MALAYALIM LANGUAGE. 43
The use of these forms will be seen as the Student reads through the
Syntax, but until he has acquired some knowledge of the language, they
may be passed over.
ON THE FORMATION OF THE NOUNS.
58. Besides the primitive nouns, as പശു, a cow; സത്യം, truth, &c:
there are others formed in various ways; as,
RULE I. Personal nouns, in common use, are formed by the help of
the particle കാരൻ, signifying an agent, affixed to neuter nouns; thus,
1st. If the noun ends in ം; the ം is dropped, and the first letter of
the adjunct is doubled; as, തൊട്ടം, a garden; തൊട്ടക്കാരൻ, a gardener.
2nd. If the noun terminates in ട, or റ, these letters are doubled and
the affix undergoes no change; as,
| ചുമട, | A burden. | ചുമട്ടകാരൻ, | A porter. |
| കയറ, | Rope. | കയറ്റകാരൻ, | Rope maker. |
3rd. If the noun ends in ൽ; the ൽ is sometimes changed into its
corresponding initial, and the first letter of the affix is doubled; as,
കാവൽ, Watch. കാവല്ക്കാരൻ, Watchman.
4th. If the noun terminates with the half sound of അ; the particle
is affixed without any change; as,
പുല്ല, Grass. പുല്ലകാരൻ, Grasscutter.
5th. In most other cases, the noun remains unaltered; but the first
letter of the affix is doubled; as,
| കുതിര | Horse. | കുതിരക്കാരൻ, | Horse-keeper. |
| തൂമ്പാ, | Hoe. | തുമ്പാക്കാരൻ, | Digger. |
| കൂലി | Fare, Hire. | കൂലിക്കാരൻ. | Labourer. |
6th. The feminine, of the above nouns, is formed by adding കാര
ത്തി, sometimes കാരി, instead of കാരൻ. In other respects the same
rules apply to both genders; as,
വെലക്കാരി, Workwoman.
അടിച്ചതളിക്കാരത്തി, Female sweeper.
RULE II. Some nouns, of the above description, are formed by the
help of the last letter of the personal pronoun അവൻ. In such cases
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