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In that case using the correct word would render the title unambiguous and comprehensible to everybody. As it is written I read it as "who was responsible for
by enriquto 7y ago
In that case using the correct word would render the title unambiguous and comprehensible to everybody. As it is written I read it as "who was responsible for the act known as the Maya Sacrifice?". As a non-native English speaker who learnt the language in a rather formal way, interpreting the word "sacrifice" as a verb is ungrammatical to me.
- mkl 7y agoI think "sacrifice" is used as a verb at least as frequently as a noun. To me it's unambiguously a verb here as "Maya" is a noun ("Mayan" is the adjective).
- qwsxyh 7y agoAs a native speaker, sacrifice is a verb.
- enriquto 7y agoIt can be a noun or a verb, depending on the context [0]. In this sentence it seems to be a noun, which is qualified by the adjective "mayan", written simply as a noun in apposition "Maya". If "sacrifice" is a verb, the sentence has no object, thus it is ungrammatical, because "who" cannot be the object, only the subject. Or so I was told when learning this damn language! [0] https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/sacrifice https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/sacrifice
- DanBC 7y agoAnybody using English[1] will benefit from a good dictionary. All dictionaries show both noun and verb usage. https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sacrifice https://www.etymonline.com/word/Sacrifice [1] I do mean anybody: people with or without English as a first language.
- brianush1 7y agoIn this case, it would be "Who did the Mayan Sacrifice?" instead of "Who did the Maya sacrifice?" The lowercase "s" indicates it is not part of a proper noun, and "Maya" is a Native American group, and must be suffixed with an "n" to act as an adjective.