Vendian

Classification and Dialects
Vendian is an isolated Caucasian language spoken in the Vendian Commonwealth (=ҒеспIоспоблит Вҍенделҍит - G'esphospoblit Vyendelyit). The Vendian language uses the Cyrillic script (note that it may be written with the Old Vendian alphabet or with the Arabo-Persian abjad - the Latinized transcription should only help those - new learners or tourists - who are not able to read the Cyrillic script).

Consonants
Every consonant except of /j/ can be palatalized, e.g. : шҍах (=king - šyax) /ʃjax/. But the palatalization of /k/, /n/ and /l/ induce those sounds to become /c/, /ɲ/ and /ʎ/ (this type of palatalization is also called " strong palatalization ").

Every consonant except of /h/ may be aspirated, e.g. : ҒеспIоспоблит (=Commonwealth - G'esphospoblit) /ʁɛsphɔpsɔblit/.

Palatalization and aspiration cannot not occure simultaneously.

Writing System
The aspiration is indicated by the letter "I", e.g. : тIадҍан (=house - thadyan).

The Cyrillic script is the so called "State Script" (ВатанопIисҍ - Vatanophisy), which is used in official documents, taught at school, used by most newspapers and seen in most casual situations. The use of the Cyrillic script was introduced by force in the 1830's, due to the fact that the Vendian territories were been made part of the Russian Empire after the Congress of Vienna in 1815. The Russian scholars designed the Vendian Cyrillic alphabet by reducing the complexities of the Cyrillic alphabet (like the iotified letters or letters from Slavic origin, which had no use at all in terms of the Vendian language structure) with the aim that the Vendian elite would abandon totally the Old Vendian alphabet, respectively the Arabic abjad. The Cyrillic script has been able to impose itself as the most-used script, but without eliminating the two other scripts (being far more complexe). The Cyrillic script is also used by the Vendian Catholics for the Bible.

The Arabo-Persian script presents itself to be also a possibility to write Vendian. Due to the importance of vowels, palatalization and aspiration, the real abjad nature had to be replaced by using additional marking. It is used by some newspapers, but mostly by the Muslim community in Vendia, still reading the Quran in the Arabo-Persian script. Reading and writing the Arabic script are taught in so called "madrasas" (мадраса - madrasa; a State run Islamic school) and in lyceums (in which students get a classical education in contrast to the technikums), a basic knowledge of reading is given. There are two main complications with the Arabo-Persian script in comparison to the Cyrillic script : the first one is that every character changes its form depending on its position in the word, e.g. : واتان (=country - vatan; both "alifs" are written differently); the second one is that the vowels are often unclear, as "vau" stands for в, у and о and "yot" for й, и and the ҍ, e.g : واتانوپءیشی (="State Script" - Vatanophisy; here again, two "vaus" stand for two different sounds and the same applies to the two "yots", compared to the Cyrillic script using different letters : ВатанопIисҍ).

The traditional Old Venidan alphabet is still used until this day, but just in two contexts : in Vendian liturgy or for signatures. Liturgical texts of the Vendian traditional belief are written in the Old Vendian alphabet, but one may note that they are not in contemporary Vendian, but in Classical Vendian (which was only written with the Old Vendian script). Most of signatures are also still done with the Old Vendian script. So, the modern language is never written nowadays with the Old Vendian script. Despite of this, every Vendian (be they in a lyceum or technikum) have to be able to read the Old Vendian script and in the lyceum, the Old Vendian script is also taught to be written, as the students in lyceums have to study Classical Vendian.

   

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