[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Studies](https://indike.org/pramana/ins) › [Archaeology, epigraphy and coins](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy) › [Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D.](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003) › c27.s29 # Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c27.s29: 7.26 The oblique stem Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c27.s29 - **Language:** English ## Contents - [c27.s29.t1 7.26.1 Nouns ending in -am form the oblique stem by replacing the ending with -a(t)tu](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t1) — 3 parts - [c27.s29.t2 7.26.2 Nouns ending in -ṭu or -ṟu form the oblique stem by doubling the final consonant](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t2) — 3 parts - [c27.s29.t3 7.26.3 Oblique pronominal stem](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t3) — 2 parts ### 7.26 The oblique stem ### [c27.s29.1](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.1) Personal pronouns and some nouns have oblique stems which express case relations or serve as the base for suffixation. The following types of oblique stems occur in the Corpus: ### 7.26.1 Nouns ending in -am form the oblique stem by replacing the ending with -a(t)tu ### [c27.s29.t1.1](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t1.1) | \*kuṉṟa(t)tu\* (\< \*kuṉṟam\*) 'of the hill' | 60.1.b | | \*nikama(t)tu\* (\< \*nikamam\*) 'of the merchant guild' | 3.4 | ### [c27.s29.t1.2](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t1.2) \*nikama(t)tōr\* (\<\*nikamam\* + \*attu\* + \*ōr\*) 'members of the merchant guild' 6.2 ### [c27.s29.t1.3](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t1.3) \*mārayatu\* (\*mārāyattu\*) (\<\*mārāyam\*, a title) 54.1 ### 7.26.2 Nouns ending in -ṭu or -ṟu form the oblique stem by doubling the final consonant ### [c27.s29.t2.1](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t2.1) \*kāṭṭu\* (\<\*kāṭu\*) 'of the forest' 117.1.b ### [c27.s29.t2.2](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t2.2) \*nāṭṭu\* (\<\*nāṭu\*) 'of the country' 115.2.b ### [c27.s29.t2.3](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t2.3) \*yāṟṟu\* (\<\*yāṟu\*) 'of the river' 62.3 ### 7.26.3 Oblique pronominal stem ### [c27.s29.t3.1](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t3.1) Oblique pronominal stems of the first and second persons are formed by stem mutation. The only example available in the Corpus is: ### [c27.s29.t3.2](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29.t3.2) \*em\* (\<\*yām\*) 'our (exclusive)' 19.1 --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29](https://indike.org/pramana/ins.epigraphy.mahadevan-2003.c27.s29) · Pramāṇa