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{{Ambox
| name  = construction
| subst = <includeonly>{{subst:substcheck}}</includeonly>
| small = {{{small|no}}}
| type  = notice
| image = [[File:cutting.png|65px]]
| sect  = {{{1|}}}
| issue = is a '''construction site'''. This project is currently undergoing significant construction and/or revamp. By all means, take a look around, thank you.
| talk  = {{{talk|}}}
| date  = {{{date|}}}
}}
{{Infobox language
{{Infobox language
|name          = Tameï
|name          = Tameï
|nativname       = tameïyâ mämbä
|nativename       = тұмоубэ тұТамеи
|pronunciation = [tameˈ(j)i], [tameˈ(j)ija(ː) mɛmˈbɛ]
|pronunciation = {{IPA|[tuˈmou̯ɓɛ tutameˈi]}}
|region        = Tameï Islands, eastern [[w:Indian Ocean|Indian Ocean]]
|region        = Tameï Islands, eastern [[w:Indian Ocean|Indian Ocean]]
|ethnicity    = Tameï
|ethnicity    = Tameï
Line 9: Line 20:
|setting      = alt-Earth
|setting      = alt-Earth
|familycolor  = Language isolate
|familycolor  = Language isolate
|fam1         = Isolate
|family         = Isolate
|creator      = [[User:Lili21|Lili21]]
|creator      = [[User:Lili21|Lili21]]
|created      = Dec 2017
|created      = Dec 2017
|script        = Extended [[w:Latin alphabet|Latin]]
|script        = Extended [[w:Cyrillic alphabet|Cyrillic]]
|agency        = Central National Committee of the Tameïan Language (''gulafuniow lâneychär′owŧow komityetu mâ tameïyâ mâ mämbä'')
|agency        = Central National Committee of the Tameïan Language (''ұкомитеты ұгұлауны ұланньэшыши тұмоубэйыр тұТамеи'' - ''КГЛМТ'')
|image        = Tameï-flag.png
|imagealt      = Flag of the Tameï Islands
}}
}}


'''Tameï''' ([tameˈ(j)i] or ''tameïyâ mämbä'' [tameˈ(j)ija(ː) mɛmˈbɛ]; also ''Tamei'' in modern orthography) is a language isolate spoken in the Tameï Islands, an independent volcanic archipelago country in the [[w:Indian Ocean|Indian Ocean]], along the [[w:Ninety East Ridge|Ninety East Ridge]], about 1000 km WSW of [[w:Sumatra|Sumatra]] and roughly halfway between [[w:Sri Lanka|Sri Lanka]] and the [[w:Australia|Australian]] territory of the [[w:Cocos (Keeling) Islands|Cocos (Keeling) Islands]].
'''Tameï''' (''тұТамеи'' {{IPA|[tutameˈi]}} or ''тұмоубэ тұТамеи'' {{IPA|[tuˈmou̯ɓɛ tutameˈi]}}) is a language isolate spoken in the Tameï Islands (''хямша баТамеи'' {{IPA|[ˈxjamɕa batameˈi]}}), an independent volcanic archipelago country in the [[w:Indian Ocean|Indian Ocean]], along the [[w:Ninety East Ridge|Ninety East Ridge]], one of the most remote sovereign countries on Earth, as the closest land, about 820 km ENE, is the [[w:Australia|Australian]] territory of the [[w:Cocos (Keeling) Islands|Cocos (Keeling) Islands]], and the closest integral territory of a sovereign country are the [[w:Mentawai Islands Regency|Mentawai Islands]] off the coast of [[w:Sumatra|Sumatra]], [[w:Indonesia|Indonesia]], about 1660 km to the northeast.
 
Tameï is Earth's second most spoken language isolate (after [[w:Korean language|Korean]]), being the native tongue of about 42 million people, mostly in the Tameï Islands but also in countries of the former [[w:Soviet Union|USSR]]. Tameï is one of two official languages in the country - the '''Tameïan People's Socialist Republic''' (officially ''ұРесыпұбылихы ұСоциалиссичүки Ланньыр баТамеи'' and ''Социалистическая Республика Тамеиского Народа'') as [[w:Russian language|Russian]] is still official for historical and cultural reasons, despite actual Russian native speakers being only 1% of the Tameï population.


Tameï is Earth's second most spoken language isolate (after [[w:Korean language|Korean]]), being the native tongue of about 42 million people, mostly in the Tameï Islands but also in countries of the former [[w:Soviet Union|USSR]]. Tameï is one of two official languages in the country - the '''Tameïan People's Socialist Republic''' (officially ''Tameïyūn mâ Meyʌhäht′eyä Xʌtxuyalixuticeyki Repibulik'' and ''Социалистическая Республика Тамеиского Народа'') as [[w:Russian language|Russian]] is still official for historical and cultural reasons, despite actual Russian native speakers being only 1% of the Tameï population.
Despite fairly regular contacts with the peoples of Indonesia through centuries, the first major external influence in the Tameï Islands came with the first Western contact in 1594 through a Dutch expedition by Johannes De Boer on the ship De Schildpad. Established in 1613 as a Dutch colony, the Tameï islands remained under Dutch rule until 1827, when they were conquered by the British. They remained a British colony until the Communist Revolution of 1934 which saw the Tameï Islands, extremely rich in raw materials, become an important partner of the USSR (so much it was informally sometimes known as "the 16th Republic"); after the latter's dissolution, the country remained mostly isolated in the international community, which resulted in multi-party elections being allowed in 1999. Self-defined Tameï people (even if heavily intermixed with other groups) are the majority, forming 57% of the population; there are also substantial Pashtun (21%) and Punjabi (13%) components. Religiously, there is no absolute majority; the largest religion is [[w:Sufism|Sufi Islam]], followed by 30% of the population, with atheism or irreligiousness (28%) and more or less syncretic modern forms of Tameï shamanism (24%) also being relevant percentages.


Despite fairly regular contacts with the peoples of Indonesia through centuries, the first major external influence in the Tameï Islands came with the first Western contact in 1559 through a French expedition by Bénoit de Neuilly on the ship L'Orléanaise. Established in 1602 as a French colony, the Tameï islands remained under French rule until 1814, when they were conquered by the British. They remained a British colony until the Communist Revolution of 1934 which saw the Tameï Islands, extremely rich in raw materials, become an important partner of the USSR, a role fulfilled until the dawn of the 21st century, with multi-party elections first being allowed in 1999. Self-defined Tameï people (even if heavily intermixed with other groups) are the majority, forming 57% of the population; there are also substantial Pashtun (21%) and Punjabi (13%) components. Religiously, there is no absolute majority; the largest religion is [[w:Sufism|Sufi Islam]], followed by 30% of the population, with atheism or irreligiousness (28%) and more or less syncretic modern forms of Tameï shamanism (24%) also being relevant percentages.
This history, and the varied ethnic composition of the Tameï state (which saw a large influx of West and South Asians during the British period, as well as European communists during the 20th century), are reflected in its language, which has up to 20% of its lexicon of foreign origin, with early loans from [[w:Dutch language|Dutch]] (borrowed early enough to have underwent Tameï vowel shifts), then from [[w:English language|English]], [[w:Persian language|Persian]], [[w:Pashto language|Pashto]] (the latter two especially in more colloquial registers), and more recently from Russian and [[w:Japanese language|Japanese]] (the latter because of heavy Japanese cultural influence since the end of the Communist era). Tameï's orthography was only created after the Revolution of 1934. The first orthography was based on Dutch spelling conventions, though the difficult way of representing some sounds specific to Tameï led to different proposals being considered. Finally, in 1943, the current Cyrillic orthography was introduced, requested by the government as a sign of political alignment with the Soviet Union; the orthography itself was heavily influenced by the Cyrillic alphabet for Kazakh that at the time had just been introduced. In contemporary Tameï, some words (mostly Russian proper names) keep the original spelling but pronounced as a Tameï word, like the city of ''Сталинахаль''<ref>Tameï for "Stalin City".</ref>, is {{IPA|[ˌtаlinаˈxаj]}}.


This history, and the varied ethnic composition of the Tameï state (which saw a large influx of West and South Asians during the British period, as well as European communists during the 20th century), are reflected in its language, which has up to 20% of its lexicon of foreign origin, with early loans from [[w:French language|French]], then from [[w:English language|English]], [[w:Persian language|Persian]], [[w:Pashto language|Pashto]] (the latter two especially in more colloquial registers), and more recently from Russian and [[w:Japanese language|Japanese]] (the latter because of heavy Japanese cultural influence since the end of the Communist era). Tameï was first written under French rule in a French-derived spelling which did not consistently represent all the sounds of the language; the first native Tameï orthography, designed by Russian-educated Chlʌǥī′ey Neykachūnī<ref>The name is cited in modern orthography; during his time his name was written in the French-based spelling as ''Cheláguëaï Naïcacheauni'', or as ''Шлѧґӣӏай Найкашӯнӣ'' in the orthography that bears his name.</ref> in 1884 (and therefore known as Neykachūnī orthography), was an adaptation of Cyrillic to the Tameï language - while it did not gain recognition outside of the growing Tameï intelligencija, it formed the basis for the current orthography, established in 1901 (which is most commonly used with a Cyrillic-derived alphabetic order (the Tameï alphabet goes A, Ä, Â, B, W, G, Ǥ, D...)), which also shows some developments that had become standard across most of the Tameï Islands in the meantime. Today's Tameï orthography is not completely phonemic, as it shows vowel length distinctions (as 〈ī ū â〉) that are not kept anymore in most dialects); some words (mostly French and Russian proper names) keep the original spelling (transliterated in the case of Russian), but pronounced as a Tameï word. For example, the country's second-largest city, ''La Gracieuse'', is pronounced as [laguɹaˈɕuz], and the third-largest, ''Stalinahowa''<ref>Tameï for "Stalin City".</ref>, is [ˈtalinaˌhowa].
Tameï is a mostly agglutinating language, with complex inflected verbs and a system of noun classes not unlike (but smaller than) the one typical of Bantu languages. On the phonetic side, it is notable for being, together with [[w:Damin|Damin]], one of only two non-African languages using [[w:Click consonant|click consonants]].


Tameï is a mostly agglutinating language, with complex inflected verbs but light nominal morphology. On the phonetic side, it is, together with [[w:Damin|Damin]], one of only two non-African languages using [[w:Click consonant|click consonants]]; it also has the cross-linguistically rare phoneme /ɢ/ (written 〈ǥ〉).
(TBC)


==Phonology==
==Morphology==
Modern Standard Tameï (based on the dialect of the capital region in central Heyta Hʌna island) has a phonemic inventory of 7 (or 8) monophthongs, two diphthongs, and 37 consonants (including 8 clicks).
===Numerals===
Most of the contemporary Tameï counting system is made of Dutch borrowings. Native words exist for the numerals from one to four, plus words for "hand" and "pair of hands" used for 5 and 10 respectively; native compound numbers exist for 6-9.
 
1-10 is generally counted with native numerals; the Dutch borrowings from 1 to 10 are used in all other contexts, except in in units from 1 to 10 in every hundred and thousand. 11-20 is usually counted with Dutch borrowings, but native numerals aren't uncommon too.
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Digit !! Native !! Dutch
|-
! 1
| -тү<br/>{{IPA|[ˈty]}} || (-эн)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɛn]}}
|-
! 2
| -ӆъа<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǁa]}} || (-те)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈtje]}}
|-
! 3
| -рашы<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɹaʃɤ]}} || (-дыри)<br/>{{IPA|[ɗɤˈɹi]}}
|-
! 4
| -ҥуэтъ<br/>{{IPA|[ŋʷɛǀ]}} || (-уир)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈwiɹ]}}
|-
! 5
| -ӝұнь<br/>{{IPA|[ˈd͡ɮuɲ]}} || (-уэйпы)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈwɛi̯pɤ]}}
|-
! 6
| -хэйлыӝұнь<br/>{{IPA|[xɛi̯ˈlɤd͡ɮuɲ]}} || (-зэсы)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈd͡zɛsɤ]}}
|-
! 7
| -ӆъашыӝұнь<br/>{{IPA|[ǁaˈʃɤd͡ɮuɲ]}} || (-зеуын)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈd͡zjewɤn]}}
|-
! 8
| -рашэйӝұнь<br/>{{IPA|[ɹaˈʃɛi̯d͡ɮuɲ]}} || (-ахыты)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈaxɤtɤ]}}
|-
! 9
| -ӆъашычъыбэ<br/>{{IPA|[ǁaʃɤˈǂɤɓɛ]}} || (-ньэғын)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɲɛɣɤn]}}
|-
! 10
| -чъыбэ<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǂɤɓɛ]}} || (-тин)<br/>{{IPA|[ˈtin]}}
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Digit !! Native !! Dutch
|-
! 11
| -чъыбэ ҥэ -тү<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈty]}} || -элпы<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɛlpɤ]}}
|-
! 12
| -чъыбэ ҥэ -ӆъа<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈǁa]}} || -туалпы<br/>{{IPA|[ˈtwalpɤ]}}
|-
! 13
| -чъыбэ ҥэ -рашы<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈɹaʃɤ]}} || -дэртин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɗɛɹtin]}}
|-
! 14
| -чъыбэ ҥэ -ҥуэтъ<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈŋʷɛǀ]}} || -ерытин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈjeɹɤtin]}}
|-
! 15
| -ӆъа -ӝұнь ҥэ -ӝұнь<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǁa -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈd͡ɮuɲ]}} || -уэйпытин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈwɛi̯pɤtin]}}
|-
! 16
| -рашы -ӝұнь ҥэ -тү<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈty]}} || -зэсытин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈd͡zɛsɤtin]}}
|-
! 17
| -рашы -ӝұнь ҥэ -ӆъа<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈǁa]}} || -зеуынтин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈd͡zjewɤntin]}}
|-
! 18
| -рашы -ӝұнь -рашы<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈɹaʃɤ]}} || -ахытин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈaxɤtin]}}
|-
! 19
| -рашы -ӝұнь ҥэ -ҥуэтъ<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈŋʷɛǀ]}} || -ньэғынтин<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɲɛɣɤntin]}}
|-
! 20
| -ӆъа -ӝұнь ҥэ -ӆъа -хэҥуа<br/>{{IPA|[ˈǁa -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈǁa -ˈxɛŋʷa]}} || -(эн)туинты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛn)ˈtwintɤ]}}
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Digit !! Dutch
|-
! 30
| -(эн)дэрыты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛn)ˈɗɛɹɤtɤ]}}
|-
! 40
| -(эм)перыты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛm)ˈpjeɹɤtɤ]}}
|-
! 50
| -(эм)пэйпыты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛm)ˈpɛi̯pɤtɤ]}}
|-
! 60
| -(эн)сэсыты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛn)ˈsɛsɤtɤ]}}
|-
! 70
| -(эн)сеуынты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛn)ˈsjewɤntɤ]}}
|-
! 80
| -(эн)таты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛn)ˈtatɤ]}}
|-
! 90
| -(эн)ньэғынты<br/>{{IPA|[(ɛn)ˈɲɛɣɤntɤ]}}
|-
! 100
| -хондыр<br/>{{IPA|[ˈxondɤɹ]}}
|-
! 1000
| -дыйсан<br/>{{IPA|[ˈɗɤi̯san]}}
|}
{{col-end}}
 
The forms with ''-эн-'' or ''-эм-'' are used when building units in tens, e.g. ''дапэйпыты'' "fifty (class 5)", ''даэн эмпэйпыты'' "fifty-one (class 5).
 
==Syntax==
===Verb phrase===
Tameï verbs are inflected through various prefixes and suffixes showing subjects, direct objects, indirect objects, causativity, applicatives, tense, and evidentiality. The minimum verb complex is made of a subject prefix, the root, and an evidential suffix.
 
{{Gloss
| phrase = Ихұчи бүссе.
| IPA = [iˈxutɕi ˈbyssje]
| morphemes = и-хұч-и ∅-бүссе
| gloss = <small>C1.SG</small>-run-<small>VIS</small>. <small>C1.SG</small>-woman.
| translation = The woman runs.
}}
{{Gloss
| phrase = Итуанашэ тұӵынрӏэ бүссе.
| IPA = [itwaˈnaʃɛ tuˈt͡ɬɤǃ̃͡qχe ˈbyssje]
| morphemes = и-туа-нашэ-и тұ-ӵынрӏэ ∅-бүссе
| gloss = <small>C1.SG</small>-<small>C2.SG.OBJ</small>-see-<small>VIS</small>. <small>C1.SG</small>-boy. <small>C1.SG</small>-woman.
| translation = The woman sees the boy.
}}
{{Gloss
| phrase = Ицэйнашэхей цоӵынрӏэ бүссе.
| IPA = [itsɛi̯ˈnaʃɛxei̯ tsoˈt͡ɬɤǃ̃͡qχe ˈbyssje]
| morphemes = и-цей-нашэ-хе-и цо-ӵынрӏэ ∅-бүссе
| gloss = <small>C1.SG</small>-<small>C2.PL.OBJ</small>-see-<small>-CLOSE_PAST-VIS</small>. <small>C1.PL</small>-boy. <small>C1.SG</small>-woman.
| translation = The woman saw the boys.
}}
{{Gloss
| phrase = Бахұчыуа ымбүссе.
| IPA = [baxuˈtɕɤwa ɤmˈbyssje]
| morphemes = ба-хұч-ыуа ыб-бүссе
| gloss = <small>C1.PL</small>-run-<small>-NVIS</small>. <small>C1.PL</small>-woman.
| translation = The women run (I hear them).
}}
{{Gloss
| phrase = Базэчашньимпъыр зэхатъи зэӵаньэ ҥуэйхыхиш ҥуэтүръыҥы ымбүссе башимае.
| IPA = [ɓadzetɕaʃˈɲiʘ̃ɤɹ dzeˈxaǀi dzeˈtɬaɲɛ ŋʷei̯ˈxɤxiʃ ŋʷetyˈǃɤŋɤ ɤmˈbyssje baʃiˈmaje]
| morphemes = ба-зэ-ча-ш-ньи-мпъы-р зэ-хатъи зэ-ӵаньэ ҥуэ-йхыхиш ҥуэ-тү-иръыҥы ым-бүссе ба-шимае
| gloss = <small>C1.PL-C4.PL.OBJ-C5.DAT-CAUS</small>-eat-<small>-REMOTE_PAST-RENARR</small>. <small>C4.PL</small>-banana. <small>C4.PL</small>-red. <small>C5.PL</small>-baby. <small>C5.PL</small>-with-hunger. <small>C1.PL</small>-woman. <small>C1.PL</small>-short_haired.
| translation = The short-haired women gave the red bananas to the hungry babies to eat.
}}
Internal and external locatives (classes 6 and 7) are treated as objects. If they are not stative, they are however only marked as class 6/7 object in the verb, while the noun keeps its class marking but with a preposition.
{{Gloss
| phrase = Бажыхэнньыуа хоу ұдэнэй иӆұуи ҥа иӆұуитъиҥи илэшэ.
| IPA = [ɓadʒɤxɛɲˈɲɤwa xou̯ uˈɗɛnɛi̯ iˈɬuwi ŋa iɬuwiˈǀiŋi iˈlɛʃɛ]
| morphemes = ба-жы-хэннь-ыуа хоу ұ-дэнэй и-ӆұуи ҥа и-ӆұуитъиҥи и-лэшэ
| gloss = <small>C1.PL-C6.OBJ-</small>-walk-<small>-NVIS</small>. to. <small>C3.SG</small>-park. <small>C1.SG</small>-girl. and. <small>C1.SG</small>-girlfriend. <small>C1.SG</small>-<small>3SG.GEN</small>.
| translation = The girl and her girlfriend walk to the park.
}}
{{Gloss
| phrase = Ижыӏэни ирӏыль ӆыхалыдиль.
| IPA = [idʒɤˈɁɛni iˈǃ͡qχɤi̯ ɬɤxalɤˈdii̯]
| morphemes = и-жы-ӏэн-и и-рӏыль ӆы-халыдиль
| gloss = <small>C1.SG-C6.OBJ-</small>-be_located-<small>-VIS</small>. <small>C1.SG</small>-fish. <small>C6.SG</small>-fridge.
| translation = The fish is in the fridge.
}}
{{Gloss
| phrase = Меҥльашичъхұм хеоуто.
| IPA = [mjeŋjaˈʃiǂxum xeˈou̯to]
| morphemes = меҥ-льа-шичъ-хұм хе-оуто
| gloss = <small>1SG.SUBJ-C7.OBJ-</small>-wait-<small>-FUT</small>. <small>C7.SG</small>-car.
| translation = I'll wait outside the car.
}}
 
<!-- ==Phonology==
[[File:Tamei-Islands.png|thumb|The Tameï Islands]]
Modern Standard Tameï (''lâvõh tameïchön âbõrâsowuy'', based on the dialect of the capital, Namihlewchany, in central-southern Mimbachugih island) has a phonemic inventory of 10 monophthongs, 18 or 19 diphthongs, and 29 or 30 consonants (including 8 clicks).


===Vowels===
===Vowels===
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
|-
! !! Front !! Central !! Back
! !! +ATR !! –ATR
|-
|-
! High
! ''u-class''
| '''i ī''' i || || '''u ū''' u
| '''ü''' {{IPA|/u̘/ [u̘~ʉ̘]}} || '''u''' {{IPA|/u̙/ [ɯ̙~ʊ̙~o̝̙]}}
|-
|-
! High-mid
! ''i-class''
| '''e''' e || || '''o''' o
| '''i''' {{IPA|/i̘/ [i̘]}} || '''õ''' {{IPA|/i̙/ [ɪ̙~e̝̙]}}
|-
|-
! Low-mid
! ''o-class''
| '''ä''' æ~ɛ || || '''ʌ''' ʌ~ɔ
| '''ö''' {{IPA|/o̘/ [ɤ̘~o̘~ɵ̘]}} || '''o''' {{IPA|/o̙/ [ɔ̙]}}
|-
|-
! Low
! ''e-class''
| || '''a â''' a (aː) ||
| '''e''' {{IPA|/e̘/ [e̘]}} || '''ä''' {{IPA|/e̙/ [ɛ̙]}}
|-
|-
! Diphthongs
! ''a-class''
| '''ey''' e̞ɪ̯ || || '''ow''' o̞ʊ̯
| '''a''' {{IPA|/a̘/ [a̘~æ̘]}} || '''â''' {{IPA|/a̙/ [ɑ̙~ɒ̙]}}
|}
|}
The 7 monophthongs are /i u e o ɛ ʌ~ɔ a/, mainly written 〈i u e o ä ʌ a〉; /i u/ may also be spelled 〈ī ū〉for etymological reasons, while many speakers still distinguish /a/ from /aː/ (the latter consistently written 〈â〉). The ''â'' vowel has such treatment because, unlike 〈ī ū〉from historical /eː oː/, it is not historical /aː/ (which became /ʌ/ in all Tameï dialects), but a later development mainly from /aɣ/ (and also /aŋ/) sequences - in fact, the French and the Neykachūnī orthographies show the earlier forms; compare the earlier spellings of "person" as ''laguenaï'' and ''лағнай'' with modern ''lâney''. For an /aŋ/-derived ''â'', see the name ''Françoise'', which was still written with /ŋ/ in the Neykachūnī orthography as ''Фыранғсѧсы'' /fɯɹaŋˈsɑːzɯ/, but in the modern spelling it is ''Furâxʌz'' (or the variant ''Furâxʌzī''), representing /fuɹaˈsʌz(i)/.<br/>This consonant-loss and lengthening process was ongoing in the late 19th century, as also shown by other sources like /ah/ followed by a consonant, as in the Persian loan ''châr'' [ɕa(ː)ɹ] from شهر ''šahr''<ref>Standard Persian /æ/ usually corresponds to Tameï /a/, not /æ~ɛ/.</ref> (Neykachūnī orthography ''шахыр'', representing /ˈɕahɯɹ/).
The 7 monophthongs are /i u e o ɛ ʌ~ɔ a/, mainly written 〈i u e o ä ʌ a〉; /i u/ may also be spelled 〈ī ū〉for etymological reasons, while many speakers still distinguish /a/ from /aː/ (the latter consistently written 〈â〉). The ''â'' vowel has such treatment because, unlike 〈ī ū〉from historical /eː oː/, it is not historical /aː/ (which became /ʌ/ in all Tameï dialects), but a later development mainly from /aɣ/ (and also /aŋ/) sequences - in fact, the French and the Neykachūnī orthographies show the earlier forms; compare the earlier spellings of "person" as ''laguenaï'' and ''лағнай'' with modern ''lâney''. For an /aŋ/-derived ''â'', see the name ''Françoise'', which was still written with /ŋ/ in the Neykachūnī orthography as ''Фыранғсѧсы'' /fɯɹaŋˈsɑːzɯ/, but in the modern spelling it is ''Furâxʌz'' (or the variant ''Furâxʌzī''), representing /fuɹaˈsʌz(i)/.<br/>This consonant-loss and lengthening process was ongoing in the late 19th century, as also shown by other sources like /ah/ followed by a consonant, as in the Persian loan ''châr'' [ɕa(ː)ɹ] from شهر ''šahr''<ref>Standard Persian /æ/ usually corresponds to Tameï /a/, not /æ~ɛ/.</ref> (Neykachūnī orthography ''шахыр'', representing /ˈɕahɯɹ/).


The two diphthongs, /e̞ɪ̯/ and /o̞ʊ̯/, derive from historical /aɪ̯ aʊ̯/ (and were in fact still written as 〈ай ав〉in the 1884 orthography); many dialects, especially those spoken on the islands farther from Heyta Hʌna, keep values closer to the original ones.
The two diphthongs, /e̞ɪ̯/ and /o̞ʊ̯/, derive from historical /aɪ̯ aʊ̯/ (and were in fact still written as 〈ай ав〉in the 1884 orthography); many dialects, especially those spoken on the islands farther from Heyta Hʌna, keep values closer to the original ones.
Note that the grapheme '''i''' always represents a vowel and is therefore always in hiatus with any preceding or following vowel, unless it forms a plural noun in ''-iemi''.


===Consonants===
===Consonants===
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan=2 | → PoA <br/> ↓ Manner !! Labial !! Dental !! Alveolar !! Palatal !! Velar !! Glottal
|-
! colspan=2 | Nasals
| '''m''' {{IPA|m}} || || '''n''' {{IPA|n}} || '''ny''' {{IPA|ɲ}} || ||
|-
|-
! → PoA <br/> ↓ Manner !! Labial !! Dental !! Alveolar !! Palatal !! Velar !! Uvular !! Glottal
! rowspan=2 | Plosives || <small>Voiceless</small>
| '''p''' {{IPA|p}} || '''t''' {{IPA|t}} || || || ('''k''' {{IPA|k}})<sup>1</sup> || '''′''' {{IPA|Ɂ}}
|-
|-
! Nasals
! <small>Voiced</small>
| '''m''' m || || '''n''' n || '''ny''' ɲ || || ||
| '''b''' {{IPA|b}}<sup>2</sup> || '''d''' {{IPA|d}}<sup>2</sup> || || || '''g''' {{IPA|ɡ}} ||
|-
|-
! Voiceless plosives
! rowspan=2 | Clicks || <small>Plain</small>
| '''p''' p || '''t''' t || || || '''k''' k || '''q''' q || '''′''' Ɂ
| '''p′''' {{IPA|ʘ}} || '''t′''' {{IPA|ǀ}} || '''r′''' {{IPA|ǃ}} || '''c′''' {{IPA|ǂ}} || ||
|-
|-
! Voiced plosives
! <small>Nasalized</small>
| '''b''' b || '''đ''' d || || || '''g''' g || '''ǥ''' ɢ ||
| '''mp′''' {{IPA|ʘ̃}} || '''nt′''' {{IPA|ǀ̃}} || '''nr′''' {{IPA|ǃ̃}} || '''nc′''' {{IPA|ǂ̃}} || ||
|-
|-
! Clicks
! colspan=2 | Affricates
| '''p′''' ʘ || '''t′''' ǀ || '''r′''' ǃ || '''c′''' ǂ || || ||
| || || '''thl''' {{IPA|tɬ}} || || ||
|-
|-
! Nasalized clicks
! rowspan=2 | Fricatives || <small>Central</small>
| '''mp′''' ʘ̃ || '''nt′''' ǀ̃ || '''nr′''' ǃ̃ || '''nc′''' ǂ̃ || || ||
| '''f''' {{IPA|ɸ}} || '''th''' {{IPA|θ}} || '''s~c''' {{IPA|s}} || '''ch''' {{IPA|ɕ}} || colspan=2 | '''h''' {{IPA|x~χ~h}}
|-
|-
! Affricates
! <small>Lateral</small>
| || || '''ŧ''' tɬ<br/>'''ŧ′''' ' || '''c''' tɕ || || ||
| || || '''ł''' {{IPA|ɬ}} || || ||
|-
|-
! Fricatives
! rowspan=2 | Approximants || <small>Central</small>
| '''f''' ɸ || '''s''' θ<br/> '''d''' ð || '''ł''' ɬ<br/>'''x''' s<br/>'''z''' z || '''ch''' ɕ<br/>'''yh''' ç || '''ӿ''' x || || '''h''' h
| || || '''r''' {{IPA|ɹ}} || '''y~ly''' {{IPA|j}} || '''w''' {{IPA|w}} ||
|-
|-
! Approximants
! <small>Lateral</small>
| || || '''l''' l<br/>'''r''' ɹ || '''y''' j || '''w''' w || ||
| || || '''l''' {{IPA|l}} || ('''ly''' {{IPA|ʎ}}<sup>3</sup>) || ||
|}
|}
 
Table notes:
/l ɹ j m n ɲ/ can also be geminates.
# In Russian or Japanese loans only. Speakers outside the main metropolitan areas (southern Mimbachugih, the west coast of Sainte-Lucie, and the metro areas of Nouvelle-Constantinople, L'Orléanaise, and La Pléiade) mostly merge it with {{IPA|/x/}}.
# Implosive in most inner-central islands (Mimbachugih, Sainte-Lucie, Rany, Minnychaly, Milyheyma, Âgõymbâchä).
# Merged with {{IPA|/j/}} in all islands but the outermost ones (New Paphlagonia, New Bithynia, Saint-Étienne, and the Bâtõnhâmu group) and the central mountains of Chülünyah.


==Orthography==
==Orthography==
Line 94: Line 294:


==Morphology==
==Morphology==
<!-- "līzayâ mīkuredân(a) rucukayim" el vœur dì "preferissi scriv cont ona penna", rucuka- a l'è ciappaa del russ, īkure- del franzes (écrir) lī- l'è la primma persona singolara, m- -dân el infinitiv/nomm verbal, zayâ el vœur dì "preferì", l'è nativ -->
"līzayâ mīkuredân(a) rucukayim" el vœur dì "preferissi scriv cont ona penna", rucuka- a l'è ciappaa del russ, īkure- del franzes (écrir) lī- l'è la primma persona singolara, m- -dân el infinitiv/nomm verbal, zayâ el vœur dì "preferì", l'è nativ
===Nouns===
===Nouns===
====Gender====
Tameï has three grammatical genders (''chiâ'', pl. ''chigūz''): masculine, feminine, and neuter. In most cases, they can be predicted based on the ending of the noun:
* The masculine class (''p′ūkiŧow chiâ'') includes most nouns ending in consonants (except ''-x'' and ''-z''), including in ''-ey'' and ''-ow'';
* The feminine class (''ninyaŧow chiâ'') includes all nouns ending in ''-i'' and ''-e'' (excluding the ''-wałe'' deverbal suffix, which is neuter), and most ''-ū'' and ''-a'' ones (incl. all Russian borrowings in ''-a'').
* The neuter class (''đalūnaŧow chiâ'') includes all nouns ending in ''-u'' and ''-o'', all those nouns ending in ''-x'' and ''-z'', and many ''-a'' ones.
There is no general pattern, not even semantic, for which ''-a'' nouns are feminine and which ones are neuter: for example among geographical features ''neyna'' "island" and ''r′ulka'' "beach" are feminine, while ''łäna'' "stream" is neuter, while among body parts ''kilka'' "foot" is neuter and ''nʌmisa'' "leg" is feminine. Furthermore, deadjectival nouns from adjectives in ''-a'' are usually masculine (e.g. ''täzifeyza'' "red hue").
Some prescriptivists try to match Russian borrowings to their Russian gender, resulting thus in e.g. ''rubuli'' "ruble" being masculine (while in Tameï it is usually feminine). With this particular word it is notable, as Tameï banknotes until the 2000 series used the prescriptivist masculine form (''tamei rubuli''), while since the 2000 series the more natural feminine form (''tameiyâ rubuli''), which has always been used colloquially, is printed on them.
A notable feature of Tameï classes is that they almost never correlate with natural gender: as such the word ''p′ūki'' "man" is feminine, while ''niny'' "woman" is masculine (as is ''đalūn'' "stone", which is the root ''đalūnaŧe'' "neuter" is built on).
====Plural nominative====
====Plural nominative====
The plural nominative is, for many nouns, a principal part, because various, as of today still unclear, sound changes in the past have led many native root nouns to have extremely irregular forms.
The plural nominative is, for many nouns, a principal part, because various, as of today still unclear, sound changes in the past have led many native root nouns to have extremely irregular forms.
Line 104: Line 315:
: ''riwalucia'' (revolution) → ''riwaluciaëmi'' [-tɕi(j)emi] (revolutions)
: ''riwalucia'' (revolution) → ''riwaluciaëmi'' [-tɕi(j)emi] (revolutions)
: ''xuturaitelixutuwo'' (construction site) → ''xuturaitelixutuwoëmi'' [-wemi] (construction sites)
: ''xuturaitelixutuwo'' (construction site) → ''xuturaitelixutuwoëmi'' [-wemi] (construction sites)
Some words of foreign, especially French, origin, are invariable, as for example all month and weekday names. The word ''tawarich'' (comrade) uses the Russian plural ''tawarichi'' when used as a vocative, and ''tawarichemi'' otherwise.
Some words of foreign, especially French, origin, are invariable, as for example all month and weekday names. The word ''tawarich'' (comrade) uses the Russian plural ''tawarichi'' when used as a vocative, and ''tawarichemi'' otherwise.<br/>''Rubuli'' "ruble" (also the name of the Tameï currency) always has the plural ''rubuley'', taken from the Russian genitive plural.


The ''-emi'' suffix is also used for many ''-u'' nouns, usually forming ''-wemi'':
The ''-emi'' suffix is, for native words, used for many ''-i'' and ''-u'' nouns, in the latter case usually forming ''-wemi'':
: ''kʌrami'' (head) → ''kʌramiemi'' (heads; but also ''kʌramimi'')
: ''beyđi'' (knot) → ''beyđiemi'' (knots)
: ''lâneychär′u'' (nation) → ''lâneychär′wemi'' (nations)
: ''lâneychär′u'' (nation) → ''lâneychär′wemi'' (nations)
Other regular patterns are ''-eyä'' → ''-eymi'' (''meyʌhäht′eyä'' "people" → ''meyʌhäht′eymi'' "peoples") and, for the derivational suffix ''-wałe'', ''-weyłi'' (''deydiwałe'' "birth" → ''deydiweyłi'' "births").
Other regular patterns are ''-eyä'' → ''-eymi'' (''meyʌhäht′eyä'' "people" → ''meyʌhäht′eymi'' "peoples") and, for the derivational suffix ''-wałe'', ''-weyłi'' (''deydiwałe'' "birth" → ''deydiweyłi'' "births").
Line 115: Line 328:
: ''lâney'' (person) → ''lânny'' (people; but the singular is also often used with a plural meaning)
: ''lâney'' (person) → ''lânny'' (people; but the singular is also often used with a plural meaning)
: ''rânychani'' (coconut palm) → ''rânychanny'' (coconut palms)
: ''rânychani'' (coconut palm) → ''rânychanny'' (coconut palms)
Other ''-ey'' nouns typically pluralize to ''-eywe'' (much like adjectives):
: ''yâłey'' (train) → ''yâleywe'' (trains)
: ''c′owey'' (bird) → ''c′oweywe'' (birds)
: ''qâchey'' (tuna fish) → ''qâcheywe'' (tuna fishes)


''-na'', if preceded by a front vowel or ''-ey'', usually becomes ''-ny'' [ɲ] in the plural. This is also true with some foreign roots:
''-na'', if preceded by a front vowel or ''-ey'', usually becomes ''-ny'' [ɲ] in the plural. This is also true with some foreign roots:
Line 120: Line 338:
: ''łäna'' (stream) → ''łäny'' (streams)
: ''łäna'' (stream) → ''łäny'' (streams)
: ''nânyarugencina'' (Argentinian) → ''nânyarugenciny'' (Argentinians)
: ''nânyarugencina'' (Argentinian) → ''nânyarugenciny'' (Argentinians)
A few ''-a'' nouns (all feminine) have their plural in ''-â'' (with a stress shift):
: ''nʌmisa'' /ˈnʌmiθa/ (leg) → ''nʌmisâ'' /nʌmiˈθa/ (legs)
: ''ӿuda'' /ˈxuða/ (fingernail) → ''ӿudâ'' /xuˈða/ (fingernails)
: ''mp′ilena'' /ʘ̃iˈlena/ (road) → ''mp′ilenâ'' /ʘ̃ileˈna/ (roads)


Some -CCV nouns undergo cluster breaking, often with not quite predictable results:
Some -CCV nouns undergo cluster breaking, often with not quite predictable results:
Line 128: Line 351:
Others are synchronically irregular:
Others are synchronically irregular:
: ''nyuta'' (day) → ''nyich'' (days)
: ''nyuta'' (day) → ''nyich'' (days)
: ''niny'' (woman) → ''nayim'' (women)
: ''kilka'' (foot) → ''kiwchiny'' (foot)
: ''kilka'' (foot) → ''kiwchiny'' (foot)
: ''p′ūki'' (man) → ''p′ūx'' (men)
Some nouns (mostly neuter, but a few masculine ones as well) pluralize with ''-ūz'', with or without any other change:
: ''kamo'' (leaf) → ''kamūz'' (leaves)
: ''đalūn'' (pebble) → ''đownūz'' (pebbles)
: ''chiâ'' (category, group, class) → ''chigūz'' (categories, groups, classes)


Some adjectival roots pluralize as adjectives do:
Some adjectival roots pluralize as adjectives do:
: ''nânytamei(yâ)'' (Tameï) → ''nânytameinywe'' (Tameïs)
: ''nânytamei(yâ)'' (Tameï) → ''nânytameinywe'' (Tameïs)
: ''nânyexulamur(â)'' (Muslim) → ''nânyexulamurye'' (Muslims)
: ''nânyexulamur(â)'' (Muslim) → ''nânyexulamurye'' (Muslims)
: ''täzifeyza'' (red hue) → ''täzifeyziwe'' (red hues)


===Adjectives===
===Adjectives===
Line 174: Line 405:
===Numerals===
===Numerals===
Tameï has a base 10 numeral system with a moderate complexity given by the fact that, due to historical changes, most of the individual numbers between 1 and 100 are irregular - there are some patterns but also many numbers with unexpected forms.
Tameï has a base 10 numeral system with a moderate complexity given by the fact that, due to historical changes, most of the individual numbers between 1 and 100 are irregular - there are some patterns but also many numbers with unexpected forms.
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
|+0-9
|-
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
Line 185: Line 419:
|-
|-
! 2
! 2
| bud || [bu]
| bud || [buð]
|-
|-
! 3
! 3
Line 200: Line 434:
|-
|-
! 7
! 7
| ǥât || [ɢa(ː)tu]
| ǥâx || [ɢa(ː)s]
|-
|-
! 8
! 8
Line 207: Line 441:
! 9
! 9
| kaŧīkä || [ˈkatɬikɛ]
| kaŧīkä || [ˈkatɬikɛ]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+10-19
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
|-
! 10
! 10
| nyäwī || [ˈɲɛwi]
| '''nyäwī''' || [ˈɲɛwi]
|-
|-
! 11
! 11
Line 230: Line 470:
|-
|-
! 17
! 17
| nyäǥât || [ˈɲɛɢa(ː)]
| nyäǥâx || [ˈɲɛɢa(ː)s]
|-
|-
! 18
! 18
Line 237: Line 477:
! 19
! 19
| nayefunyä || [najeɸuˈɲɛ]
| nayefunyä || [najeɸuˈɲɛ]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+20-29
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
|-
! 20
! 20
| bunyä || [buˈɲɛ]
| '''bunyä''' || [buˈɲɛ]
|-
! 21
| bunny || [buɲː]
|-
! 22
| bunyfow || [ˈbuɲɸoʊ̯]
|-
! 23
| bunt′az || [ˈbuǀ̃az]
|-
! 24
| bunyda || [ˈbuɲða]
|-
! 25
| beymʌ || [ˈbeɪ̯mʌ]
|-
! 26
| bunnyū || [ˈbuɲːu]
|-
! 27
| beyǥu || [ˈbeɪ̯ɢu]
|-
! 28
| bunyłany || [ˈbuɲɬaɲ]
|-
! 29
| nayennyt′e || [najeɲːˈǀ̃e]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+30-39
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 30
| '''nt′âny''' || [ǀ̃a(ː)ɲ]
|-
! 31
| nt′ânney || [ˈǀ̃anneɪ̯]
|-
! 32
| nt′owd || [ǀ̃oʊ̯ð]
|-
! 33
| nt′ânt′|| [ǀ̃aǀ̃]
|-
! 34
| nt′âda || [ˈǀ̃aða]
|-
! 35
| nt′âm || [ǀ̃am]
|-
! 36
| nt′owny || [ǀ̃oʊ̯ɲ]
|-
! 37
| nt′âǥu || [ˈǀ̃aɢu]
|-
! 38
| nt′azany || [ǀ̃aˈzaɲ]
|-
! 39
| neynyäd || [neɪ̯ˈɲɛð]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+40-49
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 40
| '''sânyä''' || [ˈθaɲɛ]
|-
! 41
| sâchiny || [ˈθaɕiɲ]
|-
! 42
| sâfow || [ˈθaɸoʊ̯]
|-
! 43
| sâchint′|| [ˈθaɕiǀ̃]
|-
! 44
| sâda || [ˈθaða]
|-
! 45
| sâm || [θam]
|-
! 46
| sâchinū || [ˈθaɕinu]
|-
! 47
| sâǥu || [ˈθaɢu]
|-
! 48
| sâchow || [ˈθaɕoʊ̯]
|-
! 49
| nayenyʌch || [najeˈɲʌɕ]
|}
{{col-end}}
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+50-59
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 50
| mʌnyä || [mʌˈɲɛ]
|-
! 51
| mʌnny || [mʌɲː]
|-
! 52
| mʌnyfow || [ˈmʌɲɸoʊ̯]
|-
! 53
| mʌnt′az || [ˈmʌǀ̃az]
|-
! 54
| mʌnyda || [ˈmʌɲða]
|-
! 55
| mʌmʌ || [ˈmʌmʌ]
|-
! 56
| mʌnyū || [ˈmʌɲu]
|-
! 57
| mʌnyǥu || [ˈmʌɲɢu]
|-
! 58
| mʌnyłany || [ˈmʌɲɬaɲ]
|-
! 59
| nayennyūnye || [najeˈɲːuɲe]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+60-69
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 60
| '''nūnnyä''' || [nuˈɲːɛ]
|-
! 61
| nūney || [nuˈneɪ̯]
|-
! 62
| nūnyfu || [ˈnuɲɸu]
|-
! 63
| nūnt′az || [ˈnuǀ̃az]
|-
! 64
| nūnyda || [ˈnuɲða]
|-
! 65
| neymʌ || [neɪ̯ˈmʌ]
|-
! 66
| nūnnyū || [ˈnuɲːu]
|-
! 67
| neyǥu || [ˈneɪ̯ɢu]
|-
! 68
| nūnyłany || [ˈnuɲɬaɲ]
|-
! 69
| nayeq || [naˈjeq]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+70-79
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 70
| '''ǥânyä''' || [ˈɢaɲɛ]
|-
! 71
| ǥânny || [ɢaɲː]
|-
! 72
| ǥânyfow || [ˈɢaɲɸoʊ̯]
|-
! 73
| ǥânt′az || [ˈɢaǀ̃az]
|-
! 74
| ǥânyda || [ˈɢaɲða]
|-
! 75
| ǥâmʌ || [ɢaˈmʌ]
|-
! 76
| ǥânyū || [ˈɢaɲu]
|-
! 77
| ǥânyǥu || [ˈɢaɲɢu]
|-
! 78
| ǥânyłany || [ˈɢaɲɬaɲ]
|-
! 79
| nayenyłow || [ˈnajeɲɬoʊ̯]
|}
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+80-89
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 80
| '''łownyä''' || [ˈɬoʊ̯ɲɛ]
|-
! 81
| łanny || [ɬaɲː]
|-
! 82
| łanyfow || [ɬaɲˈɸoʊ̯]
|-
! 83
| łownt′|| [ɬoʊ̯ǀ̃]
|-
! 84
| łowda || [ˈɬoʊ̯ða]
|-
! 85
| łowmʌ || [ɬoʊ̯ˈmʌ]
|-
! 86
| łannyū || [ɬaˈɲːu]
|-
! 87
| łanyǥu || [ˈɬaɲɢu]
|-
! 88
| łowłany || [ɬoʊ̯ˈɬaɲ]
|-
! 89
| nayenykaŧū || [najeɲˈkatɬu]
|}
{{col-break}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+90-100
|-
! Digit !! Cardinal !! Pronunciation
|-
! 90
| '''kaŧīnyä''' || [ˈkatɬiɲɛ]
|-
! 91
| kaŧīnny || [ˈkatɬiɲː]
|-
! 92
| kaŧīfu || [ˈkatɬiɸu]
|-
! 93
| kaŧīnt′|| [ˈkatɬiǀ̃]
|-
! 94
| kaŧīda || [ˈkatɬiða]
|-
! 95
| kaŧīmʌ || [ˈkatɬimʌ]
|-
! 96
| kaŧīnyū || [ˈkatɬiɲu]
|-
! 97
| kaŧīq || [ˈkatɬiq]
|-
! 98
| kaŧīłany || [ˈkatɬiɬaɲ]
|-
! 99
| powyha || [ˈpoʊ̯ça]
|-
! 100
| yhʌd || [ˈçʌð]
|}
{{col-end}}
Numbers above 100 are easily formed with ''u'', e.g. 101 ''yhʌd u ney'', 102 ''yhʌd u bud'', and so on. Upper hundreds are compounds:
: '''200''' – buyhʌd
: '''300''' – nt′azʌd
: '''400''' – sachʌd
: '''500''' – mʌchʌd
: '''600''' – nūyhʌd
: '''700''' – ǥâcʌd
: '''800''' – ławayhʌd
: '''900''' – kaŧīyhʌd
1000 is ''yâz'', and numbers above it are simple juxtapositions (e.g. 4829 ''sâch yâz ławayhʌd u nayennyt′e''). Even higher numerals are French loans: 1.000.000 is ''meleyâ'' and 1.000.000.000 is ''meleyʌđu''.


==Vocabulary==
==Vocabulary==
===Days and months===
===Days and months===
Both days of the week and months of the year used in Tameï are clear French borrowings, but they do show the usual vocalic changes that happened in Tameï since they were borrowed:
Days of the week are clear French borrowings, even if the pronunciation has diverged since borrowing. Month names were borrowed at the same time, but, in 1950, they were replaced by a new calendar, the Revolutionary Calendar, where all month names except three (March, July, and September) are related to Communism. The names have since remained in use, even after 1999.
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
Line 250: Line 793:
|-
|-
! Monday
! Monday
| lâđe || || [la(ː)ˈde]
| lüdi || || {{IPA|[lʲʉˈdʲi̘]}}
|-
|-
! Tuesday
! Tuesday
| mowđe || mo || [mo̞ʊ̯ˈde]
| mördi || || {{IPA|[mɤɹˈdʲi̘]}}
|-
|-
! Wednesday
! Wednesday
| mīkurīđe || || [mikuɹiˈde]
| marhardi || ma || {{IPA|[mæɹxæɹˈdʲi̘]}}
|-
|-
! Thursday
! Thursday
| chuđe || ch || [ɕuˈde]
| chödi || ch || {{IPA|[ɕɤˈdʲi̘]}}
|-
|-
! Friday
! Friday
| fâdurīđe || || [ɸa(ː)duɹiˈde]
| fadardi || fa || {{IPA|[ɸædʲæɹˈdʲi̘]}}
|-
|-
! Saturday
! Saturday
| xâđe || || [sa(ː)ˈde]
| sadi || sa || {{IPA|[sʲæˈdʲi̘]}}
|-
|-
! Sunday
! Sunday
| đemʌch || de || [deˈmʌɕ]
| dâmâch || || {{IPA|[dɑˈmɑʃ]}}
|}
|}


Line 276: Line 819:
|-
|-
! January
! January
| châfī || châ || [ɕa(ː)ˈfi]
| leninskiy || len || {{IPA|[ˈlʲenʲi̘nʲæsʲʉkɨ͡ij]}}
|-
|-
! February
! February
| fīūrei || fīū || [fi.uɹeˈi]
| mânõfäsutu || mân || {{IPA|[mɑne̝ˈɸɛsɯtɯ]}}
|-
|-
! March
! March
| mowxu || mow || [ˈmo̞ʊ̯su]
| nöwrüsa || nöw || {{IPA|[nʲɵ͡øɥˈɹusʲæ]}}
|-
|-
! April
! April
| afurel || afu || [aɸuˈɹel]
| pröletarskiy || prö || {{IPA|[pʉɹɤlʲeˈtʲæɹæsʲʉkɨ͡ij]}}
|-
|-
! May
! May
| || || [ˈmi]
| pabediy || pab || {{IPA|[pæˈɓedʲɨ͡ij]}}
|-
|-
! June
! June
| chuwä || chu || [ɕuˈwɛ]
| riwaluciöniy || riw || {{IPA|[ɹi̘wælʲʉˈsʲjɤnʲɨ͡ij]}}
|-
|-
! July
! July
| chīlī || chī || [ɕiˈli]
| ümüchenny || ümü || {{IPA|[ˈumuʃeɲː]}}
|-
|-
! August
! August
| otu || otu || [ˈotu]
| châmänyp′ulychon || châ || {{IPA|[ʃɑmɛɲˈʘujʃɔn]}}
|-
|-
! September
! September
| xīputâbu || xīp || [sipuˈta(ː)bu]
| tümp′a || tüm || {{IPA|[ˈtʲʉʘ̃æ]}}
|-
|-
! October
! October
| ūkutūbu || ūku || [ukuˈtubu]
| kõrâsõnuy || kõr || {{IPA|[ke̝ˈɹɑse̝nɯ͡ɪj]}}
|-
|-
! November
! November
| nūfâbu || nūf || [nuˈɸa(ː)bu]
| engelsskiy || eng || {{IPA|[ˈeŋɡelʲʉsʲːʉkɨ͡ij]}}
|-
|-
! December
! December
| đīxâbu || đīx || [diˈsa(ː)bu]
| stalinskiy || sta || {{IPA|[tʲælʲi̘nʲæsʲʉkɨ͡ij]}}
|}
|}


Line 331: Line 874:


Common names include:
Common names include:
* Boys' names: ''Abdulkommunizumu'', ''Abdullenin'', ''Abdulmarx'', ''Abdulstalin'', ''Bīnʌ'' (< Bénoit), ''Chlʌǥī′ey'', ''Furâxʌ'' (< François), ''Grâce'', ''Heykä'', ''Ītīn'' (< Étienne) ''Komsomoletsu'', ''Lelyä'' (< Lilian), ''Līley'', ''Lui'' (< Louis) ''P′alkey'', ''Soviet'', ''(Iosif) Stalin'', ''Tsetun'', ''Ŧ′īkaney''
* Boys' names: ''Abdulkommunizumu'', ''Abdullenin'', ''Abdulmarx'' [-ˈmaɹukusu], ''Abdulstalin'', ''Bīnʌ'' (< Bénoit), ''Chlʌǥī′ey'', ''Furâxʌ'' (< François), ''Grâce'', ''Heykä'', ''Ītīn'' (< Étienne) ''Komsomoletsu'', ''Lelyä'' (< Lilian), ''Līley'', ''Lui'' (< Louis) ''P′alkey'', ''Soviet'', ''(Iosif) Stalin'', ''Tsetun'', ''Ŧ′īkaney''
* Girls' names: ''Akīnä'', ''Amatulkommunizumu'', ''Amatullenin'', ''Amatulmarx'', ''Amatulstalin'', ''Chlūī'' (< Chloë), ''Furâxʌz(ī)'' (< Françoise), ''Grâce'', ''Lelyan(ī)'' (< Liliane), ''Mowten(ī)'' (< Martine)
* Girls' names: ''Akīnä'', ''Amatulkommunizumu'', ''Amatullenin'', ''Amatulmarx'', ''Amatulstalin'', ''Chlūī'' (< Chloë), ''Furâxʌz(ī)'' (< Françoise), ''Grâce'', ''Lelyan(ī)'' (< Liliane), ''Mowten(ī)'' (< Martine)-->


==Notes==
==Notes==

Latest revision as of 08:53, 21 May 2020

Tameï
тұмоубэ тұТамеи
Flag of the Tameï Islands
Pronunciation[[tuˈmou̯ɓɛ tutameˈi]]
Created byLili21
DateDec 2017
Settingalt-Earth
EthnicityTameï
Native speakers42,000,000 (2017)
Isolate
  • Tameï
Official status
Regulated byCentral National Committee of the Tameïan Language (ұкомитеты ұгұлауны ұланньэшыши тұмоубэйыр тұТамеи - КГЛМТ)

Tameï (тұТамеи [tutameˈi] or тұмоубэ тұТамеи [tuˈmou̯ɓɛ tutameˈi]) is a language isolate spoken in the Tameï Islands (хямша баТамеи [ˈxjamɕa batameˈi]), an independent volcanic archipelago country in the Indian Ocean, along the Ninety East Ridge, one of the most remote sovereign countries on Earth, as the closest land, about 820 km ENE, is the Australian territory of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and the closest integral territory of a sovereign country are the Mentawai Islands off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, about 1660 km to the northeast.

Tameï is Earth's second most spoken language isolate (after Korean), being the native tongue of about 42 million people, mostly in the Tameï Islands but also in countries of the former USSR. Tameï is one of two official languages in the country - the Tameïan People's Socialist Republic (officially ұРесыпұбылихы ұСоциалиссичүки Ланньыр баТамеи and Социалистическая Республика Тамеиского Народа) as Russian is still official for historical and cultural reasons, despite actual Russian native speakers being only 1% of the Tameï population.

Despite fairly regular contacts with the peoples of Indonesia through centuries, the first major external influence in the Tameï Islands came with the first Western contact in 1594 through a Dutch expedition by Johannes De Boer on the ship De Schildpad. Established in 1613 as a Dutch colony, the Tameï islands remained under Dutch rule until 1827, when they were conquered by the British. They remained a British colony until the Communist Revolution of 1934 which saw the Tameï Islands, extremely rich in raw materials, become an important partner of the USSR (so much it was informally sometimes known as "the 16th Republic"); after the latter's dissolution, the country remained mostly isolated in the international community, which resulted in multi-party elections being allowed in 1999. Self-defined Tameï people (even if heavily intermixed with other groups) are the majority, forming 57% of the population; there are also substantial Pashtun (21%) and Punjabi (13%) components. Religiously, there is no absolute majority; the largest religion is Sufi Islam, followed by 30% of the population, with atheism or irreligiousness (28%) and more or less syncretic modern forms of Tameï shamanism (24%) also being relevant percentages.

This history, and the varied ethnic composition of the Tameï state (which saw a large influx of West and South Asians during the British period, as well as European communists during the 20th century), are reflected in its language, which has up to 20% of its lexicon of foreign origin, with early loans from Dutch (borrowed early enough to have underwent Tameï vowel shifts), then from English, Persian, Pashto (the latter two especially in more colloquial registers), and more recently from Russian and Japanese (the latter because of heavy Japanese cultural influence since the end of the Communist era). Tameï's orthography was only created after the Revolution of 1934. The first orthography was based on Dutch spelling conventions, though the difficult way of representing some sounds specific to Tameï led to different proposals being considered. Finally, in 1943, the current Cyrillic orthography was introduced, requested by the government as a sign of political alignment with the Soviet Union; the orthography itself was heavily influenced by the Cyrillic alphabet for Kazakh that at the time had just been introduced. In contemporary Tameï, some words (mostly Russian proper names) keep the original spelling but pronounced as a Tameï word, like the city of Сталинахаль[1], is [ˌtаlinаˈxаj].

Tameï is a mostly agglutinating language, with complex inflected verbs and a system of noun classes not unlike (but smaller than) the one typical of Bantu languages. On the phonetic side, it is notable for being, together with Damin, one of only two non-African languages using click consonants.

(TBC)

Morphology

Numerals

Most of the contemporary Tameï counting system is made of Dutch borrowings. Native words exist for the numerals from one to four, plus words for "hand" and "pair of hands" used for 5 and 10 respectively; native compound numbers exist for 6-9.

1-10 is generally counted with native numerals; the Dutch borrowings from 1 to 10 are used in all other contexts, except in in units from 1 to 10 in every hundred and thousand. 11-20 is usually counted with Dutch borrowings, but native numerals aren't uncommon too.

Digit Native Dutch
1 -тү
[ˈty]
(-эн)
[ˈɛn]
2 -ӆъа
[ˈǁa]
(-те)
[ˈtje]
3 -рашы
[ˈɹaʃɤ]
(-дыри)
[ɗɤˈɹi]
4 -ҥуэтъ
[ŋʷɛǀ]
(-уир)
[ˈwiɹ]
5 -ӝұнь
[ˈd͡ɮuɲ]
(-уэйпы)
[ˈwɛi̯pɤ]
6 -хэйлыӝұнь
[xɛi̯ˈlɤd͡ɮuɲ]
(-зэсы)
[ˈd͡zɛsɤ]
7 -ӆъашыӝұнь
[ǁaˈʃɤd͡ɮuɲ]
(-зеуын)
[ˈd͡zjewɤn]
8 -рашэйӝұнь
[ɹaˈʃɛi̯d͡ɮuɲ]
(-ахыты)
[ˈaxɤtɤ]
9 -ӆъашычъыбэ
[ǁaʃɤˈǂɤɓɛ]
(-ньэғын)
[ˈɲɛɣɤn]
10 -чъыбэ
[ˈǂɤɓɛ]
(-тин)
[ˈtin]

Digit Native Dutch
11 -чъыбэ ҥэ -тү
[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈty]
-элпы
[ˈɛlpɤ]
12 -чъыбэ ҥэ -ӆъа
[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈǁa]
-туалпы
[ˈtwalpɤ]
13 -чъыбэ ҥэ -рашы
[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈɹaʃɤ]
-дэртин
[ˈɗɛɹtin]
14 -чъыбэ ҥэ -ҥуэтъ
[ˈǂɤɓɛ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈŋʷɛǀ]
-ерытин
[ˈjeɹɤtin]
15 -ӆъа -ӝұнь ҥэ -ӝұнь
[ˈǁa -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈd͡ɮuɲ]
-уэйпытин
[ˈwɛi̯pɤtin]
16 -рашы -ӝұнь ҥэ -тү
[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈty]
-зэсытин
[ˈd͡zɛsɤtin]
17 -рашы -ӝұнь ҥэ -ӆъа
[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈǁa]
-зеуынтин
[ˈd͡zjewɤntin]
18 -рашы -ӝұнь -рашы
[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈɹaʃɤ]
-ахытин
[ˈaxɤtin]
19 -рашы -ӝұнь ҥэ -ҥуэтъ
[ˈɹaʃɤ -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈŋʷɛǀ]
-ньэғынтин
[ˈɲɛɣɤntin]
20 -ӆъа -ӝұнь ҥэ -ӆъа -хэҥуа
[ˈǁa -ˈd͡ɮuɲ ŋ(ɛ)‿-ˈǁa -ˈxɛŋʷa]
-(эн)туинты
[(ɛn)ˈtwintɤ]

Digit Dutch
30 -(эн)дэрыты
[(ɛn)ˈɗɛɹɤtɤ]
40 -(эм)перыты
[(ɛm)ˈpjeɹɤtɤ]
50 -(эм)пэйпыты
[(ɛm)ˈpɛi̯pɤtɤ]
60 -(эн)сэсыты
[(ɛn)ˈsɛsɤtɤ]
70 -(эн)сеуынты
[(ɛn)ˈsjewɤntɤ]
80 -(эн)таты
[(ɛn)ˈtatɤ]
90 -(эн)ньэғынты
[(ɛn)ˈɲɛɣɤntɤ]
100 -хондыр
[ˈxondɤɹ]
1000 -дыйсан
[ˈɗɤi̯san]


The forms with -эн- or -эм- are used when building units in tens, e.g. дапэйпыты "fifty (class 5)", даэн эмпэйпыты "fifty-one (class 5).

Syntax

Verb phrase

Tameï verbs are inflected through various prefixes and suffixes showing subjects, direct objects, indirect objects, causativity, applicatives, tense, and evidentiality. The minimum verb complex is made of a subject prefix, the root, and an evidential suffix.

Ихұчи бүссе.
[iˈxutɕi ˈbyssje]
и-хұч-и ∅-бүссе
C1.SG-run-VIS. C1.SG-woman.

The woman runs.
Итуанашэ тұӵынрӏэ бүссе.
[itwaˈnaʃɛ tuˈt͡ɬɤǃ̃͡qχe ˈbyssje]
и-туа-нашэ-и тұ-ӵынрӏэ ∅-бүссе
C1.SG-C2.SG.OBJ-see-VIS. C1.SG-boy. C1.SG-woman.

The woman sees the boy.
Ицэйнашэхей цоӵынрӏэ бүссе.
[itsɛi̯ˈnaʃɛxei̯ tsoˈt͡ɬɤǃ̃͡qχe ˈbyssje]
и-цей-нашэ-хе-и цо-ӵынрӏэ ∅-бүссе
C1.SG-C2.PL.OBJ-see--CLOSE_PAST-VIS. C1.PL-boy. C1.SG-woman.

The woman saw the boys.
Бахұчыуа ымбүссе.
[baxuˈtɕɤwa ɤmˈbyssje]
ба-хұч-ыуа ыб-бүссе
C1.PL-run--NVIS. C1.PL-woman.

The women run (I hear them).
Базэчашньимпъыр зэхатъи зэӵаньэ ҥуэйхыхиш ҥуэтүръыҥы ымбүссе башимае.
[ɓadzetɕaʃˈɲiʘ̃ɤɹ dzeˈxaǀi dzeˈtɬaɲɛ ŋʷei̯ˈxɤxiʃ ŋʷetyˈǃɤŋɤ ɤmˈbyssje baʃiˈmaje]
ба-зэ-ча-ш-ньи-мпъы-р зэ-хатъи зэ-ӵаньэ ҥуэ-йхыхиш ҥуэ-тү-иръыҥы ым-бүссе ба-шимае
C1.PL-C4.PL.OBJ-C5.DAT-CAUS-eat--REMOTE_PAST-RENARR. C4.PL-banana. C4.PL-red. C5.PL-baby. C5.PL-with-hunger. C1.PL-woman. C1.PL-short_haired.

The short-haired women gave the red bananas to the hungry babies to eat.

Internal and external locatives (classes 6 and 7) are treated as objects. If they are not stative, they are however only marked as class 6/7 object in the verb, while the noun keeps its class marking but with a preposition.

Бажыхэнньыуа хоу ұдэнэй иӆұуи ҥа иӆұуитъиҥи илэшэ.
[ɓadʒɤxɛɲˈɲɤwa xou̯ uˈɗɛnɛi̯ iˈɬuwi ŋa iɬuwiˈǀiŋi iˈlɛʃɛ]
ба-жы-хэннь-ыуа хоу ұ-дэнэй и-ӆұуи ҥа и-ӆұуитъиҥи и-лэшэ
C1.PL-C6.OBJ--walk--NVIS. to. C3.SG-park. C1.SG-girl. and. C1.SG-girlfriend. C1.SG-3SG.GEN.

The girl and her girlfriend walk to the park.
Ижыӏэни ирӏыль ӆыхалыдиль.
[idʒɤˈɁɛni iˈǃ͡qχɤi̯ ɬɤxalɤˈdii̯]
и-жы-ӏэн-и и-рӏыль ӆы-халыдиль
C1.SG-C6.OBJ--be_located--VIS. C1.SG-fish. C6.SG-fridge.

The fish is in the fridge.
Меҥльашичъхұм хеоуто.
[mjeŋjaˈʃiǂxum xeˈou̯to]
меҥ-льа-шичъ-хұм хе-оуто
1SG.SUBJ-C7.OBJ--wait--FUT. C7.SG-car.

I'll wait outside the car.


Notes

  1. ^ Tameï for "Stalin City".