Some Collective Plural Suffixes in the Iranian Languages

Abstract

In the New Iranian languages a plural noun is differentiated from a singular noun by adding a plural suffix. In some Iranian dialects, the collective plural suffixes -gal, -yal, -al, -gar and -yar are used. These suffixes were reported in several studies, and were considered as grammaticalization of the collective words. This paper tries to show the development and distribution of the collective plural suffixes in the Iranian languages.