Vurásandi: Difference between revisions

Vurásandi (IPA: [vu.'rɑː.sən.dɪ]) is the primary liturgical language of Kalifiya; a philosophical language of many different religious cults living in the West of Turtle Island (mainly in Kalifiya); and a literary language and lingua franca of the western world. As a result of transmission of Kalifi cultures from Kalifiya to the Riverlands and parts of Central Tepia in the east, as well as Karbadi and Pangala to the south, it is also a language of high culture in some of these regions.

Vurásandi is a standardized language of the Wasmáthi dialects, having originated in the beginning of the Age of Fish (roughly 2,000 years ago) when Z'e Ji Vuqadzi wrote Vurásandi Essámahta. As one of the oldest living languages in Yarad, Vurásandi holds a prominent position in the modern world. The body of Vurásandi literature encompasses a rich tradition of poetry and drama as well as scientific, technical, philosophical and religious texts. The early compositions of Vurásandi were written by the 12 Shepards of Is'a.  

Vurásandi is today one of the 4 main languages of Yarad. It continues to be widely used as a ceremonial language in Kalifi religious rituals and Binduli practice in the form of hymns and chants.

The name Vurásandi comes from two roots (VRÁ: holy, divine; SND: language, speech, tongue). This language was given its name by the holy priestess Z'e Ji Vuqádzi in her work Vurásandi Esasmátha. This language became used as the primary language for religious rituals and learned discourse throughout Kalifiya, in contrast to the language spoken daily by the common folk, which was known as quyuksandi (common speech).  

== History ==

Vurásandi developed from a number of different dialects spoken throughout Kalifiya during the Age of Ram. Originally laid out in Vurásandi Essámatha by Z'e Ji Vuqádzi (one of Is'a's 12 Shepherds) in the 72nd year of the Age of Fish. It's position in the cultures of Greater Kalifiya is akin to that of Sanskrit in India and Latin and Ancient Greek in Europe, and it has significantly influenced most modern languages of the Kalifiyan Subcontinent, particularly in Kalifiya, the Riverlands, West Tepia, Karbadi, Siryorunda, and Pangala.  

=== Origin of Standard Vurásandi ===

The language as described by Z'e Ji Vuqádzi evolved out of the earlier dialects spoken in Kalifiya. Before Is'a and his 12 Shepherds united the country, many different dialects were spoken throughout the region. This led to much confusion and war during the Age of Ram. Z'e Ji Vuqádzi spent the greater part of her life compiling the Vurásandi Essámahta in order to unify the country's many dialects. Her work became the accepted standard in the 1066th year in the current age.

For nearly 2000 years, Vurásandi was the language of a cultural order that exerted influence from Kalifiya into the Riverlands and onto a significant area of the Middlelands, and to some extent into the Tepian and Jaboni Empires. The Vurásandi of the Vurásandi Essámahta is traditionally considered to be the purest form of Vurásandi, and therefore has become the standard used in teaching schools.  

While much of Kalifiya has become modernized, there still exists a large number of people still living in their traditional tribal ways. These people speak a number of local dialects of Vurásandi, which due to considerable variation could be considered languages in their own rite. It is common for people in Kalifiya to be fluent in at least two forms of Vurásandi.

Standard Vurásandi distinguishes 40 different phonemes. 15 vowels, 25 consonants. We have used a variation on the traditional alignment of sounds and also a standardized transcription system for writing Vurásandi sounds in the Latin alphabet. More about the writing system and transcription system is listed in the section below called Writing.

There are 15 different vowel phonemes, which are considered to be between 6 and 21 distinct sounds depending on tradition and dialect. Standard Vurásandi recognizes the normal 15, as to represent each vowel distinctly. There are 5 short vowels, 5 long vowels, and 5 nasal vowels. Below we have listed our standard transcription next to the IPA sound in brackets.<br />

Standard Vurásandi recognizes 25 distinct consonant sounds. These 25 different consonant phonemes are made up of 6 plosives (stops), 2 nasals, 11 fricatives, 2 affricates, 2 semivowels, 1 lateral, and 1 tap. We have organized a table to better represent the traditional alignment of consonant sounds in Vurásandi. We have used the traditional transcription method next to the sounds in IPA in brackets as before.