Dylathian

In Verse:Angai, Dylathian (bry lleɂang Dylethyzz /prə 'ɬɛʔaŋ tə'lɛθəz/ CLF language Dylath-ADJ) is a highly conservative Trans-Sarnathian language with a Welsh-like grammar and a loosely Welsh-like aesthetic. Dylathian and its closest relatives are spoken in the Dylathian plateau and the Sarnathian mountain range in the borderlands of Aem-Zmaə, which contains Mt. ___, the highest mountain in Angai. Dylathian and its neighboring relatives are vital for reconstructing the early history of the Trans-Sarnathian branch.

Standard Dylathian is the liturgical language of ___ (a version of Tibetan Buddhism).

Lexicon

PTS tilakt -> Dylath

PTS ʔlars 'life' -> ɂalarch "oneself"

PTS sleʔans -> (pry/yni) lleɂang "speech"

PTS tsʼajbʰ 'water' -> Dyl. (lly) tzɂaf

PTS kʷʼē -> (wy/wng) cwɂe 'egg'

mam '(specific person's) mother'

tad '(specific person's) father'

tzɂan '1'

mancwɂynyll (sgv. mancwɂynyllu) 'mother(s) in general'

tacwɂynyll (sgv. tacwɂynyllu) 'father(s) in general'

Phonology

Consonants

m n ng l r ll rh /m n ŋ l r ɬ r̥/
b d dz ds g gw /p t ts ts̠ k kʷ/
p t tz ts c cw /pʰ tʰ tsʰ ts̠ʰ kʰ kʷʰ/
pɂ tɂ tzɂ tsɂ cɂ cwɂ /pʼ tʼ tsʼ ts̠ʼ kʼ kʷʼ/
ff th z s ch chw h ɂ /f θ s s̠ x xʷ h ʔ/
f dd zz w /v ð z w/

Notes

All consonants are longer and use more airflow than in English. In fact, so much airflow is used that final stops are released unlike in the language's monosyllabic tonal relatives.

Vowels

i e u y a w o /i ɛ ɨ ə a u ɔ/

Stress

Stress is consistently penultimate.

Grammar

"Colloquial Welsh with classifiers"

Nouns

As in reconstructed Proto-Trans-Sarnathian, most nouns have an unmarked form and a marked form (called the singulative for sake of convenience) that is only used for indefinite singular nouns. Like Welsh plurals, the singulative is unpredictable and is marked with a suffix, vowel changes, or both.

For the definite article, the appropriate classifier is used, except for inalienably possessed nouns; the number is marked on the classifier.

Certain nouns for blood relatives have no singulative form, e.g. mam '(specific person's) mother' and tad '(specific person's) father'.

List of classifiers

sg. dyn, pl. bôl: people
sg. wy, pl. wng: round objects
lly: mass nouns
sg. rhwng, pl. rhyngy: non-blood social relationships
sg. pry, pl. yni: abstractions
sg. un, pl. au: generic classifier

Personal inflection of classifiers

Alienable possession

Alienable possession uses possessed classifiers:

rhwng ɂotɂrab rhyngoch (CLF AGT-love CLF-1SG) or rhyngoch ɂotɂrab (CLF-1SG AGT-love) 'my lover'

Inalienable possession

mam-och (or just mam) 'my mother', tad-och (or just tad) 'my father', ...

(No classifier is used for blood relations)

Numerals

There is no isolated word for "one". Counting uses a word cwyzy that was formerly "once/an occurrence" (cf. Slavic raz dva tri...). Otherwise, the singulative form of the noun in question is used, when necessary emphasized with ɂâzz 'only'.

TAM auxiliaries

Inflected for person and number (inherited from Proto-Trans-Sarnathian)

Present tense: 1sg tsoi, 2sg tsw, 3sg tso, 1pl tsol, 2pl tson, 3pl tsor

Verbs

The word order is "T1 S T2 V O":

Tso tadoch llos tzɂaf (is_located father-1SG drink.VN water) = My father is drinking water