The Kacháris

Fi-sikhī; sikhī = friend; fi is the causal prefix which also occurs in the word fi-sā, a son; i. e. a made person, “the being you cause to exist.”

98

Ozai = the Assamese hadāi, with the intensive nŭ added.

99

Luguse = evidently, the Assamese lagat.

100

Rai = converse; lai = mutually; naise is the inflection.

101

Gākhŭ = climb; gākhŭ-hŭi = went and climbed.

102

No = house; au = datival inflection; the i is inserted for euphony.

103

Phā-phin; an infix implying “returning.”

104

Thāso may perhaps be a corruption of Assamese kasū.

105

Thŭ and lŭi are examples of idiomatic expletives which are practically untranslatable. So also herā.

106

Khuser is of course Assamese khusiyār.

107

Nu = see; zā = be, become; hŭi = going.

108

Zā = eat (the imperative is always the bare root, as in so many other languages). The word reminds me of a little story which shows the perplexities of bilingual people. A Kachári went to see his Assamese mother-in-law, who provided food and hospitably said (in Assamese) “Khā, khā.” On which her son-in-law, obeying her injunction in Kachári, bound her hand and foot. Seeing his mistake, she laughed and said, in Kachári, “Zā, zā.” On which he, much puzzled, went away!

109

A good example of the agglutinative verb, for which in Hinduised Kachári would be substituted a long succession of participles, such as nu-nānŭi, zā-nānŭi, thāng-nānŭi, etc. It is impossible, of course, to translate all the infixes severally.

110

Perhaps mukhang is Assamese, as well as ātheng which occurs elsewhere, and modom may be badan.

111

Ba-brāp-bai-naise = wandered distractedly about. The infix bai signifies wandering, and babrāp being in pain or wrath.

112

Rāzā-lŭng-hā-nī = a literal translation of Assamese rājā-hătar.

113

An instance of the rare passive, a manifest imitation of the Assamese idiom ot-zā-nŭ, “bit-become-to,” to be bitten.

114

An expressive phrase for “last of all.”

115

Lit. “throwing.”

116

“Father” used affectionately for “child.”

117

Hor = hot = “throw.”