-NIIʼ

See also: Appendix:Variations of "nii"

Navajo

Etymology

From Proto-Athabaskan *ni̓gʸ, from pre-Proto-Athabaskan *niʼg, a root with many disparate meanings, perhaps resulting in the merger of originally distinct roots.

A first meaning involves action with the hand (squeeze, touch). Another meaning relates to the passing of an invisible or hazy entity, as an epidemic, a cold wave, a fad, a swarm, and also relates to pain, ache. A last meaning relates to mental actions as to know, to be aware, to remember.

-NIIʼ shares many stems with the roots -NÍÍʼ, -NIID, -NÍÍD, -NIʼ, -NÍ, -NIH, -NIIH ~ -LĮH and -NEʼ, each of these being themselves a conflation of several originally distinct roots with at times overlapping meanings, which makes their actual identification often speculative.

Maybe as a consequence, the themes in this root often do not behave as neatly as with other roots (classifiers, aspect, conjugations may follow irregular alternations).

Root

-NIIʼ

  1. to act with the hand

Theme	Category	Bases	Transitive bases (O + ł)
∅	successive	S squeezes O, mixes O yiʼniinííh (MOM) ↳ iʼniinííh yitaayiniih (DIST) neiniih (CONT) néininih (SER) yiyiinih (SEM)
a + ł	motion?	S heads O off, set O free yiʼíłniih (MOM) yééʼíłniih
di + l	motion	S touches, reaches dilnííh (∅-MOM) adilnííh didiilnííh didinilnííh (“stuck”) dinilnííh (“stuck”) yadidiilnííh yideelnííh (ni-MOM) chʼídeelnííh ndeelnííh ndilniih (CONT) doolnih (PROG) ↳ hodoonih (∅-class.) déesniiʼ (NEUT)
hi + ∅	?	S is traded hidinííh (MOM) nahaniih (CONT)	S trades O yidiyiiłnííh (MOM) nayiiłniih (CONT)

 2. to hurt, to be painful

Theme	Category	Bases	Transitive bases (O + ł)
di + ∅	?	S becomes painful dinííh (MOM) ↳ adinííh ↳ hodinííh ndeezniiʼ (CONT)	S makes O painful yidiłnííh (MOM) ↳ hodiłnííh
di + ∅	adjectival	S hurts diniih (ni-NEUT) ↳ adiniih ↳ hodiniih hadiiniiʼ	S makes O hurt yidiłniih (ni-NEUT) ↳ hodiłniih

 3. a wave passes or spreads (epidemic, a heat wave, a crowd, a swarm, a fad)

Theme	Category	Bases	Transitive bases (O + ł)
ł	motion	S passes iiłnííh diłnííh hałnííh ńʼdiiłnííh (“start”) tádíłnííh yíłnííh (ni-MOM) niiłnííh naałniih (CONT) ↳ nahałnííh yiłnih (PROG)

 4. to know, to be aware

Theme	Category	Bases	Transitive bases (O + ł)
∅	?	S knows aniih (NEUT) haniih yeʼeniih	S makes O know — — yiʼíłnííh
ná + l	?	S remembers yénálniih (DUR) bééhániih (∅-class)	S reminds O yééyíłnííh (ni-MOM)
∅	?	S hears, learns nihwiinííh (TRANS) yiniih (DUR) haniih

Stem set

Aspect	IMP	PERF	FUT	ITER	OPT
MOM	-nííh	-niiʼ	-nih	-nih	-nííh
CONT / DUR	-niih	-niiʼ	-nih	-nih	-niih
REP / SER	-nih	-niiʼ	-nih	-nih	-nih
SEM	-nih	-nih	-nih	-nih	-nih
NEUT	-niih	-niiʼ	-	-	-

See also Appendix: Roots and stems derivation.

Synonyms

to act with body:

• -ʼĄ́ (head)
• -CHID (hand)
• -ʼEEZ (foot)
• -NEʼ (head)
• -TÁÁL (foot)

to hurt:

• -GAII

 

crowd or herd moves:

• -DÉÉL
• -NÁ
• -TEEL
• -YIZ (stampede)
• -YOL
• -ZĄ́

to know:

• -CHĄ́Ą́ʼ
• -ZĮĮD

Derived terms

Navajo terms belonging to the root -NIIʼ (act with hand)

Navajo terms belonging to the root -NIIʼ (hurt)

Navajo terms belonging to the root -NIIʼ (wave passes)

Navajo terms belonging to the root -NIIʼ (know)