Written | a | b | c | d | e | g | h | í | i | k | l | m | n | ng | o | p | r | s | t | u | w | ' |
IPA | a | b | ʃ | d | e | g | h | i | ɪ | k | l | m | n | ŋ | o | p | r | s | t | u | w | ʔ |
The phoneme /ʔ/ is not considered a letter or sound alone, but rather, is used to separate repeated vowels. It is not technically represented in Sateca'an's native script, but is inserted here in transliteration for convenience and as a stylistic choice.
Word order is typically SOV. Adjectives follow nouns.
Plural suffixes conjugate by gender.
Neuter | -an |
Feminine | -ke |
Masculine | -cí |
Possessives precede nouns, and conjugate by animacy of the possessor.
Animate | tí |
Inanimate | ta |
Examples:
dweo ta na ídan
river of the west
Verbs take different prefixes depending on gender and animacy of the subject.
Neuter | Feminine | Masculine | Negative* | |
Animate | dí | bí | kí | |
Inanimate | de | am | ka |
Tense is determined by a verb-ending suffix.
Simple | Continuous | Conditional | |
Past | -(e)dan | -das | -dín |
Present | n/a | -las | -lín |
Future | -(e)kan | -kas | -kín |
Perfect and pluperfect forms are made by adding ogín (animate) or egan (inanimate) as suffixes to the simple and continuous forms, respectively. The suffix ga marks imperatives.
There are categories of verbs that conjugate a little differently than the rest.
/dea/ becomes /de/, and /kaa/ becomes /ka/.
The beginnings /dew/ and /kaw/ become /dw/ and /kw/.
dwemín dwo.
There is water.
dwemín kwo.
There is no water.
The beginnings /diɪ/, /biɪ/, and /kiɪ/ become /diʔ/, /biʔ/, and /kiʔ/. (The spelling does not change.)
ca dwedon ta na cun díina.
ʃa dwedon ta na ʃun diʔna
I come from the Northern coast.
kíinílga ca.
kiʔnilga ʃa
Don't bother me.
The conditional form is a little unusual, but basically is used for "if" statements, to express the possibility of something.
For example:
telu talta dísilín, hle díwo.
If (a) woman is a mother, (she) has a child.
ca na ana dírundín, na acwin dola de.
If I ate the soup, the bowl is empty.
ca lata tí ke kísilín, ke hlelí tí ca kísi.
If I am not your father, you are not my son.