Number Marking
Inspired by this article - more information and detail if you want to take a look. Quite an interesting read about Maltese Plurals and how the Dual works.
In Maltese, nouns can be distinguished by 3 classes -
Class I
Possess two forms: a singular form to express one entity and a plural form to express more than one entity (two entities or more than two entities).
saltna (kingdom) - saltniet (kingdom-PL)
In this case, saltniet expresses more than one kingdom, or more than two kingdoms.
Class II
Possess two forms: a singular form and a dual form to express a plural number.
id (hand) - idejn (hand-DU)
Acts as a “plural allomorph,” not necessarily expressing only two entities, but can also express more than two entities.
In this case, idejn expresses solely two hands, but can also express more than two hands
Class III
Possess three forms: a singular form, a dual form to express precisely a number of two entities, and a plural form to express a number of three entities and more.
jum (day) - jumejn (day-DU) - jiem (hand-PL)
What’s called as a Real Dual.
Jumejn expresses solely two days, while jiem expresses more than two days.
