Modern Shax

General Information
Modern Shax is a direct descendant of Old Shax. It has experienced heavy regularization of forms and a significant change in pronunciation of consonants (the reverse of Old French to Modern French in which vowels were mainly changed). Many English loans and a slight change in syntax have occurred.

Sound Changes are at the bottom of the page

Phonology
[p b t d k g ɸ β s d͡z ​l ɾ ʝ m n] can be geminate ([ɾ > r] when geminate)

Liaison
The liaison in Modern Works where between the end of a word that has an unpronounced final consonant and the start of a word with an initial vowel or initial [h], that unpronounced final consonant becomes pronounced. This consonant is subject to phonological changes if it applies: Note that [w] and [j] are considard vowels in this liaison pattern.
 * s > z
 * p, t, k > b, d, g
 * b, d, g > β, ð, ɣ
 * j, w > ʝ, β
 * h > ∅ (in the word after the liaison word)

Stress
Stress is usually penultimate, but this subject to change mainly by loans. Note that stress is usually marked with an accute accent (but in informal documents, this is left out).

Alphabet
The letters K, W, Q, and Ų are of limited use. The previous three are used in loans alone (where Q always appears in the digraph QÛ). Ų is sometimes used as a replacement for H, but this is increasingly uncommon.

Consonants except J, Y, I, and U (the latter two only after vowels) are silent word-finally except in a liaison environment.
 * 1) Open before two consonants ([ɐ], [ɛ], [ɔ]), closed elsewhere ([ə], [e], [o])
 * 2) Between two vowel
 * 3) Before a vowel
 * 4) Between two vowels; with a vowel preceding and a vowel or [l] following
 * 5) G is [ʝ] before I. E is silent finally (to make a pronounced consonant finally). S is [ʃ] before another consonant. X is not affected by liaison rules meaning that it's still pronounced [s] word-finally.
 * 6) R is [ʒ] intervocalically before [e], [i], [j]; R is [z] intervocalically otherwise; R is [ɾ] before or after a consonant; R is [ʒ] finally

Diphthongs and Diacritics

 * Diphthongs
 * Ll ll - [w]
 * Gh gh - [g] before I
 * Sh sh - [ʃ]
 * Rz rz - [d͡ʒ]
 * Bb, Dd, Gg - [b], [d], [g] intervocalically
 * Ss ss - [s]
 * Rr rr - [ɾ]
 * Mm mm - [m] no nasal
 * Nn nn - [n] no nasal
 * (double written) - creates an ostensible closed syllable so that A, E, or O are [ɐ], [ɛ], or [ɔ] respectivally. They become geminate between two vowels after a stressed one
 * vowel + h – closed vowel (word-final only)
 * Nasal Vowels
 * an/am, ăn/ăm, ŏn/ŏm - [ɐ̃]
 * en/em, in/im, yn/ym - [ɛ̃]
 * un/um, on/om - [ɔ̃]
 * ún/úm - [ũ] (it only exists in a stressed syllable)
 * Diacritics
 * (acute) - stressed open vowel ([e])
 * (grave) - open vowel
 * (circumflex) - stressed closed vowel ([ɛ])
 * (diaerisis) - separates vowels preventing digraphs
 * Ằ ằ - [ɐ]
 * Ắ ắ - [ə] stressed
 * Å å - [ɐ] stressed
 * Ŏ ŏ - [ə]
 * À à - [a]

Nouns
Noun declension standardized heavily and adjectives simplified even more. Also, the placement of adpositions and adjectives changed drastically to a more head-initial placement.

Noun Declension
Where Base is the nominative and prepositional case and Oblique is the accusative and genitive. This may be irregular for some noun due to sound changes. (1) vowel opens: a > è | e > è | o > ò | ă/ŏ > ằ

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– (1) If it ends in a consonant, it's E; if it ends in a vowel, it's H. This is to remove the liaison. (2) This was added later on. Therefore, G turns to GH written to preserve the [g].

Adjectives
Adjectives decline to their head noun's plurality and case. Adjectives are placed around the noun based on the placement of the adposition.

Declension
 * Comparative: -ò this comes as a suffix to the declensional form (lióngiò [ˈljɔ̃ʝjɔ] - longer)
 * Superlative: -éx this comes as a suffix to the declensional form (liongiéx [ljɔ̃ˈʝjɛs] - longest)

Adpositions
Adpositions are placed after the head noun in general, but the exact placement changes in various conditions. They're placed after the head noun phrase when it's either alone, has one adjective/adverb, or has an adjective modified by an adverb. If the head noun phrase has more than one adjective, then the adposition is placed directly after the noun with the adjectives before the head noun (adverbs can go along with the adjectives or stay in its position after the head noun and before the postposition).

If there are more than one head noun phrases in any case other than nominative, accusative, or genitive, the postposition is put at the very end of the phrase irrelevent of number of adjective or adverbs. Postpositions in genitive phrases go before owning noun (which comes after the owned noun).

Pronouns
The genitive pronoun can be used in two situations. Take for example, mej: with the postposition, dŏ, the phrase « dŏ mej » means "of mine;" or it can be used alone in an accusative placement to mean simply "mine."

Verbs
Verbs changed a lot from Old Shax. The subjunctive was completely scraped for the indicative. The optative lived on and developed into other moods. The jussive came from the optative marker in the imperative. The desiderative comes from the optative marker on the indicative. The inflectional optative mood (from the Old Shax optative) means a deep wish or desire if used in the present or a profound, tightly-held belief if used in the past.

Conjugation
The optative marker is c(ŏ)- where ŏ is placed if the stem starts with a conosnant. Paraphrastic Phrases and Forms Class I
 * c(ŏ)- + indicative = desiderative (only in the present and the future)
 * c(ŏ)- + indicative past = conditional
 * c(ŏ)- + imperative = jussive
 * to be + past participle =

These almost always end in -êr [ɛʒ].

Sound Changes
V - vowel; C - consonant; acute accent - stressed; grave accent - unstressed; tilde - nasal vowel; O - open syllable; Ɵ - closed syllable; Ø - syllable; M – mono or bisyllabic words; L - liquid (j, l, r, w); P - plosive; D - voiced consonant (b, d, g, l, β, r); J - palatals (i, e, j); L₂ - [r] and [l]; F - fricative; N = nasal (n, m, ŋ)

''All changes apply to nasal vowels unless otherwise stated. The liquids [w] and [j] are considard vowels here. Note that a lost final consonant (C > ∅/_#) applies to a liaison rule where they don't count if the next words starts with a vowel, [j], [w], or [h]. '' Old Shax > Modern Shax P > ∅ / _# ! sp, sk, Vt ɸ > h / #_ s > z / V_V ! _j w > β ! C_ ʍ > h ! V_V > ∅ kt > ʃt ks > s: VlCV > VCwV ! _(u, ɔ) > ∅, _w VN > Ṽ / _C ! _(j, w, n:, m:); VN > Ṽ / _# ! M ĩ > ẽ p, t, k > b, d, g / V_(V/L₂), (L₂/V)_V | b, d, g > β, ð, ɣ / V_(V/L₂), (L₂/V)_V sj, tj, dj, lj > ʃ, t͡ʃ, d͡ʒ, j: Loss of an intertonic vowel à,, ɔ̀, ù > ɐ / Ò , #_C , C_# ɛ́ > e / O | ɔ̀ > o/ O sp, sk > ʃ / _# a > æ / Ɵ ! ã ɛ, e > jɛ / M ! N_, #_ | ɔ, o > jɔ / M ! N_, #_ r > d͡z / _# | r > z / V_V | r > ʒ / V_J, _# | rj > d͡ʒ | rw > ɾw V̀ > ∅ / L_P β > b / #_ All geminates other than post-stressed syllable, intervocalic gemination is simplified kj > tj/ _J | gj > dj / _J l > j / _C ! J_, _d ; l > j/_# ɣJ > ʝ z: > d͡:z jz, zj > ʝ | gi > ʝi è > i / #_, Ɵ ɔ > o / Ɵ _F ju > ʝu / #_ s > z / _l, _voiced consonant β, ð, ɣ > ∅ / V_V (syllables still separate) p, t, k > b, d, g / _#, V_V | b, d, g > β, ð, ɣ / _# , V_V h > ∅ / C_ ã > æ̃ | õ > ɔ̃ | ũ̀ > ɔ̃ | ĩ > ɛ̃ | ẽ > ɛ̃ ʝ > j / _J, J_ ! _i Vowel Simplification ae > ɛ ài > ɛ au > u –––––––––––––––––––– r > ɾ Another loss of intertonic vowels ɐ > ə / O ! ɐ̃ sC > s / _# æ > ɛ {p b β t d ð k g ɣ ɸ s z n m d͡z d͡ʒ } > ∅ / _##C_ <-- application of liaison ts > s / _# | ʝ > j / _# | l > j / _# lenition with liaison rules: s > z | p, t, k > b, d, g | b, d, g >  β, ð, ɣ ə, e, o > ∅ / _# h > ∅/in a liaison condition ––Based on nature of the connotation of the word, it's form will be standardized based on either nominative or base for all declensions/conjugations except with very common words nɔ pɛz i ɛs ẽ tjɛj, hi tjɔs nɔm kɔsɛ́ sɛ̃ʃtíɸ. hi ta dʒɛn kəβjád. hi ta bwɛ̃s kɔsɛ́d hətjɛ̃́s ẽ tjɛ́ʒ si tjɛjs.

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