Bosnian to Malagasy: subject position and the people included in a plan
The person at the end can still be the actor
Keenan’s Malagasy fieldwork describes unmarked clauses in which the subject follows the verb and direct object. For a Bosnian reader, an actor appearing near the end of a Malagasy sentence is therefore not automatic evidence that the translation has reversed the participants. The important comparison is who performs the source action and who or what is affected.
His example Nametraka ny harona teo ambon’ny latabatra Rabe places Rabe after the basket and its location: Rabe put the basket on the table. A Bosnian sentence about somebody moving an object may need that target organization rather than a preserved sequence of source noun phrases. The destination phrase is not a new actor just because it appears before the final name.
A prominent source phrase need not stay in first position
Keenan also describes a Malagasy construction using dia after a fronted topic. This is a particular discourse organization rather than proof that ordinary subject-first order and unmarked subject-final order are freely interchangeable. When Bosnian emphasizes a person or object, preserve that emphasis through an appropriate target construction instead of moving words without considering their relationship.
The chapter further connects the choice of a passive-style target construction with the referential status of the affected thing. Thus, a Bosnian report mentioning a particular basket and a general statement about washing clothes need not choose the same Malagasy voice pattern. Translating both with one memorized order would miss how the target distinguishes the information being presented.
A family plan may include or exclude the recipient
Peace Corps Madagascar distinguishes isika, an inclusive we, from izahay, an exclusive we. The Bosnian textbook’s invitation to go out and eat or drink illustrates why this target distinction matters: an invitation normally brings the recipient into the proposed group, whereas a report about the speaker’s existing family party may not. Establish the membership of the source group before choosing its Malagasy pronoun.
This becomes particularly important when a Bosnian message describes relatives and then asks the visitor to join them. The target can need different group reference across those two parts. Choosing a single Malagasy we merely because the source repeats a similar plural expression can blur the difference between announcing a plan and including the addressee in it.
Family vocabulary sorts relationships differently
The Peace Corps family lesson lists zoky for older siblings and zandry for younger siblings. Bosnian family wording should therefore be interpreted for relative age when that information is available, rather than assuming a target sibling term will distinguish exactly the same properties as the source. The target choice can depend on the sibling’s age relative to the person whose family is being described.
Other Bosnian labels provide a different kind of detail: the textbook identifies amidža as a paternal uncle and daidža as a maternal uncle. Those source relationships should remain intelligible in Malagasy when they identify the traveller’s contact. They are not personal names. A translation can need a fuller family explanation if its chosen target label would otherwise discard the parental connection.
Finally, Alexander distinguishes Bosnian čekati from dočekati, where the latter includes receiving the expected person upon arrival. Keep that event distinction alongside the family reference. A Malagasy sentence about an older sibling waiting is not automatically equivalent to one about an uncle meeting the visitor, even if both describe helpful relatives and a future plan.
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