8 Naasautiit amiallu

Dialogue: Red pen, blue pen

Elizabeth:
Aupaluttamik allautiKaven? Aupaluttamik allautiKaven?Do you have a red pen?
Joanna:
Auka, tungujuttamik allautiKavunga. Auka, tungujuttamik allautiKavunga. No, but I have a blue pen.
Elizabeth:
kina aupaluttamik allatiKajon?kina aupaluttamik allatiKajon? Who would have a red pen?
Joanna:
Matilda aupaluttamik allautilik.Matilda aupaluttamik allautilik. Matilda has a red pen.
Elizabeth:
Nakummek.NakummekThanks.

Vocabulary
nomarak
number
Katsit?
how many?
atautsik
one
atausirmik
one of something
maggok
two
two of something
pingasut
three
three of something
sitamat
four
four of something
tallimat
five
five of something
tauttuit
colours
Kinnitak
black
tungujuttak
blue
iviujak
green
aupaluttak
red
KaKuttak
white
Kutsutak
yellow
pualok
mittens (a pair of)
nasak
hat
kamek Kisijâk
boots (skin)
Kimmik
dog
motakâk
car

Grammar

18 » The Ending -mik / -nnik / -nik

The noun ending -mik and its dual/plural form -nik are used very frequently in Inuktut and require a detailed explanation. Consider the following two sentences in English:

He bought the blue car. He bought a blue car.

In the first sentence, we are talking about a specific car that is known both to the person who is speaking and the person he is talking with. In the second sentence, the speaker refers to the car very generally. The exact car that was purchased is irrelevant to the conversation they are having.

In Inuktut, when we are speaking very generally about a person or a thing, we attach the affix -mik to the person or thing.

illumik takujuk. She sees a house.

Note, too, that -mik is added to words that describe the object, like the colour or number:

Atausimik illumik takujuk. She sees one house.
Kutsutammik illumik takujuk. She sees a yellow house.

 

The dual form of -mik is -nik :

Aupaluttânik pualuKajutit. You have a pair of red mittens.

Note how the word above for red, aupaluttak, changes to aupaluttâk in the dual.

The plural form of -mik is also -nik :

Pingasunik KitungaKavunga. I have three children.

-mik and -nik are frequently used with numbers and colours:

Kutsutânik pualulik. He has yellow mitts.
Tallimanik tuttunik takuvunga. I see five caribou.

-mik is also used frequently with people's names:

Mialimik nulialik. He has a wife named Mary.

The endings -mik and -nik delete the final consonant sound of words they are added to:

Kagitaujak computer
Kagitaujamik a computer
Kagitaujanik some computers