§39. The qualificative or adjectival construction (which includes the possessive) is distinguished primarily by two features: the qualificative concordance and word order. In general, it is the special concordance alone which stamps a word as a qualificative—and most words may be so employed. There are a few elements which may be regarded as specifically adjectival, since they are distinct forms—not mechanically determined—that are employed in the qualificative construction only. Most of these, however, are related to noun or verb forms somewhat as English ‘good’ corresponds to ‘good-ness’ or as the affinity shown in German ‘Ruh-e, ruh-ig, be-ruh-ig-en’. The second feature mentioned apropos of this construction is that the qualifying form always follows the word which is modified.

§40. The Chichewa numerals constitute a quinary-decimal system. The words k'ú·mi 'ten' (plural makú·mi) and dza·na ‘one hundred’ (plural maza·na) are nouns of Class 3, and the word tci·kwi ‘one thousand’ (plural vi·kwi) is a noun of Class 6. These forms are related to the objects which they enumerate by word order only; i. e., they follow the names of such objects, and when multiplied in compound numerals they govern the concordances affixed to the multiplying numerals, if such numerals require concordances for completion. All other numeral stems require concordances for completion and take, with one exception, the system of concordances employed as subjects with the verb. The one exception is in Class 1, singular, where m- occurs instead of a-.1 In abstract counting, i. e., when no particular objects are enumerated, the concordances of Class 5 are employed as expletive elements. These are given in the list of numerals.

§41. The Independent Personal Pronouns in Chichewa may be used instead of the corresponding nouns or may be employed with them, either for emphasis or in apposition. They may be used as either subjects or objects, but cannot take the place of the various concordances. There is a close etymological relationship between the pronouns, both independent and qualificative (possessive), concordances, demonstratives, and, to some extent, the noun prefixes. The plural forms of the second person and of the third person (Class 1) are also employed with singular subjects in references that are formal or polite, the referent being regarded as a person.1

§48. Demonstratives in Chichewa may be divided into four groups: (1) demonstratives of anaphoric reference, (2) those primarily of local reference, (3) those which combine local, anaphoric, and temporal references, and (4) those which combine local and anaphoric references.

The Fourteenth Annual Meeting of the Linguistic Society of America will be held at Chicago, December 27–8, 1937, jointly with the Modern Language Association of America, which meets on December 28–30. Sessions will be held at The Drake, which will be the headquarters of both associations.

§49. There are three distinct elements from which interrogatives are derived. These interrogatives are both pronominal and qualificative.