A relative clause is a means of modifying a noun using a verbal expression. Some English examples are:
- I read the book [ that you recommended ]
- That dog [ that barks all the time ] is usually friendly
- The woman [ who lives next door ] just moved away
In Kashaya, a relative clause is formed by adding an evidential suffix ending is /a/ to the verb, plus a case suffix that depends on the role of the modified noun in the larger sentence: /m/ for the subject or actor and /l/ for the object or undergoer. Note that this case does not depend on the relation of the modifed noun to the verb inside the relative clause.
- [ ʔahca qolawal ] cisu·lé· mu
- He is sweeping the houses [ that are standing together ]
- the houses are the object / undergoer of sweeping
- [ ʔahca qólawam ] cisul é· mu
- Those houses [ that are standing together ] have been swept
- the houses are the subject of the sentence
These relative clauses have the Factual evidential, which is quite common in these circumstances since it describes a general (imperfective) property.
- qʰa·báʔ [ ʔa maʔawam ] ʔóʔ biʔtʼame· to
- I can still taste the onion [ that I ate ]
- baqʼó ʔwa [ qʼoʔdi mihšewam ] ˇ
- What is it [ that smells so good ] ?
- ʔúl ʔa [ máya tow ʔdiya·cʼal ] cicʼí·dela
- I have now done [ what I was told to do by you ]
- mul [ ti· bénʔwadál ] qalí· bebí·cedu
- He kept raising up high [ what he was carrying ]
- basewé· to [ ma cahno·dal ]
- I don’t like [ what you said ]
- tʼunuyé· mu·kinʔ [ manʔ ʔama· cicʼi·dal ]
- He's tired of [ what she is doing ]
The Visual is also fairly common in such clauses, for something that has been completed.
- qʰálʔda biʔda ʔdom mu [ pʰimayam ]
- The Shore Trail stream was [ the one they crossed ]
- [ yaʔkʰe šomé·to pʰakʼumyal ] ʔacaʔ duhkʰú·yam ˇ
- We killed the men [ who killed our sister ]
- ʔacáʔ mana·cimé·du [ ti· yémhṭʰe šuṭʰe·yal ] tólhqʰaʔ
- He drove the people toward [ the net he had spread out ]
The Auditory and Circumstantial are less common but also occur.
- bihše ʔínsʼe· [ loqʼo·cinnam ]
- I suppose it was a deer [ that I heard making a noise ]
- mohólte· ʔa mul [ biyo·línnal ]
- I'm going to throw (unseen) at [ what I hear moving ]
- šamʔ [ ma camaqal ] hitsá·qa
- the basket [ that you are weaving ], twine it tight!
For the verb /sahqacʼ-/ meaning "to stop" (and perhaps other verbs), a verbal complement ("stop doing") is expressed as a relative clause. As a complement to the verb, it takes object / undergoes case.
- [ cahno píšudu ma cahno·dal ] sáhqacʼi
- stop [ saying bad words ] !
- [ ma bicʼula·dal ] sáhqacʼi
- stop [ your shouting ] !
- sáhqacʼme mul [ maya ʔama· daqa·cʼal ]
- You stop that [ liking those things ]
- [ ʔacáʔ ʔa· bimucí·dal ] sahqaʔté· ʔa
- I'll stop eating people
- sáhqaʔte· [ ʔa ʔacaʔ duhkʰuyá·dal/ ] [ ʔa ʔacaʔ bimucí·d/al ]
- I am going to quit killing people and eating them