Hand-book of Volapük/8

by Charles E. Sprague

PERSONS

The pronoun of the FIRST person is ob, I; plural, obs, we.

When the verb is in the first person the pronoun is united with it as a person ending, forming one word. Binob, I am;

pükob, I speak; kömobs, we come; golobs, we go.

The pronoun of the SECOND person is ol, thou or you (singular); ols, you, plural. See remarks on the distinction between ol and ols, page 5.

These syllables ol and ols are likewise suffixed to the verb, foming one word. Binol, thou art or you are; pükol, thou speakest or you speak; kömols flens, you, friends, are coming; golols, ye are going.

We may, also translate, "I am" by ob binob, and, "thou art" by ol binol; but this repetition of the personal syllable is unusual, and only employed for emphasis or when it is desired to place the subject at a distance from the verb.

In the THIRD person there are four pronouns: om for masculins and neuters, he, it; of for feminins, she; os, neuter impersonal or abstract; on, collectiv, one (as "one says"), people, "they." In the plural, oms and ofs, they.

<A NAME="p011"></A>These pronouns are also suffixed to the verb, binom, he is, it is ("IT" being some definit thing previously mentioned).
Pükof, she speals; golofs, they (the women) go; nifos, it snows; sagon, they say, people say, one says, it is said.

Even when the subject of the verb is a noun expressed, yet the om or of must be added : of for a feminin subject, om for any other. Vom binof jönik, the woman is beautiful. Man binom famik, the man is famous. Dom binom gletik (not dom binos gletik), the house is large. Doms binoms gletik, the houses are large. Jisons binofs yunik, the daughters are young.

We can now conjugate any verb through the persons of the present tense. ---

1.	binob, I am.	1.	binobs, we are.
2.	binol, thou art, you are.	2.	binols, you are.
3.	binom, is, he is, it is.	3.	binoms, are, they are.
	binof, is, she is.		binofs, are, they are.
	binos, it is.
	binon, one is, people are.

The mnemonic word OBOLOMOFOSON contains all the personal pronouns. If it be written from memory twenty times the verb endings will not be casily forgotten.

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