NAHI IZAN "to want" | Learn Basque GRAMMAR

[@franciscooyarzun2637]

Thank you for all those explicit examples, and thank you for pointing out "northern" variants: I plan to relocate, this year, to Iparralde! [And that's why I'm in a hurry to pick up some Basque.]  

[@basqueberserk]

Oh really? A small town or big town? Small towns might have some Basque but not many Basque speakers in the big cities 🙁

[@franciscooyarzun2637]

​@@basqueberserk My wife, daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter: Bayonne; myself, nahi dut (bai?) a more rural setting, and Itsasu seems to be the closest county to Bayonne where streets are not called “rue” or “chemin” but “karrika”, “bidea” or “errebidea”, so that’s what I want to check out: Itsasu ikusi nahi dut!

[@basqueberserk]

@@franciscooyarzun2637 very nice! It seems like a nice town. I certainly hope you will find some Basque speakers there. ☺️

[@franciscooyarzun2637]

​@@basqueberserk My French is good enough for shopping and so on, and it will improve, but I have no expectation of ever being seen by multi-generational French as “truly” French.  Basques, on the other hand, are SO grateful and celebratory towards anyone who actually 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 to speak Basque, plus they apply this litmus test: if you speak Basque, then you ARE Basque, never mind your looks, origin, etc. Add to that that I actually do have a Basque surname, and I’m IN, I figure. Yes; I want to find a place from whence I felt no desire to move elsewhere: ez dit beste inora joateko gogorik ematen. [Ondo nago?]

[@basqueberserk]

@@franciscooyarzun2637 it is nice that the Basque people actually respect others that learn and speak Basque. 🙂 And although I’m good with Basque grammar, I’m not especially good at determining (or qualified to say) whether someone else is speaking or writing Basque well; your best bet to gauge your Basque is to find a native and ask if they would help you. There is a subreddit on Reddit if you want to ask for help practicing there, and also a Discord server, if you are familiar with those. ☺️

[@eugenegeppert6281]

Under future conditionals you show 2 equivalent forms. Is this an example of dialectic variation?

[@basqueberserk]

I haven't found anything that says that they are from different dialects, just that they are equivalent in meaning and acceptable in Batua. The closest thing I could find that maybe has some insight is this dialectal map, which indicates the -ko ending happens with 'nahi' a bit more in the south: www.euskaltzaindia.eus/index.php?option=com_ehha&view=frontpage&Itemid=466&lang=eu&testua=%22nahi+izan%22&gaia=&lekua=

[@eugenegeppert6281]

Ez dut nahi zu joaterik. (partitive). Ez duzu ni etortzea nahi (absolutive). Is this difference due to the fact that use of the partitive is not mandatory?

[@basqueberserk]

Yes, seems like they are used both equally, possibly varying between dialectal use or maybe just speaker preference.

[@osasunaitor]

The use of partitive changes the meaning though, so it is mandatory in many situations. Ez dut nahi txakurrik = I don't want _any_ dog. Ez dut nahi txakurra = I don't want _the_ dog. Back to the case you mention, in the first example _joaterik_ is taking the form of a noun, so it takes the partitive ending. In the second, _etortzea_ is acting more like a verb. "I don't want _your going" (noun)_ vs. "I don't want you _to come (verb)",_ that would be the difference between both sentences.

[@basqueberserk]

@@osasunaitor nice! This is such a great demonstration of Basque’s subtle differences in expression. Eskerrik asko benetan.

[@osasunaitor]

@@basqueberserk ez horregatik!