شەھەردىن
sheher-din
town-ABL
يىراق
yiraq
far
ئۇلارنىڭ ئۆيى شەھەردىن يىراق
ular-ning öy-i sheher-din yiraq
3pl-GEN house-POSS.3pl town-ABL far
their house is far away from town
Locative-qualitative
These nouns function as qualifiers (for almost any part of speech) and signify the word's temporal or physical location. The difference between this and the locative case is that the qualifier is not specific, but general/universal. For example:
تۇرسۇندىكى
Tursun-diki
Tursun-LOC
كىتاب
kitab
book
تۇرسۇندىكى كىتاب
Tursun-diki kitab
Tursun-LOC book
a book which Tursun has (lit. a book in Tursun's possession, it may or may not be his)
When context is clear, it is possible to drop the noun that the locative-qualitative case noun is qualifying and use this non-dropped noun pronominally, which also takes the cases of the dropped noun.
بۇ
bu
this
دوسكا
doska
blackboard
بىزنىڭ
biz-ning
1pl-GEN
سىنىپتىكىدىن
sinip-tiki-din
classroom-LOC-ABL
بىر
bir
one
ھەسسە
hesse
times
چوڭ
chong
big
بۇ دوسكا بىزنىڭ سىنىپتىكىدىن بىر ھەسسە چوڭ
bu doska biz-ning sinip-tiki-din bir hesse chong
this blackboard 1pl-GEN classroom-LOC-ABL one times big
this blackboard is as big again as the one in our classroom
Limitative
These nouns are subordinate to verbs and function as adverbial modifiers, and sometimes as the predicate.
When they modify verbs, they indicate the final point reached as a limit of an action, for example:
مەن
men
1sg
بۇ
bu
this
قېتىم
qëtim
occasion-POSS.1sg
خوتەنگىچە
xoten-giche
Hotan-LIM
بارىمەن
bar-i-men
go-PRES.FUT-1sg
مەن بۇ قېتىم خوتەنگىچە بارىمەن
men bu qëtim xoten-giche bar-i-men
1sg this occasion-POSS.1sg Hotan-LIM go-PRES.FUT-1sg
this time I will go as far as Hotan
When a limitative case noun acts as a predicate, it indicates the final limit of the subject.
Similitude
Nouns in the similitude case can act as qualifiers or adverbial modifiers, in both cases they liken the quality/action to their base noun. For example:
ھاۋا
hawa
weather
ئوتتەك
ot-tek
fire-SIM
قىزىپ
qizip
hot
كەتتى
ketti
turn-PST.3sg
ھاۋا ئوتتەك قىزىپ كەتتى
hawa ot-tek qizip ketti
weather fire-SIM hot turn-PST.3sg
the weather became as hot as fire
Equivalence
Nouns in the equivalence case can act as qualifiers or adverbial modifiers, in both cases they liken the quality/action to their base noun, with respect to the level/amount/measurement. For example:
ئۇمۇ
umu
3sg-also
تۇرسۇنچىلىك
tursun-chilik
Tursun-EQV
ئوقۇغان
oqu-ghan
study-PERF.PRES
ئۇمۇ تۇرسۇنچىلىك ئوقۇغان
umu tursun-chilik oqu-ghan
3sg-also Tursun-EQV study-PERF.PRES
he's also studied to the same level as Tursun
Possessive Suffixes
Uyghur, like Uzbek, has possessive suffixes that indicate person.[3]
Possessor
number
Singular
Plural
1st
-م، -ىم، -ۇم، -ۈم -(I)m
-مىز، -ىمىز -(i)miz
2nd Informal
-ڭ، -ىڭ، -ۇڭ، -ۈڭ -(I)ng
-ڭلار، -ىڭلار، -ۇڭلار، -ۈڭلار -(I)nglar
2nd Polite
-ڭىز، -ىڭىز -(i)ngiz
n/a
2nd Respectful
-لىرى -liri
3rd
-سى، -ى -(s)i
Monosyllabic nouns ending in rounded vowels (i.e. su) will add a y before first and second person suffixes (i.e. suyum, suyingiz but susi).
Noun-formation affixes
Uyghur has a wide variety of affixes which form words from others. This section will go over noun-formation affixes.
Affixes which derive nouns from nouns
Suffix
Description
Example
Translation
-chi
Indicates those engaged in the action or occupation indicated by the noun.
tömür-chi
blacksmith
Indicates those who belong to a school of thought, organisation, etc. indicated by the noun.
marksizm-chi
Marxist
-dash
Indicates people who possess an identity or commonality with things indicated by the noun.
sinip-dash
schoolmate
-lIK
Indicates the occupation in which a noun indicating a person engaged in work is engaged in.
tömürchi-lik
blacksmithing
Indicates a place with many plants/substances if the noun indicates a plant/substance.
qarighay-lik
pine forest
Indicates a characteristic unique to a certain kind of person when attached to a person-indicating noun.
bali-liq
childishness
Indicates a thing useful for the thing expressed by the noun.
kün-lük
umbrella
Indicates a person who was born/grew up in a place, when attached to a place noun.
Qeshqer-lik
a Kashgarite
-chiliK
Indicates a relationship based on the concept expressed by the base noun.
shirik-chilik
partnership
-che
Indicates the language/script of a nationality when attached to a nationality noun.
Türk-che
Turkish (language)
Common diminutive.
kitab-che
booklet
-xana
Indicates places where the base noun is kept/are associated with the base noun.
kitab-xana
bookshop
-shunas
Indicates experts who carry out research on the base noun.
til-shunas
linguist
-zar
Indicates a place where many plants of the base noun type are grown.
gül-zar
flowerbed
-dan
Indicates vessels into which the base noun is put.
su-dan
water bottle
-name
Indicates letters/documents/books about the base noun, or matters concerning it.
jeng-name
war story
-iye
Indicates the territory inhabited by a nation.
Türk-iye
Turkey (country)
-istan
Indicates the territory inhabited by a nation, or a place where many of the base noun exist.
gül-istan
flowerbed or garden
-w/baz
Indicates a person devoted to the base noun.
qimar-waz
gambler
-xor
A person who eats/drink the base noun (potentially to excess).
chay-xor
tea addict
-kar
Experts who produce the base noun.
paxti-kar
cotton grower
One who assumes the object indicated by the base noun.
gunah-kar
sinner
The owner of the base noun.
telep-kar
demanding person
-dar
The person who possesses the base noun.
zëmin-dar
landlord
-pez
Person who cooks food expressed by the base noun.
samsi-pez
Samsa chef
-k/ger
Person whose job it is produce something from or engage in the base noun.
mis-ker
coppersmith
-kesh
Someone who is engaged in an activity connected with or bears the base noun.
mëhnet-kesh
labourer
-w/ben
Someone who looks after or manages the base noun.
derwazi-wen
doorkeeper
-purush
Someone who sells the base noun.
kitab-purush
bookseller
-xan
Someone who reads the base noun.
Dua-xan
prayer reader
-gah
The place of activity connected to the base noun.
jeng-gah
battlefield
hem-
A person who shares in the whole of the base noun.
hem-tawaq
fellow diner
-DUrUK
An article related to the base noun.
boyun-turuq
horse/ox yoke
-darchiliq
The state of people in a relationship expressed by the base noun.
qoshni-darchiliq
neighbourliness
-gerchilik
A characteristic specific to people indicated by the base noun.
adem-gerchilik
humaneness
-izm
A belief, way, or principle related to the base noun.
dëmokrat-izm
democracy
-chU/AK
Nouns that indicate a small thing related to the base noun.
yem-chük
fish bait.
Affixes which derive nouns from adjectives
Suffix
Description
Example
Translation
-lIK
Indicates the name of the quality indicated by the adjective.
sezgür-lük
sensitivity
-chiliK
indicates the quality + state/situation/universality indicated by the adjective.
qurghaq-chiliq
dryness
Affixes which derive nouns from verbs
Suffix
Description
Example
Translation
-GU/A
Indicates the means of the action expressed by the verb.
külke
smile/laughter
-GUchi
Indicates someone engaged in the action expressed by the verb.
yaz-guchi
writer
-(I)sh
Indicates the name of the action expressed by the verb.
ögin-ish
study
-mAK
Indicates the result/means of the action expressed by the verb.
tëpish-maq
riddle
-GUch
Indicates the means of the action expressed by the verb.
siz-guch
ruler, straight edge
-mA
Indicates the result/means of the action expressed by the verb.
qolyaz-ma
draft, manuscript
-(I)m
Indicates the result of the action expressed by the verb.
böl-üm
chapter, part
-G[i/ü]n
Indicates the result of the action expressed by the verb.
kel-kün
flood
-(A/U)K
Indicates the result/means/place of the action expressed by the verb.
sina-q
experiment/test
-(i/ü)n
Indicates the result of the action expressed by the verb.
yëgh-in
rainfall
-(I)ndi
Indicates the result of the action expressed by the verb.
yigh-indi
collection
-duq
Indicates the result of the action expressed by the verb.
qal-duq
dregs/remainder
-mIsh
Indicates the result/object of the action expressed by the verb.
öt-müsh
the past
-GEK
Indicates an object possessing a feature inclined towards the action of the verb.
chaq-qaq
nettke
-(i)nchA
Indicates the means of the action expressed by the verb.
sël-incha
cushion
-mchi
Indicates the subject of the action expressed by the verb.
bashla-mchi
guide, pioneer
-GUlUK
Indicates the abstract object of the action expressed by the verb.
kör-gülük
suffering
Adjectives
Adjectives in Uyghur can often be used as adverbial modifiers, and indicate the quality of an object or action.
Most adjectives can have their degree modified, and these are known as "gradable" adjectives. However, it is impossible to strengthen or weaken some adjectives (i.e. ئەركەك, erkek, 'male'), which are known as "non-gradable" adjectives.
Degree
There are a variety of ways to indicate degree when it comes to gradable adjectives.
Degree affixes
Name
Affix
Description
Example
Translation
Positive degree
none
The original form of the adjective, indicates the normal degree of the quality expressed by the adjective.
This is known as "the repeated form" and emphasises that the quality is unique to a large number of things of the same type, or that the action possessing the quality indicated by the adjective is repeated many times.
member-PL plan-ACC implement something-GEN new-REDUP remedy-means-PL-POSS.3sg over contemplate-CONT-PRES.3pl
"the members are considering many new ways of implementing the plan"
Nominalisation
Some adjectives can be directly turned into nouns, for example:
سوغۇق
soghuq
cold
چۈشكىچە
chüshkiche
noon-LIM
ئىشلارنى
ish-lar-ni
job-PL-ACC
تۈگىتىۋالايلى
tügi-t-iwal-ay-li
complete-DV.SBJ-IMP.2pl
سوغۇق چۈشكىچە ئىشلارنى تۈگىتىۋالايلى
soghuq chüshkiche ish-lar-ni tügi-t-iwal-ay-li
cold noon-LIM job-PL-ACC complete-DV.SBJ-IMP.2pl
"before the cold comes let's try and finish the jobs"
They can also function as nouns when the noun is dropped, indicating objects with the quality they have.
Adjective-formation suffixes
Affixes that derive adjectives from nouns
Suffix
Description
Example
Translation
-lIK
Implies the existence/abundance of the base noun.
su-luq
juicy, watered
Indicates a characteristic specific to the base noun.
marksizm-liq
Marxist
Indicates a characteristic related to the time expressed by a time noun.
etigen-lik (uyqu)
midday (nap)
Indicates a characteristic giving rise to the base noun.
qayghu-luq (jewer)
sad (news)
Indicates the notion of "at the level of the district/region expressed by the noun"
ölki-lik (hökümet)
provincial (government)
Indicates a special feature characterised by riding on the base noun (animal/vehicle)
at-liq
on horseback
-siz
Implies a lack of/extremely small amount of the base noun.
su-siz
dry
-chan
Indicates a characteristic that tends towards an action related to the base noun.
söz-chan
talkative
Implies that the base noun (if clothing) is being worn.
könglek-chan
in a shirt
-chi
Indicates a characteristic that tends towards the base noun.
chataq-chi
trouble-making
-chil
Indicates a characteristic that tends towards the base noun.
inqilab-chil
pro-revolutionary
-siman
Indicates a similarity to the base noun.
adem-siman
humanoid
-iy/wi
Indicates a trait characterised by the base noun.
din-iy
religious
-peres
Indicates the characteristic of pursuing or worshipping the base noun.
emel-peres
power-hungry
-perwer
Indicates the characteristic of loving the base noun.
weten-perwer
patriotic
bi-
Implies the absence of the base noun.
bi-haya
shameless
na-
Implies the absence of the base noun.
na-ümid
hopeless
bet-
Indicates poor quality/vulgar according to the base noun.
bet-tem
tasteless
Affixes that derive adjectives from verbs and adverbs
Suffix
Description
Example
Translation
-(I)K
Implies that the quality has been produced as a result of the verb.
sun-uq
broken
-mA
Implies that the quality has been produced as a result of the verb or is appropriate to its action.
pükli-me
folding
-GEK
Indicates a characteristic tending towards the action of the verb.
urush-qaq
combative
-chAK
Indicates a characteristic tending towards the action of the verb.
maxtan-chaq
boastful
-(A)ngGU
Indicates a characteristic tending towards the action of the verb.
chëchil-ang'ghu
disorderly
-GUr
Indicates a characteristic tending towards the action of the verb.
uch-qur
fast
-lIK
Indicates a characteristic applicable or related to the action of the verb.
Only attached to verbal nouns ending in -sh
yë-yish-lik
delicious
-GIn
Indicates a characteristic that has/will carry out the action of the verb.
tut-qun
arrested
-Ki
When used with adverbs of time or position, this implies the time or position of the adverb.
bügün-ki
today's
Copulas
Like most Turkic languages, copulas are important to verbs, and some are words that have become fixed in a single form ("incomplete copulas", some of which are suffixes), although "complete copulas", which are entirely separate words, do exist.
Null copula
In the present tense, it is not essential to use a copula, for example:
بۇ
bu
this
كىتاب
kitab
book
بۇ كىتاب
bu kitab
this book
"This is a book."
Mood-tense copulas
Uyghur mood-tense copulas
Mood
Direct judgement
Indirect judgement
Hearsay
Subjective assessment
Objective assessment
Tense
Present
Past
Present/Past
Present
Past
Present
Past
Present/Past
1sg
-men
idim
ikenmen
-dekmen
ikenmishmen
-durmen
bolghiydim
bolsam kërek
1pl
-miz
iduq
ikenmiz
-dekmiz
ikenmishmiz
-durmiz
bolghiyduq
bolsaq kërek
2sg informal
-sen
iding
ikensen
-deksen
ikenmishsen
-dursen
bolghiyding
bolsang kërek
2sg polite
-siz
idingiz
ikensiz
-deksiz
ikenmishsiz
-dursiz
bolghiydingiz
bolsingiz kërek
2sg respectful
-la
idile
ikenla
-dekla
ikenmishla
-durla
bolghiydile
bolsila kërek
2pl
-siler
idinglar
ikensiler
-deksiler
ikenmishsiler
-dursiler
bolghiydinglar
bolsanglar kërek
3sg/pl
-Dur
idi
iken
-deng
ikenmish
-dur
bolghiydi
bolsa kërek
These copulas can differ between regions, the forms given in the table are those used in Northern Xinjiang.
Negative judgement copula
The negative copula, emes, does not inflect for person or tense. For example:
بۇ
bu
this
كىتاب
kitab
book
ئەمەس
emes
NEG
بۇ كىتاب ئەمەس
bu kitab emes
this book NEG
"This is not a book."
Verbs
Verbs in Uyghur inflect in a variety of ways, such as for tense, aspect, and mood.[3]
Infinitives
There are two infinitival suffixes in Uyghur, -(I)sh and -mAK. -(I)sh is used in most situations where the infinitive and gerund is used in English, primarily when discussing an action as a noun, as such -(I)sh is often accompanied by the accusative -ni. For example:
بىز
biz
1pl
ئۇيغۇرچە
Uyghurche
Uyghur
ئۆگىنىشنى
ögin-ish-ni
study-INF-ACC
ياخشى
yaxshi
good
كۆرىمىز
kör-i-miz
look-PRES.FUT-1pl
بىز ئۇيغۇرچە ئۆگىنىشنى ياخشى كۆرىمىز
biz Uyghurche ögin-ish-ni yaxshi kör-i-miz
1pl Uyghur study-INF-ACC good look-PRES.FUT-1pl
"We like to study Uyghur"
ئوقۇش
oq-ush
read-INF
تەس
tes
difficult
ئەمەس
emes
is-NEG
ئوقۇش تەس ئەمەس
oq-ush tes emes
read-INF difficult is-NEG
"reading is not difficult" (lit. to read is not difficult)
Person
While some tenses inflect for person, some such as the future-present tense simply go between the stem and the following personal suffixes.
Uyghur verb personal suffixes
Person
Singular
Plural
1st
-men
-miz
2nd Informal
-sen
-siler
2nd Polite
-siz
-la
3rd
-du
These are by far the most common suffixes, and are known as "type 1" suffixes. The possessive markers are also used with some tenses, and in this context are known as "type 2".
Uyghur verb personal suffixes, -di variant
Person
Singular
Plural
1st
-DIm
-Duq
2nd Informal
-DIng
-DInglar
2nd Polite
-Dingiz
-Dila
3rd
-Di
State-Tense
Tömür describes Uyghur as having four states and three tenses, with all of the states being able to take past and present tenses, thus producing nine state-tenses for verbs. Some of these have multiple variants.
The archiphoneme Y here is y after vowels, i after consonants, and yi if the verb is "yu". The archiphoneme K is much like G but is always voiceless.
↑ This is the perfect participial form of the verb (GAn) + the present tense direct judgement copula. The addition of the copula here can be omitted if the subject has not been dropped from the sentence.
↑ This is the perfect participial form of the verb (GAn) + the past tense direct judgement copula.
↑ This is At + the past tense of the direct judgement copula
↑ This is Ar + the past tense of the direct judgement copula
↑ This is the -mAK gerund form of the verb + the locative case marker DA + the present tense of the direct judgement copula. Note that the A is raised to i. The (I)wat infix + present imperfect forms can also be used here.
↑ This is the -mAK gerund form of the verb + the locative case marker DA + the past tense of the direct judgement copula. Note that the A is raised to i. The (I)wat infix + simple past can also be used here.
↑ This is the -mAKchi verb of intention form of the verb + the present tense of the direct judgement copula. The copula may be dropped when the subject is explicit.
↑ This is the -mAKchi verb of intention form of the verb + the past tense of the direct judgement copula. The two "i"s are condensed into one.
Simple past tense
The simple past tense always indicates that the action or state expressed by the verb took place before the time of speaking, no matter the mood of the verb.
ئەخمەت
Exmet
Akhmat
ماقالە
maqale
article
يازدى
yaz-di
write-PST.3sg
ئەخمەت ماقالە يازدى
Exmet maqale yaz-di
Akhmat article write-PST.3sg
"Akhmat wrote an article"
It can also be used in some special senses to indicate that the action will take place immediately, show an absolute determination to carry out the action, or indicate the sense of hypothesis.
مەن
men
1sg
ماڭدىم
mang-dim
walk-PST.1sg
مەن ماڭدىم
men mang-dim
1sg walk-PST.1sg
"I'm leaving (right now)" lit. I've left
Present perfect tense
The present perfect tense indicates the current existence of the state which the action has brought about. It differs from the simple past tense in requiring the action to be completed to a degree that it has changed the state of the object.
بۇ
Bu
this
ماقالىنى
maqali-ni
essay-ACC
ئەخمەت
Exmet
Akhmat
يازغان
yaz-ghan
write-PERF.3sg
بۇ ماقالىنى ئەخمەت يازغان
Bu maqali-ni Exmet yaz-ghan
this essay-ACC Akhmat write-PERF.3sg
"Akhmat has written this essay"
Past perfect tense
The past perfect tense indicates the existence of the state which the action has brought about before another related matter, or at a specific point in the past.
خەت
xet
letter
يازغانىدىم
yaz-ghanidim
write-PERF.PST.1sg
ئۇزاق
uzaq
not
ئۆتمەي
ötmey
long
جاۋاپ
jawap
reply
كەلدى
kel-di
arrive-PST.3sg
خەت يازغانىدىم ئۇزاق ئۆتمەي جاۋاپ كەلدى
xet yaz-ghanidim uzaq ötmey jawap kel-di
letter write-PERF.PST.1sg not long reply arrive-PST.3sg
"the reply came not long after I had written the letter"
Present imperfect tense
The present imperfect tense indicates the present existence the state of an action that regularly/always occurs, or will occur later. This includes actions such as:
Actions that always happen according to objective laws and logic
Actions that express temperament/habits
Actions which express character, special skills, etc
Actions which indicate a job or daily activity
Actions which always happen according to rule
Actions that definitely will happen according to logic, or have been decided will happen.
Actions which indicate determination or which the speaker considers will happen.
كۈن
kün
sun
شەرقتىن
sherq-tin
east-ABL
چىقىدۇ
chiq-idu
rise-IMPERF.3sg
كۈن شەرقتىن چىقىدۇ
kün sherq-tin chiq-idu
sun east-ABL rise-IMPERF.3sg
"The sun rises from the east"
Past imperfect tense
The present imperfect tense indicates the existence the state of an action that regularly/always occurs, or will occur later, at some point in the past or before a related matter. This includes actions such as:
An action/matter that happened continuously in the past, i.e. "used to teach"
An intention, plan, or agreement about carrying out an action before a certain matter.
A conjecture about an action that has not taken place, or will definitely not take place.
When a writer is talking about things that were happening before or at the time of the event.
مەن
men
1sg
ئۈرۈمچىگە
Ürümchi-ge
Urumqi-DAT
باراتتىم
bar-attim
go-IMPERF.PST.1sg
مەن ئۈرۈمچىگە باراتتىم
men Ürümchi-ge bar-attim
1sg Urumqi-DAT go-IMPERF.PST.1sg
"I had planned to go to Urumqi" (note that this is an example of the second variety)
Present continuous tense
The present continuous tense indicates the present existence of a continuously ongoing or fixed state of an action.
مەن
men
1sg
ماقالە
maqale
essay
يازماقتىمەن
yaz-maqtimen
write-CONT.1sg
مەن ماقالە يازماقتىمەن
men maqale yaz-maqtimen
1sg essay write-CONT.1sg
"I am writing an essay"
Past continuous tense
The present continuous tense indicates the existence of a continuously ongoing or fixed state of an action at a previous time or before a certain matter.
مەن
men
1sg
ماقالە
maqale
essay
يازماقتا
yaz-maqta
write-CONT
ئىدىم
idim
PST.1sg
مەن ماقالە يازماقتا ئىدىم
men maqale yaz-maqta idim
1sg essay write-CONT PST.1sg
"I was writing an essay"
Present intention tense
The present intention tense indicates the present existence of an action that has been intended or agreed upon.
ئۇ
u
3sg
سىزگە
siz-ge
2sg-DAT
بىرنەرسە
birnerse
something
بەرمەكچى
ber-mekchi
give-INTENT.3sg
ئۇ سىزگە بىرنەرسە بەرمەكچى
u siz-ge birnerse ber-mekchi
3sg 2sg-DAT something give-INTENT.3sg
"He wants to give you something"
Past intention tense
The present intention tense indicates the existence of an action that has been intended or agreed upon, before a certain matter.
مەن
men
1sg
ئۈرۈمچىگە
Ürümchi-ge
Urumqi-DAT
بارماقچىدىم
bar-maqchidim
go-INTENT.PST.1sg
مەن ئۈرۈمچىگە بارماقچىدىم
men Ürümchi-ge bar-maqchidim
1sg Urumqi-DAT go-INTENT.PST.1sg
"I had planned to go to Urumqi"
Mood
These verb endings can differ between regions, the forms given in the table are those used in Kashgar.
Direct statement mood
The direct statement mood indicates that the subject matter is something the speaker knows first-hand. It is the most common mood.
Indirect statement mood
The indirect statement mood indicates that the subject matter is something the speaker knows indirectly (has learned of recently from facts/information given by others). Most often translated with the English word "apparently".
بۇ
bu
this
بىنالار
bina-lar
building-PL
1950-يىلى
1950-yili
1950-year
سېلىنغانىكەن
sëlin-ghaniken
built-INDIR.PERF.PST.3sg
بۇ بىنالار 1950-يىلى سېلىنغانىكەن
bu bina-lar 1950-yili sëlin-ghaniken
this building-PL 1950-year built-INDIR.PERF.PST.3sg
↑ This can also represent the perfect present tense, and is the form used mostly in literature and films for both.
Hearsay mood
The hearsay mood indicates that the subject matter is something the speaker has heard of from others. Mostly translated with "they say that", "SUBJ has heard that", or "supposedly".
بۇ
bu
this
ماقالىنى
maqali-ni
letter-ACC
ئەخمەت
Exmet
Akhmat
يېزىپتۇدەك
yëz-iptudek
write-HEARSAY.PST.3sg
بۇ ماقالىنى ئەخمەت يېزىپتۇدەك
bu maqali-ni Exmet yëz-iptudek
this letter-ACC Akhmat write-HEARSAY.PST.3sg
"they say Akhmat wrote this letter"
It can also be used for:
Describing dreams
Talking in a sarcastic manner
Uyghur state-tense suffixes (hearsay mood)
State
n/a
Perfect
Imperfect
Continuous
Intention
Tense
Simple Past
Present
Past
Present
Past
Present
Past
Present
Past
Construction
-Iptimish+type 1
-Iptudek+type 1
-GAnmish+type 1
-GAnikenmish+type 1
-GUdek+type 1
-Ydikenmish+type 1
-(I)watarmish+type 1
-(I)watidikenmish+type 1
-mAKchidek+type 1
-mAKchiken+type 1+mish
1sg
-Iptimishmen
-Iptudekmen
-GAnmishmen
-GAnikenmishmen
-GUdekmen
-Ydikenmishmen
-(I)watarmishmen
-(I)watidikenmishmen
-mAKchidekmen
-mAKchikenmenmish
1pl
-Iptimishmiz
-Iptudekmiz
-GAnmishmiz
-GAnikenmishmiz
-GUdekmiz
-Ydikenmishmiz
-(I)watarmishmiz
-(I)watidikenmishmiz
-mAKchidekmiz
-mAKchikenmizmish
2sg informal
-Iptimishsen
-Iptudeksen
-GAnmishsen
-GAnikenmishsen
-GUdeksen
-Ydikenmishsen
-(I)watarmishsen
-(I)watidikenmishsen
-mAKchideksen
-mAKchikensenmish
2sg polite
-Iptimishsiz
-Iptudeksiz
-GAnmishsiz
-GAnikenmishsiz
-GUdeksiz
-Ydikenmishsiz
-(I)watarmishsiz
-(I)watidikenmishsiz
-mAKchideksiz
-mAKchikensizmish
2pl informal
-Iptimishsiler
-Iptudeksiler
-GAnmishsiler
-GAnikenmishsiler
-GUdeksiler
-Ydikenmishsiler
-(I)watarmishsiler
-(I)watidikenmishsiler
-mAKchideksiler
-mAKchikensilermish
2pl polite
-Iptimishla
-Iptudekla
-GAnmishla
-GAnikenmishla
-GUdekla
-Ydikenmishla
-(I)watarmishla
-(I)watidikenmishla
-mAKchidekla
-mAKchikenlamish
3sg/3pl
-Iptimish
-Iptudek
-GAnmish
-GAnikenmish
-GUdek
-Ydikenmish
-(I)watarmish
-(I)watidikenmish
-mAKchideng
-mAKchikenmish
Subjective assessment mood
The subjective assessment mood indicates that the subject matter is something that has been assessed in a subjective manner. Usually translated with "think", "guess", or "believe".
↑ The personal suffix here can be left out if the subject has not been dropped from the sentence.
Objective assessment mood
The objective assessment mood indicates that the subject matter is something that has been assessed according to certain facts, and it is usually translated with "looks as", "seems", "must have", etc. It does not inflect for tense, only for state.
The imperative mood, and all following moods, do not inflect based on state-tense.
The objective assessment mood indicates that the subject matter of the sentence is spoken in a matter that denotes:
Requesting
Instructing/ordering
Complying
Appealing
Wishing
سىز
siz
2sg
بېرىڭ
bër-ing
go-IMP.2sg
سىز بېرىڭ
siz bër-ing
2sg go-IMP.2sg
"you can go"
It may also indicate that the listener is being requested to wait until the subject matter has finished/ceased. The suffix -Gin can also be attached to the end of the verb to give an affectionate mood to the command/request.
Uyghur imperative mood suffixes
1sg
-(A)y
1pl
-(A)yli
2sg informal
∅
2sg polite
-(I)ng
2pl informal
-(I)nglar
2pl polite
-(I)shsilA
3sg/3pl
-sun
Hypothesis-objection (conditional) mood
The hypothesis-objection mood can indicate either a hypothetical mood to the subject matter of the sentence, like below:
تىرىشساڭ،
tirish-sang,
strive-COND.2sg,
ئالغا
algha
progress
باسىسەن
bas-isen
make-IMPERF.PRES.2sg
تىرىشساڭ، ئالغا باسىسەن
tirish-sang, algha bas-isen
strive-COND.2sg, progress make-IMPERF.PRES.2sg
"if you try hard, you will make progress"
or it can indicate that the subject matter is spoken in opposition to another, as below:
بارساق
bar-saq,
go-COND.1pl,
ئۆيىدە
öyi-de
home-LOC
يوق
yoq
NEG
ئىكەن
iken
INDIR.3sg
بارساق ئۆيىدە يوق ئىكەن
bar-saq, öyi-de yoq iken
go-COND.1pl, home-LOC NEG INDIR.3sg
"we went, but it seemed he wasn't at home"
Uyghur conditional mood suffixes
1sg
-sAm
1pl
-sAK
2sg informal
-sAng
2sg polite
-singiz
2pl informal
-sAnglar
2pl polite
-(I)shsilA
3sg/3pl
-sA
Hope-polite request mood
This is formed by attaching the -iken auxiliary to the verb's hypothesis-objection mood form. The auxiliary may sometimes be omitted.
It indicates that the subject matter of the sentence is spoken in the manner of a petition, desire, or polite request.
ماڭا
manga
1sg-DAT
ئىككى
ikki
two
كۈنلۈك
künlük
day
رۇخسەت
ruxset
permission
بېرىلسىكەن
bëril-siken
give-HOPE.3sg
ماڭا ئىككى كۈنلۈك رۇخسەت بېرىلسىكەن
manga ikki künlük ruxset bëril-siken
1sg-DAT two day permission give-HOPE.3sg
"please could I be given two days' leave"
Uyghur hope-polite request mood suffixes
1sg
-sAmiken
1pl
-sAKiken
2sg informal
-sAngiken
2sg polite
-singiziken
2pl informal
-sAnglariken
2pl polite
-(I)shsiliken
3sg/3pl
-siken
Wish mood
This is formed by attaching the past tense direct judgement copula to the verb's hypothesis-objection mood form. The copula may sometimes be omitted.
1sg
-sAmidim
1pl
-sAKiduq
2sg informal
-sAngiding
2sg polite
-singizidingiz
2pl informal
-sAnglaridile
2pl polite
-(I)shsilAidinglar
3sg/3pl
-sAidi
Regret mood
1sg
-sAmchu
-sAm boptiken
-sAm bolghaniken
1pl
-sAKchu
-sAK boptiken
-sAK bolghaniken
2sg informal
-sAngchu
-sAng boptiken
-sAng bolghaniken
2sg polite
-singizchu
-singiz boptiken
-singiz bolghaniken
2pl informal
-sAnglarchu
-sAnglar boptiken
-sAnglar bolghaniken
2pl polite
-(I)shsilAchu
-(I)shsilA boptiken
-(I)shsilA bolghaniken
3sg/3pl
-sAchu
-sA boptiken
-sA bolghaniken
Entreaty mood
1sg
-(A)ychu
1pl
-(A)ylichu
2sg informal
-chu
2sg polite
-(I)ngchu
2pl informal
-(I)nglarchu
2pl polite
-(I)shsilAchu
3sg/3pl
-sunchu
Anxiety mood
The underlying structure of this is -ma+GAy+past tense direct judgement copula, but both a's are raised to i.
1sg
-miGiydim
1pl
-miGiyduq
2sg informal
-miGiyding
2sg polite
-miGiydingiz
2pl informal
-miGiydinglar
2pl polite
-miGiydila
3sg/3pl
-miGiydi
Necessity mood
1sg
-sAm bolidu
1pl
-sAK bolidu
2sg informal
-sAng bolidu
2sg polite
-singiz bolidu
2pl informal
-sAnglar bolidu
2pl polite
-(I)shsilA bolidu
3sg/3pl
-sA bolidu
Aspect
There are a variety of ways to indicate aspect with respect to verbs in Uyghur, including the use of infixes and auxiliary verbs.
Auxiliary Verbs and the -(I)p converb
The addition of the converb suffix -(I)p to the main verb, then followed by an auxiliary inflected verb, can indicate aspect, in a form known as the aspectual complement. Auxiliary verbs can also be used to indicate direction with verbs like bar-, kel-, ket-, (to go, to come, to leave) in a form known as the directional complement. For example:
مەن
men
1sg
سىلەرنى
siler-ni
2pl-ACC
ساقلاپ
saqla-p
wait-CVB
تۇرىمەن
tur-i-men
continue-PRES.FUT-1sg
مەن سىلەرنى ساقلاپ تۇرىمەن
men siler-ni saqla-p tur-i-men
1sg 2pl-ACC wait-CVB continue-PRES.FUT-1sg
"I will keep waiting for you."
Here the main verb is saqla- (to wait), with tur- being the auxiliary (meaning to continue; keep on, in its auxiliary form). The negative form of -(I)p is -mAy, but the suffix -mAstin can also be used, although it is considerably more informal and limited to the past tense.[1] Example:
ئۇ
u
3sg
مېنى
mëni
1sg.ACC
ساقلىماي
saqli-may
wait-CVB.NEG
كەتتى
ket-ti
leave-PRES.PST-3sg
ئۇ مېنى ساقلىماي كەتتى
u mëni saqli-may ket-ti
3sg 1sg.ACC wait-CVB.NEG leave-PRES.PST-3sg
"He left without waiting for me"
-(I)p, as a converb suffix, can be used in many other ways, such as to link verbs or even entire clauses and sentences. When this is done only the final verb is inflected for person and tense. For example:
Verbs themselves can be word stems unto themselves, or be formed through compounding or verb-derivation suffixes.
Root Verbs
Some examples of root verbs include:
ماڭ
mang
ماڭ
mang
"to walk"
كۈل
kül
كۈل
kül
"to laugh"
They cannot be broken down into any further morphemes.
Derived Verbs
A variety of verb-formation suffixes can be attached to various words (ranging from nouns and adjectives to other verbs) to form verbs. Many of these suffixes use harmonic rules/archiphonemes earlier described.
Suffix
Attached to
Description
Example
Translation
-lA
certain nouns
Indicates the sense of causing/having an object turn into/take on qualities possessed by the base noun.
There are many other highly unproductive suffixes without many examples.
Compound Verbs
These are verbs made up of two words that have merged into one inseparable word, phonetically and semantically, and express a singular lexical meaning. For example:
قارشى
qarshi
ئال
al
قارشى ئال
qarshi al
"to welcome"
Verbal substantives
Participles
There are three groups of participles.
Formation of Uyghur participles
formation
notes
Perfect participle
-GAn
Continuous participle
-(I)watqan
-(I)p AUX-GAn
Auxiliary verbs being yat, tur, oltur, and yür
-GAn
Only with the verbs yat, tur, oltur, and yür
Imperfect participle
-Ydighan
-(A)r
-mAs
negative form
The perfect participle
The Perfect Participle displays the action expressed by itself as a quality that has come into existence (i.e. has been completed).
كەلگەن
kel-gen
arrive-PCP.PST
مېھمان
mëhman
guest
كەلگەن مېھمان
kel-gen mëhman
arrive-PCP.PST guest
"a guest who has arrived"
The continuous participle
The Continuous Participle displays as a quality the continuous state or action expressed by itself.
يازىلىۋاتقان
yazil-iwatqan
write-PCP.CONT
خەت
xet
letter
يازىلىۋاتقان خەت
yazil-iwatqan xet
write-PCP.CONT letter
"a letter which is being written"
The imperfect participle
The Imperfect Participle displays the action expressed by itself as a quality which is habitually expressed or will be expressed later, i.e. which has not been completed.
يازالمايدىغان
yazil-ma-ydighan
write-NEG-PCP.IMP
خەت
xet
letter
يازالمايدىغان خەت
yazil-ma-ydighan xet
write-NEG-PCP.IMP letter
"a letter which cannot be written"
Gerunds
There are seven types of gerund (also called verbal nouns).
Formation of Uyghur gerunds
formation
notes
-sh gerund
-(I)sh
-maq gerund
-mAK
-ghu gerund
-GU
perfect gerund
-GAn-POSS
POSS indicating a possessive suffix
-GAnliK
continuous gerund
-continuous participle-POSS
-continuous participle-liK
imperfect gerund
-imperfect participle-POSS
-imperfect participle-liK
agent gerund
-GUchi
The -sh gerund
The -sh gerund expresses as an obiect an action that is neutral with respect to state. It functions as a noun in the sentence.
ئۇ
u
he
ئەتىگەندە
etigen-de
morning-DAT
گىمناستىكا
gimnastika
gymnastics
ئويناشنى
oyna-sh-ni
do-GER-ACC
ياخشى
yaxshi
good
كۆرىدۇ
kör-idu
see-IMPERF.3sg
ئۇ ئەتىگەندە گىمناستىكا ئويناشنى ياخشى كۆرىدۇ
u etigen-de gimnastika oyna-sh-ni yaxshi kör-idu
he morning-DAT gymnastics do-GER-ACC good see-IMPERF.3sg
"he likes to do gymnastics in the morning"
There are also many special cases this gerund can be used in.
When used as the subject of a sentence that has its predicate expressed by kërek, lazim, and shert, it indicates the requirement for the action expressed by the gerund to be carried out as well as possible.
When used as the subject of a sentence that has its predicate expressed by mumkin it indicates an estimation about the occurrence of the action.
When used in the dative and combined with the verb toghra kelmek it indicates the need for the action to be carried out.
When used in the dative or combined with the postposition bilen it functions as an adverbial of time, and indicates an action coming into act immediately/soon after the gerund.
When combined with bilen it can also indicate an action performed as a means of carrying out another action.
When combined with bilen qalmay it indicates that the subject is not confined solely to the action indicated by the gerund, but also carries out another action.
When used in the dative (independently) it can indicate an adverbial modifier of direction for some verbs, or a modifier of permission with the verb bol.
When in the ablative case as a modifier for the word meqset it indicates an action without implication.
When combined with the posposition üchün it functions as an adverbial modifier of purpose with any verb.
When in the accusative and in front of a simple past/imperfect present form of the same verb, it turns it into the predicate of a subordinate non-impeding objection clause. (i.e. bërishni baridu - despite my having gone)
When in the plural form it basically indicates that the action (i) happens in many places or (ii) is repeated on many occasions. or (iii) possesses a representative character.
Adverbials
There are seven types of adverbial.
formation
notes
Limitation and contrast
-GUche
Purpose and elapsed time
-Gili
Causative adverbial
-GAchA
Concurrence adverbial
-GAch
Extension/prolongation
-GAnsëri
Associative adverbial 1
-A/y
Associative adverbial 2
-(I)p
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