Metsx

Metsx (Metsx marus /mɛtʃ ˈmarus/) is the language of the fictional country of Metsx. It is spoken by approximately 900,000,000 people.

Classification and Dialects
Metsx's lexis is based mostly on the ancient Metsx. It has two more descendants: Sapametsx and Latgalsk. Metsx has two difefrent standards of pronuncation- the official one and the northern one, which is rarely used.

Metsx has been influenced mostly by Maori, Mandarin Chinese, Lithuanian, Bulgarian, Albanian and other conlangs.

Consonants
-In certain positions, especially if it is in a stressed syllable and before /ɛ/, a consonant can get palatalized.

-/r/, /p/ and /s/ are sometimes voiceless.

Vowels
-Vowels /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ can be nasalized.

-In stressed syllables /ɛ/ makes the consonant before it palatalized.

-The /i/ sound makes th consonant before it palatalized.

Writing System
(C stands for a consonant)
 * 1) /ɛ/ can alternate into /ɛ:/ in the inferential, renarrative or dubitative infix -te-.
 * 2) /ɛ/ can also change into /ɨ/ in an unstressed syllable at the beginning of a word that have 4 or more syllables.
 * 3) after /t͡s/ the /i/ sound is changed to /ɨ/.-The apostrophe is not counted as a letter, but it represents the palatalization of the syllable before it. e.g. -ibbe' /ibbʲɛ/ or the glottal stop.
 * 4) 'gh' can be also pronounced as /d͡ʑ/ in the northern speech.
 * 5) It can be optionally replaced with /ʙ/ in the northern speech.
 * 6) It can be optionally replaced with /x/.

Stress
In Metsx stress is always located on the second syllable. Compare:

 ' femmai vs. fem 'maior 

Notice that the /ɛ/ sound in the stressed syllable causes the palatalization of the consonant before it. Compare:

/ˈmankɛ/ vs''. /man'kʲɛtɛːs/''

In words that have 4 or more syllables the \ɛ\ sound in the 1st syllable changes to /ɨ/. Compare

/pɛˈmannɛj/ vs. /pɨmannɛjˈt͡sɨɔr/

Nouns
Metsx nouns are classified according to the grammatical gender (1st, 2nd, 3rd) and are used in a number (singular, dual or plural). According to their position in the sentence their form can change to one of 9 cases. The set of forms that a noun will take for each case and number is determined by the declension that it follows.

Diminutive: the -ci suffix

1st Gender- visible creatures with ability to speak

2nd Gender-invisible or fictional creatures; states of mind, the rest

3rd Gender-plants, animals

1.Here some consonants change: s-z, c-q, z-x, sx-tsx, tsx-c,b-p, g-k, gh-q
 * 1) Genitive may be replaced with the construction using 'u'. E.g. muqeis bref = bref u muqe

2.Here s alters to sx, x to z and q to tsx.


 * 1) 'e' changes to 'ë'
 * 2) 'o' changes to 'u'

Adjectives
Metsx adjectives can end either in -ides or in -is. It depends on their function in the statement. The comparatives and superlatives are declined according to the noun gender. The adjective gets the longer suffix if it describes a noun and the shorter suffix if it is placed after verbs like 'to be', 'to remain' or 'to become'. ''Geides linides hafayor særxëet æsveis (nei) opides adrides ærbeim'. ''

/ˈgʲɛi̯dɛs liˈnidɛs ɣaˈfajɔr sɔ̃r'ɕjɔjɛt ˈɔ̃svai̯s (nei̯) oˈpidɛs aˈdridɛs ˈɔ̃rbajmʲ /

This wild animal was popular in our big city.

Antonyms are created by adding either the suffix -bre or by putting the modal word 'mins' before the adjective. Compare:

æsveis vs. æsveisbre = mins æsveis

Adverbs
Metsx adverbs always end in -ida and describe the verb placed after it.

ESUREMEIDES > ESUREME- > ESUREMEIDA

Example:

Êstrallookh va esuremeida bilarne didap'.

/ɛ̃ˈstraʎɔʔɔkʰ va ɛsurɛˈmʲɛi̯da biˈlarnɛ ˈdidʲap/

The Australian will surely teach you (two).

Verbs and tenses
Verbs in Metsx are declined according to the person, number and tense. Metsx verbs end in -e, -æ or -ê.
 * Present tense (Xim) - used to describe present or habitual actions.
 * Past tense (Tsxæ) - used to describe single actions ended in the past.
 * Past Continuous (Tsxæ bers) - used to emphasize the duration of an action in the past.
 * Past Iterative (Tsxæ mis)- used to emphasize that an action was habitual.
 * Plusquamperfectum (Tsxæ sxis)- used to describe actions that happened before another action in the past.
 * Future tense 1 (Akh) and Future Tense 2 (Uz) - used to describe future actions
 * Imperative (Mir)
 * Conditional (Tvar)
 * Dubitative (Dist)
 * Formal form (Sxem) - nowadays extinct

Lexis
   'Ijhvaxes turidvar (ijhvaxur) bhu fæpes- lit. plant more (flowers) than you pick up

Example text
'''Pretaki, desxijho sêmëb, troenokh u lininiarei, dormexëet, sxaoides mælls kescexëet eta-ho-ota oi. Ge esxida appatext sêmëb - squtsxrext oides adrides rullo mællsibbe' ho sxæbext ilt- manket oi.'''

Once when a lion, the king of the jungle, was asleep, a little mouse began running up and down on him. This soon awakened the lion, who placed his huge paw on the mouse, and opened his big jaws to swallow him.