-tlah
Classical Nahuatl
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [-t͡ɬaʔ]
Suffix
-tlah
- (locative, added to nouns) in a place abundant in or abounding with.
- cuahuitl (“tree”) → cuauhtlah (“forest”, literally “place abounding with trees”)
- tepētl (“mountain”) → tepētlah (“highland, mountain range”, literally “place abounding with mountains”)
- (locative, added to nouns) in a time or season when something is abundant.
- xīlōtl (“unripe ear of maize”) → xīlōtlah (“season of unripe ears of maize”)
Usage notes
This particle undergoes progressive assimilation (where a consonantal sound assimilates into the one that precedes it) in certain situations:
- After l if becomes -lah
- calli (“building, house”) → callah (“settlement”, literally “place abounding with houses”)
- xālli (“sand”) → xāllah (“sands, expanse of sand”, literally “place abounding with sand”)
Derived terms
► <a class='CategoryTreeLabel CategoryTreeLabelNs14 CategoryTreeLabelCategory' href='/wiki/Category:Classical_Nahuatl_words_suffixed_with_-tlah' title='Category:Classical Nahuatl words suffixed with -tlah'>Classical Nahuatl words suffixed with -tlah</a>
References
- Frances Karttunen (1992) An Analytical Dictionary of Nahuatl, University of Oklahoma Press, page 259