Enlihupa

General Information
Enlihupa (Nlihuba /nlihʷupa/) is a language formerly spoken by the Chesnon of the moon of the same name. Though it is a dead language, it is very important in Chesnon history, and its descendants form a rather large language family.

Consonants

 * /m/, /p/, /b/, /ʋ/, /ŋm/, /kp/, and /ɡb/ only have labial forms before /u/, where all consonants are labialized. Therefore their labial forms can be considered allophones, and are omitted from this chart.
 * /s/, /sʷ/, /ʃ/, and /ʃʷ/ are voiced if adjacent to a voiced consonant.
 * /ʋ/, /l/, and /lʷ/ are devoiced before a voiceless consonant.

Vowels

 * /ǝ/ is typically reduced to nothing before /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, and /ʀ/, where those consonants become syllabic.
 * /u/ causes labialization of any preceding consonant.

Phonotactics
The minimal syllable is CV (e. g. u /wu/ "hi"). The maximal syllable is CCVC (e. g. sdăr /stǝʀ/ "run"). The syllable-final consonants are limited to: /m/, /n/, /ŋ/, /p/, /t/, /k/, /s/, /j/, and /ʀ/.

Allowed syllable-initial consonant clusters are:
 * /ʋ/ or /l/ plus a nasal, /l/, /s/, /ʃ/, /h/, or /ʀ/ (vxuar "visit");
 * any nasal plus /l/, /ʃ/, /h/, or /ʀ/ (nmrua "yell");
 * a homorganic nasal plus a stop (ngkid);
 * /s/ plus any consonant (except /ɰ/) (sgad);
 * any consonant (except /ɰ/ and /h/) plus /j/ (pyug "stench");


 * plus all can be labialized if the second member of the cluster can

Native script
Enlihupa is written in a featural alphabet which is very easy to learn and has persisted for generations on Chesnon.

Writing direction
The native script's writing direction is much less intuitive than it's letter design. Individual syllables are written left-to-right. These are then stacked top-to-bottom, and the stacks are arranged right-to-left.

Punctuation
There are very few punctuation marks in Enlihupa. No spaces are placed between words. Sentences are separated by a long line (―). Asterisk-like marks enclose quotes and parentheticals.

Personal pronouns
Personal pronouns distinguish singular from plural, gender in the third person, and, in the singular, the gender of the speaker. ex. Yuăn da ngid hă luid hă răy. "By us, I mean me, you, and them." (Spoken by a beta)

Rational nouns
Nouns referring to Chesnon or some animals are called 'Rational nouns'. These can be pluralized with a prefix lă- and can take the optional gendering suffixes -ri, -pi, -vi. ex. lăsgadyăng "instructors", sgadyăngri "instructor of the α gender"

Postpositions
ma "at, near"

Important phrases
ngăg- nook and/or cranny

kpis- stupid