Grammar questions regarding copula sentences. Haló gach daoine! Happy new year. I've been reading this pdf I downloaded and realised few things. 1) We all know how the copula "Is" works in classification sentences like "Is rúnaí í" (she is a secretary) but if were to classify a proper noun like "Síle is a secretary" is "Is rúnaí Síle" sentence correct? 2) In using the copula in identification sentences, when to use the one with emphatic pronoun "Is ise an rúnaí" and the one with echoing pronoun "Is í an rúnaí í"? Do they vary in some degree? 3) Is propletic pronoun really required when identifying proper nouns, like "Is í Síle an rúnaí"? Like what difference would it make if I say "Is Síle an rúnaí"? Thanks in advance. :)

Deireadh seachtaine le an Pápa Proinsias Tháinig an Pápa Proinsias an tseachtain seo caite mar turas cúig lá. Rinne mé iarracht a fheiceáil é le cúpla lá anuas ach theip orm arís agus arís eile. Bhí an iomarca daoine ann agus ní féidir liom a dul níos faide chun tosaigh. Mar sin, Dé Domhnaigh seo caite, chuaigh mé 9 uair an chloig níos luaithe le haghaidh an mais tráthnóna. Ag sé ar maidin, bhí an iomarca daoine go cheana! Roghnaigh daoine áirithe a campáil amuigh sa cheantar arú aréir. Bhí muid ag brú a chéile nuair osclaíodh an tslí isteach chun an páirc. Bhuail mé cairde nua, chonaic mé cáiliúla áitiúla, d'éirigh an fál a léim, agus mhún ar an bhféar le mná baothdhána eile, lol. Mar bharr ar an donas, rug an fhearthainn orainn agus d'fhag mo fón ceamara ar maos. Tá súil agam go mbeidh sé ag obair go fóill. Faraor, tá grianghriaf go leor agus físéan aige. :( Bhí droim nimhneach orm an lá ina dhiaidh sin ach bhí fíu domh é. Nach ormsa atá an t-ádh spléachadh a fháil ar an Papa! :)

How English materials are translated and sold to the Japanese? It was either real novel or manga for me, but yesterday I decided to check out what ranobes (light novels) were like. I felt like reading some film treatment rather than a novel. It was like a parade of adjectives and adverbs so I thought it must've something to do with the shuujigaku (decorating literary works with lots of modifiers) which is totally different to English rhetoric (which involves figures of speech and other compositional techniques). Now I'm wondering how English materials are translated and being sold to the Japanese if they don't share the same rhetorical concepts. Like Harry Potter books which were translated to Nihongo, did they simply translate it from how J.K. Rowling made it? Or did they deconstruct and reconstruct the entire material to fit that of their target market? :(

Mga Pokus ng Pandiwa: Verbal Focuses in Tagalog Grammar

Introduction 

If my memory serves me right, we first covered this back when I was in 4th grade. I find it essential to post this particular subject publicly after realising the confusion that learners are facing with the scarcity of Filipino grammar books in English online. Hope this thing would help and encourage you more in learning Tagalog. Good luck! :)

 

Trigger System vs. Voice System

First we have to understand that Filipino languages in general follow the "trigger system" opposed to the English "voice system". The voice system emphasises either the agent or the patient, with the trigger system we distinguish more - the direction, the beneficiary, the location, etc. In the voice system, the voice dictates the focus whereas in the trigger system, especially in Tagalog, it's the various triggers in form of verb affixes.

 

Mga Pokus ng Pandiwa (in no particular order)

a) Tagaganap (Actor-Focused)
<em>Kumuha ako ng pera mula sa aparador.</em>
<em>I took money from the cabinet.</em>
* Use direct pronouns (ako, ka, kayo, siya, tayo, sila)
<em>Present form: Kumukuha</em>

<em>Future form: Kukuha</em>

 

b) Layon (Object-Focused)
<em>Kinuha ko ang pera mula sa aparador.</em>
<em>I took some money from the cabinet.</em>
<em>Present form: Kinukuha</em>

<em>Future form: Kukuhanin/kukunin</em>

 

c) Tagatanggap (Beneficiary-Focused)
<em>Ipinagkuha na kita ng pera mula sa aparador.</em>
<em>I already took some money for you from the cabinet.</em>
<em>Present form: Ipinagkukuha</em>

<em>Future form: Ipagkukuha</em>

 

d) Gamit (Instrumental-Focused)
<em>Ipinangkuha ko ng mga lirato ang aking cellphone.</em>
<em>*Translit.: used to (I) take pictures my cellphone.</em>
<em>I used my cellphone to take pictures.</em>
<em>Present form: Ipinangkukuha</em>

<em>Future form: Ipangkukuha</em>

<em> </em>

e) Direksyon (Direction-Focused)
<em>Kinuhanan ko ng pera ang aparador.</em>
<em>*Translit.: Took from (I) money the cabinet.</em>
<em>I took money from the cabinet.</em>

<em>Present form: Kinukuhanan</em>

<em>Future form: Kukuhanan</em>

 

f) Ganapan (Location-Focused)
<em>Si Juan ang pinagkuhanan ko ng pera.</em>
<em>John is whom I got the money from.</em>
<em>Present form: Pinagkukuhanan</em>

<em>Future form: Pagkukuhanan</em>

 

g) Sanhi (Cause-Focused)
<em>Nahuli akong natutulog sa trabaho, na ikinakuha ko ng warning memo.</em>
<em>I was caught sleeping at work, which caused me to get a warning memo.</em>
<em>Present form: Ikinakukuha</em>

<em>Future form: Ikakukuha</em>

 

h) Resiprokal (Reciprocal)
* the act is done by the subjects simultaneously on each other making them objects too at the same time.
<em>Nagkuhanan sila ng litrato ng bawat isa.</em>
<em>They took pictures of each other.</em>
<em>-or simply-</em>
<em>Nagkuhanan sila ng litrato.</em>
<em>Present form: Nagkukuhanan</em>

<em>Future form: Magkukuhanan</em>

 

Mo cuimhní na hóige de mo mháthair galanta Bhí mo mháithair gruaig fhada dhubh uirthi. Bhí sí gealchraicneach fosta - ceann de na fáthanna go tharraing sí aird m'athair. Nuair bhí mé óg, chaith sí spéaclaí tiubh roimh d'athraigh sí go contact lenses. Cosúil le sean máthair, thaitin a bheith ag cniotáil agus a bheith gúnadóireacht léi. Dhéanfadh sí gúnaí dúinn mura cuirtíní agus maintlín tábla. Thaitin ag cocaireacht léi fosta. Bhí a "sinigang" agus "menudo" is fearr liom. Bhí smaointeach agus cliste í. Thaitin sí a bheith ag léamh go hiontach. Bhí leabharlann aici sa bhaile. B'fhearr léi leabhair fhíorasacha ná ficsean. Gach tráthnóna, théadh sí amach sa ghairdín a dhéanamh ar roinnt garraíodóireacht nuair bhí muid ag imirt sa tsráid. Chuimhnigh daoine bhí sí uaibhreach, bhí raibh sí ach overprotective linn. Tá grá mór agam do mo mháthair.

Where did the idiom "an mhéar fhada" (postpone) come from? I just can't see any way to relate the long finger to delaying of events. Can anybody shed some light? :( Thanks in advance though. :)