Description:

The suffix -(y)n derives a term from a modifier. It follows a special phonological rule, the 'y' is dropped if the modifier ends in a vowel, but is not dropped if the modifier ends in a diphthong. This suffix cannot be used with a tight binding modifier, e.g., an irregular tight binding modifier like 'faj' or a regular one ending in -no like 'lano', it must be used with a loose binding modifier.

The derived term can a somewhat flexible meaning, but is usually taken to have a somewhat abstract meaning as representing the quality of what the modifier represents rather than an instance of an object having that quality. In fact, when Common still had a concrete/abstract gender distinction, all such derivations were members of the abstract gender. So for example, 'uzren' derived from 'uzre', 'green', can mean 'a green one' or something like that, but would usually be read as 'greenness'.

Note the resemblance to the dummy term 'yn' - Davidson wrote that this was intentional and the suffix '-(y)n' was intended to have evolved from modifiers fusing with the dummy term in phrases with an omitted head term.

A common use of -(y)n is to turn a modifier into a term and then use that term as a modifying term. The effect of this is to make the derived word less of a description and more of a name or identifier when applied to the head term. An example of this is the native name of the Common language itself. The word for language is 'zissi'.

The word for 'common', 'frequent' or 'often' is 'xafe'. Hence the name of the Common language is 'na Xafen zissi', or just 'na Xafen'.

The suffix -(y)n is also used in deriving abstract wuality terms, see below for a brief discussion.

Abstract Quality Term: -(y)syn, -kasyn, -casyn, -kijasyn

These suffixes turn a regular term into a term that implies the abstract quality or state of being associated with the term. They work like suffixes '-ness', '-hood', '-ship', etc in English. Compare to the use of '-pali', 'stand', as an compounding element to derives terms of state. Starting from the original term, if the term has more of a verbal sense, or the speaker wants to interpret it in a verbal sense, a thematic term is first derived with -ka, -ca, or -kija. Otherwise the base term is used. Then the term is derived into a modifier with -(y)s. Finally, the modifier is derived back into a term with -(y)n. The -(y)syn version of this type of derivation obeys the exact same 'y' dropping rules as the other suffixes above.

An example of the derivatioon sequence from 'jusal', a term which can be used as a noxaj verb meaning to want or desire:

1. jusal + -kiya > jusalkija: 'desired thing'
2. jusalkija + -(y)s > jusalkijas ['ju.zal.gi.jas]: 'desirable'
3. jusalkijas + (y)n > jusalkijasyn ['ju.zal.gi.ja.zən]: 'desirability'