Learning pronouns in Latvian, a Baltic language spoken primarily in Latvia, is crucial for mastering both spoken and written communication. Latvian pronouns are characterized by their forms according to person, number, gender, and case. This guide covers personal, possessive, demonstrative, reflexive, and interrogative pronouns, providing detailed explanations and examples for each.

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns in Latvian replace nouns referring to people or things and are used based on the person being referred to. Latvian pronouns change form based on their grammatical case (nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, instrumental, locative, and vocative), though only the most commonly used cases are highlighted here.

Subject Pronouns:

• Es (I): “Es eju mājās.” – I am going home.
• Tu (You – singular, informal): “Tu strādā?” – Do you work?
• Viņš/Viņa (He/She): “Viņš lasa.” / “Viņa raksta.” – He reads. / She writes.
• Mēs (We): “Mēs dziedam.” – We sing.
• Jūs (You – plural or formal): “Jūs atnācāt?” – Did you come?
• Viņi/Viņas (They – masculine/feminine): “Viņi spēlē.” / “Viņas dejo.” – They play (m). / They dance (f).

Object Pronouns:

• Mani (Me – accusative): “Viņš mani redz.” – He sees me.
• Tevi (You – accusative): “Es tevi mīlu.” – I love you.
• Viņu (Him/Her – accusative): “Es viņu pazīstu.” – I know him/her.
• Mūs (Us – accusative): “Viņi mūs uzaicināja.” – They invited us.
• Jūs (You – plural or formal, accusative): “Viņš jūs sveicina.” – He greets you.
• Viņus/Viņas (Them – masculine/feminine, accusative): “Es viņus/viņas redzēju.” – I saw them.

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns in Latvian indicate ownership and agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.

• Mans/Mana (My – masculine/feminine): “Mana grāmata.” – My book.
• Tavs/Tava (Your – masculine/feminine, singular, informal): “Tava māja.” – Your house.
• Viņa (His/Her): “Viņa auto.” – His/Her car.
• Mūsu (Our): “Mūsu ģimene.” – Our family.
• Jūsu (Your – plural or formal): “Jūsu ideja.” – Your idea.
• Viņu (Their): “Viņu sapnis.” – Their dream.

Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns in Latvian point to specific nouns and vary based on distance and gender.

• Šis/Šī (This – masculine/feminine): “Šis zēns.” / “Šī meitene.” – This boy. / This girl.
• Tas/Tā (That – masculine/feminine): “Tas suns.” / “Tā sieviete.” – That dog. / That woman.

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns in Latvian are used when the subject performs an action upon itself. The reflexive pronoun “sevi” is used across persons and numbers.

• Sevi (Myself/Yourself/Himself/Herself/Itself/Ourselves/Yourselves/Themselves): “Es mācu sevi latviešu valodu.” – I teach myself the Latvian language.

Interrogative Pronouns

Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions about people, places, or things.

• Kas (Who/What): “Kas tas ir?” – What is that?
• Kurš/Kura (Which – masculine/feminine): “Kurš ceļš?” / “Kura grāmata?” – Which road? / Which book?
• Kāds/Kāda (What kind of – masculine/feminine): “Kāds laiks?” / “Kāda diena?” – What kind of weather? / What kind of day?

Understanding and correctly using Latvian pronouns is vital for effective communication. Practice forming sentences with each type of pronoun, and try to engage in conversations or writing exercises to apply these concepts actively. Remember, context and the nuances of Latvian grammar play a significant role in choosing the correct pronoun form.