Ablative Case (Чыгыш): -дан

In Kyrgyz, Чыгыш жөндөмө covers all the meanings expressed by "from", "out of", and "away from" in English — using a single suffix.

The name "Чыгыш" comes from the verb чыгуу (to exit), which hints at its function — pointing to the starting point of movement or action.

🧠 Logic

The ablative case is used to show:

1. Starting point of movement — From where?

   • Мен үйдөн чыктым — I came out of the house
   • Ал Москвадан келди — He came from Moscow

2. Source — From whom? From what?

   • Апамдан кат алдым — I received a letter from my mum
   • Китептен үйрөндүм — I learned from a book

3. Cause — Because of what?

   • Сууктан тоңдум — I froze from the cold
   • Кубанычтан ыйладым — I cried from joy

4. Material — Made from what?

   • Жыгачтан жасалган — Made from wood
   • Алтындан шакек — A ring of gold

5. Comparison — "Than" in comparisons

   • Ал менден узун — He is taller than me
   • Бул андан жакшы — This is better than that

🧮 Formula

Stem + suffix -дан-ден-дон-дөн or -тан-тен-тон-төн

The vowel in the suffix is determined by vowel harmony:

Examples: баладан, тойдон, үйдөн, мектептен

💡 Examples

Starting point of movement

• Мен үйдөн чыктым. — I came out of the house.
• Ал Бишкектен учуп кетти. — He flew out of Bishkek.
• Суудан чыгып кел. — Come out of the water.
• Тоодон түштүк. — We came down from the mountain.

Source

• Атамдан акча алдым. — I got money from my father.
• Бул жаңылыкты радиодон уктум. — I heard this news on the radio.
• Досумдан кат келди. — A letter came from my friend.
• Китептен көп нерсе үйрөндүм. — I learned a lot from a book.

Cause

• Ачкадан өлө жаздадым — I nearly died of hunger
• Кубанычтан секирдим — I jumped with joy
• Коркуудан калтырадым — I trembled with fear
• Чарчоодон уктап калдым — I fell asleep from exhaustion

Comparison

• Сен менден узунсуң. — You are taller than me.
• Бул тоо андан бийик. — This mountain is higher than that one.
• Ал сенден акылдуу. — He is smarter than you.
• Кыргызстан Россиядан кичине. — Kyrgyzstan is smaller than Russia.

With pronouns

Examples:

• Менден эмне керек? — What do you need from me?
• Сенден суроо бар. — I have a question for you (lit. "from you").
• Андан жооп күтүп жатам. — I'm waiting for an answer from him/her.

⚠️ Important Details

1. Ablative + 3rd Person Possessive Suffixes

When a word already has a 3rd person possessive suffix (-сы/-си/-су/-сү), the ablative changes form — use -нан/-нен/-нон/-нөн instead of -дан/-ден:

For 1st and 2nd person possessives the regular ablative suffix remains:

• досумдан — from my friend
• атаңдан — from your father
• үйүбүздөн — from our house

2. Ablative + Postpositions

Some postpositions require the ablative case:

• кийин (after) — Тамактан кийин уктайм (I sleep after eating)
• мурун (before) — Жумуштан мурун барам (I'll go before work)
• баштап (starting from) — Эртеңден баштап иштейм (I'll start working from tomorrow)
• башка (except) — Сенден башка эч ким жок (There's nobody except you)
• бери (since) — Эртеңден бери күтүп жатам (I've been waiting since morning)

3. The "Because" Construction (-гандыктан)

The construction -гандыктан is built on the ablative:

• Чарчагандыктан уктап калдым — I fell asleep because I was tired
• Акча жоктугунан сатып албадым — I didn't buy it because I had no money

4. The "After" Construction (-гандан кийин)

The temporal construction -гандан кийин uses the ablative:

• Тамак жегенден кийин сейилдейбиз — We'll go for a walk after eating
• Иш бүткөндөн кийин үйгө барам — I'll go home after work is done

5. The "Since" Construction (-гандан бери)

The construction -гандан бери also uses the ablative:

• Келгенден бери иштеп жатам — I've been working since I arrived
• Көргөндөн бери унутпайм — I haven't forgotten since I saw it

6. Don't Confuse with the Genitive

Don't mix up ablative (-дан/-тан) with genitive (-дын/-тын). The difference is in the vowels:

• Мектептен (from where? — from school) vs Мектептин (whose? — of the school)
• Атадан (from whom? — from father) vs Атанын (whose? — father's)

7. Material

The ablative is used to specify material:

• Таштан курулган — Built of stone
• Темирден жасалган — Made of iron
• Жүндөн токулган — Knitted from wool

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See also:

• Overview of the 6 Cases — the full picture of the case system
• Possessive Suffixes — my, your, his
• After: -гандан кийин — temporal construction
• Because: -гандыктан — causal construction
• Since: -гандан бери — temporal construction
• Vowel Harmony — rules for choosing vowels
• Sound Assimilation — choosing the consonant (д/т)