۴•۲. Nomen Agentis

A nomen agentis indicates the character executing a nomen actionis. In Persian, nomina agentis count as adjectival phrases.

Contents

a. Forms and Derivation of Nomina Agentis

The Persian language has an extensive repertoire of patterns and forms of nomina agentis:

a•a. Simple Nomen Agentis

The simple nomen agentis indicates the feature usually executing a nomen actionis, or at the time of the statement. It can have the following syntax:

  • From nomina actionis:
    • With the suffixes /-gær/ and /-vær/: /eʃvægær/ عشوه‌گر, /hæmlævær/ حمله‌ور, /ʃenɒvær/ شناور
    • With the suffix /-i/: /mɒndæni/ ماندنی, /molɒɣɒti/ ملاقاتی
    • With the suffix /-ijjæ/: /næɣlijjæ/ نقلیّه, /tæhririjjæ/ تحریریّه
    • With the suffix /-ʧi/: /ʃekɒrʧi/ شکارچی, /tæmɒʃɒʧi/ تماشاچی
    • With the suffix /-æk/ from onomatopoetics: /sutæk/ سوتک, /ʤir-ʤiræk/ جیرجیرک, /ɣɒr-ɣɒræk/ قارقارک
  • From verbal roots with the dental suffix /-tɒr/: /xæridɒr/ خریدار, /xɒstɒr/ خواستار
  • From past participles with the suffix /-gɒr/: /mɒndgɒr/ ماندگار, /ræstgɒr/ رستگار
  • From present participles:
    • By nominalization. In this case, the polarity of the simple nomen agentis equates that of the present participle:
      • Emphesized affirmative present participles (with the prefix /be-/): /besɒz/ بساز, /bexær/ بخر
      • Negative present participles (with the prefixes /næ-/ and /nɒ-/): /næpæz/ نپز, /næfæhm/ نفهم, /nɒtævɒn/ ناتوان, /nɒdɒn/ نادان
    • With the suffixes /-ænd/, /-ændæ/ and /-ændu/: /tænænd/ تنند, /bærɒzændæ/ برازنده, /tæpændæ/ تپنده, /tænændu/ تنندو
    • With the suffixes /-ɒ/ and /-ɒk/: /dɒnɒ/ دانا, /tævɒnɒ/ توانا, /kɒvɒk/ کاواک, /suzɒk/ سوزاک
    • With the suffix /-ɒn/: /ʤuʃɒn/ جوشان, /oftɒn/ افتان
    • With the suffix /-gɒr/: /ɒmuzgɒr/ آموزگار, /pærhizgɒr/ پرهیزگار
    • In the Tajik idiom with the Suffix /-æm/ (see also the article of Firuza Amanova in مجلهء زبانشناسی, ۱۵th and 16th issue, page 8): /ʃɒjæm/ شایم, /dɒræm/ دارم
    • In archaic idioms, with the proclitical adverb /meː-/:

      من غزلی می‌سرای /meː-særɒj/، سویِ گلی می‌نگر /meː-negær/

      او طربی می‌فزای /meː-fozɒj/، شاخِ گلی می‌شکن /meː-ʃekæn/

      Hassan Ghaznavi (12th Century AD)

  • In the Tajik idiom from presumptive participles using the proclitical adverb /meː-/ (see also the article of Firuza Amanova in مجلهء زبانشناسی, ۱۵th and 16th issue, page 7):

    دخترِ در این جا کار می‌کردگی /meː-kærdægi/ کاتبه‌یِ رییسِ دانشگاه‌ست.

  • From nominal participles with the suffix /-ɒn/: /ɒvængɒn/ آونگان

In Persian, foreign language nomina agentis also belong to this group: /ɣɒtel/ قاتل, /boksor/ بوکسر

a•b. Perfect Nomen Agentis

The perfect nomen agentis has the feature of beginning the execution of a nomen actionis in the past, whereas the situation or process expressed by the nomen actionis or its consequence continues in the time of the statement. Perfect nomina agentis are derived from non-finite verb forms in Persian, having the following syntax:

  • By adjectivization of perfect participles: /istɒdæ/ ایستاده, /tærsidæ/ ترسیده, /ræftæ/ رفته
  • In the Tajik idiom also by adjectivization of presumptive participles (see also the article of Firuza Amanova in مجلهء زبانشناسی, ۱۵th and 16th issue, page 7):

    آدمِ به خانه‌یِ ما آمدگی /ɒmædægi/ از دوست‌م مکتوبه آورد.

These patterns are used for the derivation of perfect nomina agentis from intransitive non-finite verb forms by implication.

For transitive non-finite verb forms, the perfect nomen agentis must be attributed ↓ by the direct object (see below): /ɣæzɒ-xordæ/ غذاخورده, /kæfʃ-puʃidæ/ کفش‌پوشیده, /sær-sepordæ/ سرسپرده

زلف‌آشفته /zolf-ɒʃoftæ/ و خوی‌کرده /xoj-kærdæ/ و خندان‌لب و مست

پیرهن‌چاک و غزل‌خوان و صراحی در دست

Hafez (14th Century AD)

a•c. Progressive Nomen Agentis

The progressive nomen agentis indicates the feature executing a nomen actionis.

Progressive nomina agentis exist in the Tajik idiom, and are generated with the following pattern (see also the article of Firuza Amanova in مجلهء زبانشناسی, ۱۵th and 16th issue, page 7): [AP[VP[Vperfect participle] [Vpresumptive participle /istɒdægi/]]]:

ماشینِ رفته ایستادگی /ræftæ istɒdægi/ ناگهان از حرکت باز ماند.

b. Attribution of Nomina Agentis

(See 3•d•a•b. Attribution of Nomina Actionis and 4•۱•b. Attribution of Nomina Patientis.)

Nomina agentis can also be attributed by one or more sentence constituents. This process is subject to the following rules (in the presented order). A new nomen agentis is formed as every step, before being attributed by the next step:

  1. Determinative composition of verb particles with nomina agentis which are derived from non-finite verb forms:

    بر‌خورنده /bær-xorændæ/، بر‌گشته /bær-gæʃtæ/

  2. Determinative composition of predicative complements with nomina agentis which are derived from non-finite verb forms:

    نرم‌کننده /nærm-konændæ/، شسته‌شده /ʃostæ-ʃodæ/

    در کفشِ ادیبانِ جهان کردی پای

    غوره‌نشده /ɣure-næʃode/ مویز گشتی، احسنت!

    Mohammad-Taqi Bahar (19th and 20th Century AD)

  3. Determinative composition of direct objects which are appellative-indefinite noun phrases (= no adpositional phrases with the postposition /rɒ/), with nomina agentis derived from non-finite verb forms:

    مصرف‌کننده /mæsræf-konændæ/, گریه‌کنان /gerjæ-konɒn/

    گفت که: «دیوانه نیی! لایقِ این خانه نیی!»

    رفتم و دیوانه شدم، سلسله‌بندنده /selselæ-bændændæ/ شدم

    Rumi (13th Century AD)

  4. Adverbials which are noun phrases (= no adpositional phrases) are attached to nomina agentis, with a possessive genitive (with the pattern [AP[APnomen agentis] [Conenclitical conjunction /-e/] [NPadverbial]]):

    گوینده‌یِ امروز [AP[AP/gujændæ/] [Con/-je/] [NP/em-ruz/]]

  5. Direct objects are attached to nomina agentis by means of possessive genitive (with the pattern [AP[APnomen agentis] [Conenclitical conjunction /-e/] [NPdirect object]]). In this case, the direct objects are used without adposition (as noun phrases):

    تسکین‌دهنده‌یِ درد [AP[AP/tæskin-dæhændæ/] [Con/-je/] [NP/dærd/]]

  6. All objects and all adverbials can be positioned as attributes in front of or after the nomen agentis. The nomen agentis can have several such attributes:

    عمر در اوجِ فلک برده به سر [AP[NP/omr/] [PP/dær owʤ-e fælæk/] [AP/bordæ/] [PP/be sær/]]

    دم زده در نفسِ بادِ سحر [AP[NP/dæm/] [AP/zædæ/] [PP/dær næfæs-e bɒd-e sæhær/]]

    ابر را دیده به زیرِ پرِ خویش [AP[PP/æbr rɒ/] [AP/didæ/] [PP/be zir-e pær-e xiʃ/]]

    حیوان را همه فرمان‌برِ خویش [AP[PP/hæjævɒn rɒ/] [AP/hæmæ/] [AP/færmɒn-bær-e xiʃ/]]

    Parviz Natel-Khanlari (20th Century AD)

    بارها آمده شادان زِ سفر [AP[NP/bɒrhɒ/] [AP/ɒmædæ/] [AP/ʃɒdɒn/] [PP/ze sæfær/]]

    به ره‌ش بسته فلک طاقِ ظفر

    Parviz Natel-Khanlari (20th Century AD)

    ای به رویِ چشمِ من گسترده خویش [AP[PP/be ruj-e ʧæʃm-e mæn/] [AP/gostærdæ/] [NP/xiʃ/]]

    شادی‌ام بخشیده از اندوه بیش [AP[NP/ʃɒdi/] [NP/æm/] [AP/bæxʃidæ/] [AP/æz ænduh biʃ/]]

    Forough Farrokhzad (20th Century AD)

In Persian, it is notable that simple nomina agentis can be replaced with present participles (and occasionally by nominal participles) in the determinative composition:

درخور /dær-xor/، سوراخ‌کن /surɒx-kon/، آب‌پاش /ɒb-pɒʃ/، کارفرما /kɒr-færmɒ/

گوشت‌خوار /guʃt-xɒr/، ظفرنمون /zæfær-nemun/

در عهدِ پادشاهِ خطابخشِ /xætɒ-bæxʃ/ جرم‌پوش /ʤorm-puʃ/

حافظ قرابه‌کش /ɣærɒbe-kæʃ/ شد و مفتی پیاله‌نوش /piɒle-nuʃ/

Hafez (14th Century AD)

Such constellations are seldom used with other sentence constituents:

  • imperfective adverbial: /ruz-æfzun/ روزافزون
  • locative adverbial: /sædr-neʃin/ صدرنشین
  • modal adverbial: /hærze-gærd/ هرزه‌گرد
  • Even sentence constituents as adpositional phrases:

    ما در درونِ می‌کده صهبا به جام ریز /sæhbɒ be ʤɒm riz/

    شیخ از درونِ صومعه گردن‌درازکن

    Mohammad-Taqi Bahar (19th and 20th Century AD)

See also 4•f. Focus Shifting of Adjectival Phrases in relation to this topic.

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