View source for Folksprak

{{Infobox Universal Language
| Writing System = Runes
| name=Folksprak
| altname={{Rune|ᚠᚩᛚᛣᛋᛈᚱᚪᛣ}}
| color=#F00C1A
| population= 110 
| genders = 0 (3rd-sg pronouns)
| cases= 0 (except on pronouns)
| word-order= V2
| Type= Fusional
| proto=[[w:Proto-Germanic language]]
| alignment= Nominative-Accusative
| child1= [[w:German language]]
| child2= [[w:Bavarian language]]
| child3= [[w:Luxembourgish language]]
| child4= [[w:Yiddish]]
| child5= [[w:Dutch language]]
| child6= [[w:Flemish]]
| child7= [[w:Afrikaans]]
| child8= [[w:Frisian languages]]
| child9= [[w:Norwegian language]]
| child10= [[w:Faroese language]]
| child11= [[w:Icelandic language]]
| child12= [[w:Danish language]]
| child13= [[w:Swedish language]]
| flag=Flag of Folkspraak.svg
}}

http://folksprak.org

== Anthropology ==
{{Main|Folksprak/Anthropology}}
The language can easily be understood by any speaker of a Germanic language (a group numbering over 110 million native speakers with an additional 300 to 900 million speaking English which is nearly-Germanic) without much teaching. For example, a native speaker of German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Afrikaans, Yiddish or some other Germanic language, can understand a sentence like {{Rune|ᛁᛣᛣ ᚻᚪᚹ ᛋᛣᚱᛁᚹᛏ ᛖᚾ ᛞᛖ ᛒᚢᛣ}}/'''Ik hav skrivt en de buk''' with little or no thought.

Design goals include
# intelligible with little or no training to Germanic speakers
# simple enough for ease of learning to write or speak about normal topics
# precise enough to deal with more complex topics (e.g. science, maybe philosophy)
where the importance descends from first to last.

== Phonology ==
{{Main|Folksprak/Phonology}}
The rhotic varies across the region, and '''h''' is sometimes voiced, but neither of these pose a problem to intelligibility.  Icelandic-speakers would have to learn the traditional voiced-unvoiced distinction whatever language they wanted to learn!  

{| class="wikitable"
! !! Labial !! Alveolar !! Post. !! Velar !! Glottal
|-
! Nasal
| /m/  || /n/  || || *ŋ  ||
|-
! Voiced Stop
| /b/  || /d/  || || /g/ ||
|-
! Unvoiced Stop
| /p/ || /t/  ||   || /k/  || 
|-
! Voiced Fricative
| /v/  || */z/  || */θ~ð/ || ||
|-
! Unvoiced Fricative
| /f/  || /s/  || /ʃ/  || /x/  || /h/ 
|-
! Approximant
|  || <tt>/r/</tt>|| /j/ || ||
|-
! Lateral
| || /l/ || || ||
|}

There are set digraphs for non-Germanic sounds:
Some non-Germanic sounds are used in transcription: 
* '''zj''' = [ž] or [zh] or /ʒ/
* '''cj''' = [č] or [ch] or /tʃ/

=== Vowels ===
There are twelve vowels, six short and six long.  All vowels raise when they lengthen, except'''a''', which moves further back.  A vowel is long when it is: 
# stressed '''''and'''''
# followed by no more than a single consonant
All other vowels are pronounced short, or even reduced.  Vowels written twice are said over two syllables.

{| class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
! !! Round !! Front !! Middle !! Back
|-
! High
| <tt>/ʏ/ /yː/</tt>
| <tt>/ɪ/ /iː/</tt> 
|
| <tt>/ʊ/ /uː/</tt> 
|-
! Mid.
| <tt>/œ/ /øː/</tt>
| <tt>/ɛ/ /eː/</tt>
| /ə/ * 
| <tt>/ɔ/ /oː/</tt>
|-
! Low
|
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center"| <tt>/a/ /äː/</tt> 
|
|}

Diphthongs are '''oi, ou, ai, ei'''.  '''au''' is the same as '''ou'''.  '''eu''' is just long '''u'''.

== Orthography ==
{{Main|Folksprak/Orthography}}
=== Consonants ===
English [th] and [z] are rather late additions to the alphabet, and not part of Folksprak today.  There are, in fact, many such letters which would be needed for place names around Europe. {{Rune|ᛊ}}/'''Z''', {{Rune|ᛢ}}/'''Q''', {{Rune|ᛝ}}/'''Ŋ''', and {{Rune|ᚦ}}/'''Þ''' are not productive and part of "historic" name spellings only.  Swedish /ɧ/ may be written {{Rune|ᚺ}}.  (Other "old" letters include {{Rune|ᛠ}}/'''Ä''', {{Rune|ᚫ}}/'''Æ''', {{Rune|ᛡ}}/'''Ï''', {{Rune|ᛥ}}/'''ST''', {{Rune|ᚸ}}/'''Ȝ''', and {{Rune|ᛤ}}/'''KK'''.)

{| class="wikitable"
! !! Labial !! Alveolar !! Post. !! Velar !! Glottal
|-
! Nasal
| /m/ {{Rune|ᛗ}} || /n/ {{Rune|ᚾ}} || || *ŋ *{{Rune|ᛝ}} ||
|-
! Voiced Stop
| /b/ {{Rune|ᛒ}} || /d/ {{Rune|ᛞ}} || || /g/ {{Rune|ᚷ}} ||
|-
! Unvoiced Stop
| /p/ {{Rune|ᛈ}} || /t/ {{Rune|ᛏ}} || */θ~ð/ *{{Rune|ᚦ}} || /k/ {{Rune|ᛣ}} || 
|-
! Voiced Fricative
| /v/ {{Rune|ᚹ}} || */z/ *{{Rune|ᛊ}} || || ||
|-
! Unvoiced Fricative
| /f/ {{Rune|ᚠ}} || /s/ {{Rune|ᛋ}} || /ʃ/ {{Rune|ᚳ}} || /x/ {{Rune|ᛉ}} || /h/ {{Rune|ᚻ}}
|-
! Approximant
|  || <tt>/r/</tt> {{Rune|ᚱ}} || /j/ {{Rune|ᛄ}} || ||
|-
! Lateral
| || /l/ {{Rune|ᛚ}} || || ||
|}


=== Vowels ===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:auto;"
! !! Round !! Front !! Middle !! Back
|-
! High
| <tt>/ʏ/ /yː/</tt> {{Rune|ᚣ}}
| <tt>/ɪ/ /iː/</tt> {{Rune|ᛁ}} 
|
| <tt>/ʊ/ /uː/</tt> {{Rune|ᚢ}}
|-
! Mid.
| <tt>/œ/ /øː/</tt> {{Rune|ᛟ}} 
| <tt>/ɛ/ /eː/</tt> {{Rune|ᛖ}} 
| /ə/ * 
| <tt>/ɔ/ /oː/</tt> {{Rune|ᚩ}}
|-
! Low
|
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center"| <tt>/a/ /äː/</tt> {{Rune|ᚪ}}
|
|}

== Morphophonology ==
{{Main|Folksprak/Morphophonology}}
* definite article {{term|ᛞᛖ}}/de
* indefinite article {{term|ᛖᚾ}}/en, same as 'one' (different vowel length)
* possessive (genitive) ending {{term|-ᛋ}}/s
* plural ending {{term|-ᛖᚾ}}/en (pronounced enn)
* Adjectives do not inflect for number, gender, or case
* comparative adjective ending {{term|-ᛖᚱ}}/er (pronounced err)
* superlative adjective ending {{term|-ᛖᛋᛏ}}/est
* ordinal number suffix {{term|-ᛞᛖ}}/de
 {{term|ᛗᚪᚾᚾ}}mann   ᛗᚪᚾᚾᛖᚾmannen
 ᛗᚪᚾᚾᛋmanns ᛗᚪᚾᚾᛖᚾᛋmannens

== Morphosyntax ==
{{Main|Folksprak/Morphosyntax}}
# the Subject may not be separated from the finite verb by any other word. 
# the ordinary position for the verb in a declarative sentence is as second element and in imperatives or questions as the first element.  
# the grammatical Subject must always come before any objects

=== Pronouns ===
{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | # 
! rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | Case 
! colspan="6" style="text-align:center;" | Person
|-
! rowspan="2" | First 
! rowspan="2" | Second 
! colspan="4" style="text-align:center;" | Third
|-
! Masculine !! Feminine !! Neuter !! Reflexive
|-
! rowspan="4" | Singular
! Nominative
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛁᛣᛣ}}}} '''ikk''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᚢ}}}} '''du''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᛁ}}}} '''hi''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁ}}}} '''si''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛁᛏᛏ}}}} '''itt''' || {{No}}
|-
! Genitive
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛗᛁᚾ}}}} '''min''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛁᚾ}}}} '''din''' || rowspan="2" | {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᛁᛋᛋ}}}} '''hiss''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᛁᚱ}}}} '''hir''' || rowspan="2" |  {{Rune|{{term|ᛁᛏᛋ}}}} '''its''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁᚾ}}}} '''sin'''
|-
! Poss.
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛗᛁᚾᛋ}}}} '''mins''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛁᚾᛋ}}}} '''dins''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᛁᚱᛋ}}}} '''hirs''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁᚾᛋ}}}} '''sins'''
|-
! Accusative
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛗᛁ}}}} '''mi''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛁ}}}} '''di''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᛁᛗᛗ}}}} '''himm''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᛁᚱᚱ}}}} '''hirr''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛁᛏᛏ}}}} '''itt''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁᚷ}}}} '''sig'''
|-
! rowspan="4" | Plural
! Nominative
| {{Rune|{{term|ᚹᛁ}}}} '''vi''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛄᛁ}}}} '''ji''' 
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛖᛁ}}}} '''dei'''
| {{No}}
|-
! Genitive
| {{Rune|{{term|ᚢᚱ}}}} '''ur''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛄᚢᚱ}}}} '''jur'''
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛖᛁᚱ}}}} '''deir'''
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁᚾ}}}} '''sin'''
|-
! Poss.
| {{Rune|{{term|ᚢᚱᛋ}}}} '''urs''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛄᚢᚱᛋ}}}} '''jurs'''
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛖᛁᚱᛋ}}}} '''deirs'''
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁᚾᛋ}}}} '''sins'''
|-
! Accusative
| {{Rune|{{term|ᚢᛋ}}}} '''us''' || {{Rune|{{term|ᛄᚢ}}}} '''ju'''
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;" | {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᛖᛗᛗ}}}} '''demm'''
| {{Rune|{{term|ᛋᛁᚷ}}}} '''sig'''
|}


=== Verbs ===
* Verbs inflect for tense, not number or person.
* The lexical form is the infinitive (+e)
* Infinitive is +{{Rune|ᛖ}}'''e'''
* Present and Imperative are the bare form (-e)
* Past tense is +{{Rune|ᛞᛖ}}'''de'''
* Active participle +{{Rune|ᛖᚾᛞᛖ}}'''ende'''
* Passive participle +{{Rune|ᛏ}}'''t'''
* {{Rune|ᚹᚪᚱᛖ}}'''vare''' (to be) is the only irregular verb
** {{Rune|ᚹᚪᚱᛖ}}'''vare''' - infin.; {{Rune|ᚪᚱ}}'''ar''' - pres.; {{Rune|ᚹᚪᚱ}}'''var''' - imper.,preterite; 
* Auxiliaries abound, normally with infin., but sometimes past part.
** {{Rune|{{term|ᚹᛁᛚᛚᛖ}}}}'''ville''' + infin. = future
** {{Rune|{{term|ᚻᚪᚹᛖ}}}} '''have''' + PP = perfect
** {{Rune|{{term|ᚹᚪᚱᛖ}}}} '''vare''' + PP  = passive
** {{Rune|{{term|ᛞᚢᚱᚠᛖ}}}}'''durfe''' to be allowed
** {{Rune|{{term|ᛣᚢᚾᚾᛖ}}}} '''kunne''' can
** {{Rune|{{term|ᛗᚪᚷᛖ}}}} '''mage''' might, may
** {{Rune|{{term|ᛗᛟᛏᛖ}}}} '''møte''' must
** {{Rune|{{term|ᚳᚢᛚᛚᛖ}}}} '''culle''' should




Adverb making suffix: -{{Rune|ᛚᛁᛣ}}'''lik''' (cp. English -ly).  Elatives need {{Rune|[[ᛗᛖᚱ]]}}'''mer''' more and {{Rune|[[ᛗᛖᛋᛏ]]}}'''mest''' most

== Lexicography ==
{{Main|Folksprak/Lexicography}}

see also [[Folksprak/Swadesh]]

{{Aquatiki}}
[[Category:Folksprak]]
[[Category:Universal Languages]]
[[Category:Languages]]