Balearic

Balearic (endonym: Bajáricu; Bajáricu: [baˈʒaɾiku]) is a Southern Romance language, most closely related to Sardinian, but with heavy influences from Western Romance, particularly Spanish (Castillian) and Catalan. It is spoken on the Balearic islands, and is the native language of most people there.

Orthography

Balearic uses most of the letters in the ISO Standard Latin alphabet with the exception of K, Q, and W. There are 3 additional letters, Ç, Đ, and Ñ. Two diacritics are in use in native vocabulary: the acute accent and the diaeresis. Spelling is largely phonemic, with a few systematic exceptions.

Alphabet

Letter	Name	IPA
Aa	a	/a/
Bb	be	/b/
Cc	ce	/k/
Çç	ce çediya / ce crebada	/θ/
Dd	de	/d/
Đđ	đe	/ɖ/
Ee	e	/ɛ/
Ff	efe	/f/
Gg	ge	/ɡ/
Hh	haca	silent
Ii	i	/i/ [i, i̯]
Jj	jota	/ʒ/
Ll	ele	/l/
Mm	eme	/m/
Nn	ene	/n/
Ññ	eñe	/ɳ/
Oo	o	/ɔ/
Pp	pe	/p/
Rr	erre	/ɾ, r/
Ss	esse	/s, z/
Tt	te	/t/
Uu	u	/u/ [u, u̯]
Vv	ve	/v/
Xx	exe	/ʃ/ (/ks/ in borrowings and some learned words)
Yy	i grega / ye	/j/
Zz	zeta	/ð/

The digraphs in common usage are:

• 〈ch〉 /tʃ/
• 〈nh〉 /ɲ/
• 〈rr〉 /r/
• 〈ss〉 /s/

The letters 〈r〉 and 〈s〉 have two sounds each. 〈R〉 represents a trill initially, and after /n, s/, and represents the tap elsewhere. If a trill appears intervocalically, 〈rr〉 is used. 〈S〉 represents /s/ initially, next to a consonant. Between vowels 〈s〉 represents /z/, and /s/ is written 〈ss〉. At the end of a word 〈s〉 may represent /s/ or /z/ depending on context and word.

Diacritics

The 2 diacritics in common use in Balearic are the acute and diaeresis.

The acute is used to represent a stressed vowel in the following cases:

• In final syllables, before 〈(i)s〉, 〈x〉, 〈(i)n〉, and 〈nt〉 (see below for 〈nt〉),
• In penultimate syllables, with any other final consonant,
• In other syllables always,
• On 〈i〉 or 〈u〉 when stressed in hiatus, and
• On some monosyllabic words for disambiguation.

The diaeresis is used on 〈i〉 & 〈u〉 when unstressed & in hiatus, unless the following vowel has an acute and is the only other syllable in the word; e.g., 〈viáx〉 /viˈaʃ/ and 〈viáis〉 /viˈai̯s/.

Other notes

The digraph 〈nt〉 is irregularly pronounced /ndɛ/ at the end of a word, and is always unstressed. In other contexts, it is pronounced as expected (i.e. /nt/); e.g., 〈amant〉 /ˈamandɛ/, contrasting with 〈amande〉 /aˈmandɛ/. Similarly, final 〈st〉 is pronounced /stɛ/; e.g., 〈est〉 /ˈɛstɛ/. The final /ɛ/ in these words does not count as syllable for stress assignment.

Foreign letters and words

The foreign letters Kk, Qq, and Ww have the names 〈ka(pa)〉, 〈cu〉, and 〈ve dubla〉 respectively. They are only found in loans, which are often (but not always) respelled to fit native orthographical rules. Other letters in loans may also make different sounds, according to their pronunciation in the language of origin.

Phonology

Balearic’s phonology is, segment-wise, relatively similar to the Sardinian language, especially its Nuorese dialect. However, due to the influence of Western Romance languages, the phonology also largely resembles those languages, leaving Balearic somewhere in the middle.

Consonants

Consonant phonemes

	Labial		Dental		Alveolar		Retroflex		Postalv. / Palatal		Velar
Nasals		m		n				ɳ		ɲ		(ŋ)
Stops	p	b	t	d				ɖ	tʃ		k	ɡ
Fricatives	f	v	θ	ð	s	z			ʃ	ʒ
Approximant						l				j
Tap						ɾ
Trill						r

Notes:

• [ŋ] is an allophone of /n/ before /k, ɡ/; e.g., 〈lancu〉 [ˈlaŋku]
• /k, ɡ/ often palatalize to [c, ɟ] before /i, ɛ/; e.g., 〈cince〉 [ˈciɲcɛ]
• [nd] and [ɳɖ] are in free variation before a vowel; e.g., 〈cendu〉 [ˈcendu]~[ˈceɳɖu].
  • [nd] is more common in southern dialects, and [ɳɖ] in northern ones, but either pronunciation can be found anywhere.
• /b, d, ɡ/ lenite to [β̞, ð̞, ɣ˕~ʝ˕], except after a nasal, pause, or /l/ for /d/; e.g., 〈doigi〉 [ˈdoi̯ʝ˕i], 〈podel〉 [ˈpɔð̞ɛl], 〈subre〉 [ˈs̠uβ̞ɾɛ].
  • For some speakers, especially in colloquial speech, [ʝ˕] can merge with [j].
• /s, z/ are retracted [s̠, z̠], sounding like their counterparts in Modern Greek.

Vowels

Vowel phonemes

	Front	Back
High	i	u
High-mid	(e) †	(o) †
Low-mid	ɛ	ɔ
Low	a

† Phonemic in Ibizan

Notes:

• /ɛ, ɔ/ become [e, o] when followed by /i, u/ or [e, o]; e.g., 〈decisset〉 [deciˈsɛt], 〈oíl〉 [oˈil], 〈foreis〉 [ˈfoɾei̯s].
  • In Ibizan this becomes phonemic via raising o /ɛ, ɔ/ to /i, u/ in final syllables.
• The diphthong /ui/ may be pronounced either [u̯i] or [ui̯] freely. Similarly, /iu/ may be [i̯u] or [iu̯].

Stress

Stress in Balearic is phonemic. Some inflections are most often distinguished by stress, and other words can be too.

Phonotactics

Syllables in Balearic must take the shape of (C)(C)(G)V(G)(C)(C). Consonant clusters generally follow the sonority hierarchy.

Morphology

Balearic, like all Romance languages, is a highly inflected, fusional language.

Nouns

Nouns in Balearic, like other Romance languages, are split into two genders: "masculine" and "feminine. Nouns also have two numbers: "singular" and "plural". Plurals are formed with -s after a vowel, and -es after a consonant. Nouns ending in -u generally become -os in the plural.

When a syllable is added, an acute accent may be added or dropped in some words to keep stress on the same syllable.

Pluralization Examples

	Singular	Plural
-u	fiju	fijos
-V	fija	fijas
-C	cançón	cançones

Notes:

• Some nouns ending in 〈l〉 change it to 〈r〉 in the plural; e.g., s’álbol → s’álbores.
• Nouns ending in a stressed vowel, including 〈ú〉, just add 〈s〉; e.g., su tabú → sus tabús.
• Polysyllabic nouns ending an unstressed 〈s〉 have no overt plural marking; e.g., su joves → sos joves.

Adjectives

Like other Romance languages, adjectives agree in gender and number. Adjectives come in two classes: ones which inflect for gender, and ones which don’t. Adjectives whose base form ends in -u inflect for gender, ones ending in other sounds do not.

Adjective Examples

ruxu 'red'	Singular	Plural
Masculine	ruxu	ruxos
Feminine	ruxa	ruxas

azul 'blue'	Singular	Plural
Masc./Fem	azul	azules

calente 'hot'	Singular	Plural
Masc./Fem	calente	calentes

Determiners

Determiners, like adjectives, agree with a noun in gender and number.

Articles

There is a definite and indefinite article in Balearic, as well as a personal/proper article.

Definite Article

	Singular	Plural
Masculine	su	sos
Feminine	sa	sas

Thus:

• su fiju = 'the son'
• sa fija = 'the daughter'
• sos fijos = 'the sons'
• sas fijas = 'the daughters'

Before vowels and 〈h〉, the singular forms contract to s’:

• s’aviolu (← su aviolu) = 'the grandfather'
• s’aviola (← sa aviola) = 'the grandmother'
• s’hora (← sa hora) = 'the hour'

Indefinite Article

	Singular	Plural
Masculine	ne	nos
Feminine	na	nas

Thus:

• ne fiju = 'a son'
• na fija = 'a daughter'
• nos fijos = '(some) sons'
• nas fijas = '(some) daughters'

Before vowels and 〈h〉, the singular forms contract to n’:

• n’aviolu (← ne aviolu) = 'a grandfather'
• n’aviola (← na aviola) = 'a grandmother'
• n’hora (← na hora) = 'an hour'

Personal Article

	Singular
Masculine	ne
Feminine	na

The personal article is used before names of people. If a plural form is needed, the corresponding forms of the definite article are used, thus:

• ne Polu = 'Paul'
• na María = 'Maria'

Before vowels and 〈h〉, they contract to n’:

• n’Antoniu (← ne Antoniu) = 'Antonio'
• n’Emilia (← na Emilia) = 'Emily'

Contractions

These articles commonly and obligatorily contract with the prepositions a, de, por, cun, and in, and optionally with tras.

Contractions

	Definite Article				Indefinite Article				Personal Article
	Singular		Plural		Singular		Plural		Singular
	Masculine	Feminine	Masculine	Feminine	Masculine	Feminine	Masculine	Feminine	Masculine	Feminine
a	assu ~ as’	assa ~ as’	assos	assas	an	ana ~ an’	anos	anas	ane ~ an’	ana ~ an’
de	disso ~ dis’	dissa ~ dis’	dissos	dissas	dun	duna ~ dun’	dunos	dunas	dune ~ dun’	duna ~ dun’
por	pissu ~ pis’	pissa ~ pis’	pissos	pissas	pun	puna ~ pun’	punos	punas	pune ~ pun’	puna ~ pun’
cun	cissu ~ cis’	cissa ~ cis’	cissos	cissas	cún	cuna ~ cun’	cunos	cunas	cune ~ cun’	cuna ~ cun’
in	nissu ~ nis’	nissa ~ nis’	nissos	nissas	nun	nuna ~ nun’	nunos	nunas	nune ~ nun’	nuna ~ nun’
tras	trissu ~ tris’	trissa ~ tris’	trissos	trissas	trun	truna ~ trun’	trunos	trunas	trune ~ trun’	truna ~ trun’

Verbs

Balearic verbs are split into 4 regular conjugations, each descended from Latin’s. Each is named after its infinitive’s ending: -al, -el, -re, -il.

1^st conjugation (-al) example — amal (“to love”)

Infinitive		amal
Gerund		amante
Past Participle		singular plural masculine amadu amados feminine amada amadas
Person       Tense		first singular	second singular		third singular	first plural	second plural	third plural
		jo	tú	vós	is(sa)	nosotros/-as	vosotros/-as	isses/-as
Indicative	Present	amo	amas	amáx	ámaz	amamus	amáis	amant
	Imperfect	amava	amavas	amaváx	amávaz	amávamus	amavais	amavant
	Preterite	amái	amasti	amastix	amoz	amamus	amastis	amarunt
	Future	amarap	amarás	amaréx	amaraz	amaremus	amaréis	amaránt
Conditional	I	amaría	amarías	amaríax	amaríaz	amaríamus	amaríais	amaríant
	II	amarabi	amaristi	amaristix	amarábiz	amarimus	amaristis	amarerunt
Subjunctive	Present	ame	ames	améx	ámez	amemus	améis	ament
	Imperfect	amar	amares	amarex	amárez	amáremus	amareis	amarent
Imperative	Positive		ama	amái		amemus	amái
	Negative		non ames	non améx		non amemus	non améis

2^nd conjugation (-el) example — amal (“must, to be required to”)

Infinitive		devel
Gerund		devende
Past Participle		singular plural masculine devidu devidos feminine devida devidas
Person       Tense		first singular	second singular		third singular	first plural	second plural	third plural
		jo	tú	vós	is(sa)	nosotros/-as	vosotros/-as	isses/-as
Indicative	Present	devo	deves	devéx	dévez	devemus	devéis	devent
	Imperfect	devía	devías	devíax	devíaz	devíamus	devíais	devíant
	Preterite	deví	devisti	devistix	deviz	devimus	devistis	deverunt
	Future	deverap	deverás	deveréx	deveraz	deveremus	deveréis	deveránt
Conditional	I	devería	deverías	deveríax	deveríaz	deveríamus	deveríais	deveríant
	II	deverabi	deveristi	deveristix	deverábiz	deverimus	deveristis	devererunt
Subjunctive	Present	deva	devas	deváx	dévaz	devamus	deváis	devant
	Imperfect	dever	deveres	deverex	devérez	devéremus	devereis	deverent
Imperative	Positive		dev	devéi		devamus	devéi
	Negative		non devas	non deváx		non devamus	non deváis

3^rd conjugation (-re) example — mitre (“to love”)

Infinitive		mitre
Gerund		mitende
Past Participle		singular plural masculine mitidu mitidos feminine mitida mitidas
Person       Tense		first singular	second singular		third singular	first plural	second plural	third plural
		jo	tú	vós	is(sa)	nosotros/-as	vosotros/-as	isses/-as
Indicative	Present	mito	mitis	mitix	mítiz	mítimus	mitis	mitunt
	Imperfect	mitía	mitías	mitíax	mitíaz	mitíamus	mitíais	mitíant
	Preterite	miti	mitisti	mitistix	mítiz	mítimus	mitistis	miterunt
	Future	miterap	miterás	miteréx	miteraz	miteremus	miteréis	miteránt
Conditional	I	mitería	miterías	miteríax	miteríaz	miteríamus	miteríais	miteríant
	II	miterabi	miteristi	miteristix	miterábiz	miterimus	miteristis	mitererunt
Subjunctive	Present	mita	mitas	mitáx	mítaz	mitamus	mitáis	mitant
	Imperfect	míter	míteres	míterex	míterez	míteremus	mítereis	míterent
Imperative	Positive		mit	miti		mitamus	miti
	Negative		non mitas	non mitáx		non mitamus	non mitáis

4^th conjugation (-il) example — partil (“to even out”)

Infinitive		partil
Gerund		partinde
Past Participle		singular plural masculine partidu partidos feminine partida partidas
Person       Tense		first singular	second singular		third singular	first plural	second plural	third plural
		jo	tú	vós	is(sa)	nosotros/-as	vosotros/-as	isses/-as
Indicative	Present	parto	partis	partíx	pártiz	partimus	partís	partunt
	Imperfect	partía	partías	partíax	partíaz	partíamus	partíais	partíant
	Preterite	partí	partisti	partistix	partiz	partimus	partistis	parterunt
	Future	partirap	partirás	partiréx	partiraz	partiremus	partiréis	partiránt
Conditional	I	partiría	partirías	partiríax	partiríaz	partiríamus	partiríais	partiríant
	II	partirabi	partiristi	partiristix	partirábiz	partirimus	partiristis	partirerunt
Subjunctive	Present	parta	partas	partáx	pártaz	partamus	partáis	partant
	Imperfect	partir	partires	partirex	partírez	partíremus	partireis	partirent
Imperative	Positive		parti	partí		partamus	partí
	Negative		non partas	non partáx		non partamus	non partáis

Alongside these 4 conjugations, there are irregular verbs, many of which are among the most common in the language.

Pronouns

Like all Romance languages, Balearic has highly inflected pronouns.

Personal Pronouns

Pronouns			Nominative	Accusative	Dative	Disjunctive	Comitative
Singular	First Person		jo	me ~ m’		mi	cumegu
	Second Person	Informal	tú	te ~ t’		ti	cuntegu
		Formal	vós	vos		os	cunvoscu
	Third Person	Masculine	is	đu ~ đ’	đi ~ đ’	isso	c’isso
		Feminine	issa	đa ~ đ’		issa	c’issa
Plural	First Person	Masculine	nosatros	nos		nosatros	cuñoscu
		Feminine	nosatras			nosatras
	Second Person	Masculine	vosatros	os		vosatros	cumoscu
		Feminine	vosatras			vosatras
	Third Person	Masculine	isses	đos	đis	issos	c’issos
		Feminine	issas	đas		issas	c’issas
Reflexive				se ~ s’		si	cunsegu
Locative				vi ~ v’
Adverbial				ne ~ n’

Clitic pronouns always come in a fixed order:

1. Reflexive
2. 2nd Person
3. 1st Person
4. 3rd Dative
5. 3rd Accusative
6. Locative
7. Adverbial

Clitic Pronouns also have placement rules:

1. After 'no' and question words
2. After an imperative
3. A mesoclitic in the future or conditional
4. After an infinitive or auxiliary verb (either place is fine)
5. Before a verb

They are not allowed to be the first word in a phrase.

Example texts

The North Wind and the Sun

Su ventu dis nort i su sol istavant puñandu subre bal dissos dus éraz su max forte,
/su ˈvɛntu dis ˈnɔɾt i su ˈsɔl isˈtavandɛ puˈɳandu subɾɛ ˈbal disɔs dus ˈɛrað su maʃ ˈfɔɾtɛ/

Su

DEF;M.SG

ventu

wind

dissu

of;DEF;M.SG

nort

north

i

and

su

DEF;M.SG

sol

sun

ist-avant

be-IMP.3PL

puñ-andu

fight-GER

subre

about

bal

which

dissos

of;DEF;M.PL

dus

two

éraz

be.IMP

su

DEF;M.SG

max

more

forte

strong

Su ventu dissu nort i su sol ist-avant puñ-andu subre bal dissos dus éraz su max forte

DEF;M.SG wind of;DEF;M.SG north and DEF;M.SG sun be-IMP.3PL fight-GER about which of;DEF;M.PL two be.IMP DEF;M.SG more strong

bándo passoz un viacharju inoltu nuna capa grossa.
/ˈbandɔ paˈsɔð un vi̯aˈtʃaɾʒu iˈnɔltu nuna ˈkapa ˈɡɾɔsa/

bándo

when

pass-oz

pass-PRET

un

INDEF;M.SG

viacharju

traveller

inolt-u

wrapped-M.SG

nuna

in;INDEF;F.SG

capa

cloak

gross-a

thick-F.SG

bándo pass-oz un viacharju inolt-u nuna capa gross-a

when pass-PRET INDEF;M.SG traveller wrapped-M.SG in;INDEF;F.SG cloak thick-F.SG

The North Wind and the Sun were disputing which was the stronger, when a traveller came along in a warm cloak.