Mentekan

Consonants
Possible consonant clusters are included in the chart.

Dipthongs
The three dipthongs are /eɪ/, /aɪ/, and /aʊ/. They are counted as single vowels in the syllable.

Phonotactics
The syllable structure of Mentekan is CV(n). C is any consonant or consonant cluster and V is any vowel or dipthong. The glottal stop /ʔ/ cannot be placed at the initial consonant of the initial syllable of a word. n is optional and comprised of /z/, /ts/, /n/, /tʃ/, /ʃ/, and /s/. Noun roots are triconsonantal and tritonal in nature, while other words are not. The pattern of stress for the words usually stresses the close (includes near-close) vowel syllables. If there are two of the same close vowel syllables adjeacent to one another, the initial one takes precedence. If there are two different close vowel syllables adjacent to each other, /i/ takes precedence over /u/ and /u/ over / ɪ/. If there are no close vowel syllables in the word, the first syllable takes precedence.

Tones
The tones in Mentekan are only found in the tritonal noun roots, and are not part of the stress pattern rule. There are four tones used in the noun roots, which are represented by their respective numbers in superscript attached to the syllable.
 * 1) Neutral
 * 2) High
 * 3) Falling
 * 4) Rising

Sentence Structure
The canon word order of Mentekan is SOV, with subclauses being SVO.

Nouns
The noun roots in Mentekan are triliteral and tritonal, with six aspects of inflection through vowels and tones. The case of the noun is marked by a case prefix. The possible combinations of all six aspect inflections are counted as genders.

Genders
Nouns can be formed by manipulating abstract three consonant roots. For example:

m - t - k - is the root with the general meaning of communication.

men1te1kan1 means the language.

neuter | action related concept | definite | inanimate tool honorific | singular

The classification of these subgenders are quite arbitrary.

Cases
There is an expansive system of case prefixes in Mentekan, with categories of Syntax, Relation, Semantics, and State. Some cases are redundant and/or archaic in everyday speech.

Postpositions
There are many postpositions that can be attached to nouns to make postpositional phrases that express both place and time. The postpositional phrase then is placed preceding the modified noun phrase. The postpositions can also be pattached to verbs for pronomial statements. The postpositions are similar to case markers in every way except in that they are attached at the end of the noun. Most cases can be used for temporal location as well as spatial location.

Verbs
The most important element in Mentekan is the verb, consisting of an abstract stem and any number of inflectional and/or derivational prefixes. All verbs must have at least one prefix, and the prefixes are to be added in a specific order. Verbs also replace the role of adjectives. Verb stems have no specific rules of construction, and are not triliteral.

Verb Template
The way of assembling prefixes is very convoluted and filled with exceptions and archaic constructions. A verb does not have to fill all of the categories in the template. The prefixes can be generally split into dynamic and stative templates with disjunct and conjunct categories as follows:

Pronomial Inflection
Mentekan verbs have prefixes that act as pronouns which mark both subjects and objects, thereby forming a clause within the verb. The prefixes can by modified by pronoun modifiers attached preceding the prefix to change the type of pronoun. The reciprocal prefix only occurs if there is no other pronomial prefix, and cannot take pronoun modifiers.

Pronoun Modifiers
The pronoun modifiers inflect based on the syntax, person, and number of the prefix being modified.