The suffixes -ob and -eb replace thematic markers in Imeretian

Abstract

The -ob and -eb suffixes are commonly used and productive thematic markers in both Georgian triliteral language and its dialects. They are attached to various types of verbs and serve as markers for present and past participles.

The replacement of the -ob suffix with another thematic marker is relatively rare in dialects, whereas the opposite is often true. In Kilos, the -eb suffix is frequently replaced by another thematic marker, including the -ob suffix.

An interesting phenomenon was observed in lower Imeretian concerning the verb form of „mitirs“. Specifically, when the context implies causing someone to cry, the subject marker remains unchanged in both present and past tenses:

Present: He makes me cry, my son/heart/mother... Past: He made me cry, my son/heart/mother...

However, if the context refers to cursing or swearing about someone›s mother crying, the subject marker -eb is replaced by the -ob suffix:

She cries for her mother (incorrectly, „mother she cries for her“).

In these forms of Imeruli Kilos, the language not only resolves grammatical ambiguities and avoids stem coincidences in present and past participle forms (compare with above, examining verb types), but also imbues them with semantic distinctions: distinguishing between a child crying and a mother crying.