ӄак

Ket

Etymology

Ket numbers (edit)
50
 ←  4 5 6  → 
    Cardinal: ӄак
    Counting form: ӄагам inan, ӄагэаӈ anim
    Ordinal: ӄагамась
    Distributive: ӄагамся, ӄагэаӈся
    Multiplicative: ӄага

Inherited from Proto-Yeniseian *qak (five).[1][2]

Perhaps related to Proto-Yeniseian *qal ~ *qel ~ *qol (thumb, five), origin of the word for 'five' in other Yeniseian languages, which would make Ket ӄъъль (qə́ə̀lʲ, thumb) an etymological doublet.[3]

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /¹qak/, [qaˑk˧]

Numeral

ӄак (qāk) (counting form ӄагэаӈ anim, ӄагам inan)

  1. five
Usage notes
  • The relation with Ket ӄъъль (qə́ə̀lʲ, thumb) is justified based on Edward J. Vajda's observations that Ket people traditionally began counting with their fingers using the left small finger, so that the thumb-finger falls on '5'.

References

  1. ^ https://starlingdb.org/cgi-bin/response.cgi?single=1&basename=%2fDATA%2fYENISEY%2fYENET&text_number=521&root=config
  2. ^ Vajda, Edward; Werner, Heinrich (2022), Comparative-Historical Yeniseian Dictionary (Languages of the World/Dictionaries; 79, 80), Muenchen: LINCOM GmbH, →ISBN, page 627
  3. ^ Vajda, Edward; Werner, Heinrich (2022), Comparative-Historical Yeniseian Dictionary (Languages of the World/Dictionaries; 79, 80), Muenchen: LINCOM GmbH, →ISBN, pages 629, 685

Further reading

  • Werner, Heinrich (2002), Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der Jenissej-Sprachen, volume 2, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, →ISBN, page 80
  • Kotorova, Elizaveta; Nefedov, Andrey (2015), Большой словарь кетского языка, Münich: LINCOM, →ISBN, page 284