Forming Nouns In Cherokee.
Active nouns express something that is like a trait and not something that can be possessed . Consider the verb "ser" in Spanish.
(see: Passive Nouns)
Root noun beginning in consonant
-yvwiya
tsi-yvwiya I am an Indian.
hi-yvwiya you are an Indian.
a-yvwiya he/she is an Indian.
ini-yvwiya we are Indians.
sdi-yvwiya you two are Indians.
osdi-yvwiya we two (not you) are Indians.
idi-yvwiya we (including you) are all Indians.
otsi-yvwiya we (not you) are all Indians.
itsi-yvwiya you are all Indians.
ani-yvwiya they are Indians.
-ata
g-ata I am a teenage girl.
h-ata you are a teenage girl.
ata she is a teenage girl.
in-ata we are teenage girls.
sd-ata you two are teenage girls.
osd-ata we two (not you) are teenage girls.
id-ata we (including you) are all teenage girls.
ots-ata we (not you) are all teenage girls.
its-ata you are all teenage girls.
an-ata they are all teenage girls.