Phonemes and Orthography
Historical Phonemes
Consonants
| Labial | Dental | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulmonic stops | /p/ ⟨p⟩ | /t/ ⟨t⟩ | /k/ ⟨k⟩ | /q/ ⟨q⟩ | /ʔ/ ⟨ʔ⟩ | |||
| Ejective stops | /tʼ/ ⟨tʼ⟩ | /kʼ/ ⟨kʼ⟩ | /qʼ/ ⟨qʼ⟩ | |||||
| Pulmonic affricates | /ts/ ⟨c⟩ | |||||||
| Ejective affricates | /tsʼ/ ⟨cʼ⟩ | |||||||
| Voiceless fricatives | /s ɬ/ ⟨s Ł/ł⟩ | /ʃ/ ⟨Š/š⟩ | /x/ ⟨x⟩ | /h/ ⟨h⟩ | ||||
| Voiced fricatives | /β/ ⟨b⟩ | /ð/ ⟨d⟩ | /ɣ/ ⟨g⟩ | |||||
| Nasals | /m/ ⟨m⟩ | /n/ ⟨n⟩ | ||||||
| Liquids | /r l/ ⟨r l⟩ | |||||||
| Semivowels | /w/ ⟨w⟩ | /j/ ⟨y⟩ |
Vowels
Unstressed
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | /i iː/ ⟨i Ī/ī⟩ | /u uː/ ⟨u Ū/ū⟩ |
| Open | /æ æː/ ⟨a Ā/ā⟩ | /ɒ ɒː/ ⟨Å/å Â/â⟩ |
Stressed
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | /i iː/ ⟨Ì/ì Í/í⟩ | /u uː/ ⟨Ù/ù Ú/ú⟩ |
| Open | /æ æː/ ⟨À/à Á/á⟩ | /ɒ ɒː/ ⟨Ă/ă Ã/ã⟩ |
Synchronic Phonemes
Consonants
| Labial | Dental | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulmonic stops | /p/ ⟨p⟩ | /t/ ⟨t⟩ | /k/ ⟨k⟩ | /q/ ⟨q⟩ | /ʔ/ ⟨ʔ⟩ | |||
| Ejective stops | /tʼ/ ⟨tʼ⟩ | /kʼ/ ⟨kʼ⟩ | /qʼ/ ⟨qʼ⟩ | |||||
| Pulmonic affricates | /ts/ ⟨c⟩ | /tʃ/ ⟨Č/č⟩ | ||||||
| Ejective affricates | /tsʼ/ ⟨cʼ⟩ | /tʃʼ/ ⟨Čʼ/čʼ⟩ | ||||||
| Fricatives | /s/ ⟨s⟩ | /ʃ/ ⟨Š/š⟩ | /χ/ ⟨x⟩ | /h/ ⟨h⟩ | ||||
| Nasals | /m/ ⟨m⟩ | /n/ ⟨n⟩ | ||||||
| Liquids | /r l/ ⟨r l⟩ | |||||||
| Semivowels | /ʋ/ ⟨v⟩ | /j/ ⟨y⟩ |
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | /i iː/ ⟨i Ī/ī⟩ | /u uː/ ⟨u Ū/ū⟩ | |
| Mid | /ə/ ⟨Ǝ/ə⟩ | ||
| Open | /æ æː/ ⟨a Ā/ā⟩ | /ɒ ɒː/ ⟨Å/å Â/â⟩ |
Phonology
Phonotactics
Two-consonant consonant clusters are allowed in any position, including initially, and finally, in both the protolanguage and the later language, with the restriction that initial and final consonant clusters must follow the sonority hierarchy (i.e. increasing sonority initially and decreasing sonority finally). Note that geminates are allowed, and count as consonant clusters phonotactically, and hence are not allowed initially or finally (as they then would not be increasing or decreasing in sonority).
In the protolanguage arbitrary vowel sequences are allowed. In the later language, vowel sequences are not allowed, and should they arise, they are broken up with the insertion of /j/ and /ʋ/.
Note that stems may end in geminates, but if words formed from them still end in geminates, the final geminate is degeminated.
Sound Change
Stress starts out as phonemic.
p t k pː tː kː > pʼ tʼ kʼ pʼː tʼː kʼː \ _ʔ
p t k pː tː kː > pʼ tʼ kʼ pʼː tʼː kʼː \ ʔ_
ʔ > ∅ \ C_
ʔ > ∅ \ _C
k kʼ x ɣ q qʼ > tʃ tʃʼ ʃ ʒ k kʼ \ _V[+high +front]
V > V[+nasal] \ _{m n}{C. #} where {m n}C is not a geminate
m n > ∅ ∅ \ V_C where {m n}C is not a geminate
The following steps are applied simultaneously, starting from the end of a word and progressing to the start:
ɒ ɒː u uː > æ æː y yː \ _(C){i iː j} (ignoring nasality)
æ æː i iː > ɑ ɑː ɯ ɯː \ _(C){u uː w} (ignoring nasality)
V[+front +rounded] > V[+front -rounded]
V[-front -rounded] > V[-front +rounded]
m[-long] n[-long] > ∅ ∅ \ V_#
C[+long] > C[-long] \ V_#
V[-long -stress -nasal] > ə
V[+long -stress -nasal] > V[-long -stress]
V[+nasal] > V[-nasal]
[+voiced +fricative -stress] > ∅ \ V_V
[+voiced +fricative -onset] > ∅ \ V_V
ʔəʔ > ʔ
əə > æ
V[-long] > V[+long] \ _ə
V[-long] > V[+long] \ ə_
ə > ∅ \ _V
ə > ∅ \ V_
∅ > j \ V_V[+high +front]
∅ > j \ V[+high +front]_V[-high]
∅ > w \ V_V[+high -front]
∅ > w \ V[+high -front]_V[-high]
∅ > j V[-high]_V[-high +front]
∅ > w V[-high]_V[-high -front]
The following rules are applied starting from before and after the stressed syllable, and spread out to the start and end of the word from there:
ə > ∅ \ VC_CV
ə > ∅ \ VC_C# where CC would obey the sonority hierarchy
p t k pː tː kː > pʼ tʼ kʼ pʼː tʼː kʼː \ _ʔ
p t k pː tː kː > pʼ tʼ kʼ pʼː tʼː kʼː \ ʔ_
ʔ > ∅ \ C_
ʔ > ∅ \ _C
iji[-stress] > iː
uwu[-stress] > uː
l ɬ > lˠ ɬˠ \ _[+coda]
ɬˠ > ʃʷ
β w ʃʷ > ʋ ʋ ʃ
ð > θ
ɣ > x
ʒ > ʃ
θ > t
ɬ > s
x > χ
∅ > ə \ #C_C
n > m \ _[+labial]
n > [+nasal +alveolar] \ _[+alveolar]
n > [+nasal +postalveolar] \ _[+postalveolar]
n > ɲ \ _[+palatal]
n > ŋ \ _[+velar]
n > ɴ \ _[+uvular]
Stress moves to a syllable at or closest to the right of the antepenultimate syllable containing three morae; if not stress moves to a syllable at or closest to the right of the antepenultimate syllable containing two morae; if not stress moves to a syllable at or closest to the right of the antepenultimate syllable containing one mora; otherwise stress moves to an antepenultimate position.
[+obstruent +pulmonic -long -stress] > [+obstruent +voiced +pulmonic -long -stress] \ [-consonant]_[-consonant]
[+obstruent +pulmonic -long -stress] > [+obstruent +voiced +pumonic -long -stress] \ [-nasal]_[-consonant]
i iː u uː ə æ æː > e eː o oː ɐ ɑ ɑː \ _[+uvular]
i iː u uː ə æ æː > e eː o oː ɐ ɑ ɑː \ [+uvular]_
Word order
The basic word order is vocative-verb-subject-instrument-dative-object-place-manner-time. There is preposition-noun, noun-adjective, noun-determiner, noun-determiner-genitive (possession formed by possessed noun-possessive determiner-possessing noun word order, and noun number word order, which combine to form an overall determiner-number-noun-adjective-genitive word order. However, things can be emphasized by moving them between the vocative and verb arguments.
Number
There are three numbers, singular, dual, and plural. Adjectives and non-possessive determiners agree with their referents wth regard to number, possessive determiners agree with both their possessor and their possessee with regard to number, and verbs agree with both their subject and their object with regard to number.
Some nouns have collective versus singulative number; note that this is orthogonal to singular, dual, and plural number, with dual and plural numbers combined with collective number indicating multiple types, and dual and plural numbers combined with singulative number indicating small numbers of the item in question. Note that these nouns agree with adjectives, determiners, and verbs with regard to singular, dual, and plural number not collective versus singulative number.
Likewise, mass nouns can be given singular, dual, and plural number, with dual and plural numbers on them indicating multiple types.
Gender
There are two genders, masculine and feminine. Adjectives and non-possessive determiners agree with their referents with regard to gender, possessive determiners agree with both their possessor and their possessee with regard to gender, and verbs agree with both their subject and their object with regard to gender.
Case
There are two cases, absolutive and ergative/oblique. Adjectives and non-possesive determiners agree with their referents with regard to case, and possessive determiners agree with their possessee with regard to case.
Morphology
Nominal Declension
Protolanguage Forms
Verbal Derivation
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Predicative | ∅ | No effect |
Adjectival Derivation
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Adjective | da- | Advances stress by one syllable |
Nominal Derivation
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Nisba | -īnna | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Collective versus Singulative Number
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Collective | -∅ | No effect |
| Singulative | -āt | Retracts stress onto the affix |
Number
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | -∅ | No effect |
| Dual | -åb | Retracts stress onto the affix |
| Plural | -um | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Gender
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -∅ | No effect |
| Feminine | -in | No effect |
(Note: many feminine words lack the feminine ending.)
Case
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Absolutive | -∅ | No effect |
| Ergative/oblique | -a | No effect |
Adjectival Declension
Protolanguage Forms
Nominalization
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Property | la- | Advances stress by one syllable |
| Prototype | win- | No effect |
| Nisba | -īnna | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Verbalization
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Predicative | ∅ | No effect |
| Inchoative | ʔan | No effect |
Adverbialization
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Adverbial | ʔu | No effect |
Degree
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Positive | -∅ | No effect |
| Comparative | -ik | No effect |
| Superlative | -yâ | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Number
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | -∅ | No effect |
| Dual | -åb | Retracts stress onto the affix |
| Plural | -um | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Gender
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -∅ | No effect |
| Feminine | -in | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Case
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Absolutive | -∅ | No effect |
| Ergative/oblique | -a | No effect |
Subsequent Development
Loss of dual/plural distinction in adjectives, merging to:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | -∅ | No effect |
| Dual/plural | -um | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Determiner Declension
Protolanguage Forms
Number
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | -∅ | No effect |
| Dual | -åb | Retracts stress onto the affix |
| Plural | -um | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Gender
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -∅ | No effect |
| Feminine | -in | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Case
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Absolutive | -∅ | No effect |
| Ergative/oblique | -a | No effect |
Subsequent Development
Loss of dual/plural distinction in determiners, merging to:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | -∅ | No effect |
| Dual/plural | -um | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Loss of case distinctions in determiners, merging to:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Absolutive/ergative/oblique | -∅ | No effect |
Note that there should still be distinctions with respect to final consonants then, but these also merge as well.
Additionally, the medial demonstrative determiner ʔin early on loses its inflection and becomes attached to the following noun, early enough that it undergoes most of the sound changes listed above as if it were an unstressed part of the word in question. However, it stays independent if a number is used with the noun as well.
Also, in fixed forms, the interrogative determiner qu also early on loses its inflection and becomes attached to the following noun, which then later gets reduced. The following cases of this are
| Proto-form | Later form | |
|---|---|---|
| Person | qubìqan | qəviqa/qəviqnə |
| Thing | quʔatráx | qətʼrāx/qətʼrāxə |
| Place | qulăbam | qəlåya/qəlâmə |
| Time | qutʼàgik | qətʼāk/qətʼākə |
| Manner | qucíttâ | qəcīttå |
| Reason | qutàlla | qətallə |
Numbers
Protolanguage Forms
Ordinal Numbers
Ordinal numbers are marked with:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinal | -åw | Retracts stress by one syllable |
They are declined and used like adjectives.
Nominal Numbers
Numbers are nominalized with:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal | -∅ | No effect |
They are declined and used like nouns.
Cardinal Numbers
Gender
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | -∅ | No effect |
| Feminine | -in | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Larger Numbers
Larger numbers are formed from smaller numbers modifying larger numbers, which follow them, and which are connected together with ʔud "and".
Pronouns
Protolanguage Forms
Personal Pronouns
Stems
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | na | dū |
| 2nd m. | mi | pa |
| 2nd f. | sa | gå |
| 3rd m. | tå | yu |
| 3rd f. | li | hā |
| Reflexive | ki | xu |
| Reciprocal | wa | rī |
Dual
The dual is formed from the plural with the morpheme:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Dual | -hi | No effect |
Case
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Absolutive | -∅ | No effect |
| Ergative/oblique | -a | No effect |
Note that when pronouns are used as clitics or are incorporated the dual affix and the ergative/oblique affix are not used.
Demonstrative Pronouns
Thing
Demonstrative pronouns referring to things are related to corresponding determiners, and are inflected the same way.
| Stem | |
|---|---|
| Proximal | ʔamm |
| Medial | ʔin |
| Distal | ʔint |
Place
Demonstrative pronouns referring to places are not inflected.
They are derived from demonstrative pronouns referring to things with:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Place | -år | Retracts stress by one syllable |
Subsequent Development
Demonstrative pronouns referring to things do not lose case-marking as do their determiner counterparts.
Standalone 3rd person pronouns are replaced by proximal demonstrative pronouns. This does not affect clitic/incorporated versions of the 3rd person pronouns.
Possessive Determiners
Protolanguage Forms
Stems
These are formed from the pronoun stems corresponding to the possessor followed by the following affix.
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | -n | No effect |
Note that these do not distinguish dual from plural, and hence do not include the pronoun dual affix.
Inflection
These inflect like any other determiners.
Subsequent Development
When not combined with a number, like the medial demonstrative determiner ʔin they early on lose their inflection, and if an illegal consonant cluster would be formed, their /r/, and act as if they were part of the word they are combined with.
Verbal Conjugation
Protolanguage Forms
At this point, incorporated versions of personal pronouns are inserted for dative, instrumental, and ergative arguments, in that order. Note that for dative and instrumental arguments the arguments are also provided with prepositions, even if the prepositions are used as conjugated prepositions themselves.
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Reflexive | ʔån- | Advances stress by one syllable |
| Reciprocal | šu- | No effect |
| Causative | yī- | No effect |
| Antipassive | hāb- | Advances stress by one syllable |
| Perfective (on imperfective verbs) | ta- | No effect |
| Imperfective (on perfective verbs) | mâ- | Advances stress by one syllable |
| Participle | -âw | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Abstract verbal noun | -id | Retracts stress to the affix |
| Patient verbal noun | -ila | Retracts stress to the affix |
| Agent verbal noun | -aya | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Instrumental verbal noun | -wā | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Locative verbal noun | -mu | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Absolutive dual | -ga | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Absolutive plural | -it | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Absolutive 1st sg. | -ām | No effect |
| Absolutive 2nd sg. masculine | -ud | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Absolutive 2nd sg. feminine | -ša | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Absolutive 3rd sg. masculine | -ta | No effect |
| Absolutive 3rd sg. feminine | -ni | No effect |
| Indicative | -∅ | No effect |
| Imperative | -∅ | No effect |
| Subjunctive | -ū | Retracts stress by one syllable |
| Optative | -an | No effect |
| Ergative singular | -ak | No effect |
| Ergative dual/plural | -yå | Retracts stress to the affix |
| Witness | -a | No effect |
| Inferential | -ī | No effect |
| Assumption | -nū | No effect |
| Reportative | -la | No effect |
The imperative is formed like the imperative, except that intransitive verbs omit their absolutive person marking (but retain their absolutive number marking) and that transitive verbs omit their incorporated ergative argument pronoun (but retain their separate ergative number marking). Note that the subject of verbs in the imperative can only be 2nd person; 3rd person and 1st person imperatives are formed with the optative.
Subsequent Development
Verbal nouns can be given absolutive arguments by marking the absolutive argument as a possessor.
Some conjugated prepositions are prefixed to verbs as applicatives; in the process, the original prepositions are lost and their arguments stand alone as verb arguments. Also, the instrumental and comitative merge as the instrumental, the ablative and illative merge as the ablative, the allative and elative merge as the allative, and the adessive and the inessive merge as the adessive. They have the following forms:
| Affix | Stress | |
|---|---|---|
| Dative | ha- | No effect |
| Instrumental/Comitative | ki- | No effect |
| Ablative/Illative | yâ- | No effect |
| Allative/Elative | ni- | No effect |
| Adessive/Inessive | tā- | No effect |
The negative adverb ci gets included in the verbal complex as a prefix.
This marking is transferred to finite nouns, which are prefixed with pronoun in the same form as a possessive determiner prefix.
The relative adjective gâ loses its inflection and gets prefixed onto the verb after the addition of the absolutive agreement prefix.
The subordinating conjunction sa gets prefixed onto the verb after the addition of the applicative prefixes.
The coordinating conjunction ra gets prefixed onto the verb after the addition of the applicative prefixes.
The polite request particle wī gets prefixed onto the verb after the addition of the applicative prefixes.
The noun bìqan "person" loses its inflection and its stress, gets reduced to bi, and gets prefixed onto the verb after the addition of the relative adjective gâ to indicate a non-attributive higher animate relative clause.
The noun ʔatráx "thing" loses its inflection and its stress, gets reduced to trā, and gets prefixed onto the verb after the addition of the relative adjective gâ to indicate a non-attributive inanimate/lower animate relative clause. Later the relative marker vå/ya is reduced to v/y.
Prepositions
Protolanguage Forms
| Form | |
|---|---|
| Vocative | ʔa |
| Dative | ha |
| Instrumental | ki |
| Comitative | mū |
| Ablative | yâ |
| Allative | ni |
| Adessive | tā |
| Illative | ʔu |
| Elative | sā |
| Inessive | lå |
| Perlative | du |
Prepositions are also compounded with pronouns, with the preposition coming before the pronoun and stress falling on the preposition.
Prepositions which distinguish telic from atelic, i.e. ablative, allative, illative, and elative, take ergative/oblique case for telic and absolutive case for atelic. Other prepositions take ergative/oblique case.
Subsequent Development
Relative Clauses
Protolanguage Forms
Nouns modified by relative clauses take the adjective:
| Stem | |
|---|---|
| Relative | gâ |
Subsequent Development
The relative adjective gets prefixed onto the following verb early on. In the process of this it loses its agreement inflection.