Eridanian

Eridanian, [ɛɹɪdænɪjən] (Natively Rdahnssbaix, [ʁ̩dãːsspaiç]), is an Anglic language spoken on Epsilon Eridani III in the year AD 4000, one of many languages that evolved from English. It is a synthetic language with a rich morphology of prefixes derived from English prepositions, articles, axillary verbs, modals, and other grammatical particles and constructions.

=Setting= In 2389 several hundred thousand Americans and Canadians from around the Great Lakes region fled an increasingly totalitarian Terran Federation government to a nearby Earth-like planet that was as yet unsettled, Epsilon Eridani III, about 10 light-years from Earth. When the Federation collapsed in the early 2500's the infrastructure that allowed for interstellar travel collapsed, resulting in a period later generations would call a "dark age" reminiscent of the one following the fall of Rome. The various interstellar colonies, including E. Eridani III, which came to be called Eridanus, later Rdahns, were cut off from the Solar System and on their own. The various dialects of spoken English, which were already quite different from the written language, "Classical English", began thier divergence into separate languages.

=Phonology=

Consonants
Fortis Plosives: /pʰ tʰ kʰ/ p t k Lenis Plosives: /p t k ʔ/ b d g ' Nasals: /m n ɲ ŋ/ m n ny ng Affricates: /ʦʰ ʦ ʧʰ ʧ/ ts dz c j Unvoiced Fricative: /ɸ s ʃ ʂ x/ f s š sh x Voiced Fricatives: /β z ʒ ʐ/ v z ž zh Liquids: /ɫ r/ l rr Semivowels: /j ʁ w/ y r w

Oral
Front: /ɛ e i/ e eh i Mid: /a ɜ ɝ/ ah a r Back: /ɔ o u/ o oh u Diphthongs: /ɛo ɔe ai au/ eu oi ai au

Nasal
An "n" following a vowel indicates that it is nasalized.

Allophony
/k/ weakens to a voiced velar fricative ɣ between vowels. /d/ is realized as a alveolar flap ɾ between vowels. /ɫ ʁ m n ɲ ŋ/ have syllabic allophones

Phonotactics
Syllable structure is (C)(C)(C)V(C)(C)(t/s)

Stress and Prosody
Eridanian is a stress-timed language with primary stress located on the first syllable of the root. It also has a pitch accent derived from the elision of consonants. Some roots and morphemes are only distinguished by having a rising, falling, or level pitch.

=Basic Grammar=

Noun and Adjective Morphology
Adjectives precede nouns. If a noun has no dependent adjectives the case and article affixes attach to the noun. If the adjective is present the affixes attach to the adjective.

Plural
"-as" after siblants & affricates, "-s" elsewhere.

Articles
Definite
 * "d-" before /i/ -- dIngglsh "the English"
 * "j-" before all other vowels -- jefl "the apple"
 * "da-" before consonants --degroin "the ground"

Indefinite
 * "a-"before consonants -- afahdr "a father"
 * "n-" before vowels -- neur "an aisle"
 * "som-/sm-" when plural -- sombwes/smornzhas "some boys/some oranges"

Cases
Common: No Affix Genitive: "ov-" ovjois = "of the house" Dative: "fohr-" fohrjois = "for the house" Ablative: "fro-" frojois = "from the house" Lative: "tau-" taujois = "to the house" Locative: "en-" enjois = "in the house" Instrumental: "wi'-" wi'jois = "with the house" Adessive: "ahn-" ahnjois = "on the house" Illative: "idu-" idujois = "into the house" Allative: "ahdu-" ahdujois = "onto the house" Elative: "oida-" oidajois = "out of the house" Apudessive: "beu-" beujois = by the house Perlative: "trau-" traujois = through the house Subessive: "odr-" odrjois = under the house Superessive "bov-" bovjois = above the house

Adjectival Affixes
Adjectival Affixes are derived from common English adjectives. "-lir-" ("Little") "-bix-" ("big") "-xauzh-" ("huge")

Personal Pronouns
The Personal Pronouns inflect for case somewhat irregularly due to fusional tendencies with the object pronouns and the case prefixes

Subject
1stS: eu 2ndS: yau 3rdSA: sai 3rdSI: i' 1stP: wai 2ndP: yah 3rdP: dehr

Object
1stS: mai 2ndS: yau 3rdSA: em 3rdSI: i' 1stP: os 2ndP: yah 3rdP: dem

Genitive
1stS: vmai 2ndS: vau 3rdSA: vem 3rdSI: vi' 1stP: vos 2ndP: vah 3rdP: vem

Dative
1stS: fomai 2ndS: fau 3rdSA: fem 3rdSI: fi' 1stP: fos 2ndP: fah 3rdP: fem

Ablative
1stS: frmai 2ndS: frau 3rdSA: frem 3rdSI: fri' 1stP: fros 2ndP: frah 3rdP: frem

Lative
1stS: tmai 2ndS: cau 3rdSA: twem 3rdSI: twi' 1stP: twos 2ndP: cah 3rdP: twem

Locative
1stS: emai 2ndS: nau 3rdSA: enm 3rdSI: ni' 1stP: nos 2ndP: nah 3rdP: enm

Instrumental
1stS: wimai 2ndS: wiyau 3rdSA: wim 3rdSI: wi' 1stP: wi'os 2ndP: wiyah 3rdP: wim

Adessive
1stS: ahmai 2ndS: ahnau 3rdSA: ahnem 3rdSI: ahni' 1stP: ahnos 2ndP: ahnah 3rdP: ahnem

Illative
1stS: edmai 2ndS: edau 3rdSA: edem 3rdSI: edi' 1stP: edos 2ndP: edah 3rdP: edem

Allative
1stS: ahdmai 2ndS: ahdau 3rdSA: ahdem 3rdSI: ahdi' 1stP: ahdos 2ndP: ahdah 3rdP: ahdem

Elative
1stS: oidmai 2ndS: oidau 3rdSA: oidem 3rdSI: oidi' 1stP: oidos 2ndP: oidah 3rdP: oidem

Apudessive
1stS: bemai 2ndS: byau 3rdSA: byem 3rdSI: bi' 1stP: byos 2ndP: byah 3rdP: byem

Perlative
1stS: trumai 2ndS: trwau 3rdSA: trum 3rdSI: trwi' 1stP: trwos 2ndP: trwah 3rdP: trwem

Subessive
1stS: nrmai 2ndS: nryau 3rdSA: nrem 3rdSI: nri' 1stP: nros 2ndP: nryah 3rdP: nrem

Superessive
1stS: bomai 2ndS: bovau 3rdSA: bovem 3rdSI: bovi' 1stP: bovos 2ndP: bovyah 3rdP: bovem

Other Pronouns
Singilar/Plural "dis-/dais-" = Proximate Demonstrative "de'-/dohs-" = Distal Demonstrative "au" = Animate Relative "wa'" = Inanimate Relative

Verbal Morphology
Eridanian verbs are agglutinative in structure and inflect for Tense, Aspect, Mood, Voice, and for the person and number or the subject and direct object. Some affixes have various forms marking for number and person, preserving their origin as English's axillary verbs and modal particles.

Weak vs. Strong Verbs
Eridanian retains many verbs that have the old Germanic vowel ablaut in the Simple Past form and in some cases the Perfect and Past Participle forms.

Personal Endings
The number and person of both the subject and direct object are marked on the verb with affixes derived from pronouns. The 3rd Person Singular distinguishes between animate and inanimate nouns.

Active Indicative
Subject/Object 1stS: eu(w)-/-mai 2ndS: yau(w)-/-yau 3rdSA: sai(y)-/-(e)m 3rdSI: i'-/-(i)' 1stP: wai(y)-/-(o)s 2ndP: yah-/-(y)ah 3rdP: dehr-/-(e)m

Active Subjubctive
Subject/Object 1stS: efo(w)-/-mai 2ndS: efa(w)-/-yau 3rdSA: esa(y)-/-(e)m 3rdSI: efi'-/-(i)' 1st: ewi(y)-/-(o)s 2nd: efah-/-(y)ahl 3rd: ezehr-/-(e)m

Reflexive Indicative
1stS: meusr- 2ndS: yohrsr- 3rdSA: isl- 3rdSI: itl- 1stP: ahrsl- 2ndP: alisl- 3rdP: dehsl-

Reflexive Subjunctive
1stS: emeusl- 2ndS: efohrsl- 3rdSA: efesl- 3rdSI: efetl- 1stP: efahrsl- 2ndP: efalisl- 3rdP: ezehrsl-

Tense
Eridanian has 3 tenses, Present, Past, and Future; but preserves many elements of the old Germanic Past/Non-Past system, especially in the conjugation of "to be" and the use of the affix "-gan" to mark the future tense, a relic of the modern spoken English periphrastic "be + gonna" Future construction (the old "will/shall" periphrastic Future is gone with little trace). --- Present
 * eu-šahf = I stop
 * eu-beu = I buy

Past
 * eu-šahf-t = I stopped
 * eu-bah' = I bought

Future
 * eu-gan-šahf = I will stop
 * eu-gan-beu = I will buy

Aspect
Eridanian marks for Perfect and Progressive apects and retains the odd semantics of English's Present Progressive and Simple Present in active verbs. --- Progressive: eu-m-šahf-n = I am stopping Perfect: eu-v-šahft = I have stopped Perfecto-Progressive: eu-v-ven-šahfn = I have been stopping

Forms of the Progressive Affix
When with the Perfect affix it is always "-ven". Subjunctive forms in parentheses Non-Past/Past 1stS: -m-/-(w)os- (-vai-/-wr-) 2ndS: -r-/-wr- (-vai-/-wr-) 3rdS: -s-/-(w)os- (-vai-/-wr-) 1stP: -r-/-wr- (-vai-/-wr-) 2ndP: -r-/-wr- (-vai-/-wr-) 3rdP: -r-/-wr- (-vai-/-wr-)

Forms of the Perfect Affix
Non-Past: -v- Past: -d-

Mood
Eridanian has 7 moods, Indicative, Conditional, Subjunctive, Imperative, Obligative and Interrogative. The old Germanic Subjunctive is preserved only in the verb "to be", the result of it stubborning refusing to disappear in American English. A new Subjunctive formed from "if" becoming attached to the subject inflections. The Interrogative Mood is the result of interrogative pronouns fusing to the verb and occur in the place of the normal subject inflections. --- Conditional: eu-ken-šahf = I can stop/I would stop Subjunctive: efo-wr-šahf-n = If I were stopping Obligative: eu-gahda-šahf = I must stop/I got to stop Optative: eu-wahda-šahf = "I want to stop/I would like to stop Interrogative (Animate): au-s-šahf-n = Who is stopping? Interrogative (Inanimate): wa'-s-šahf-n = What is stopping? Imperative: dau-šahf = STOP!

Voice
Eridanian has 3 morphological voices, Active, Passive, and Reflexive. The Passive Voice is derived from the English "Be + Past Particple" Passive construction. The Reflexive Voice originated from the fusion of the reflexive pronouns onto the verb. --- Passive: Eu-wos-šahf-t = "I was stopped" Reflexive: Meusl-šahf = "(I) stop myself"

Infinitive, Gerund, and Participle forms
Infinitive: tau-ROOT Gerund: ROOT-ng Present Participle: ROOT-n Past Participle: Identical to the Simple Past form of the verb except for a few strong verbs.

=Dictionary= ...

=Example text= ...