Sisiwön: Difference between revisions
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=== Vowels === | === Vowels === | ||
There are a total of twenty phonetic vowels: i /I/, ii /i:/, ü /Y/, üü /y:/, ï /U_c/, ïï /M:/, u /U/, uu /u:/, e /E/, ee /e:/, ö /9/, öö /2:/, ë /V/, ëë /7:/, o /O/, oo /o:/, ä, ää, a, aa. However, due to vowel harmony, any given word will only contain a subset of these, either the front series (i ii ü üü e ee ö öö ä ää) or the back series (ï ïï u uu ë ëë o oo a aa). It makes sense to think of Sisiwön as having five basic vowel phonemes (ï, u, ë, o, a), plus two suprasegmental phonemes, [+long] and [+front], the latter occuring zero or one times in each word, affecting all the vowels in it. | There are a total of twenty phonetic vowels: i /I/, ii /i:/, ü /Y/, üü /y:/, ï /U_c/, ïï /M:/, u /U/, uu /u:/, e /E/, ee /e:/, ö /9/, öö /2:/, ë /V/, ëë /7:/, o /O/, oo /o:/, ä /&/, ää /&:/, a /A/, aa /A:/. However, due to vowel harmony, any given word will only contain a subset of these, either the front series (i ii ü üü e ee ö öö ä ää) or the back series (ï ïï u uu ë ëë o oo a aa). It makes sense to think of Sisiwön as having five basic vowel phonemes (ï, u, ë, o, a), plus two suprasegmental phonemes, [+long] and [+front], the latter occuring zero or one times in each word, affecting all the vowels in it. | ||
=== Consonants === | === Consonants === | ||
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There may be a restriction preventing labialized and palatalized consonants from occurring before [u(:)] and [i(:)], respectively. | There may be a restriction preventing labialized and palatalized consonants from occurring before [u(:)] and [i(:)], respectively. | ||
=== Syllable structure === | |||
It seems the consensus is CV(N) with N being any non-stop, non-affricate, or alternatively the aforementioned vowel-lengthening suprasegmental [+long]. The symbol C may also stand for a word-initial 0-, allowing vowel-initial words. | |||
=== Word Structure === | |||
Any number of syllables, as defined above, with no other constraints known at this time. | |||
=== | == Grammar == | ||
=== Verbal morphology === | |||
Verbs are marked agglutinatively for person and number of subject and object, tense (past vs non-past), mood (indicative vs irrealis vs imperative), aspect (imperfect vs perfect) and evidentiality (probably as clitics, meanings as yet undecided). | |||
Inchoative and completive will probably be derivational and independent of the aspectual system. | |||
There are a small class of valence-increasing derivational operations that take f(x,y) -> g(z,f(x,y)), where g is "want", "cause", "allow", "prevent", or "fear", and maybe a small number of others. | |||
Revision as of 10:50, 2 July 2004
"Sisiwön" is the provisional name of a collaborative Conlang, started in June 2004, by a small group of members of the Conlang list: Paul Bennett, Alex Fink, Rob Haden, Joe, and Robert "Trebor" Jung.
The name itself, while phonologically compatible with the language, doesn't actually mean anything (yet).
This page is essentially a public repository of information on Sisiwön. Work on the language is conducted in the Yahoo group ConlangCollaboration. If you'd like to participate, feel free to join the group (as opposed to changing this page directly).
I know nothing about editing this Wiki, and the help page is blank. Help! (PaulBennett)
Phonology
Vowels
There are a total of twenty phonetic vowels: i /I/, ii /i:/, ü /Y/, üü /y:/, ï /U_c/, ïï /M:/, u /U/, uu /u:/, e /E/, ee /e:/, ö /9/, öö /2:/, ë /V/, ëë /7:/, o /O/, oo /o:/, ä /&/, ää /&:/, a /A/, aa /A:/. However, due to vowel harmony, any given word will only contain a subset of these, either the front series (i ii ü üü e ee ö öö ä ää) or the back series (ï ïï u uu ë ëë o oo a aa). It makes sense to think of Sisiwön as having five basic vowel phonemes (ï, u, ë, o, a), plus two suprasegmental phonemes, [+long] and [+front], the latter occuring zero or one times in each word, affecting all the vowels in it.
Consonants
From the group's phonology file, still in X-Sampa:
lab alv lat alvpa pal vel uvu glo
Stops plain p t k q
aspirated p_h t_h k_h
ejective p_> t_> k_>
Affricates ts) tK) tS)
Fricatives f s K S x h
Nasals m n N
Liquids r l
Semivowels
Labialized lab alv lat alvpa pal vel uvu glo
Stops plain k_w q_w
aspirated k_w_h
ejective k_w_>
Affricates ts)_w tS)_w
Fricatives s_w x_w
Nasals N_w
Liquids
Semivowels w
Palatalized lab alv lat alvpa pal vel uvu glo
Stops plain
aspirated
ejective
Affricates ts)_j
Fricatives s_j
Nasals n_j
Liquids r_j l_j
Semivowels j
There may be a restriction preventing labialized and palatalized consonants from occurring before [u(:)] and [i(:)], respectively.
Syllable structure
It seems the consensus is CV(N) with N being any non-stop, non-affricate, or alternatively the aforementioned vowel-lengthening suprasegmental [+long]. The symbol C may also stand for a word-initial 0-, allowing vowel-initial words.
Word Structure
Any number of syllables, as defined above, with no other constraints known at this time.
Grammar
Verbal morphology
Verbs are marked agglutinatively for person and number of subject and object, tense (past vs non-past), mood (indicative vs irrealis vs imperative), aspect (imperfect vs perfect) and evidentiality (probably as clitics, meanings as yet undecided).
Inchoative and completive will probably be derivational and independent of the aspectual system.
There are a small class of valence-increasing derivational operations that take f(x,y) -> g(z,f(x,y)), where g is "want", "cause", "allow", "prevent", or "fear", and maybe a small number of others.
