Telugu Language: Grammar and Phonology

• Telugu is a Dravidian language spoken primarily in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana (Indian states).
• Telugu is one of six languages designated as a classical language of India.
• Telugu grammar is characterized by agglutination (suffixes are added to words to indicate grammatical functions).

Phonology

• Telugu has a large phoneme inventory.
• Telugu includes aspirated and unaspirated consonants.
• Vowels can be short or long, changing the meaning of words.

Nouns

• Telugu nouns are inflected for number (singular, plural) and case.
• Telugu has no grammatical genders.
• Case endings indicate a noun's function in a sentence (e.g., nominative, accusative, dative, instrumental, locative).
• Plural markers include "-lu" and "-llu," with usage varying by noun.

Pronouns

• Telugu pronouns distinguish between first, second, and third persons.
• Pronouns indicate number and include honorific forms.
• Demonstrative pronouns distinguish between near and distant objects.
• Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and object of a verb are the same.

Adjectives

• Telugu adjectives generally precede the nouns they modify.
• Adjectives do not change form to agree with the noun in number or case.
• Adjectival clauses can be formed using relative participles.

Verbs

• Telugu verbs are highly inflected.
• Verbs are inflected for tense, aspect, mood, and agreement with the subject.
• Tense markers indicate past, present, and future time.
• Aspect markers indicate the duration or completion of an action.
• Mood markers indicate the speaker's attitude towards the action (e.g., indicative, imperative, conditional).
• Verb agreement involves matching the verb ending to the subject's person, number, and gender
• Gender distinctions are less pronounced compared to some other languages.
• Telugu has a rich system of compound verbs, formed by combining two or more verbs to express nuances of meaning.
• Causative verbs are formed by adding suffixes to the verb root.

Adverbs

• Telugu adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
• Adverbs can indicate time, place, manner, or degree.
• Some adverbs are derived from nouns or adjectives.

Syntax

• The basic word order in Telugu is Subject-Object-Verb (SOV).
• Modifiers generally precede the words they modify.
• Telugu is a left-branching language.
• Relative clauses precede the noun they modify.
• Telugu uses postpositions rather than prepositions.
• Postpositions follow the noun they govern and indicate relationships of location, time, or manner.
• Telugu allows for pro-drop, where pronouns can be omitted from the sentence when the context makes the meaning clear.
• This is common with first and second person pronouns.
• Reduplication, the repetition of words or phrases, is used for emphasis or to indicate continuation or intensity.
• Telugu uses clitics, grammatical elements phonologically dependent on another word.
• Clitics can indicate emphasis, interrogation, or other grammatical functions.

Sandhi

• Sandhi refers to phonetic changes that occur at word boundaries in Telugu.
• External Sandhi: Changes occur between separate words in a sentence.
• Internal Sandhi: Changes occur within a word when suffixes are added to a root.
• Vowel Sandhi: Changes occur when two vowels meet, either by elision, substitution, or modification.
• Consonant Sandhi: Involves changes in consonant sounds due to the influence of adjacent sounds.

Case System

• Nominative Case: Marks the subject of a verb.
• Accusative Case: Marks the direct object of a verb.
• Dative Case: Indicates the indirect object or recipient of an action.
• Instrumental Case: Denotes the means by which an action is performed.
• Locative Case: Indicates the location where an action occurs.
• Ablative Case: Denotes the source from which something comes.
• Genitive Case: Shows possession or relationship.

Verb Conjugation

• Telugu verbs are conjugated based on tense, aspect, mood, and person-number-gender agreement.
• Telugu has three main tenses: past, present, and future.
• Aspect refers to how the action of the verb is viewed in terms of duration or completion (e.g., perfective, imperfective).
• Mood indicates the speaker's attitude towards the action, such as indicative, imperative, or conditional.
• Verb endings change to agree with the subject of the sentence in person, number, and gender.

Compound Verbs

• Telugu makes extensive use of compound verbs, which consist of two or more verbs combined to express nuanced meanings.
• These verbs often involve a main verb followed by an auxiliary verb that modifies or enhances the meaning of the main verb.

Syntax Elements

• Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) Word Order: Telugu sentences typically follow this order
• Postpositions: Telugu uses postpositions that follow the noun they govern, instead of prepositions
• Relative Clauses: Relative clauses precede the noun they modify.
• Pro-Drop: Telugu allows omitting pronouns when the context is clear.
• Reduplication: Repetition of words or phrases emphasizes or continues the meaning.
• Clitics: Grammatical elements attached to words indicate emphasis, interrogation, or other functions.