Complete Detailed Grammar of the International Language Ido/Pronoun "Lo"

Pronoun "Lo"

36. "Lo" in no way is a "neutral" pronoun, applicable to determined things or genderless entities; this role belongs to olu [it], and only to it. Moreover, here is the text itself of the proposition which determined the decision 948 of the Academy: "Beaufront and Couturat propose... to adopt lo as a pronoun and article indicating an undetermined thing along with co [this], to [that]". As follows is the exposition of the motives:

"It seems to us necessary to adopt lo for indicating a totally undetermined thing (abstract, like one often says incorrectly); not only to express la belajo [the beauty], la verajo [the fact] (trivial argument), but for many other cases similar to these: "Lo grava en ica afero... Me deziras lo maxim bona" [The seriousness in this affair... I wish the best.] In another sentence formation one would say: "To quo esas grava... to quo esas maxim bona [That which is serious... that which is best.]" So lo is almost an abbreviation of to quo [that (thing) which], and its format is totally analogous, therefore necessary for the symmetry. Furthermore, lo would be useful for translating precisely the German es when it refers not to a determined object (by chance neutral) but rather to a whole sentence, i.e. a fact (according to the concept of Dr. Talmey: II, 148). One can indeed use co [this] and to [that], but these words implicate a demonstrative nuance, which is superfluous. For example: "Prenez to, me volas lo" [Take that, I want it.] Me volas to would have two meanings; me volas ol seems to refer to an object, thus it would also have a double meaning; you do not want the object to be taken, but "ke vu prenez to" [that you take that], the taking itself."

"One well notices, that we do not propose lo instead of ol, but next to and outside ol, in exactly the same way as we have ico next to olca, quo next to olqua."

Let's give further examples:

Lo facenda postulos longa tempo e multa lukti [What shall be done requires a long time and many struggles.] — Me esforcis omnamaniere por evitar lo neremediebla. [I strove in all possible ways to avoid the irremediable.] — Lo obtenita esas quaze nulo kompare a lo obtenenda [What is obtained is almost nothing in comparison to what is to obtain.]

Il esas mortinta de tri monati, e vu ne savas lo! [He has been dead for three months, and you didn't know it!] (that he is dead). — Restez e repozez me volas lo [Stay and rest I want that] (that you stay, etc.) — La rural domo di nia vicini esis incendiata. On informis me pri lo [The rural home of our neighbors was set on fire. One informed me about that] (that it was burnt down).

If one would not use "lo" in the first three examples, one would have to use the periphrasis: to quo esas... [that which is...] And if, instead of "lo", one would use co [this], to [that], in the last two, one would obtain another nuance, because of the demonstrative meaning of this pronoun.

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