Nouns are classified according to a broad animate versus inanimate paradigm which is expressed using a variety of article suffixes. Within the animate class, nouns are further subdivided into two sub-classes. The first of these includes all humans belonging to the Yuchi tribe, and is itself further divided according to a very complex system of kinship relations and gendered speech registers. The second sub-class of animate nouns encompasses all human beings outside of the Yuchi tribe, as well as animals, and the sun and moon. The animate (Yuchi) suffixes express a very complex system of kinship and gendered speech in much the same way as do third person pronouns.