Re: Digest Number 1254 (dative passive)

--- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, "llama_nom" <600cell@...> wrote:

>
> Some interesting grammar here (which
> Alan may have covered already in UNICODE!). váðási, the passive
> subject of 'var skotit' "was put/set" (Gwyn Jones "extended"), is
> dative because the verb 'skjóta' takes a dative object.

Accusative

> objects become nominative in the passive, but the dative stays
> dative:
>
> skjóta e-u "shoot/shove something" (e.g. an arrow).
> e-u var skotit "something was shot/shoved" (or in this case put).
>
> bjarga e-m "to save someone"
> e-m var/varð borgit "someone was saved"
>

A nice example from 17th century Swedish:

Enom kempa varder icke holpit gönom hans stora krafft.
A warrior is not helped by his great strength.