9

About
"9" is just a placeholder name until I come up with an actual name. I know English and am studying Japanese. We have too many conlangs based off of Western European languages, so I will make this language closer to Japanese, though I will attempt to create word roots completely from scratch. I plan to use some symmetry with the letters.

This is a work in progress. Everything is subject to change.

Alphabet
The pronunciation of the consonants by themselves, such as when spelling something out, is formed by taking the letter and combining it with the vowel /e/.

The order for collation starts at the top-left of the grid, going left to right, then up to down.

Sounds

 *  is normally [i], but is [j] before a vowel.
 *  is a mid to open-mid front vowel - ranging from [e̞] to [ɛ]
 *  is an open central to open back vowel - ranging from [ä] to [ɑ].
 *  is a mid to open-mid rhotic central vowel - ranging from [ɚ] to [ɝ].
 *  is a mid to open-mid back vowel - ranging from [o̞] to [ɔ].
 * is normally [u], but is [w] before a vowel.
 * can be pronounced [s] or [ʃ].
 *  can be pronounced [z] or [ʒ].
 * All other consonants represent their IPA equivalents.
 *  and  represent the affricates [ts]/[tʃ] and [dz]/[dʒ] respectively.

Syllable Structure
The syllable structure is (C)V(N), where


 * (C) is an optional consonant.
 * V is a vowel (or diphthong).
 * (N) is an optional nasal: , <ŋ>, or 

There are rules for which nasal can be used. Taking a sample word with structure V1(N1)C2V2N2,


 * If C2 is a row 3/4 consonant, N1 must be in the same group.
 * If C2 is a row 2 consonant, N1 is null.
 * (word final) N2 must match the group of V2.

There are also rules for which diphthongs can be used. /ei/, /ae/, /ao/, and /ou/ are illegal.

Sentence Structure
The unmarked word order of the language is (S)(O)V. A sentence only needs a verb to be grammatically correct. In these cases, the subject (and object, if applicable) is determined by context.

Basic Numbers
This language will use a dozenal base.

The symbols for the digits are simply an underlined letter. With this system, reading out a string of digits is as simple as reading out the letter with the vowel /o/. The word for "zero" has two possible pronunciations. It is normally /o/, but in certain cases such as when an ambiguity can occur between the number < o > and the letter , then /io/ is used instead.

Larger Numbers
 is "dozen" and  is "gross". When counting, you need to explicitly say "one dozen" and "one gross" instead of simply "dozen" and "gross".

A dash may be inserted between place boundaries for easier readability.

Nouns
Nouns do not decline. A noun can represent one of any number, gender, or definiteness.

Case Particles
Particles will be used to indicate the case of nouns. They are placed after the noun they modify.

Noun Classes
Every noun falls into one of four main classes. Of course, the classes themselves are nouns in their own right.

The Descriptive class will be covered in a later section. The other three classes have sub-classes for extra precision. Some of the more important sub-classes are shown below.

Determiners
The demonstrative determiners are , , and , respectively meaning "which", "this", and "that". They are used before a noun class word.

To use determiners with a specific noun, use the prefix, followed by a class word, followed by the noun. For example, <hatama PIANO> means "this piano". While can be used to mean "which person", certain common nouns may take the determiner prefixes directly.

Note that the determiner for non-existence uses the word for "zero", so that literally means "zero people".

Personal Pronouns
The most general way to refer to a person is by using their name, even when talking directly to them. A second-person pronoun exists, but it is mainly to be used if you don't know the name of who you are speaking to. However, using your own name to speak about yourself is considered childish or egotistic, so only the first-person pronoun sees general use.

Note that there is no third person pronoun. Again, the name of who you are talking about is to be used if it is known. Otherwise, use the phrase ; "that person".

The suffix <mo> is added to indicate a group including the person you are talking about. This can be used to pluralize the pronouns, but it is not limited to being added to pronouns. e.g. = we, = you (plural), <Alice-mo> = Alice and her group.

Descriptives
These words will translate to adjectives in English, but they are really nouns. A more accurate translation is "the/a X thing", where X is an English adjective. Most of these words are gradable. The base form ends in <-la> or <-ha> and represent something neutral. Words toward the negative direction end with <-i>; toward the positive direction, <-u>. (Positive/Negative here does not necessarily correlate to desirable/undesirable.) Reduplicating the last syllable of the <-i> and <-u> forms indicate a greater degree. It is possible to reduplicate this last syllable multiple times, but it is discouraged in non-casual situations.

To use these words as adjectives, the Attributive particle <do> is placed after the word. An exception to this rule is the quantity words, which use the Genitive particle <di> instead.

Verbs
Verbs conjugate for tense and polarity. Aspect is determined by auxiliary words placed before the verb. Mood is determined by auxiliary verbs placed after the main verb. A basic verb ends in <-ta>, <-da>, <-pa>, <-ba>, <-ka>, or <-ga>.

Copula
The copula is <da>. It is used to say that a noun is another noun or has the properties of a certain adjective.

Existence
The verb to show existence is. This can be translated to English verbs such as "to exist", "to be located", "to happen", or "to have" depending on how it is used.

Note that this construction uses the genitive case, so it literally means "A 'my dog' exists".

Tense and Polarity
To create the past tense, change <-a> to <-e>. To create the future tense, change <-a> to <-o>. To make verbs negative, add the appropriate nasal at the end. The copula conjugates irregularly.

Aspect
Placing the word before a verb forms the progressive aspect.