SIGN:Dals Recomendăs sür el Glheþ Talossan
a compilation of recommendations intended for government work etc – to be replaced by an upcoming Unified Orthography
2020/XLI
Pronunciation
Phonological inventory
| bilabial | dental | alveolar | palatal | velar | glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | ||
| plosive | p b | t d | k ɡ | |||
| affricate | ʦ | ʧ ʤ | ||||
| fricative | f v | θ ð | s z | ʃ ʒ | x ɣ | h |
| rhotic | r | |||||
| approximant | j | w | ||||
| lateral | ɬ l | ʎ |
| close | mid | open | |
|---|---|---|---|
| front | i ɪ y | u ũ | |
| center | e ø | ə | o |
| back | æ | a | ɑ |
Orthography
| consonant(s) | sound | conditions and notes |
|---|---|---|
| b | [b] | |
| bh | [v] | |
| c | [k] | |
| [ʧ] | before ‹e› and ‹i›. If ‹ce› and ‹ci› are followed by vowels, ‹e› and ‹i› are silent; e.g. ceai [ʧai̯] | |
| ch | [k] | |
| c’h | [x] | |
| ç | [s] | |
| d | [d] | |
| [ð] | always between two vowels or next to [r] | |
| dd | [d] | |
| dh | [ð] | |
| dt | [d] | word-initially |
| ð | [ð] | |
| f | [f] | |
| fh | [h] | |
| g | [g] | |
| [ʤ] | in the words ageu(x), legeu(x), regeu(x), regipäts(ilor), viceregeu(x) | |
| gc | [g] | word-initially |
| gh | [ɣ] | |
| glh | [ʎ] | |
| gnh | [ɲ] | |
| h | [h] | |
| j | [j] | |
| k | [k] | only used in loanwords |
| l | [l] | |
| [ð] | word-initially after a vowel | |
| [ɬ] | before an unvoiced plosive | |
| [u̯] | in the syllable coda after ‹a›, ‹ä›, ‹å›, ‹e› and ‹i›; optional in the words el(s), àl(s), del(s), dal(s) | |
| silent | in the syllable coda after ‹o› and ‹u› | |
| lh | [ʎ] | |
| ll | [l] | |
| m | [m] | |
| mb | [m] | word-initially |
| mh | [v] | |
| n | [n] | |
| [ŋ] | before [k] | |
| nd | [n] | word-initially |
| ng | [ŋg] | |
| [ŋ] | word-finally | |
| nh | [ɲ] | |
| p | [p] | |
| ph | [f] | |
| q | [kj] | |
| qu | [kw] | |
| r | [r] | |
| [ʃ] | at the end of infinitives and in their plural forms | |
| rh | [ʃ] | in verbal future endings |
| s | [s] | |
| [z] | in the endings -osă(s), -ösă(s) and -sour(s); furthermore in -sen after a vowel | |
| sch | [ʃ] | |
| sh | [ʃ] | |
| ss | [s] | alternate spelling for ‹ß›, except in the words fossent, Talossa, qissen, and derivations thereof |
| ß | [s] | |
| t | [t] | |
| [u̯] | colloquially in the ending -at(s) | |
| tg | [θ] | alternate spelling for ‹þ› |
| th | [h] | |
| ts | [ʦ] | |
| [t] | word-initially | |
| tx | [ʒ] | |
| tz | [ʦ] | |
| v | [v] | |
| vf | [v] | word-initially |
| vh | [w] | |
| w | [w] | only used in loanwords |
| x | [ks] | |
| [ʃ] | in the endings -eux and -éux | |
| xh | [ʤ] | |
| y | [j] | only used in loanwords |
| z | [z] | |
| [ʦ] | in the root scurz- and the morpheme -ziun- | |
| þ | [θ] |
Consonant clusters that are not supposed to be pronounced together are broken up with an interpunct (·), or alternatively an apostrophe (’): s·chitză / s’chitză [ˈskiʦə] (instead of *schitză [ˈʃiʦə]).
| vowel(s) | sound | conditions and notes |
|---|---|---|
| a | [a] | |
| [ə] | after a stressed syllable except before a semivowel. When a feminine noun or adjective or a derivation thereof end in an unstressed ‹a›, it can be spelled as ‹ă› or ‹â›. Spelling Talossa as Talossă or Talossâ is possible but not recommended. | |
| ae | [ai̯] | |
| ä | [æ] | |
| å | [ɑ] | |
| e | [e] | |
| [ə] | after a stressed syllable except before a semivowel | |
| ea | [e̯a] | |
| eu | [ɪu̯] | |
| éu | [eu̯] | |
| i | [i] | |
| [i̯] | before or after a vowel | |
| silent | in the ending -schti | |
| ii | [i] | |
| ind | [ant] | in the endings -ind(s) and -ind(ă)mint |
| iun | [i̯un] | |
| [i̯ũ] | in the ending -iun(s) | |
| o | [o] | |
| oa | [o̯a] | |
| ou | [u] | |
| ö | [ø] | |
| u | [u] | |
| [u̯] | before or after a vowel | |
| ui | [ui̯] | |
| [u̯i] | word-initially and after ‹c’h›, ‹g›, ‹q› and ‹s› | |
| ü | [y] | |
| y | several | only used in loanwords; pronunciation depends on language of origin |
Analogously to the consonants, vowel clusters that are not supposed to be pronounced together are broken up with an interpunct (·), or alternatively an apostrophe (’): co·aliziun / co’aliziun [ko.aliˈʦi̯ũ] (instead of *coaliziun [ko̯aliˈʦi̯ũ]). Alternatively, if the cluster contains ‹e› or ‹i›, it can be broken up using a trema (¨): Rëuniziun / Re·uniziun / Re’uniziun [re.uniˈʦi̯ũ] (instead of *Reuniziun [rɪu̯niˈʦi̯ũ]).
The names of the letters of the alphabet are as follows:
A a [a], B be [be], C tze [ʦe], D de [de], Ð eð [eð], E e [e], F ef [ef], G ge [ge], H hal [hau̯] or hasch [haʃ], I i [i], J txotă [ˈʒotə], K ka [ka], L ell [el], M em [em], N en [en], O o [o], P pe [pe], Q cü [ky], R er [er], S es [es], T te [te], U u [u], V ve [ve], W ve Tütsch [ve tyʧ], X üx [yks], Y üpsilon [ˈypsilon], Z tzet [ʦet], Þ þorn [θorn]
Stress
If no syllable has a stress mark, the primary stress of the word falls on the final syllable that has a vowel with an umlaut or ring (ä, å, ö, ü) or which is followed by a consonant, after ignoring the endings -s, -en(s), -ent(s), -er(s), -esch(en), -eu(x), -ica(s), -ică(s), -ic(i), -(esch)laiset(s), -lor, -mint(s), -p(h)äts and -sqåb(s) in case it has one of those. In the context of this rule, semivocalic ‹i› and ‹u› as well as ‹e› following ‹a› are counted as consonants.
Irregular stress is marked with an accute accent (´). If the irregular stress falls on a word-final vowel, it is marked with a grave accent (`). Vowels that already have a diacritic cannot receive a stress mark (see 1.5.). Furthermore, a trema-marked vowel (ë, ï, NOT ä, ö, ü) is considered explicitly stressmarked if and only if the word lacks any other explicit stressmarkings and that vowel occurs somewhere after the last unignored consonant in the word (e.g. Rußïă).
In words where the stress rule fails to determine stress, it falls on the first syllable: mici [ˈmiʧi], ricăs [ˈrikəs].
Optional final stress in third person singular future forms of verbs is not marked: amarha [aˈmaʃə ~ amaˈʃa], façarha [faˈsaʃə ~ fasaˈʃa]. If final stress is not optional, it is marked as usual: ischà [iˈʃa].
The following words can be optionally stressed on the first syllable: azul [aˈzu ~ ˈazu], acest [aˈʧest ~ ˈaʧəst], vidar [viˈðaʃ ~ ˈviðəʃ], embù [emˈbu ~ ˈembu].
Words with unpredictable pronunciations
- acestilor [aˈʧeʃʧələr]
- attaq [aˈtak]
- bidet [biˈðe]
- c’e [ʧe]
- Cézembre [sei̯ˈzambrə ~ ˈsezəmbrə]
- cioveci [ʧoˈvei̯ʧ]
- credar [kreˈdaʃ]
- da c’horsică [daˈxorsk]
- doamnă [ˈdu̯anə]
- e-ça qe [ˈeskjə]
- fascismeu [faˈʃismɪu̯]
- fascistà [faʃisˈta]
- Fernaodo [ferˈnau̯ðu]
- hi [i]
- Hoeksqåb [ˈhøkskjɑb]
- ir [ˈi.əʃ]
- Krakov [ˈkrakuf]
- lhor [ðor]
- Llimbaziuă [ʎimbaˈziu̯ə]
- lu [lu]
- Miadhoamnă [maˈðu̯anə]
- morgun [ˈmorən]
- Mximo [məˈksimo]
- n’estás-c’e [nesˈtasə]
- noueinçe [nu.ˈei̯ns]
- o(s) [u(ʃ)]
- policier [poliˈsi̯e]
- qareinçe [kaˈrei̯ns]
- qator [ˈkatər ~ ˈkator]
- renaixençă [renai̯ˈʃensə]
- rönt·gen [ˈrønʧən]
- seifdesch [ˈsai̯fdəʃ]
- seifeinçe [sai̯ˈfei̯ns]
- seifet [ˈsai̯fət]
- seiftéu [sai̯fˈteu̯]
- seiftéă [ˈsai̯fˈte.ə]
- sexeinçe [sekˈsei̯ns]
- sieu(x) [ʃu(ʃ)]
- sïeu(x) [ˈsi.u(ʃ)]
- simeinçe [siˈmei̯ns]
- so [su]
- sovindă [soˈvantə] (also sovantă)
- tir [ˈti.əʃ]
- treinçe [trei̯ns]
- upp [øp]
- uppadă [øˈpaðə]
- uppdateu [øpˈdatɪu̯]
- Uruguay [uruˈwai̯]
- vuidesch [ˈvu̯iðəʃ]
- vuieinçe [vu̯i.ˈei̯ns]
- vuit [vu̯it]
- vuitéu [vu̯iˈteu̯]
- vuitéă [vu̯iˈte.ə]
- Zaragoză [θaraˈgoθə]
Words with unpredictable stress
- äflec’h [ˈæfləx]
- asündeton [aˈsyndəton]
- bisquinc [ˈbiskwiŋk]
- cläxon [ˈklækson]
- crüsalis [ˈkrysəlis]
- Cüclades [ˈkykləðəs]
- Cüclops [ˈkyklops]
- dülspec’ht [ˈdylspəxt]
- flügel [ˈflygeu̯]
- (foto)sünþesis [(foto)ˈsynθəsis]
- fönix [ˈføniks]
- förex [ˈførəks]
- füslac’ht [ˈfysləxt]
- gültec’h [ˈgyɬtəx]
- gümnosperm [ˈgymnospərm]
- hüvell [ˈhyvəl]
- läxhir [ˈlæʤir]
- lümagnhac’ht [ˈlyməɲəxt]
- lüstic’h [ˈlystix]
- müchet [ˈmykət]
- müschcel [ˈmyʃʧeu̯]
- osürac’h [oˈsyrəx]
- prüving [ˈpryviŋ]
- qator [ˈkatər ~ ˈkator]
- rasüc’htec’h [raˈsyxtəx]
- rönt·gen [ˈrønʧən]
- rücfüring [rykˈfyriŋ]
- sändwitsch [ˈsændwiʧ]
- säpar [ˈsæpəʃ]
- sätin [ˈsætin]
- sch’ändå [ˈʃændɑ]
- seifet [ˈsai̯fət]
- süsädmin [syˈsædmin]
- trümac’h [ˈtryməx]
- tüpin [ˈtypin]
- undaveint [ˈundəveɪnt]
- üntrac’ht [ˈyntrəxt]
- üpsilon [ˈypsilon]
- vrüsanen [ˈvrysənən]
- xülofon [ˈksylofon]
- zespäts [zesˈpæʦ]
- þusund [ˈθusund]
Nouns
Definite articles
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | el, l’[* 1] | els |
| feminine | la, l’[* 1] | las |
| singular | plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | feminine | masculine | feminine | |
| à | àl | àls | ||
| da | del | dal | dels, dallas[* 1] | dals, dallas[* 1] |
Elided forms of da double as partitive articles.
Indefinite articles
| singular | plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | ün | 'n[* 1] | dels | dallas[* 2] |
| feminine | ünă | dals | ||
| masculine singular | feminine singular | |
|---|---|---|
| à | à’iens | à’iensă |
| c’e [ʧe] | c’e’n [ʧen] | |
| come | com’iens | com’iensă |
| contra | contr’iens | contr’iensă |
| da | d’iens | d’iensă |
| intra | intr’iens | intr’iensă |
| ja | ja’iens | ja’iensă |
| per | pr’iens | pr’iensă |
Regular pluralisation
- First declension: nouns that lack any characteristic ending receive -s.
- nouns ending in a stressed vowel receive -ns. If the noun ends in a stressed [a], one can alternatively add -es.
- the final consonant -l […u̯ ~ (silent)] and the ending -il […iu̯] become i before -s is added.
- the endings -ar and -an become -ae before -s is added.
- nouns ending in the sounds [s z ʃ ʒ ʃt ʧ ʤ ʎ ɲ θ] receive -en.
- Greek nouns ending in -sis change it to -ses.
- Letters of the Latin or Greek alphabets, solfege tones and the words ca and pru receive -s.
- Second declension: nouns ending in -eu or -éu receive -x.
- Third declension: nouns ending in -äCs or -äCCs, where C stands for any consonant, receive -ilor.
- Fourth declension: nouns ending in -ic, -íc or -ïc […ik] receive -i.
- nouns ending in -ic […i̯k] can receive either -i or -s.
- Fifth declension: nouns ending in -x, -sc or -scu change it to -schti.
A pluralised noun retains the stress of the singular form, except in the following cases:
- A noun that is stressed on the antepenult and receives -en in the plural moves the stress to the penult in the plural.
- A noun that ends in an unstressed vowel followed by -s moves the stress to the penult in the plural.
- All third declension nouns move the stress to the antepenult in the plural.
For the pluralisation of compound nouns, see 7.2.
Irregular pluralisation
| singular | plural |
|---|---|
| el caciun | els cician |
| el cióvec | els cioveci [ʧoˈvei̯ʧ] |
| el garda | els garxhi |
| la fru | las frulor |
| el fungu | els funxhi |
| el luïç | las luïçă |
| el po | els pocs |
| la politică | las politicăs, els politici |
| el viens | els viensas |
Usage
Noun gender
There are two noun genders, masculine and feminine.
The gender of a noun is mostly predictable. In general, nouns ending in -ă, stressed [a], -iun or stressed [u] are feminine, while all other nouns are masculine. Notable exceptions are words ending in -istà, which are masculine by default and the word Talossa, which is feminine. Since there are many additional exceptions to the rule above, such as garziun “boy” which is masculine or säp “knowledge” which may be masculine or feminine, the gender of a noun is always listed in the dictionary.
Furthermore, nouns that describe animals, professions, conditions or similar things may deviate from their default gender listed in the dictionary. For example, the noun cadì “judge”, which is masculine by default, can become feminine when the person is feminine.
It is worth noting that if a normally masculine noun which ends in unstressed -a or -at becomes feminine in that fashion, the endings change to -ă and -adă respectively.
- el Meschic’ha “the messiah”
- la Meschic’hă “the [female] messiah”
- el destinat “the addressee”
- la destinadă “the [female] addressee”
The same rule applies backwards when a feminine-by-default noun becomes masculine.
- la doctoră “the nurse”
- el doctora “the [male] nurse”
When the gender of the animal or person is either unknown or irrelevant, the default gender from the dictionary is used.
Noun number
<TBD>
Noun introduction
Nouns, except proper nouns, Talossa or names of Talossan provinces, require some sort of “introduction word” that precedes it, in form of an article, adjective, preposition, or apposite pronoun.
The most common way of introducing is by using an article, be it definite, indefinite, partitive or the phrase toct i. As a consequence, abstract and uncountable nouns require an article in Talossan even when they do not in English.
- toct i pätsilor “all the countries”
- la perziun “the person”
- dal apă “water”
- la vidă “life”
Adjectives that count as valid introduction words are demonstratives (acest, această, acestilor), possessive determiners (va, tu, etc.) and cardinal and indefinite numerals (viens, doua, cadascu, etc.).
- ár päts “our country”
- această perziun “this person”
- cadascu vidă “each life”
Note however that all other categories of adjectives not explicitly mentioned above are not sufficient to introduce a noun.
- el noveu bioscop “the new movie”
- la qareinçelaiset ediziun “the fortieth edition”
Instead of an article, abstract nouns as well as language names can also be introduced with a preposition, though using a preposition and an article is also correct.
- sanc (del) gräts “without mercy”
- in (l’)Anglească “in English”
This does not apply to other types of nouns, however.
- in el päts “in the country”
- sanc la perziun “without the person”
Finally, an apposite personal pronoun can be used to introduce a noun. This form of noun introduction only occurs rarely though.
- noi Talossaes “we Talossans”
Adjectives and adverbs
Regular gender inflection
- Adjectives ending in -eu or -éu change them to -ă and -éă respectively in their feminine form.
- Adjectives ending in -ceu […ʧɪu̯] or -cheu […kɪu̯] change them to -ciă […ʧə] and -că […kə] respectively in their feminine form.
- Adjectives ending in -at change it to -adă in their feminine form.
- Adjectives ending in -esc change it to -ească in their feminine form.
- Adjectives ending in -a change it to -ă in their feminine form.
- In all other cases, the masculine and feminine forms are identical.
Regular pluralisation
The pluralisation rules for adjectives are identical to those for nouns (see 2.3.).
Irregular adjective forms
| singular | plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | feminine | masculine | feminine |
| aucün | |||
| acest | această | acestilor [aˈʧeʃʧələr] | |
| acü | acütă | acüns | acütăs |
| bel | belă | bels | belăs |
| ben | bună | bens | bunăs |
| bléu | bluă | bléux | bluăs |
| cacsa | cacsă | cacsa | cacsă |
| cadascu | |||
| çaobén | |||
| embù | |||
| Européu | Europeiă | Européux | Europeiăs |
| fiir | fiis | ||
| ingen | |||
| negreu | neagră | negreux | neagrăs |
| nigüt | nigüdă | nigüts | nigüdăs |
| noveu | noua | noveux | nouăs |
| nü | nüdă | nüns | nüdăs |
| po | pocs | ||
| political | politici, politicais | ||
| próxim | próximă | próxins | próximăs |
| prüm | prümă | prüms | prümăs |
| quálsevol | quáisevois | ||
| qetevri | |||
| qissen | |||
| quist | quisten | ||
| timit | timidă | timits | timidăs |
| vell | veă | vells | veăs |
| viens | viensă | dels | dals |
The adjectives Belxhíc, evanxhelíc, matxentíc, öcümeníc and püblíc shift the stress to the antepenult in the plural.
Comparatives and superlatives
| masculine | feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| more | pü | |
| most | el pü | la phü |
| masculine | feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| less | mïus | |
| least | el mïus | la mhïus |
| masculine | feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| better | miglhor | |
| best | el miglhor | la m(h)iglhor |
| masculine | feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| worse | pior | |
| worst | el pior | la p(h)ior |
Adverbialisation of adjectives
To adverbialise an adjective, add the ending -mint to its feminine form.
Usage
Adjectives usually follow the noun they describe. Exceptions to this are demonstratives (acest, această, acestilor), which always precede the noun (see 2.5.), the adjective steçéu, which always follows it. They also always carry the same number and gender information as the noun they describe.
Short adjectives that describe size, quality or quantity are preferably precede the noun they describe. Adjectives that describe figurative rather than literal properties can precede the noun they describe on an optional basis.
The adjectives mismeu and propreu have different meanings depending on whether they precede or follow the noun.
- el mismeu cudesch “the same book”
- el cudesch mismeu “the book itself”
- va propră casă “my own house”
- va casă propră “my proper house”
Comparatives and superlatives are formed by placing the corresponding comparative phrase (see 3.4.) directly before the adjective, regardless of whether it precedes or follows the noun. If two articles end up adjacent, one of them is dropped.
- el cudesch pü intzereçind “the more interesting book”
- el cudesch el pü intzereçind “the most interesting book”
- el pü ben cudesch “the better/best book”
With ben “good” and mal “bad”, one can use the irregular comparatives (miglhor, pior) or the regular ones (pü ben, pü mal), but not both together (see 3.4.).
- el pü ben cudesch “the better/best book”
- el miglhor cudesch “the better/best book”
In comparisons, the English word “than” corresponds to Talossan qe. The phrase “as … as” corresponds to så … come or så … qe.
- Éu sint miglhor qe tu. “I am better than you.”
- Éu sint så ben come tu. “I am as good as you.”
- Éu sint så ben qe tu. “I am as good as you.”
Adjectives can be used as nouns in their own right. Adjectives that are used as nouns are often translated with the word “one” in English.
- la ben perziun “the good person”
- la ben “the good one”
Pronouns
Personal pronouns
| subject | object | prepositional | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| after consonant | after vowel | after på | ||||
| first person | singular | éu | me, m’[* 1] | me | mhe | me |
| plural | noi | noi, üns | nhoi, üns | noi | ||
| second person | singular | tu | te, t’[* 1] | dtu | thu | tu |
| plural | voi | vhoi | voi | |||
| third person | singular | o [u] | lo [lu], l’[* 1] | lo [lu] | lo [ðu] | lo [ðu] |
| a | la, l’[* 1] | eia | la | |||
| ça | en | ça | ||||
| plural | os [uʃ] | lor | lhor [ðor] | lor | ||
| as | ||||||
| ça | en | ça | ||||
| impersonal / reflexive | si | se, s’[* 1] | so [su] | |||
Possessive forms
| singular | plural | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | feminine | |||
| first person | singular | va, v’ [* 1] | vaes [* 2] | |
| plural | ár, noastra | ár, noastră | ár, noschtri | |
| second person | singular | tu | tuns [* 2] | |
| plural | voastra | voastră | voschtri | |
| third person | singular | sieu [ʃu] | sieux [ʃuʃ] [* 2] | |
| ça | ça’ns [* 2] | |||
| plural | lor | lors [* 2] | ||
| ça | ça’ns [* 2] | |||
| impersonal / reflexive | sieu [ʃu] | sieux [ʃuʃ] [* 2] | ||
| singular | plural | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | feminine | masculine | feminine | ||
| first person | singular | el méu | la mhïă | els méux | las mïăs |
| plural | el noastra | la noastră | els noschtri | las noschtri | |
| second person | singular | el tu | la thu | els tuns | las tuns |
| plural | el voastra | la voastră | els voschtri | las voschtri | |
| third person | singular | el sïeu [ˈsi.u] | la tsïă | els sïeux [ˈsi.uʃ] | las sïăs |
| el ça’n | la ça’n | els ça’ns | las ça’ns | ||
| plural | el lor | la lhor [ðor] | els lors | las lors | |
| el ça’n | la ça’n | els ça’ns | las ça’ns | ||
| impersonal / reflexive | el sïeu [ˈsi.u] | la tsïă | els sïeux [ˈsi.uʃ] | las sïăs | |
Usage
<TBD>
Verbs
Regular verbs
| infinitive | amar[* 1] | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu am(éu)[* 2] | noi ament (amameux[* 3]) |
| tu amás | voi ametz | |
| o/a/ça ama | os/as/ça ament | |
| past | éu ameveu | noi amevent (amevameux[* 3]) |
| tu amevás | voi amevetz | |
| o/a/ça ameva[* 4] | os/as/ça amevent | |
| future | éu amarhéu | noi amarhent (amarhameux[* 3]) |
| tu amarhás | voi amarhetz | |
| o/a/ça amarha[* 5] | os/as/ça amarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu amadréu | noi amadrent (amadrameux[* 3]) |
| tu amadrás | voi amadretz | |
| o/a/ça amadra | os/as/ça amadrent | |
| imperative | ¡ama![* 6] | ¡ametz![* 6] |
| present participle | amind | aminds |
| past participle | amat, amadă, amescu[* 7] | amats, amadăs, ameschti[* 7] |
| perfect aspect | tir [ˈti.əʃ] + past participle singular | |
| imperfect aspect | estar à + infinitive | |
| prospective aspect | ir [ˈi.əʃ] + infinitive / façar à + infinitive | |
| retrospective aspect | viénar à + infinitive | |
| manitive aspect | viénar da + infinitive | |
| continuative aspect | restar + present participle singular | |
| passive | estar + past participle | |
- ↑ Verbs that have irregular stress in the infinitive do not generally retain it in any other verb form. (see 5.4.1)
- ↑ The ending -éu is obligatory if the verb stem ends in a semivowel or an awkward consonant cluster
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 -ent forms are recommended, but -ameux forms are tolerated and perfectly acceptable.
- ↑ The ending -eva elides with the indefinite article into -ev’iens(ă).
- ↑ The third person singular future form can be optionally stressed on the final syllable.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Both forms can be used in the singular and the plural.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The endings -escu and -eschti are independent of gender.
Irregular verbs
| infinitive | creatar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu creat(éu) | noi creatent (creatameux) |
| tu creatás | voi createtz | |
| o/a/ça creata | os/as/ça creatent | |
| past | éu creavéu | noi creavent (creavameux) |
| tu creavás | voi creavetz | |
| o/a/ça creava | os/as/ça creavent | |
| future | éu creatarhéu | noi creatarhent (creatarhameux) |
| tu creatarhás | voi creatarhetz | |
| o/a/ça creatarha | os/as/ça creatarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu creatadréu | noi creatadrent (creatadrameux) |
| tu creatadrás | voi creatadretz | |
| o/a/ça creatadra | os/as/ça creatadrent | |
| imperative | ¡creata! | ¡createtz! |
| present participle | creatind | creatinds |
| past participle | creat, creadă | creats, creadăs |
| infinitive | credar [kreˈdaʃ] | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu créu | noi credent (credameux) |
| tu creas | voi credetz | |
| o/a/ça crea | os/as/ça credent | |
| past | éu crevéu | noi crevent (crevameux) |
| tu crevás | voi crevetz | |
| o/a/ça creva | os/as/ça crevent | |
| future | éu credarhéu | noi credarhent (credarhameux) |
| tu credarhás | voi credarhetz | |
| o/a/ça credarha | os/as/ça credarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu creadréu | noi creadrent (creadrameux) |
| tu creadrás | voi creadretz | |
| o/a/ça creadra | os/as/ça creadrent | |
| imperative | ¡creda! | ¡credetz! |
| present participle | credent | credents |
| past participle | creut, credescu | creuts, credeschti |
| infinitive | estar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu sint | noi sint (estameux) |
| tu isch | voi estetz | |
| o/a/ça isch, c’e [ʧe][* 1] | os/as/ça sint | |
| past | éu füt, esteveu | noi füvent, estevent (estevameux) |
| tu füt, estevás | voi füvent, estevetz | |
| o/a/ça füt, (c’)esteva[* 1] | os/as/ça füvent, (c’)esteva[* 1] | |
| future | éu seréu | noi serent (serameux) |
| tu serás | voi seretz | |
| o/a/ça serà | os/as/ça serent | |
| subjunctive | éu estadréu | noi estadrent (estadrameux) |
| tu estadrás | voi estadretz | |
| o/a/ça (c’)estadra[* 1] | os/as/ça (c’)estadrent[* 1] | |
| imperative | ¡esta! | ¡estetz! |
| present participle | estind | estinds |
| past participle | estescu | esteschti |
| infinitive | façar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu faç(éu) | noi façent (façameux) |
| tu façás | voi façetz | |
| o/a/ça fäts | os/as/ça façent | |
| past | éu façeveu | noi façevent (façevameux) |
| tu façevás | voi façevetz | |
| o/a/ça façeva | os/as/ça façevent | |
| future | éu façarhéu | noi façarhent (façarhameux) |
| tu façarhás | voi façarhetz | |
| o/a/ça façarha | os/as/ça façarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu façadréu | noi façadrent (façadrameux) |
| tu façadrás | voi façadretz | |
| o/a/ça façadra | os/as/ça façadrent | |
| imperative | ¡fäts! | ¡facetz! |
| present participle | façind | façinds |
| past participle | façat, façadă, fäts, facescu | façats, façadăs, fätsilor, faceschi |
| infinitive | fóstar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu fost | noi fossent (fostameux) |
| tu fost | voi fossent | |
| o/a/ça fost | os/as/ça fossent | |
| past | éu fosteveu | noi fostevent (fostevameux) |
| tu fostevás | voi fostevetz | |
| o/a/ça fosteva | os/as/ça fostevent | |
| future | éu fostarhéu | noi fostarhent (fostarhameux) |
| tu fostarhás | voi fostarhetz | |
| o/a/ça fostarha | os/as/ça fostarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu fostadréu | noi fostadrent (fostadrameux) |
| tu fostadrás | voi fostadretz | |
| o/a/ça fostadra | os/as/ça fostadrent | |
| imperative | ¡fosta! | ¡fostetz! |
| present participle | fostind | fostinds |
| past participle | fostat, fostadă, fostescu | fostats, fostadăs, fosteschti |
| infinitive | ir [ˈi.əʃ] | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu véu | noi viennent (vameux) |
| tu vas | voi vetz | |
| o/a/ça va | os/as/ça viennent | |
| past | éu veneveu | noi venevent (venevameux) |
| tu venevás | voi venevetz | |
| o/a/ça veneva | os/as/ça venevent | |
| future | éu ischéu | noi ischent (ischameux) |
| tu ischás | voi ischetz | |
| o/a/ça ischà | os/as/ça ischent | |
| subjunctive | éu venadréu | noi venadrent (venadrameux) |
| tu venadrás | voi venadretz | |
| o/a/ça venadra | os/as/ça venadrent | |
| imperative | ¡va!, ¡iöt! | ¡vetz!, ¡iöt! |
| present participle | viénind, vand | viéninds, vands |
| past participle | venescu | veneschti |
| infinitive | moártar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu moar(éu) | noi moarent (mortameux) |
| tu mortás | voi mortetz | |
| o/a/ça moara | os/as/ça moarent | |
| past | éu morteveu | noi mortevent (mortevameux) |
| tu mortevás | voi mortevetz | |
| o/a/ça morteva | os/as/ça mortevent | |
| future | éu moartarhéu | noi moartarhent (moartarhameux) |
| tu moartarhás | voi moartarhetz | |
| o/a/ça moartarha | os/as/ça moartarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu mortadréu | noi mortadrent (mortadrameux) |
| tu mortadrás | voi mortdretz | |
| o/a/ça mortadra | os/as/ça mortadrent | |
| imperative | ¡morta! | ¡mortetz! |
| present participle | moarind | moarinds |
| past participle | moart, mortescu | moarts, morteschti |
| infinitive | pevar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu put | noi povent (pevameux) |
| tu put | voi pevetz | |
| o/a/ça put | os/as/ça povent | |
| past | éu pognheveu | noi pognhevent (pognhevameux) |
| tu pognhevás | voi pognhevetz | |
| o/a/ça pognheva | os/as/ça pognhevent | |
| future | éu pevarhéu | noi pevarhent (pevarhameux) |
| tu pevarhás | voi pevarhetz | |
| o/a/ça pevarha | os/as/ça pevarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu povadréu | noi povadrent (povadrameux) |
| tu povadrás | voi povadretz | |
| o/a/ça povadra | os/as/ça povadrent | |
| imperative | ¡pevetz! | ¡pevetz! |
| present participle | povind | povinds |
| past participle | pevat, pevadă, pevescu | pevats, pevadăs, peveschti |
| infinitive | säpar [ˈsæpəʃ] | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu säp | noi säpent (säpameux) |
| tu säps | voi säpetz | |
| o/a/ça säp | os/as/ça säpent | |
| past | éu säpeveu | noi säpevent (säpevameux) |
| tu säpevás | voi säpevetz | |
| o/a/ça säpeva | os/as/ça säpevent | |
| future | éu säperéu | noi säperent (säperameux) |
| tu säperás | voi säperetz | |
| o/a/ça säperà | os/as/ça säperent | |
| subjunctive | éu säpadréu | noi säpadrent (säpadrameux) |
| tu säpadrás | voi säpadretz | |
| o/a/ça säpadra | os/as/ça säpadrent | |
| imperative | ¡säp! | ¡säpetz! |
| present participle | säpind | säpinds |
| past participle | säpescu | säpeschti |
| infinitive | scríuar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu scrïu | noi scrivent (scrivameux) |
| tu scriuas | voi scriitz | |
| o/a/ça scriua | os/as/ça scrivent | |
| past | éu scriveveu | noi scrivevent (scrivevameux) |
| tu scrivevás | voi scrivevetz | |
| o/a/ça scriveva | os/as/ça scrivevent | |
| future | éu scrivarhéu | noi scrivarhent (scrivarhameux) |
| tu scrivarhás | voi scrivarhetz | |
| o/a/ça scrivarha | os/as/ça scrivarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu scrivadréu | noi scrivadrent (scrivadrameux) |
| tu scrivadrás | voi scrivadretz | |
| o/a/ça scrivadra | os/as/ça scrivadrent | |
| imperative | ¡scriitz! | ¡scriitz! |
| present participle | scríind | scríinds |
| past participle | scriut | scriuts |
| infinitive | star | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu stéu | noi stameux |
| tu stas | voi stetz | |
| o/a/ça sta | os/as/ça stint | |
| past | éu steveu | noi stevent (stevameux) |
| tu stevás | voi stevetz | |
| o/a/ça steva | os/as/ça stevent | |
| future | éu starhéu | noi starhent (starhameux) |
| tu starhás | voi starhetz | |
| o/a/ça starha | os/as/ça starhent | |
| subjunctive | éu stadréu | noi stadrent (stadrameux) |
| tu stadrás | voi stadretz | |
| o/a/ça stadra | os/as/ça stadrent | |
| imperative | ¡sta! | ¡stetz! |
| present participle | stanind | staninds |
| past participle | stanescu | staneschti |
| infinitive | tir [ˈti.əʃ] | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu téu | noi tiennent (tenemeux) |
| tu tent | voi tenetz | |
| o/a/ça tent | os/as/ça tiennent | |
| past | éu tignhoveu | noi tignhovent (tignhovameux) |
| tu tignhovás | voi tignhovetz | |
| o/a/ça tignhova | os/as/ça tignhovent | |
| future | éu tischéu | noi tischent (tischameux) |
| tu tischás | voi tischetz | |
| o/a/ça tischa | os/as/ça tischent | |
| subjunctive | éu tenadréu | noi tenadrent (tenadrameux) |
| tu tenadrás | voi tenadretz | |
| o/a/ça tenadra | os/as/ça tenadrent | |
| imperative | ¡tent! | ¡tischetz! |
| present participle | tischind | tischinds |
| past participle | tenescu | teneschti |
| infinitive | velar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu volt | noi volent (velameux) |
| tu volt | voi veletz | |
| o/a/ça volt | os/as/ça volent | |
| past | éu veleveu | noi velevent (velevameux) |
| tu velevás | voi velevetz | |
| o/a/ça veleva | os/as/ça velevent | |
| future | éu velarhéu | noi velarhent (velarhameux) |
| tu velarhás | voi velarhetz | |
| o/a/ça velarha | os/as/ça velarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu veladréu | noi veladrent (veladrameux) |
| tu veladrás | voi veladretz | |
| o/a/ça veladra | os/as/ça veladrent | |
| imperative | ¡volt! | ¡volt! |
| present participle | velind | velinds |
| past participle | velescu | veleschti |
| infinitive | vidar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu vïu, videu | noi vident (vidameux) |
| tu vïas | voi videtz | |
| o/a/ça vïa | os/as/ça vident | |
| past | éu videveu | noi videvent (videvameux) |
| tu videvás | voi videvetz | |
| o/a/ça videva | os/as/ça videvent | |
| future | éu vidarhéu | noi vidarhent (vidarhameux) |
| tu vidarhás | voi vidarhetz | |
| o/a/ça vidarha | os/as/ça vidarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu vidadréu | noi vidadrent (vidadrameux) |
| tu vidadrás | voi vidadretz | |
| o/a/ça vidadra | os/as/ça vidadrent | |
| imperative | ¡vida! | ¡videtz! |
| present participle | vidind | vidinds |
| past participle | víut, videscu | víuts, videschti |
| infinitive | viénar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu viens | noi viennent (vameux) |
| tu viens | voi vetz | |
| o/a/ça vient | os/as/ça viennent | |
| past | éu veneveu | noi venevent (venevameux) |
| tu venevás | voi venevetz | |
| o/a/ça veneva | os/as/ça venevent | |
| future | éu venarhéu | noi venarhent (venarhameux) |
| tu venarhás | voi venarhetz | |
| o/a/ça venarha | os/as/ça venarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu venadréu | noi venadrent (venadrameux) |
| tu venadrás | voi venadretz | |
| o/a/ça venadra | os/as/ça venadrent | |
| imperative | ¡vena! | ¡venetz! |
| present participle | venind | veninds |
| past participle | viénat, viénadă, venescu | viénats, viénadăs, veneschti |
| infinitive | zirar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu zïu | noi zirent (zirameux) |
| tu zïas | voi ziretz | |
| o/a/ça zïa | os/as/ça zirent | |
| past | éu zireveu | noi zirevent (zirevameux) |
| tu zirevás | voi zirevetz | |
| o/a/ça zireva | os/as/ça zirevent | |
| future | éu zirarhéu | noi zirarhent (zirarhameux) |
| tu zirarhás | voi zirarhetz | |
| o/a/ça zirarha | os/as/ça zirarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu ziradréu | noi ziradrent (ziradrameux) |
| tu ziradrás | voi ziradretz | |
| o/a/ça ziradra | os/as/ça ziradrent | |
| imperative | ¡na![* 1], ¡zira! | ¡ditz![* 1], ¡ziretz! |
| present participle | zirind | zirinds |
| past participle | zirat, ziradă, zirescu | zirats, ziradăs, zireschti |
| infinitive | zonar | |
|---|---|---|
| present | éu zon(éu) | noi zonent (zonameux) |
| tu zonás | voi zonetz | |
| o/a/ça zona | os/as/ça zonent | |
| past | éu zoneveu | noi zonevent (zonevameux) |
| tu zonevás | voi zonevetz | |
| o/a/ça zoneva | os/as/ça zonevent | |
| future | éu zonarhéu | noi zonarhent (zonarhameux) |
| tu zonarhás | voi zonarhetz | |
| o/a/ça zonarha | os/as/ça zonarhent | |
| subjunctive | éu zonadréu | noi zonadrent (zonadrameux) |
| tu zonadrás | voi zonadretz | |
| o/a/ça zonadra | os/as/ça zonadrent | |
| imperative | ¡da![* 1], ¡zona! | ¡da![* 1], ¡zonetz! |
| present participle | zonind | zoninds |
| past participle | zonat, zonadă, zonescu | zonats, zonadăs, zoneschti |
Verbs in inverted word order
In inverted word order, the verb ending elides with the personal pronoun:
- éu elides with the endings -éu and -eu to -’éu.
- tu elides with the ending -ás to -ás’t.
- o [u] and a combine with the ending -a to -a-t-o […aˈtu] and -a-t-a […aˈta] respectively and with -à to to -à-t-o […aˈtu] and -à-t-a […aˈta] respectively.
- In all other cases, the pronoun is hyphenated to the end of the verb without further change.
In any case, the added pronoun receives the stress of the word.
Usage
Verb stem
The verb stem is derived from the infinitive is used to form all other forms of regular verbs. Furthermore, it is used in word derivations (see 7.1.2).
It is formed by removing the -ar ending, e.g. amar “to love” > am-. If the infinitive is stressmarked, it is also removed, e.g. cognhéçar “to know (people)” > cognheç-. However, if the stress mark is not just used to mark irregular stress but also to break up a diphthong, a different set of rules applies: verbs ending in -íar and -úar drop the stress mark without replacement but retain the hiatus in the first person plural and third person singular and plural forms of the present tense and the singular imperative: in these forms, the stem ends in -ï and -ú respectively, e.g. xhúar “to play” > xhúa, xhúent, ¡xhúa!, but xhuetz. In all other cases, the hiatus is kept in the stem and no other change occurs, e.g. aílar “to ail” > aïl-.
Verbs ending in -ear have an irregularly stressed verb stem in the first and third person plural form of the present tense, e.g. agrear “to agree” > agréent. All other forms use the regular unstressmarked verb stem.
Verbs ending in -icar which are more than two syllables long have an irregularly stressed verb stem in the third person singular form of the present tense and the singular imperative, e.g. identificar “to identify” > identifíca, ¡identifíca!, but cicar “to arrive” > cica, ¡cica!. All other forms use the regular unstressmarked verb stem.
The following verbs have irregular verb stems: ir [ˈi.əʃ] > ven-, moártar > mort-, pevar > pov-, scríuar > scriv-, tir [ˈti.əʃ] > tisch-, viénar > ven-.
Use of the infinitive
<TBD>
Use of tenses
<TBD>
Use of aspects
<TBD>
Prefixed verbs
<TBD>
Numerals
Cardinal numbers
| units | teens | tens | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | feminine | |||
| 0 | nul | bisquinc [ˈbiskwiŋk] | --- | |
| 1 | viens | viensă | ündesch | |
| 2 | doua | două | dudesch | vaintsch, veint |
| 3 | tres | treidesch | treinçe [trei̯ns] | |
| 4 | qator [ˈkatər ~ ˈkator] | tordesch | qareinçe [kaˈrei̯ns] | |
| 5 | simca | simcă | quintesch | simeinçe [siˈmei̯ns] |
| 6 | sex | sedesch | sexeinçe [sekˈsei̯ns] | |
| 7 | seifet [ˈsai̯fət] | seifdesch [ˈsai̯fdəʃ] | seifeinçe [sai̯ˈfei̯ns] | |
| 8 | vuit [vu̯it] | vuidesch [ˈvu̯iðəʃ] | vuieinçe [vu̯i.ˈei̯ns] | |
| 9 | noua | nouă | undaveint [ˈundəveɪnt] | noueinçe [nu.ˈei̯ns] |
- 100: chint
- 1 000: þusund [ˈθusund], mil (preferred with year numbers)
- 1 000 000: miglhiun
- 1 000 000 000: miglhard, þusund [ˈθusund] miglhiun
- 1 000 000 000 000: biglhiun
- 1 000 000 000 000 000: biglhard
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000: triglhiun
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: triglhard
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: quatriglhiun
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: quatriglhard
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: quintiglhiun
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: quintiglhard
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: sexiglhiun
- 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000: sexiglhard …
Ordinal numbers
Ordinals are formed by adding -laiset to the numeral (exception: viens > pirmalaiset). That ending’s abbreviation is -l:t or -:t. Alternate forms for ordinals are as follows:
| units | teens | tens | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | nuléu, -éă | bisquintéu, -éă | --- |
| 1 | prüm(ă) | ündeschéu, -éă | |
| 2 | secund | dudeschéu, -éă | vaintschéu/veintéu, -éă |
| 3 | tierçéu, -éă | treideschéu, -éă | treinçéu, -éă |
| 4 | quartéu, -éă | tordeschéu, -éă | qareinçéu, -éă |
| 5 | quintéu, -eă | quinteschéu, -éă | simeinçéu, -éă |
| 6 | sextéu, -éă | sedeschéu, -éă | sexeinçéu, -éă |
| 7 | seiftéu, -éă [sai̯f…] | seifdeschéu, -éă [sai̯f…] | seifeinçéu, -éă [sai̯f…] |
| 8 | vuitéu, -éă [vu̯i…] | vuideschéu, -éă [vu̯i…] | vuieinçéu, -éă [vu̯i…] |
| 9 | nonéu, -éă | undaveintéu, -éă | noueinçéu, -éă |
Alternate forms for bigger values are formed by adding -éu / -éă directly to the stem.
These forms are abbreviated by the numeral followed by the last consonant of the stem (unless it is sch) and the -éu / -éă ending (sextéu > 6:téu, treideschéu > 13:éu, simeinçéu > 50:çéu), Irregular abbreviations are prüm(ă) > 1:m(ă) and secund > 2:nd.
Usage
<TBD>
Dates and times
<TBD>
Lexicon and word derivation
Affixation
It is highly recommended to use regular derivations instead of irregular ones (cunsistar, cunsistent, cunsistençù, incunsistençù instead of qomsistar, cunsistent, qomsistençù / cunvegnhençă, ziscunvenençă; ilegal instead of illegal; etc). This recommendation notwithstanding, irregularly derived words are still considered correct.
Prefixes
- anti-: against, opposed to
- artsch-: arch, of eminent degree
- autu-: auto, self
- circüm-: around
- cis-: on this side of
- contr(a)-: contrary, parallel but opposed
- crüpto-: secret
- cun-: co-, con-, with (cu- before L, M, N, R; cum- before B, P)
- ex-: former, ex
- extr(a)-: outside
- in-: negation, un-, in-, ir- (i- before L, M, N, R; im- before B, P)
- inter-: inter
- itra-: intra
- mäcro-: large, huge
- meta-: beyond, meta-
- micro-: tiny, microscopic
- mis-: poor quality, erroneous, or wrong action
- muti-: multi-, many
- noveu-: new, neo-
- osprei-: after, post-
- pan-: all, pan-
- per-: for, pro-
- prai-: pre-, ante-, before
- psëud(u)-: pseudo
- quasi-: somewhat, quasi-
- re-: again, anew, re- (ri- before vowels)
- retro-: backwards, rear, inverse direction
- sanc-: -less, without
- sub-: below
- super-: above, super
- tele-: far, electronic communication
- þüper-: excessive, hyper
- þüpo-: insufficient, hypo
- trans-: across, on the other side of
- ultra-: ultra-, beyond, extreme
- vice-: vice, assistant, subordinate
- zemi-: half, semi, partly
- zes-: separation, removal
- zis-: complete opposite
Suffixes
Suffixes that begin with a consonant are affixed directly, while suffixes that with a vowel are affixed to the stem:
- If the word ends in a consonant or -éu, the full word is the stem.
- Words ending in a stressed vowel, the stem is formed by adding an -n.
- If the word ends in an unstressed vowel or falling diphthong, the stem is formed by removing it. In case of rising diphthongs, the first segment is kept.
- If the word ends in -ïu, the stem is formed by replacing that ending with -iv.
- The stem of a numeral is the corresponding alternative ordinal without the -éu ending (e.g. simca > quint-).
- Verb stems are formed as described in section 5.4.1.
- -ă: resulting object or resulting action (from verbs)
- -adă: product made from; an ongoing action; a stroke or thrust, usually with a cutting or pointed instrument; also the wound left by such a blow; quantity that fills something; quantity determined by the nature of the action
- -adeireu: place
- -adoiră: machine
- -aglhă: group or pile with sense of disorder or ill
- -amaintsch: verbal noun expressing or characterised by a single action of the verb
- -arac’h: naturally occurring group
- -ard: bad person
- -arieu: place where a thing is kept; recipient of a transaction (-ee); book, bound collection, printed matter
- -atïu: -(at)ive, inclination to, capacity for
- -atréu: -in-law (feminine -atréă)
- -atréu: having same or similar qualities or appearance
- -atsch: bad person, animal, or thing
- -atx: object or thing made from or having the quality of; collection, set, with a sense of order
- -aval: ability
- -aziun: verbal noun of action
- -buerg: town, city of, -burg
- -cadă: series, row, line
- -destreçă: skill
- -eir: doer of an action
- -ell: young animal
- -erïă: business or place of business; goods sold
- -erïe: feature of character
- -esc: -ish, -like, -esque
- -eschar: forms a verb meaning beginning, becoming
- -escu: patronymic, son of, -son
- -et: small, diminutive (feminine -etă)
- -iă: region or place of
- -içar: -ize, to make into, transform, render
- -ificar: -ify, to cover, supply, or furnish with
- -iform: shaped like
- -ismeu: -ism, ideology, system
- -istà: -ist, partisan or professional
- -ità: abstract quality, -ity, -ness
- -itis: -itis, inflammation, disease
- -ófil: one characterised by -ofilia
- -ofiliă: love or interest, often excessive
- -ofob: one who fears or hates
- -ofobia: fear, hatred
- -oiră: article that contains
- -olateir: one who worships
- -olatriă: worship
- -omaniă: insane excitement, madness
- -omániäc: one suffering from an -omania
- -onçă: abstract quality characterised by an action
- -ös: full of, rich in, characterised by, -ous
- -osis: disease, disorder
- -otecă: place where things are collected and stored
- -otic: diseased by an -ósis
- -p(h)äts: domain, realm, country
- -sqåb: office, legal duties
- -üc: charming and small
- -üt: -ite, follower or descendant; characterisation by a physical feature
- -värts: toward
Numerical suffixes
- -aină: collective noun
- -et: group of people (feminine -etă)
- -föld: -fold
- -plet: number of siblings
- -plicar: multiplication
Compounding
<TBD>
Toponyms and ethnonyms
<TBD>
Sentence structure and forms of use
Allomorphy
Elisions with prepositions
- The words à, c’e [ʧe], come, contra, da, intra, ja and per must elide with the indefinite singular articles (see 2.2.). Furthermore, the third person singular past form of verbs can optionally elide with indefinite singular articles (see 5.1., footnote 4).
- The preposition à becomes àð before a vowel. It elides with acest, această, acestilor [aˈʧeʃʧələr], aicì and dove to à’cest, à’ceastă, à’cestilor [aˈʧeʃʧələr], à’icì and aduve respectively. It must elide with the definite singular articles (see 2.1.).
- The word come becomes com’ before a vowel.
- The preposition da becomes either d’ or dað before a vowel. It elides with dove to daduve. It must elide with the definite singular articles (see 2.1.).
- osprei elides with eia to ospr’eia.
Elisions with interrogatives and relatives
- dove elides with (tu) isch and (o [u] / a / ça) isch to dovestás and dovestà respectively. It becomes dov’ before a vowel.
- The pronouns qet and qi elide with isch to qet’st and qi’st respectively.
Miscellaneous allomorphies
- acest can elide with isch to c’e [ʧe] on an optional basis. Similarly, it can optionally become c’ [ʧ] before other forms of the verb estar that start with ‹e›.
- The articles el and la become l’ before a vowel unless the noun they precede denotes a letter of the alphabet (see 2.1.).
- hi [i] elides with isch and sint to ja and j’ont respectively.
- ja must elide with the indefinite singular articles (see 2.2.).
- The noun ma becomes mha when preceded by the feminine singular definite article or a preposition ending in a vowel.
- The pronouns me, te, lo [lu], la and se become m’, t’, l’, l’, and s’ respectively when preceding a verb beginning with a vowel (see 4.1.).
- The conjunction qe becomes q’ before a vowel.
- The possessive determiner va becomes v’ before a vowel (see 4.2.), though this rule can optionally be disreguarded for purposes of emphasis.
- In inverted word order, verb ending may elide with personal pronouns (see 5.3.).
Affirmative sentences
Default word order for affirmative sentences is Subject–Verb–Object.
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch.
OBJECT
“The learner reads the book.”
If the subject is éu, it is common, though not obligatory, to leave it out. This does not apply to other personal pronouns.
Éu
SUBJECT
liréu
VERB
el cudesch.
OBJECT
“I read the book.”
Liréu
VERB
el cudesch.
OBJECT
“I read the book.”
If the object is a personal pronoun, the word order becomes Subject–Object–Verb.
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
en
OBJECT
lira.
VERB
“The learner reads it.”
If the object is a personal pronoun but the verb consists of two parts with no preposition between them, it must be placed before the first verb. If the second verb is in the infinitive form, the pronoun can instead be placed before the second verb or attached to it with a hyphen, though placing a pronoun inbetween two verbs is most often avoided in prose.
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
en
OBJECT
tent
VERB
lirat.
VERB
“The learner has read it.”
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
en
OBJECT
volt
VERB
lirar.
VERB
“The learner wants to read it.”
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
volt
VERB
en
OBJECT
lirar.
VERB
“The learner wants to read it.” (rare in prose)
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
volt
VERB
lirar-en.
VERB-OBJECT
“The learner wants to read it.”
As a special case, if the verb consists of two parts that are connected with the prepositions à or da, the object must be placed either before the first verb or attached to the second with a hyphen.
Si
SUBJECT
en
OBJECT
haßa
VERB
à
PREPOSITION
vidar.
VERB
“You hate to see it.”
Si
SUBJECT
haßa
VERB
à
PREPOSITION
vidar-en.
VERB-OBJECT
“You hate to see it.”
In quote tags as well as interjections involving a verb of saying, feeling, thinking etc., Subject and Verb are inversed.
«Ça sint inverçats»,
[QUOTE]
scriveva
VERB
l’auþor.
SUBJECT
“«They are inversed», wrote the author.”
El cudesch isch,
[SENTENCE]
pens’éu,
VERB-SUBJECT
‘n po eißuc’h.
[SENTENCE]
“The book is, I think, a bit dry.”
In sentences with a time indication, the time indication can be placed first in the sentence on an optional basis. In that case, Subject and Verb (together with the object if it is a personal pronoun) are inversed.
Demà
TIME
lirarha
VERB
l’aprendeir
SUBJECT
el cudesch.
OBJECT
“Tomorrow the learner will read the book.”
Demà
TIME
en
OBJECT
lirarha
VERB
l’aprendeir.
SUBJECT
“Tomorrow the learner will read it.”
The Talossan equivalent of “there is” and “there are” are ja and j’ont respectively. They come first in the sentence, followed by the subject.
Ja’iens
VERB
cudesch.
SUBJECT
“There is a book.”
J’ont
VERB
dels cudeschen.
SUBJECT
“There are books.”
In tenses other than the present, hi [i] followed by the verb estar is used, analogously to English.
Hi
ADVERB
estev’iens
VERB
cudesch.
SUBJECT
“There was a book.”
Hi
ADVERB
serà
VERB
ün cudesch.
SUBJECT
“There will be a book.”
Interrogative sentences
There are three ways of forming yes-no questions out of affirmative ones, ordered from least to most marked:
- through Subject–Verb inversion,
¿Lira
VERB
l’aprendeir
SUBJECT
el cudesch?
OBJECT
“Does the learner read the book?”
¿En
OBJECT
lira
VERB
l’aprendeir?
SUBJECT
“Does the learner read it?”
- through the interrogative particles e-ça qe [ˈeskjə], n’estás-c’e [nesˈtasə], non c’e vräts and oi, whereas the sentence syntax per se stays intact,
¿E-ça qe
PARTICLE
l’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch?
OBJECT
“Is it that the learner reads the book?”
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch,
OBJECT
¿n’estás-c’e?
PARTICLE
“The learner reads the book, doesn’t he?”
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch,
OBJECT
¿non c’e vräts?
PARTICLE
“The learner reads the book, isn’t that right?”
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch,
OBJECT
¿oi?
PARTICLE
“The learner reads the book, yeah?”
- and through raising intonation alone.
¿L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch?
OBJECT
“The learner reads the book?”
Out of these three, inversion questions are the most neutral. Particle questions are rare, and intonation questions, similar to their English counterparts, carry a sense of doubt, surprise or incredulity. E-ça qe [ˈeskjə] is preferred for sentences that contain the special verbs ja and j’ont as inversion is impossible.
Ja’iens
VERB
cudesch.
SUBJECT
“There is a book.”
¿E-ça qe
PARTICLE
ja’iens
VERB
cudesch?
SUBJECT
“Is there a book?” (lit. “Is it that there is a book?”)
Content questions require an interrogative pronoun (qi, qet or qissen) or adverb which comes first in the sentence. Interrogative pronouns are accompanied by subject–verb inversion. With interrogative adverbs, one can choose between subject–verb inversion and using the particle e-ça qe [ˈeskjə] which then comes second in the sentence.
¿Qi
PRONOUN
lira
VERB
el cudesch?
OBJECT
“Who reads the book?”
¿Qet
PRONOUN
lira
VERB
l’aprendeir?
SUBJECT
“What does the learner read?”
¿Qissen
PRONOUN
cudesch
OBJECT
isch-ça?
VERB-SUBJECT
“Whose book is it?”
¿Perqet
ADVERB
lira
VERB
l’aprendeir
SUBJECT
el cudesch?
OBJECT
“Why does the learner read the book?”
¿Perqet
ADVERB
e-ça qe
PARTICLE
l’aprendeir
SUBJECT
lira
VERB
el cudesch?
OBJECT
“Why is it that the learner reads the book?”
Imperative sentences
The default word order in imperative sentences is Verb–Subject–Object. The subject is either tu or voi and must be attached to the verb with a hyphen. Having it is always optional.
¡Liretz-tu
VERB-SUBJECT
el cudesch!
OBJECT
“Read the book!” (directed at one person)
¡Liretz-voi
VERB-SUBJECT
el cudesch!
OBJECT
“Read the book!” (directed at a group)
¡Liretz
VERB
el cudesch!
OBJECT
“Read the book!”
If the object is a personal pronoun, it comes before the verb. If the subject is left out, it is preferred to attach the object to the verb with a hyphen.
¡En
OBJECT
liretz-tu!
VERB-SUBJECT
“Read it!” (directed at one person)
¡Liretz-en!
VERB-OBJECT
“Read it!”
If the subject of the imperative sentence is neither tu nor voi, a completely different sentence structure is employed, which is effectively that of affirmative sentences except that the word qe comes first in the sentence and the verb must be in the subjunctive. All inversion rules for affirmative sentences apply.
Noi
SUBJECT
lirent
VERB
dels cudeschen.
OBJECT
“We read books.”
¡Qe
CONJUNCTION
noi
SUBJECT
liradrent
VERB
dels cudeschen!
OBJECT
“Let’s read books!” (lit. “That we may read books!”)
Negation
In order to negate a sentence, non is placed before the verb. If the verb and object are inversed, it is placed before the object instead.
L’aprendeir
SUBJECT
non
NEGATION
lira
VERB
el cudesch.
OBJECT
“The learner doesn’t read the book.”
¿Perqet
SUBJECT
non
NEGATION
en
OBJECT
lira-t-o?
VERB-SUBJECT
“Why doesn’t he read it?”
¡Non
NEGATION
liretz-en!
VERB-OBJECT
“Don’t read it!”
Multiple negations in the sentence do not cancel each other out but rather amplify each other. In fact, it is preferred to have as many negations in the sentence as possible.
L’egoistà
SUBJECT
non
NEGATION
partetxarha
VERB
níþil
OBJECT[NEG]
cün neviens.
PREP[NEG]
“The selfish one won’t share anything with anyone.”
When there are multiple verbs in the sentence, the position of the word non can change the meaning of the sentence. In general, non negates the verb it precedes.
Tu
SUBJECT
non
NEGATION
fost
VERB
lirar-en.
VERB-OBJECT
“You don’t have to read it.” (lit. “You not must read it”)
Tu
SUBJECT
fost
VERB
non
NEGATION
lirar-en.
VERB-OBJECT
“You mustn’t read it.” (lit. “You must not read it”)
In a special case, if the two verbs are connected with à, the second verb is negated by changing the preposition to da.
Si
SUBJECT
non
NEGATION
haßa
VERB
à
PREPOSITION
vidar-en.
VERB-OBJECT
“You don’t hate to see it.”
Si
SUBJECT
haßa
VERB
da
PREPOSITION[NEG]
vidar-en.
VERB-OBJECT
“You hate to not see it.” (lit. “You hate from seeing it.”)
Answering yes-no questions
The Talossan equivalents of “yes” and “no” when answering a positive yes-no question are üc and non respectively.
- ¿Lira-t-o el cudesch? “Does he read the book?”
- Üc, o en lira. “Yes, he reads it.”
- Non, o non en lira. “No, he doesn’t read it.”
When answering a negative yes-no question however, the Talossan equivalent of “yes[, on the contrary]” is schi instead.
- ¿Non lira-t-o el cudesch? “Doesn’t he read the book?”
- Schi, o en lira. “Yes, he reads it.”
- Non, o non en lira. “No, he doesn’t read it.”
Relative clauses
The pronoun qi is used to introduce relative clauses pertaining to persons. Unlike English, which has a vestigial who/whom distinction, qi can be either subject, object or part of a prepositional phrase.
- L’aprendeir, qi lira el cudesch “The learner who reads the book”
- L’aprendeir, qi éu videveu “The learner whom I saw”
- L’aprendeir, à qi éu scriveveu “The learner to whom I wrote”
Relative clauses pertaining to inanimates use qi when it is the subject of the clause, qe when it is the object and qet when it is used in a prepositional phrase.
- El cudesch, qi en explicta “The book which explains it”
- El cudesch, qe l’aprendeir lira “The book which the learner reads”
- El cudesch, da qet quotéu “The book from which I quote”
Possessives are introduced with qissen, which is invariable.
- L’aprendeir, qissen cudesch isch ‘n po eißuc’h “The learner whose book is a bit dry”
Interrogative pronouns and adverbs can be used to link two sentences together, just like in English.
- Éu non säp, qet paßa. “I don’t know what’s going on.”
- ¿Säps-tu, quand la leitüră comença? “Do you know when the lecture comença?
The Talossan equivalent to English “which” used to link two sentences together is qet.
- O amineva sieu traval, qet l’ancumbreva. “He procrastinated his work, which frustrated her.”
The construction “he/she/etc. who” is expressed as either qi qi, which is gender-neutral, or el/la qi depending on gender. The plural form is always els/las qi and thus gender-dependent.
- Qi qi non rischcia, non gagnha. “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” (lit. “He/she/etc. who doesn’t venture doesn’t win.”)
- El qi’st sanc pec starp voi, q’o xhetadra el prüm cräps àð eia. “He who is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her.”