Subject–object–verb

Linguistic typology
Morphological
	Isolating
	Synthetic
	Polysynthetic
	Fusional
	Agglutinative
Morphosyntactic
	Alignment
	Accusative
	Ergative
	Split ergative
	Philippine
	Active–stative
	Tripartite
	Marked nominative
	Inverse marking
	Syntactic pivot
	Theta role
Word Order
	VO languages
	Subject–verb–object
	Verb–subject–object
	Verb–object–subject
	OV languages
	Subject–object–verb
	Object–subject–verb
	Object–verb–subject
	Time–manner–place
	Place–manner–time
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In linguistic typology, a subject–object–verb (SOV) language is one in which the subject, object, and verb of a sentence appear or usually appear in that order. If English were SOV, then "Sam oranges ate" would be an ordinary sentence, as opposed to the actual standard English "Sam ate oranges". The label is often used for ergative languages that do not have subjects but have an Agent–object–verb order.

[edit] Incidence

Among natural languages with a word order preference, SOV is the most common type^{[citation needed]} (followed by subject–verb–object; the two types account for more than 75% of natural languages with a preferred order).^[3] Languages that have SOV structure include Ainu, Akkadian, Amharic, Armenian, Assamese, Aymara, Azerbaijani, Basque, Bengali, Burmese, Burushaski, Dogon languages, Elamite, Ancient Greek, Hindi, Hittite, Hopi, Hungarian, Ijoid languages, Itelmen, Japanese, Kazakh, Korean, Kurdish, Classical Latin, Manchu, Mande languages, Marathi, Mongolian, Navajo, Nepali, Newari, Nivkh, Nobiin, Pāli, Pashto, Persian, Punjabi, Quechua, Sanskrit, Senufo languages, Seri, Sicilian Sindhi, Sinhalese and most other Indo-Iranian languages, Somali and virtually all other Cushitic languages, Sumerian, Tibetan and nearly all other Tibeto-Burman languages, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and all other Dravidian languages, Tigrinya, Turkic languages, Turkish, Urdu, Yukaghir, and virtually all Caucasian languages.

Standard Mandarin is SVO, but for simple sentences in clear context, word order is flexible enough to allow for SOV or OSV. German and Dutch are considered SVO in conventional typology and SOV in generative grammar. For example, in German, a basic sentence such as "Ich sage etwas über Karl" ("I say something about Karl") is in SVO word order. When a conjunction like "dass" ("that" in English) is used, the verb appears at the end of the sentence, rendering the word order SOV. A possible example in SOV word order would be: "Ich sage, dass Karl einen Gürtel gekauft hat." (A literal English translation would be: "I say that Karl a belt bought has.")

Aharon Dolgopolsky supposes Proto-Nostratic language to be SOV.

[edit] Properties

SOV languages have a strong tendency to use postpositions rather than prepositions, to place auxiliary verbs after the action verb, to place genitive noun phrases before the possessed noun, to place a name before a title or honorific ("James Uncle" and "Johnson Doctor" rather than "Uncle James" and "Doctor Johnson"), and to have subordinators appear at the end of subordinate clauses. They have a weaker but significant tendency to place demonstrative adjectives before the nouns they modify. Relative clauses preceding the nouns to which they refer usually signals SOV word order, though the reverse does not hold: SOV languages feature prenominal and postnominal relative clauses roughly equally. SOV languages also seem to exhibit a tendency towards using a time–manner–place ordering of adpositional phrases.

One can usefully distinguish two types of SOV language in terms of their type of marking. The first, referred to in linguistic typology as dependent-marking, has case markers to distinguish the subject and the object, which allows it to use the variant OSV word order without ambiguity. This type usually places adjectives and numerals before the nouns they modify and is exclusively suffixing without prefixes. SOV languages of this first type include Japanese and Tamil.

The second is head-marking and distinguishes subject and object by affixes on the verb rather than markers on the nouns. It also differs from the dependent-marking SOV language in using prefixes as well as suffixes, usually for tense and possession. Because adjectives in this type are much more verb-like than in dependent-marking SOV languages, they usually follow the nouns. In most SOV languages with a significant level of head-marking or verb-like adjectives, numerals and related quantifiers (like "all", "every") also follow the nouns they modify. Languages of this type include Navajo and Seri.

In practice, of course, the distinction between these two types is far from sharp. Many SOV languages are substantially double-marking and tend to exhibit properties intermediate between the two idealised types above.

[edit] Examples

[edit] Abkhaz

Sentence	Сара' иахьа' ашко'л ахь сцо'ит
Words	Сара'	иахьа ашко'л	ахь сцо'ит
Gloss	I	to school	go
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	I am going to school.

[edit] Albanian

Sentence	Agimi librin e mori.
Words	Agimi	librin	e mori
Gloss	Agimi	the book	took
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Agimi took the book. (It was Agimi who took the book)

[edit] Arabic

Sentence	.مَا كَانُوا إِيَّانَا يَعْبُدُونَ
Words	مَا كَانُوا	إِيَّانَا	يَعْبُدُونَ
Gloss	مَا كَانُوا (are not+nominative "u" ending)	إِيَّانَا (us+accusative "a" ending)	يَعْبُدُونَ (they worship+3. masculine plural "un" ending)
Transliteration	mā kānū	ʾiyyānā	yaʿbudūn
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	They do not worship us.

[edit] Azerbaijani

Sentence	Yusuf almanı yedi .
Words	Yusuf	almanı	yedi
Gloss	Joseph	the apple	ate
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Joseph ate the apple.

[edit] Basque

Basque is also an ergative–absolutive language.

Sentence	Martinek egunkariak erosten dizkit. (help·info)
Words	Martinek	egunkariak	erosten dizkit
Gloss	Martin (ergative)	newspapers (absolutive)	buys them for me
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb + aux
Translation	Martin buys the newspapers for me.

[edit] French

The French language usually uses a Subject-Verb-Object structure, however when using most pronouns, they will be placed before the verb.

Sentence	Nous les avions.
Parts	Nous	les	avions
Gloss	We	them/those	had
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	We had those/them

[edit] German

German is partially SOV. For simple verbs it is SVO but for compound verbs the inflected root is moved to the end of the sentence.

Sentence
Words	Horst hat	einen Apfel	gegessen
Gloss	Horst has	an apple	eaten
Parts	Subject + aux	Object	inflected Verb
Translation	Horst has eaten an apple.

[edit] Hungarian

Sentence	Pista kenyeret szel.
Words	Pista	kenyeret	szel
Gloss	Pista	bread	slices
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Pista slices bread.

but

Sentence	Pista szel kenyeret.
Words	Pista	szel	kenyeret
Gloss	Pista	slices	bread
Parts	Subject	Verb	Object
Translation	It's Pista who slices bread. Pista is going to slice bread for us. (differed by stress)

or

Sentence	Pista szeli a kenyeret.
Words	Pista	szeli	a kenyeret
Gloss	Pista	slices	the bread
Parts	Subject	Verb	Object
Translation	Pista slices the bread.

but

Sentence	Pista a kenyeret szeli.
Words	Pista	a kenyeret	szeli
Gloss	Pista	the bread	slices
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Pista is slicing the bread. It's the bread what Pista slices. Pista slices the bread (not breaks). (differed by stress)

[edit] Kabardian

Sentence	Жыгхэр сатыруы хэсаф.
Words	Жыгхэр	сатыруы	хэсаф.
Transliteration	Zhygkher	Satyruy	Khesaf
Gloss	The trees	in rows	plant
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	They planted trees in row.

[edit] Kazakh

Sentence	Дастан кітап оқыды.
Words	Дастан	кітап	оқыды
Transliteration	Dastan	kitap	oqıdı
Gloss	Dastan	the book	read
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Dastan read the book.

[edit] Hindi

Sentence	सौरभ पाठशाला में जाता है\|
Words	सौरभ	पाठशाला	में	जाता	है
Transliteration	Saurabh	pāṭhśālā	meṅ	jātā	hai
Gloss	Sourabh	school	in	goes	to
Parts	Subject	Object		Verb
Translation	Sourabh goes to school.

[edit] Marathi

Sentence	सौरभ शाळेला जातो.
Words	सौरभ	शाळेला	जातो.
Transliteration	Saurabh	śāḷelā	jāto
Gloss	Sourabh	to school	goes
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Sourabh goes to school.

[edit] Mandarin Chinese

Generally Chinese language are all SVO languages. However, especially in Mandarin, SOV is also tolerated, and there is a special structure to form a SOV sentense.

Sentence	我把苹果吃了.
Words	我	把	苹果	吃了.
Transliteration	Wo	ba	pingguo	chile
Gloss	I	sign for moving object before the verb	apple	ate
Parts	Subject	Sign	Object	Verb
Translation	I ate the apple.

[edit] Telugu

Sentence	రాముడు బడికి వెళ్తాడు.
Words	రాముడు	బడికి	వెళ్తాడు.
Transliteration	Ramudu	badiki	veLthaadu
Gloss	Ramudu	to school	goes.
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Ramudu goes to school.

This sentence can also be interpreted as 'Ramudu will go to school' depending on the context. But it does not affect the SOV order.

[edit] Japanese

Sentence	私が箱を開けます。
Words	私	が	箱	を	開けます。
Romanization	watashi	ga	hako	o	akemasu.
Gloss	I	(sub)	box	(obj)	open(polite)
Parts	Subject		Object		Verb
Translation	I (am the one who) open(s) the box.

The markers が (ga) and を (o) are, respectively, subject and object markers for the words that precede them. Technically, the sentence can be translated a number of ways ("I open a box", "It is I who opens the boxes", etc.), but this does not affect the SOV analysis.

[edit] Kannada

Sentence	ರಾಮನು ಶಾಲೆಗೆ ಹೋಗುತ್ತಾನೆ.
Words	ರಾಮನು	ಶಾಲೆಗೆ	ಹೋಗುತ್ತಾನೆ.
Transliteration	Ramanu	Shalege	hOguttAne
Gloss	Ramanu	to school	goes.
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Rama goes to school.

This sentence can also be interpreted as 'Rama will go to school' depending on the context but does not affect the SOV order.

[edit] Korean

Sentence	내가 상자를 연다.
Words	내	가	상자	를	연	다.
Romanization	nae	ga	sangja	reul	yeon	da.
Gloss	I	(subj)	box	(obj)	open	(ending)
Parts	Subject		Object		Verb
Translation	I open the box.

'가(ga)/이(i)' is a subject marker and '를(reul)/을 (eul)' is an object marker, each of which is joined with and follows its marked one. '다(da)' is a sentence-closing ending.

※ Here '나(na, I (pronoun))' is changed to '내(nae)' before '가(ga)'.

[edit] Burmese

Burmese is an analytic language.

Sentence	ငါက စက္ကူဘူးကို ဖွင့်တယ်။
Words	ငါ	က	စက္ကူဘူး	ကို	ဖွင့်	တယ်
IPA	ŋà nga	ɡa̰ ga.	seʔkù bú se'ku bu:	ɡò gou	pʰwìɴ hpwin.	dè de
Gloss	I	(subj)	box	(obj)	open	(pres)
Parts	Subject		Object		Verb
Translation	I open the box.

[edit] Latin

Although Classical Latin is an inflected language and has a very flexible word order and sentence structure, the most usual word order is SOV.

Sentence	Servus puellam amat
Words	Servus	puellam	amat
Gloss	Slave (nom)	girl (acc)	loves
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	The slave loves the girl.

Again, there are multiple valid translations (such as "a slave") that do not affect the overall analysis.

[edit] Proto-Nostratic

(According to Aharon Dolgopolsky)

Sentence	ʔemA ʔaba mA hawV
Words	ʔemA	ʔaba	mA	hawV
Gloss	mother	father	(analytic accusative marker)	to love
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Mother loves father.

Where 'A' is /æ/ or /ɑ/, and 'V' is any vowel.

[edit] Pashto

Sentence	.زه کار کوم
Words	زه	کار	کوم
Gloss	زه (Subject Pronoun)	کار (Noun)	کوم (verb)
Transliteration	ze	kaar	kom
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	I do the work.

[edit] Persian

Sentence	.من سیب می‌خورم
Words	من	سیب	می‌خورم
Gloss	من (Subject Pronoun)	سیب (Noun)	می‌خورم (verb)
Transliteration	man	seeb	mikhoram
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	I eat an apple.

[edit] Russian

Russian is an inflected language and is very flexible in word order, and allows all possible word combinations.

Sentence	Дмитрий книгу читает
Words	Дмитрий	книгу	читает
Gloss	Дмитрий (nom)	книгу (acc)	читает
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Dmitry is reading a book.

Could also be: Дмитрий читает книгу (SVO) and more often is

[edit] Tamil

Sentence	கண்ணன் பள்ளிக்கூடம் செல்கிறான்.
Words	கண்ணன்	பள்ளிக்கூடம்	செல்கிறான்
Gloss	Kannan	school	goes to (Masculine)
Transliteration	Kaṇṇaṉ	paḷḷikkūṭam	celkiṟāṉ
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Kannan goes to school.

[edit] Turkish

Sentence	Yusuf elmayı yedi.
Words	Yusuf	elmayı	yedi
Gloss	Joseph	the apple	ate
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	Joseph ate the apple. (This sentence is the answer of "What did Yusuf do?")

but

Sentence	Elmayı Yusuf yedi.
Words	Elmayı	Yusuf	yedi
Gloss	The apple	Joseph	ate
Parts	Object	Subject	Verb
Translation	It's Joseph who ate the apple. (This sentence is the answer of "Who ate the apple?")

[edit] Udmurt

Sentence	мoн книгa лыӟӥcькo.
Words	мoн	книгa	лыӟӥcькo.
Gloss	I	a book	to read
Parts	Subject	Object	Verb
Translation	I am reading a book.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

^ Introducing English Linguistics International Student Edition by Charles F. Meyer
^ Russell Tomlin, "Basic Word Order: Functional Principles", Croom Helm, London, 1986, page 22
^ Crystal, David (1997). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language (2nd edition ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-55967-7.

[0] Introducing English Linguistics International Student Edition by Charles F. Meyer

[1] Russell Tomlin, "Basic Word Order: Functional Principles", Croom Helm, London, 1986, page 22

[2] Crystal, David (1997). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language (2nd edition ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-55967-7.

[1]

[2]

[3]

Word order	English equivalent	Proportion of languages	Example languages
SOV	"I you love."	45%	Hindi, Japanese, Latin
SVO	"I love you."	42%	English, Mandarin, Russian
VSO	"Love I you."	9%	Hebrew, Irish, Zapotec
VOS	"Love you I."	3%	Baure, Fijian, Malagasy
OVS	"You love I."	1%	Apalai, Hixkaryana, Tamil
OSV	"You I love."	0%	Jamamadi, Warao, Xavante