Conlang
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Middle High Beltonian
Fhmiusipwodh
Type
Fusional-Synthetic
Alignment
Nominative-Accusative
Head direction
Final
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


Middle High Beltonian (MHB) is the form of the Beltonian language that was spoken in central and south Beltonia from 900 to 1600. In later centuries it also appeared as a written language.

MHB and Middle Low Beltonian (MLB) represented opposite ends of a spectrum of dialects, which were affected by other points of variation. Some linguists treat the Middle Central dialects as another set of dialects. MHB was not initially influenced by Classical Beltonian, which also developed from the Low dialects, although it was eventually influenced by the Classical and Middle Low dialects, especially with spelling and imported vocabulary.

MHB saw a series of consonant changes as a result of disappearing vowels and subsequent consonant assimilation. Its vowels were affected by the later arrival of the Low Beltonian Vowel Shift which added front rounded vowels. In grammar, it saw a complete loss of gender marking and a reduction in the number of cases. Some aspects of verb inflection were simplified and auxiliary verbs were introduced to convey certain tenses and an imperfective aspect. MHB was the primary basis for Early Modern Beltonian and therefore modern Beltonian dialects.

History[]

Differences between the dialects in the regions around Batin and Omchoke were first noted in the 7th century. Smithson writes:

Beltonian was spread over a period of 200 years, in a series of waves. It was adopted by locals who had previously spoken different languages. Finally, while dialects often influenced each other, they could also move in different directions. All of those things fragmented the language, but not on an unusual scale. Indeed, in the 11th century, Beltonia was far more linguistically homogeneous than the Italian peninsula.

The Low dialects, specifically that of Omchoke, became the basis for Classical Beltonian. This became the spoken language of the ruling class and the language of writing throughout the whole of the Beltonian Empire. Very little literature of other dialects survives from between the 10th and mid-13th century. Middle Low Beltonian was better documented, due to the theatre scene that was centred on Omchoke. However, there were a few playwrights who wrote in Batinese dialects, such as Symeon Lismakt.

The arrival of the printing press in the 15th century and the Beltonian Reformation led to what Bacha terms "a revolution of the written language". Vernacular literature almost completely supplanted the Classical dialect. One of the most notable Middle High Beltonian works was Escha's Bible, which was written in a phonetic transcription of the Batinese dialect. Other literature from around the period was written in various other phonetic spellings with the Beltonian alphabet. By the 16th century, although spelling had become more (though not completely) standardized, and also more influenced by spellings of the Classical dialect.

Smithson writes that the improvement of communication afforded by the printing press paradoxically ended up dividing the language, by encouraging the written language to reflect the varying dialects of ordinary people. Also important was the decline of internal royal power in the Late Empire. The provinces each adopted different standardized written language, although the written languages were mutually intelligible.

Although the Ottoman conquest brought no immediate change to the language, linguists tend to treat it as the dividing line between the Middle and Early Modern periods.

Phonology[]

Consonants[]

Middle High Beltonian had approximately 21 consonant phonemes.

Labial Alveolar Post-alveolar/Palatal Velar Uvular Glottal
Nasal m n
Plosive p b t d k g
Affricate t͡ʃ d͡ʒ
Fricative f
v ~ ʋ
s z ʃ ʒ x ~ χ h
Liquid ɹ ~ ɾ j
Lateral l

Vowels[]

Early Middle High Beltonian had 8 vowel phonemes; some analyses consider the schwa to be a ninth. It is usually analyzed as having five diphthongs. Later dialects saw the addition of centering diphthongs, caused by the loss of syllable-final rhotic consonants. The centering diphthongs are usually reconstructed as ending on a different (but not contrasting) central vowel to the schwa, although at least some dialects had them ending on the schwa.

Vowels before nasal consonants (/m/, /n/ and /ŋ/ before the latter was lost) were nasalized at an early stage. Nasal vowels were not contrasted with oral ones, but they subsequently resisted the Low Beltonian vowel shift.

Front Centre Back
Close i y u
Mid e ø (ə) o
Open æ (ɐ) ɒ
Closing diphthongs æi æu ei oi øy
Centring Diphthongs aɐ eɐ iɐ oɐ uɐ yɐ ɒɐ øɐ

Sound changes[]

The following changes affected all the primary medieval dialects:

  • Monophthongization of short diphthongs in High dialects: /ei/ > /e/ and /ou/ > /o/.
  • Especially in High dialects, loss of [ə] between stops, triggering consonant assimilation.
  • Loss of uvular stops /q/ > /k/ except its allophone [ɢ] > /g/. Bacha believes this began in the central dialects, although other linguists like Ansleh believe it began in Low dialects.
  • [ɒ] emerges as an allophone of /ɑ/ after /w/ and before nasal and labial vowels.
  • Assimilation of adjacent stop consonants, e.g. /tp/ > /tʋ/.
  • The Low Beltonian Vowel Shift /u/ > /ʉ/ > /y/, initially only in unstressed syllables, and raising of other back vowels. However, this does not affect nasal vowels, nor word-final /e/ and /o/.

The following changes affected High dialects but not Low dialects:

  • Loss of guttural rhotic in favour of alveolar realizations.
  • Nasalization of vowels before syllable-final /n/.
  • Vocalization of syllable-final /f/ and /v/ to /u/.
  • Vocalization of syllable final rhotic consonants.
  • Merger of syllable-final /h/ (realized as [ç]) with /x/ phoneme (also realized as /χ/).
  • /eu/ > /øy/.
  • [ə] > /ø/.
  • Beginning of the merger of /w/ and /v/ into /ʋ/.
  • Beginning of the loss of consonant-final nasal vowels, which also results in /ŋ/ being indistinguishable from /n/.

Nouns[]

Articles[]

Middle High Beltonian had a definite article, which originated from a demonstrative adjective. The articles behaved as an adjectives, except that it did not have a case-neutral form. Vowel reduction eroded most of the differences between common and neuter articles, although the distinction survived for longest in the nominative singular.

Definite article
Singular Plural
Common Neuter Common Neuter
Nominative čo če čwa čwa
Accusative
Vocative
ta(s) ta(s) ča(s) ča(s)
Dative
Locative
sun sun čun čwan
čun

Many dialects used the article for every noun that referred to a single, countable object, meaning it effectively served as an indefinite article as well. The adjective nata (single, only) could also serve the same purpose as an indefinite article.

Pronouns[]

Personal pronouns:

Singular Plural
1st 2nd 3rd 1st 2nd 3rd
Masc. Fem. Com. Nt. Com. Nt.
Nominative sito ješ re ko ni ro kam rihau tyla tyla
Accusative pa ta ka ke na ko fin ryhal til tila
til
Dative puh tuh kuh xyh nau kyh finuh ruhlyh tilyh tilyh
Locative pem tem kem kim naim kawim finim ryhum tilim tilim
Vocative pa ta ka ki na ko fin ryhlo til tila
til

Demonstrative pronouns:

Singular Plural
Common Neuter Common Neuter
Nominative tsa tsa čisa časa
Accusative tys tas čys čas
Dative tyso taso čyso časo
Locative tsim tsim čysim časim
Vocative tus tas čus čas

Verbs[]

Weak dynamic verbs[]

žyfit ("")
Infinitive Singular Plural Past participle
1st 2nd 3rd C 3rd N 1st 2nd 3rd C 3rd N
Indicative Present žyfit žyfitvau žyfittor žyfitas žyfita žyfitvin žyfitraut žyfittil žyfičån žyfitøn
Past žyfitømmau žyfitønnor žyfitønas žyfičøn žyfitømvin žyfitønaut žyfitønnil žyfitin
Energetic žyfituk žyfitukøpau žyfitukøtor žyfitukøkas žyfitak žyfitukøvin žyfitukrut žyfitukøtil žyfičok žyfitukøn
Cohortative žyfital žyfitaurpau žyfitaurtor žyfitaurkas žyfital žyfitaurvin žyfitaurut žyfitaurtil žyfital žyfitaløn
Imperative žyfito žyfitybau žyfito žyfityri žyfitwå žyfitymfin žyfityn žyfitynnil žyfitwån žyfitwån Subjunctive žyfitiki žyfitikøpau žyfitikøtor žyfitikøkas žyfičånki žyfitikøvin žyfitikraut žyfitikøtil žyfitinki žyfitikån
Negative žyfitil žyfičurpav žyfičurtor žyfičurkas žyfitel žyfičurvin žyfičut žyfičurtil žyfitel žyfitlang
Habitual žyfito žyfit žyfit žyfito žyfita žyfitwan žyfitwan žyfitwan žyfičan žyfitong

Adjectives[]

Middle High Beltonian saw a gradual erosion of the role of grammatical gender. By the late 16th century, gender agreement only survived in the nominative singular forms of some adjectives in the majority of dialects, with others eliminating it altogether.

The first declension was for words which had been introduced in the accusative case:

-jo declension
ximjo
Singular Plural
Common Neuter Common Neuter
Nominative ximjo ximje ximwa ximwa
Accusative
Vocative
xim xima
xim
ximwan ximjen
ximwan
Dative
Locative
ximun ximun ximun ximun

The second declension was used for words which had been introduced in the nominative case:

-C declension
eklešastikos
Singular Plural
Common Neuter Common Neuter
Nominative eklešastikos eklešastikos eklešastikosan eklešastikosan
Accusative
Vocative
eklešastikosa eklešastikosa eklešastikoswan eklešastikošjen
eklešastikoswan
Dative
Locative
eklešastikosun eklešastikosun eklešastikosun eklešastikosun

Syntax[]

Middle High Beltonian also had a hierarchical word order. Regardless of their role in a sentence, nouns appeared from first to last in order of their position in the hierarchy, from highest to lowest. Their role highlighted with the case marking. The order was, from highest to lowest:

  1. God
  2. Other religious nouns
  3. Authority figures
  4. The speaker's equals
  5. The speaker
  6. Subordinates
  7. Animals
  8. Inanimate objects

It was common for the speaker's equals to come after the speaker instead of before, especially if the former was the subject of the sentence. There was also no consensus on where to place abstract concepts or whether clergy were counted as religious nouns (though they were usually ranked below the king).

The system was less strict than Classical Beltonian and many forms of Old Beltonian. It was taboo to place religious nouns after other nouns. Apart from that, conveying words in an unusual order was not grammatically correct but instead weakened the meaning of the sentence in various ways. An example is the sentence "The king rules the country", where "king" would usually precede "country". If "country" instead preceded "king", it may have implied sarcasm, derision, irreverence or, in some cases, doubt. Without context, it would be impossible to infer which one was intended.

Bible translations like Escha's Bible were an exception, as they instead followed the word order of the original texts. Bacha remarks: "Escha's translation would have sounded like an announcement of a revolution to the Beltonians at the time."

Lexicon[]

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