Latvian Language Learning - Chapter 2: Living and Studying in Riga - Locative Case

Locative Case: Where? When?

• The locative case answers the questions "kur?" (where?) and "kad?" (when?).
• It is used to indicate location or time.

Declensions

• The locative singular and plural endings vary based on the declension of the noun.

1st Declension

• Nominative singular examples: koncerts (concert), ceļš (road)
• Locative singular ending: -ā (koncertā, ceļā)
• Locative plural ending: -os (koncertos, ceļos)

2nd Declension

• Nominative singular example: teātris (theatre)
• Locative singular ending: -ī (teātrī)
• Locative plural ending: -os (teātros)

3rd Declension

• Nominative singular example: tirgus (market)
• Locative singular ending: -ū (tirgū)
• Locative plural ending: -os (tirgos)

4th Declension

• Nominative singular example: skola (school)
• Locative singular ending: -ā (skolā)
• Locative plural ending: -ās (skolās)

5th Declension

• Nominative singular example: mute (mouth)
• Locative singular ending: -ē (mutē)
• Locative plural ending: -ēs (mutēs)

6th Declension

• Nominative singular example: acs (eye)
• Locative singular ending: -ī (acī)
• Locative plural ending: -īs (acīs)

Location and Place

• Question: "Kur tu esi?" (Where are you?)
• Possible answers:
  • Es esmu slimnīcā. (I am in the hospital.)
  • Es esmu universitātē. (I am at the university.)
  • Es esmu anatomikumā. (I am in the anatomical theatre.)
  • Es esmu centrā. (I am in the center.)
  • Es esmu mājās. (I am at home.)
  • Es esmu laukos. (I am in the countryside.)

Time

• Question: "Kad tas notiek?" (When does it happen?)
• Possible answers:
  • Tas notiek septembrī. (It happens in September.)
  • Tas notiek jūnijā. (It happens in June.)
  • Tas notiek vasarā. (It happens in the summer.)
  • Tas notiek ziemā. (It happens in the winter.)
  • Tas notiek vakarā. (It happens in the evening.)
  • Tas notiek naktī. (It happens at night.)

Exercises: Sentence Formation

• Example: Tas ir parks. Es esmu parkā. (That is a park. I am in the park.)
• (The exercise provides a series of nouns to be used in a similar sentence structure, practicing the locative case.)

Verbs of the 2nd Conjugation: dzīvot (to live) and runāt (to speak)

• Conjugation patterns:
  • es dzīvoju / runāju (I live / speak)
  • tu dzīvo / runā (you live / speak)
  • viņš/viņa dzīvo / runā (he/she lives / speaks)
  • mēs dzīvojam / runājam (we live / speak)
  • jūs dzīvojat / runājat (you live / speak)
  • viņi/viņas dzīvo / runā (they live / speak)
• Negation: Add "ne-" prefix to the verb.
  • Example: es dzīvoju - es nedzīvoju (I live - I don't live)

Exercises: Verb Conjugation and Sentence Completion

• Conjugate verbs like studēt (to study) and strādāt (to work) following the 2nd conjugation pattern.
• Complete sentences by putting words into the correct form, practicing verb conjugation and the use of locative case with nouns.
• Examples:
  • Kur tu (dzīvot)? Es tagad (dzīvot) Dārza (iela).
  • Vai Ieva Liepa (dzīvot) (Latvija)? Nē, viņa (nedzīvot) (Latvija).

Dialogues

• Complete dialogues by filling in missing words, focusing on practical communication skills.
• Examples:
  • Mani sauc Marika. Es studēju Rīgas Stradiņa universitātē. Es esmu Filips un arī šeit __.
  • Labdien! Vai jūs Jūrmalā? Sveiki! Nē, es nedzīvoju Jūrmalā, es Valmierā.

Choosing the Correct Answer

• Match questions with appropriate answers, reinforcing comprehension and practical language use.
• Examples:
  • Vai Roberts Kalniņš dzīvo Ventspilī? __Viņš dzīvo Londonā.
  • Kur tu dzīvo? __Nē, es studēju Oslo.

Describing Locations

• Write sentences describing where people are, using the locative case.
• Examples:
  • I, anatomical theatre: Es esmu anatomikumā.
  • I, not, home: Es neesmu mājās.

Asking and Answering Questions in Pairs

• Practice asking and answering questions about locations, working in pairs.
• Examples:
  • Kur notiek lekcija? (auditorija): Lekcija notiek auditorijā.
  • Kad notiek konference? (aprīlis): Konference notiek aprīlī.

Map-Based Questions

• Look at a map and answer questions about the locations of cities in Latvia.
• Examples:
  • Kur atrodas Sigulda?
  • Kur atrodas Liepāja?

Countries and Languages

• Lists of countries, nationalities, and languages.
• Examples:
  • Latvija, latvietis/latviete, runā latviski.
  • Somija, soms/somiete, runā somiski.

Completing Sentences about Languages

• Complete sentences according to a given example, practicing how to say which language is spoken in a particular country.
• Example: Latvijā runā latviski. Amerikā runā _.

Sentence Construction

• Create sentences based on a given example, incorporating country, nationality, and language.
• Example: Es – Latvija. Es dzīvoju Latvijā. Es esmu latviete. Es runāju latviski.

Dialogue Sequencing

• Listen to a dialogue and arrange it in the correct sequence.

Filling in Words in a Text

• Insert given words into a text, practicing vocabulary and grammar in context.

Answering Questions

• Answer questions about personal information such as where you live, what languages you speak, and your nationality.

Origin and Place of Origin

• Practice identifying where people are from using the correct grammatical forms.
• Example: No kurienes ir Maija? – Maija ir no Latvijas (Latvija).

Describing Language Skills

• Vocabulary to describe language proficiency: brīvi (fluently), ļoti labi (very well), labi (well), diezgan labi (pretty good), slikti (badly), mazliet (a little bit).

Reading Comprehension

• Read short texts about people from different countries and answer questions about their lives and language skills.

Dialogue: True or False

• Listen to a dialogue and mark statements as true or false.

Group Interaction

• Tell where you are from and ask your groupmates where they are from.

Dialogue and Image-Based Conversation

• Create a conversation based on a given example and describe where you are now using a picture as a prompt.

Case Usage: Nominative or Locative

• Choose the correct case (Nominative or Locative) for words in parentheses.
• Example: Mārcis ir _ (students). Viņš dzīvo __ (Sigulda).

Numbers

• Listing of numbers from 0 to 2000, including both cardinal and ordinal forms.
  • 0 - nulle
  • 1 - viens
  • 2 - divi
  • \vdots
  • 10 - desmit
  • \vdots
  • 100 - simt / simts
  • \vdots
  • 1000 - tūkstoš / tūkstotis
  • 2000 - divtūkstoš / divi tūkstoši

Pronunciation Practice

• Read numbers aloud.

Address Reading

• Practice reading Latvian addresses.

Phone Number Exercises

• Listen and write phone numbers.
• Listen and correct phone numbers.

Personal Information Exchange

• Ask groupmates for their phone numbers and addresses.

Agreement of Number and Noun

• Rules for the agreement of numbers and nouns in Latvian grammar.
• Examples:
  • viens students, viena studente
  • divi brāļi, divas māsas
  • trīs galdi, trīs grāmatas

Number and Noun Writing

• Write phrases using a number and a noun, showing the correct agreement.
• Example: viens draugs, viena draudzene. 3 brālis, pilsēta → trīs brāļi, trīs pilsētas.

Translation Exercises

• Translate phrases from English to Latvian, practicing number and noun agreement.

Fill-in-the-Blanks: Email

• Fill in the blanks in a sample email with appropriate Latvian words, focusing on greetings, location, studies, and contact information.

Sentence Translation

• Translate sentences from English to Latvian, reinforcing grammatical structures and vocabulary.

Dialogue Translation

• Translate a given dialogue into Latvian, focusing on common conversational phrases and vocabulary.

Word Choice: latviski, latvietis, latviešu

• Choose the correct word (latviski, latvietis, or latviešu) to fill in the blanks, demonstrating understanding of the nuances between the adverb, noun, and adjective forms.

Question Formation: Kas vai Kur?

• Formulate questions using "Kas?" (Who/What?) or "Kur?" (Where?) based on given sentences.

Agreement and Disagreement

• Agree or disagree with given statements using the phrases "Jā, tā ir" (Yes, it is) or "Nē, tā nav" (No, it is not).

Foreign Borrowings: Verbs

• Explanation that verbs derived from foreign words conjugate as 2nd conjugation verbs.
• Examples: informēt, analizēt, operēt, kontrolēt.

Verb Conjugation Practice

• Conjugate verbs in the first person (es).
• Examples: Es prezentēju projektu.

Agreeing and Disagreeing Phrases

• Phrases for agreeing: Es piekrītu, Tev taisnība, Jums taisnība, Jā, tā ir, Jā, pareizi.
• Phrases for disagreeing: Es nepiekrītu, Es tā nedomāju, Nē, tā nav, Nē, nav pareizi.

Vocabulary List

• Comprehensive vocabulary list of words and phrases covered in the chapter, with English translations.