9

About Edit

"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.

Phonology Edit

Alphabet Edit

Script Edit

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. Letters listed in pairs are collated together, with the left one of the set coming first.

Sounds Edit

• <i> is the close front unrounded vowel [i].
• <e> is a mid to open-mid front unrounded vowel - ranging from [e̞] to [ɛ]
• <a> is an open unrounded vowel - ranging from [a] to [ɑ].
• <o> is a mid to open-mid back rounded vowel - ranging from [o̞] to [ɔ].
• <u> is the close back rounded vowel [u].
• Consonants represent their IPA equivalents. Plosives <k>, <t>, and <p> are normally aspirated, but are unaspirated following <s>.
• Affricates [ts] and [dz] are used.
• [j] and [w] are used between vowels, noted in the chart below.

Structure Edit

Syllable Structure Edit

The syllable structure is (C)V(n,s,t), where

• (C) is an optional consonant.
• V is a vowel (or diphthong).
• Final <n>, <s>, and <t> are used for verb conjugations and loanwords only. Final <t> is unreleased [t̚].
• /n/ assimilates to the next consonant.
• Allowable medial consonant clusters are [mp], [mb], [nt], [nd], [ns], [nz], [nɾ], [ŋk], [ŋg], [sp], [st], and [sk].

Sentence StructureEdit

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.

Stress Edit

For nouns, the penultimate syllable is stressed. For verbs, the final syllable is stressed.

Numbers Edit

Basic Numbers Edit

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 <o>, then /no/ is used instead.

Larger Numbers Edit

<mi> is "dozen" and <mu> 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 Edit

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

Case Particles Edit

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

Noun Classes Edit

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 Edit

The demonstrative determiners are <he->, <ha->, and <ho->, 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 <hatana tasi> 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 <otasi> literally means "zero people".

Personal Pronouns Edit

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 <hotasi>; "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. <aimo> = we, <aumo> = you (plural), <Alice-mo> = Alice and her group.

Adjectives Edit

The base form of adjectives ends in <-lr> or <-hr> and represent something neutral. Words toward the negative direction end with <-i> and <-e>; toward the positive direction, <o> and <-u>. (Positive/Negative here does not necessarily correlate to desirable/undesirable.) The nominal form ends in <-a>.

Verbs Edit

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 Edit

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

ai na  tasi  da.

1  NOM human be

I am human.

Existence Edit

The verb to show existence is <naba>. 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.

miua na  hitaku ka  naba.

cat  NOM here   LOC exist

There is a cat here.

ai di  guo na  naba.

1  GEN dog NOM exist

I have a dog.

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

Tense and Polarity Edit

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.

Santa Claus na  nabaŋ.

Santa Claus NOM exist-NEG

Santa Claus isn't real.

Aspect Edit

Placing the word <havi> before a verb forms the progressive aspect.