Tellic nouns can be classified into two groups
- Primary nouns: tem (house), der
(tree), petias (bird), taelur
(language).
- Derived nouns: mietaias (merchant), paelalius
(reading device)
Primary nouns can be subdivided in turn into two subgroups:
- Radical nouns, which is the root itself: der (tree),
van (water)
- Stem nouns, where the noun is built by adding a nominal suffix to
the root: kaunas (woman), raunir
(day)
Tellic nouns do not change for gender and are inflected for
number and case. Instead of gender, Tellics nouns are classified according
to the so called 'noun classes'.
Tellic nouns can be divided into the following noun classes:
- Radical nouns
- Animate nouns in -as
- Concrete nouns in -on
- Artifact nouns in -us
- Locative nouns in -le
- Abstract nouns in -ur
- Abstract nouns in -i
- Abstract nouns in -e
- Abstract nouns in -o
- Temporal nouns in -ir
- Plant and animal nouns in -is
- Instrumental nouns in mi-
- Verbal nouns in -Vt
- Other
Tellic nouns are inflected for number (singular and plural)
and for case, including the following case values:
- Nominative: the unmarked case. Applied to direct objects of volitional
verbs and to subjects of non-volitional and stative verbs: paela
kaunas viaga, (the woman looks at the child);
paeli kauna viagasi (the woman sees the
child)
- Ergative: applied to subjects of volitional verbs: paela kaunas
viaga
- Genitive: conveys possession: nierin tem (the
man's house)
- Relational: it conveys relation, reference: kaunen
kertoin (books about women, womenly books)
- Dative: applied to indirect objects: tilsam kerton kaunu
(I gave a book to the woman). It also conveys direction
towards: iaenami temu (we are going home).
- Ablative: it conveys origin, direction from: pemsam tengensi
(we came from the village). It is also applied to direct objects
of non-volitional verbs: paelim kertonsi (I
see the book).
- Locative: it conveys place at or within: udaenami temekla
(we will eat at your house).
- Instrumental: it conveys instrument, tool, means: taelam taelurmi
(I speak Tellic).
