5. Clauses and Questions
Kokanu provides two main tools for building questions and complex sentences: demonstratives (including ci as a question marker), the yes/no particle ka, and the clause markers ta and te. Together they allow both precise questioning and flexible sentence nesting.
5.1 Demonstratives
Kokanu has three demonstratives: ne, na, and ci.
- ne → “this”
- na → “that”
- ci → interrogative determiner (“which / what / where / why”)
Examples:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| loso | bad |
| ne le loso | this is bad |
| mi le suki in na pawo | I like that dog |
Warning
Demonstratives only go after the word they modify if they are replacing an adjective. Otherwise, demonstratives always go before the word they modify:
mi le makan in kuwosi na → "I eat that kind of apple" mi le suki in na pawo → "I like that dog" (not in pawo na)
ci as a Question Word
By replacing the item of inquiry with ci, any interrogative can be formed.
Examples:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| tu le makan in ci? | What do you eat? |
| ja le makan konje nenka ci? | Why do they stop eating? |
| pawo le antomi pi ci? | Where/When does the dog sleep? |
Sometimes, ci can be placed after a word to signify that it's asking for an adjective, instead of a word:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| pawo le antomi pi jan ci? | The dog is asleep at a what place? |
| pawo le antomi pi ci jan? | Where is the dog asleep? |
| pawo le antomi pi ten ci? | The dog is asleep at a what time? |
| pawo le antomi pi ci ten? | When is the dog asleep? |
| canwa ci le makan in makan mi? | A what animal ate my food? |
| ci canwa le makan in makan mi? | What animal ate my food? |
New Words
- loso = bad
- pawo = dog
- jan = place
- ten = time
- canwa = animal
5.2 The Particle ka
Yes–no questions are formed with ka. It can appear at the start, end, or both.
Examples:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ka ne makan le tope ka? | Is this food good? |
| ka tu le antomi? | Do you sleep? |
| pata le okutu ka? | Is the book hidden? |
New Words
- okutu = hidden, covered
- pata = book
- tope = good
- antomi = asleep / to sleep
5.3 The Clause Marker ta
ta introduces subclauses. Kokanu has two types, similar to English:
- Adverbial clauses (because, when, if…)
- Relative clauses (that, which…)
Adverbial Clauses
Placed after a preposition, a ta-clause behaves like a main clause.
Examples:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| mi le suki in na makan nenka ta sapole ja le tope | I like that food because its flavor is good |
| mi le wisan in ta tu le makan in makan mi / mi le wisan ta tu le makan in makan mi | I know that you ate my food |
New Words
- sapole = to taste (a flavor)
- wisan = to know
Closing Clauses
Every subclause must be closed (unless final in the sentence).
Closers are: comma (,), hu, or wa.
- hu is used only to close clauses.
- wa is explained in Chapter 6.
Examples:
| Kokanu phrase (variants) | Meaning |
|---|---|
| po ta tu le sema in kota mi, men mi le kota len | I speak loud so you hear what I say |
| po ta tu le sema in kota mi hu men mi le kota len | same meaning, with hu closer |
New Words
- len = strong
- sema = to hear
- kota = to say / speech
Relative Clauses
A ta-clause follows the word it describes. Inside, ja refers back to that word. If the clause ends with a sole ja in a preposition, that ja can be dropped.
A relative clause must describe the relation between the clause and the word that it describes. "nin ta mi le suki" is incomplete, because it doesn't explain how "mi le suki" and "nin" are related to each other. The correct way would be "nin ta mi le suki in (ja)".
Examples:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| nin ta in ja men mi le suki | a person that I like |
| pawo ta mi le makan in makan ja | a dog, whose food I ate |
| jan ta mi le pasan pi ja | a place at which I’m happy |
| jan ta mi le pasan pi | a place I’m happy at |
New Words
- nin = person
- pasan = happy
Nested Clauses
ta-clauses can be nested, collapsing inside → out.
Example:
- mi le kujo nenka ta pi ta mi le koman, men tu le cuma
→ “I am sad because you leave when I come.”
New Words
- kujo = sad
- koman = arriving
- cuma = leaving
Clauses can be closed in multiple ways, sometimes stacking multiple closers to avoid ambiguity:
| Kokanu phrase (variants) | Meaning |
|---|---|
| nenka ta tu le cuma hon ta mi le koman, men mi le kujo | I am sad because you leave when I come |
| nenka ta tu le cuma hon ta mi le koman,, men mi le kujo | (same, but multiple , used) |
| nenka ta tu le cuma hon ta mi le koman hu, men mi le kujo | (same, but hu used) |
| nenka ta tu le cuma hon ta mi le koman hu hu men mi le kujo | (same, but multiple hu used) |
Indirect Questions
Indirect questions are formed by adding ka into a ta-clause. Just like with regular questions, it can go at the beginning and at the end of the clause.
Warning
If your sentence ends with ka at the end of a ta-clause, some ambiguity can arise. Make sure to close the ta-clause in order to ask a regular question, or put ka at the start of the sentence or clause instead to avoid this.
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| tu le solu ta ka mi le makan | You ask whether I eat. |
| mi le no wisan ta ka mi le suki in na nin | I don't know whether I like that person. |
| mi le no wisan ta mi le suki in na nin ka | I don't know whether I like that person. |
| mi le no wisan ta mi le suki in na nin hu, ka | Do I not know that I like that person? |
5.4 The Clause Marker te
te is similar to ta, but with key differences:
- A te-clause cannot have a subject.
- It implies le.
Relative Clauses
te is equivalent to ta ja le:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| nin ta ja le suki in mi | a person who likes me |
| nin te suki in mi | same meaning |
Adverbial Clauses
As an adverbial clause, te acts like an infinitive clause in English:
| Kokanu phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| mi le ju (in) te makan | I like to eat |
| te pata, le tope | To read is good / Reading is good |
| te makan in kuwosi, le tope | Eating fruits is good |
New Words
- ju = to want / to like
- pata = to read
- kuwosi = fruit