Daiktavardinim

Daiktavardinim is a Latvian word that translates to "noun" in English. It refers to a part of speech that denotes a person, place, thing, or idea. In the Latvian language, nouns are inflected for case, number, and gender, though gender agreement is generally less rigid than in some other Indo-European languages.

Latvian nouns are typically categorized into masculine and feminine genders, with some older or colloquial usage of a neuter gender, though this is not standard. The cases are nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, instrumental, locative, and vocative. The number can be singular or plural. The declension of a noun depends on its gender and its ending in the nominative singular.

Understanding daiktavardinim is fundamental to learning Latvian grammar. It allows for the proper construction of sentences and the accurate conveying of meaning. For example, the subject of a sentence will typically be in the nominative case, while the object might be in the accusative or dative, depending on the verb and context. The genitive case is often used to show possession. The locative case indicates location, and the instrumental case can denote the means by which something is done. The vocative case is used for direct address. Mastery of noun declension is crucial for fluency in Latvian.