Togarmite
| Togarmite | |
|---|---|
| Þėgamiþ | |
| Pronunciation | [/θegamiθ/] |
| Created by | IlL |
| Setting | Lõis |
Afro-Asiatic
| |
Togarmite (Þėgamiþ /θegamiθ/ or yn lysėn Þėgami) is a Semitic language closely related to Hebrew. It is inspired by Lithuanian, Germanic languages (particularly Icelandic) and the Semitic conlang Alashian.
Modern Togarmite retains the Semitic root-and-pattern morphology of Old Togarmite, but has undergone some phonological and grammatical restructuring, taking features of the Turkey-Northern Levant-Iranian sprachbund, in common with L-Persian, Padmanābha and English:
- Grimm's law: The Old Togarmite aspirated stops φ θ χ (from Proto-Semitic *p t k) generally become spirants /f θ x/.
- loss of grammatical gender
- loss of the passive binyanim
- loss of the suffix conjugation except in a few verbs
- the use of the w-form (inherited from the Old Togarmite waw-consecutive future) for the present progressive, mirroring English -ing < PIE *-nd-kwe
- the development of a productive concatenative verb paradigm used to form new verbs, analogous to Germanic weak verbs
Todo
- Gzarot
- Syntax
- Declensions
History
The Old Togarmite name for the language, Θėgammīθ, is thought to have been borrowed from a pre-Togarmite source *Tāgarma. The name Togarmah from the same source is also attested in the Hebrew Bible. (The Greeks and the Romans called the Togarmite people Θηγαρμικοί and Thegarmici respectively.) The name of the language shows the Togarmite shift of Proto-Semitic ā to ė /e:/, mirroring the Canaanite shift ā > ō occuring in its close relative Hebrew.
Phonology
Consonants
Togarmite has 23 consonants, 22 of them inherited from Proto-Semitic. It gained /p/ during the Old Togarmite stage from adapting loans from Greek, Aramaic and Persian, e.g. parkes 'to act', from Ancient Greek praxis. It also merged Old Togarmite ħ /χ/ and h /h/ into h /h/.
- m n /m n/
- p t c k ' /p t ts k ʔ/
- b d g /b d g/
- f þ s š x h /f θ s ʃ x h/
- w z ž ȝ /v z ʒ ɣ/
- l r j /l r j/
Vowels
Modern Togarmite has 9 vowels in stressed syllables, possibly the largest vowel inventory of any Semitic language.
a e ė i o ø u y /ɑ ɛ e i o ø u (ə)/
ei au /ai øy/
ei and au are often merged to /e ø/. Some dialects pronounce au as /y/.
Stress
Stress is always penultimate.
Orthography
Togarmite uses an abugida based on the Phoenician alphabet, called yn albėþ (after the first 2 letters).
The abjadi letter names: al, bėþ, gam, dal, hė, wau, zėn, žėn, tėþ, jød, xaf, lam, mėm, nun, ȝėn, fė, pė, cad, køf, rėš, sin, šin, þau
Dialects
Pronouns
Personal
Modern Togarmite pronouns work very similarly to English pronouns. The accusative pronouns derive from inflected foms of Old Togarmite ʔiθ (emphasis particle and accusative, related to Hebrew et and Arabic iyya-). The possessive pronouns are derived from inflected forms of Old Togarmite la-. Other inflected prepositions don't survive, except in fixed expressions such as slėm ȝalėxøm 'hello (formal)' (lit. peace be upon you).
| I | thou (m.) | thou (f.) | he | she | it | we | you (pl.) | they | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative/Conjunctive | nėx | aþ | eþ | hu | hi | že | nan | aþøm | høm |
| Objective/Disjunctive | þi | þax | þex | þau | þa | þež | þanė | þaxøm | þaum |
| Possessive | li | lax | lex | lau | la | lež | lanė | laxøm | laum |
| Reflexive/Intensive | afi | afax | afex | afau | afa | afež | afnė | afxøm | afaum |
The plural pronouns aþøm and høm can be used as gender-neutral pronouns in the singular, like English they.
Demonstrative
| who? | what? | which? | where? | whither? | whence? | when? | how? | why? | how much? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| this | žini (sg); elini (pl) | hen | heno | me hen | ȝeþo | xė; xamxė | šøm; me hen | xėrab | ||
| that | ži (sg); eli (pl) | šam | šamo | me šam | ež | |||||
| what | mi | ma | ėjo | ein | eino | men ein | møran | xeix | lama | xma, marby |
| all; every | xøl bašar; xølhad | xøl dbar | xøl | xølein | xøleino | me xølein | xølam | xølad darxy | - | - |
| any | nux bašar | nux dbar | nux | nuxein | nuxeino | me nuxein | xølam | nux darxy | my nux sebt | - |
| some | bil bašar | bil dbar | bil | bilein | bileino | me bilein | ly zman; bil zman | bil darxy | my bil sebt | - |
| none | lėm bašar | lėm dbar | lėm | lėmein | lėmeino | me lėmein | lėfȝam | lėm darxy | my lėm sebt | - |
Demonstratives come before nouns as in Arabic.
- žini beiþ 'this house'
- eli beiþi 'those houses'
Nouns
In some ways declension has simplified: Like Knánith, Modern Togarmite has lost grammatical gender. The construct state has been lost, and the Old Togarmite definite state ʔan- has been reanalyzed as a separate definite article yn.
However, declension has become more complicated in other ways. For example, Modern Togarmite has innovated more declension paradigms.
Regular declension
Most nouns have a regular plural in -i.
Example: ȝėlam 'world'
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | ȝėlam | ȝėlami |
Segolates
These nouns come from CVCC nouns in Proto-Semitic and thus are related to segolates in Hebrew.
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | xalb | xlabi |
Nisba nouns
An important declension class is comprised of nouns or adjectives with the nisba suffix -i:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | þėgami | þėgamije |
Singulative-collective nouns
These nouns have a marked singular in -t.
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | šeȝart | šeȝar |
Former feminines/body parts
This class consists of a small number of nouns that were feminine in Old Togarmite, such as many body parts, which take a plural in -ėþ:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | øžny | øžnė |
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | lysėn | lysėnėþ |
-a nouns
These are mainly Greek words:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | apoloža | apoložes |
Greek ending in -ma can have a plural in -mata:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | þėma | þėmes / þėmata |
By analogy, even some native words are declined this way:
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | heta | hetes |
Adjectives
Adjectives have the same declension patterns as nouns.
Degree
Adjectives do not have separate degree forms, unlike in Indo-European languages. A dedicated particle šøm is used for 'than'.
Verbs
TODO: an n-stem binyan?
- Past = (eroded) suffix conjugation that became analogized with the prefix present
- The y- prefix is not used when the verb is negated: nėx yxėþøb 'I write', nėx lė xėþøb 'I don't write'.
- Present = from the Proto-Semitic L-stem, via analogy
- Imperative
- The imperative is negated with alt: Xøþøb! 'write!', Alt xøþøb! 'don't write!'
- w-form = w + stem from the 3ms suffix conjugation in the f3øl binyan, past tense but with w- for the prefix in other binyanim
- Infinitive
- Participles
The suffix conjugation does not survive unlike in most other Semitic languages, except in certain irregular verbs like hwė 'to be'.
The citation form is the 2nd person singular imperative.
Binyanim
Modern Togarmite inherits all 7 binyanim of Old Togarmite. The þy- of Binyan 6 (þyfaȝel) verbs has become a productive derivational prefix, however, so some analyze Binyan 6 as a result of þy- added to faȝel verbs, rather than as a binyan in its own right.
Binyan 1: føȝøl
This binyan can take -ø- (e.g. xøþøb 'to write'), -e- (sen 'to sleep') or -a- (tøȝam 'to choose') as the theme vowel.
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx yxþøb | aþ/eþ yxþøb | hu/hi xþøb | nan xþøb | aþøm xþøb | høm xþøb |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wyxþab | fit wyxþab | fė wyxþab | finė wyxþab | fitøm wyxþab | fu wyxþab |
| present | nėx yxėþøb | aþ/eþ yxėþøb | hu/hi xėþøb | nan xėþøb | aþøm xėþøb | høm xėþøb |
| present progressive | nėx še wyxþab | aþ/eþ še wyxþab | hu/hi še wyxþab | nan še wyxþab | aþøm šu wyxþab | høm šu wyxþab |
| present subjunctive | nėx yxþøban | aþ/eþ yxþøban | hu/hi xþøban | nan xþøban | aþøm xþøbun | høm xþøbun |
| future | ėbe xþėb | tėbe xþėb | jėbe xþėb | nėbe xþėb | tėbu xþėb | jėbu xþėb |
| perfect | li myxþub | lax/lex myxþub | lau/la myxþub | lanė myxþub | laxøm myxþub | laum myxþub |
| imperative | xøþøb! | |||||
| active participle | xėþeb | |||||
| passive participle | myxþub | |||||
| w-form | wyxþab | |||||
| infinitive | xþėb | |||||
Binyan 2: faȝel
This binyan comes from the Proto-Semitic D-stem (related to Hebrew pi33el and Arabic fa33ala)
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx ysaxen | aþ/eþ ysaxen | hu/hi saxen | nan saxen | aþøm saxen | høm saxen |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wysaxen | fit wysaxen | fė wysaxen | finė wysaxen | fitøm wysaxen | fu wysaxen |
| present | nėx ysxėxen | aþ/eþ ysxėxen | hu/hi sxėxen | nan sxėxen | aþøm sxėxen | høm sxėxen |
| present progressive | nėx še wysaxen | aþ/eþ še wysaxen | hu/hi še wysaxen | nan še wysaxen | aþøm šu wysaxen | høm šu wysaxen |
| present subjunctive | ani ysaxenan | aþ/eþ ysaxenan | hu/hi saxenan | nan saxenan | aþøm saxenun | høm saxenun |
| future | ėbe saxun | tėbe saxun | jėbe saxun | nėbe saxun | tėbu saxun | jėbu saxun |
| perfect | li møsaxan | lax/lex møsaxan | lau/la møsaxan | lanė møsaxan | laxøm møsaxan | laum møsaxan |
| imperative | saxen! | |||||
| active participle | møsaxen | |||||
| passive participle | møsaxan | |||||
| w-form | wysaxen | |||||
| infinitive | saxun | |||||
For 4-letter verbs such as parkes 'to act', the present tense is formed with the stem -C₁C₂ėC₃eC₄, like nėx yprėkes 'I act'.
Binyan 3: afȝel
This binyan comes from the Proto-Semitic Š-stems thus corresponds to Hebrew hif3il and Arabic ʔaf3ala.
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx ažxer | aþ/eþ ažxer | hu/hi ažxer | nan ažxer | aþøm ažxer | høm ažxer |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wažxer | fit wažxer | fė wažxer | finė wažxer | fitøm wažxer | fu wažxer |
| present | nėx ažėxer | aþ/eþ ažėxer | hu/hi ažėxer | nan ažėxer | aþøm ažėxeru | høm ažėxeru |
| present progressive | nėx še wažxer | aþ/eþ še wažxer | hu/hi še wažxer | nan še wažxer | aþøm šu wažxer | høm šu wažxer |
| present subjunctive | nėx ažxeran | aþ/eþ ažxeran | hu/hi ažxeran | nan ažxeran | aþøm ažxerun | høm ažxerun |
| future | ėbe hažxur | tėbe hažxur | jėbe hažxur | nėbe hažxur | tėbu hažxur | jėbu hažxur |
| perfect | li mažxar | lax/lex mažxar | lau/la mažxar | lanė mažxar | laxøm mažxar | laum mažxar |
| imperative | ažxer! | |||||
| active participle | mažxer | |||||
| passive participle | mažxar | |||||
| w-form | wažxer | |||||
| infinitive | ažxur | |||||
Binyan 4: yftyȝel
This binyan comes from the Proto-Semitic t-stem and shares similarities with the Hebrew binyan hitpa33el and Arabic ifta3ala. It is characterized by the þ- prefix that comes from the *t infix.
Meanings:
- reflexive
- reciprocal
The prefix þ metathesizes with C1 when
- C1 = f x s š c h z ž ȝ: þf þx þs þš þh þz þž þȝ > ft xt st št ct ht zd žd ȝd
- C1 = d t þ: þd þt þþ > d t þ
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx yþlymed | aþ/eþ yþlymed | hu/hi þlymed | nan þlymed | aþøm þlymed | høm þlymed |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wyþlymed | fit wyþlymed | fė wyþlymed | finė wyþlymed | fitøm wyþlymed | fu wyþlymed |
| present | nėx yþlėmed | aþ/eþ yþlėmed | hu/hi þlėmed | nan þlėmed | aþøm þlėmed | høm þlėmed |
| present progressive | nėx še wyþlymed | aþ/eþ še wyþlymed | hu/hi še wyþlymed | nan še wyþlymed | aþøm šu wyþlymed | høm šu wyþlymed |
| present subjunctive | nėx yþlymedan | aþ/eþ yþlymedan | hu/hi þlymedan | nan þlymedan | aþøm þlymedun | høm þlymedun |
| future | ėbe hyþlymud | tėbe hyþlymud | jėbe hyþlymud | nėbe hyþlymud | tėbu hyþlymud | jėbu hyþlymud |
| perfect | li møþlymad | lax/lex møþlymad | lau/la møþlymad | lanė møþlymad | laxøm møþlymad | laum møþlymad |
| imperative | yþlymed! | |||||
| active participle | møþlymed | |||||
| passive participle | møþlymad | |||||
| w-form | wyþlymėd | |||||
| infinitive | hyþlymud | |||||
Binyan 5: eþyfȝel
This binyan comes from the Nt-stem, with the mediopassive n- marker and the reflexive/reciprocal t-marker: the stem comes from *intap3il. cf. Hebrew nitpa33el, a variant of the hitpa33el binyan and the Arabic infa3ala binyan.
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx eþygdel | aþ/eþ eþygdel | hu/hi eþygdel | nan eþygdel | aþøm eþygdelu | høm eþygdelu |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti weþygdel | fit weþygdel | fė weþygdel | finė weþygdel | fitøm weþygdel | fu waþygdel |
| present | nėx eþygėdel | aþ/eþ eþygėdel | hu/hi eþygėdel | nan eþygėdel | aþøm eþygėdelu | høm eþygėdelu |
| present progressive | nėx še weþygdel | aþ/eþ še weþygdel | hu/hi še weþygdel | nan še weþygdel | aþøm šu weþygdel | høm šu weþygdel |
| present subjunctive | nėx eþygdelan | aþ/eþ eþygdelan | hu/hi eþygdelan | nan eþygdelan | aþøm eþygdelun | høm eþygdelun |
| future | ėbe heþygdul | tėbe heþygdul | jėbe heþygdul | nėbe heþygdul | tėbu heþygdul | jėbu heþygdul |
| perfect | li meþygdal | lax/lex meþygdal | lau/la meþygdal | lanė meþygdal | laxøm meþygdal | laum meþygdal |
| imperative | - | heþygdel! | - | - | heþygdelu! | - |
| active participle | meþygdel | |||||
| passive participle | meþygdal | |||||
| w-form | waþygdel | |||||
| infinitive | heþygdul | |||||
Binyan 6: þyfaȝel
This binyan comes from the tD-stem (t- with geminate stem) and corresponds directly to the Arabic binyan tafa33ala.
The main meanings of this binyan are:
- reciprocal or back-and-forth action
- reaction/back, re-: the most productive modern meaning
- þy'awer 'to reflect', from aur 'light'
- þyparkes 'to react', from parkis 'action'
- þysalem 'to repay', from √s-l-m 'peace, whole'
- þyȝanė 'to satisfy', from √ȝ-n-j 'distress, need'; probably influenced by a now obsolete meaning 'to answer' of the same root
- unpredictable change in meaning
The resemblance of this binyan to the very common faȝel binyan has led to the þy- prefix becoming productive, with some semantic overlap with the prefix re- in English.
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx yþydares | aþ/eþ yþydares | hu/hi þydares | nan þydares | aþøm þydares | høm þydares |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wyþydares | fit wyþydares | fė wyþydares | finė wyþydares | fitøm wyþydares | fu wyþydares |
| present | nėx yþydrėres | aþ/eþ yþydrėres | hu/hi þydrėres | nan þydrėres | aþøm þydrėres | høm þydrėres |
| present progressive | nėx še wyþydares | aþ/eþ še wyþydares | hu/hi še wyþydares | nan še wyþydares | aþøm šu wyþydares | høm šu wyþydares |
| present subjunctive | nėx yþydaresan | aþ/eþ yþydaresan | hu/hi þydaresan | nan þydaresan | aþøm þydaresun | høm þydaresun |
| future | ėbe þydarus | tėbe þydarus | jėbe þydarus | nėbe þydarus | tėbu þydarus | jėbu þydarus |
| perfect | li møþydaras | lax/lex møþydaras | lau/la møþydaras | lanė møþydaras | laxøm møþydaras | laum møþydaras |
| imperative | þydares! | |||||
| active participle | møþydares | |||||
| passive participle | møþydaras | |||||
| w-form | wyþydares | |||||
| infinitive | þydarus | |||||
Binyan 7: styfȝel
This binyan comes from the Št-stem and is directly related to the binyan istaf3ala in Arabic and the very rare binyan hishtaf3el in Biblical Hebrew.
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx ystytȝem | aþ/eþ ystytȝem | hu/hi stytȝem | nan stytȝem | aþøm stytȝem | høm stytȝem |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wystytȝem | fit wystytȝem | fė wystytȝem | finė wystytȝem | fitøm wystytȝem | fu wystytȝem |
| present | nėx ystytėȝem | aþ/eþ ystytėȝem | hu/hi stytėȝem | nan stytėȝem | aþøm stytėȝem | høm stytėȝem |
| present progressive | nėx še wystytȝem | aþ/eþ še wystytȝem | hu/hi še wystytȝem | nan še wystytȝem | aþøm šu wystytȝem | høm šu wystytȝem |
| present subjunctive | nėx ystytȝeman | aþ/eþ ystytȝeman | hu/hi stytȝeman | nan stytȝeman | aþøm stytȝemun | jystytȝemun |
| future | ėbe stytȝum | tėbe stytȝum | jėbe stytȝum | nėbe stytȝum | tėbu stytȝum | jėbu stytȝum |
| perfect | li møstytȝam | lax/lex møstytȝam | lau/la møstytȝam | lanė møstytȝam | laxøm møstytȝam | laum møstytȝam |
| imperative | - | stytȝem! | - | - | stytȝemu! | - |
| active participle | møstytȝem | |||||
| passive participle | møstytȝam | |||||
| w-form | wystytȝem | |||||
| infinitive | stytȝum | |||||
Concatenative verbs
The concatenative paradigm, analogous to Germanic weak verbs, is formed by adding prefixes and suffixes, without changing the stem. The past and imperative forms are formed by adding -i or -ji to the noun, when no other suffix is added.
It is used for recent loan verbs like maksimezi 'to maximize', but can also be used to derive verbs from native nouns:
- mydrasi 'to school' (from mydras 'school')
- þaxili 'to consume' (from þaxil 'consumption', itself from the root √ʔ-x-l 'to eat')
- žaxoji 'to entitle, to allow' (from žaxo 'right')
- ȝeini 'to eye' (from ȝein 'eye')
The endings are mainly derived from Middle Togarmite forms of 3-y verbs.
- [STEM]-i = active
- þy-[STEM]-i = re-
- mø- = active participle
- -ėþ = infinitive
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nėx ymydrasi | aþ/eþ ymydrasi | hu/hi mydrasi | nan mydrasi | aþøm mydrasi | høm mydrasi |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wymydrasi | fit wymydrasi | fė wymydrasi | finė wymydrasi | fitøm wymydrasi | fu wymydrasi |
| present | nėx ymydrasė | aþ/eþ ymydrasė | hu/hi mydrasė | nan mydrasė | aþøm mydrasė | høm mydrasė |
| present progressive | yše wymydrasi | tyše wymydrasi | jyše wymydrasi | nyše wymydrasi | tyšu wymydrasi | jyšu wymydrasi |
| present subjunctive | nėx ymydrasan | aþ/eþ ymydrasan | hu/hi mydrasan | nan mydrasan | aþøm mydrasun | høm mydrasun |
| future | ėbe mydrasėþ | tėbe mydrasėþ | jėbe mydrasėþ | nėbe mydrasėþ | tėbu mydrasėþ | jėbu mydrasėþ |
| perfect | li mømydrasa | lax/lex mømydrasa | lau/la mømydrasa | lanė mømydrasa | laxøm mømydrasa | laum mømydrasa |
| imperative | mydrasi! | |||||
| active participle | mømydrasė | |||||
| passive participle | mømydrasa | |||||
| w-form | wymydrasi | |||||
| infinitive | mydrasėþ | |||||
fe 'to be'
The verb fė 'to be' is perhaps the most irregular verb of the language; it displays suppletion and it uses the Proto-Semitic suffix conjugation in the past tense.
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | fiti | fit | fė | finė | fitøm | fu |
| past progressive; past subjunctive | fiti wyfė | fit wyfė | fė wyfė | finė wyfė | fitøm wyfė | fu wyfė |
| present | nėx še (or nėx) | aþ/eþ še (or aþ/eþ) | hu/hi še (or hu/hi) | nan še (or nan) | aþøm šu (or aþøm) | høm šu (or høm) |
| present progressive | yše wyfė | tyše wyfė | jyše wyfė | nyše wyfė | tyšu wyfė | jyšu wyfė |
| present subjunctive | yfijan | tyfijan | jyfijan | nyfijan | tyfijun | jyfijun |
| future | ėbe fėþ | tėbe fėþ | jėbe fėþ | nėbe fėþ | tėbu fėþ | jėbu fėþ |
| imperative | fe! | |||||
| active participle | hėwi | |||||
| passive participle | fuj | |||||
| w-form | wyfė | |||||
| infinitive | fėþ | |||||
xėl 'can'
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | nex yxel | aþ/eþ yxel | hu/hi xel | nan xel | aþøm xel | høm xel |
| past subjunctive | fiti wėxel | fit wėxel | fė wėxel | finė wėxel | fitøm wėxel | fu wėxel |
| present | wyxėlti | wyxėlt | wyxėl | wyxėlnė | wyxėltøm | wyxėlu |
| present subjunctive | nėx yxelan | aþ/eþ yxelan | hu/hi xelan | nan xelan | aþøm xelun | høm xelun |
| future | ėbe xėl | tėbe xėl | jėbe xėl | nėbe xėl | tėbu xėl | jėbu xėl |
| active participle | - | |||||
| passive participle | fuj wėxel | |||||
| w-form | wėxel | |||||
| infinitive | xėl | |||||
høbė 'should; ought'
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| present | nėx høbė | aþ/eþ høbė | hu/hi høbė | nan høbu | aþøm høbu | høm høbu |
ryšė 'to want'
| → Person ↓ Tense |
1sg | 2sg | 3sg | 1pl | 2pl | 3pl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| past; conditional | yrši | tyrši | jyrši | nyršu | tyršu | jyršu |
| past subjunctive | hwiti wyrši | hwit wyrši | hwė wyrši | hwinė wyrši | hwitøm wyrši | hwu wyrši |
| present | nėx ryšė | aþ/eþ ryšė | hu/hi ryšė | nan ryšu | aþøm ryšu | høm ryšu |
| future | ėbe ryšėþ | tėbe ryšėþ | jėbe ryšėþ | nėbe ryšėþ | tėbu ryšėþ | jėbu ryšėþ |
| w-form | wyrši | |||||
| active participle | rėši | |||||
| passive participle | myršuj | |||||
| infinitive | ryšėþ | |||||
Gzarot
- Main article: Togarmite/Gzarot
In Semitic languages, gzarot (Hebrew גְּזָרוֹת, sg. gizra גִּזְרָה 'figure, form, pattern') are variations of an inflectional (especially verbal) paradigm that are determined by the choice of consonants in the consonantal root. Thus, a paradigm has not only a regular gizra but various irregular ones, which occur most commonly when
- the consonantal root contains a "guttural" (ʔ ȝ h) or a semivowel (j w);
- the consonantal root contains a n, since nC tends to assimilate into CC
- the consonantal root has 2 letters.
Because Togarmite only uses the prefix conjugation, modern Togarmite gzarot are in some ways less bad than Hebrew gzarot; most of the irregularities occur in binyan fȝøl. However, there are often so many irregularities even within each gizra, and cases of analogy between verbs of different gzarot, that the concept of gzarot in Modern Togarmite has been questioned: in Togarmite, a "gizra" just describes general tendencies of verbs with a certain root consonant.
Prepositions
Some prepositions:
- in 'in' [from PSem *ina]
- ly (l before V) 'to'
- by (b before V) 'by, at'
- šydo 'out of' (from *śadiy-ah 'to the field')
- me (men before V) 'from'
- ȝem 'with'
- ȝal 'on'
- lid 'of (possessive)' (from *la-yad 'to the hand of')
- ȝbar 'over'
- þaþ 'under'
- arþo 'down' (from *ʔarþ-ah "earthward")
- darxan 'along'
Syntax of prepositions
Numerals
Cardinal
0: cefry 1: yhad 2: šnein / attributive šnė 3: šlėš (animate šlėšt) 4: yrbaȝ (animate yrbaȝt) 5: hymes (animate hymest) 6: setš (animate setšt) 7: sabȝy (animate sabȝyt) 8: šmėni (animate šmėnt) 9: þesȝy (animate tesȝyt) 10: ȝašry (animate ȝašryt) 11: ȝašry yhad 12: ȝašry šnein 20: ȝešrin 30: šlėšin 40: yrbȝin 50: hymsin 60: setšin 70: sybȝin 80: šmėnin 90: þesȝin 100: me'yþ 101: me'yþ yhad 200: meþein 300: šlėš me'yþ 400: yrbaȝ me'yþ 1000: alfy 2000: alfein 3000: šlėš alf 1000000: alfun 10^9: bėþfun 10^12: gamfun etc.
Plural numerals usually take plural nouns. They used to take singular nouns, however this is considered archaic.
Numbers ending in digits "3" through "9" (thus ending in šlėš through tesȝy), or "10" (thus ending in ȝašry), have two forms depending on the animacy of the noun: hymes myrþemi 'five abacuses', but hymest ahėþ 'five sisters'. The animate forms come from the masculine forms (reverse polarity) marked with *-t in Proto-Semitic.
Ordinal
Ordinals are formed using the pattern CCuC; as in English, "1st" and "2nd" are irregular, from elatives *ʔaʕlay- 'topmost' and *ʔaʕqab- 'the immediately following' respectively. In compound numerals, the last number word is inflected to the ordinal form.
- 1st = yȝlė
- 2nd = yȝkab
- 3rd = šluš
- 4th = rbuȝ
- 5th = hmus
- 6th = stuš
- 7th = sbuȝ
- 8th = šmun
- 9th = þsuȝ
- 10th = ȝšur
- 11th = ȝašry-yȝlė
- 12th = ȝašry-yȝkab
- 13th = ȝašry-šluš
etc.
Fractional
Fractional numerals are formed with the segolate pattern CøCCy (pl. CøCaCi). Compound numerals can be inflected as well, like in the case of ordinal numerals. The analogized form øhdy is used for numerals ending in "1".
- half = gøb (from *gunb- 'side')
- 3rd = šølšy
- 4th = røbȝy
- 11th = ȝašry-øhdy
To express "m/n", Togarmite uses "m nths": "2/3" is šnė šølaši.
Syntax
Faulty accusative marker
The faulty accusative marker iþ is used. It behaves like MSA accusative case and Welsh soft mutation: when there is a constituent separating the verb or predicate from a second constituent, iþ comes between the two constituents regardless of whether the second constituent is actually a direct object. Example:
- Halex wyfė li iþ šlėšt xlabi, wy ȝeþo lėš li iþ nux. = I used to have three dogs, and now I don't have any.
- Yn dėrest li ryšė li iþ ȝyšėþ rab þamuni beiþ. = My teacher wants me to do a lot of homework.
Questions
Yes-no questions require the question marker ha to be placed at the beginning of the sentence.
What-questions have a syntax similar to English.
Existentials
The word iš is used to indicate existence. It is also used with the preposition ly 'to' or the possessive pronouns to indicate possession. The negative of iš is lėš.
- Lėš mykėm ėn xøl bašar šaš. = There is no place where everyone is happy.
- Ha iš lex zman? = Do you (f. sg.) have time?
The particle iš uses the accusative marker iþ when the "object" is animate.
Conditional clauses
- "if" = em
- "then" = ež
Relative clauses
The relative pronoun žė is used for both relative and complement clauses. It may takes prepositional cases, just like English relative pronouns. The word žė is from PSem *ðā, a form of the demonstrative *ðū; cf. Biblical Hebrew זו zu, Aramaic די dī.
For relative clauses whose heads are prepositional objects in the relative clause, there are two strategies like in English:
- In informal Togarmite, the relativizer is treated as a resumptive pronoun which takes the preposition, like English which: yn gabry ly žė nėx yþen yn maþan, lit. 'the man to which I gave the gift'. This syntax arose from the influence of surrounding languages like English.
- In formal Togarmite, the preposition goes to the end of the clause: yn gabry žė nėx yþen yn maþan ly lit. 'the man which I gave the gift to'. This syntax arose from the native Semitic construction which used a resumptive pronoun on the preposition: after the resumptive pronoun lost the stress, the preposition lost its pronominal suffix and moved to the end of the clause.
- A combination of both strategies can be used: yn gabry ly žė nėx yþen yn maþan ly, lit. 'The man to which I gave the gift to'.
Derivation
Noun and adjective patterns
- CaCCy(þ), CeCCy(þ), CøCCy(þ) = segolates
- CyCiC = adjective; -able
- CyCuC = adjective; color
- CyCaCt, CyCeCt, CyCøCt
- CaCøCt = describes a condition
- CyCeCCaC = diminutive
- myCCaC(t), meCCaC(t), myCCėC: noun, often denoting place
- maCCaCt = causative version of myCCaC(t)
- myCCeC(t) = instrument
- maCCeCt = causative version of myCCeC(t)
- þyCCuC, þyCCiC, þyCCėC = action or process
- þyCCøCt = (hypothetical cognate of Hebrew tiCCóCet) = system of things
- CaCėC = agentive
- CaCaCt = feminine agentive (not always used)
- or CaCėC?
- CaCCan = agentive; -an is an agentive
- CaCCėn, CeCCėn, and CeCaCėn = nouns, often an augmentative
Affixes
- -an = forms agentives and adjectives
- -in = collectives
- lamusin 'charity'
- -uþ = abstract noun
- -i = forms adjectives
- -iþ = forms adverbs
- i- = non-, un-
- ibašari 'incorporeal'
- iwøxli 'impossible'
- tarmy- = pre-, not yet
- tarmy-mynaša 'never married'
- -yr = someone who is characterized by X (from English)
- wduȝyr 'know-it-all', from wduȝ 'knowledgeable'
- -ri = -ry (from English)
- kdėsri = excessive piousness or asceticism, from kdės 'holy'
- xyl'anri = double standard or hypocrisy, from the agentive xyl'an 'hypocrite' of √x-l-ʔ 'double'
- auto- = self-
- e- = a- (from ʔiC-, an assimilated form of the OTog preposition ʔin 'in'); these adjectives can usually only be predicative
- e'est 'ablaze'
- edarxy 'away'
- eþal 'galore' (lit. a-mound)
- emein 'drowned, lost forever', lit. awater
- -byl = -able (from English -able and native abȝel 'to be able to')
Phrasebook
some phrases in Togarmite:
- Slėm! - Hello! / Goodbye!
- Slėm ȝalėxøm! - Hello! (formal)
- Leilt tėb! / Num tėbyn! - Good night! / Sleep well!
- Jaum tėb! - Good day!
- Exaris! / Exaris þax/þex/þaxøm! - Thanks!
- Ȝem ryšan - Please / You're welcome
- Bi - Excuse me, Pardon
- Nėx še mynhum - I'm sorry
- Ma še sem lax/lex/laxøm? - What's your name?
- Sem li še [name] - My name is [name]
- Xė ėmar aþ/eþ/aþøm iþ [thing] in Þėgamiþ? - How do you say [thing] in Togarmite?
- H' aþ/eþ/aþøm dbėber [language]? - Do you speak [language]?
- Ȝem ryšan, ømør ži šėnėn - Please say it again
Sample texts
Newton's laws of motion
I: Dbar šėbøþ by dymi, o by ȝyþėk enomorfy, lulė ydraȝ prėkes ȝal þež.
I: An object stays at rest, or at a constant speed, unless a force acts on it.
II: Yn šanuj fy þyȝþik lid gaf še myþxøni lyn øþisi møþyfacar ȝal yn gaf; w' yn šanuj kėrė darxan yn kau þykin žė ži øþisi še møþyfacar ȝal.
II: The change in the momentum of a body is proportional to the force applied to the body; and the change occurs along the straight line on which that force is applied.
III: Iš ly xøl parkis iþ þyparkis is w' anteþet.
III: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
O how quickly the sculpture of life
O! Xma myhiriþ yn myklaȝ lid hein
Šaber in temaša zȝarȝeri!
Yn mygiluþ lid yn malx ȝal yn þrøn lau
Še xliliþ mygruf edarxy by gali jam.
Aþøm žė jėþ heno mømancabta hen,
Ȝabry hen Elėh aþøm lawani ȝal yn arþ.
Xøl lanė mødajan ȝal parkisi lanė;
Þnenė þėþ lyn ȝnij, wy agaþeržijėþ had ly wdud.
O how quickly the sculpture of life
Shattered into tiny fragments!
The splendor of the king on his throne
Is completely swept away by sea-waves.
Ye who come hither stationed here,
By the grace of God ye are guests on earth.
All of us are judged according to our actions;
Let us give to the needy, and do charity towards one another.
Stairway To Heaven
Maȝlyþ lyn Symeiniþ
Iš gabryþ žė še šur
Xøl žė nėher še žahab
Wy hi še wykna maȝlyþ lyn symeiniþ
UDHR
Xøl ynėsi še mewøladi hyruri w' isi in akšoprepja wy žyxawi. Høm še møþyhanani ȝym ložeki wy synidisi wy høbu ly parkus l' odšni in ruh lid ahwuþ.