Language/Northern-kurdish/Grammar/Negative-Statements
As a Northern Kurdish language teacher for more than 20 years, I am passionate about sharing my knowledge and experience with students who want to learn this beautiful language. In this lesson, we will cover the basics of forming negative statements in Northern Kurdish. As a beginner level course, we assume you have mastered the previous lessons of our "Complete 0 to A1 Northern Kurdish Course."
Forming Negative Statements
To form negative statements, we use the negative particle "ne" which means "not" in Northern Kurdish. It is positioned before the main verb. Here are some examples:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ez naxwazim. | /ez naːxwaˈzim/ | I do not want. |
| Tu negrî. | /tu neɡˈriː/ | You do not write. |
| Ew nikare nêzîkî me bibe. | /ew niˈkaɾe ˈneziːki me ˈbibe/ | He cannot get close to us. |
When the main verb is in the present tense, we use the following structure: negative particle + present stem of the verb.
However, when the main verb is in the past or future tense, there is a little bit more conjugation involved. Let's take a look at some examples:
Negative Past Tense
To form the negative past tense, we use the negative particle "ne" + "bû" which is the auxiliary verb for the past tense in Northern Kurdish + the past participle of the main verb. Here are some examples:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ez nehatim. | /ez neːhaˈtim/ | I did not come. |
| Tu nebûyî. | /tu neˈbuːjiː/ | You did not become. |
| Ew nekarî sînoran tirin. | /ew nekaˈriː siːnoˈɾan tiˈɾin/ | He did not cross the borders. |
The past participle is formed using the following rules:
- For verbs ending in -în, we remove the suffix and replace it with "-hatî."
- For verbs ending in -an, we remove the suffix and replace it with "-bûn."
- For verbs ending in -ê, we add "-bû" to the stem.
- For all other verbs, we add "-î" to the stem.
Negative Future Tense
To form the negative future tense, we use the negative particle "ne" + the future stem of the verb + the suffix "-na" + the personal endings. Here are some examples:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ez nexwazin. | /ez neːxwaˈzin/ | I will not want. |
| Tu neçikî. | /tu neˈtʃiːkiː/ | You will not go. |
| Ew nikaribûna. | /ew niˈkariːbuːna/ | He will not be able to. |
To find the future stem of a verb:
- For verbs ending in -în, we remove the suffix and replace it with "-î."
- For verbs ending in -an, we remove the suffix and replace it with "-e."
- For all other verbs, we add "-ê" to the stem.
It's important to note that in Northern Kurdish, a negative statement can also be formed by using the negative pronoun "ne" before the verb. However, the most common method of forming a negative statement in Northern Kurdish is by using the negative particle "ne" before the main verb.
I hope you found this lesson helpful and informative. In the next lesson, we will cover more advanced topics related to verb conjugation in Northern Kurdish. Keep up the good work!