Kevin Smith | Re: [LFN] La gramatica completa

--- In LinguaFrancaNova@yahoogroups.com, George Boeree wrote:
> Syntax includes only one inflection: the plural.  All other suffixes
> and prefixes are derivational.
(snip)
> There are no continuative forms, just as there are no
> perfect/imperfect forms.  LFN is capable of expressing the
> continuative, if the speaker desires, by using es and the active
> verbal adjective.  You are literally saying that you have this
> characteristic, of being one who...  This conveys the sense of
> continuity.
(snip)
> Attributive nouns are not a part of LFN.  There are a number
> of ways of making a noun adjectival, such as using suffixes
> (-in, -os...) or using de..   There are some words that are both
> adjective and noun, such as sircula, meaning circular and a
> circular thing, ie. a circle.  They are easy to spot, since
> they all refer to forms.

I am not a linguist, but to me, saying that -in -os and the other 21
suffixes[1] are not inflections misses the point. Either a word
changes shape, or it doesn't. One of the things I really liked about
Glosa was that words *never* changed shape. One of the things that
makes Spanish difficult for me is that I have to recognize roots that
have been decorated with various suffixes.

Reading becomes a two-part activity...first, figure out where the root
word stops and the suffix begins, and then mentally translate each of
the two parts. For my brain, this is difficult.

If I were going to simplify one aspect of LFN syntax/grammar, it would
be to eliminate suffixes. The only one I somewhat like is -s for
plural. But I would even be willing to give that up.

The other area where LFN is becoming more and more complex is in
vocabulary. I know I have said it before, but the more words there
are, the harder it is to learn a language, and especially the harder
it is for a beginner to read random LFN material. This is an area
where LFN is clearly choosing to be more precisely expressive at the
expense of simplicity.

Kevin

[1] http://lingua-franca-nova.net/lfnaffixes.html
Aren't several of these completely unnecessary, like -a, -i,