Valthungian/Rules

NB: The information on this page is out of date. These rules are gradually being moved into other pages on the historical development of Valthungian (see Old Valthungian, for example). I appreciate your patience. — BPNJ

Historical Sound Changes from Proto-Germanic to East Germanic (ca. 400b.c.-0)

It should be noted that many of these changes preceded what we think of as "Proto-Germanic" or "Common Germanic," but I include them here because they have important phonological or orthographic information, or because the same changes occurred in different ways in East Germanic and North-West Germanic.

First Umlaut

Stage 1.

e > i / V[+str] … __[-str] ! {r,h⁽ʷ⁾,+}

• /e/ > /i/ when unstressed following a stressed vowel except before /r/, /h/, /hʷ/, or a morpheme boundary.

Stage 2.

e > i / __[+str] ! {r,h⁽ʷ⁾,+}

• /e/ > /i/ when stressed except before /r/, /h/, /hʷ/, or a morpheme boundary.

(Stage 3: See EGmc Reflex of 1st Umlaut.)

Has to precede Mora Loss

Has to precede ŋ-deletion

/ŋ/-Deletion

Vŋh > V[+lng, +nas]Øh

• A vowel, followed by the sequence /ŋh/ (where /h/=[h,x]), becomes long and nasal and /ŋ/ is deleted (in all environments).

Intervocalic Spirantization

C[+vce,-cnt] > [+cnt] / V__V

In other words,

b,d,g > β,ð,γ / V__V

• A voiced non-continuant consonant (i.e. a voiced stop) becomes continuant (i.e. a fricative) when intervocalic.

EGmc Reflex of 1st Umlaut

This rule is really "Stage 3" of First Umlaut, also called East Germanic Expansion of First Umlaut

i,u > e,o / __[+str]{r,h⁽ʷ⁾}

• /i/ becomes /e/ and /u/ becomes /o/ when stressed before /r/, /h/, or /hʷ/

Monophthongization of Unstressed /ai, au/

ai,au > ɛ̄,ɔ̄ / σ[-str]__[-str]C_o#

• Has to precede Mora Loss

Mora Loss

Mora Loss consists of three contemporaneous changes to unstressed word-final syllables: The deletion of non-strident coronal consonants, the deletion of short vowels, and the shortening of long vowels.

Coronal Consonant Deletion

C[+obs][+cor][-sdt] > Ø / V[-str]C_o__##

• A non-strident coronal obstruent (i.e. /t, þ, d/, but not /s, z/) is deleted after an unstressed vowel when word-final. (One or more consonants - probably sonorants - may intervene between the unstressed vowel and the word-final consonant.)

E.g.

• ‘ten’, ‘honey’, ‘from behind’
• PIE *déḱm̥t, *mélit, *h₂epóteroṓd >
• PGmc *téhund, *míliþ, *áfterôt >
• EGmc *téhun_, *míli_, *áfterô_ >
• Gothic taihun, *mili, aftarō >
• Valthungian tǣjun, mile, aftra

Unstressed Final Short Vowel Deletion

V[-lng][-str]([-rnd] for a. and c.) > Ø /	a) σ(V[+lng]{V, C})C__(z)#
	b) V[-str]C__(z)#
	c) C[-rnd]#

• a) An unstressed unrounded short vowel (i.e. /a, e, i/) is deleted if following a stressed syllable (containing a long diphthong or a long vowel followed by a consonant) when word-final or before word-final /z/.
  
• b) An unstressed short vowel (i.e. /a, e, i, u/) is deleted after an unstressed syllable when word-final or before word-final /z/.
  
• c) (Later), unstressed /a, e, i/ is deleted when word-final.

E.g.

• ‘fear’, ‘I have seen’ (> ‘I know’), ‘day’; ‘son’
• PIE *ā́gʰes, *wóido, *dʰegʷʰos; *suHnús >
• PGmc *ṓgiz, *waita, *dagaz; *sunuz >
• EGmc *ōg_z, *wait_, *dag_z; *sunuz >
• Gothic ōgs, wait, dags, but sunus >
• Valthungian ōǧ (/auʤ/), wǣt, daǧ; sunus.

Final Unstressed Long Vowel Shortening

V[+lng][-str] > [-lng] / __#

• Unstressed long vowels are shortened when word-final.
• NB: At this stage of the language, there was no short /o/; when /ō/ was shortened in East Germanic, it was lowered to /a/. (In North and West Germanic, /ō/ was raised to /u/.)

E.g.

• ‘I carry’, ‘day’ (instr.)
• PIE *bʰérō, *dʰogʰʷṓ >
• PGmc *bérō, *dágō >
• EGmc *bero, *dago >
• Gothic baira'', daga >
• Valthungian bera, daga

Historical Sound Changes from East-Germanic to Gothic (ca. 0-400a.d.)

[these changes still need to be ordered correctly]

z-Deletion, Obstruent Devoicing

z → ∅ / V[-lng]{r,s}___#

• /z/ is deleted word-finally after a short vowel followed by /r/ or /s/.

E.g.:

• ‘man’, ‘fall’, ‘shoulder’
• PGmc *weraz, *drusaz, *amsaz >
• Egmc *wirz, *drusz, *amsz >
• Gothic waír, drus, ams

Differences Between Gothic and Griutungi (the Gothic-Contemporary Ancestor of Valthungian)

Moved to Griutungi

Historical Sound Changes from Griutungi to Old Valthungian (ca. 400-800a.d.)

Moved to Old Valthungian.

Historical Sound Changes from Old to Middle Valthungian (ca. 800-1200a.d.)

Moved to Middle Valthungian

Historical Sound Changes from Middle to Classical Valthungian (ca. 1200-1600a.d.)

Moved to Middle Valthungian