Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

• Azhideh Moqaddam ¹
• Narges Ne’matollahi ²

¹ Assistant Professor of Ancient Iranian Culture and Languages, University Tehran

² Ph.D student of Iranian Studies, University of Indiana, USA

Abstract

Time, aspect, person, number and active and middle voices are the categories based on which the verbal structure of the ancient Iranian languages are studied. According to the prevailing viewpoint, middle voice is the means by which to change a transitive root to an intransitive. This viewpoint has had its origin in the verbal roots transitive when conjugated in the active voice and intransitive when in the middle, whereas a closer study of the verbal structure of ancient Iranian languages displays features challenging the validity of the current viewpoint. This article analyses the general structure of middle verbs as an introduction to the study and re-categorization of the Younger Avestan middle verbs to be appeared in another article. 
 

Keywords

• voice
• transitive
• intransitive
• Active
• middle