Kughralga

Phonology
Kughralga has a moderate but sometimes unusual phoneme inventory. It is relatively consonant-heavy with distinguishing circa thirty consonants, but only four vowel phonemes.

Consonants
Kughralga has a moderately big consonant inventory containinɡ some rather unusual sounds like the lateral affricates [t͡ɬ] and [d͡ɮ] or the voiced uvular plosive [ɢ]. [ŋ] and [ɴ] are allophones of [n] in front of velar ([k], [ɡ], [x] and [ɣ]) or uvular ([q], [ɢ], [χ] and [ʁ]) consonants.

Vowels
Kughralga has just four vowel quantities. It lacks the mid-front [e] and the mid-back [o] often found in European languages. [ɛ] and [ɔ] are allophones of [i] and [u] in front of uvular consonants.

Phonotactics
Voiceless prefixes or suffixes become voiced when they

Grammar
The grammar of Kughrulga is quite complex, with heavy use of prefixes, circumfixes and suffixes. Although mostly strongly agglutinating, it also has some undeniable polysynthetic traits. Basic word order is SOV, although variations are not unusual with the most common being OSV, SVO and OVS. Kughralga is an ergative-absolutive language.

Affixiation can lead to very long sentence-like words, e.g.:

Tsqvaghdzɡraxhzrash. - We would not have circled you (if...)

[t͡sqvaɣd͡zɡraʁzraʃ]

ts-q-va-ɡh-dz-ɡraxh-zra-sh - 1ex.sg.erg-perf-neg-2.sg.abs-indirect-circle-make-pl

The most important part of Kughralga grammar - and by means the most complex - is the verb. Furthermore, Kughralga knows no adjectives; like a lot of languages, it uses intransitive verbs instead.

Nouns
The Kughralga noun shows - compared to the verb - just little and very regular inflection. Kughralga uses two cases (absolutive and ergative) several number suffixes (some of them are rather derivational suffixes) and possession circumfixes (alienability and inalienability is distinguished).

Number & Case
Kughralga exhibits a very simple two-case-system with an unmarked absolutive and an ergative which is indicated by the suffix -t. The absolutive, the basic form of every noun, is used for the subject of an intransitive verb, the direct object of a transitive verb, and indirect objects in general. The ergative case is solely used to indicate the subject of a transitive verb.

The generic plural suffix is -ash or -sh if the noun ends on a vowel. This suffix is used to indicate undefined generic plurality. With numerals, another suffix, the partitive suffix -va is used. The numerals then behave like normal nouns and can also be inflected. Additionally, the verb agrees now with the numeral instead of the noun.

I am seeing a reindeer. > Mixh dzbitlak. [mɛʁ dzbitɬak] I am seeing reindeers. > Mixhash dzbintlak. [mɛʁaʃ dzbintɬak] I am seeing  a lot of  reindeers. >  Khul  mixhva dzb i tlak. [xul mɛʁva dzbitɬak] I am seeing three reindeers. > Sqesh mixhva dzb in tlak. [sqəʃ mɛʁva dzbintɬak]
 * mixh-ø dz-b-i-tlak > reindeer-abs 1.sg.erg-cont-3.sg.abs-see
 * mixh-ash-ø dz-b-in-tlak > reindeer-pl-ø 1.sg.erg-cont-3.pl.abs-see
 *  khul-ø  mixh-va dz-b-i-tlak > lots.of-abs reindeer-part 1.sg.erg-cont- 3.sg.abs -see
 * sqe-sh-ø mixh-va dz-b-in-tlak >  three-pl-abs  reindeer-part 1.sg.erg-cont- 3.pl.abs -see