In Kashmiri there are
certain lexical items which function as 'attention catchers'. These may be used
to attract the attention of a person. Not all of these are polite, but they
still have a high frequency in colloquial Kashmiri. Note the following:
Masculine |
Feminine |
Ranking
on the honorific scale |
Status
constraints |
Religious
constraints |
|
|
impolite,
inf.mp3al |
addressee
equal or lower |
|
|
|
impolite,
inf.mp3al |
addressee
equal or lower |
|
|
|
neutral |
equal |
|
|
|
respectful |
addressee
equal or higher |
addressee
Hindu |
|
|
respectful |
addressee
equal or higher |
addressee or
addressor Muslim |
|
|
polite |
addressee
equal or higher |
|
|
|
polite |
equal |
|
Note that in Srinagar the use of
is more or less restricted to the speech of the older generation. Its place has
been taken by the more frequent .
Examples:
In the above examples, (a) is
unacceptable on the scale of politeness, and (c) may be t.mp3ed extra-polite.
|