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AmharicBasic Course

Volume 1

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BASIC COURSE

PREFACE

This volume is the first of a two-volume Basic Course in Amharic, and containsUnits 1-50 of the course. The second volume includes Units 51.<JO, an introduction tothe writing system, a Reader, and a Glossary.

Amharic, the official language of the Ethiopian Empire, is spoken natively by perhaps six million people in a small but populous area of the country which includes thecapital, Addis Ababa. A member of the Southem Semitic branch of the Afro~siatic

family of languages, Amharic is steadily gaining importance as it picks up additionalspeakers through the spread of communications and education within Ethiopw.

The linguist in charge of the entire project has been Serge Obolensky, with theassistance of Mr. Debebow Selelie and Mr. Mulugeta Andualem. The Amharic script inthe second volume is the work of Mr. Zelelie. Valuable suggestions received from Professor Wolf Leslau during the beginning stages of the work are gratefully acknowkdged.

Howard E. Sollenberger, DeanSchool of Language and Area Studies

Foreign Service InstituteDepartment of State

iii


AMHARIC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface ...................................................... iii

Introduction ................................................ xvi

Unit 1

Symbols used . . • • . • . • • • . . . . . • • • • • • • • • • • . . • • • • . • . • . • • • • • • • • 1Basic Sentences . . .. . . . . ... . . . . .... .. .. . .. . ... .. . . . .. . . ..• 2

Note 1.1 Transcription used • • • • • • . • • • . • • . • • • • • . • • • • • • • • 31.2 Vowels 41.3 Consonants . • • .• •. ••• •••• • •• • •• . • • . . • •• • .•• • • . • 71.3.1 Plain Consonants •••••••••.•.•.•.•••.•••••••••• 7

1.3.2 Glottalized Consonants • • • . •• • . . . • •• •• .•. •• • • • • 9

Drills 9

Unit 2

Ba.sic Sentences .

2.2 'and' /-(i)nna/ •••••••••••.•••••••••••••••••••

Note 2.1 Masculine Definite Suffix /-u--w/ •••••••••••••

Drills ...................................................

12

13

1415

Unit 31922

23

23242425252627

Transitional Vowel li/ .Forma tion of Plural •.••••••••.•••••.••••••••••

/w/ and /y/ glides ••••••••••••••••.•••.•.••••.Verb 'be r •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

...................................................

Ba.s ic Sentence s .

No te 3.1 Independent Pronouns ••.•.•••.•.•.•••••.•.•••..

3.2 Suffix Pronouns ••••••••••••.••..••••••••••••.•

3.2.1 Verb Suffix Pronouns ••••••••••••••••••••••••••3.3 Loss of Vowels ••••••••••••.•••••••••••••.•.•••

3.43.53.63.7

Drills

Amharic equivalents of 'have' and 'have not' •••

Feminine Definite Suffix /-wa~-(y)itu--(y)itwa/.

Definite Suffix on Modifier •.•••••.•••••••••••

Suffix /-(i)n/-Specific Direct Object •••••••••

Noun Suffix Pronouns

Unit 4Basic Sentences

Note 4.14.24.34·44.5

....................................................................

293132

333435

iv


BASIC COURSE

Pre p 0 sit ion .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Preposition /b(e)-/ and /best(e)-/ •••••••

Drills

353536

Unit 5Basic Sentences

Note 5.15.25.35.45.55.5.15.5.2

Drills

Narrative

Unit 6

Verb. Perfective

'have' and 'have not' with feminine object.

Verb Suffix Pronouns with Perfective •.••••Verb Suffix Pronouns used in apposition ..•

Prepositions /k(e)-/, /isk(e)-/ and /l(e)-/

/k (e ) - / 'fram ' .••••••.••.•••.•.•••.••••••

/isk(e)-/ and /isk(e)- •.. dires/ 'up to',

'to'/l(e)-/ 'for', 'to' •.•.••..•••.•..••••••Postpositions /wisT/ and /lay/ combined

with prefixes /b(e)-/ or /i-/ .•.••••••••

Suffixes /-iyye/ and /-iyyo/ to nouns •••••Definite Suffixes /-iyyew/ and /iyyewa/ •••Numerals; Ordinals •••••.•••••••••••.••••

43464949515152

5252

525353535455

Basic Sentences .

Note 6.1 Relational Prefix /y(e)-/ .•••••••••••••••

6.2 Verb. Infinitive •..•••••..••.•••.•••••••6.3 Verb. Imperfective •..•••.••••.•.•••.•.••6.4 Verb Classification .....•••..••••.•.•••.•

6.4.1 Regular Three-Radical Verbs ..•••..••••.••6.4.2 Regular Two-Radical Verbs •.•...•••••••.••6.5 Verb. Notation .•••••...••••.•.•.•••••.••6.6 Postpositlon /garHgara/ combined with pre-

f ix /k (e ) - / • • • • • . • • • . • • . • • • • • . . . • • • • • • •

6.7 Use of /k(e)- ••• befit/ and /k(e)-/•••

behwB la/ .

Drills

Narrative

5759606163636565

65

666669

Unlt 7Basic Sentences

Note 7.17.2

Verb Suffix Pronouns with Imperfective ••••

Equivalents of 'had' and 'had not' •••••••

v

717377


AMHARIC

Dr~lls •••••••••••••••••••.•••••••••••.••••• • •••••••••••.•

Narra tl.ve •••••••.•.•.••••.••••••••.••••••••••••••••••••.•

77

80

Un~t 8Bas~c Sentences

Note 8.1 T~me

8.2 SuffLK /-(~)m/

8.3 Suff1X /-(~)ss/

Dr 1.118 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Narrat~ve ••••. • .1 • ~ •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

81

82

84848488

Un~t 9BaS:LC Sentences •••.•••••••••••.•••••••••••.•.•••••••••.••

Note 9.1 Imperfect~ve forms connected by /-(~)nna/ •

9.2 Negat~ve Perfect~ve .•..•...•...••..••••.•

9.3 Short Imperfect~ve •.•.•••••.•.•.••.•.•••••••

9.4 Negat~ve Irnperfect~ve •.•...••...••..•••..•••

9.5 Negat~ve Inf~n~t~ve •••.•.•....•..•.••••••.•.

Dr~11s •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.••.••••

Narra tl.va • •• • • • •• • • • • •• • •• • • • • • • • ••• • • .•. • • • • • ••• • • • • t • • •

8992

92

939599

100

103

Un~t 10

Ba S 1C Sentence s ••••••••••••••••••••••••••.•••••••••••.••.

107

110

110

IIIIIIIII112

118

105

107

10.2

10.2.1

10.2.2

10.2.3

10.2.4

Drl11s •••.•••••••••••••.••.•••••••.•••••.••••••••••••••.•

Narratlve ••••••••••••••••••••••••.•••.•..••••••••••••••••

Note 10.1 Relat~onal AffLKes to Verbs .••.•..••.•.•.•.•

10.1.1 Relat~onal Aff1X /y(e)-- yemrn(~)-/ ~n Relat~ve

Construct~ons

Aff1X /~nd(e)-I

/~nd(e)-/ 'l~ke', etc. • ..•••.....••••••••..•

/~nd(e)-.•• yalle/ 'such as', etc. • .•.•••.••.

/~nd(e)-/ 'as soon as' ..••..•..•.•••••••••..

/~nd(e)-/ w~th Relat~ve Construct~ons 'that' •.

Un~t 11

Bas~c Sentenues 120

121

122

126

127

128

129

132

Regular Two-Radlcal Verbs ~n I-e/ .....Gerund •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Present Perfect ............•.........

Past Perfect ...•....................•

Imperfect (Past) •...•......•.•...•.••

Verb:

Verb.

Verb:

Verb:

Verb.

Note 11.1

11.2

11.3

11.4

11.5

Dr:Llls •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Narratlve •••••.••..•••.•••••.•••.••••••••••.••••••••..•••

vi


BASIC COURSE

Unl.t 12BaSl.C Sentences

Note 12.112.2

12.3

12.412.512.6

12.7

Drl.llsNarratl.ve

Telll.ng Tl.meVerba Jussl.veVerb. Imperat1.ve •••.••••••••••••••••••••••••

Relat1.onal AfflX /1.yy(e)-/ W1.th nouns ••••••••Relatl.onal AfflX /1.yy(e)-/ w1.th verbs ••••••••

Relatl.onal AfflX /s(1.)-/ •••••••••••••••••.•••/abro/ 'both', Itogether' ••••••••••••••••••••

133136·

136

140

144144145147148

153

Unl.t 13BaSl.C Sentences 155

Narratl.ve


...................................................

Note 13.1

13.1.113.1.2

13.1.313.213.2.1

Drl.llsNarratl.ve

Note 14.1

14.2

14.3.114.3.2

14.4

14·514.5.114.5.2

'14.6

14.7Drl.lls

Relat1.onal Aff1.xes /1(1.)-/ and /-(1.)ll(l.)-N-

(1.)11e-/ .

/1(1.)-/ w1.th Short Imperfect1.ve •••••••••••••/1(1.)-/ wl.th Short Imperfect1.ve plus /new/ or

/nebber/ ••.••••.•.•.•.•.•...•.............

/-(1.)ll(1.)--(1.)lle-/ ••••.••••••••••••••••••Relat1.onal AfflXes /1.sk(1.)-/ and /1.sk(e)-/ •••

/1.sk(e)-/ w1.th Relat1.ve Construct1.ons •••••••

Demonstrat1.ve Pronouns

Noun: Gender .....•.......•..•...........•..

Relat1.onal AfflX /b(1.)-/ 'l.f' •••••••••••••••

Relatl.onal AfflX /b(1.)-/ 'because' ••••••••••SufflX /-(1.)bb(1.)-/ •••••••••••••••••••••••••

PreflX /b(e)-/ w1.th Relat1.ve Clauses •••.•••••/b (e) - ••• g iz e / ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

/b(e)- ••• KuTl.r/ •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

/b (e )- ••• ml.kn1.ya t/ ••••••••••••••••••.•••••••Relat1.onal AfflX /s1.1(e)-- s1.1emm(1.)-/ ••••••••

158

159

159159159160

161161

163

165168

169

172

175176

178178178

179179180186

Verb. /a-/ verbs


Note 15.1..........................................

vii

188

189


AMHARIC

15.2 Verb: Causat~ves ~n /a-/ and /as-/ ••.•.••••• 190

15.2.1 Causat~ve Verbs ~n /a-/ •..•.....••••.•.•••. 191

15.2.2 CausatJ.ve Verbs ~n /as-/ ••...•..•••..•••••• 191

15.3 PassJ.ve-ReflexJ.ve Verbs ••.••.•••••...•.•... 191

15.4 Class~fJ.catJ.on and NotatJ.on •.•••..••••••.•. 195

15.5 RelatJ.onal AffJ.x /k(e)-/ w~th PerfectJ.ve •.•• 197

15.5.1 /k(e)-/ '~f' ••••••••.••..•....•••••••.••.•• 197

15.5.2 /k ( e ) - / 's J.nce ' • • • • • • • • . . • • • . • • • • • • • . . • • . • • 198

Drllls 198Narra tilve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . 205

Un~t 16

BaS1C Sentences .

Note 16.1 Relat~onal Aff~x /~nd(~)-/ ........•.•.•.•••

16.2 Pronoun /1"as-/ 'self' ........•..•..•...•.•.

16.3 Regular Four-Rad~ca1 Verbs •......••..•..••.

16.4 Three-and Four-Rad~cal Verbs ~n /-0-/ .16.5 Verb: Noun of Agent .•....•........•.•...•.

16.6 Verb: Noun of Instrument ..••...•.....•.••.

16.7 Use of /wey~m/ and /weyJ.ss/ 'or' .....•.•....

Dr~lls

NarratJ.ve

UnJ.t 17

Bas~c Sentences

206

208

208

209

210

210

212

213

214

215

.................................................................................................

CIa ss ~f~cat~onNote 17.1

Chart I

Chart II

Chart III

Chart IV

Chart V

DrJ.11s

Narrat~ve

Verba

Regular

Regular

Regular

Regular

Regular

Three-Rad~cal Verbs .•...•.•.••....•

Three-Rad~cal /a-/ Verbs .••••..••..

Two-Rad~cal Verbs ~n /-a/ •.••••••.•

Two-Rad~cal Verbs ~n /-e/ ..••...•..

Fou~-Rad~cal Verbs ...•....••...•••.

222

223

224

225

226

227

230

Un~t 18

Bas~c Sentences

..................................................

Note 18.1

18.2

Dr~lls

Narrat~ve

Verba Use of /y~honal/ ......•.••....••.••.

Use of /gena/ ••••..•.•.....•........•.•....

...............................................

viii

232

233

234

235

239


BASIC COURSE

Un~t 19

Ba S 1.C Sentence s .

Drllls .

Note 19.1 Comparat~ve and Superlatlve •••••..••.•••.••

· .Narratlve

Unlt 20

Ba S lC Sentence s . 247Note 20.1 Verb Classlflcatlon, Two-Radlcal Verbs, types

me~a~, me~o~, me~e~ and me~e~ •.•••••••.••

· .

me Ia 2 ......•..........•.........•..•.....•.

me 102 .

253

255

256

248

250

251

251

252

252

......................................

......................................Impersonal Cbnstructlons .•••••••••••

Verb: Present Perfect of verbs denotlng

'state' or 'condltlon' .••.•.•.•.•••..••.•

mele2

mele2

Verbl

· .

Chart VI/l

Chart VI/2

Chart VI/3

Chart VI/4

20.2

20.3

Narratlve

Dr~lls

• ••••••••••••••• e •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Unlt 21

BaSlC Sentences

Drllls

Narratlve

· .

· .

258

260

261

Unlt 22

BaS1C Sentences

· .Drllls

Narratlve

· .

· .

263

265

267

· .

Unlt 23

Ba s lC Sentence s

.. ~ .

268

270

271

271

273

274

274

275

275

276

277

278

.....................· .

/ye t / .

/man/ .Questlon Words .••••••.••••....•••••••.•••••

/mln/ or /mlndln/ •••••••••••••.•.••••••.•••

/yetu/, /yetlnnaw/ and /mannlnnaw/ ••.••••••

/manrunnawlm/ or /mannaccewlm/ ••.•••..•.•••

/mannEn/ and /mlnlmm/ •••..•..••..••..•••.••

/mlnlmm/ wlth /~nde-/ •.••••••...•.•.•••••••

Note 23.1

23.2

23.2.1

23.2.2

23.2.3

23. 2 .4

23.3

23.4

23.5

Narratlve

Drllls

ix


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Repet~t1on ••••••••••.••••••••.••••••••••••

Part~al Redupl~cat~on .•••••.••..•.••••••••

Complete Redupl~cat~on ..••...•.••••••.•••.

Use of /madregiya/ ..•••••••..••...•.••••.•

AMHARIC

Un~t 24

BaS1C Sentences .

Note 24.1 Verb: Short form of /madreg/ .•.•••.••.•.•

24.2 Use of /g~ddeta/ w~th /allebb-/, /honebb-/

and /nebberebb-/

Dr~lls •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Narrat.1ve .

Un~t 25

BaS1C Sentences .

Note 25.1 Repet~t~on and Redupl~cat~on .••..•••••••••

25.1.1

25.1.2

25.1.3

25.2

Drllls .

Narrat~ve ••••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Unlt 26

Bas~c Sentences

Note 26.1 SufflX /-(l)nnet/

26.2 Verb. The use of /meKnat/ .•......••••••..

Drl11s .

Narratlve ...................•..........................

Unlt 27

BaS1C Sentences

Note 27.1 SufflX /-e/ In compound words •••••••••••••27.2 Plural after numerals •..••.••.••••••••••••

Drllls .

Narratlve .

Unlt 28

BaS1C Sentences .....................•..................

Note 28.1 Verb: Hypothetlcal Condltlonal .•..•..•.•••

28.2 AfflX /lnd(e)-/ wlth /alle-/ and /hone-/••••

28.3 Impersonal Verbs •••.•.•...•.•••••••••••...Dr 1.118 •.•••••.•••.•..••.•...•••..............•....•...•

Narratlve .

Unlt 29

BaS1C Sentences .

Note 29.1 Verb C1asslflcatlon Three-Radlcal Verbs ~n

/-a-/

x

280

283

283

284288

291

292

293

293

294

295

295297

300

301

302

303

307

310

311

312

313

315

317318

319320

324

327

328


Chart VII29.2

Dr111s

Narrat1ve

BASIC COURSE

Use of /m1kn1yatu/ comblned w1th /s11e-/ and

/s11emm(1)-/ affLXes and the verb form /new/

/k(e)- ••. yetenessa/ •••••.••.•.•••••••••••••

329

329

330

330

332

BaS1.C Sentences . ~ .

Note 30.1 Compound Verbs w1th /ma1et/ and /madreg/ ••••30.1.1 Verb: Inconclus1ve Aspect •••••••••••••••••

llil.lls .

Narrat1ve

334

335338

340

342

UnlC 31BaS1C Sentences

Un1t 32BaS1C Sentences

Note 31.1

31.2

Dr111sNarratlve

Note 32.1

32.2

32.3

Dr111sNarrat1ve

/b(e)- ••• beklru1/ •••••••••••••••••••••••••••Use of /b1cca/ w1th Noun SufflX Pronouns and

D1rect ObJect Suff1X /-(l)n/ ••.•••••••.••.\

Suff l.X / - ge / • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • •••

Verb: /lndehon/ w1th re1at1ve construct10ns

/lndehon/ wlth Short Imperfect1ve and Gerund,

'whether or not' •••••••••••••.••••••••••

Verb: Inf1n1t1ve w1th Noun SufflX Pronouns

and Verb forms /new/ and /nebber/ •••••••

344345

346

347

349

350352352

353

354

355357

Un1t 33BaSH~ Sentences 358

..................................................

Note 33.1

Drl1lsNarrat1ve

Verb, /s-/ negat1ve comb1ned w1th the forms

of the verb /Kerre-meKret/ •••.•••••••••••

...............................................

xi


AMHARIC

Un~t 34Ba s ~ c Se n tence s • . • • • . • • . • • • • . • • • • • . • . . . . . . • . . • • . • . • • • . • .

Note 34.1 Verba Frequentat~ve Form ••.•••.••••.•••...

Chart VIII Frequenta t~ve Verbs •••••.••.•.•••.•••.•....

34.2 Verb: Rec~procal Form ..•••.••..•••••••••••

Chart IX Rec~procal Verbs ••••.•.••••••..•••••••••.•.

})r11.11s •••••••..••..•...•.•.•••.•......•..•....•...•...•.

Narrat~ve · .

365367368

369

372

373375

Ba S J.C Sentence s .

Note 35.1 Use of /~nkwan/ ••.••..•..••.••....•.•.•••.•

35.2 /~nkwan/ comb~ned w~th /y~KrlTma/ 'let alone r,

377379

· .Drllls

Narrat~ve

'even though' •••••••••.....••.....•••••••.•

· .

380

381383

Un~t 36Bas ~c Sentences · . 384

· .

Note 37.1 Verb. /maweK/ w~th Gerund ••••..••••••••.••

Dr~11s ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Un~t 37BaSlC Sentences

Unlt 38Bas~c Sentences

·~ .

Note 36.1

Drllls

Narrat~ve

Narrat~ve

Dr~lls

Narratlve

Relat~ve construct~ons comblned w~th lmperson

al forms of the verb /memsel/ .•.•••••..•.

· .

· .

· .

· .

· .

387387391

392

395396

398

400401

403

Unl t 39Bas~c Sentences · ~ .

· .

Note 39.1

Dr~lls

Narrat~ve

Verba Use of /yel1em T/ w~th Short Imper-

fect~ve and Gerund •...•.•.•.•••.••....•••

· .

xii

407408410


BASIC COURSE

Unlt 40

Ba s lC Sentence s

Drllls

Narratlves

Unlt 41

BaS1C Sentences

Note 41.1

41.1.1

41.1.2

41.1.3

41.1.5

41.2

41.2.1

41.2.2

41.3

Drl11s

Postposltlons /zend/ and /ga/ ••.•.•.••••••

/ke- ••• zend - gal •••.••••••••••••••.••••••

/1- •.• zend-ga/ •••••••••.•••.•••••••••••.•.

/be- ••. z end/ •.•••••.•.•.•••••.••••••••••.•

/lziih zend-lzzih gal and /lzziya zend-lzziya

gal •••.•••.•.••.•••••....•.••••••••...•.

Verb: Use of /zend/ as postverb .••••.•••••

Verb: /zend/ wlth Short Imperfectlve ••••..

Verb. /ke .•• zend/ wlth Perfectlve •••••.•.•

Verb: Use of /kenoren/, /kenoreh/, etc. 'If

I do have' etc. . ••......•.•••.•.••••••••

Verb: /menor/ used lmpersonally, 'wlll

have', 'may have'

417

420

421

421

421

422

422

422

422

422

Narratlve

Unlt 42

BaS1C Sentences

Unl t 43

BaS1C Sentences

Note 41+.1 Verbal Nouns ••••••••..••.••..•.•••••.•••••

Drl11s e •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Unlt 44BaS1C Sentences

Note 42.1

42.2

42.3

Drllls

Narratlve

Note 43.1

Chart X

Drllls

Narratlve

Narratlve

Verb a Progre s s 1ve Form .•..••.•••.••••••••

Verba 'whether ••. (or not)' constructlons

Use of /mlnlmmal1l/, /mlnlmmattll/, et~.

Benefactlve or Causatlve Reclprocal Verbs •.

Benefactlve Verbs •.•.••.••.•.....••.••••••

..............................................

xiii

429

432

433

434

435

439

442444447448449

451

453

455

457


AMHARIC

Adver1bla Is .

Narratl.ve

Adverbl.a1s l.n /b(e)-/Adverbl.a1s of Tl.me l.n /-(l.)n/Gerund Forms used Adverbl.a11y

Unl.t 45Bas~c Sentences ..............•...........................

Note 45.1 Use of /bl.cca sayhon/ •.•••••.••••••••••••••

45.245.2.145.2.2'45.2.3

Drl.11s

460

461

461461462

464468

Basle Sentences . 467Note 46.1 /k(e)-/ used l.n combl.natl.on wl.th

/wedih-wedezzih/ and /wediya-wedezzl.ya/Dr 1.11s .

Narra t~ve ••••.•.•••.•.••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

470471

472

Unl.t 47BaS1.C Sentences ..................................•.•....

Drl.lls .

Narra tl.ve .

474476

478

480

48.2

48.3Drl.lls .

Narra t~ve •••••••••••••••.•.••••••••••••••••••.••••••••••

Unl.t 48BaSl.C Sentences .

Note 48.1 Use of /1(l.)-/ form l.n combl.natl.on wl.th /sl.l/,

/sl.ttl.1/, etc. •.••••.••••.•••.••••••••••• 483Verb. Intensl.ve Aspect •.•.•.•..••.•••••••••••• 483

Vel'b. Cona tl.ve Aspect . . • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 484

485488

Unl.t 49BaS1C Sentences .

Drllls .

Narratlve .

490491

493


Note 50.1 Emphatl.c Suffl.X /-a/

Drl.11sNarratl.ve

495497498500

xiv


BASIC COURSE

. ,-/"./

ETHIOPIA

./ ...-L-

['-'1REP~L1C

_ .• - Inh:'lIlal,onJ' b.,undiHy

- - - Pr v'f'lCe boundar,.@ NatlOflit! Ot

colonial ColD,tal

• PrO\',nce ca;> tal

RaIlroad

Roao Of lIack

111111111 '\l"har1c Speakinr Area

f .....··)

-_._------._-

,

i

( I'l~-,,'Il!~"

....,. I~,1'-',

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_-- _':t. A.swD

1:r. .

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Drllls:

AMHAR~

INTRODUCTION

The Amharlc Language

Amharlc lS the offlclal language of the Ethloplan Emplre used ln

government, ln buslness, ln all lnstructlon ln government schools and ln

most newspapers. It lS, however, not the only language spoken ln Ethlopla.

As can be seen from the map on page xv the area where Amh~rlc lS spoken

as a natlve tongue lS about one slXth of the whole terrltory of Ethlopla.

Amharlc belongs to the Southern Semltlc branch of the Afro-Aslatlc

(formerly called Hamlto-Semltlc) famlly of languages. The number of natlve

speakers of Amharlc together wlth the speakers of the other Semltlc languages

spoken ln Ethlopla (such as Tlgrlnlya, Tlgre, Hararl, Gurage and others) lS

less than one half the total populatlon of the Emplre. The greatest part of

Ethlopla lS lnhablted by speakers of CUShltlC languages (another branch of

the Afro-Aslatlc famlly) such as Galla, Agaw, Somall and many others. Slnce

no census has ever been taken ln Ethlopla the number of Ethloplans can only

be estlmated. Accordlng to the offlclal data of the Ethloplan government

the number of lnhabltants of Ethlopla lS between 20 and 22 mllllon. It lS

also dlfflcult to glve a rellable estlmate of the number of Amharlc speakers;

lt lS probably between 5 and 7 mllllon. There lS Ilttle doubt, however, that

due to the constantly growlng development of communlcatlons systems and the

spreadlng of educatlon Amharlc lS galnlng ground throughout the whole country.

It lS now the language of greatest prestlge and anyone who has had any educa

tlon lS able to speak lt, even lf lt lS not hlS mother tongue. Stlll others

learn lt lnformally as a second language.

ThlS Course:

The followlng parts may be found ln a unlt:

Baslc Sentences

Classroom Expresslons

Structure Sentences

Useful Words

Grammatlcal Notes

Substltutlon

Correlatlon

Transformatlon

Model-Transform drllls

Questlons and Answers

Narratlve

xvi


BASIC COURSE

BaS1C Sentences and Questlons and Answers are found In each unlt. The

Narratlves begln wlth the unlt 5. The occurrence of other parts may vary.

The Course lS dlVlded lnto two volumes. Volume I - contalns unlts 1

through 50 In transcrlptl0n. Volume II - unlts 51-60 In transcrlptl0n,

Introductlon to the Amharlc Wrltlng System, The Reader (Unlts 1-60 ln Amharlc

scrlpt) and a Glossary (In transcrlptl0n).

The Reader lncludes: BaSlc Sentences

Questlons and Answers

Narratlves

Use of ThlS Course

1. 'Baslc Sentences', 'Structure Sentences I, 'Useful Words '.

The lnstructor reads the Amharlc ltem by ltem, repeatlng each ltem (a

bUl1d-up or a sentence) tWlce for each student. Each member of the class

repeats the ltem lmmedlately after the lnstructor trylng to lmltate hlS (or

her) pronunclatlon.

If In the lnstructor's 0plnlon the ltem lS mlspronounced by the student,

the lnstructor repeats lt at normal speed wlth the student repeatlng after

hlm (or her) as many tlmes as necessary. After the class hours each student

goes over the Baslc Sentences by llstenlng to the tape and repeatlng, dOlng

thlS untl1 he knows the dlalogue by heart.

After the BaS1C Sentences have been thoroughly memorlzed the students

take part and act out the dlalogues. The lnstructor may take one of the

parts the flrst tlme or two. ThlS drl11 lS to be contlnued untll any student

can take part and go through the dlalogue 11ke an actor.

2. Substltutlon, Correlatlon and Transformatl0n Drl11s are to be used

In accordance wlth the lnstructlons glven at the beglnnlng of

each drlll.

3. Model Transform Drll1s should be drllled ln the same way as other

Transformatlon Drllls.

4. Questl0ns and Answers.

The questlons and answers are to be drllled as speclfled below, but

they should not be consldered complete. Any questlon WhlCh lS wlthln the

11mlts of the students' grammar and vocabulary can be asked.

Some questlons requlre lnformatlonal answers some others slmply 'yes'

or 'no' answers.

xvii


AMHARIC

Quest10ns requ1r1ng 1nformat10nal answers are to be dr1lled as follows:

The 1nstructor asks each student a quest10n. The student repeats the

quest10n and g1ves an answer. Any answer g1ven by the student 1S cons1dered

correct 1f 1t 1S good Amhar1c. The answer 1S corrected by the 1nstructor,

1f necessary. The student repeats the corrected answer. The 1nstructor then

g1ves the student the answer wh1ch 1S wr1tten 1n the book and the student

repeats 1t as a further dr1l1.

Quest10ns requ1r1ng 'yes' or 'no' answers should be dr1lled 1n the same

way, 1.e. the student repeats the quest10n after the 1nstructor and g1ves h1m

e1ther an aff1rmat1ve or a negat1ve answer (or both 1f so requested by the

1nstructor).

5. Narrat1ve

The 1nstructor goes through the sentences (1f any) 1llustrat1ng new

vocabulary 1tems, ln the same way as he d1d for BaS1C Sentences. After the

students have thus fam1l1ar1zed themselves w1th the new words the 1nstructor

reads through the whole Narrat1ve at a natural speed. The students l1sten~ i ,...I J-,

for comprehens10n, books closed. The students summar1se 1n Eng11sh as much

as they understood of the Narrat1ve. The 1nstructor reads each sentence

aga1n for each student, each of whom repeats after h1m. Each student trans

lates the sentence he repeated. Th1s drIll 1S cont1nued unt1l the students

are thoroughly fam1l1ar w1th the mater1al. The 1nstructor then asks ques

t10ns l1sted at the end of each Narrat1ve and the students answer them as

completely as poss1ble uS1ng words conta1ned 1n the Narrat1ve. In add1t10n

to the quest10ns l1sted 1n the book the 1nstructor may ask any quest10n

pert1nent to the Narrat1ve w1th1n the llm1ts of the students' grammar and

vocabulary. The students me~or1ze the Narrat1ve by l1sten1ng to the tape

and relate the story to the 1nstructo~ the next day.

students must keep 1n m1nd that there 1S no one correct way of speak1ng

Amhar1c. Due to the poor system of commun1cat1ons 1n Eth1op1a Amhar1c has

developed var10US local d1alects. There 1S an espec1ally marked d1fference

1n pronunc1at10n, 1n vocabulary, and even 1n grammar between the northern

GOJJam1 and the southern Showa d1alects. The purpose of th1s Course 1S to

teach the language as 1t 1S spoken 1n the cap1tal of Eth10p1a, Add1S Ababa.

Add1s Ababa Amhar1c conta1ns elements of a var1ety of d1alects. The

student should have th1s 1n m1nd and should always follow the manner of

speech of h1S 1nstructor even 1f h1s (or her) speech var1es somewhat from

what 1S 1nd1cated 1n th1S book.

xviii


BASIC COURSE

Symbols Used In ThlS Course

UNIT 1

On the Engllsh slde, parentheses and quotatlon marks are used together

(t •••• t) when a more Ilteral translatlon 1S glven 1n add1t1on to the ordlnary

Engl1sh equ1valent.

Brackets [ ] are used to 1ndlcate words 1n the Engllsh equlvalent Wh1Ch

do not have an equlvalent 1n the Amharlc.

Parentheses ( ) 1nd1cate words WhlCh are In the Amhar1c but not In a

normal Engllsh equlvalent. The Engllsh slde lS not necessarlly a Ilteral

translatlon but what lS ordlnarlly sald 1n thlS sltuatlon. The use of

parentheses and brackets as explalned above should make the sltuatlon clear

In each case.

On the Amhar1c slde, parentheses are used to lndlcate sounds WhlCh are

somet1mes omltted. Brackets are used to lndlcate a more formal pronunclatlon

to be used In more del1berate speech or whlle readlng texts ~rltten 1n Amharlc

characters. Alternate pronunclatlons of the same word or alternate words are

glven after a slant llnel I.The accent mark used lS I 'I. ThlS lndlcates the loudest syllable In a

word or phrase. Secondary stresses are not marked.

As Amharlc has an almost even d1strlbutlon of stress on each syllable,

1t 1S somet1mes extremely dlfflcult to detect where the prlnc1pal stress of

a part1cular word lles. In thlS Course phrase stress wlll be marked In the

BaS1C Sentences, but words In the bUlldups wlll be left unmarked unless the

stress 1S clearly dlstlnct1ve.

An arrow I t I lS used to 1ndlcate sharply rlslng pltch.

A perlod I . I lS used to 1ndlcate the end of a phrase accompanled by

fall1ng pltch. It mayor may not correspond to an Engllsh perlod.

A comma I ' I lnd1cates that the precedlng tone 1S carrled on evenly to

the comma and that a new pltch contour beglns followlng the comma. The

syllables lmmed1ately before I , I are Sllghtly lengthened. There mayor

may not be a break or pause after I ' I.In the Notes slant llnes are used to set off Amharlc sounds or words

w1thln an EngllSh text. Engllsh letters and words are underllned when used

as examples.

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