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Classical Armenian Online

Lesson 2

Todd B. Krause, John A.C. Greppin, and Jonathan Slocum

The Yervanduni Dynasty

Yervanduni is the name given to a family whose members were appointed by the Medes and Persians as governors in Armenia over the period 585 - 200 B.C. At least four of these governors were named Yervand. Their ethnic background is not clear. Most now believe the Urartuan and Armenian ethnicities to have been distinct, and it is not certain from which culture the Yervandunis originated. The Yervandunis were related somehow to the Persians, if not by blood, at least through bonds of marriage.

By roughly 610 B.C., the Medes and Babylonians had divided the remnants of the Assyrian empire, and the Medes began to consolidate their power in the north. Having captured portions of Urartu and Mesopotamia, by 585 B.C. the Medes were a dominant force in the region. They appointed a Yervanduni family member to administer the Urartuan province.

Median hegemony did not last long. A number of the subjugated states rose in rebellion under the leadership of the Persian Cyrus. Among those rebelling were the Yervandunis. By 550 B.C. Cyrus had overthrown the Medes and established the beginnings of the Achaemenid dynasty, one which would greatly expand Persian influence through the exploits of Cyrus' son Cambyses, and later those of Darius I.

The reasons are not clear, but somehow, after the fall of the Urartuan kingdom, Armenian culture gained in prestige and was eventually recognized as one of the important satrapies listed by Darius I on the Behistun rock (ca. 520 B.C.). This is the first record of the name Armenia. Darius had apparently campaigned against the Armenians when they rose in revolt against his taxes. To quell such rebellious tendencies, Darius may have installed a governor from another family, since there is no mention of the Yervandunis until the next century.

Under Achaemenid rule, the Armenians were free to live according to their own cultural dictates, as long as they paid tribute to the Persian empire. Most of our knowledge of Armenia during this period comes from the Anabasis of Xenophon, who travelled through the region with Greek troops in 401 - 400 B.C. Xenophon tells of a ruler Yervand, who was son-in-law to the Persian king Artaxerxes I. The Armenian satrapy evidently consisted of a non-Armenian enclave in the highlands, perhaps remnants of the Urartuan culture, and whom some believe to be the ancestors of the modern Kurds. Xenophon mentions underground winter quarters in some towns, an abundance of food, and a type of beer drunk through a reed straw.

Persian culture left an indelible imprint in Armenia. Although Aramaic seems to have been the language of administration during this period, Armenian is infused with several words borrowed from Persian. Armenians also seem to have adopted many Persian social practices, as well as something of the Zoroastrian pantheon. The Armenians dedicated several temples and festivals to Anahit, goddess of fertility and wisdom.

By the middle of the fourth century B.C., the Achaemenid dynasty had fallen into decline, allowing the Yervandunis to consolidate their power and create a nearly autonomous Armenian province. Darius III, supported in battle by another Armenian satrap named Yervand, finally fell before the onslaught of Alexander the Great in roughly 330 B.C. Under Alexander, and, after his death in 323 B.C., under Seleucid reign, Greek culture began to impose itself on the region.

Alexander's conquests did not take him through Armenian territory, however, and so the fall of the Persian empire left the Yervandunis an opportunity for consolidating a completely independent rule over the Armenian region. Initially Alexander appointed governors over Armenia, but the Yervandunis led a revolt and refused taxation. They reasserted their autonomy later in the face of the Seleucids. In the end, three distinct regions opened up in the Armenian region. There was a western region, Lesser Armenia, which periodically fell under Seleucid rule and was never completely annexed by the Yervandunis. To the east of this was the region of Dsopk, which acted as a buffer region between Lesser Armenia and the third region, Greater Armenia, in which the Yervanduni foothold was firm. Yervanduni rule finally came to an end in roughly 200 B.C., when they were overthrown by the Armenian noble Artashes, incited to revolt by the Seleucids.

Reading and Textual Analysis

Moses Khorenatsi (that is, Moses of Khoren) is the father of Armenian history and is traditionally believed to have written in the fifth century A.D. Other scholars have suggested the seventh century. Some of his work is based on a mythological history, which he describes with the same belief as the later true historical renderings of the Persian era up to the establishment of Christianity. This reading is taken from his History, Book II, Chapter 30.

Ənd ayn žamanaks ekacʿ i gorc hazarapetutʿean kayser i veray Pʿiwnikecʿwocʿ ew Pałestinacʿwocʿ, Asorwocʿ ew Miǰagetacʿ, Maṙinos ordi Storgeay:

aṙ or aṙakʿeacʿ Abgaros erkus i glxaworacʿ iwrocʿ, zMarihab bdešxn Ałjneacʿ, ew zŠamšagram nahapet Apahuneacʿ tohmin, ew zAnan hawatarim iwr` i kʿałakʿn Betʿkʿubin, zgacʿucʿanel nma zpatčaṙs ertʿaloyn iwroy yarewels, cʿucʿanelov nma zgir uxtin` or ənd Artašēs ew ənd ełbars iwr, ew aṙnel zna tʿikuns ōgnakanutʿean :

Orocʿ ekeal gtin zna yElewtʿeroypōlis :

Ew nora ənkaleal znosa xałałutʿeamb ew mecaranōkʿ, aṙnē patasxani Abgaru: Mi kaskacēr i kayserē saks aynr, miayn zi harkeln liov pʿutʿascʿis :

Ew nocʿa darjeal anti, elin yErusałēm tesanel zPʿrkičʿn mer Kʿristos vasn lroy hambawocʿ skʿančʿelagorcutʿeancʿn: orum ew akanates ełeal patmecʿin Abgaru :

Ənd or zarmacʿeal Abgaru, hawatacʿ čšmartapēs ibr ardarew ordi Astucoy, ew asē: Ayn zōrutʿiwnkʿ očʿ mardoy en, ayl Astucoy: zi čʿikʿ okʿ i mardkanē or karē zmeṙeals yarucʿanel, baycʿ miayn Astuac :

Ew kʿanzi apakaneal ēr marminn iwr i čʿaračʿar cʿawocʿ, or patahecʿin nma i Parsicʿ ašxarhin yaṙaǰ kʿan zeawtʿn am, or i mardkanē očʿ ełew nma hnar bžškutʿean, et tanel nma tʿułtʿ ałačʿanacʿ, gal ew bžškel zna i cʿawocʿn

Lesson Text

Ənd ayn žamanaks ekacʿ i gorc hazarapetutʿean kayser i veray Pʿiwnikecʿwocʿ ew Pałestinacʿwocʿ, Asorwocʿ ew Miǰagetacʿ, Maṙinos ordi Storgeay: aṙ or aṙakʿeacʿ Abgaros erkus i glxaworacʿ iwrocʿ, zMarihab bdešxn Ałjneacʿ, ew zŠamšagram nahapet Apahuneacʿ tohmin, ew zAnan hawatarim iwr` i kʿałakʿn Betʿkʿubin, zgacʿucʿanel nma zpatčaṙs ertʿaloyn iwroy yarewels, cʿucʿanelov nma zgir uxtin` or ənd Artašēs ew ənd ełbars iwr, ew aṙnel zna tʿikuns ōgnakanutʿean : Orocʿ ekeal gtin zna yElewtʿeroypōlis : Ew nora ənkaleal znosa xałałutʿeamb ew mecaranōkʿ, aṙnē patasxani Abgaru: Mi kaskacēr i kayserē saks aynr, miayn zi harkeln liov pʿutʿascʿis : Ew nocʿa darjeal anti, elin yErusałēm tesanel zPʿrkičʿn mer Kʿristos vasn lroy hambawocʿ skʿančʿelagorcutʿeancʿn: orum ew akanates ełeal patmecʿin Abgaru : Ənd or zarmacʿeal Abgaru, hawatacʿ čšmartapēs ibr ardarew ordi Astucoy, ew asē: Ayn zōrutʿiwnkʿ očʿ mardoy en, ayl Astucoy: zi čʿikʿ okʿ i mardkanē or karē zmeṙeals yarucʿanel, baycʿ miayn Astuac : Ew kʿanzi apakaneal ēr marminn iwr i čʿaračʿar cʿawocʿ, or patahecʿin nma i Parsicʿ ašxarhin yaṙaǰ kʿan zeawtʿn am, or i mardkanē očʿ ełew nma hnar bžškutʿean, et tanel nma tʿułtʿ ałačʿanacʿ, gal ew bžškel zna i cʿawocʿn

Translation

At that time Marinus, son of Storgius, took the post of the emperor's chiliarch over the Phoenicians and Palestinians, the Syrians and Mesopotamians. And to him Abgar sent two from among his notables, Mar Ihab, the consul of Aghjnik', and Shamshagram, a senior prince of the dynasty of the Apahunis, as well as Anan his confidant, to the city of Bet-Kubin, to inform him of the reasons of his going to the East by showing him the text of the agreement which was between Artashes and his brothers, and to make him an aid of his support. And they, upon arriving, found him in Eleutheropolis. And he, having received them with peace and honor, gave an answer to Abgar: Do not doubt the emperor on account of this, merely that you hasten to pay his tribute off in full. And they, having returned from there, went up to Jerusalem to see our Savior Christ on account of hearing the news of the miracles; and being witness to this, they recounted this to Abgar. Astonished at this, Abgar recognized him truly as son of God, and said: "These marvels are not of man but of God, for there is no one among men who is able to raise the dead, save God alone." And because his own body was corrupted by terrible pains, which had befallen him in the land of the Persians seven years before, and which among men there was not for him a means of curing, he granted to be taken to him a letter of entreaty to come and cure him of his pains....

Grammar

6. Nominal Declension

The remaining declensions of nouns and adjectives have variable stems. For the most part these stems end in the resonants r, ł, n. Some substantives retain the resonant throughout the paradigm, while others do not. Of those that do, one finds changes in the stem-vowel preceding the resonant.

6.1. Stem Variation vs. Vocalic Alternation

An important distinction must be made between the concepts of stem variation and vocalic alternation. Vocalic alternation occurs whenever a morpheme is added which changes the stress of a word. It is an automatic process and occurs according to the rules described in the first lesson. It therefore plays no functional role in declension. Thus words such as aṙaǰin 'first' (GDAb aṙaǰnoy), surb 'holy' (GDAb srboy), loys 'light' (GDAb lusoy), mēǰ 'middle' (GDAb miǰoy) all show regular vocalic alternation as a result of addition of the morpheme -oy, which entails a change in stress. These are therefore all invariable-stem substantives, just as e.g. Astuac 'God' (GDAb Astuacoy), beran 'mouth' (GDAb beranoy), get 'river' (GDAb getoy). Stem variation, by contrast, is bound to declension; it is not the result of automatic stress shift and, as such, is in and of itself indicative of the case of a given noun. Thus azn 'kind, race' displays forms NAc Sg. azn and GDL Sg. azin; the variation is not conditioned by any stress shift due to addition of a morpheme. It may happen, however, that in some words both stem variation and vocalic alternation take place: jukn 'fish', GDL *jukan > jkan; dustr 'daughter', GDL *duster > dster; leaṙn 'mountain', GDL *learin > lerin.

In general the declensions of variable stem substantives may be distinguished on the basis of whether the noun uses two or three stem variants within a paradigm. The following chart shows some possibilities of the two-stem declensions. The term 'obliques' specifies any case not explicitly mentioned under one stem or another.

    Stem 1: N Ac sg.   Stem 2: obliques, N Ac L pl.
Nouns in -r, -ł        
    oskr 'bone'   osker-
    astł 'star'   asteł-
    dustr 'daughter'   dster-
         
Nouns in -n        
    himn 'foundation'   himan-
    akn 'gem'   akan-
         
    Stem 1: N Ac sg./pl., L pl.   Stem 2: obliques
         
Nouns in -n        
    šun 'dog'   s'an-
    tun 'house'   tan-
         
Most nouns in -iwn        
         
    ariwn 'blood'   arean-
    zerutʿiwn 'imprisonment'   zerutʿean-

On the other hand there are three-stem declensions. These may be broken down as follows.

    Stem 1: N Ac sg.   Stem 2: obliques   Stem 3: N Ac L pl.
Most nouns in -n            
    jukn 'fish'   jkan-   jkun-
    duṙn 'door'   dran-   drun-
             
Action nouns in -umn            
    šeržumn 'movement'   šeržman-   šeržmun-
    erdumn 'oath'   erdman-   erdmun-
             
Words lacking -n in N Ac sg.            
    manuk 'child'   mankan-   mankun-
    ałǰik 'maiden'   ałǰkan-   ałǰkun-
             
    Stem 1: N Ac sg.   Stem 2: G D L (Ab) sg., N Ac L pl.   Stem 3: obliques
             
    azn 'nation, race'   azin-   azan-
    gaṙn 'lamb'   gaṙin-   gaṙan-
    harsn 'bride'   harsin-   harsan-

The ablative singular is usually built from Stem 2, sometimes with loss of the vowel preceding -n; occasionally the ablative singular is built from Stem 3.

Certainly other classification systems are possible, and indeed, each grammar of Classical Armenian tends to have its own idiosyncratic declensional scheme. Notable among these is the system used by Schmitt in Grammatik des Klassisch-Armenischen. Schmitt sets out declensions according to theme: e.g. a-, i-, etc. declension, r-, l-, n-stem; he then divides some of these into Primary Type (Haupttypus, here Ht) and Secondary Type (Nebentypus, here Nt). These types may be further divided into subclasses A and B, and these further into 1 and 2. In the following, where easily discernible, Schmitt's classification will be noted among the paradigms in order to facilitate the transition to previous work in the field. When necessary, the theme will be explicitly mentioned with the abbreviation T, so that T-u refers to the u-declension.

6.2. r- and ł-Stems

All nouns ending in ł and most ending in r retain these consonants in the oblique cases; in cases other than the N and Ac the vowel -e- intercedes between the base and -ł/-r. Still other nouns show a diphthong, e.g. ew, in the N and Ac singular which is shortened to e in the remaining forms. The nouns oskr 'bone', ałbewr 'source, fountain', and astł 'star', illustrate the declensions.

    T-r, Ht   T-r, Nt-A   T-ł
    -r/-er   -ewr/-er   -ł/-eł
             
N Sg.   oskr   ałbewr   astł
Ac   oskr   ałbewr   astł
G   osker   ałber   asteł
D   osker   ałber   asteł
L   osker   ałber   asteł
Ab   oskerē   ałberē   astełē
I   oskerb   ałberb   astełb
             
N Pl.   oskerkʿ   ałberkʿ   astełkʿ
Ac   oskers   ałbers   astełs
G   oskeracʿ   ałberacʿ   astełacʿ
D   oskeracʿ   ałberacʿ   astełacʿ
L   oskers   ałbers   astełs
Ab   oskeracʿ   ałberacʿ   astełacʿ
I   oskerawkʿ   ałberawkʿ   asteławkʿ
6.3. n-Stems with Two Stems

Nouns whose stem ends in -n are quite common in Classical Armenian. Many of these display two stems in their declension. Nouns of this sort fall into two categories according to which cases display different stems. In particular, one finds the types

Again, the term 'oblique' refers to any case not explicitly mentioned. Examples of type-(a) are given by the nouns kołmn 'side', stems kołmn-/kołman-; and anun 'name', stems anun-/anuan-. Examples of type-(b) are given by the nouns tun 'house', stems tun-/tan-; and gerutʿiwn 'imprisonment', stems gerutʿiwn-/gerutʿean-.

    Ht B   Ht B   Nt B2   Nt B1
    (a)   (a)   (b)   (b)
    kołmn   anun   tun   gerutʿiwn
    'side'   'name'   'house'   'imprisonment'
                 
N Sg.   kołmn   anun   tun   gerutʿiwn
Ac   kołmn   anun   tun   gerutʿiwn
G   kołman   anuan   tan   gerutʿean
D   kołman   anuan   tan   gerutʿean
L   kołman   anuan   tan   gerutʿean
Ab   kołmanē   anuanē   tanē   gerutʿenē
I   kołmamb   anuamb   tamb   gerutʿeamb
                 
N Pl.   kołmankʿ   anuankʿ   tunkʿ   gerutʿiwnkʿ
Ac   kołmans   anuans   tunkʿ   gerutʿiwns
G   kołmancʿ   anuancʿ   tancʿ   gerutʿeancʿ
D   kołmancʿ   anuancʿ   tancʿ   gerutʿeancʿ
L   kołmans   anuans   tuns   gerutʿiwns
Ab   kołmancʿ   anuancʿ   tancʿ   gerutʿeancʿ
I   kołmambkʿ   anuambkʿ   tambkʿ   gerutʿeambkʿ
6.4. n-Stems with Three Stems

Some n-stem nouns display three stems throughout their declension. These also may be divided into two categories based on which stem appears in each case.

In nouns of type-(d), the ablative is typically built from stem 2, but occasionally from stem 3. Type-(c) is illustrated by the nouns duṙn 'door', stems duṙn-/dran-/drun-; šaržumn 'imprisonment', stems šaržumn-/šaržman-/šaržmun-; manuk 'child', stems manuk-/mankan-/mankun-; ałǰik 'maiden', stems ałǰik-/ałǰkan-/ałǰkun-. Type-(d) is illustrated by the nouns azn 'race, kind', stems azn-/azin-/azan-; gaṙn 'lamb', stems gaṙn-/gaṙin-/gaṙan-.

    Ht B   Ht B   Ht B   Ht B   Ht A   Ht A
    (c)   (c)   (c)   (c)   (d)   (d)
    duṙn   šaržumn   manuk   ałǰik   azn   gaṙn
                         
N Sg.   duṙn   šaržumn   manuk   ałǰik   azn   gaṙn
Ac   duṙn   šaržumn   manuk   ałǰik   azn   gaṙn
G   dran   šaržman   mankan   ałǰkan   azin   gaṙin
D   dran   šaržman   mankan   ałǰkan   azin   gaṙin
L   dran   šaržman   mankan   ałǰkan   azin   gaṙin
Ab   dranē   šaržmanē   mankanē   ałǰkanē   aznē   gaṙnē
I   dramb   šaržmamb   mankamb   ałǰkamb   azamb   gaṙamb
                         
N Pl.   drunkʿ   šaržmunkʿ   mankunkʿ   ałǰkunkʿ   azinkʿ   gaṙinkʿ
Ac   druns   šaržmuns   mankuns   ałǰkuns   azins   gaṙins
G   drancʿ   šaržmancʿ   mankancʿ   ałǰkancʿ   azancʿ   gaṙancʿ
D   drancʿ   šaržmancʿ   mankancʿ   ałǰkancʿ   azancʿ   gaṙancʿ
L   druns   šaržmuns   mankuns   ałǰkuns   azins   gaṙins
Ab   drancʿ   šaržmancʿ   mankancʿ   ałǰkancʿ   azancʿ   gaṙancʿ
I   drambkʿ   šaržmambkʿ   mankambkʿ   ałǰkambkʿ   azambkʿ   gaṙambkʿ
                         

Notice the forms aznē and gaṙnē, shortened from azinē and gaṙinē respectively.

Some nouns exhibit features of both the (c) and (d) declension types. Examples are the nouns tʿoṙn 'grandchild' and harsn 'bride'.

    Nt A   Nt A
    (c)+(d)   (c)+(d)
    tʿoṙn   harsn
         
N Sg.   tʿoṙn   harsn
Ac   tʿoṙn   harsn
G   tʿoṙin   harsin
D   tʿoṙin   harsin
L   tʿoṙin   harsin
Ab   tʿoṙnē, tʿoṙanē   harsnē
I   tʿoṙamb   harsamb
         
N Pl.   tʿoṙunkʿ   harsunkʿ
Ac   tʿoṙuns   harsuns
G   tʿoṙancʿ   harsancʿ
D   tʿoṙancʿ   harsancʿ
L   tʿoṙuns   harsuns
Ab   tʿoṙancʿ   harsancʿ
I   tʿoṙambkʿ   harsambkʿ
7. Demonstratives
7.1. Demonstrative Suffixes

Classical Armenian has three demonstrative suffixes which are attached to the end of nouns. These are

These correlate roughly to the use of Latin hic, iste, and ille, respectively. These particles, however, are indeclinable. Since Classical Armenian has no articles as such, an unqualified noun may be either definite or indefinite; these demonstrative suffixes are often used for marking a noun as definite (and in that sense overlap with z-, which is pre-posed on definite nouns in the accusative). In this role -n is by far the most commonly used; -s and -d are reserved for particular emphasis or change of subject. Note the possibility of overlap, e.g. ajss could be either ays 'evil spirit' plus the accusative plural ending -s, or the same noun in the singular but with the deictic suffix -s. Moreover, one may find aysss, that is, ajs + Ac Pl. -s + suffix -s.

There are a few tendencies in the usage of the demonstrative suffixes. Proper names rarely take demonstrative suffixes, e.g. tʿagawor-n Parsicʿ 'the king of the Persians', where English inserts before 'Persians' an article which is not present in the Armenian. Another example is Aršak arkʿay 'Arshak the king'. When an adjective modifies a noun, typically only the noun receives a demonstrative suffix, e.g. vkayn surb 'the holy martyr'. If a noun in the genitive qualifies a definite noun, typically the last word of the collocation receives the demonstrative suffix, e.g. barekan tʿagawori-n 'the king's friend, the friend of the king'. Vocatives use the suffix -d, e.g. Kʿristos-d 'O Christ'. Adjectives used as substantives may take demonstrative suffixes, as in čʿarn 'the evil one, Satan'; aṙakʿealkʿn 'the ones sent, the apostles', built from the participle aṙakʿeal 'sent'; gełecʿikd 'O beautiful one'.

Relative clauses may also take a demonstrative suffix. The suffix -s, -d, or -n is added to the first stressed word of the relative clause.

7.2. Demonstrative Adjectives

The same threefold distinction as in the suffixes -s, -d, -n is found in the demonstrative adjectives ajs 'this here', ayd 'that', ayn 'that over there'. These adjectives also have a long form which is used as an emphatic. The threefold distinction is also made in the demonstrative pronouns sa, da, na, which may also function as the third person pronoun. Likewise the distinction is made in the pronoun and adjective soyn 'this same', doyn 'that same', noyn 'that same there'. The paradigms of the -n series are given below to illustrate the declensions.

    ay-s, -d, -n   ay- (emph.)   s-, d-, n-a   s-, d-, n-oyn
                 
N Sg.   ayn   ayn   na   noyn
Ac   ayn   ayn   na   noyn
G   aynr   aynorik   nora   norin, norun
D   aynm   aynmik   nma   nmin
L   aynm   aynmik   nma   nmin
Ab   aynm   aynmanē   nmanē   nmin
I   aynu   aynuik   novaw   novin, novimb
                 
N Pl.   aynkʿ   aynokʿik   nokʿa   nokʿin, noynkʿ
Ac   ayns   aynosik   nosa   nosin, noyns
G   ayncʿ   aynocʿik   nocʿa   nocʿin, nocʿuncʿ
D   ayncʿ   aynocʿik   nocʿa   nocʿin, nocʿuncʿ
L   ayns   aynosik   nosa   nosin, noyns
Ab   ayncʿ, ayncʿanē   aynocʿik   nocʿa, nocʿanē   nocʿin, nocʿuncʿ
I   aynukʿ   aynokʿiwkʿ   nokʿawkʿ   nokʿimbkʿ, nokʿumbkʿ
8. The Aorist System of Verbs

Classical Armenian has a two-stem verbal system, wherein each verb form pertains either to a present or to an aorist stem of a given root. Generally, one or both of the stems will contain a suffix inserted directly after the root, thus preceding the thematic vowel in present forms and preceding the endings in aorist forms. There are several such suffixes in the present system (-an-, -n-, -čʿ-, -nčʿ-), but only one type, namely -(V)cʿ-, in the aorist system. There are five basic distinctions in the two-stem system:

(a) Aorist stem extended:

    Present   Meaning       Aorist
    pʿory-em   'I tempt'       pʿory-ecʿ-i
    hay-im   'I look'       hay-ecʿ-ay
    as-em   'I say'       as-acʿ-i
    ors-am   'I hunt'       ors-acʿ-i
    yus-am   'I hope'       yus-acʿ-ay

(b) Present stem extended:

    Present   Meaning       Aorist
    pag-an-em   'I kiss'       pag-i
    hec-an-im   'I ride'       hec-ay
    pʿax-čʿ-im   'I flee'       pʿaxe-ay

(c) Both stems extended:

    Present   Meaning       Aorist
    moṙ-an-am   'I forget'       moṙ-acʿ-ay
    l-n-um   'I fill'       l-cʿ-i (3rd Sg. elicʿ, from root li-)

(d) Neither stem extended:

    Present   Meaning       Aorist
    han-em   'I draw'       han-i
    nst-im   'I sit down'       nst-ay (root nist-)
    tʿoł-um   'I let'       tʿoł-i

(e) Suppletive system:

    Present   Meaning       Aorist
    əmp-em   'I drink'       arb-i
    ertʿ-am   'I go'       čʿog-ay

Aorists without suffixes are termed root aorists. Other terms are strong or second aorists. Aorists with the -(V)cʿ suffix are sometimes known as weak or first aorists.

The distinction between present and aorist is not one of tense, but of aspect. Both imperfect and aorist indicative are past tenses; both present and aorist subjunctive lack tense altogether. Verbal forms built from the present stem denote a continuous, ongoing action -- an action in its development. By contrast, verbs forms built from the aorist stem refer to the completion of the action. These distinctions are without regard to the actual point on a timeline at which an action occurs; they point to the nature of the action described. In principle, then, one could find "present aorist" forms, "past present" forms, and so on. "Past present" forms, in this sense denoting past actions with continuous aspect, are essentially what the imperfect tense represents. There are no specifically "present aorist", that is, present completive forms; however the occasional use of the a