nō ...

Source and Origin

Level 3

For origin, use nō + source + subject, without a linking verb.

How It Works

For origin, form Nō + place + subject. A place name follows directly; a common noun phrase retains its determiner. No linking verb or verbal tense particle is needed. A personal-name subject normally takes a, while ordinary pronoun subjects generally do not.

Nō also expresses group affiliation or o-category ownership. Context and the participants establish the relationship. Singular ownership forms combine as nōku, nōu, nōna; non-singular pronouns remain separate. Ownership retains its a/o distinction, so nō does not replace nā for every possession.

Compare Nō Tauranga au, “I am from Tauranga,” with Kei Tauranga au, “I am in Tauranga.” Origin can express belonging without specifying an exact birthplace. Temporal nō ... ka belongs to a separate event-sequencing construction.

Examples (3)

  1. Nō Rotorua a Maia.

    Maia is from Rotorua.

    The origin phrase precedes the named subject.

  2. He uri nō Te Arawa ia.

    They are a descendant of Te Arawa.

    Nō identifies ancestry; ia refers to one person.

  3. Nōku tēnei waka.

    This vehicle belongs to me.

    Nōku expresses o-category ownership.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

nō ...Level 3Source and Origin

Learn This First

Introduce nō plus a source before the subject, as in Nō Rotorua a Maia. Read origin, ancestry and ownership through their complete frames; being from a place does not establish current location or an exact birthplace.