Possessive case

The possessive case is a case used in some languages to express possession. It should not be confused with the genitive case, even though the two sometimes share the same meaning in many languages.

Alignable and inalienable

There are many varieties of possession. One of the most common classifications is the distinction between alienable and inalienable possessives. Alienability refers to the possibility of separating something from its origin, in this case, from its owner.

• Inalienable possession is usually an attribute, for example "the height of Juanito", because it is something of Juanito that cannot change (except that it grows). On the contrary, "my socks" are an alienable possession because it can be separated from its possessor.

Many languages make this distinction in some way. For example, Maori and many Malayo-Polynesian languages. In the expression "I have my father's nose", if the major noun phrase is considered to be marked as inalienable, it would imply some degree of genetic inheritance. However, marked as alienable would imply that the subject has cut off his father's nose and somehow become part of his body.