Dongbuzenytihach is the language spoken in the Dongbuzenytihav, an ocean located on the planet Baltus (known natively as Bältuse). The primary speakers are Encephalopods, inhabitants of the planet.
| Dongbuzenytihach Dońbuzenytihać | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | |||
| Fusional | |||
| Alignment | |||
| Nominative-Accusative | |||
| Head direction | |||
| Mostly Head-Initial | |||
| Tonal | |||
| No | |||
| Declensions | |||
| Yes | |||
| Conjugations | |||
| Yes | |||
| Genders | |||
| No | |||
| Nouns decline according to... | |||
| Case | Number | ||
| Definiteness | Gender | ||
| Verbs conjugate according to... | |||
| Voice | Mood | ||
| Person | Number | ||
| Tense | Aspect | ||
Classification and history[]
Dongbuzenytihach is part of the Kifekuthulan language family indigenous to Bältuse. The modern variety is specifically a standardized version of the southern Kifekuthulan dialects mixed with various other dialects and drawing multiple loanwords from entirely different languages as well. Dongbuzenytihach is widely regarded as the language of science and literature by the speakers.
Pre-literacy period[]
Kifekuthulan Encephalopods had little to no internal organization before the invention of their script, as such their language, reconstructed as "Proto-Kifekuthulan" had a great deal of dialectal variation. It was not uncommon for any two Encephalopods to resort to sign language to understand each other better. They understood well that sign language and spoken language are complementary, and each can achieve what the other can't. For instance, while speaking sign language allowed for the signing to be preserved with ink, it failed to convey information quickly and effectively if no one was looking, something which spoken language could do by being heard even when listening passively, but could not be preserved in time, as spoken language had not yet been written.
Invention and standardization of the script[]
Originally, the "Great Kuthulo" (kuþuloro aþëho) was credited with creating what would later become the Kapurafete script. The Great Kuthulo, among other things, was considered to be the one who gave knowledge to the people and allowed them to learn to read and write, becoming literate. One of the kyvelpo, Kapurafete, for whom the script is named, sought to collect all words from all Kifekuthulan Encephalopods. At that point, dialectal variation was especially noticeable in the lexicon of various groups of speakers, along with some phonological and grammatical variation being present as well. Because of that, the corpus of Dongbuzenytihach words had become enormous, while also bearing many inconsistencies due to interborrowing.
After the Knowledge Revolution[]
A crucial moment in the history of Dongbuzenytihach was the writing of "How we became the new kuthuru" (Dongbuzenytihach: rezën durnemuto kuthulara tohyna), a piece of literature which favors the switch of worldview from submission to an icon (the "Knowledge giver") to free will and selective individualism. The text was written by the philosopher Lasowevarbiźe, widely recognized as one of the greatest thinkers of Bältuse, and postulates that the Encephalopods had been given knowledge as a tool which they were instructed to use according to the Great Kuthulo's wishes, yet nothing limits them from using that same knowledge against the Great Kuthulo. Lasowevarbiźe's other texts were also used to as standard for the language from that moment forward.
Reconstruction of "rezën durnemuto kuthulara tohyna"
Future era[]
Dongbuzenytihach would continue to evolve further, and in what is the 27th century on Earth it has shifted in phonology to a great degree. This article, however, outlines Dongbuzenytihach as it is spoken in the modern day.
Phonology[]
Since the language is spoken underwater, a human listener hearing it would likely not be able to make out any individual sound, as Encephalopod speech is in practice very indistinct, largely due to the much greater force that the speakers must exert to produce sounds. A good approximation of Encephalopod speech can be obtained by whispering the language and applying creaky voice to all phonemes. However, audio editing can bring Encephalopod speech to sound closer to Human speech, allowing the phonology to be explained in familiar terms.
Consonants[]
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ~ŋ | |||
| Occlusive | unvoiced | p | t | t͡ɕ | k | |
| voiced | b | d | d͡ʑ | g | ||
| Fricative | voiceless | sibilant | s | ɕ | x͡ɕ | |
| plain | f | θ̠ | x | |||
| voiced | v | z | ʑ | |||
| Approximant | w | ɹ | ʎ | ɫ | ||
There is a sound that is most similar to the "sj-sound" and is commonly considered a co-articulated [x] and [ɕ]. It is a relatively rare sound in the language.
/j/, /t͡s/ and /d͡z/ are only used in loanwords from neighboring languages which have these sounds. However, most or all speakers are able to produce and discern those sounds without any difficulty.
Vowels[]
Like most Kifekuthulan languages, Dongbuzenytihach has a relatively large vowel inventory without any nasalization or length distinction.
| Front | Central | Back | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | y | u | |
| Close-mid | ɘ | ɤ | ||
| Open-mid | ɛ | ɔ | ||
| Open | a | |||
The phoneme traditionally transcribed as /ə/ is in reality closer in realization to [ɘ].
/ɤ/ is silent when in unstressed position and not in the first syllable of a word.
/œ~ø/ appears in loanwords and interjections.
Phonotactics[]
Thanks to the null glyph and ë, the phonotactics are slightly more variable than the script could suggest. Some of the most common formations include CV and V, although a very limited number of CVC syllables also exist. It is possible for two vowels to follow each other while remaining distinct syllables, forming a hiatus.
Stress[]
Stress is not phonemic and falls on the second-to-last syllable, unless the final syllable has a coda, in which case that final syllable is stressed instead. Cliticized articles and adpositions are not counted and do not affect the placement of stress.
| Word | IPA and stress | Translation | Observations |
|---|---|---|---|
| rezën | [ɹɘ'zɤn] | "how" | Coda present, final stress |
| goho | ['gɔxɔ] | "tentacle" | No coda, penultimate stress |
| gohoro | ['gɔxɔɹɔ] | "the tentacle" | Article does not shift the stress forward |
Allophony[]
- /ɤ/ becomes [o] when stressed and after /w/.
- /k/, /g/, /x/ palatalize to [c], [ɟ], [ç] respectively before /i/, /y/.
- /ɹ/, /ɫ/ become [j], [ʎ] respectively before /i/, /y/.
- /i/, /y/ shift to [ɨ], [ʉ] after /w/.
- /a/ becomes /ɛ/ before a sonorant followed by a front vowel, a change which is reflected in the orthography.
Writing system[]
Dongbuzenytihach, like many other Encephalopod languages, use a sophisticated combining script, referred outside of the planet as "Encephalopod script", but called in the language "Lapore Kapurafete", after the one who first standardized the script.
Transcription[]
| a | b | ɕ | d | d͡z | d͡ʑ | ɛ | ɘ | f | g | i | j | k | ʟ | m | n | ɲ | ɔ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | b | ś | d | ʣ | đ | ä | e | f | g | i | j | k | l | m | n | ń | o |
| ø | p | ɹ | s | t | t͡s | t͡ɕ | u | ɤ | ɤ̥ | v | w | x | x͡ɕ | y | z | ʑ | θ̠ |
| ö | p | r | s | t | c | ć | u | ë | ∅ | v | w | h | hś | y | z | ź | þ |
ISO Basic Latin friendly[]
| a | b | ɕ | d | d͡z | d͡ʑ | ɛ | ɘ | f | g | i | j | k | ʟ | m | n | ɲ/ŋ | ɔ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | b | sj | d | dz | dj | ax | e | f | g | i | j | k | l | m | n | nj | o |
| ø | p | ɹ | s | t | t͡s | t͡ɕ | u | ɤ | ɤ̥ | v | w | x | x͡ɕ | y | z | ʑ | θ̠ |
| ox | p | r | s | t | c | cj | u | ex | ∅ | v | w | h | hj | y | z | zj | th |
Glyphs[]
Words with obstruent codas are written with the ë glyph following the obstruent.
Grammar[]
Dongbuzenytihach grammar is relatively typical of a Kifekuthulan language, showing a clusivity distinction in the first person plural, an embedded subjunctive, a nominative/oblique case system and base 4 numerals.
Verbs[]
Verbs conjugate according to mood, tense, person, number and aspect. There are two main conjugation of verbs based on the stem vowel that the verb carried in Proto-Kifekuthulan: verbs in -oþi derive from *ɔ-stems, while verbs in -iþi derive from *e-stems. A few verbs originally had a stem vowel different from those two, however those verbs are now considered irregular. There are a few irregular verbs, most notably ogoþi (to be), which shows both root alterations and suppletion.
Verbs have an indicative mood with present, past and future tense, the latter two of which can have a perfective and an imperfective form, as well as an optative mood, an imperative mood and a subjunctive mood with present, past and future tense.
Verbs can also assume a negative mood by adding the prefix će- if the verbs starts with a consonant, and ć- if the verb starts with a vowel. When combined with the optative mood, the verb assumes the meaning of "may not".
The indicative is the only realis mood, and is used in factual statements as opposed to hypothetical scenarios, at least outside of subordinate clauses. The imperative is used to express commands, pleas and orders. The subjunctive is used whenever the verb is a condition which allows the factuality of the main clause. Notably, Dongbuzenytihach lacks a particle with the meaning equivalent to "if", as its meaning is conveyed by the verb in the subjunctive mood.
Dongbuzenytihach also utilizes non-finite forms of verbs for both subordination and as nominals.
In -iþi verbs whose roots end in -ar-, -al- or -aw-, a turns into ä if a front vowel follows the approximant, as such vubäliþi => vubalu (2SG.PRS) but vubäli (1SG.PRS).
-oþi verbs[]
| Indicative | Imperative | Subjunctive | Optative | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Past | Future | Present | Past | Future | |||||
| Perfective | Imperfective | Perfective | Imperfective | |||||||
| 1SG (so) | -o | -emo | -emiro | -eþo | -eþiro | / | -eo | -omo | -oþo | -eþopo |
| 2SG (đa) | -u | -emu | -emiru | -eþu | -eþiru | -e | -eu | -omu | -oþu | -eþopu |
| 3SG (do) | -e | -eme | -emire | -eþe | -eþire | -e | -ey | -ome | -oþe | -eþope |
| 1PL.INCL (ku) | -uto | -emuto | -emito | -eþuso | -eþiso | -uto | -euto | -omuto | -oþuso | -eþoputo |
| 1PL.EXCL (su) | -oto | -emoto | -emito | -eþoso | -eþiso | / | -eoto | -omoto | -oþoso | -eþopoto |
| 2PL (đä) | -oze | -emoze | -emozi | -eþoze | -eþozi | -oze | -eoze | -omoze | -oþoze | -eþopoze |
| 3PL (du) | -ake | -emake | -emaki | -eþake | -eþaki | -ake | -eake | -omake | -oþake | -eþopake |
| Non-finite forms | Infinitive | Passive participle | Imperfective gerund | Perfective gerund | Verbal noun | |||||
| -oþi | -ega | -erä | -ä | -eme | ||||||
-iþi verbs[]
| Indicative | Imperative | Subjunctive | Optative | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Past | Future | Present | Past | Future | Future | ||||
| Perfective | Imperfective | Perfective | Imperfective | |||||||
| 1SG (so) | -i | -imo | -imiro | -iþo | -iþiro | / | -yi | -ymo | -yþo | -yþipo |
| 2SG (đa) | -u | -imu | -imiru | -iþu | -iþiru | -y | -yu | -ymu | -yþu | -yþipu |
| 3SG (do) | -y | -ime | -imire | -iþe | -iþire | -e | -ye | -yme | -yþe | -yþipe |
| 1PL.INCL (ku) | -uto | -imuto | -imito | -iþuso | -iþiso | -uto | -yuto | -ymuto | -yþuso | -yþiputo |
| 1PL.EXCL (su) | -oto | -imoto | -imito | -iþoso | -iþiso | / | -yoto | -ymoto | -yþoso | -yþipoto |
| 2PL (đä) | -ize | -imize | -imizi | -iþize | -iþizi | -ize | -yize | -ymize | -yþize | -yþipize |
| 3PL (du) | -ake | -imake | -imaki | -iþake | -iþaki | -aky | -yake | -ymake | -yþia | -yþipake |
| Non-finite forms | Infinitive | Passive participle | Imperfective gerund | Perfective gerund | Verbal noun | |||||
| -iþi | -yga | -yrä | -ä | -yme | ||||||
Irregular verbs[]
ogoþi "to be"[]
| Indicative | Imperative | Subjunctive | Optative | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | Past | Future | Present | Past | Future | |||||
| Perfective | Imperfective | Perfective | Imperfective | |||||||
| 1SG (so) | owo | gemo | gemiro | woniþo | woniþiro | \ | oweo | gomo | wonyþo | wonyþipo |
| 2SG (đa) | owu, ou | gemu | gemiru | woniþu | woniþiru | owe | oweu | gomu | wonyþu | wonyþipu |
| 3SG (do) | owe | geme | gemire | woniþe | woniþire | owe | owey | gome | wonyþe | wonyþipe |
| 1PL.INCL (ku) | outo | gemuto | gemito | woniþuso | woniþito | \ | oweuto | gomuto | wonyþuso | wonyþipuso |
| 1PL.EXCL (su) | owoto | gemoto | gemito | woniþoso | woniþito | owoto | oweoto | gomoto | wonyþoso | wonyþiposo |
| 2PL (đä) | owoze | gemoze | gemizi | woniþize | woniþizi | owoze | oweoze | gomoze | wonyþize | wonyþipize |
| 3PL (du) | owake | gemake | gemaki | woniþake | woniþaki | owake | oweake | gomake | wonyþake | wonyþipake |
| Non-finite forms | Infinitive | Passive participle | Imperfective gerund | Perfective gerund | Verbal noun | |||||
| ogoþi | \ | ogerä | ogä | ogeme | ||||||
Nominals[]
In Dongbuzenytihach, nominals are the group that comprises nouns, pronouns, adjectives and numerals. Nominals can take an adposition and a definiteness suffix. While it may appear that nominals agree in gender, the assonance between the affixes of dependent nouns is actually the relic of an old vowel harmony system which transphonologized into vowels agreeing across multiple words, aided by analogy.
Nouns[]
In their nominative singular form, nouns can have three suffixes: -a, -e, and -o. There are two cases, nominative, describing the subject which performs the action, and oblique, which describes the object which takes the action done by the subject.
| Declension | Singular | Plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Oblique | Nominative | Oblique | |
| 1st declension | -a | -o | -ä | -ë |
| 2nd declension | -o | -e | -u | -a |
| 3rd declension | -e | -i | -u | -a |
| Exception | -ë | -ë | -ä | -ä |
Adjectives[]
Adjectives form the same declension pattern as their respective nouns. Adjectives are post-nominal, meaning that they come after the noun they are referring to. Non-pronominal possessives are treated as adjectives as well, as such they are declined identically to the adjective in the table. Unless an adjective stands alone and is used periphrastically, it is possible to omit the definite article on the adjective.
| Declension | Singular | Plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Oblique | Nominative | Oblique | |
| 1st declension | -a | -o | -ä | -ë |
| 2nd declension | -o | -e | -u | -a |
| 3rd declension | -e | -i | -u | -a |
Articles[]
There are no indefinite articles. Definite articles inflect depending on the noun referred to, and come after the noun they refer to. Before an adposition, all articles are reduced to r-, and the 1st declension plural oblique form adds an -ë after the adposition.
| Singular | Plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Oblique | Nominative | Oblique | |
| 1st | ra | ro | rä | r |
| 2nd | ro | re | ru | ra |
| 3rd | re | ri | ru | ra |
Adpositions[]
Adpositions in Dongbuzenytihach are postpositions. They are inflected and agree with the head. Oblique pronouns can also be used as possessive pronouns by affixing them to the possessee.
Pronouns[]
Personal pronouns[]
Personal pronouns are notable for having a clusivity distinction, having separate terms for "we (including you)" and "we (excluding you)". Reflexive pronouns are formed by prefixing pyći- to oblique forms, and serve double duty as reciprocal pronouns in the plural.
| Pronoun | Nominative | Oblique/Possessive | Reflexive |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1SG | so | se | pyćise |
| 2SG | đa | đo | pyćiđo |
| 3SG | do | de | pyćide |
| 1PL INCL | ku | ku | pyćiku |
| 1PL EXCL | su | sa | pyćisa |
| 2PL | đä | đë | pyćiđë |
| 3PL | du | da | pyćida |
Interrogative pronouns[]
There are various interrogative pronouns. There is a distinction between ńyi "what" and sëśi "which", also present in tymi "who" and wigođi "who", the latter being used when the question applies to a clearly defined limited set of entities.
Relative pronouns[]
The main relative pronoun is eńa. It inflects for case and number the same way nouns do, and can be appended with adpositions.
Derivational morphology[]
Several affixes can be used to create new words, however not all of those affixes are productive. Those shown below are still highly productive and new words are continuously coined using those affixes.
| Derivational affix | Function | Example word | Translation of example word | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -g- | Creates passive adjectives from verbs, "having been VERBed" | tazoþi => tazega | "to want, to desire" => "wanted, desired" | -e- added before suffix in o-conj verbs, -y- in i-conj verbs |
| -eme | Creates abstract nouns from adjectives, "state of being ADJ" | käbia => käbieme | "fast" => "speed" | |
| -ulo | Creates agent nouns from verbs, "one who VERBs" | liohiþi => liohulo | "to write" => "writer" | |
| -tuse | Creates place nouns from verbs and nouns, "where VERB is done", "where NOUN is found" | apäheńiþi => apäheńtuse
ńasowe => ńasowtuse |
"to learn" => "learning place" (=school)
"alga" => "alga forest" |
Stem vowel removed from verb |
| aw- | Creates adjectives of deficit from nouns, "lacking NOUN" | rugo => awruga | "restriction" => "free" (i.e. with no restrictions) | |
| -äh- | Creates relational and possessive adjectives, "relating to NOUN" | fëna => fënäha
dy + fënäha = dyfënäha däźa + fënäha = däźafënäha |
"sun" => "solar"
"√up" + "solar" => "morning, east" "deep" + "solar" => "evening, west" |
Often used in compounds
The -h- may be dropped in quick speech, resulting in "dyfënäha" and "däźafënäha" being pronounced [dyf(ɤ)nɛa] and [dɛʑaf(ɤ)nɛa] respectively |
Syntax[]
Word order[]
The word order defaults to SVO (subject-verb-object). However, subordinate clauses can cause the word order to shift, so for example an intransitive converb is followed by its subject, making the clause VS. Sentences with quirky subjects can be both VO and OV.
| Sentence in Dongbuzenytihach | Note | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Iđä lyrowara so vatuimo | lyrowa "fish" is nominative | "After the fish ate, I exited" |
| Iđä lyroworo so vatuimo | lyrowo "fish" is oblique | "After eating the fish, I exited" |
| Lyrowara iđä vatuime | "The fish exited after eating" |
Interrogative particles[]
Dongbuzenytihach uses interrogative particles to denote quesitons. One such particle is ki, which is used to confirm a statement. If the statement is agreed upon, the listener responds "ki" as well, while in the opposite case, the listener responds "će", which assumes the value of "no", or negation.
Crucially, interrogative pronouns are normally treated the same as normal objects syntactically, as such sentences with interrogative pronouns will still default to SVO rather than inverting to OVS. So, for example, the most natural way to say "Who am I?" would be "So owo tymi?" (literally "I am who?"), rather than "Tymi owo so?", which is still technically grammatical but sounds less natural.
Lexicon[]
Dongbuzenytihach has a rich lexicon due to its many doublets and borrowings that entered the language.
See Dongbuzenytihach/Vocabulary for a list of words.
Colors and emotions analogy[]
Like most Encephalopod cultures, speakers of Dongbuzenytihach consistently connect emotions to colors. This is directly linked to their physiology, as they change the color of their skin in accordance to their feelings and other external factors. The following is a table of the main colors, with more specific terms existing for narrower shades, both of color and of feeling. For instance, while "tawa" covers most shades of red and of anger, "śyleja" refers specifically to dark orange and to fervor. A shade of "kofaka" ("cyan" and "excited, thrilled") is "ićimwa", referring to a shade of cyan tinted with silver and electric blue, as well as to the sensation felt while committing a new discovery.
| Word | Color meaning | Feeling meaning |
|---|---|---|
| wogoba | dark, black | concentrated |
| tawa | infrared, red | angry, frustrated |
| fatoa | brown, orange, yellow | determined, driven |
| lua | light green | positive, joyful |
| kofaka | cyan | excited, thrilled |
| galia, galja | dark blue | neutral, unbothered |
| onoa | violet, ultraviolet | apathetic, depressed |
| doiça | bright, white, pale | uneasy, scared |
Numerals[]
Dongbuzenytihach uses a base-4 number system. Each number is a monosyllabic word. Cardinal numerals are not inflected, while ordinals are inflected as adjectives. The ordinal pina "first" is suppletive and shares its root with -piliv- "before".
| Value | Cardinal | Ordinal | Glyph |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | wë | wëna | 
|
| 1 | hi | pina | 
|
| 2 | kä | käna | 
|
| 3 | zu | zuna | 
|
| 4 | ly | lyna | 
|
| 16 | đi | đina | 
|
| 64 | tä | täna | 
|
| 256 | þu | þuna | 
|
Intelligence as status and knowledge as wealth[]
A pervasive metaphor in Dongbuzenytihach is knowledge being regarded as an equivalent to price and wealth. Therefore, "Don't waste your time on that" gets translated as "Ćehue ware nuću", literally "Don't blow away knowledge to that". The brain ("kume") is perceived as one's "being", as such expressions such as "every fiber of my being" are translated as "uru kumelere-su" = "all my braincells". Insults in Dongbuzenytihach are mostly centered around stupidity and lack of wit, and one of the worst and most taboo words is "kosuta", which indicates a complete lack of any cognitive abilities. The words for "intelligent" and "successful" are the same, "seha", whence also "seheme", which means both "intelligence" and "success".