Pārpagātne (Past Perfect)
The Pārpagātne (Past Perfect) tense in Latvian is used to describe actions that were completed before another action in the past. It emphasizes the order of past events, indicating that one action happened before another.
Mood:
The Past Perfect is used in the indicative mood, which expresses certainty about actions that were completed before another past action.
- Mood: Indicative (expresses past actions completed before another past event)
Formation:
The Past Perfect is a compound tense formed by using the auxiliary verb biju (had) in the past tense, followed by the past participle of the main verb.
Active Voice Conjugation:
| Person | Example Verb: runāt (to speak) |
|---|---|
| 1st Person | es biju runājis/runājusi |
| 2nd Person | tu biji runājis/runājusi |
| 3rd Person | viņš/viņa bija runājis/runājusi |
| 1st Person Pl. | mēs bijām runājuši |
| 2nd Person Pl. | jūs bijāt runājuši |
| 3rd Person Pl. | viņi/viņas bija runājuši |
- The past participle changes based on gender: runājis (masculine) and runājusi (feminine).
Passive Voice Conjugation:
| Form | Passive (Past Perfect) |
|---|---|
| / | bija ticis runāts |
Examples:
- Active Positive: Es biju runājis ar viņu pirms sanāksmes. (I had spoken with him before the meeting.)
- Active Negative: Es nebiju runājis ar viņu pirms sanāksmes. (I had not spoken with him before the meeting.)
- Passive Positive: Latviski bija ticis runāts pirms lekcijas. (Latvian had been spoken before the lecture.)
- Passive Negative: Latviski nebija ticis runāts pirms lekcijas. (Latvian had not been spoken before the lecture.)
