The phonology and morphology of Filomeno Mata Totonac

3.3.1.3 Agentive plural nouns. Besides the general human-referring nouns, deverbal agentive
nouns are regularly capable of pluralization. These nouns derive from a verb suffixed in –nan or
–nVn (with a harmonic vowel), the habitual suffix (§5.4.4.1). The morphology associated with
the agentive construction is a stress shift leftward which results in the deletion of the final -n of -
nan, and the glottalization of the vowel: ku$iinán ‘s/he heals habitually’, ku$iiná’! ‘healer’. Such
nouns do not take a pluralizing prefix, only the suffix –iin, with stress on the final syllable
preceding the suffix. Because this moves stress rightward, the final –n of the –nan suffix is
recovered, yielding: ku$iiná’! ‘healer’ ! ku$iinan-iin ! ku$iinaníin. Although my consultants
said the pluralized forms were correct, they stated that they were rarely used.
Table 3.3 Agentive plurals
Singular Plural Plural gloss
maqniiná’a& maqniinaníin ‘assassins’
pas"iiná’a& pas"iinaníin ‘painters’
qa#aaná’a& qa#aananíin ‘thieves’
saqná’a& saqnaníin ‘wood-
! ++!
gatherers’
staaná’a& staananíin ‘vendors’
tlaqná’a& tlaqnaníin ‘musicians’
tsapaná’a& tsapananíin ‘seamsters’
tsoqnú’u& tsoqnaníin ‘writers’
s"apaná’a& s"apananíin ‘masseurs’
s"wakná’a& s"waknaníin ‘carpenters’
laataamaaná’a& laataamaananíin ‘inhabitants’
3.3.1.4 Number and body parts. Most body part nouns, which are unspecified for number like
other nouns, end in a nominal suffix –ni". This -ni" form is the one used most commonly. To
emphasize specifically one or both of body parts that occur in pairs, two other constructions are
possible. To specify only one of the pair (most frequently, the other of the pair), the suffix –tu"
replaces –ni"; to specify both of the pair, -tiyú’u" replaces –ni".
The forms specified for number that follow in the list are the only ones my consultants felt
comfortable with. They agreed that theoretically the constructions would apply to other body
part nouns, such as ‘ears’ or ‘legs’, but said that no one employed them. Except in unusual
contexts (i.e., a severed limb) all body parts must appear with a possessive prefix.