Bright languages

Bright languages are constructed languages intended to be aesthetically pleasing, predictable, and stable in utterance.

Phonology

The bright version of Adamic has 3 vowels (4 with the diphthong) and 8 consonants, with the reason being that as a bright language strives to contain the most stable and distinct phonetic features, many possibilities are consciously deleted (mostly dorsal ones). For example, velar stops such as /k/ are problematic, as forms akin to /ku/ and /ki/ have the tendence to inevitably change to /kʷ/~/b/ or /kʲ/~/t͡ʃ/. Likewise, back vowels are totally erased, not only to contrast with dark tongues (which do not accept front vowels), but to avoid the sound change /du/ > /dʷ/~/b/.

	Coronal	Labial
Sonorant	l r	n m
Non-Sonorant	ʃ d	f b

The

	Front	Center
	i ɛ	a ae̯

Sound Laws

Accurate Elvish

• Voicing [C̥VC̬VC̥]: due the influence of vocalic weight, consonants between vowels are voiced while initial and final consonants are voiceless
• Lenition/Dissimilation: due the displeasure of mimesis, if two bordering syllables/syllable portions possess the same consonant, the consonant of the weakest syllable (portion) disappears.
  

EX: Adamic vāl "person" and vār "people" become al and elvi respectively in the Bright Tongue [alf instead of *falf].

• Assimilation:
• Harmony: [a > e > i] or [i > e > a]
  
• Mutation: consonants extend grade until there is only one.
  

m/n + p -mb [extension of p]
m/n + t -nd [extension of t]
r/l + f -lb [extension of l]
r/l + c -rd [extension of r]
r/l + m = -lm [extension of m]
r/l + n = -rn [extension of n]

• /s/ and /d/ can only happen before /a/, and if the opposite were to happen, the nucleus would be dropped.

EX: The hypothetical iridin becomes eren

• Due the tendence of final consonants to be easily lost, only consonant clusters and sonorants are allowed as final codas. Also, final /m/ and /n/ disappear as the precedent vowel is nasalized.

alba "people" [alf, elbi] arda "things" [arc, irida] alma "high faculties" [a, elmi] arna "emotions, sensations" [an, erni] amba "time" [amf, embi] anda "space" [anc, inida] - endar "land", arni "lands" embal "celestial body", ambeli...

o

NA > ni [0], nae [1] alba enir ni, pe, ae MA NA PA TA LA RA - ALBA ARDA AMBA ANDA ALMA ARNA

aia aio

nao aocar i

nua valár

ni erec alber

fla alf

• analytic
• one article
• no declension
• context and syntax play important role

ni arc alber ni erec alber =/= ni erec er alf ni irida alber

iru > eri > ere

ni, mi ec, fe al, ar

iru > eri > ere iru > eri > ere > irida /r/ > /rd/ e > i r > rVdV

anu/nua > ni ani/nia > ne ana/nā > na

Elbi irida ni indili = Ara avâla ana ahalâ

Ni irida eren, ec cilma Tua hícal, rī askút

iku [Adamic] > ihu (canon law) > *ehi (enlightment of vowels) > *ei (enlightment of consonants) > ae (enlightment of vowels)

/h/ > /∅/

ihu

ehi

ae

e

ni irida andal

ere & irida > -c-

Canon Sound Laws:

Laws of sound change:

/g/ > /z/ when next to /i/ Ex: gīg > zīl "giant"

/g/ > /Q/ when next to /u/ Ex:

/k/ > /s/ when next to /i/ Ex: saíkat > sesal

/k/ > /h/ when next to /u/ Ex: kun > hul "dog"

/t/ > /ts/ when next to /i/ Ex: daítas > ecal

/t/ > /l/ when next to /u/ Ex: tu > lu

/d/ > /ʔ/ when next to /i/ Ex: dîts > īl

/d/ > /r/ when nex to /u/ Ex: dûts > rūl

/p/ > /f/ when next to /u/ Ex:

/p/ > /n/ when next to /i/ Ex:

/b/ > /v/ when next to /u/ Ex: bûl > uvvūl

/b/ > /m/ when next to /i/ Ex: bîbl > mīl

Excrescence:

/l/ > /lb/ when intervocalic

/r/ > /rd/ when intervocalic

/n/ > /nd/ when intervocalic

/m/ > /mb/ when intervocalic

/h/ > /i̯a/~/i/ when intervocalic

/ɦ/ > /ai̯/~/u/ when intervocalic

Decrescence:

/s/ > /∅/ when marginal (except when next to /i/)

/z/ > /∅/ when marginal (except when next to /i/)

/ts/ > /∅/ when marginal (except when next to /a/)

/ʔ/ > /∅/ when marginal (except when next to /a/)

/f/ > /∅/ when marginal (except when next to /u/)

/v/ > /∅/ when marginal (except when next to /u/)

Laws of elision:

Syncope: in a word with three syllables or more, the middle unstressed syllable is lost (except if its sonority value is higher than its antecedant) EX: datasyú > dasyl

Apocape: in a word with three syllables or more, the initial unstressed syllable is lost (except if its sonority value is higher than its posterior) EX: apâla > pāl

Aphaeresis: in a word with three syllables or more, the last unstressed syllable is lost (except if it has coda). Also, the last consonant or consonantal cluster (regardless of the number of syllables in a word) is lost. EX: avâla > vāl

Laws of epenthesis:

Prothesis: in a word with two or just one syllable, if there is an initial consonant cluster, a vowel (depending on the nature of the consonant) is added. EX: bûl (*bbûl) > uvvūl

Anaptyxis: in a word with two or just one syllable, if there is a middle consonant cluster, the vowel /a/ is added. EX: 'atlya > 'atalya

Paragoge: in a word with two or just one syllable, if there is a final consonant cluster, a vowel (depending on the nature of the consonant). EX: palk > palsil

Laws of equalization (used in special cases of other laws)

Haplology: dadasa > dasa

Compensatory lengthening bûl (*bbûl) > *uvvūl > ūvūl gal (*gall) > *galla > gāla

Metathesis: glides only where the stress is garda, gráda, gadrá

Final devoicing dad > dat

Intervocalic voicing ata > ada

/ai̯/ > /eː/ /i̯a/ > /e/ /au̯/ > /oː/ /u̯a/ > /o/ /u̯i/~/ui̯/ > /ɯ/~/yː/ /i̯u/~/iu̯/ > /y/~/ɯː/

/e/ > /i/ /o/ > /u/

sēqur

Morphology

The Bright Tongue is mostly composed of stems, which modify roots.

ni irida eren...

From one root, many stems are forged

ncl > ner (*nendir), cilba, arnic, nalbi (*nadelbi)...

ALMA > ELEME eldar (alba-endar) erbal (arda-elbar) arbelë ilben, ilbini eleben, af lef, felin ilmen, ilmini elemen, am lem, melin

irdem, irdimi eredem, erc rec, cerin