Maithili grammar

This page describes the grammar of Maithili language, which has a complex verbal system, nominal declension with a few inflections, and extensive use of honoroficity. It is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Maithili people and is spoken in the Indian state of Bihar with some speakers in Jharkhand and nearby states.The language has a large number of speakers in Nepal too, which is second in number of speakers after Bihar.

Maithili has the following characteristic morphological features:

• Number is not grammatically marked.
• Gender distinctions are also absent in verbs and pronouns.
• There is a lexical distinction of gender in the third person pronoun.
• Transitive verbs are distinguished from intransitive.

Phonology

Vowels

		Front		Central		Back
		short	long	short	long	short	long
Closed	Script	ɪ ⟨इ⟩	iː ⟨ई⟩			ʊ ⟨उ⟩	uː ⟨ऊ⟩
	Rom.	i	ī			u	ū
Mid	Script	e ⟨ऎ⟩	eː ⟨ए⟩	ə~ɐ ⟨अ⟩	əː ⟨अ꣱/अ२⟩	o ⟨ऒ⟩	oː ⟨ओ⟩
	Rom.	e	ē	a		o	ō
Open	Script	æ~ɛ ⟨ऍ⟩		a ⟨ॴ⟩	aː ⟨आ⟩	ɔ ⟨अ꣱⟩
	Rom.	æ/ê		ă/ä	ā	å
Diphthongs	Script	əɪ̯ ⟨ꣾ⟩				əʊ̯ ⟨ॵ⟩
	Rom.	ai				au

• All vowels have nasal counterparts, represented by "~" in IPA and ँ on the vowels, like आँ [ãː] .
• All vowel sounds are realised as nasal when occurring before or after a nasal consonant.
• Word final अ [a] is always deleted, except in monosyllabic words, non-syllabic (य /e̯/ and /o̯/) final words (if preceded by any non-central vowel) and conjunct final words. In the middle position, it is shortened to [^a] /ə̆/, if unstressed. Both extra short vowel and deleted vowel are pronounced in poetry though.
• Ramavatar Yadav ignores the contrast between short and long vowels, as its length is often determined by position. Others maintain the contrast as some of the differences can be explained by position, but not all.
• Sounds [eː] and [oː] are often replaced by diphthongs [əɪ̯] and [əʊ̯] in various dialects.
• [ɔ] is realised as [əː] in northern dialects and o in southernmost dialects.
• There are three extra short vowels that were described by Grierson, अ [ ə̆ ] (Rom. as a ), इ' [ ɪ̆ ] (Rom. as i), उ' [ ʊ̆ ] (Rom. as u), but are not counted by Ramavatar Yadav and other modern grammarians. The first could be understood as syllable break: ( "." in IPA).
• A peculiar type of phonetic change is recently taking place in Maithili by way of epenthesis, i.e. backward transposition of final extra short i and u in all sort of words. Thus:

Standard Colloquial - Common Pronunciation

अछि' / achⁱ / - अइछ / aich / 'is'

मधु' / madh^u / - मउध / maudh / 'honey'

बालु' / bāl^u / - बाउल / bāul / 'sand'

Only extra short i and u have been applicable for this rule, however recently short i and u have started to observe same pattern, though it is very scattered, and non-standard-

रवि / rabi / - रइब / raib / 'Sunday'

This phenomenon is observed only in northern dialects, in southern dialects it is often maintained or even lengthened.

achⁱ→(a)chī

madh^u→madhū

bāl^u→bālū

rabi→rabī

• ꣾ is a Unicode letter in Devanagari, (IPA /əe̯/) which is not supported currently on several browsers and operating systems, along with its mātrā (vowel sign).

The following diphthongs are present:

अय़/ꣾ / əe̯ / ~ /ɛː/ - अय़सन/ꣾसन /aisan/ ~ /êsan/ 'like this'

अव़/ॵ / əo̯ / ~ /ɔː/- चव़मुख/चॏमुख /caumukh/ ~ /cåmukh/ 'four faced'

अऎ /ꣾ əe̯ / - अऎलाह/ꣾलाह /aelah/ 'came'

अऒ/ॵ / əo̯ / - अऒताह/ॵताह /aotah/ 'will come'

आइ / aːi̯ / - आइ /āi/ 'today'

आउ / aːu̯ / - आउ /āu/ 'come please'

आऎ / aːe̯ / - आऎल /āel/ 'came'

आऒ / aːo̯ / - आऒब /āob/ 'will come'

यु/इउ / iu̯/ - घ्यु/घिउ /ghiu/ 'ghee'

यॆ/इऎ / ie̯ / - यॆह/इऎह /ieh/ 'only this' (dialectical variation of इहꣿ/यꣿह)

यॊ/इऒ / io̯ / - कह्यो/कहिऒ /kahio/ 'any day'

वि/उइ / ui̯ / - द्वि/दुइ /dui/ 'two'

वॆ/उऎ /ue̯/ - वॆह/उऎह /ue:h/ 'only that' (dialectical variation of उहꣿ/वꣿह)

There are some graphemes, borrowed from Sanskrit, which are written as pronounced in Sanskrit-

Letter	Sans. Pron.	Rom.	Maithili Pron.
ऋ	r̩	r̥/ṛ	r̩/rɪ
ॠ	r̩ː	r̥̄/ṝ	r̩ː/riː
ऌ	l̩	l̥/ḷ	l̩/lɪ
ऐ	ae̯ː / aːɪ̯	various
औ	ao̯ː / aːʊ̯	various

Consonants

Maithili has four classes of stops, one class of affricate, which is generally treated as a stop series, related nasals, fricatives and approximant.

				Labial	Dental/ Alveolar	Retroflex	Palatal	Velar	Glottal
Nasal		unaspirated	Script	m ⟨म⟩	n ⟨न⟩	(ɳ) ⟨ण⟩	(ɲ) ⟨ञ⟩	ŋ ⟨ङ⟩
			Rom.	m	n	ṇ	ñ	ṅ
		aspirated	Script	mʱ ⟨म्ह⟩	nʱ ⟨न्ह⟩	(ɳʱ) ⟨ण्ह⟩	(ɲʱ) ⟨ञ्ह⟩	ŋʱ ⟨ङ्ह⟩
			Rom.	mh	nh	ṇh	ñh	ṅh
Plosive/ Affricate	voiceless	unaspirated	Script	p ⟨प⟩	t ⟨त⟩	ʈ ⟨ट⟩	tɕ ⟨च⟩	k ⟨क⟩
			Rom.	p	t	ṭ	c	k
		aspirated	Script	pʰ ⟨फ⟩	tʰ ⟨थ⟩	ʈʰ ⟨ठ⟩	tɕʰ ⟨छ⟩	kʰ ⟨ख⟩
			Rom.	ph	th	ṭh	ch	kh
	voiced	unaspirated	Script	b ⟨ब⟩	d ⟨द⟩	ɖ ⟨ड⟩	dʑ ⟨ज⟩	ɡ ⟨ग⟩
			Rom.	b	d	ḍ	j	g
		aspirated	Script	bʱ ⟨भ⟩	dʱ ⟨ध⟩	ɖʱ ⟨ढ⟩	dʑʱ ⟨झ⟩	ɡʱ ⟨घ⟩
			Rom.	bh	dh	ḍh	jh	gh
Fricative	voiceless		Script	(ɸ~f) ⟨ः/ष्⟩	s ⟨स⟩	(ʂ) ⟨ष⟩	(ɕ) ⟨श⟩	(x) ⟨ः/ष्⟩	-(h)* ⟨ः⟩
			Rom.	f	s	ṣ/s	ś/s	x	ḥ
	voiced		Script				(ʑ) ⟨य⟩		ɦ ⟨ह⟩
			Rom.				z		h
Rhotic	unaspirated		Script		ɾ~r ⟨र⟩	(ɽ) ⟨ड़⟩
			Rom.		r	ṛ
	aspirated		Script		rʱ ⟨र्ह⟩	(ɽʱ) ⟨ढ़⟩
			Rom.		rh	ṛh
Lateral			Script		l ⟨ल⟩
			Rom.		l
Approximant			Script	(ʋ~w) ⟨व⟩			(j) ⟨य⟩
			Rom.	v			y

• Fricative sounds [ʂ, ɕ] only occur marginally, and are typically pronounced as a dental fricative /s/ in most styles of pronunciation. Both are defective phonemes, occurring intervocalically and word finally only if preceded by a nasal consonant. Word finally and postvocalically, /ɖʱ/ surfaces as [ɽʱ~rʱ].[h] always occurs postvacalically.
• Word finally and postvocalically, /ɖʱ/ surfaces as [ɽʱ~rʱ]. Non-initially, both are interchangeable with [ɽ~ɾ] and [ɽʱ~rʱ] respectively.
• Approximant sounds [ʋ, w, j] and fricative sounds [ɸ, f, z, ɕ, ʃ, ʒ, ʂ, x], mainly occur in words that are borrowed from Sanskrit or in words of Perso-Arabic origin. [v,w] are replaced by [b]. Word initial [ʋ,b] can be replaced by [o] in non-tatsama words. Word initial [j], and [j] between [r/ɾ] and central vowels are replaced by [j] in tatsama words, and in rest [e]. Word initial [j] can be replaced by ['i] in non-tatsama words. Both [j] and [ʋ/w] can occur due to glide formation. Perso-Arabic and fricatives [f, z, ʃ, ʒ, x] are generally replaced by [pʰ, d͡ʒ, s, d͡ʒ, kʰ] respectively, in writing also, whereas Sanskrit [ɕ, ʂ) are replaced by [s], but only in speech, in writing, Sanskrit spelling is often followed. [ɸ~f] and [x] are the occurrences of remnants of Sanskrit jihvamuliya and upadhmaniya. The conjunct [ʂp] is pronounced [ɸp] in Maithili e.g. [pʊɸp(ə)]. The conjunct [ɦj] is pronounced [ɦʑ] as in [graːɦʑə].

These non-syllabic vowels in Maithili- e̯, o̯ written in Devanagari as य़, व़. Most of the times, these are written without nukta.

Stress

Stress is not as strong in Maithili as in English. It is useful for determining the pronunciation of अ [a] though. The stress is not indicated in writing in native scripts, though indicated in this section.

• Final unpronounced अ [a→∅], final extra short इ' [ⁱ] and उ' [^u] are not considered for counting syllables for determining the position of stress. Conjunct consonants are considered long.
• Monosyllabic words have the accent on the single vowel. As in न ˈna not, ई ˈī this, के ˈkē who, and माछ ˈmāch fish.
• The accent falls on the final vowel, if it is long and closed (i.e. followed by a consonant or consonant cluster). As in किसा॔न kiˈsān farmer, दॆखलिꣾ॔न्हि' dekh^aliˈainhⁱ I saw (object - 3PHon.), and दॆखलहू॔न्हि' dekh^alaˈhūnhⁱ You saw (object - 3PHon.).
• The accent falls on the penultimate (i.e. the word being vowel final), if it is long. As in पा॔नि ˈpāni water, and छॊट॔क्का choˈṭakkā small (adj. long form).
• In non-tatsama words, the accent falls on the antepenultimate in the rest of the cases. As in ह॔मरा ˈham^arā me, and दॆ॔खलहुँ ˈdekh^alahũ I saw.
• In tatsama words, the accent falls on the vowel before the antepenultimate. It may alternatively be on the antepenultimate. कु॔टिलता ˈkuṭilatā or कुटि॔लता kuˈṭil^atā deceitfulness.
• If the initial vowel doesn't have a primary accent (as explained above), it carries a secondary accent. As in कि॓सा॔न ˌkiˈsān, दॆ॓खलिꣾ॔न्हि' ˌdekh^aliˈainhⁱ, छॊ॓ट॔क्का ˌchoˈṭakkā, कु॓टि॔लता ˌkuˈṭil^atā.
• Words with a final इ' [ⁱ] and उ' [^u] always have secondary accent on the preceding vowel, if it doesn't have the primary accent. As in दॆ॔ख॓थि' ˈdēˌkhathⁱ or ˈdeˌkhaith he/she (Hon.) saw, क॔कर॓हुँ' ˈkak^aˌrah^ũ or kˈak^arˌaũh anyone (acc.), दॆ॔खल॓हुँ' ˈdekh^aˌlah^ũ or ˈdekh^aˌlaũh I saw.
• Causative verbs, whether finite or non-finite, have the primary accent on the final vowel of the root verb, if it has four ir less syllables. If more syllables, then it is optional, it may be stressed if it needs to be stressed. As in ह॓टा॔ऎब ˌhaˈtāeb to remove (infinitive)/ I will remove, but प॓हुँच◌ꣿलथी॔न्हि' ˌpahũcăel^athˈīnhⁱ or प॓हुँचऻ॔ꣾलथीन्हि' ˌpahũcăˈel^athīnhⁱ he/she (Hon.) sent.
• अ [a], if unstressed, is always deleted word finally. It is shortened to [^a], in other positions, but may be retained if it is not just after the stressed vowel. As in कु॔टिलता ˈkuṭilatā deceitfulness. Here [a] after [l] is retained, even though it is unstressed.

Rule of the Short Antepenultimate

This peculiar rule was first observed by Hoernle, but properly described by Grierson. It is a very important and essential rule for Maithili and other Bihari languages.

• For this rule the final unpronounced अ [a→∅], final extra short इ' [ⁱ] and उ' [^u] are not considered for counting syllables, and diphthongs are considered as separate syllables, except for the verbal suffices ꣾ [ai] ॵ [au], which are otherwise considered as अइ and अउ for this rule.
• Any long monophthong, in antepenultimate position is shortened, if it is not followed by the euphonics य or व/अ (pronounced [a]). As in बऻतिया bătiyā (the talk), ॴगिया ăgiyā (the fire), नऻउआ/नॏआ năuā (the barber), मऻरलक măr^alak (he/she/it killed/beaten), सिखलक sikh^alak (he/she/it learned), दॆखलक dekh^alak (he/she/it saw), सुतलन्हि' sut^alanhⁱ (he/she slept), but सीयलक sīalak (he/she/it sewed), चूअलऻह cualăh (it/he/she dripped).
• ॴ [ā] is often replaced by अ [a], when there is no confusion in meaning. As in बऻतिया/बतिया bătiyā/batiyā, and ॴगिया/अगिया ăgiya/agiyā. In verbs, the difference between the two is very important for the difference in the meaning. As in मऻरलहुँ' măr^alah^ũ (I killed) v/s मरलहुँ mar^alah^ũ (I was killed). In verbs, therefore the difference is always maintained.
• Any long monophthong in a position further removed from antepenultimate position is always shortened, whether followed by euphonic syllable or not. As in चुअलक◌ꣿ cualakai (it/he/she dripped), हॊइꣾ hoiai (I become), दॆखितिॵ dekhitiau (if I had seen you (Non-Hon.)).
• Doubled consonants are shortened to single, and the vowel before nasal conjuncts are nasalised, and the nasal consonant is removed, or alternatively the conjunct is converted to the corresponding nasal consonant, if they are to be shortened. As in छॊटकवा choṭak^avā (small), बँधुआ bãdhuā or बन्हुआ banhuā (bound).

Morphology

Nouns

Nouns in Maithili can be roughly characterized into four genders- Masculine, Feminine, Neuter and Common. Unmarked nouns can be of any gender. Marked nouns are those nouns, which can be distinguished by its suffix. Marked nouns are mostly either Masculine-neuter or Feminine.(Masculine and neuter, and sometimes even common gender are distinguished, if the word is of tatsama origin). There is no grammatical gender however, i.e. nouns can be distinguished by the suffix in the marked nouns, and overall by the origin of the word, but that doesn't affect other parts of speech. (There are some forms, but are optional and obsolete, and are generally ignored in recent times). The only instance, where grammatical agreement occurs are adjectives, which are also optional, and in spoken language, often ignored altogether.

Similarly, grammatical number is also absent. There are some forms of plural present, but there is no grammatical distinction. Periphrastic plural is used, but again there is no grammatical distinction.

Many Maithili nouns usually take forms in weak (ending in a consonant, a short vowel, or an extra short vowel) and strong stem (ending in long vowels). Some take form only in weak stem and some in strong stem.

The following table shows a general view of them. Obsolete and old forms are shown within parentheses, in the stem ending ending section.

Key: M- Masculine, F- Feminine, N- Neuter gender ∅- No addition to the stem, ×- No form exists

Stem	Gender	Stem Endings		Examples			Comments
		Weak	Strong	Weak	Strong	Translation
∅/-a	MNF	∅, (-u)	×, (-ō)	लोक lok, घर ghar, बात bāt		people, house, talk	F not original, original ending collapsed.
	MN		-ā, (-ō)	घोड़ ghōḍ, लोह lōh	घोड़ा ghōḍā, लोहा lōhā	horse, iron	Formed out of MN suffix -aka.
	F	∅, -i, (-u)	×,-ī (optional), (+ō)	बाँह bā̃h/बाँहि' bā̃hi, भूल bhūl/‌ भूलि' bhūli	बाँही bā̃hī	shoulder, mistake	F not original, overt suffix applied.
-ā		×, (-u)	-ā, (+ō)		सभा sabhā, जनता janatā, माता mātā	assembly, people, mother	Original -ā. Also includes original -r̥(ā).
	MN	×	-ā		पिता pitā, नेता nētā	father, leader	Original r̥ (ā).
-i	F	-i**	-ī	दूरि' dūri, माटि' māṭi, भुइँ bhuĩ	दूरी dūrī, माटी maṭī, भुईँ bhuī̃	distance, soil, earth	Original F -ī, -i, -ini, -āni, ā, -ikā and iyā. For original -ā, original ending replaced.
-i	MN	-i	-ī	नाति nāti, (अभि)मानि (abhi)mani	नाती nātī, (अभि)मानी (abhi)manī	grandson (through daughter), proud	Original -ī (in) suffix, and some original MN -iya, -ika, -r̥̄(ka) as well as MN -r̥(ā/r̥).
	MNF		×*	रवि ravi, पानि pāni	*	sun, water	Original -i, and MN -iya.
-ī	MNF	×	-ī		खरी kharī/खड़ी khaḍī, मोती mōtī	chalk, pearl	Original F -ī, and MNF -ika/ikā, -iya/iyā.
-u/ū	MF	-u**/∅	-ū	मामु' māmu/ माम mām, नाउ nāu, पुतोहु' putōhu/ पुतोह putōh	मामू māmū, नाऊ nāū, पुतोहू putōhū	maternal uncle (mother's brother), barber, daughter-in-law	Original MFN -u and F -ū, as well as MFN -uka/ukā and MN -a (not in the last MFN class -u stem)
	N		×*	मधु' madhu/ मध madh	*	honey
-u	MNF	-u	×*	आँसु ā̃su, वसु vasu	*	a tear, the vasus (a class of Vedic deities)
-ū	MNF	×	-ū		डाकू dakū, उजाड़ू ujāḍū, मॆहरारू mehrārū	dacoit, destroyer, wife
-ē		×	-ē		साबे sābē		Formed out of merging of phonemes. Rare.
-ō			-ō		भादो bhādō	a month name in Hindu calendar

• *Some stems in "i" and "u" don't have long forms in common sense, but they have a plural in long vowel, such as पानी pānī for पानि pāni (water), and आँसू ā̃sū for आँसु ā̃su (tear). Since Maithili doesn't have a strong distinction of grammatical number, these are treated in various ways. In forms which are less likely to have plural, and most of the tatsama words, like रवि ravi (sun), वसु vasu (the vasus) don't use the strong stem, whereas things which are mostly plural like आँसू ā̃sū (tears) and दाढ़ी dāḍhī (beard) tend to use the strong stem. Some use both such पानि pāni and पानी pānī (water), दहि dahi and दही dahī (curd).

• **इ' -i and उ' -u are postvacalically इ -i and उ -u respectively.

Forms of nouns

Nouns in Maithili also have a peculiar long form. This long form denotes several meanings-

1. It denotes diminutive or often low honour meaning.
2. It also denotes definite nature of the noun.
3. For proper nouns, neuter and inanimate, it signifies familiarity and definiteness (like definite article), it doesn't have a strong diminutive meaning, but is still considered unfit for use outside a narrative, such as in title, as a definite article does.
4. For personal names, it signifies both familiarity and diminutive.

This Long form is formed by adding the आ -ā suffix to the ending.

• Glides य [y] and व [w] often occur between the stem and the suffix.
• Stems in इ' -ⁱ and उ' -^u are taken as इ -i and उ -u.
• All the stem endings in ई -ī, ऊ -ū, ए -ē and ओ -ō are shortened to इ -i, उ -u, ऎ -e and ऒ -o, when the suffix is added.
• The stems in अ -a/∅, ओ -ō and उ/उ' -u/^u take the suffix (अ)वा -(a)wā (optional in ओ -o and उ/उ' -u/^u ending stem) when masculine-neuter and इया -iyā when feminine. Stems in आ -ā take the suffix as (अ)वा -(a)wā, irrespective of gender.
• Stem endings in अ/∅ -a/∅ are made अ -^a when the suffix is added.
• These long forms can be made extra long by adding the आ -ā suffix again to the long form. In this process stems in अ -a/∅ form the extra long form as अववा -aw^awā, which is always contracted to ॵवा -auwā. Stems in इ -i and उ -u, of any length, form the long form as इयवा -iyawā and उअवा uawā respectively, which are optionally contracted to ईया -īyā and ऊआ ūā respectively.

This is a table along with examples-

Stem	Word	Long form	Extra long form	Translation
∅/-a	घर ghar, घोड़ ghōḍ, लोह lōh	घरवा gharawā, घॊड़वा ghoḍawā, लॊहवा lohawā	घरॏवा gharauwā, घॊड़ॏवा ghōḍauwā, लॊहॏवा lōhauwā	house, horse, iron
	बात bāt, बाँह bā̃h/बाँहि' bā̃hi	बऻतिया bătiyā, बऻँहिया bẵhiyā	बऻतियवा/बऻतीवा bătiyā/bătīwā, बऻँहियवा/बऻँहीवा bẵhiyā/bẵhīwā	talk, shoulder
-ā	सभा sabhā, बूना/बुन्दा būnā/bundā, नेता nētā	सभवा sabhawā, बुनवा/बुँदवा bunawā/bũdawā, नेतवा netawā	सभॏवा sabhauwā, बुनॏवा/बुँदॏवा bunauwā/bũdauwā, नेतॏवा netauwā	assembly, drop/zero, leader
-i/i/ī	भुइँ bhuĩ, माटि' māṭi, नाति nāti, रवि ravi, पानि pāni, मोती mōtī	भुइँया bhuĩyā, मऻटिया măṭiyā, नऻतिया nătiyā, रविया raviyā, पऻनिया păniyā, मॊतिया motiya	भुइँअवा/भुईँवा bhuĩyawā/bhuī̃wā, मऻटियवा/मऻटीवा măṭiyawā/măṭīwā, नऻतियवा/नऻतीवा nătiyawā/nătīwā, रवियवा/रवीवा raviyawā/ravīwā, पऻनियवा/पऻनीवा păniyawā/pănīwā, मॊतिया/मॊतीवा motiyawā/motīwā	earth, soil, grandson( through daughter), sun, pearl
-u/u/ū	मामु' māmu, नाउ nāu, पुतोहु' putōhu, आँसु ā̃su, डाकू dākū	मऻमुआ mămuā/ मऻमवा mămawā, नऻउवा/नॏवा năuwā/nauwā, पुतॊहिया putohiyā, ॴँसुआ ẵsuā, डऻकुआ dăkuā	मऻमुअवा/मऻमूआ/मऻमॏवा mămuawā/mămūwā/mămauwā, नऻउअवा/नऻऊवा năuawā/năūwā, पुतॊहियवा/पुतॊहीया putohiyawā/putohīyā, ॴँसुअवा/ॴँसूवा ẵsuawā/ẵsūwā, डऻकुअवा/डऻकूवा dăkuawā, dăkūwā	maternal uncle (mother's brother), barber, daughter-in-law, tear
ē	साबे sābē	सऻबॆआ/सऻबॆया săbe(y)ā	सऻबॆयवा/सऻबेवा săbeyawā/ sabēwā
ō	भादो bhādō	भऻदॊआ/भऻदवा bhădoā/bhădawā	भऻदोवा/भऻदॏवा bhădōwā/bhădauwā	the month bhādrapada

Nominal Declension

Nouns are inflected for several cases, some of them are fusional, and some are formed with case markers (post-positional).

Stem Nom. Obl. Erg. Instr. Gen. Loc. -अ a/∅ ∅ घर ghar, नेना nēnā -एँ ẽ घरेँ gharē̃, नेनेँ nēnē̃ -अक ak घरक gharak, नेनाक nēnāk -ए e घरे gharē, कहले kahalē -आ ā -एँ ẽ/ -आँ ā̃ घोड़ेँ/घोड़ाँ ghōḍē̃/ghōdā̃, कहलेँ/ कहलाँ kahalē̃/ kahalā̃ -एँ ẽ घोड़ेँ ghōḍē̃, कहलेँ kahalē̃ -आक āk/ अक ak घोड़ाक/ घोड़क ghōḍāk/ ghoḍak, कहलाक/ कहलक kahalāk/ kahalak -र/ड़/ल/न/म/ब r/ṛ/l/n/m/b (a/∅) ∅ घोड़ ghōḍ/घोड़ा ghōḍā, कहल kahal +आ ā घोड़ा ghōḍā, कहला kahalā Other vocalic stems ∅ नदि' nadi, स्त्री strī +एँ ẽ, ँ ̃ (nasalisation) नदिएँ/ नदीँ nadĩ/ nadiẽ, स्त्रीँ/ स्त्रिएँ strī̃ striẽ +एँ ẽ नदिएँ nadiẽ, स्त्रिएँ striẽ +क k नदीक/नदिक nadīk/ nadik, स्त्रीक/ स्त्रिक strīk/ strik +ए e नदिए nadie "-" indicates addition to the stem, "+" indicates addition additional to the stem.

Old Maithili Declension Stem Nom.-Acc. Erg./Instr. Instr.-Abl.-Dat. Gen. Gen.-Dat. Loc. sg. pl. sg. pl. sg. pl. sg. pl. Com. Diph. Asp. Com. Diph. Asp. -अ a/∅ ∅ -(अ)न/नि (a)n/ni -एँ ē̃, nasal-isation, -एन/ण* ēn/ṇ* -अइँ ahĩ -अहिँ aĩ -एहि ehi, -अन्हि anhi -(अ)क (a)k -(अ)ह ah, -(अ)स/स्स* (a)s/ss* -आँ(क) ā̃(k), आह āh, -आन/ण ān/ṇ -ए e, -इत it -अइ ai -अहि ahi -एहु ehu, -आँ ā̃ -आ ā -एँ ē̃, nasal-isation -आ ā (fem.) -(अ)हि (a)hi -(अ)न्हि (a)nhi -(आ)हु āhu, -आँ ā̃ -इ -ई ī, -इन/इनि in/ini +(stem lengthened) ह‌ h, +(stem lengthened) न/ण n/ṇ -उ -ऊ ū, -उन/उनि un/uni Other vocalic stems -न/नि n/ni Only to the first three stems, declension is added to the stem.

• Prakrit and Sanskrit endings are marked with *. These are found only in loanwords from those languages.
• Locative -ए ē is not used for animate nouns.
• When suffixes with initial vowel are added to the stem, the stem is shortened in length, such as स्त्रिएँ striē̃ (by the woman) from स्त्री strī (woman), भाषहि bhāṣahi (in the language) from भाषा bhāṣā (language).
• Some old Maithili forms are not found today in direct use, but most of them can be found in limited roles-
  • The nominative plural suffix -(अ)न/नि (a)n/ni is found in some found in the honorific forms of pronouns such as हुनि huni (he/she-Hon.), कनिका kanikā (whose -Hon.), as well as some plural markers, such as लॊकनि lok^ani and ॴरनि ăr^ani. It is still present in Bhojpuri, and therefore in the western Maithili dialects, it is still found.
  • The instrumental plural suffix -(अ)न्हि (a)nhi is used in some honorofic stems of verbs, such as कहलिऎन्हि' kah^aliainhⁱ (I said (to him/her-Hon.), and सुनथीन्हि' sun^athīnhⁱ (he/she-Hon. listens).
  • Plural genitive suffix -आह āh/(stem lengthened) + ह h is used for forming the 3rd person honorific form of simple past intransitive verbs, such as सुतलाह sut^alāh (he/she-Hon. slept).
  • Both singular and plural genitive suffix -(अ/आ)ह (a/ā)h, and instrumental and locative plural suffixes -(ए/अ)हि (ē/a)hi, and -(ए/अ)हु (ē/a)hu as well as the aspirated suffixes of instrumental and locative singular -अहि, -अहिँ are used to form adverbs and adverbial nouns, such as पछिमाहा pachimāhā (the western one), धीमहि dhīmahi (slowly).
  • Number was not so clearly marked even in Old Maithili, therefore they were used interchangeably with singular.

Gender

Gender in Maithili is generally not in agreement, though it can be identified through suffixes. Some masculine nouns are converted to feminine using suffixes, others are common for both the genders. Neuter is sometimes separate from Masculine. Some neuters are diminutive and are marked like feminine. Both tadbhava and tatsama suffixes are used for different words of different origin.

Stem	Origin	Gender	Example	Feminine/ Masculine		Common		Neuter
				Suffix	Example	Suffix	Example	Suffix	Example
-अ a/∅	Tats.	MN	सुन्दर गौर	ई/आ (F)	सुन्दरी गौरा/गौरी	∅	सुन्दर गौर	Same as neuter
				इ' (F)	सुन्दरि' गौरि'
	Tad.	MN	गोर बड्ड/ बऽड़ बाघ		गोरि' बड़ि'		गोर बड़
		M		इनि॑	बाघिनि'
		F	बात	-
			बाँह/ बाँहि'
-आ ā	Tats.	F	लता
	Tad.	MN	घोड़ा	ई	घोड़ी	∅/ आ	घोड़/ घोड़ा	Same as neuter
-ई/इ	Tats./ Tad.	M	माली/मालि	इनि'	मालिनि'	इ/ इन्	मालि/ मालिन्	इन्	हस्तिन्
-ऋ/आ	Tats./ Tad.	MN (Some F also)	कर्ता नेता	री/ रि'	कर्त्री/कर्त्रि' नेत्री/ नेत्रि'	इन्	कर्त्रिन्	इन्/ आर्	कर्त्रिन्/ कर्तार्

Adpositions

The aforementioned inflectional case system only goes so far on its own, and rather serves as that upon which is built a system of agglutinative suffixes or particles known as postpositions or Case markers. It is their use with a noun or verb that necessitates the noun taking the oblique case, and it is with them that the locus of grammatical function or "case-marking" then lies.

Case-markers Case Marker Example English Explanation Old forms and dialectical variation Nominative — नेना nēnā घोड़/घोड़ा ghōḍ/ghōḍā घर ghar boy horse house marks the subject Accusative marks the direct object (definite and animate are only marked) केँ kē̃, (see below) नेना केँ nēnā kē̃ घोड़ा केँ ghōḍā kē̃ घर केँ ghar kē̃ क◌ꣿँ kaĩ, काँ kā̃, कोँ kō̃, त ta Dative to the boy/ horse/ house marks the indirect object (can also mark the subject)dative subjects; dative subject Ergative (Non-standard, only in Old Maithili and southern dialects) -एँ ē̃, ने nē नेनेँ, नेना ने nēnē̃, nēnā nē घोड़ेँ, घोड़ा ने ghōḍē̃, ghōḍā nē घरेँ, घर ने gharē̃, ghar nē marks the subject for transitive verbs, only present in some Southern dialects Instrumental -एँ ē̃ नेनेँ nēnē̃ घोड़ेँ ghōḍē̃ घरेँ gharē with the boy/ horse// house marks the instrument of the action; "with", "using", "by" स◌ꣿ saĩ, सोँ sō̃, सॏँ saĩ, ते tē, त ta Instrumental-Ablative सँ꣱ så̃ नेना सँ꣱ nēnā så̃ घोड़ा सँ꣱ ghōḍā så̃ घर सँ꣱ ghar så̃ with/from the boy/ horse/ house marks the instrument of the action; "with", "using", "by", ablative, and perlative marker; "from", "through", "along" Genitive -(अ)क (a)k, केर kēr, क/कॆ ka/ke नेनाक, नेना केर, नेना कॆ nēnāk, nēnā kēr, nēnā ke घोड़ाक, घोड़ा केर, घोड़ा कॆ ghōḍāk, ghōḍā kēr, ghōḍā ke घरक, घर केर, घर कॆ gharak, ghar kēr, ghar ke boy's of the horse/ house shows possession; कॊ ko, कु ku, करु karu, कहु kahu Locative -ए ē घरे gharē in the house shows something is in/on/at something; Inessive मे mē नेना मे nēnā mē घोड़ा मे ghōḍā mē घर मे ghar mē in the boy/ horse/ house shows something is in/inside something; मोँ mō̃, मँऽ må̃, त ta Adessive पर par नेना पर nēnā par घोड़ा पर ghōḍā par घर पर ghar par on the boy/ horse/ house shows something is on/at something; पे pē, परि pari/pair

Definiteness is also marked in Maithili using prepositions and postpositions. The accusative marker kē̃ केँ is not used always, it is used in specific conditions-

		Preposition	Postposition
			Accusative	Dative
Animate	Indefinite	∅	+केँ kē̃	-केँ kē̃
	Indefinite specific	एकटा/एक गोट ēkaṭā/ ēk gōṭ(ā)-
	Definite	Demonstratives are used
Inanimate	Indefinite	∅	∅
	Indefinite specific	एकटा/एक गोट ēkaṭā/ ēk gōṭ(ā)-
	Definite	Demonstratives are used	+केँ kē̃

Some other postpositions are-

Case name		Postposition
Allative		दक daka
Beneficative		ला, लेल, लगि lā, lēl, lagi
Terminative		तक, ला tak, lā
Abessive		बिनु binu
Semblative		जकाँ , सोँ jakā̃, sõ
Possessive	Masculine-Neuter object	क꣱, र꣱ kå, rå
	Feminine object (optional)	कि, रि ki, ri

• Some postpositions are added to the genitive too, and sometimes the genitive inflection is not used at all, except in pronominal inflection.

• Plural is made using postpositions, and also by preposition having a sense of completeness.

	Dual	Plural
		Common	Only for honorific and animate
Both post-position and preposition	दुनु dunu, जुग/युग jug/e̯ug, जुगल/युगल jugal/e̯ugal, जोड़ा jōḍā	सभ sabh, सबहि' sabahi (most common plural suffix)
Only post-position	द्वय dvay	गण gaṇa, आरु' āru/āur, आरनि ārani,	जन jana, लॊकनि lokani, लोक lōk
Only preposition	दू/दुइ dū/dui	बहुत bahut, बड्ड/बऽड़baḍḍ/båḍ, कतेको katēkō
Post-positions marking completeness	दू/दुइ dū/dui + गो’/ गोटा/ गोट gō/ gōṭā/ gōṭ	गो’/ गोटा/ गोट gō/ gōṭā/ gōṭ, केओ kēō	लोकनि lokani
Postpositions marking numerals		गो’/ गोटा/ गोट gō/ gōṭā/ gōṭ

Pronouns

Pronouns in Maithili are declined in similar way to nominals. However, genetic case has a different form in most of the pronouns.

First and Second Person Pronouns

Case name	First Person		Second Person
	Exclusive	Inclusive (Plural)	First Grade Honour	Honorofic	High-Honorofic
Nominative	हम ham	Normally Declined अपना सभ apanā sabh	तोँह tō̃h	अहाँ ahā̃	Declined Normally अपने apanē
Accusative-Dative-Oblique	हमरा hamara		तॊहरा/ तोरा tōharā/ tōrā	अहाँ केँ ahā̃ kē̃
Instrumental	हमरेँ hamarē̃		तोहरेँ tōharē̃	अहेँ ahē̃
Ergative	हम्मेँ hammē̃		तोएँ/ तोहेँ tōē̃/ tōhē̃
Genitive	हमर hamar	अपना सभक apana sabh	तोहर/तोर tōhar/ tōr	अहाँक ahā̃k

Third Person Pronouns

Case name	Proximate			Distant
	First Grade Honour	Neuter	Honorofic	First Grade Honour	Neuter	Honorofic
Nominative	ई ī		ए ē, हिनि hini	ऊ ū, वा vā(Non-standard)		ओ ō, हुनि huni
Accusative-Dative-Oblique	ऎकरा ekarā	ऎहि ehi, अथि athi	हिनका hinakā	ऒकरा okarā	ऒहि ohi	हुनका hunakā
Instrumental	ऎकरेँ ekarē̃	एँ ē̃, येँ yē̃ (i̯ē̃)	हिनकेँ hinakē̃	ऒकरेँ okarē̃	वेँ/ उएँ wē̃ (u̯ē̃)	हुनकेँ hunkē̃
Ergative	येँ yē̃ (i̯ē̃)		येँ yē̃ (i̯ē̃), हिनिँ hinī̃	वेँ/ उएँ wē̃ (u̯ē̃)
Genitive	एकर ēkar		हिनकर hinakar, हिनक hinak	ओकर ōkar		हुनकर hunakar, हुनक hunak

Verbs

Conjugation of a transitive verb "कह" /kəɦ/ 'to tell'.

Subject		Object		Present	Past	Future	Imperative	Optative	Conditional	Remote Imperative
First
		Second	HON	कही [kəɦiː]	कहली [kəɦəliː]	कहब [kəɦəb]	कहू [kəɦuː]	कही [kəɦiː]	कहितहुँ [kəɦɪtəɦʊ̃]	∅
					कहलहुँ [kəɦᵊləɦʊ̃]
			Equal	कहिअहु [kəɦɪəɦʊ]	कहलिअहु [kəɦᵊlɪəɦʊ]	कहबहु [kəɦᵊbəɦʊ]	कहिअहु [kəɦɪəɦʊ]	कहिअहु [kəɦɪəɦʊ]	कहितिअहु [kəɦɪtɪəɦʊ]	∅
			NonHON	कहिऔक [kəɦɪəʊ̯k]	कहलिऔक [kəɦᵊlɪəʊ̯k]	कहबौक [kəɦᵊbəʊ̯k]	कहिऔक [kəɦɪəʊ̯k]	कहिऔक [kəɦɪəʊ̯k]	कहितिऔक [kəɦɪtɪəʊ̯k]	∅
		Third	HON	कहिअन्हि [kəɦɪəɪ̯nɦ]	कहलिअन्हि [kəɦᵊlɪəɪ̯nɦ]	कहबन्हि [kəɦᵊbəɪ̯nɦ]	कहिऔन्ह् [kəɦɪəʊ̯nɦ]	कहिएन्ह् [kəɦɪeːnɦ]	कहितिऐन्ह् [kəɦɪtɪəɪ̯nɦ]	∅
			NonHON	कहिऐक [kəɦɪəɪ̯k]	कहलिऐक [kəɦᵊlɪəɪ̯k]	कहबैक [kəɦᵊbəɪ̯k]	कहिऔक [kəɦɪəʊ̯k]	कहिऐक [kəɦɪəɪ̯k]	कहितिऐक [kəɦɪtɪəɪ̯k]	∅
Second	HON	First		कही [kəɦiː]	कहली [kəɦᵊliː]	कहब [kəɦəb]	कहू [kəɦuː]	कही [kəɦiː]	कहितहुँ [kəɦɪtəɦʊ̃]	∅
					कहलहुँ [kəɦᵊləɦʊ̃]
		Third	HON	कहिअन्हि [kəɦɪəɪ̯nɦ]	कहलिअन्हि [kəɦᵊlɪəɪ̯nɦ]	कहबन्हि [kəɦᵊbəɪ̯nɦ]	कहिऔन्ह् [kəɦɪəʊ̯nɦ]	कहिऐन्ह् [kəɦɪəɪ̯nɦ]	कहितिऐक [kəɦɪtɪəɪ̯k]	∅
			NonHON	कहिऐक [kəɦɪəɪ̯k]	कहलिऐक [kəɦᵊlɪəɪ̯k]	कहबैक [kəɦᵊbəɪ̯k]	कहिऔक [kəɦɪəʊ̯k]	कहिऐक [kəɦɪəɪ̯k]	कहितह [kəɦɪtəɦ]	∅
	Equal	First		कहह [kəɦəɦ]	कहलह [kəɦᵊləɦ]	कहबह [kəɦᵊbəɦ]	कहह [kəɦəɦ]	कहह [kəɦəɦ]	कहितहुन्हु [kəɦɪtəɦʊnɦ]	कहिहह [kəɦɪɦəɦ]
		Third	HON	कहुन्ह् [kəɦʊnɦ]	कहलहुन्ह् [kəɦᵊləɦʊnɦ]	कहबहुन्ह् [kəɦᵊbəɦʊnɦ]	कहुन्ह् [kəɦʊnɦ]	कहुन्ह् [kəɦʊnɦ]	कहितहिक [kəɦɪtəɦɪk]	कहिहौन्ह् [kəɦɪɦəʊ̯nɦ]
			NONHON	कहक [kəɦək]	कहलहक [kəɦᵊləɦək]	कहबहक [kəɦᵊbəɦək]	कहक [kəɦək]	कहक [kəɦək]	∅	कहिहक [kəɦɪɦək]
	NonHON	First		कहें [kəɦeː]	कहलें [kəɦᵊleː]	कहबें [kəɦᵊbeː]	कह [kəɦ]	कह‍हिं [kəɦəɦɪ̃]	∅	कह‍हिं [kəɦəɦɪ̃]
		Third	HON	कहुन्ह् [kəɦʊnɦ]	कहलहुन्ह् [kəɦᵊləɦʊnɦ]	कहबहुन्ह् [kəɦᵊbəɦʊnɦ]	कहुन्ह् [kəɦʊnɦ]	कहुनह् [kəɦʊnəɦ]	∅	कहिहौन्ह् [kəɦɪɦəʊ̯nɦ]
			NonHON	कहिक [kəɦɪk]	कहलहीक [kəɦᵊləɦiːk]	कहबहीक [kəɦᵊbəɦiːk]	कहीक [kəɦiːk]	कहीक [kəɦiːk]	कहितथि [kəɦɪtəɪ̯tʰ]	कहिहक [kəɦɪɦək]
Third	HON	First		कह‍थि [kəɦəɪ̯tʰ]	कहलन्हि [kəɦᵊləɪ̯nɦ]	कहताह [kəɦᵊtaːɦ]	कह‍थु [kəɦəʊ̯tʰ]	कहाथि [kəɦaːɪtʰ]	कहितथि [kəɦɪtəɪ̯tʰ]	∅
						कहतीह [kəɦᵊtiːɦ]
		Second	HON	कह‍थि [kəɦəɪ̯tʰ]	कहलनि [kəɦᵊləɪ̯n]	कहताह [kəɦᵊtaːɦ]	कह‍थु [kəɦəʊ̯tʰ]	कहाथि [kəɦaːɪtʰ]	कहिथुन्ह् [kəɦɪtʰʊnɦ]	∅
			Equal	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहलनि [kəɦᵊləɪ̯n]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहिथुन्ह् [kəɦɪtʰʊnɦ]	∅
			NonHON	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहलथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊlətʰʊnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहितथिन्हु [kəɦɪtətʰɪʊnɦ]	∅
		Third	HON	कहथिन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰɪnɦ]	कहलथिन्ह् [kəɦᵊlətʰɪnɦ]	कहथिन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰɪnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहथुन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰʊnɦ]	कहितए [kəɦɪtəeː]	∅
									कहैत [kəɦəɪ̯t]
			NonHON	कहथिन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰɪnɦ]	कहलथिन्ह् [kəɦᵊlətʰɪnɦ]	कहथिन्ह् [kəɦᵊtʰɪnɦ]	कहथुह [kəɦᵊtʰʊɦ]	कहथुह [kəɦᵊtʰʊɦ]	कहितए [kəɦɪtəeː]
									कहैत [kəɦəɪ̯t]	∅
	NonHON	First		कहए [kəɦəeː]	कहलक [kəɦᵊlək]	कहत [kəɦət]	कहऒ [kəɦɔ]	कहऒ [kəɦɔ]	कहितहु [kəɦɪtəɦʊ]	∅
		Second	HON	कहए [kəɦəeː]	कहलक [kəɦᵊlək]	कहत [kəɦət]	कहऒ [kəɦɔ]	कहऒ [kəɦɔ]	कहितहु [kəɦɪtəɦʊ]	∅
			Equal	कहहु [kəɦəɦʊ]	कहलकहु [kəɦᵊləkəɦʊ]	कहतहु [kəɦᵊtəɦʊ]	कहहु [kəɦᵊɦʊ]	कहहु [kəɦᵊɦʊ]	कहितौक [kəɦɪtəʊ̯k]	∅
			NonHON	कहौक [kəɦəʊ̯k]	कहलकौक [kəɦᵊləkəʊ̯k]	कहतौक [kəɦᵊtəʊ̯k]	कहौक [kəɦəʊ̯k]	कहौक [kəɦəʊ̯k]	कहितन्हि [kəɦɪtəɪ̯nɦ]	∅
		Third	HON	कहन्हि [kəɦəɪ̯nɦ]	कहलकन्हि [kəɦᵊləkəɪ̯nɦ]	कहतनि [kəɦᵊtəɪ̯n]	कहौन्ह् [kəɦəʊ̯nɦ]	कहैन्ह् [kəɦəɪ̯nɦ]	कहितैक [kəɦɪtəɪ̯k]	∅
			NonHON	कहैक [kəɦəɪ̯k]	कहलकैक [kəɦᵊləkəɪ̯k]	कहतैक [kəɦətəɪ̯k]	कहौक [kəɦəʊ̯k]	कहौक [kəɦəʊ̯k]		∅