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Tïjonïk 13 Xatch’aw ruk’ le awajtij (You spoke with your teacher)
Completive Aspect

Introduction

In this lesson we will learn to speak about events and experiences in the past. In K’iche’ these are expressed using the completive aspect, which is comparable, though not the same as the past tense.

TZIJONIKText

Mauricio le nub’i. Kimpe pa le tinamit Austin, pa le amaq’ Estados Unidos. In tijoxel pa le nimatijob’al. Iwir ximb’e pa le nimatijob’al. Aretaq xinwa’lijik, xinwa’ik. K’a te k’u ri’, ximb’e pa le nimatijob’al. Xinb’inik. Utz kinwil le nutinamit. Aretaq xinopan pa le nimatijob’al, xojb’e pa le qatijonik rech k’iche’. Tat Wel ub’i’ le qajtij. Pa le tijonik, xojch’aw ruk’ le qajtij pa k’iche’ ch’ab’al. Sib’alaj utz kinwil le nutijonik rech K’iche’!

Show/Hide English translation

My name is Mauricio. I am from the city of Austin in the United States. I am a student at the university. Yesterday I went to the university. When I got up, I ate. Afterwards I went to the university. I walked. I like my town. When I arrived to the university, we went to our K’iche’ class. Our teacher’s name is tat Wel. In class, we talked with our teacher in K’iche’. I like my K’iche’ class a lot!

KEMCHI’Grammar

In K’iche’ the completive aspect indicates that the action has been completed relative to the time in which it is being spoken. Remember that aspect gives us a text internal perspective of time, how events relate to each other: the completive aspect marks events that have been completed relative to other events. We generally translate the completive with the past in English (I went, I ate, etc.).

The completive marker is the prefix x-, which replaces the incompletive k(a)-. In the completive, there is no filler vowel –a- in the third person singular linking the aspect marker with the verb stem, like in the incompletive aspect. See the following examples:

1.
Katb’ek.
K-at-b’ek
INC-2sing- go
You go.		 1.
Xatb’ek.
x-at-b’ek
COMP-2sing-go
You went.
2.
Kab’ek.
Ka-Ø-b’ek.
INC-3sing- go
He/she/it goes.		  2.
Xb’ek
x-Ø-b’ek
COMP-3sing-go
He/she/it went.
3.
Ximb’ek.
x-im-b’ek.
COMP-1sing-go
I went.		 4.
Ximb’e ruk’ le ajkun iwir.
x-im-b’e r-uk’ le ajkun iwir
COMP-1sing 3sing-with art. doctor yesterday.
I went to the doctor’s yesterday.
4.
La xtzalij la iwir?
La x-tzalij la iwir?
INT COMP-return 2sing.form yesterday
Did you return yesterday?		  5.
Je’, xintzalijik.
Je’, x-in-tzalij-ik.
Yes, COMP-1sing-return-pfm.
Yes, I returned.

The pronouns and phrase final markers are the same as for incompletive verbs.

Aspect Person Root PFM Complete Gloss
x- im/in b’e -k

ximb’ek

 I went
x- at b’e -k

xatb’ek

 You went
x- —  b’e —

xb’e la

 You went (formal)
x- Ø  b’e -k

xb’ek

 He/she/it went
x- oj  b’e -k

xojb’ek

 We went
x- ix  b’e -k

xixb’ex

 You all went
x- —  b’e —

xb’e alaq

 You all went (formal)
x- e  b’e -k

xeb’ek

 They went
K’AK’A TAQ TZIJVocabulary
wa’kat(ik) to stroll, to take a walk
q’ij day
amaq’ country
k’a te k’u ri’ then, after
E-uk’ with (E=ergative)
oq'(ik) to cry
ul(ik) to arrive (here)
kolotaj(ik)* salvation
kos(ik) to be tired, to tire
muq(ik)* to bury
jiq'(ik) to suffocate
qatat, qanan; qati’t, qamam our ancestors (literally: our fathers, our mothers; our grandmothers, our grandfathers)
tukinel(ab’) destroyer(s)
sokotajik* to be wounded
ch’o’jin(ik) to fight
uxlab’ breath
tz’olq’omij remorse, penance, regret
b’uk’uwem the beating of the earth
matam late
aretaq when

*These are in a grammatical form that we have not studied yet, where the root of a verb is used to make a noun. We will learn this form later.

CHAK KECH TIJOXELAB’Exercises

Translate the following sentences into English:

  1. Xinwa’kat pa le juyub’ iwir.
  2. Matam xatwa’lij kamik.
  3. Xki’kot le al Maria aretaq xulik.
  4. La xatb’e pa le tyox iwir?
  5. La xixkos pa le ichak?
  6. Xojb’e pa le amaq’ Estados Unidos.
  7. -La xixul pa le tijob’al?
    -Je’, xojulik.
  8. La xwar le tijoxel pa le tijonik?
  9. Xojch’awik.
  10. Xch’aw le ajtij ruk’ le al We’l.