The Adjective
Use and Agreement
The adjective, when accompanying a substantive, invariably precedes it and does not change. But, used alone or with other words, it becomes a stand-in for the noun; in this role it is declined in all genders.
In European languages it is unusual for the adjective to stand alone in this way — in English “a Black” (a black man), “a Red” (an extreme republican); in French “un Vieux” (an old man), and so on. It should however be noted that in all these cases the use of the adjective as a substantive is irregular.
In Avâr, by contrast, one may say “good,” and according to the gender this will mean “a good man,” “a good woman,” “a good dog,” or “a good fig.” The following table gives the form of declension, which is similar to that of the noun.
General Table (Adjective Endings)
| Case | M. | F. | N. | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | v, w | i, y | b | l |
| Gen. 1 | ṣol | tlol | In all other cases the neuter coincides with the feminine. | dol |
| Gen. 2 | ṣodaṣṣa | idaṣan | ||
| Gen. 3 | ṣokhkha | tlokhkha | ||
| Dat. 1 | ṣokhkhi | tlokhkhi | ḍokhkhi | |
| Dat. 2 | ṣi | tli | ||
| Dat. 3 | ṣda | ida | ||
| Instr. 1 | v, w gon | i, y gon | lgon | |
| Instr. 2 | ṣdatlon | ldatlon | ||
| Prep. 1 | ṣokh | tlokh | ||
| Prep. 2 | ṣṭa | lṭa | ||
| Prep. 3 | ṣotl | tlotl | ||
| Prep. 4 | ṣi 'olo | tli 'olo |
Remarks on the Table
A close reading of this table, which applies to all declinable adjectives, shows that while the feminine forms differ from the masculine, the neuter coincides with the feminine in all cases except the nominative, and that the plural form is the same for all three genders.
It also varies, beyond that, only in the nominative and the first instrumental singular of the masculine; in the genitive and dative there is, in addition to the preceding ل, a substitution of ḍ for ṣ in the following form — a straightforward imitation of what appears in the declension of the noun.