CHAPTER XVII.

SYNTAX OF THE NUMERALS.

_The particles prefixed to numbers._

_Ko._ § 1. This word will often, without _te_, precede _tahi_; e. g., toku _ko tahi_, _myself alone_; kia _ko tahi_, _be one_; i. e., pull together. When tahi is used as a substantive, it will generally take _te_; e. g., ko _te tahi_ tenei, _this is one_ (of them).

§ 2. The numerals between _one_ and a _hundred_ will seldom take any article; but _rau_ and _mano_ will take either _te_ or _he_; e. g., _he_ rau pea, _it is perhaps a hundred_; ko tahi _te_ rau, or _te_ mano. Sometimes the numerals lower than a 100 will take the article _te_, when the substantive is not expressed but understood; e. g., e taea e _te tekau_ te whakanehenehe ki _te hokorima_? _can the ten contend with the fifty?_

§ 3. The simple numeral is mostly used in counting; e. g., tahi, rua, toru, one, two, three, &c. Often, however, the verbal particle _ka_ is used in the same sense; ka tahi, ka rua, &c., it is one, there are two, &c.

§ 4. _Ka_, prefixed to the numeral, generally denotes the _completion_ of a number; e. g., _ka_ toru enei matenga oku i a koe, _this is the third time I have been ill treated by you_, i. e., this makes up the third, &c.

§ 5. _E_ is a very frequent prefix of the numbers between _one_ and _ten_. It differs from _ka_ in that it does not so distinctly imply the _completion_ of, or the _arriving at_, a number, and that whereas _ka_ will generally answer to the question, "How many have you counted, made, &c., _e_ will be used in reply to "How many are there"? e. g., _e_ hia ena kete? How many baskets are those? It would not however be generally correct to say, _E_ hia ena kete _ka_ oti? It should be _ka hia_. Again, ahea koe hoki mai ai? _Ka_ rua aku wiki. _When will you return? in two weeks' time._ It should be _kia_ rua nga wiki.

NOTE.--This distinction, however, does not hold invariably, &c.

§ 6. _Kia._--For its uses _vide verbal particles_.

§ 7. NOTE.--The particles _i_ and _kua_ are occasionally found prefixed to the numerals. (_Vide those particles_, VERBS.)

§ 8. _The case and number following the numeral._ In most instances, up to _one hundred_, the numeral will require no possessive case after it; e. g., a, ho mai ana e ratou, e ono nga kete, _and they gave six baskets_; lit. they were given by them, they were, (or are), six baskets.

§ 9. Beyond _one hundred_, however, a possessive case is very frequently employed; e. g., ko tahi mano _o_ nga tau, one thousand years.

§ 10. When the noun is in the oblique case, the numeral will generally _follow_ it; e. g., hei tapiri mo enei kete _e wha_, _as an addition to these four baskets_. When it is in the nominative the numeral will most frequently precede; e. g., _e wha_ nga kete, _there were four baskets_.

§ 11. It will be noticed that _tahi_ is sometimes postfixed to other numerals, and adjectives, without any variation of meaning; e. g., e rima _tahi_, five, turituri _tahi_, _what a noise (you are making)_. _Tahi_ will sometimes take a plural after it; ko tahi _ona_ hoa, _one were his companions_; i. e., he had one companion.

§ 12. Sometimes, when it is desired emphatically to denote all the individuals, or items contained in a certain number, the number will be repeated; e. g., hokorima _hokorima iho_, _fifty fifty down_; i. e., the _whole_ fifty were killed; e wha, wha mai ano, _four four to me_; bring the whole four. In one instance, (viz., that of rua,) we have the first syllable reduplicated to denote _both_; e. g., e tika _rurua_ ana ano, _they are both right_.

§ 13. Sometimes, in Waikato, we meet with an ironical use of numerals, corresponding to that in English, "six of one, and half a dozen of the other"; e. g., e whitu waru atu! they are seven eight other; e ngari a Hone, e pai ana--_e wha atu_ i a Pita! _he is four besides Peter_; i. e., he is not better than Peter.

§ 14. _On the Ordinals._--The student has seen (page 26) the three ways in which these may be formed.

§ 15. There are, however, some distinctions between _tua_ and _whaka_, as prefixes, which deserve to be noticed. (1.) _Tua_ is not frequently found prefixed to numerals beyond _ten_. (2.) Occasionally, also, a critical inquirer will, we think, detect a difference in the meaning of the two particles. _Tua_ seems to denote the place, a thing, &c., occupies in a series or gradation; _whaka_, a fraction which, being added, makes the integer. Thus, in announcing a text, we might say "Kei te ono o nga upoko, kei te _tuawha_ o nga rarangi," _it is in the sixth chapter and fourth verse_. We could not however, say Kei te _whakawha o_, &c. Again, a Native will say, Ko te _tua_hia tenei o nga whakatupuranga ka tae iho ki a koe? Ko te tekau, _What number of generations is this that reaches down to you?_ answer, _the tenth_. Here the generations are represented as following in a regular succession to the tenth. If the reply were "Ko te _whaka_tekau tenei," we should understand that it is one, which added to the other nine, will _make it ten_--a mode of expression which is sometimes substituted for the following, "ko te whakakapi tenei o te tekau," _this is one which fills up the place of the tenth_. The word whakapu is often also used either to denote a tally, (or surplus one), or the one which completes the number; hei _whakapu_ tenei mo aku riwai, _this is a tally for; (or this completes the full number of) my potatoes_.

NOTE.--In speaking of a tenth, or tithe, of property, we should prefer _whakatekau_ to _tuatekau_; the former being a _fractional_ tenth, the latter an _ordinal_.