Hachijō grammar

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This article contains many translations of and references to Japanese grammatical forms and Japanese grammar-related vocabulary.

The Hachijō language shares much of its grammar with its sister language of Japanese—having both descended from varieties of Old Japanese—as well as with its more distant relatives in the Ryukyuan language family.^[1] However, Hachijō grammar includes a substantial number of distinguishing features from modern Standard Japanese, both innovative and archaic.

Hachijō is head-final, left-branching, topic-prominent, often omits nouns that can be understood from context, and has default subject–object–verb word order. Nouns do not exhibit grammatical gender, nor do they usually indicate grammatical number.

Pronouns and demonstratives[edit]

Like Japanese, Hachijō distinguishes first and second person pronouns, and has proximal, mesial, distal, and interrogative demonstratives. Hachijō uses demonstrative pronouns in place of third-person pronouns.

Pronouns[edit]

The pronominal system of Hachijō has been partly inherited from Old Japanese and partly borrowed from Modern Japanese:^[2]

Personal Pronouns

	Singular	Plural[a]
1st Person[b]	ware[c]	warera[c]
	are[c]	arera[c]
2nd Person	unu	unura ~ una ~ unara
	omee	omeera
	omi	omira
	omaĭ	omaĭra
	nare[c]	narera[c]
Interrogative: "who"	dare[c]	darera[c]
Interrogative: "what"	ani

The pronouns ware, are, unu, and dare often use irregular nominative/genitive forms with ga: waga, aga, uNga, and daga. The form uNga [uŋ.ɡa] can also be pronounced NNga [ŋ̍ː.ɡa].

Hachijō has a variety of nuances among many of its personal pronouns:

First-person pronouns[edit]

Unlike Japanese, both ware and are (and their variants) are considered ordinary and show no particular variations with regard to politeness, honorifics, or humility. Instead, they vary in usage based on the speaker, dialect, and context. For example, it is possible for both to appear in the same utterance:

Other variations include the contraction of -re to -ĭ, and the contraction of -re-wa to -ra or -rja when combined with the topic marker wa. For example, uncontracted ware and warewa would be considered more feminine than contracted waĭ and wara in the Mitsune dialect, whereas in the Uphill dialects, ware and warewa would be the norm (with the contracted forms generally unused).

Second-person pronouns[edit]

Like in Japanese, it is most common to refer to an addressee by name rather than by using a pronoun. Nevertheless, several second-person pronouns do exist:

• The pronoun omee is honorific, used for individuals of superior status. As the subject of a clause, omee is generally used with other honorific vocabulary such as the verbs ozjarowa ("to go, to come") and tamourowa ("to give").
• The pronoun omi is polite, used for individuals whom the speaker wants to respect, but for whom the honorific omee would be excessively formal. Aside from a handful of polite verbs like wasowa ("to go, to come") and gouzirowa ("to see"), sentences with omi generally use ordinary vocabulary. The form omi is never seen without a particle.
• The pronoun omaĭ is between omi and unu, used of those of equal or lower status. It is mildly informal or neutral, and it is often used in place of unu when people outside of the speaker's in-group are present. It is a comparatively new pronoun.
• The pronoun unu is very informal or familiar, and it is used for family members, and close friends. However it can be somewhat rude or vulgar, depending on the dialect.
• The pronoun nare is offensive and shows contempt, being used when fighting, arguing, scolding, etc.

The second-person pronouns omee, omi and omaĭ originate in borrowings of Japanese お前 omae "you." In modern Japanese, omae is familiar or derogatory, but it formerly had a respectful meaning, and it is in this respectful usage that it was borrowed into Hachijō.

The pronoun unu has cognates in Old and Middle Japanese 己 ono₂ ~ unu "yourself, myself, oneself." Similarly, 汝 na ~ nare "you" is found in Old Japanese (including Eastern Old Japanese) and Early Middle Japanese.

Third-person pronouns[edit]

Hachijō has no dedicated third-person pronouns. When necessary, demonstratives—most often distal ones—are employed to indicate the equivalent of the third person. For example, when referring to people:

• ure~uĭ and uĭcu are informal, used for people within one's in-group, as well as for people whom the speaker does not care about showing respect to.
• The form uno hito (plural uno hitora) is polite, used for people outside of one's in-group. It comes from a compound of uno "that" and hito "person."
• The form uno kata (plural uno katara) is honorific, used for referring to superiors. It comes from a compound of uno "that" and kata "person (honorific)."

Interrogative pronouns[edit]

The interrogative personal pronouns are dare "who" for human referents and ani "what" for non-human referents (cognate to Japanese 誰 dare "who" and 何 nani "what"). The pronoun ani is often contracted to aN- when consonant-initial particles are adjoined to it.

Hachijō dare is related to the Old Japanese pronoun ta ~ tare "who," but it is unclear whether the change of initial t to d was borrowed from Japanese or was an independent parallel innovation.

Hachijō ani derives directly from Eastern Old Japanese *ani "what," which is attested indirectly in Eastern Old Japanese compounds like aze "why" and ado₂ "whatever" (contrast the Western Old Japanese forms naze and nado₂, whence Modern Japanese なぜ naze "why" and など nado "et cetera").^[4] There are also a handful of other Hachijō interrogatives historically derived from compounds with ani, such as ada "how," aNde "why," and aNsei "why."

To form indeterminate pronouns from interrogatives, the suffix -ka is added. In contrast to Japanese, this -ka is added after any case suffix, not before, e.g., Hachijō anjoka (ani=o=ka) vs. Japanese 何かを nani-ka o, both "something (accusative case)."

Demonstratives[edit]

A series of demonstratives similar to modern Japanese's ko-so-a-do series (proximal-mesial-distal-interrogative) also exists in Hachijō:^[5]

	Proximal (ko-)	Mesial (so-)	Distal (u-)[a]	Interrogative (do-)	Japanese Equivalent
Nominal (sg.) -re[b] "this, that"	kore	sore	ure	dore	～れ -re
Nominal (pl.) -rera[b][c] "these, those"	korera	sorera	urera ~ ura	dorera	～れら -rera
Person (sg.) -ĭcu "this person, that person"	koĭcu	soĭcu	uĭcu	doĭcu	～いつ -itsu
Person (pl.) -ĭcura[c] "these people, those people"	koĭcura	soĭcura	uĭcura	doĭcura	～いつら -itsura
Determiner -no "this ~, that ~"	kono	sono	uno	dono	～の -no
Location -ko "here, there"	koko	sono	uku	doko	～こ -ko
Direction -Qci/-QcjaN "hither, thither"	koQci, koQcjaN	soQci, soQcjaN	uQci, uQcjaN aQci, aQcjaN	doQci, doQcjaN	～っち、～ちら(に) -cchi, -chira (ni)
Direction -gata "hither, thither"	kogata	sogata	ugata	dogata	～っち、～ちら -cchi, -chira
Amount, Extent -odo "this much, that much"[6]	koudo, koQdo, koroudo	soudo, soQdo, soroudo	uudo, uQdo, uroudo	doudo, doQdo, doroudo ikura	～れほど -rehodo
Manner, Extent -go͡oN[d] "in this way, in that way"	kogo͡oN	sogo͡oN	ugo͡oN	dogo͡oN adaN[e]	～う、～んなに -u, -nnani
Type -go͡oNdoo[d][f] "this kind of, that kind of"	kogo͡oNdoo	sogo͡oNdoo	ugo͡oNdoo	dogo͡oNdoo adaNdoo[e]	～んな -nna

Particles[edit]

Like Japanese, Hachijō makes extensive use of grammatical particles, which indicate a variety of meanings and grammatical functions. Most parts of speech can use some particles, but the majority of particles are used with nominals (nouns and pronouns). Hachijō's noun-marking particles are classified similarly to their Japanese counterparts into the following categories:

• Enumerating particles (並べ助詞, narabe-joshi), which mark items in lists.^[8]
• Case particles (格助詞, kaku-joshi), which mark the grammatical cases of nominials. These are further divided into:^[9]
  • Standalone cases (連用格, ren'yō-kaku), which indicate self-contained phrases such as the subject or object of a sentence.^[10]
  • Adjoining cases (連体格, rentai-kaku), which indicate phrases that are semantically linked to another part of the sentence, e.g., to express possession.^[11]
• Prominence particles (取り立て助詞, toritate-joshi), a broad category that is further divided into:^[12]
  • Topic-focus particles (係り助詞, kakari-joshi), which emphasize, restrict, or otherwise indicate a kind of topic or focus related to the words they mark.^[13]
  • Adverbial particles (副助詞, fuku-joshi), which turn words into adverbs of degree, extent, etc.^[14]

When multiple particles are used on the same noun, they are generally found in the order Adverbial → Case → Topic-Focus.

Enumerating particles[edit]

Enumerating particles (並べ助詞, narabe-joshi, enum) are few in number, and they are used as conjunctions to join nominals into lists. The main particles of this type are to, ni, toka, da, and ja.

Both to and ni are used for making exhaustive lists, and are used more or less the same as in Japanese. The more usual way to form an exhaustive list is by using to, which is generally placed after every element of a list except the last (where it is optional):

The enumerating particle ni, on the other hand, is used in two main ways; the first use of ni emphasizes that the speaker is recalling the elements of the list, in which emphasized elements of the list are marked by ni and other elements left unmarked:

The second use of ni is found in binomial expressions such as mesini okazu 飯におかず "rice and a side dish".^[16] Unlike the case particle N~ni, the enumerating particle ni is not reduced to N after light syllables.

The particles toka, da, and ja, on the other hand, are used for making inexhaustive lists:

Case Particles[edit]

The majority of case particles (格助詞, kaku-joshi) in Hachijō indicate standalone cases (連用格, ren'yō-kaku). The most common standalone case particles are:

Particle	Japanese Cognate	Explanation and Examples
ga	が ga	Both particles of these particles mark the nominative case (nom), often used to indicate the subject of a clause. The particle ga is more common than no, but the choice between ga and no is influenced by the subject's animacy (human & proper nouns vs. other nouns) and the type of predicate in the clause. Generally, ga is universally appropriate: 私が waga wa=ga me=NOM 学問嫌いで gakumoNgireede... gakumoNgiree=de learning.hating=COP.PTCP 私が 学問嫌いで waga gakumoNgireede... wa=ga gakumoNgiree=de me=NOM learning.hating=COP.PTCP "I hate(d) school, and..."[18] However, inanimate subjects (that is, non-human and non-proper noun subjects) have the option of using no when used with a verb or verbal adjective predicate, especially (but not necessarily) when the predicate is subordinate: あいつこそ uika uĭ=ka that.person=FOC 足が asino asi=no foot=NOM 速い。 hajake. haja-ke. fast-ADJ.EXCL あいつこそ 足が 速い。 uika asino hajake. uĭ=ka asi=no haja-ke. that.person=FOC foot=NOM fast-ADJ.EXCL "That person, for sure, is quick-footed."[19] (1) 宿と言ってね、宿があったんだよ。 jadoteQte jado=tew-te house=QUOT.say-PTCP noo nou DM jadono jado=no house=NOM aroadoazja. ar-a(r)-o=da(r)-o=zja be-STAT-ATTR(NMLZ)=COP-ATTR=DECL. (Nakanogō dialect)     jadoteQte noo jadono aroadoazja. jado=tew-te nou jado=no ar-a(r)-o=da(r)-o=zja house=QUOT.say-PTCP DM house=NOM be-STAT-ATTR(NMLZ)=COP-ATTR=DECL. "(He) said (there was) a house, you see, and there was one!"[19] 家は舅親が建ててくれて iiwa e=o=wa house=ACC=TOP sjuutoojano sjuutouja=no father.in.law=NOM tatete tate-te build-PTCP kete ke-te give-PTCP (Sueyoshi dialect)     iiwa sjuutoojano tatete kete e=o=wa sjuutouja=no tate-te ke-te house=ACC=TOP father.in.law=NOM build-PTCP give-PTCP "This house, my father-in-law built for me, and..."[19] However, when a predicate is of the form nominal+copula, the subject of its clause generally does not use no. (Both ga and no also serve as markers for the genitive case—see below in the "adjoining cases" table for more details.)
no	の no
o~jo	を o	Marks the accusative case (acc), usually used to indicate the direct object of a clause. Due to fusing morphophonemically with its host noun, this particle has several allomorphs, and it has been leveled to jo after non-light syllables (see the section on particle fusion for more details on the various forms of this particle). For an example of direct object use: (1) 聞きながら、これを食べなさい／つまみなさい。 kikoutei kik-ou-tei listen-VOL-SIMUL korei kore=o this=ACC cumitate cumitate snack.on.INF jare. jar-e do(HON)-IMP kikoutei korei cumitate jare. kik-ou-tei kore=o cumitate jar-e listen-VOL-SIMUL this=ACC snack.on.INF do(HON)-IMP "While you're listening, snack on this."[20] Like Japanese を wo, it can also be used perlatively, indicating a place through which an action takes place: (1) 鳥が空を飛んでいるよ。 toricubosaga toricubosa=ga bird=NOM teNneijo teNnei=jo sky=ACC makimiQte mak-i-mik-te fly-INF-walk-PTCP arowa. ar-o=wa be-ATTR=DECL toricubosaga teNneijo makimiQte arowa. toricubosa=ga teNnei=jo mak-i-mik-te ar-o=wa bird=NOM sky=ACC fly-INF-walk-PTCP be-ATTR=DECL "Birds are flying around through the sky."[21] However, contrary to Japanese を wo, Hachijō o~jo is also used with non-verbal and stative predicates like hosikja "to want" (a verbal adjective) and sukidara "to like" (an adjectival noun) to indicate the object of desire, affection, etc.: (1) 歌や太鼓が好きなので utaja uta=ja song=ENUM teekou teeko=o drum=ACC sukidoode suki=da(r)-o=de liking=COP-ATTR(NMLZ)=COP.PTCP utaja teekou sukidoode uta=ja teeko=o suki=da(r)-o=de song=ENUM drum=ACC liking=COP-ATTR(NMLZ)=COP.PTCP "I like songs and drums, so..."[22] It can also be used in some situations where Japanese uses the dative-locative に ni instead, such as when marking a person to whom something is said: (1) 人に「集まって」と言って hitou hito=o person=ACC acumaQtouteQte acumar-tou=tew-te gather-REQ=QUOT.say-PTCP hitou acumaQtouteQte hito=o acumar-tou=tew-te person=ACC gather-REQ=QUOT.say-PTCP "telling the person 'Group up!' ..."[21] Finally, o~jo can attach to nouns in order to show mirativity: (1) まぁ、きれいな花！ ai, aĭ wow deecike deeci-ke pretty-ADJ.ATTR hanoo! hana=o flower=ACC ai, deecike hanoo! aĭ deeci-ke hana=o wow pretty-ADJ.ATTR flower=ACC "My, what a pretty flower!"[23] (1) わぁ、 ai, aĭ wow 速い！ hajasoo! haja-sa=o fast-ADJ.NMLZ=ACC わぁ、 速い！ ai, hajasoo! aĭ haja-sa=o wow fast-ADJ.NMLZ=ACC "Wow, how fast!"[23] This mirative function of o~jo can be used with nominalized attributive forms of verbs. When used without a stative suffix, it expresses surprise at the continuation of an action, and when with a stative suffix, it expresses surprise at the resulting state of an action: (1) まぁ、 baa, baa oh.my この人、 kora kor(e=w)a this.person=TOP 飲んでる！ nomou! nom-o=o drink-ATTR(NMLZ)=ACC （変化の進行）       まぁ、 この人、 飲んでる！ baa, kora nomou! baa kor(e=w)a nom-o=o oh.my this.person=TOP drink-ATTR(NMLZ)=ACC "Oh my, this person is drinking!" (continuing state)[23] (1) もう、 haa, haa geez 乾いてる！ kookarou! kook-ar-o=o dry-STAT-ATTR(NMLZ)=ACC （洗濯物が）（変化の結果の状態）       もう、 乾いてる！ haa, kookarou! haa kook-ar-o=o geez dry-STAT-ATTR(NMLZ)=ACC "Geez, (the laundry) is already dry?!" (resulting state)[24] Mirative o~jo can also be used with the infinitive form, also expressing surprise at a resulting state (similar to using it with the stative & nominalized attributive). This emphasizes the intensity of the action that led to the state: (1) まあ、私へたに書いてる！ ai, aĭ wow aga a=ga me=NOM hetaN heta=N unskillful=DAT kakjo! kak-i=o write-INF(NMLZ)=ACC ai, aga hetaN kakjo! aĭ a=ga heta=N kak-i=o wow me=NOM unskillful=DAT write-INF(NMLZ)=ACC "Wow, I wrote that really badly!"[25]
N~ni	に ni	Marks the dative (dat), used for indicating the recipient of an action, the destination of an action, or the location of a state. In passive sentences, it instead marks the agent of an action. Generally, the form N is usually found after light syllables, whereas ni is usually seen after heavy syllables, though there are exceptions (such as in the second example below). This particle overlaps in usage with the allative i~jii and lative gee. 私の隣に住んでいたオホヨおばさん[26] waga wa=ga me=GEN tonariN tonari=N next.door=DAT suNde sum-te reside-PTCP aroo ar-a(r)-o be-STAT-ATTR ohojo-obasaN ohojo-oba-saN Ohoyo-aunt-HON waga tonariN suNde aroo ohojo-obasaN wa=ga tonari=N sum-te ar-a(r)-o ohojo-oba-saN me=GEN next.door=DAT reside-PTCP be-STAT-ATTR Ohoyo-aunt-HON "Ms. Ohoyo, the older woman who used to live next to me" この兄は私に二つ年上だ。[26] kono kono this.ATTR aseiwa asei=wa older.brother=TOP wareni ware=ni me=DAT hutacu hutacu two.things anedaraa ane senior   =dar-(o=w)a =COP-ATTR=DECL kono aseiwa wareni hutacu anedaraa kono asei=wa ware=ni hutacu ane =dar-(o=w)a this.ATTR older.brother=TOP me=DAT two.things senior =COP-ATTR=DECL "This older brother is two years older than me." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 5 word(s) in line 1, 6 word(s) in line 2, 6 word(s) in line 3 (help); 私は母に叱られた。[27] ara ar(e=w)a me=TOP hooni hoo=ni mother=DAT waikjuuretara waĭkjuw-are-tar-(o=w)a scold-PASS-STAT-ATTR=DECL ara hooni waikjuuretara ar(e=w)a hoo=ni waĭkjuw-are-tar-(o=w)a me=TOP mother=DAT scold-PASS-STAT-ATTR=DECL "I was scolded by my mother." 私にそれが決められない。[27] areN are=N me=DAT soiga soĭ=ga that=NOM kimerareisi kime-rare-isi decide-PASS-DUB areN soiga kimerareisi are=N soĭ=ga kime-rare-isi me=DAT that=NOM decide-PASS-DUB "That can't be decided by me." When the dative ni is followed by the topic-marking particle wa, they often coalesce into nja: 今（に）は松の木が一本も無くて[28] manja ma=nja now=DAT.TOP macuno macu=no pine=GEN kiwa ki=wa tree=TOP iQpoNmo iQpoN=mo one=even nakute na-kute not-ADJ.PTCP manja macuno kiwa iQpoNmo nakute ma=nja macu=no ki=wa iQpoN=mo na-kute now=DAT.TOP pine=GEN tree=TOP one=even not-ADJ.PTCP "Now, there isn't even one pine tree left, and..." 今朝（に）は６時に起きた。[28] toNmetenja toNmete=nja morning=DAT.TOP rokuziN roku-zi=N six-o'clock=DAT okitara. oki-tar-(o=w)a awaken-STAT-ATTR=DECL toNmetenja rokuziN okitara. toNmete=nja roku-zi=N oki-tar-(o=w)a morning=DAT.TOP six-o'clock=DAT awaken-STAT-ATTR=DECL "This morning, I woke up at 6 o'clock." This case marker is cognate or identical with the infinitive form ni of the copula dara.
i~jii	へ e	Marks the allative (all), used for indicating motion toward a place or the purpose for which an action is done. Etymologically from the same source as Japanese へ e, but after phonemically fusing with its host noun and undergoing historical sound shifts, it was leveled to i in most cases and thence became jii after non-light syllables (see the section on particle fusion for more details on the various forms of this particle). Overlaps in usage with the dative N~ni and lative gee. おばあさんは川へ洗濯に行ったそうだが[29] baasamawa baa-sama=wa grandma-HON=TOP kooii koo=jii river=ALL seNtakuN seNtaku=N laundry=DAT ikaraQteiga ik-ar-ar-(u) go-STAT-STAT-FIN   =tew-o=ga =QUOT.say-ATTR=but baasamawa kooii seNtakuN ikaraQteiga baa-sama=wa koo=jii seNtaku=N ik-ar-ar-(u) =tew-o=ga grandma-HON=TOP river=ALL laundry=DAT go-STAT-STAT-FIN =QUOT.say-ATTR=but "I hear that Grandma went to the river to do laundry, but..." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 4 word(s) in line 1, 5 word(s) in line 2, 5 word(s) in line 3 (help); 後ろへ下がれ。[29] siQtei siQte=i back=ALL sikero sike-ro withdraw-IMP siQtei sikero siQte=i sike-ro back=ALL withdraw-IMP "Step back!" Hachijō sometimes prefers i~jii to mark the infinitive of purpose, rather than using the dative N~ni: 今日は草取りに行くが…[29] keiwa kei=wa today=TOP kusatorii kusator-i=i cut.grass-INF=ALL ikoga ik-o=ga go-ATTR=but keiwa kusatorii ikoga kei=wa kusator-i=i ik-o=ga today=TOP cut.grass-INF=ALL go-ATTR=but "I will/would go in order to cut the grass today, but..."
gee	(?) がり gari	Marks the lative case (lat), used for indicating the intended direction or destination of an action. Overlaps in usage with the dative N~ni and allative i~jii. その縄に板をしいて、乗って揺れるんだよ。[30] sono sono that.ATTR noogee noo=gee rope=LAT itoo ita=o board=ACC suQtotei, suk-totei lay-ANT noQte nor-te ride-PTCP jurerodara jur-e-ro swing-POT-ATTR(NMLZ)   =dar-(o=w)a =COP-ATTR=DECL sono noogee itoo suQtotei, noQte jurerodara sono noo=gee ita=o suk-totei nor-te jur-e-ro =dar-(o=w)a that.ATTR rope=LAT board=ACC lay-ANT ride-PTCP swing-POT-ATTR(NMLZ) =COP-ATTR=DECL "After laying a board on that rope, you can ride it and swing." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 6 word(s) in line 1, 7 word(s) in line 2, 7 word(s) in line 3 (help); この管に糸を通して[30] kono kono this.ATTR kudagee kuda=gee pipe=LAT itou ito=o thread=ACC touii tous-(te) put.through-PTCP kono kudagee itou touii kono kuda=gee ito=o tous-(te) this.ATTR pipe=LAT thread=ACC put.through-PTCP "putting a thread through this pipe..." Comparisons have been drawn between Hachijō gee, dialectal mainland Japanese gai~gee~gyaa, and Okinawan Nkai—all of allative or directive meaning—tentatively connecting them with the Old Japanese directive suffix ～がり -gari.[31][32]
sjaN	さまに sama ni	Marks the orientative case (ornt), indicating a direction facing which an action is performed or a state exists. In the Sueyoshi dialect, this particle can instead take the form sima. カニは横に歩く。[33] garimewa garime=wa crab=TOP jokosjaN joko=sjaN side=ORNT eemowa eem-o=wa walk-ATTR=DECL garimewa jokosjaN eemowa garime=wa joko=sjaN eem-o=wa crab=TOP side=ORNT walk-ATTR=DECL "Crabs walk sideways." 右に回せば[3] migisjaN migi=sjaN right=ORNT mawaseba mawas-eba turn-PROV migisjaN mawaseba migi=sjaN mawas-eba right=ORNT turn-PROV "if/when you turn it to the right..." 私が我が家へ駆けて行ったんだよね。[3] arja are=wa me=TOP waga wa=ga me=GEN esjaN e=sjaN house=ORNT topite topi-te dash-PTCP ikaadaazjaN ik-a(r)-o go-STAT-ATTR(NMLZ)   =da(r)-o=zja-N =COP-ATTR=DECL-Q (Sueyoshi dialect)     arja waga esjaN topite ikaadaazjaN are=wa wa=ga e=sjaN topi-te ik-a(r)-o =da(r)-o=zja-N me=TOP me=GEN house=ORNT dash-PTCP go-STAT-ATTR(NMLZ) =COP-ATTR=DECL-Q "I really dashed off towards my house, huh?" Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 5 word(s) in line 1, 6 word(s) in line 2, 6 word(s) in line 3 (help); 畑へ[3] jamasima jama=sima fields=ORNT (Sueyoshi dialect)     jamasima jama=sima fields=ORNT "towards the fields"
de	で de	Marks the locative-instrumental case (loc), used to indicate the location or situation in which an action is done, or an instrument with which an action is performed. 柄杓で水を飲むな。[34] sjakude sjaku=de ladle=LOC mizuu mizu=o water=ACC nomuna nom-una drink-PROH sjakude mizuu nomuna sjaku=de mizu=o nom-una ladle=LOC water=ACC drink-PROH "Don't drink water with a ladle." 倉の出入口でお父さんをぶっ殺して[34] kurano kura=no storehouse=GEN toboude tobou=de entrance=LOC otoQcaNjo otoQcaN=jo father.HON=ACC buQkoreite buQ-koros-te INTS-kill-PTCP kurano toboude otoQcaNjo buQkoreite kura=no tobou=de otoQcaN=jo buQ-koros-te storehouse=GEN entrance=LOC father.HON=ACC INTS-kill-PTCP "slaughtering his father at the entrance of the storehouse..." 病気で血の色が変わったそうだ。[34] bjoukide bjouki=de illness=LOC cino ci=no blood=GEN iroga iro=ga color=NOM kooraQteija koor-ar-(u) change-STAT-FIN   =tew-o=wa =QUOT.say-ATTR=DECL bjoukide cino iroga kooraQteija bjouki=de ci=no iro=ga koor-ar-(u) =tew-o=wa illness=LOC blood=GEN color=NOM change-STAT-FIN =QUOT.say-ATTR=DECL "I hear that his blood changed color when he was sick." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 4 word(s) in line 1, 5 word(s) in line 2, 5 word(s) in line 3 (help); This case marker is cognate or identical with the participle form de of the copula dara.
to	と to	Marks the comitative case com, used to indicate together with whom or what an action is performed, or to indicate the object of comparisons or contrasts in state. Related or identical to the enumerating particle to, but distinct from the quotative particle to and the suffix -to used in certain conditional statements. どうもおまえとは飲めない。[34] adaN adaN however nareto nare=to you(OFNS)=COM nomeisi nom-e-isi drink-POT-DUB adaN nareto nomeisi adaN nare=to nom-e-isi however you(OFNS)=COM drink-POT-DUB "There's no way I could ever drink with you." これと違うのを持って来い。[35] koito koĭ=to this=COM cigoujo cigaw-o=jo differ-ATTR(NMLZ)=ACC moQte mot-te hold-PTCP ko ko come.IMP koito cigoujo moQte ko koĭ=to cigaw-o=jo mot-te ko this=COM differ-ATTR(NMLZ)=ACC hold-PTCP come.IMP "Bring one that's different from this one."
kara~kaa	から kara	Marks the ablative case (abl), used to indicate motion away from a place, or a time after which an action progresses. When following the participle form of a verb, it always expresses the meaning "after." The form kaa is a variant with r-elision. 井戸から汲んで[36] judokara judo=kara well=ABL kuQde kum-te draw.water-PTCP (Nakanogō dialect)     judokara kuQde judo=kara kum-te well=ABL draw.water-PTCP "Drawing water from a well..." これはモモから生まれたから。[36] kora kor(e=w)a this=TOP momokaa momo=kaa peach=ABL umaretoote um-are-ta(r)-o=(N)te give.birth-PASS-STAT-ATTR=because kora momokaa umaretoote kor(e=w)a momo=kaa um-are-ta(r)-o=(N)te this=TOP peach=ABL give.birth-PASS-STAT-ATTR=because "This was because he was born from a peach." 倉の下から臼を転がし出して[36] kuraN kura=n(o) storehouse=GEN sitakara sita=kara underneath=ABL usuu usu=o millstone=ACC hiQkorogasi-deete hiQ-korogas-i-das-te INTS-roll-INF-take.out-PTCP kuraN sitakara usuu hiQkorogasi-deete kura=n(o) sita=kara usu=o hiQ-korogas-i-das-te storehouse=GEN underneath=ABL millstone=ACC INTS-roll-INF-take.out-PTCP "rolling a millstone out from under the storehouse..."
jori~jei	より yori	Marks the comparative case (cmpr), indicating a noun that is inferior in a comparison or that is being compared against. The form jei, now old-fashioned, is a variant with r-elision. あなたのほうが詳しいよ、私より。[37] omeega omee=ga you(HON)=GEN hou hou part kuwasikja, kuwasi-ke=(w)a knowledgeable-ADJ.ATTR=DECL waijori waĭ=jori me=CMPR omeega hou kuwasikja, waijori omee=ga hou kuwasi-ke=(w)a waĭ=jori you(HON)=GEN part knowledgeable-ADJ.ATTR=DECL me=CMPR "You're more knowledgeable—more than me." 今年のサツマイモは去年より少ない。[37] koNdaNno koNdaN=no this.year=GEN kaNmowa kaNmo=wa sweet.potato=TOP kjoneNjei kjoneN=jei last.year=CMPR kosidara kosi few   =dar-(o=w)a =COP-ATTR=DECL koNdaNno kaNmowa kjoneNjei kosidara koNdaN=no kaNmo=wa kjoneN=jei kosi =dar-(o=w)a this.year=GEN sweet.potato=TOP last.year=CMPR few =COP-ATTR=DECL "There are fewer sweet potatoes this year compared to last year." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 4 word(s) in line 1, 5 word(s) in line 2, 5 word(s) in line 3 (help); This particle can also be used like to to indicate an object of contrast: これと別を持って来い。[37] koijei koĭ=jei this.one=CMPR becjo becu=o different=ACC moQte mot-te hold-PTCP ko ko come.IMP koijei becjo moQte ko koĭ=jei becu=o mot-te ko this.one=CMPR different=ACC hold-PTCP come.IMP "Bring one that's different from this one."
made	まで made	Marks the terminative case (term), used to indicate an action or state's progression up until a place or time. 八重根まで行っても[38] jeenemade jeene=made Yaene=TERM iQtemo ik-te=mo go-PTCP=even jeenemade iQtemo jeene=made ik-te=mo Yaene=TERM go-PTCP=even "Despite going as far as Yaene..." あなたはここからあそこまでなさってね。[38] omeewa omee=wa you(HON)=TOP koQkaa kok(o)=kaa here=ABL ukumade uku=made there=TERM sijare s-i-jar-e do-INF-HON-IMP omeewa koQkaa ukumade sijare omee=wa kok(o)=kaa uku=made s-i-jar-e you(HON)=TOP here=ABL there=TERM do-INF-HON-IMP "Please do it from here to over there."
madeN~madeni	までに madeni	Marks a deadline before which an action takes place or is expected to take place (glossed as "by" below). Etymologically a combination of the terminative case made and the dative case N~ni. １２時までに[37] zjuunizimadeN zjuuni-zi=madeN twelve-o'clock=by zjuunizimadeN zjuuni-zi=madeN twelve-o'clock=by "by twelve o'clock"
gara~gaa	(?) がり gari	Marks a noun whose portion, function, or location is being considered (glossed as "portion" in the examples below). The form gaa is a variant with r-elision, and the forms nogara~nogaa (combined with the genitive no) are also seen. （反物）一尺分で、（糸）三匁だよ。[37] iQsjakugara iQsjaku=gara one.shaku=portion saNmoNmedaraa saN-moNme three-monme   =dar-(o=w)a =COP-ATTR=DECL (Nakanogō dialect)     iQsjakugara saNmoNmedaraa iQsjaku=gara saN-moNme =dar-(o=w)a one.shaku=portion three-monme =COP-ATTR=DECL "For one shaku (of fabric), it's three momme (of thread)." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 2 word(s) in line 1, 3 word(s) in line 2, 3 word(s) in line 3 (help); （魚を）綺麗にして売る人のもとへ持って行って[11] diaciku deeci-ku clean-ADJ.INF site si-te do-PTCP uro ur-o sell-ATTR hitonogaa hito=no=gaa person=GEN=portion moQte mot-te hold-PTCP iQte ik-te go-PTCP (Nakanogō dialect)     diaciku site uro hitonogaa moQte iQte deeci-ku si-te ur-o hito=no=gaa mot-te ik-te clean-ADJ.INF do-PTCP sell-ATTR person=GEN=portion hold-PTCP go-PTCP "Cleaning up (the fish) and bringing it to a seller..." 継子の分は三粒粥を炊いて[11] mamakonogaawa mamako=no=gaa=wa stepchild=GEN=portion=TOP miQcubugeejo miQcubugee=jo three.grain.gruel=ACC nitoQtei ni-t(e)-ok-te boil-PTCP-put-PTCP mamakonogaawa miQcubugeejo nitoQtei mamako=no=gaa=wa miQcubugee=jo ni-t(e)-ok-te stepchild=GEN=portion=TOP three.grain.gruel=ACC boil-PTCP-put-PTCP "boiling three grains' worth of rice gruel for the stepchild's portion..." Kaneda (2001) notes that gara is unlikely to be a true case-marking particle, but as it occupies a similar spot in the particle hierarchy, it is tentatively included with them. He also notes that gara probably has some relationship with the Old Japanese directive suffix ～がり -gari.

The smaller class of adjoining case (連体格, rentai-kaku) particles is largely based around the genitive case (marked by ga or no) and compounds thereof:

Particle	Japanese Cognate	Explanation and Examples
ga	が ga	Both particles mark the genitive case (gen), used to indicate possession and similar relationships. Generally, humans use ga, while non-humans use no; The major exceptions are that long-dead historical figures and ancestors can optionally use no, and individualized animals such as pets tend to use ga instead of no. The particle no is also preferred when another particle comes between no and the nominal, such as in the compounds karano and madeno (listed below). おまえの腰を見ろ。[18] narega nare=ga you(OFNS)=GEN kosjo kosi=o lower.back=ACC miro mi-ro look-IMP narega kosjo miro nare=ga kosi=o mi-ro you(OFNS)=GEN lower.back=ACC look-IMP "Look at your lower back." サダイチの家でも[18] sadaiciga sadaici=ga Sadaichi=GEN edemo e house   =de=mo =COP.PTCP=even sadaiciga edemo sadaici=ga e =de=mo Sadaichi=GEN house =COP.PTCP=even "Despite it being Sadaichi's house..." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 2 word(s) in line 1, 3 word(s) in line 2, 3 word(s) in line 3 (help); 袋の底が無いので[19] hukurono hukuro=no bag=GEN sokoga soko=ga bottom=NOM naQkede na-ke not-ADJ.ATTR(NMLZ)   =de =COP.PTCP hukurono sokoga naQkede hukuro=no soko=ga na-ke =de bag=GEN bottom=NOM not-ADJ.ATTR(NMLZ) =COP.PTCP "Because the bag has no bottom..." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 3 word(s) in line 1, 4 word(s) in line 2, 4 word(s) in line 3 (help); Though it is not common, the genitive no can occasionally be reduced to N: 倉の下から臼を転がし出して[36] kuraN kura=n(o) storehouse=GEN sitakara sita=kara underneath=ABL usuu usu=o millstone=ACC hiQkorogasi-deete hiQ-korogas-i-das-te INTS-roll-INF-take.out-PTCP kuraN sitakara usuu hiQkorogasi-deete kura=n(o) sita=kara usu=o hiQ-korogas-i-das-te storehouse=GEN underneath=ABL millstone=ACC INTS-roll-INF-take.out-PTCP "rolling a millstone out from under the storehouse..." Ga is usually preferred over no in the phrase -ga hou (Japanese ～のほう no hou), used to mark something that is superior in a comparison; the hou in this phrase also usually takes no case marker of its own: あそこのほうはもう少し遠い畑だ。[39] ukuga uku=ga there=GEN hou hou part maciQto maciQto somewhat toujamadara tou-jama far-field   =dar-(o=w)a =COP-ATTR=DECL ukuga hou maciQto toujamadara uku=ga hou maciQto tou-jama =dar-(o=w)a there=GEN part somewhat far-field =COP-ATTR=DECL "That place over there is a field that is a little more distant." Mismatch in the number of words between lines: 4 word(s) in line 1, 5 word(s) in line 2, 5 word(s) in line 3 (help); Lastly, the genitive does not necessarily require a noun to follow it, if it can be inferred from context: あの猫のをこの猫に飲まれた。[40] uno uno that.ATTR neQkomegoo neQkome=ga=∅=o cat=GEN=∅=ACC kono kono this.ATTR neQkomeN neQkome=N cat=DAT nomaretara nom-are-tar-(o=w)a drink-PASS-STAT-ATTR=DECL uno neQkomegoo kono neQkomeN nomaretara uno neQkome=ga=∅=o kono neQkome=N nom-are-tar-(o=w)a that.ATTR cat=GEN=∅=ACC this.ATTR cat=DAT drink-PASS-STAT-ATTR=DECL "This cat drank that cat's (drink)."
no	の no
karano~kaano	からの kara no	A combination of the ablative kara~kaa and the genitive no. Means roughly "which is from" or "who is from." 東京からの客[11] kunikarano kuni=kara=no mainland=ABL=GEN kjaku kjaku guest kunikarano kjaku kuni=kara=no kjaku mainland=ABL=GEN guest "a guest from Tokyo" ３時からの宴会[11] saNzikaano saN-zi=kaa=no three-o'clock=ABL=GEN nigijaka nigijaka party saNzikaano nigijaka saN-zi=kaa=no nigijaka three-o'clock=ABL=GEN party "the party that starts at 3 o'clock"
madeno	までの made no	A combination of the terminative made and the genitive no. Means roughly "which is until." 出発までの時間[11] dehunemadeno de-hune=made=no go.out.INF-ship=TERM=GEN ito ito timespan dehunemadeno ito de-hune=made=no ito go.out.INF-ship=TERM=GEN timespan "the time until the boat's departure" 夕方までの宴会[11] kuregatamadeno kuregata=made=no evening=TERM=GEN nigijaka nigijaka party kuregatamadeno nigijaka kuregata=made=no nigijaka evening=TERM=GEN party "the party that lasts until the evening"

Prominence Particles[edit]

The first type of prominence particles (取り立て助詞, toritate-joshi) are known as topic-focus particles (係り助詞, kakari-joshi), which introduce either a topic or focus component of a sentence. The particles wa, mo, sika, made, and see do not affect the conjugation of a sentence's verb, while the focus particles ka & koo and the interrogative particle ka do affect it.

Particle	Japanese Cognate	Explanation and Examples
wa	は wa	(top) Introduces a contrastive topic or new information, often translatable as "as for ~" or "when it comes to ~."
mo	も mo	Introduces an inclusive topic or something related to previously established information, often translatable as "~ also" or "~ too." When following the participle form of a verb or adjective, mo can be translated with a meaning like "even though" or "even if." The form demo, a compound with the participle de of the copula dara, is a specialized use of this particle.
sika	しか shika	Used with negative sentences to indicate a sole exception, often translatable as "nothing but ~" or "except ~."
made	まで made	The same as the terminative case particle made listed previously, but used with a topic-focus meaning. Used to emphasize that even the marked element is to be included despite expectation, often translatable as "even ~."
see	さえ sae	Shows a similar but stronger type of emphasis as made, again often translatable as "even ~."

Finally, the following three particles affect the inflection of the subsequent verb:

Particle	Japanese Cognate	Explanation and Examples
ka	(?) こそは koso wa	(foc) Generally equivalent in use to Classical Japanese こそ koso. Marks a noun as a focused element in the sentence, often translatable as "it is ~ that" or "~ is that which." Requires the main verb of the sentence to be in its exclamatory form rather than a declarative form. To make such sentences tag questions or to add emphasis, the sentence-final particle ga can be added after the verb. Examples can be found in the section on exclamatory kakari-musubi. Sample sentences from NINJAL (1950) show this particle used both in combination with and interchangeably with koso~koo.[41] Kaneda (2001) hypothesizes that this ka originally comes from an extreme contraction of koso wa.[42]
koo	(?) こそは＋は koso wa + wa	(foc) A contraction of the focus particle ka and the topic-marking wa. Marks a noun as a focused element in the sentence, often translatable as "it is ~ that" or "~ is that which." Requires the main verb of the sentence to use the focalizing extension -naw- in its exclamatory form -nee. To make such sentences tag questions or to add emphasis, the sentence-final particle goo (a contraction of ga and wa) can be added after the verb. Examples can be found in the section on focalized exclamatory kakari-musubi below.[41] Kaneda (2001) hypothesizes that ka originally comes from an extreme contraction of koso wa, meaning that etymologically, koo (itself from ka-wa) would contain wa twice.[42]
ka	か ka	(q) Although questions in Hachijō can often be expressed without being marked by an interrogative particle, this particle ka serves to explicitly mark questions, particularly yes–no questions. The forms kaa and kaĭ can also be seen in cases where this particle is sentence-final. Details on the usage of this particle can be found in the section on interrogative sentences.

Adverbial particles (副助詞, fuku-joshi) express adverbs of degree, extent, etc.

Particle	Japanese Cognate	Explanation and Examples
guree	ぐらい gurai	Expresses that a stated amount or measurement is approximate: 三寸ぐらいに切ってあったかねえ。[43] saNzuNgureeni saNzuN=guree=ni three.sun=about=DAT kirete kire-te be.cut-PTCP aQtaka ar-ta=ka be-JPST=Q noo noo QT saNzuNgureeni kirete aQtaka noo saNzuN=guree=ni kire-te ar-ta=ka noo three.sun=about=DAT be.cut-PTCP be-JPST=Q QT "I think it might've been cut into roughly 3-sun-long pieces." It can also be used to indicate something of lowly status: 私ぐらいには教えてもいいだろう。[43] aregureenja are=guree=nja me=about=DAT.TOP oseitemo osei-te=mo teach-PTCP=even jokaNnouzja jo-kar-(u)-naw-o=zja good-ADJ-FIN-CNJEC-ATTR=DECL aregureenja oseitemo jokaNnouzja are=guree=nja osei-te=mo jo-kar-(u)-naw-o=zja me=about=DAT.TOP teach-PTCP=even good-ADJ-FIN-CNJEC-ATTR=DECL "You could at least tell the likes of me." (In the previous example, areNguree (are=N=guree, me=dat=about) would also be acceptable in place of aregureenja.)
dake	だけ dake	Expresses that the marked word is unique or exclusive: 私はね、足だけは達者だ。[44] warja ware=wa me=TOP no, no DM asidakewa asi=dake=wa leg=only=TOP taQsjada taQsja=da robust=COP.JPRS warja no, asidakewa taQsjada ware=wa no asi=dake=wa taQsja=da me=TOP DM leg=only=TOP robust=COP.JPRS "My legs are only thing about me that's strong." When combined with the demonstratives kore, sore, ure, or dore, this particle instead indicates the extent of an action: よくあれほど書けたなと思って、私も驚いて[45] joku jo-ku good-ADJ.INF uidake uĭ=dake that=extent kaketaNnouto kak-e-tar-(u)-naw-u=to write-POT-STAT-FIN-FOCLZ-FIN=QUOT moQte (o)mow-te think-PTCP waimo waĭ=mo me=also sobeite sobei-te be.surprised-PTCP joku uidake kaketaNnouto moQte waimo sobeite jo-ku uĭ=dake kak-e-tar-(u)-naw-u=to (o)mow-te waĭ=mo sobei-te good-ADJ.INF that=extent write-POT-STAT-FIN-FOCLZ-FIN=QUOT think-PTCP me=also be.surprised-PTCP "Even I was surprised, wondering how was I able to write that much, and..." In older speech, koudake "to this extent" and doudake "to what extent" can also be seen. These are believed to be contracted from earlier forms *ko(re)-hodo-dake and *do(re)-hodo-dake.[46]
baQkari ~ baQkaĭ	許り bakari	Expresses the current limit, current extent, etc. of something: あいつは図体ばかり大きくなって、まだ子供っぽくてダメだ。[46] ura ur(e=w)a that.person=TOP gakeebaQkai gakee=baQkaĭ body=just bouku bou-ku big-ADJ.INF naQte nar-te become-PTCP maada maada still cigocigosite cigocigo=si-te childishness=do-PTCP damedara dame=dar-(o=w)a no.good=COP-ATTR=DECL ura gakeebaQkai bouku naQte maada cigocigosite damedara ur(e=w)a gakee=baQkaĭ bou-ku nar-te maada cigocigo=si-te dame=dar-(o=w)a that.person=TOP body=just big-ADJ.INF become-PTCP still childishness=do-PTCP no.good=COP-ATTR=DECL "He's grown up in appearance only; he's still childish, so he's no good." よってたかって私をばかりせめるよ。[46] horikotonaQtotei horikotonaQtotei in.a.crowd wareibaQkai ware=o=baQkaĭ me=ACC=just semerowa seme-ro=wa assail-ATTR=DECL horikotonaQtotei wareibaQkai semerowa horikotonaQtotei ware=o=baQkaĭ seme-ro=wa in.a.crowd me=ACC=just assail-ATTR=DECL "They all gang up together on just me." 畑で昔はね、春山節ばかりコソ歌ったよね。[47] jamade jama=de field=LOC mukasiwa mukasi=wa long.ago=TOP noo nou DM harujamapusibaQkarikoa haru-jama-pusi=baQkari=koo spring-mountain-melody=just=FOC utoaNnee utaw-ar-(u)-naw-e sing-STAT-FIN-FOCLZ-EXCL noo nou DM (Nakanogō dialect)     jamade mukasiwa noo harujamapusibaQkarikoa utoaNnee noo jama=de mukasi=wa nou haru-jama-pusi=baQkari=koo utaw-ar-(u)-naw-e nou field=LOC long.ago=TOP DM spring-mountain-melody=just=FOC sing-STAT-FIN-FOCLZ-EXCL DM "In the old days, the only thing we sang in the fields was 'Spring Mountain Melody,' you know." あなたがね、百姓をするのも容易じゃないよ、毎日毎日天気だと畑ばかりでね。[6] omiga omi=ga you(POL)=NOM noo nou DM hjakusjoojo hjakusjou=jo peasant=ACC sjomo sj-o=mo do-ATTR(NMLZ)=also jooizja joui=de=(w)a simple=COP.PTCP=TOP naQkja. na-ke=(w)a not-ADJ.ATTR=DECL mainici hinici maĭnici-hinici every.day-date teNkidato teNki=da=to weather=COP.JPRS=if jamabaQkaride jama=baQkari=de field=just=COP.PTCP naa naa DM (Sueyoshi dialect)     omiga noo hjakusjoojo sjomo jooizja naQkja. {mainici hinici} teNkidato jamabaQkaride naa omi=ga nou hjakusjou=jo sj-o=mo joui=de=(w)a na-ke=(w)a maĭnici-hinici teNki=da=to jama=baQkari=de naa you(POL)=NOM DM peasant=ACC do-ATTR(NMLZ)=also simple=COP.PTCP=TOP not-ADJ.ATTR=DECL every.day-date weather=COP.JPRS=if field=just=COP.PTCP DM "It's not easy to be a lowly farmer, you know. If it's (hot and sunny) weather day in and day out, all (that there is) is the fields."
hodo	程 hodo	Expresses an adverb of degree or extent in comparison to the marked word: あの人ほどは飲まないよ。[6] unohitohodowa uno-hito=hodo=wa that.ATTR-person=extent=TOP nomiNnaka nom-i-Nnak-(o=w)a drink-INF-NEG-ATTR=DECL unohitohodowa nomiNnaka uno-hito=hodo=wa nom-i-Nnak-(o=w)a that.ATTR-person=extent=TOP drink-INF-NEG-ATTR=DECL "I won't/don't drink as much as that person." This particle hodo has specialized forms when combined with demonstratives, and these forms depend on dialect. The major variants are koudo–soudo–uudo, koQdo–soQdo–uQdo, and koroudo–soroudo–uroudo.[6] （椿油の）二番（搾り）がこのくらい。[6] nibaNga nibaN=ga second.one=NOM koraodo koroudo this.extent (Aogashima dialect)     nibaNga koraodo nibaN=ga koroudo second.one=NOM this.extent "The second (squeezing of tea seed oil) (is) about this much."
Nsee ~ Ncjee	？	Broadens the meaning of a noun phrase to include other examples of the same thing or similar things. The form -Ncjee is found in the Sueyoshi dialect. Following the restriction on superheavy syllables, this suffix becomes -see ~ -cjee following a heavy syllable. Cognate with the plural suffix -Nsjee ~ -isjee used for pronouns in the Uphill Dialects and Sueyoshi.

Particle Fusion[edit]

Some particles, particularly o~jo, i~jii, and N~ni, regularly undergo fusion with their host word:^[48]

	Bare Form	With o~jo (を)	With i~jii (へ)	With N~ni (に)
a-final	...a	...oo	...ee	...aN
i-final	...i	...jo[a]	...ii	...iN
u-final	...u	...uu	...ii	...uN
e-final	...e	...ei	...ei	...eN
o-final	...o	...ou	...ei	...oN
long vowel-final	...VV	...VVjo	...VVjii[b]	...VVni[c]
N-final	...N	...Njo	...Njii[b]	...Nni

In summary, words ending in light syllables undergo fusion with underlying *o, *i, and *N; whereas words ending in non-light syllables use the static longer forms jo, jii (Aogashima dialect rii), and ni.

In some older texts, the topic-marking particle wa (corresponding to Japanese は wa) can also be seen contracting with host nominals it follows (for example, ...ci + wa → ...cja), but most such contractions with wa have fallen out of use in the present day.^[26] Surviving exceptions generally involve the pronominal ending -re (see below) contracting with wa to make -ra or -rja, or the combination of wa with other particles like -ni-wa → -nja.

Verbals[edit]

Verbal chains[edit]

All Hachijō verbals (verbs and verbal adjectives) make use of a variety of suffixes to indicate the verb's grammatical and semantic function. Suffixes attach to a phonological base form called the stem, occasionally triggering minor allophony; this combination of a stem and various suffixes creates a verb chain, which is one polymorphemic word. Verbal suffixes can be broadly classified into derivations, endings, auxiliaries, extensions, and postfixes:

Verb derivations attach to the stem and create a longer verb stem to which further suffixes can attach. They can combine with each other, in the order (Stem →) Causative → Passive or Potential → Stative → Retrospective or Past Subjunctive.

Verbal endings are always mandatory, with each verb using one. Endings generally end verb chains, but there are certain suffixes (auxiliaries and extensions) that can restart the verb chain. Depending on the exact function of the ending, the resulting verb can be finite or non-finite.

Verbal auxiliaries are verbs or verblike forms that attach to the infinitive, forming serial verb constructions. Being verbals, they themselves take endings of their own, restarting the verb chain. Verbal extensions are similar to auxiliaries, but attaching to the final form (or a Japanese-style tense) instead.

Verbal postfixes are like auxiliaries and verbal extensions in that they attach verb endings to extend the verb chain, but are also like verbal endings in that they conclude a verb chain.

Derivations	Endings	Auxiliaries[a]	Extensions[b]	Postfixes
Causative -ase- Passive -are- Potential -e- Stative -ar- ~ -tar- Retrospective -ci Past Subjunctive -oositar- ~ -isitar- ~ -roositar-	attributive form -o ~ -ro final form -u ~ -ru infinitive -i negative infinitive -izu ~ -azu ~ -zu conditional gerund -aba ~ -ba imperative form -e ~ -ro exclamatory form -e ~ -re provisional gerund -eba ~ -reba concessive gerund -edou ~ -redou dubitative -oosi ~ -isi ~ -roosi optative -oosunou ~ -isunou ~ -roosunou intentional gerund -oosjaate ~ -isjaate ~ -roosjaate volitional form -ou ~ -rou participle -te requisitional form -tou anterior gerund -toQtei ~ -totei futile-hypothetical gerund -jaatei ~ -rjaatei Japanese-style present -u ~ -ru Japanese-style past -ta and -taQta Japanese-style representative gerund -tari	New-Type negative -Nnak- Old-Type negative -Nzjar- -genar- "seems to" honorific -jar- humble -itas- non-intentional -imadow-[c] lexical auxiliaries (-mik-, -das-, etc.)	conjectural -naw- focalizing -naw- suppositional -rasi-kja	Attaching to the final form: prohibitive -na jussive -beki Japanese-style negative presumptive -mee Attaching to the infinitive: simultaneous gerund -gacu ~ -gacura simultaneous gerund -nagara Attaching to the volitional form: simultaneous gerund -tei Attaching to a Japanese-style tense: Japanese-style present presumptive -darou Japanese-style past presumptive -rou

While most suffixes follow the above categories and combination rules, there are exceptions, such as nomiziisi "won't not drink," which contains two endings in a row: the negative infinitive -izu and the dubitative -isi.

Lastly, there are several particles that can attach to certain verb forms, usually the attributive, infinitive, or participle. These are considered to be clitics that attach themselves to verb chains, not part of the chain themselves:

• declarative particles -wa, -zja
• question particles -ka, -kaN, -ĭ, etc.
• conjunctional particles -Nte, -karanja, -ni, -de, -ga, -to, etc.
• case particles -i, -ni, -kara, -o, etc.

Conjugation classes[edit]

Due to sound changes and other historical developments, the conjugation patterns found in Eastern Old Japanese have separated into several more distinct patterns in Hachijō. The following list of conjugation classes is derived from Kaneda (2001):^[51]

Class 1.1A Verbs — Strong Consonant-Stem, Participle Qte

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a light syllable followed by k, t, r, or a strong w. It also includes the verb jowa "to say," whose stem is nominally *iw- but becomes j- when followed by a vowel. Class 1.1A verbs with stems in w all have only a single short syllable before the w; other w-stem verbs are of Class 1.1A'.
Examples: kakowa "write," katowa "win," torowa "take," kawowa "buy," macikowa "curse," jowowa "get drunk," butowa "hit," jowa "say."

Class 1.1A-uw Verbs — Strong uw-Stem, Participle Qte

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in u followed by a mostly-strong w. They differ from Class 1.1A w-stem verbs only in the attributive and final forms (and derived forms), where uw-o and uw-u contract to uu. Like w-stem Class 1.1A verbs, this class consists of verbs that have only a single syllable before the w. Kaneda classifies these verbs as a special subclass of 1.1A' verbs (subclass 1.1A'a), but they are separated here for clarity.
Examples: nuuwa "sew," kuuwa "eat," suuwa "suck," juuwa "tie up."

Class 1.1A' Verbs — Weak w-Stem, Participle Qte

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a light syllable followed by a weak w. They can be subclassified into 1.1A'b (stem-final uw-), 1.1A'c (stem-final ow-), and 1.1A'd (stem-final aw-). For some speakers, particularly in Downhill dialects, verbs that once followed this conjugation have been partly or completely converted to Class 1.1B by treating the stative stem (with -ar-) as a new base stem.^[52]
Examples: (b) huruuwa "shake," sukuuwa "scoop"; (c) omouwa "think," irouwa "bully"; (d) cukouwa "use," warouwa "laugh," juwouwa "celebrate," -nouwa "(conjectural suffix)."

Class 1.1B Verbs — Strong Consonant-Stem, Participle te

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a heavy syllable followed by k, t, or r.
Examples: kourowa "freeze," keerowa "go home," koorowa "change," kookowa "dry," cjoorowa "touch."

Class 1.1C Verbs — Semi-Strong r-Stem, Participle Qte

Consonant-stem verbs created from the stative suffix -ar- or another combination with the existence verb ar-, like the copula dara (from de + arowa). Non-verbal adjectives such as heta "unskilled, crude" also can be said to follow this conjugation, as they use the copula dara in order to describe nouns, e.g., hetadoo sito "an unskilled person." Kaneda classifies these verbs as a special class of 1.1A verbs, but they are separated here for clarity.
Examples: dara "be (copula)," oora "be, exist," -(t)ara "(stative suffix)," -Nzjara "(Old-Type negative)."

Class 1.2A Verbs — Strong Consonant-Stem, Participle Nde

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a light syllable followed by m, b, g, or n.
Examples: kamowa "eat," nomowa "drink," jemowa "smile," asubowa "play," marubowa "die," ojogowa "swim," kasjagowa "slant," cinowa "die."

Class 1.2B Verbs — Strong Consonant-Stem, Participle de

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a heavy syllable followed by m, b, or g.
Examples: houmowa "contain," eemowa "walk," soogowa "clamor."

Class 1.3A Verbs — Weak s-Stem, Short-Euphonic

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a light syllable followed by a weak s; this s becomes a coalescing i in certain inflections. For some speakers, particularly in Uphill dialects, verbs that once followed this conjugation are now conjugated as class 1.3B partly or completely instead.
Examples: dasowa "take out," watasowa "send across," modosowa "put back," nabusowa "hide."

Class 1.3A' Verbs — Weak s-Stem, Long-Euphonic

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a heavy syllable followed by a weak s; this s becomes (non-coalescing) ii in certain inflections. For some speakers, particularly in Uphill dialects, verbs that once followed this conjugation are now conjugated as class 1.3B partly or completely instead.
Examples: tousowa "put through," keesowa "give back," mousowa "say," moosowa "spin."

Class 1.3B Verbs — Strong s-Stem (Non-Euphonic)

Consonant-stem verbs whose stem ends in a light syllable followed by a strong s. It is unclear whether these verbs derive from regularization of Class 1.3A and 1.3A' verbs by eliminating their euphony, or if they never had euphony to begin with.
Examples: hesowa "push," kesowa "erase," kasowa "lend," josowa "quit."

Class 2 Verbs — Vowel-Stem

Vowel-stem verbs. They can be subclassified into Class 2a (ending in i-), Class 2b (ending in e-), Class 2c (ending in ee-), and Class 2d (ending in ei-).
Examples: kirowa "wear," jerowa "insert," keerowa "mix," jamerowa "suffer," meirowa "burn," oseirowa "teach," irowa "sit."

Class 3 Verbs — Irregular

Irregular verbs, which share a mix of features from Classes 1 and 2, as well as other irregularities.
Examples: sjowa "do," (de)kurowa "come."

Verbal Adjectives (VA)

One of the two types of adjectives in Hachijō. Verbal adjectives follow an idiosyncratic conjugation pattern that is supplemented with forms in -kar- (conjugated as Class 1.1C).
Examples: boukja "big," sjokja "known," hajakja "fast," toukja "far," takakja "high," nagakja "long."

New-Type Negative

^[53] A hybrid between the Class 1.1C and verbal adjective classes that is used to conjugate the New-Type Negative auxiliary verb. It has a highly variable stem form of -Nnak- ~ -Nnar- ~ -Nnakar-; how it inflects will be noted in the following subsections. It is used in the Downhill Dialects instead of the Old-Type Negative, which instead consists of the regular Class 1.1C auxiliary -Nzjara.
Sole example: -Nnaka "(New-Type negative)."

A table summarizing some of the basic forms of each conjugation class is shown below:

Class	Example	Attributive	Declarative	Infinitive	Negative	Participle	Stative	Conditional	Exclamatory	Final[a]
1.1A	kak- "write"	kako	kakowa	kaki	kakiNnaka	kaQte	kakar-	kakaba	kake	kaku-
	kat- "win"	kato	katowa	kaci	kaciNnaka	kaQte	katar-	kataba	kate	kacu-
	tor- "take"	toro	torowa	tori	toriNnaka	toQte	torar-	toraba	tore	toru-
	kaw- "buy"	kawo	kawowa	ka(w)i[b]	ka(w)iNnaka[b]	kaQte	kawar-	kawaba	kawe	kau-[b]
	iw- "say"	jo	jowa	i(i)	iNnaka, iinaka	iQte	jar-	jaba	je	ju-
—[c]	-tew- "(reportative)"	-tei[d]	-teija[e]	—	—	-teQte	—	—	—	—
1.1A-uw (1.1A'a)	nuw- "sew"	nuu	nuuwa	nu(w)i[b]	nu(w)iNnaka[b]	nuQte	nuwar-	nuwaba	nuwe	nuu-
1.1A'b[f]	huruw- "shake"	huruu	huruuwa	hurii	huriinaka	huruQte	huruur-[f]	huruuba	hurii	huruu-
1.1A'c[f]	omow- "think"	omou	omouwa	omei	omeinaka	omoQte	omoor-[f]	omooba	omei	omou-
1.1A'd[f]	waraw- "laugh"	warou	warouwa	waree	wareenaka	waraQte	waroor-[f]	warooba	waree	warou-
1.1B	kook- "dry"	kooko	kookowa	kooki	kookiNnaka	koote	kookar-	kookaba	kooke	kooku-
	keer- "go home"	keero	keerowa	keeri	keeriNnaka	keete	keerar-	keeraba	keere	keeru-
1.1C	dar- "(copula)"	doo	dara	dari daĭ[g]	*daNnaka[h]	daQte[i]	darar-	da(r)aba	dare daĭ[j]	*daru-[k]
1.2A	nom- "drink"	nomo	nomowa	nomi	nomiNnaka	noNde	nomar-	nomaba	nome	nomu-
	asub- "play"	asubo	asubowa	asubi	asubiNnaka	asuNde	asubar-	asubaba	asube	asubu-
	ojog- "swim"	ojogo	ojogowa	ojogi	ojogiNnaka	ojoNde	ojogar-	ojogaba	ojoge	ojogu-
	cin- "die"	cino	cinowa	cini	ciniNnaka	ciNde	cinar-	cinaba	cine	cinu-
1.2B	eem- "walk"	eemo	eemowa	eemi	eemiNnaka	eede	eemar-	eemaba	eeme	eemu-
	soog- "clamor"	soogo	soogowa	soogi	soogiNnaka	soode	soogar-	soogaba	sooge	soogu-
1.3A	das- "take out"	daso	dasowa	dasi	dasiNnaka	dasite dee(te)[l]	dasitar- deetar-	dasaba	dase	dasu-
	modos- "put back"	modoso	modosowa	modosi	modosiNnaka	modosite modei(te)[l]	modositar- modeitar-	modosaba	modose	modosu-
	nabus- "hide (tr.)"	nabuso	nabusowa	nabusi nabii	nabusiNnaka	nabusite nabii(te)[l]	nabusitar- nabiitar-	nabusaba	nabuse	nabusu-
	tames- "attempt"	tameso	tamesowa	tamesi	tamesiNnaka	tamesite tamee(te)[l][m]	tamesitar- tameetar-[m]	tamesaba	tamese	tamesu-
1.3A'	tous- "put through"	touso	tousowa	tousi	tousiNnaka	tousite touii(te)[l]	tousitar- touiitar-	tousaba	touse	tousu-
	kees- "give back"	keeso	keesowa	keesi	keesiNnaka	keesite keeii(te)[l]	keesitar- keeiitar-	keesaba	keese	keesu-
1.3B	hes- "push"	heso	hesowa	hesi	hesiNnaka	hesite	hesitar-	hesaba	hese	hesu-
2a	ki- "wear"	kiro	kirowa	ki	kiNnaka	kite	kitar-	kiba	kire	ki(ru)-[n]
2b	je- "insert"	jero	jerowa	je	jeNnaka	jete	jetar-	jeba	jere	je(ru)-[n]
2c	kee- "mix"	keero	keerowa	kee	keenaka	keete	keetar-	keeba	keere	kee(ru)-[n]
2d	mei- "burn"	meiro	meirowa	mei	meinaka	meite	meitar-	meiba	meire	mei(ru)-[n]
3	s(j)- "do"	sjo[o]	sjowa[o]	si	siNnaka	site	sitar-	saba	se, sje	su-
	k(o)- "come"	kuro	kurowa	ki	kiNnaka	kite	kitar-	koba	kure	ku(ru)-[n]
VA	sjo- "known"[p]	sjo-ke	sjo-kja	sjo-ku	(sjo-ku nakja)[q]	sjo-kute	sjo-karar-	sjo-kaba sjo-ka(r)aba[r]	sjo-ke(re)[s]	sjo-ke-[t] *sjo-karu-[k]
New Neg.	-Nn(ak)-	-Nnoo -Nnako[u]	-Nnaka	-zu	—	-zuto	-Nn(ak)arar-	-Nn(ak)a(r)aba	-Nn(ak)are	*-Nnaru-[k]

Verbal Affixes[edit]

Attributive -o[edit]

The attributive form (連体形, rentaikei, attr) is made by adding the suffix -o to the stems of Class 1 verbs, -ro to those of Class 2, and -ke to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes sjo, and kurowa becomes kuro. This form descends from the Eastern Old Japanese attributive form -o₁ ~ *-uro₁.

On its own, the attributive serves a similar function to an English relative clause, for defining or classifying nominals:

Unlike in Modern Japanese, clauses in Hachijō also can be nominalized directly using the attributive form of a verb (glossed as attr(nmlz)). When nominalized in this way, the clause becomes a noun meaning "the act of ~ing", "the fact of ~ happening", "one who ~s", "that which is ~ed," etc., depending on context. Compare these near-identical constructions in Hachijō and Japanese, where Japanese requires the nominalization particle の no, but Hachijō does not:

This function of the attributive was also a feature of Japanese up until the early modern period, during which の no became used as a nominalization particle.^[61][62]

See also the section on mermaid constructions, which make ample use of the attributive form.

Declarative Particles -wa and -zja[edit]

The default form of the declarative (断定, dantei, decl) in Hachijō is formed by adding the declarative particle -wa to the attributive form (連体形, rentaikei) of verbs. For a slightly assertive or emphatic statement, the particle -zja can replace -wa. The particles wa and zja come from Old Japanese は pa and にては nite pa → dewa, respectively. The wa-declarative form serves as the dictionary form of verbals.

Originally, these particles followed the Old Japanese attributive in its nominalized form, creating a topicalized nominal;^[63] in Hachijō, they have become markers of independent clauses, almost completely supplanting the original final form in this particular use:^[64]

With verbal adjectives, the attributive -ke merges with -wa to become -kja:

Verbs of Class 1.1C also merge their attributive with -wa, contracting -owa irregularly to -a. For instance, the copula dara has the attributive form *dar-o → doo, but this is blocked by the addition of -wa, as -owa contracts to -a instead, viz., *dar-o-wa → dara.

A similar variation can be seen in the New Negative, which has the attributive form *-Nnako → -Nnoo but a declarative form *-Nnakowa → -Nnaka.

The declarative particle zja has no special contracted forms, always attaching directly to the attributive, e.g., nomozja "drinks," doozja "is." It has also been noted to take the form -zjaN in the Sueyoshi dialect.

Other particles used with the attributive[edit]

Because of its nominalization function, the attributive form can be followed by any particle that can follow a noun, such as case particles. However, in addition, there are several other particles can also attach particularly to the attributive forms of verbals:

Particle	Japanese Cognate	Meaning
-go͡oN "let's"	(?) ～が様に ga yō ni	Creates a cohortative predicate, suggesting that the speaker and listener do something together.[68]
-ga "but, yet"	～が ga	Marks the verb as contrasting with the following clause. In many cases, the following clause is left implicit.[69]
-Nte "because"	～によって ni yotte	Marks the verb as a reason or cause; the following clause is its result or consequence.[70]
-karanja "now that"	～からには kara ni wa	A combination of the ablative -kara, dative -ni, and topic marker -wa. Marks the verb as an action that has completed, and as a result of its completion, the speaker is commanding or advising the listener to do something. This form always follows a verb with the stative, and it is followed by a verb with a commanding or hortative meaning.[71]

The clitic -Nte is a shortened form of -joNte, itself an extreme contraction and metathesis of -ni joQte, related to Japanese ～によって ni yotte "due to, by means of."^[69] This clitic has significant variance between dialects when it occurs after long vowels, shown here on ikowa "to go" as an example:^[72]

Dialect	After iko "goes"	After ikoo "went"
Mitsune	ikoNte [ikonte]	ikoote [ikoːte]
Ōkagō	ikoNte [ikonte]	ikoote [ikoːte]
Kashitate	ikoĭte [ikoite]	ikoaite [ikoɐite][a]
Nakanogō	ikoNte [ikonte]	ikoaNte [ikoɐnte][b]
Sueyoshi	ikoNte [ikonte]	ikaaNte [ikaːnte][b]
Aogashima[73]	ikoNte [ikonte]	ikoote ~ ikaote [ikoːte ~ ikɔute]
Minami Daitō[74]	ikoNte [ikonte]	ikoote [ikoːte]

Some speakers of the Nakanogō and Kashitate dialects were also noted to have used the older form -joNte [jonte] after both long and short vowels as late as 1950.^[72]

Infinitive -i[edit]

The infinitive (連用形, ren'yōkei, lit. "connective-use form," inf) is made by adding the suffix -i to the stems of Class 1 verbs, nothing to those of Class 2, and -ku to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes si, and kurowa becomes ki. This form descends from the Old Japanese infinitive -i₁. Negative verbs also have a suppletive infinitive form where the whole negative auxiliary -Nnaka or -Nzjara is replaced by -zu, from Old Japanese -zu ← -ni su (possibly reborrowed through Japanese).

This is a non-finite form used similarly to Japanese's infinitive: to link several verbs in a clause, for serial verb constructions, attaching auxiliary verbs, as a method of nominalizing verbs, etc.

Infinitive as an Independent Predicate[edit]

Certain independent predicates can make use of the infinitive form instead of an ordinary finite predicate.

Simple infinitive predicates can be used to refer to actions in the immediate past, or to indicate that the speaker is speaking to themself, or both:

In a reduplicated form with -mo "also, even," specifically of the form nomimo nomi (for nomowa "to drink"), infinitive predicates are used to assert of the truth of the speaker's statement. This kind of statement is used without regard to time:

Another use of an infinitive predicate can be found in certain types of questions, as discussed in a section below.

Infinitive-Derived Expressions[edit]

A number of auxiliary verbs can be used with the infinitive, all of which are derived from grammaticalized verbs:

Auxiliary	Class	Independent Cognate	Example
-mikowa	1.1A	mikowa "to walk"	nomimikowa "does things like drinking"
-hazimerowa	2b	hazimerowa "to start"	nomihazimerowa "starts to drink"
-dasowa	1.3A	dasowa "to send out"	nomidasowa "starts to drink"
-dousowa -tousowa	1.3A'	tousowa "to put through"	nomidousowa "completely finishes drinking"
-cuzukerowa	2b	cuzukerowa "to continue"	nomicuzukerowa "continues to drink"
-kirowa	1.1A	kirowa "to cut"	nomikirowa "completely finishes drinking"
-genara	1.1C	-ge "seeming" + nar- "(copula)"[a]	nomigenara "seems to drink"
-jarowa	1.1A	jarowa "to give" (honorific)	nomijarowa "(an esteemed person) drinks"
-itasowa	1.3A[81]	itasowa "to do (humble)"	nomiitasowa "(I) humbly drink"

The negative verbal auxiliaries -Nnaka and -Nzjara, discussed in a later subsection, are also attached to the infinitive.

Similarly, there are a number of derived adjectives or adjective-like expressions built on the infinitive form:

Auxiliary	Class	Independent Cognate	Example
-takja	VA	itakja "painful"[a]	nomitakja "wants to drink"[83]
-soudara	1.1C	そう -sō[b] + dara "(copula)"	nomisoudara "seems to drink"[84]
-siNdara	1.1C	siN "(etymology unknown)" + dara "(copula)"	nomisiNdara "is welcome to drink, is allowed to drink"[85]
-tedara	1.1C	te "hand" + dara "(copula)"	nomitedara "is someone who can drink"[86]

And several conjunctional forms as well:

• reduplicated (e.g., nominomi) — Indicates that an action is iterative. Used by itself, it serves as an adverbial phrase indicating that the iterative action was performed simultaneously with another, whereas when used with sjowa "to do" (e.g., nominomi sjowa), it simply indicates repeated action. Reduplicated verbs do not undergo vowel coalescence, e.g., okoriokori "happening again and again," not **okorjokori.
• -nagara ~ -nagaa — Indicates that an action is performed simultaneously with another, e.g. nominagara "while drinking." This formation is synonymous with the simultaneous gerund in -outei. Cognate with Japanese ～ながら -nagara.^[87]
• -gacu ~ -gacura — Indicates that an action is performed simultaneously with another, often coincidentally or through the exact same action, e.g. nomigacu "while one happens to be drinking." This form is limited to verbs that involve agency on the subject's part, and is also not usually used with motion verbs without an implicit endpoint (e.g., eemowa "walk," hasirowa "run"), intransitive bodily activities or functions (e.g. tatowa "stand"), or transitive verbs where an action is performed only once to one object (e.g., sasagowa "put on one's head"). Related to Japanese ～がてら -gatera.^[88]
• -i (allative) or -ni (dative) — Indicates the purpose for which another action was performed, e.g. nomii or nomini "in order to drink." Using the allative -i is the more common than the dative -ni for this purpose, but both can be found.^[89]

Negative Infinitive -zu[edit]

The negative infinitive (neg.inf) can be made in two different ways. The first way is by simply appending -zu to the regular infinitive form, e.g., nomizu "not drinking" (but is treated here as its own suffix). The second way is by adding -azu to the stems of Class 1 verbs, and -zu to those of Class 2. In this latter way, for irregular verbs, sjowa becomes sazu, sjazu, or sezu;^[90] and kurowa becomes kozu.

The negative infinitive is used in many of the same situations that the regular infinitive is used word-finally (that is, without any suffixes). However, there are some specialized constructions used with -zu:

• -zuN ~ -zuni (-zu-ni, neg.inf-dat), which acts as an adverbial phrase meaning "without ~ing," e.g., nomazuN "without drinking." It can also be used with a similar meaning to a negative participle.
• -zunja (-zu-nja, neg.inf-dat.top), which acts as an adjectival noun and expresses necessity, e.g., nomazunjadara "must drink, have to drink." This form likely originally meant "if one does not ~," to be followed by a phrase such as damedara "it would not be good," but only the copula dara has remained.^[91] Compare Japanese ～なきゃ -nakya, ～なくちゃ -nakucha, and ～ないと -nai to, which literally mean "if one does not," but can express a necessitative meaning even without a following clause.

In addition, there are a handful of derived forms from -zu:

• Negative Participle -zuto (neg.ptcp), used for conjunctive constructions with the particle -mo "even," e.g., nomazutomo "even not drinking, even if he doesn't drink."^[92] In general, this competes as the negative participle with -Nsjade and the dative-marked -zuN ~ -zuni.
• Negative Dubitative -ziisi (-zu-isi, neg.inf-dub), used as a kind of double negative to show what is not doubted, etc. (e.g., nomiziisi "won't not drink").^[93] This competes with the regularly-formed -Nnakaroosi and Nzjaroosi, formed from the negative auxiliaries -Nnaka and -Nzjara.
• Non-Intentional -ziimadouwa (-zu-imadow-, neg.inf-try), a derived Class 1.1A'c verb that expresses a lack of trying to do something, or seeming not to do something, e.g., nomaziimadouwa "doesn't try to drink." This appears to be a compound involving the verb 惑う madouwa "to get lost, to be perplexed."^[94]

Participle -te[edit]

The participle (中止形, chūshikei, lit. "interrupting form," ptcp) is made by adding the suffix -te or -de to the stems of Class 1 (with some allomorphy), -te to those of Class 2, and -kute to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes site, and kurowa becomes kite. This grammatical form and its cognates across the Japonic languages are known by many names, including "participle," "gerund," "continuative," "subordinating," and simply "te-form"; the term "participle" will be used here. This form descends from the Old Japanese subordinating suffix -te, which was historically added to the infinitive but has gained a great degree of allomorphy due to historical sound changes, so it is treated as its own suffix here.

The participle is a non-finite form that serves a coordinating or subordinating role in sentences, indicating the realization (at the very least, the beginning) of the marked action. Therefore, the clause following a participle must necessarily refer to either the same time or a later time:

Due to the temporal ordering implied by the participle, it can be used to imply a causal relationship:

Lastly, the participle can also be used to mark mirativity or emphasis in verbs of sensation or emotion:^[98]

Participle-Derived Expressions[edit]

The participle has a few specialized uses when combined with certain particles:

Combination	Japanese Cognate	Particles Used	Example
-tewa -cja	～ては -te wa ～ちゃ -cha	topic -wa	noNdewa ~ noNzja "if one drinks"
-tekara	～ては -te kara	ablative -kara	noNdekara "after drinking"
-temo	～ても -te mo	-mo "also, even"	noNdemo "even if one drinks, even drinking"

Several verbs are also used in common constructions with the participle:

Auxiliary	Class	Independent Cognate	Example
-te arowa	1.1A~1.1C	arowa "to be"	noNde arowa "is drinking, has drunk"[a]
-te ikowa	1.1A	ikowa "to go"	noNde ikowa "goes drinking, drinks away, etc."
-te kurowa -te dekurowa	3	(de)kurowa "to come"	noNde kurowa "comes drinking, starts to drink, etc."
-te simouwa	1.1A'd	simouwa "to finish doing"	noNde simouwa "drinks completely, accidentally drinks"
-te mirowa	2a	mirowa "to see"	noNde mirowa "tries to drink"
-te miserowa	2b	miserowa "to show"	noNde miserowa "proves that (he) can drink"
-te miNnaka -te miNzjara	New Neg. 1.1C	mirowa "to see" + Negative	noNde miNnaka "has never drunk"
-tokowa -te okowa	1.1A	okowa "to put"	noNdokowa "drinks (for a later purpose)"

Anterior -toQtei[edit]

The anterior gerund (先行形, senkōkei, ant) can be made by replacing the -te or -de of the participle with -totei ~ -toQtei or -dotei ~ -doQtei, respectively. The form -toQtei ~ doQtei is older, and is now generally used after verbs without euphonic participles (mostly Class 2 and 3 verbs, as well as verbal adjectives), whereas -totei ~ -dotei is used with other verbs (like Class 1 verbs). The copula dara has the anterior gerund doQtei.

There are two likely candidates for this form's etymology:^[102]

• participle -te + participle oQte of or- "to be" + accusative -o (in mirative usage)
• participle -te + participle oQte of ok- "to put" + accusative -o (in mirative usage)

This form denotes an action that occurs strictly before another action that occurs in the following clause. It is similar but not exactly equivalent to the construction -tekara ~ -dekara, using the participle -te ~ -de and the ablative -kara.

Requisitional -tou[edit]

The requisitional form (依頼, irai, req) form can be made by replacing the -te or -de of the participle with -tou or -dou, respectively. This suffix is often thought to etymologically derive from the participle -te followed by the accusative -o, but as that would have been expected to yield **-tei rather than -tou, this form's ultimate origin is unclear; it likely derives from a more complex contraction.^[103]

The requisitional is used for asking favors and requests of others. Like the imperative, it can be softened by adding mii afterward:

Imperative -e ~ -ro[edit]

The imperative form (命令形, meireikei, imp) is made by adding the suffix -e to the stems of Class 1 verbs, and -ro to those of Class 2. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes se or sje, and kurowa becomes ko. These forms descend from the Eastern Old Japanese imperative forms -e₍₁₎ ~ ro₂.

The imperative is used for commands, and can be softened by adding mii afterward:

The imperative can also be used to warn others about imminent events that would have a negative effect on them:

For negative imperatives, the prohibitive postfix -na (attaching to the final form) is used instead.

Final Form -u[edit]

The final form (旧終止形, kyū-shūshikei, lit. "old termination form," fin) is made by adding the suffix -u to the stems of Class 1 verbs, nothing or -ru to those of Class 2, and -ke or underlying *-karu to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes su, and kurowa becomes ku or kuru. However, for Class 1.1C verbs, the underlying *-aru typically contracts to aQ, aN, or oo depending on the following morpheme; the same can be said for verbal adjectives, whose underlying 1.1C *-karu contracts to -kaQ, -kaN, or -koo. This form descends from the Old Japanese final form -u, as well as in some constructions borrowed from Japanese using its attributive form -u ~ -ru.

Despite its name, this suffix's use in concluding declarative sentences has mostly been supplanted in Hachijō by the declarative -owa form. It mainly only exists as a predicative form in quotative and reportative speech:

However, the final form still remains fossilized in the formation of several verbal extensions:

Prohibitive -na[edit]

The prohibitive form (禁止形, kinshikei, proh) is made by adding the suffix -na to the final form (with or without the extra -ru on Class 2 verbs and kurowa). This form is either inherited from the Old Japanese prohibitive -(u)na or reborrowed from Japanese. This form serves as the negative counterpart to the imperative, commanding the addressee not to do something:

Conjectural Extension -naw-[edit]

The conjectural (推量, suiryō, cnjec) extension is made by adding -naw- (Class 1.1A') to the final forms of verbals. On Class 2 verbs and kurowa, the extra ru is optional; for verbal adjectives, the combined result is -kaNnaw-. This extension descends from the Old Japanese tentative-conjectural extension -nam- (contrast Western Old Japanese -uram-), with /m/ elided to /w/.

This extension denotes various conjectural meanings such as guessing, expectation, prediction, hypotheticality, and other such irrealis situations.

Focalizing Extension -naw-[edit]

The focalizing (強調, kyōchō, lit. "emphatic," foclz) extension is made by adding -naw- (Class 1.1A') to the final forms of verbals, identical in all forms to the conjectural.

This extension was borrowed from a Middle Japanese mermaid construction -(r)u nari, consisting of the Middle Japanese nominalized attributive form in -(r)u followed by the copula なり nari, an exact parallel to Hachijō's native -(r)odara mermaid construction. Because the Middle Japanese attributive is -(r)u rather than -(r)o, this construction was borrowed to use the Hachijō final form in -(r)u instead. In addition, the borrowed copula nar- has been reduced to -naw-, merging in form with the conjectural -naw-.

The Japanese-style present form -nou (← -naw-u) is used sentence-finally for emphasis (example 1) and sentence-medially express cause and effect (example 2):

The exclamatory form -nee (← -naw-e) is used in kakari-musubi with the focus particle koo (see the section on focalized exclamatory kakari-musubi for details and examples).

The provisional form -neeja (← -naw-eba) is used to express two types of conditionals or cause-and-effect statements. When not following the stative extension, it is an imperfect conditional, indicating that the condition was met repeatedly or many times at once:

When -neeja does follow the stative extension, the clauses expresses a completed action, and the following clause indicates a result that occurred upon its completion:

Lastly, this extension appears to be somehow fossilized in the optative ending -osunou.

Jussive Adjective -beki[edit]

The jussive (当為・義務, tōi-gimu, lit. "responsibility & duty," juss) is made by adding the postfix -beki to the final forms of verbs, creating an adjectival noun. This form is borrowed from the Japanese form -beki, descended from Western Old Japanese -(u)be₂-ki₁.

This form acts as an adjectival noun that, when used with the copula dara, expresses a meaning like "ought to do," "should do," or "needs to do":

A verbal adjective form -bekja of this affix has also been attested.^{[citation needed]}

Suppositional Adjective -rasikja[edit]

The suppositional (推定, suitei, supp) form is made by adding the extension -rasi- to the final forms of verbs, creating a verbal adjective. This form is either inherited from Eastern Old Japanese -(u)rasi or borrowed from its Japanese cognate form ～らしい -rashi-i.

This form is a verbal adjective with the meaning "seeming":

Conditional Gerund -aba[edit]

The conditional gerund (aba条件形, ABA jōkenkei, lit. "aba-conditional form," cond) is made by adding the suffix -aba to the stems of Class 1 verbs, -ba or -raba to those of Class 2, and -kaba or -kaaba ~ -karaba to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes saba, and kurowa becomes koba or kuraba. This form descends from the Old Japanese conditional gerund -aba.

This form introduces a condition or prerequisite that, if it is (or were) true, the following clause occurs (or would occur).^[111] For conditions without a stative, the consequence occurs before the condition (in anticipation of it):

For past conditions (usually marked with a stative), the consequence occurs after the achievement of the condition:

Finally, if the consequence refers to past time, the sentence is always counterfactual, where the condition was not actually met:

Futile-Hypothetical Gerund -jaatei[edit]

The futile-hypothetical gerund (逆条件形, gyaku-jōkenkei, lit. "reverse-conditional form," fhyp) is made by adding the suffix -jaatei to the stems of Class 1 verbs, -rjaatei to those of Class 2, and -kjaatei or -karjaatei to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes sjaatei, and kurowa becomes kurjaatei. This form is believed to descend from the Class 1 infinitive -i followed by the phrase aQte mo "even if it is": *-iaQtemo → *-jaQtewo → *-jaatei; the other verb classes' forms must have been formed by analogy.^[115]

This form expresses futility: the clause marked by -jaatei introduces a condition that is known to be false or impossible, and the following clause expresses an action or state that would remain true even if the condition were met.^[116]

Exclamatory -e[edit]

The exclamatory form (已然形, izenkei, excl) is made by adding the suffix -e to the stems of Class 1 verbs, -re to those of Class 2, and -ke to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes se or sje, and kurowa becomes kure. This form descends from the Old Japanese exclamatory form -e₂ ~ -ure.

The exclamatory form used as a predicative form in constructions with the focus particles ka and koo; these constructions are detailed further in the section on kakari-musubi. The exclamatory form is also used etymologically as the base for forming the provisional and concessive gerunds, detailed in the following subsection:

Provisional -eba ~ -ja[edit]

The provisional gerund (eba条件形, EBA jōkenkei, lit. "eba-conditional form," prov) is generally formed by adding by the suffix -ba or -a to the exclamatory form of verbals (but is treated as its own suffix). For the -a variant, this contracts with a preceding e to become ja, or if the verb's exclamatory form ends in a long vowel, -a becomes -ja instead (e.g., wareeba → wareeja "when he laughs"). For verbal adjectives, the -ba forms are -keba and -kereba, while the -a form is -kerja. For the irregular verb sjowa, the -ba forms are sureba and s(j)eba, and the -a forms are surja and sja. For the irregular verb kurowa, the -ba form is kureba, and the -a form is -kurja. All of these forms descend from the Old Japanese conjunctive gerund -e₂ba ~ -ureba with or without the /b/ elided. Although the variants in -eba and -ja have identical etymologies, they have slightly diverged in usage.

The principal function of the provisional gerund is to mark a subordinate clause that is causally or temporally related to the main clause, describing the circumstance in which the main clause occurs:

Both -eba and -ja can also be used to mark future conditions, whether they are expected to be actualized or not:

However, for conditions or circumstances that are or were met repeatedly, with the same result in each case, -ja is preferred for both present and past results:

When used with a focus-marking particle ka or koo, a provisional in -ja marks a precise reason, with more emphasis than the common phrasing using -Nte "because." Naturally, such sentences with ka or koo use exclamatory kakari-musubi:

Concessive -edou[edit]

The concessive gerund (dou接続形, DOU setsuzokukei, lit. "dou-conjunctional form," cnces) is formed by adding by the suffix -dou to the exclamatory form of verbals (but is treated as its own suffix). For Class 1.1C verbs, the resulting sequence -aredou can contract to -aĭdou. This form descends from the Old Japanese concessive gerund -e₂do₂mo₂ ~ -uredo₂mo₂ → -edowo ~ -redowo → -edou ~ -redou, cognate to the Japanese conjunctions けども kedomo and けれども keredomo "although." The forms -doumo and -douni are also attested.

The concessive gerund introduces adverse information despite which the main clause still nevertheless occurs or occurred:

Volitional -ou[edit]

The volitional form (意志形, ishikei, vol) is made by adding the suffix -ou to the stems of Class 1 verbs, and -rou to those of Class 2.^[121] Alternative formations also exist, where Class 1.1A' verbs use their declarative or final form, -i (possibly underlying *o or *u) is attached to the stems of Class 2b verbs, and nothing is added to the stems of Classes 2c and 2d.^[122] For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes sjou, and kurowa becomes kurou or kou. (Verbal adjectives have no volitional form.) The volitional seems to have some relationship to the Old Japanese tentative-conjectural form -am-, and thereby the Japanese volitional -ō ~ -yō,^[123] but the exact path between the Old Japanese and Modern Hachijō forms is not clear.^[121]

The volitional indicates a personal intent or a cohortative suggestion:^[124]

Statements of intent can be emphasized by adding the postfix -bei, as in nomoubei "I'll drink!" Similarly, cohortative suggestions can be emphasized by adding the declarative particle -zja, as in ikouzja "Let's go!"

The volitional can also be used as an attributive form in the construction -ou houdara and its negative equivalent -ou hou nakja, which indicate ability or possibility:^[122]

Simultaneous -outei[edit]

The simultaneous gerund (同時形, dōjikei, simul) can be made by appending -tei to the end of the volitional form. There are two likely candidates for this form's etymology:^[128]

• volitional -ou + quotative te + accusative -o (in mirative usage)
• volitional -ou + quotative to + allative -i

This form denotes an action that occurs simultaneously with another action, similar to English "while ~ing," and equivalent in meaning to adding -nagara "while" to the infinitive.^[129]

This sense of simultaneity can also be used to indicate an action that was interrupted by another:

It can also be used to emphasize a contradictory yet simultaneous event:

Dubitative-Related Forms[edit]

Several verbal forms appear to be related to the dubitative (formerly optative) form listed below, which seems to be related in some way to the Classical Japanese optative constructions ～ま欲しき -mafosi-ki or ～ま欲りする -mafori suru.^[133]

Dubitative -oosi[edit]

The dubitative (反語, hango, lit. "ironic," dub) form is made by adding the suffix -oosi to the stems of Class 1 verbs (or -aroosi for Class 1.1A'), -isi or -roosi to those of Class 2a and 2b, -si or -roosi to those of Class 2c and 2d, and -karoosi to verbal adjectives'. For irregular verbs, sjowa becomes seisi or sjoosi, and kurowa becomes kousi or kuroosi. The Sueyoshi and Aogashima dialects are an exception, where -iisi is used for Class 1 verbs (-ariisi for Class 1.1A'), only -isi ~ -si is used for Class 2, sjowa becomes siisi, and kurowa becomes kiisi.

As attested in older records, this form once expressed an optative meaning, often (but not necessarily) regarding a wish or hope that the speaker thinks might not come true:

However, due to semantic shift emphasizing the non-realization of the wish, this form has changed to have an ironic, doubting, or generally negative meaning in modern speech. When used with a first-person subject, it expresses what the speaker does not want to do, cannot do, or does not believe he or she can do. When used with non-first-person subjects, it expresses what the speaker expects is not the case or will not happen.

The dubitative can also attach to the negative infinitive -zu to form -ziisi, which—due to its double negative-like meaning—indicates what the speaker thinks should be possible or doesn't doubt will happen.