Language scratchpad/Unnamed langauge 4
This is a yet-unnamed language, spoken somewhere in Likkra.
Phonology
Consonants
Historically, the language distinguished aspiration in voiceless stops; however, the aspirated stops have spirantised into fricatives, merging /kʰ/ and /x/.
| Labial | Alveolar | Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | ||
| Stop | p b | t d | k g | ʔ | ||
| Fricative | ɸ | θ | ç ʝ | x ɣ | h (ɦ) | |
| Sibilant Fricative | s z | ʂ ʐ | ɕ ʑ | |||
| Sibilant Affricate | t͡s t͡sʰ d͡z | ʈ͡ʂ ʈ͡ʂʰ ɖ͡ʐ | t͡ɕ t͡ɕʰ d͡ʑ | |||
| Liquid | l | ɻ | ʎ | |||
| Semivowel | j ɥ | w |
/ɲ/, /ç/, /ʝ/ and /ʎ/ are simply palatalised versions of /n/, /x/, /ɣ/ and /l/ respectively. Likewise, the palatal sibilants are simply palatalised versions of their alveolar and retroflex counterparts.
/h/ as a phoneme is limited to occurring before /a/ and /ə/; before other vowels, it is merged with /x/. [ɦ] is an allophone of /ɣ/, and only occurs before /a/ and /ə/ and after a vowel or non-velar consonant.
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i y | ɯ u | |
| Close-Mid | e ø | o | |
| Mid | ə | ||
| Open-Mid | ɛ | ɔ | |
| Open | a |
There are no diphthongs.
Tones
In general, there are only two tones: low and high. However, each syllable falls into one of four tone classes, which not only determines the tone of the syllable, but also its shape. While open syllables and syllables ending in sonorants can have either inherent low or high tone, those with long vowels must have inherent low tone. Checked syllables (syllables ending in obstruents) must have inherent high tone.
Sinitic loanwords in general preserve the four tones of Middle Chinese, with the level tone being represented as short low, the rising tone as short high, the departing tone as long (low), and the entering tone as checked (high).
Phonotactics
The general syllable structure is (C)(S)V(N,l)(C)(s), where S represents a semivowel and N a nasal homorganic with C, with only two consonants permitted in the coda. Clusters are permitted word-medially, but not word-initially; the only valid word-final and coda clusters are /ks/, /ps/, /ŋk/, /mp/, /nt/, /lk/, /lp/, /lt/, /ls/, /ŋs/, /ms/ and /ns/ (all such clusters mark checked syllables). The sequences /lks/, /lps/ and /lts/ in the coda contract to /ls/, and /ŋks/, /mps/ and /nts/ in the coda contract to /ŋs/, /ms/ and /ns/ respectively. The glottal stop is only found word-initially and in intervocalic position; if it would otherwise occur next to a consonant, it is elided. Hiatus is forbidden.
The only consonants permitted in the coda are /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /p/, /t/, /k/, /s/, /t͡s/ and /l/. If a voiceless stop in the coda occurs next to a voiced obstruent, it is realised as voiced (e.g. /p.d/ is pronounced [b.d]). Similarly, if a voiceless stop in the coda is preceded by a nasal or /l/ and followed by a vowel, it is also voiced (e.g. /nt.a/ is pronounced [n.da]).
The glide /j/ can only occur before /a/, /ə/, /ɛ/, /e/, /o/, /ø/, /u/ and /y/, while the glides /w/ and /ɥ/ can only occur before /a/, /ə/, /ɛ/ and /e/.
While vowels can be short or long in open syllables and syllables ending in sonorants, checked syllables can only have short vowels.
Vowel harmony
There are three classes of vowels: positive, negative and neutral. Due to sound changes, two vowels, /e/ and /i/, belong in two categories, with the category of the vowel in question denoted purely via orthography (note, however, that negative /i/ does not induce palatalisation).
| Positive | a | ɛ | o | ø | ɔ | e |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negative | ə | e | u | y | ɯ | i |
| Neutral | i | |||||
The above table lists the vowels in each category. Each positive vowel is paired with a negative vowel. Within a single word, positive and negative vowels cannot co-exist. This means that any affixes and inflectional morphemes attached to the word must contain vowels of the same category as the vowels of the stem. The sole neutral vowel /i/ is transparent and does not participate in vowel harmony.
Due to the influx of Sinitic loanwords, lexical disharmony is common, and words derived from Sinitic loans may or may not adhere to vowel harmony, depending on the meaning of the word. In the case of lexical disharmony, prefixes harmonise with the first non-neutral vowel of the stem, and suffixes with the last non-neutral vowel.
Tone sandhi
The following rules are observed:
- Whenever a syllable with a short vowel follows a syllable with a long vowel, the short vowel must have a high tone.
- Syllables with long vowels following another syllable with a long vowel are pronounced with a falling tone (not indicated in the orthography, as the falling tone is not phonemic).
- Unless if the syllable is checked, syllables following an unchecked syllable with a high tone have low tone.
Orthography
The main writing system used is Hangul.
The following initials are used:
| Labial | Alveolar | Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | ㅁ /m/ m | ㄴ /n/ n | * | ㅇ /ŋ/ ng | ||
| Stop | ㅂ /p/ p ㅃ /b/ b |
ㄷ /t/ t ㄸ /d/ d |
ㄱ /k/ k ㄲ /g/ g |
ㆆ /ʔ/† | ||
| Fricative | ㅍ /ɸ/ f | ㅌ /θ/ th | ㅋ /x/ kh ㅎ /x/ h ㆅ /ɣ/ gh |
ㅎ /h/ h | ||
| Sibilant Fricative | ᄼ /s/ s ᄽ /z/ z |
ᄾ /ʂ/ sr ᄿ /ʐ/ zr |
ㅅ /ɕ/ sj ㅆ /ʑ/ zj** |
|||
| Sibilant Affricate | ᅎ /t͡s/ ts ᅔ /t͡sʰ/ tsh ᅏ /d͡z/ dz |
ᅐ /ʈ͡ʂ/ tr ᅕ /ʈ͡ʂʰ/ trh ᅑ /ɖ͡ʐ/ dr |
ㅈ /t͡ɕ/ tsj ㅊ /t͡ɕʰ/ tshj ㅉ /d͡ʑ/ dzj** |
|||
| Liquid | ㄹ /l/ l | ㅿ /ɻ/ r | * |
* /ɲ/ and /ʎ/ are simply palatalised versions of /n/ and /l/ respectively.
** The palatal sibilants are always accompanied by palatalisation markers in the medial.
† The glottal stop may be written as ' intervocally.
The following finals are used:
| Labial | Alveolar | Velar | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | ㅁ /m/ m | ㄴ /n/ n | ㅇ /ŋ/ ng |
| Stop | ㅂ /p/ p | ㄷ /t/ t | ㄱ /k/ k |
| Sibilant Fricative | ㅅ /s/ s | ||
| Sibilant Affricate | ㅈ /t͡s/ ts | ||
| Liquid | ㄹ /l/ l |
Out of the above letters, the only letter that can only be used alone in a final is ㅈ. The following final clusters are allowed:
- Liquid clusters: ㄺ lk /lk/, ㅪ lt /lt/, ㄼ lp /lp/, ㄽ ls /ls/
- Nasal-stop clusters: ㅦ nt /nt/, ㅮ mp /mp/, ᇬ ngk /ŋk/
- Nasal-sibilant clusters: ㅧ ns /ns/, ㅯ ms /ms/, ㆂ ngs /ŋs/
- Obstruent clusters: ㄳ ks /ks/, ㅄ ps /ps/
The following medials are used:
| Positive | ㅏ a /a/ | ㅑ ja /ja/ | ㅗ o /o/ | ㅘ wa /wa/ | ㅛ jo /jo/ | ㆇ ya /ɥa/ | ㆍ oa /ɔ/ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ㅐ ae /ɛ/ | ㅒ jae /jɛ/ | ㅚ oe /ø/ | ㅙ wae /wɛ/ | ㆉ joe /jø/ | ㆈ yae /ɥɛ/ | ㆎ ai /e/ | |
| Negative | ㅓ eo /ə/ | ㅕ jeo /jə/ | ㅜ u /u/ | ㅝ wo /wə/ | ㅠ ju /ju/ | ㆊ yo /ɥə/ | ㅡ eu /ɯ/ |
| ㅔ e /e/ | ㅖ je /je/ | ㅟ y /y/ | ㅞ we /we/ | ㆌ jy /jy/ | ㆋ ye /ɥe/ | ㅢ ui /i/ | |
| Neutral | ㅣ i /i/ | ||||||
Diacritics
A single dot to the left of a syllable block (e.g. 찌〮) indicates that the syllable is pronounced with a short vowel and a high tone. A double dot to the left (e.g. 시〯) indicates that the syllable is pronounced with a long vowel and either a low or falling tone. The lack of any diacritics indicates that the syllable is pronounced with a short vowel, with a low tone if the syllable is not a checked syllable.
Grammar
Vocabulary
Numerals
| Sino-Xenic | Native | Sino-Xenic | Native | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | lèng 렝 [lèŋ] |
||||
| 1 | it ᅙᅵᆮ [ʔít] |
gàkī 까기〯 [gà.kìː] |
11 | dzípit 찌〮빋 [d͡ʑí.pít] |
tsyòtjúkī ᄌᆑ듀〮기〯 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.kìː] |
| 2 | rī ᅀᅵ〯 [ɻìː] |
féon 펀〮 [ɸə́n] |
12 | dziprī 찝ᅀᅵ〯 [d͡ʑíp.ɻìː] |
tsyòtjúfèon ᄌᆑ듀〮펀 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.ɸə̀n] |
| 3 | sàm ᄼᅡᆷ [sàm] |
bwams 뽜ᇝ [bwáms] |
13 | dzipsàm 찝ᄼᅡᆷ [d͡ʑíp.sàm] |
tsyòtjúbwoms ᄌᆑ듀〮뿨ᇝ [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.bwə́ms] |
| 4 | sī 시〯 [ɕìː] |
rìsúi ᅀᅵᄼᅴ〮 [ɻì.sí] |
14 | dzipsī 찝시〯 [d͡ʑíp.ɕìː] |
tsyòtjúrìsúi ᄌᆑ듀〮ᅀᅵᄼᅴ〮 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.ɻì.sí] |
| 5 | ngó 오〮 [ŋó] |
kups 굾 [kúps] |
15 | dzipngó 찝오〮 [d͡ʑíp.ŋó] |
tsyòtjúkups ᄌᆑ듀〮굾 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.kúps] |
| 6 | ljuk 륙 [ʎúk] |
mónjoep 모〮ᄂᆈᆸ [mó.ɲǿp] |
16 | dzipljuk 찝륙 [d͡ʑíp.ʎúk] |
tsyòtjúmùnjyp ᄌᆑ듀〮무ᄂᆔᆸ [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.mù.ɲýp] |
| 7 | tshit 칟 [t͡ɕʰít] |
dzàefis ᅏᅢ핏 [d͡zɛ̀.ɸís] |
17 | dziptshit 찝칟 [d͡ʑíp.t͡ɕʰít] |
tsyòtjúdzèfis ᄌᆑ듀〮ᅏᅦ핏 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.d͡zè.ɸís] |
| 8 | peot 벋 [pə́t] |
tỳhjeok 뒤혁 [tỳ.çə́k] |
18 | dzippeot 찝벋 [d͡ʑíp.pə́t] |
tsyòtjútỳhjeok ᄌᆑ듀〮뒤혁 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.tỳ.çə́k] |
| 9 | kjú 규〮 [kjú] |
ghéu ᅘᅳ〮 [ɣɯ́] |
19 | dzipkjú 찝규〮 [d͡ʑíp.kjú] |
tsyòtjúghèu ᄌᆑ듀〮ᅘᅳ [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú.ɣɯ̀] |
| 10 | dzip 찝 [d͡ʑíp] |
tsyòtjú ᄌᆑ듀〮 [t͡ɕɥə̀.tjú] |
20 | rīdzip ᅀᅵ〯찝 [ɻìː.d͡ʑíp] rip ᅀᅵᆸ [ɻíp] |
múthù 무〮투 [mú.θù] |
| 30 | sàmdzip ᄼᅡᆷ찝 [sàm.d͡ʑíp] sap ᄼᅡᆸ [sáp] |
bwamsnwàn 뽜ᇝ놘 [bwáms.nwàn] |
40 | sīdzip 시〯찝 [ɕìː.d͡ʑíp] sip 십 [ɕíp] |
rìsúinwòn ᅀᅵᄼᅴ〮눤 [ɻì.sí.nwə̀n] |
| 100 | pak 박 [pák] |
200 | rīpak ᅀᅵ〯박 [ɻìː.pák] peuk 븍 [pɯ́k] |
||
| 1,000 | tshèon ᅔᅥᆫ [t͡sʰə̀n] |
||||
| 10,000 | mjōn 묜〯 [mjòːn] |
108 | euk ᅙᅳᆨ [ʔɯ́k] |
||
| 1012 | dró ᅑᅩ〮 [ɖ͡ʐó] |
1016 | kjàng 걍 [kjàŋ] |
||
| 1020 | kài ᄀᆡ [kè] |
1024 | tsí 지〮 [t͡ɕí] |
||
| 1028 | ráng ᅀᅡᆼ〮 [ɻáŋ] |
1032 | kù 구 [kù] |
||
| 1036 | kān 간〯 [kàːn] |
1040 | tsjēng 젱〯 [t͡ɕèːŋ] |
||
| 1044 | dzāi ᅏᆡ〯 [d͡zèː] |
1048 | geuk 끅 [gɯ́k] |
||
| 1052 | ghòangghà-srà ᅘᆞᆼᅘᅡᄾᅡ [ɣɔ̀ŋ.ɣà.ʂà] |
1056 | àsòanggjà ᅙᅡᄼᆞᆼ꺄 [ʔà.sɔ̀ŋ.gjà] |
||
| 1060 | nājó-thà 나〯ᅙᅭ〮타 [nàː.jó.θà] |
1064 | pjùkhéosèu-ngēo 뷰커〮ᄼᅳ어〯 [pjù.xə́.sɯ̀.ŋə̀ː] |
||
| 1068 | mjòljàngdāe-sjó 묘량때〯쇼〮 [mjò.ʎàŋ.dɛ̀ː.ɕó] |