Bright languages
This article is a construction site. This project is currently undergoing significant construction and/or revamp. By all means, take a look around, thank you. |
Bright languages are constructed languages intended to be aesthetically pleasing, predictable, and stable in utterance.
Introduction
Phonology
The bright version of Adamic has 3 vowels (4 with the diphthong) and 8 consonants, with the reason being that as a bright language strives to contain the most stable and distinct phonetic features, many possibilities are consciously deleted (mostly dorsal ones). For example, velar stops such as /k/ are problematic, as forms akin to /ku/ and /ki/ have the tendence to inevitably change to /kʷ/~/b/ or /kʲ/~/t͡ʃ/. Likewise, back vowels are totally erased, not only to contrast with dark tongues (which do not accept front vowels), but to avoid the sound change /du/ > /dʷ/~/b/.
Coronal | Labial | |
---|---|---|
Sonorant | l r | n m |
Non-Sonorant | ʃ d | f b |
The
Front | Center | |
---|---|---|
i ɛ | a ae̯ |
Sound Laws
Accurate Elvish
- Voicing [C̥VC̬VC̥]: due the influence of vocalic weight, consonants between vowels are voiced while initial and final consonants are voiceless
- Lenition/Dissimilation: due the displeasure of mimesis, if two bordering syllables/syllable portions possess the same consonant, the consonant of the weakest syllable (portion) disappears.
EX: Adamic vāl "person" and vār "people" become al and elvi respectively in the Bright Tongue [alf instead of *falf].
- Assimilation:
- Harmony: [a > e > i] or [i > e > a]
- Mutation: consonants extend grade until there is only one.
m/n + p -mb [extension of p]
m/n + t -nd [extension of t]
r/l + f -lb [extension of l]
r/l + c -rd [extension of r]
r/l + m = -lm [extension of m]
r/l + n = -rn [extension of n]
- /s/ and /d/ can only happen before /a/, and if the opposite were to happen, the nucleus would be dropped.
EX: The hypothetical iridin becomes eren
- Due the tendence of final consonants to be easily lost, only consonant clusters and sonorants are allowed as final codas. Also, final /m/ and /n/ disappear as the precedent vowel is nasalized.
alba "people" [alf, elbi] arda "things" [arc, irida] alma "high faculties" [a, elmi] arna "emotions, sensations" [an, erni] amba "time" [amf, embi] anda "space" [anc, inida] - endar "land", arni "lands" embal "celestial body", ambeli...
o
NA > ni [0], nae [1] alba enir ni, pe, ae MA NA PA TA LA RA - ALBA ARDA AMBA ANDA ALMA ARNA
aia aio
nao aocar i
nua valár
ni erec alber
fla alf
- analytic
- one article
- no declension
- context and syntax play important role
ni arc alber ni erec alber =/= ni erec er alf ni irida alber
iru > eri > ere
ni, mi ec, fe al, ar
iru > eri > ere iru > eri > ere > irida /r/ > /rd/ e > i r > rVdV
anu/nua > ni ani/nia > ne ana/nā > na
Elbi irida ni indili = Ara avâla ana ahalâ
Ni irida eren, ec cilma
Tua hícal, rī askút
iku [Adamic] > ihu (canon law) > *ehi (enlightment of vowels) > *ei (enlightment of consonants) > ae (enlightment of vowels)
/h/ > /∅/
ihu
ehi
ae
e
ni irida andal
ere & irida > -c-
Canon Sound Laws:
/g/ > /z/ when next to /i/ Ex: gīg > zīl "giant"
/g/ > /Q/ when next to /u/ Ex:
/k/ > /s/ when next to /i/ Ex: saíkat > sesal
/k/ > /h/ when next to /u/ Ex: kun > hul "dog"
/t/ > /ts/ when next to /i/ Ex: daítas > ecal
/t/ > /l/ when next to /u/ Ex: tu > lu
/d/ > /ʔ/ when next to /i/ Ex: dîts > īl
/d/ > /r/ when nex to /u/ Ex: dûts > rūl
/p/ > /f/ when next to /u/ Ex:
/p/ > /n/ when next to /i/ Ex:
/b/ > /v/ when next to /u/ Ex: bûl > vūl
/b/ > /m/ when next to /i/ Ex: bîbl > mīl
syncope: middle unstressed syllable is lost (except if it has coda) EX: datasyú > dasyl
Apocape: last unstressed syllable is lost (except if it has coda) EX:
Aphaeresis: initial unstressed syllable is lost (except if it has coda) EX: avâla > vāl
- first unprotected vowel is lost
, daítas > ecal
sēqur
Consonants
Vowels
Prosody
Stress
Intonation
Phonotactics
Morphophonology
Morphology
The Bright Tongue is mostly composed of stems, which modify roots.
ni irida eren...
From one root, many stems are forged
ncl > ner (*nendir), cilba, arnic, nalbi (*nadelbi)...
ALMA > ELEME eldar (alba-endar) erbal (arda-elbar) arbelë ilben, ilbini eleben, af lef, felin ilmen, ilmini elemen, am lem, melin
irdem, irdimi eredem, erc rec, cerin