564

7-4.4 Sa.fia embedding

The verb sa.fia 'to say' (see 6-4) is used in all

dialects as a reportive, to embed direct quotes.
7-4.41  sa.fia with Simple tense

The simplest use of sa.fia as embedder is the
verb with 3+3 Simple tense, s.i, often suffixed with

-wa absolute, as in the following:

Jaya timpu.xa inka.xa taqi.ru.wa mant.iri.:n

 

far time Inca all order 353
RDK
S.i.w.
333 —
S

‘Long ago, the Inca ruled over everything, they say.’
(Jopoqueri)

What occurs before s.i.w in the above example is a
complete sentence, with -wa absolute on taqi.ru and
with the Remote Direct Knowledge tense on the verb.
Without the addition of s.i.wa the sentence would imply
that the speaker had personal experience on which to
base his statement. Adding s.i.wa indicates that the
speaker is reporting information received at second

hand.