Askanil

Askanil language (Eastern Askanil: officially Saċwelgë in Kyliun [sɐˈxʍɜʟɢɘ]; Western Askanil: Saċwelge in Hevera [saˈxʍɛɭgɪ]; meaning "language of the hills") is a minor language spoken in the region of the Silver Vales, on the border between Kyliun and Hevera, including the provinces of Sulya and Thal in Hevera and the westernmost part of Vaara shire in Kyliun.

Classification and Dialects
Askanil is a Nil language (or human language) which belongs to the Aulsavric languages group. These languages are spoken in a large area that includes territories from Hevera to the Galver, contrasting with the Vànthom and Kahaym languages, which are originally from North-Kahaymah. Askanil is considered a northern Aulsavric language.

In spite of the continuous attempts of Heveranish government to replace Askanil with Ovarnil language and despite the spread of important international languages like Kahaym, the Silver Vales have always been a stronghold of this language and the native speakers have kept it as their tongue. But since the region is divided by the Silver Mountains the language has been slightly modified and divided into two main dialects: the Eastern, spoken in Kyliun, and the Western spoken in Hevera. In addition to this, the official languages of these countries has helped creating two dialects.

Phonology
These are the consonants and vowels' sounds used in eastern Askanil dialect, considered by many the "less contaminated" of the two ones.

Writing System
Askanil is formerly based on an oral history and tradition so no evidence showing the original Askanil writing system (if ever existed) has been discovered, and since we have no proofs we can just suppose what it could be like.

According to many scholars, the original writing system should look like the Aulsavric alphabet: more or less 30 letters, made of basic letters and diacritics, written from right to left. Perhaps it could be the alphabet which the Mehayllerdrkon and later the Ovarnilic alphabet came from, even though this supposition is not supported by many scholars.

The need of a writing system for this language failed as soon as the Kingdom of the Silverlands (lasted for about 500 years from the beginning of the First Era) collapsed. Since then, the nation has never been unified again, divided politically and geographically. Slowly, almost everything of the original culture of Askanils got lost and so did the alphabet. The language was getting less and less important and endured in the small, apart villages of the Silver Vales, where a writing system was useless.

After the First Great Revolution and the proclamation of the Confederated Republic of Kahaymah, the minor languages have been reconsidered locally and there started a plan to reintroduce Askanil language. The first problem was to invent a writing system, considering the difference between Eastern and Western dialects, which needed different letters for different sounds.

However, here is shown the alphabet for the Eastern dialect, considered the official koine.


 * *These consonants are voiceless when followed by another consonant.

Long and short vowels
In Askanil language, vowels are distinguished in long and short vowels. The different quantity of a vowel is typical of Aulsavric languages.


 * The vowels ï, ö and y are always short.

Gender
There are three genders in Askanil language: Masculine, Feminine and Neuter (like in many other Nil languages). It is possible to recognize the gender by looking at the last letter of the noun, even though the same letter may identify more than one gender:
 * Masculine nouns:
 * possible consonant-ending: c - ċ - d - f - g - ġ - h - l - m - n - r - s - ş - t - ŧ
 * possible vowel-ending: a - i - ï - u - y


 * Feminine nouns:
 * possible consonant-ending: b - d - đ - f - g - ġ - h - l - n - r - s - v - w
 * possible vowel-ending: a - e - i - ï


 * Neuter nouns:
 * possible consonant-ending: ċ - d - đ - h - m - n - p - s - ṣ - ş - t - ŧ - v - w
 * possible vowel-ending: ë - i - o - ö - y

There is no noun which ends with letters ç, ģ and ł

Cases
There are 7 cases in Askanil language: Nominative, Accusative, Vocative, Genitive, Dative, Instrumental, Prepositive. The cases are divided into groups, called declensions, according to the gender and the ending letter.

Prepositive case always follows prepositions; the most important are:
 * a(n)*, to express possession
 * cy(n)*, locative meaning, "in"
 * ma(d)*, allative and dative meaning, "to, for" (used also with accusative)
 * med, ablative meaning, "from, by"
 * nau, perlative meaning, "through" (used also with accusative)
 * ty(n)*, delative meaning, "from (a place)"
 * i(n)*, traslative meaning, "becoming"
 * laeg, comitative meaning, "with" (especially used with instrumental)
 * ģyn, to express position, "between/among"
 * o(d)*, "under/below"
 * lâs, "on/over"
 * wyn, to express a topic "about"

* - the consonants are added only if the first letter of the following word is a vowel

I declension
It includes regular nouns ending with strong vowels (a - o - ö - u)

Example: cewla, part (m)

II declension
It includes regular nouns ending with soft vowels (e - ë - i - ï - y). These nouns lose the soft vowel in indirect cases, while it is kept in direct cases (nominative, accusative, vocative).

Example: nhaelgë, language (n)

I group
It includes regular masculine and neuter nouns ending with long vowels followed by consonants ċ, đ, f, ġ, h, ṣ, ŧ. In indirect cases, the long vowel becomes a short vowel, while the final consonant is always replaced by a specific consonant (ċ -> c; đ -> d; f -> v; ġ -> g; h -> c; ṣ -> s; ŧ -> t).

Example: draenâċ, wyvern (m)

II group
It includes regular feminine nouns ending with a long vowel followed by a consonant and masculine and neuter nouns ending with a long vowel and the remaining consonants (c - d - g - h - l - m - n - p - r - s - ş - t - v - w). The consonant doesn't change like in III declension, but in the indirect cases the long vowel becomes a short vowel.

Example: laerîn, pleasure (f)

I group
It includes masculine and feminine regular nouns ending with a short vowel and a consonant.

Example: nělgaċ, shadow (m)

II group
It includes neuter regular nouns ending with a short vowel and a consonant.

Example: maeŧ, plant (n)

V declension
It includes masculine and feminine irregular nouns ending with a short vowel and a consonant. This nouns change part of the root (usually a vowel or a group of vowels) in vocative, genitive, dative and instrumental cases. In fact, in dictionaries the nouns of this declension are written in two cases: nominative and vocative

Example: cyleg, law (f); in dictionaries: cyleg, cylaig

VI declension
It includes regular nouns ending with a group of consonants.

Example: parn, lesson (n)

VII declension
It includes irregular nouns ending with a group of consonants. The nouns that belong to this declension have a different root in vocative, genitive, dative and instrumental cases, like in V declension. They are also written in two cases in dictionaries: nominative and vocative.

Example: ylâfn, breath (f); in dictionaries: ylâfn, ylewf

Alteration of the first letter
The words having some derived consonants (ċ - đ - ġ - ł - ṣ - ŧ) or the pure consonants f and h as first letter change it in case they are forerun by a preposition or an adjective, in a specific way: ċ -> c; đ -> d; f -> v; ġ -> g; h -> c; ł -> l; ṣ -> s; ŧ -> t.

If a noun is forerun by an adjective which last letter is a consonant and it is the same as the first letter of the noun, this last one falls and can replaced by an apostrophe (even though it is not necessary). If it is a vowel, it is the opposite (the adjective loses the last letter and can be replaced by an apostrophe). For example: daeg ganilôċ, "deep hole", becomes daeg 'anilôċ or daeg anilôċ; cylenai iryui, "to the turquoise flower", becomes cylena' iryui or cylena iryui.

In case we have something like bledac cyleg, "strict law", it will not become bledac yleg because the sound of the first c and the second one is not the same. In bledac it is pronounced /k/, while in cyleg it is pronounced /s/. So it will keep the "original writing".

Personal pronouns and pronominal particles
In Askanil language, the personal pronouns are not declined into all seven cases, but only into nominative (which includes vocative), accusative, genitive and prepositive. In fact, they are usually preceded by a preposition to express indirect complements. Each personal pronoun owns a particle, called pronominal particle, which is used in verbs' construction.

Adjectives
The declension of adjectives follows the terminations of the V declension if the noun it refers to is masculine or feminine, while follows the II group of the IV declension if the noun is neuter. Some adjectives are irregular and in dictionaries are written in two cases: nominative and vocative (like the nouns).

Possessive adjectives
Possessive adjectives are declined like the other adjectives: it means that they follow V declension for masculine and feminine and the II group of IV declension for neuter gender. The gender of the adjective depends on the gender of the object that is owned and not on the gender of the owner (like in English). In fact, the possessive adjectives are declined according to the gender and the number of the object owned.

Verbs
Verbs' conjugation in Askanil language is quite complicated. The verb is not only composed of the verb itself, but of two parts: the verb form and the pronominal particle. This part is necessary to distinguish the purpose of a sentence: in fact, a sentence can be positive, negative, interrogative or optative.

The verbs of positive and negative sentences (declarative) are made of a pronominal particle followed by the verb: the negative form is formed by adding nd- before the particle (except for 1st and 3rd plural persons, which are respectively forerun by e- and n-). For example: wy y lwnan, "I dine"; wy ndy lwnan, "I don't dine".

Interrogative and optative sentences' verbs are made of the verb followed by a pronominal particle bound to the verb (the opposite of declarative sentences). The difference is just that the second one is actually a positive sentence, but the particle is put after the verb. lwnany wy?, "do I dine?"; wy lwnany, "I want to dine".

Verbs in Askanil are sorted in three groups or classes: the I class includes verbs which present infinitive form ends with -aŧ or -aiŧ; the II class includes verbs which present infinitive form ends with -eŧ or -eiŧ; the III class includes verbs which present infinitive form ends with -iŧ or -iuŧ.

Each verb is represented with its paradigm, which consists of present infinitive, 1st person singular from indicative imperfect, 1st person singular from indicative preterit, 1st person singular from indicative perfect and supine. Present infinitive's root is used for present and future tenses, indicative imperfect's for imperfective tenses, preterit's for preterit indicative, perfect for perfective tenses (perfect infinitive included) and supine for the other undefined tenses.

As examples, here will be used the regular verbs lwnaiŧ, lwnadan, lwnaitin, lwnacin, lwnâd, "to dine" (I class), nganeŧ, nganedan, nganeitan, nganiṣin, nganêd, "to send" (II class), mauniŧ, mauneudin, mauniutan, maunicin, maunîd, "to love" (III class).

Indicative mood
Indicative mood supports both the declarative and interrogative (including optative) constructions. It has seven tenses: present, imperfect, preterit, perfect, pluperfect, future and future perfect.

Present indicative corresponds with the present simple and continuous in English. The root of the verb in present tense refers to the root of the present infinitive form.
 * Present indicative

It is a past tense combined with imperfective aspect (it means it refers to continuing or repeated actions). The root is based on the root of imperfective tenses: in regular verbs it is signified by -ad- in I class, -ed- in II class and -eud- in III class.
 * Imperfect indicative

Preterit is a past tense used to describe momentary and punctual aspect in an action or state. Preterit can be found only in indicative mood. Its root refers to the preterit form of the verb (third entry of the paradigm): in regular verbs it is signified by -ait- (I class), -eit- (II class) and -iut- (III class).
 * Preterit

Perfect is a past tense that describes a perfective aspect: it means that the action (or state) is "perfectly" completed. The terminations are almost the same as preterit's, but the root of the verb is different and, except for most of the regular verbs of I and II class, there is not a particle that signifies it. For a large number of I and II class' verbs the particle is respectively -ac- and -iṣ-.
 * Perfect

It is a past tense used to describe an antecedence with another past tense. It is made of the same root of perfect indicative, and almost the same terminations: the only one difference is that before the terminations of the perfect tense is forerun by -aen- in all classes.
 * Pluperfect indicative