Re: CHAT: Definite/Indefinite Article Distinction

--- In conlang@y..., Jan van Steenbergen <ijzeren_jan@Y...> wrote:

> However, I could imagine a conlang (or natlang, why not?) where the indefinite
> article has its roots in a form like "some", "any", "of any kind". In such case
> I don't see any reason for not having a plural form.
Currently, Jovian uses forms derived from Latin |unus| for all
numbers: |nu pazer| /n@"pa:D@r/ "a father", |ni pazers| /ni"ba:D@rs/
"fathers", though I'm not fond of the construction.

Does anyone know a short word for "some, several" in Latin that I
could use for this purpose?  I haven't found it in the dictionary.

BTW, Jovian is one of those languages which has an indefinite article
|nu, na, un|, but no definite article.  There's the third person
personal pronoun which can be used in an article-like fashion, but
it's stronger and less common than a definite article.  |Is pazer|
/i"pa:D@r/ is probably best translated as "he, the father".



> Isn't there some Romance language with a form like "uns"?
Spanish has "unos, unas".



-- Christian Thalmann