Bis Burunko: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "'''Bis Burunko''' (/bɨs bʉˈɾʉnkɔ/, literally 'the Burungian language'), also known as ''Burunko'' or ''Burungian'', is a language isolate spoken on the island of Burung...") |
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* only ''n'' or ''m'' before a consonant, except in the case of geminates | * only ''n'' or ''m'' before a consonant, except in the case of geminates | ||
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The word-final consonants ''s, sh, ng'' and ''z'' are not permitted to occur before another consonant, so undergo changes in compounds or when consonant-initial endings are added: | |||
* ''-s'' is lost, the preceding vowel is doubled and a following voiced plosive or ''j'' is devoiced: | |||
:: ''gis'' 'man' + ''-do'' (collective) = ''giito'' 'group, band' | |||
* ''-sh'' becomes ''-i-'', forming a diphthong with the preceding vowel, and a following voiced plosive is devoiced: | |||
:: ''sush'' 'empty' + ''bupung'' 'person' = ''suipupung'' 'vain person' | |||
:: ''arash'' 'night' + ''-te'' (time) = ''araite'' 'night-time' | |||
* ''-ng'' becomes ''-m'' before ''p, b, f'' and ''n'' before any other consonant: | |||
:: ''gyong'' 'man' + ''-bu'' (collective) = ''gyombu'' 'warrior class' | |||
:: ''yong'' 'foot' + ''-ko'' (adjectival) = ''yonko'' 'sock' | |||
* ''-z'' is lost and causes a following consonant to double (except ''f, x, h''): | |||
:: ''az'' 'male' + ''-chi'' (adjectival) = ''acchi'' 'masculine' | |||
:: ''haz'' 'old' + ''kora'' 'bitch' = ''hakkora'' 'hag' | |||
In some cases a word ending in a vowel + ''-i'' will alter to vowel + ''-u'' when a suffix or the second element of a compound begins with a consonant: | |||
:: '' | |||
Word-final vowels may also be altered or lost when they come into contact with initial vowels in compounds or endings. | |||
==Grammar== | ==Grammar== | ||
==Vocabulary== | ==Vocabulary== |
Revision as of 15:36, 16 September 2021
Bis Burunko (/bɨs bʉˈɾʉnkɔ/, literally 'the Burungian language'), also known as Burunko or Burungian, is a language isolate spoken on the island of Burung in the north Atlantic.
Background
Phonology and Orthography
Bis Burunko has a relatively simple phonology with 21 consonants, 5 pure vowels and 6 true diphthongs. The orthography is almost entirely regular and predictable, based on a 1:1 spelling to pronunciation system.
Consonants
Bilabial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nasal | m /m/ | n /n/ | ng /ŋ/ | ||
Plosive | p /p/ b /b/ |
t /t/ d /d/ |
k /k/ g /g/ |
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Sibilant | s /s/ | sh /ɕ/ z /ʑ/ |
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Fricative | f /ɸ/ | x /ç/ | h /h/ | ||
Affricate | ch /t͡ɕ/ j /d͡ʑ/ |
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Flap or tap | r /ɾ/ | ||||
Approximant | w, u /w/ | y /j/ | |||
Lateral app. | l /l/ |
Notes:
- n is realised as /ŋ/ before g, k, ng
- medial h is often simply hiatus between vowels
- /w/ is spelled u immediately after a consonant but w elsewhere
- all consonants except fricatives and glides (w, y) may be doubled word-internally; note the trigraphs ssh, cch, nng
For consonant clusters, see Phonotactics below.
Vowels
Front | Back | |
---|---|---|
Close | i /ɨ/ | u /ʉ/ |
Open-mid | e /ɛ/ | o /ɔ/ |
Open | a /a/ |
Vowels are considered to be short in all environments but may occur consecutively as in biitosh 'gender neutral person' /bɨ:'tɔɕ/.
Note: word-initial sequences of i + i and u + uu are written yi-, wu-.
Diphthongs
There are six diphthongs proper: ai /aɨ/, ei /ɛɨ/, oi /ɔɨ/, au /aʉ/, eu /ɛʉ/ and ou /ɔʉ/, which may be considered sequences of vowels in measuring syllables. In addition, any vowel is permitted to occur following the 'glides' /w/ or /j/.
Phonotactics
Bis Burunko has a relatively restrictive syllabic structure, with a maximal form CGVVC, in which C represents a consonant, G a glide and V a vowel or part of a diphthong. Of these, only the central vowel is essential but there are also restrictions on the other elements. The table below shows the rules governing each position in the syllable:
C1 | G | V1 | V2 | C2 |
---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
The word-final consonants s, sh, ng and z are not permitted to occur before another consonant, so undergo changes in compounds or when consonant-initial endings are added:
- -s is lost, the preceding vowel is doubled and a following voiced plosive or j is devoiced:
- gis 'man' + -do (collective) = giito 'group, band'
- -sh becomes -i-, forming a diphthong with the preceding vowel, and a following voiced plosive is devoiced:
- sush 'empty' + bupung 'person' = suipupung 'vain person'
- arash 'night' + -te (time) = araite 'night-time'
- -ng becomes -m before p, b, f and n before any other consonant:
- gyong 'man' + -bu (collective) = gyombu 'warrior class'
- yong 'foot' + -ko (adjectival) = yonko 'sock'
- -z is lost and causes a following consonant to double (except f, x, h):
- az 'male' + -chi (adjectival) = acchi 'masculine'
- haz 'old' + kora 'bitch' = hakkora 'hag'
In some cases a word ending in a vowel + -i will alter to vowel + -u when a suffix or the second element of a compound begins with a consonant:
Word-final vowels may also be altered or lost when they come into contact with initial vowels in compounds or endings.