Antarctican
Antarctican is spoken on the continent of Antarctica in the far future, at a time when runaway global warming has melted the icecaps and rendered most of the rest of the word uninhabitable. It has been influenced by a variety of modern-day languages, among them English, Spanish, Japanese and many East Asian languages.
It has a complex phonology and morphophonology, especially in the vowel system. There are a lot of features not found in English e.g. a pitch-register system, phonemic vowel length, prestopped nasals, and ejective consonants. However in other ways the phonology is quite simple compared to English, with a very limited range of syllable shapes.
The morphosyntactic alignment is split ergative, with noun suffixes following an ergative-absolutive system, but person marking on verbs following a nominative-accusative system. Nouns also inflect for alienable and inalienable possession, and they can undergo some quite complex stem changes. There is no real marking of plurality of nouns.
In the verbal morphology, mirativity and transitivity are clearly marked. Verbs also inflect for person and voice. Tense and aspect are much less important.
The syntax is head-initial, and adjectives are not distinguished from verbs.
Phonology
Vowels
The pronunciation of each phoneme is listed in the tables below, followed by its romanisation in brackets.
There are 11 monophthongs:
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i /i/ | ue /ɨ/ | u /u/ |
| Close-mid | ie /e/ | e /ɘ/ | uo /o/ |
| Open-mid | ae /ɛ/ | oe /ɜ/ | o /ɔ/ |
| Open | a /a/ | ao /ɒ/ |
And there are 17 diphthongs. 8 of these end in [j], and another 9 end in [w]:
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | uey /ɨj/ | uy /uj/ | |
| Close-mid | iey /ej/ | ey /ɘj/ | uoy /oj/ |
| Open-mid | aey /ɛj/ | oey /ɜj/ | |
| Open | ay /aj/ |
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | uew /ɨw/ | ||
| Close-mid | iew /ew/ | ew /ɘw/ | uow /ow/ |
| Open-mid | aew /&#ɛw/ | oew /ɜw/ | ow /ɔw/ |
| Open | aw /aw/ |
Vowel phonation
Vowels in Antarctican can have either modal, tense or breathy voice. Vowels with tense voice (marked with a glottal stop after the syllable e.g. /aʔ/) are pronounced with a high or rising pitch, and vowels with breathy voice (marked with a voiced /h/ after the syllable e.g. /aɦ/) are pronounced with a low or falling pitch. This distinction is phonemic e.g.
- kuow /kou/ - something absorbed in something else, absolutive
- kúow /kouʔ/ - bigot, absolutive
Tense voice cannot occur on high vowels /i/, /ɨ/, /u/, nor on diphthongs beginning with these vowels. Breathy voice cannot occur on low vowels /a/, /ɒ/, nor on diphthongs beginning with these vowels.
Vowel length
As well as vowel phonation, vowel length is also phonemic, on both monophthongs and diphthongs e.g.
- kuow /kou/ - something absorbed in something else, absolutive
kuuow /koːu/ - a frozen object, absolutive
Phonation restrictions
However, not every vowel can have every kind of phonation e.g. tense voice cannot occur on high vowels /i/, /ɨ/, /u/, nor on diphthongs beginning with these vowels. Similarly, breathy voice cannot occur on low vowels /a/, /ɒ/, nor on front vowels, nor on diphthongs beginning with these vowels. The permissible combinations of vowel quality and phonation are listed below:
| Voice | Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | Modal | i /i/ | ue /ɨ/ from /i/ | u /u/ |
| Breathy | ùe /ɨɦ/ | ù /uɦ/ | ||
| Close-mid | Modal | ie /e/ | e /ɘ/ from /e/ | uo /o/ from /u/ |
| Tense | íe /eʔ/ | é /ɘʔ/ | úo /oʔ/ | |
| Breathy | è /ɘɦ/ | ùo /oɦ/ | ||
| Open-mid | Modal | ae /ɛ/ from /a/ | o /ɔ/ | |
| Tense | áe /ɛʔ/ | óe /ɜʔ/ | ó /ɔʔ/ | |
| Breathy | òe /ɜɦ/ | |||
| Open | Modal | a /a/ | ao /ɒ/ from /ɔ/ | |
| Tense | á /aʔ/ |
- Vowels in green are found everywhere.
- Vowels in pink are phonemic at the end of words, where they mark ergative case, and are allophones elsewhere. They occur before another syllable beginning with a voiced consonant followed by a modally voiced vowel. The vowel that they are an allophone of is indicated afterwards.
- Vowels in blue are phonemic at the end of words, where they mark comitative case, and are allophones elsewhere. They occur before another syllable beginning with a voiceless consonant followed by a modally voiced vowel. The vowel that they are an allophone of is indicated afterwards.
- Vowels in orange are only found in reduplications.
Antarctican uses reduplication in its morphology, however it only partially reduplicates diphthongs, reducing them to monophthongs in the reduplicated syllable e.g.
- kúowntátu /kouɴʔtaʔtu/ – acquaintance, absolutive
- kúokúowntátu /koʔkouɴʔtaʔtu/ – acquaintances (of each other), absolutive
When such diphthongs are truncated, it is always only the first part of it that is preserved e.g. /eiʔ/ and /euʔ/ both shorten to /eiʔ/. /oiʔ/ and /ouʔ/ both shorten to /oʔ/ etc.
Vowels marked with an asterisk do not contrast for length.
There are similar restrictions on diphthongs:
| Voice | Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | Modal | uy /ui/ | ||
| Breathy | ùey /ɨiɦ/ | ùy /uiɦ/ | ||
| Close-mid | Modal | iey /ei/ | ey /ɘi/ | uoy /oi/ |
| Tense | íey /eiʔ/ | éy /ɘiʔ/ | úoy /oiʔ/ | |
| Breathy | èy /ɘiɦ/ | |||
| Open-mid | Modal | aey /ɛi/ | ||
| Tense | áey /ɛiʔ/ | |||
| Breathy | òey /ɜiɦ/ | |||
| Open | Modal | ay /ai/ | ||
| Tense | áy /aiʔ/ |
Same applies to the remaining diphthongs:
| Voice | Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | Modal | |||
| Breathy | ùew /ɨuɦ/ | |||
| Close-mid | Modal | iew /ew/ | ew /ɘu/ | uow /ou/ |
| Tense | úow /ouʔ/ | |||
| Breathy | èw /ɘuɦ/ | ùow /ouɦ/ | ||
| Open-mid | Modal | aew /ɛu/ | ow /ɔu/ | |
| Tense | áew /ɛuʔ/ | ów /ɔuʔ/ | ||
| Breathy | òew /ɜuɦ/ | |||
| Open | Modal | aw /au/ | ||
| Tense | áw /auʔ/ |
Consonants
The pronunciation of each phoneme is listed in the table below, followed by its romanisation in brackets.
| Bilabial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar / Uvular | Glottal / Placeless | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| plain | palatalised | central | lateral | |||||
| Nasals | plain | m /m/ | my /mʲ/ | n /n/ | ny /ɲ/ | ng /ŋ/ | n /ɴ/ | |
| pre-stopped | pm /pm/ | pmy /pmʲ/ | tn /tn/ | cn /cɲ/ | kn /kŋ/
|
|||
| Stops/Affricate | ejective | pp /p'/ | ppy /p'ʲ/ | tt /t'/ | ttl /tɬ'/ | cch /c' ~ tɕ'/ | kk /k'/ | |
| voiceless | p /p/ | py /pʲ/ | t /t/ | tl /tɬ/ | ch /c ~ tɕ/ | k /k/ | q /ʔ/ | |
| voiced | b /b/ | by /bʲ/ | d /d/ | dl /dɮ/ | j /ɟ ~ dʑ/ | g /g/ | ||
| Fricatives/Affricates | ejective | tts /ts' ~ s'/ | ||||||
| voiceless | f /f/ | fy /fʲ/ | s /s ~ ts/ | hl /ɬ/ | sh /ç ~ ɕ/ | h /χ ~ x/ | ||
| voiced | z /z ~ dz/ | |||||||
| Approximant | w /w/ | v /ɥ/ | l /l ~ ɹ ~ ʎ/ | y /j/ | r /ʁ ~ ʀ/ | |||
- Prestopped nasals e.g. /tn/, /pm/ etc., pattern as voiceless and as nasals (and thus sonorants) in terms of the phonology.
- The placeless nasal /ɴ/ is only found at the end of syllables. Before a glottal stop or at the end of a phrase, it nasalises the preceding vowel. Otherwise it assimilates to the same place of articulation as the following consonant e.g. it becomes [n] before /d/, [m] before /b/ etc.
- Voiced obstruents (stops, fricatives and affricates) are only found in three cases.
- Before a vowel with modal voice and at the beginning of a word.
- Before a vowel with modal voice, where the preceding syllable of the word has modal voice.
- Before a vowel with breathy voice, where the preceding syllable of the word has breathy voice.
In the latter case they are pronounced with breathy voice, like the murmured/voiced aspirated consonants of many Indian languages.
The same restrictions apply to the distribution of fricatives other than /s/, and of prestopped nasals except that they are never found in the 3rd case.
- Ejectives are only ever found between two vowels with tense voice (possibly with /ɴ/ separating them).
- Consonants separated with a tilde (~) are not separate phonemes but are either allophones or in free variation e.g. /s ~ ts/ indicates that there is a single phoneme that can either be pronounced [s] or [ts]. The most common pronunciation is always listed first.
- The velar nasals /kŋ/ and /ŋ/ never occur at the beginning of words.
- The phoneme /l/ is pronounced as a palatal lateral [ʎ] before a high vowel, [ɹ] before a vowel with tense voice (high vowels cannot have tense voice), and [l] elsewhere.
Consonant Harmony
Consonants in Antarctican can be grouped into two sets, soft and hard. Many affixes have two alternate forms, one with a soft consonant and one with a hard. When they attach to a word that begins with a soft consonant, the form of the affix with the soft consonant is used. If the word begins with a hard consonant, the form of the affix with the hard consonant is used. The soft consonants are the palatal consonants, the palatalized labial consonants, and the lateral consonants. All the other consonants are hard.
For example, the antipassive voice is formed by an infix that comes after the first consonant of a word. For words that begin with a hard consonant, the infix is iem /em/ (which contains a hard consonant) e.g.
- ziitlòeji /ziːtɬɜɦɟi/ - to know (a person), mirative
- ziemiitlòeji /zemiːtɬɜɦɟi/ - to know (a person), mirative, antipassive
However, if the word begins with a soft consonant, the infix is imy /imʲ/ e.g.
- pyiquu /pʲiʔuː/ - to purify, mirative
- pyimyiquu /pʲmʲiʔuː/ - to purify, mirative, antipassive
- hliqo /ɬiʔɔ/ - to perform, mirative
- hlimyiqo /ɬimʲiʔɔ/ - to perform, mirative, antipassive (not *(hliemiqo) /ɬmiʔɔ/)
Phonotactics
Syllable structures are extremely limited, with only shapes being CV and CVɴ.
Morphology
Nouns
Nouns decline into three cases, Absolutive, Ergative and Comitative. Absolutive case is unmarked while the other two use vowel changes on the final vowel and/or suffixes. Nouns can also take demonstrative and possessive prefixes.
Ergative case
How this case is formed depends on the phonation and frontness of the final vowel in the word.
Modally voiced final vowel
Final vowel is a back vowel
In this case, lower the back vowel e.g.
- ton /tɔɴ/ - change (as in coins, money), absolutive
- taon /tɒɴ/ - change, ergative
- duoliiengun /doleːŋuɴ/ - dragon, absolutive
- duoliienguon /doleːŋoɴ/ - dragon, ergative
If the final vowel is a diphthong that begins with a back vowel, then the start of the diphthong is lowered e.g.
- paehuown /pɛχouɴ/ - dust, absolutive
- paehown /pɛχɔuɴ/ - dust, ergative
- yuenpiluoy - /jɨɴpiloi/ - employee, absolutive
- yuenpiloy /jɨɴpilɔi/ - employee, ergative
Final vowel is not a back vowel
In this case the ergative suffix is –n /ɴ/, or –ga /ga/ if the noun already ended in –n e.g.*ziva /ziɥa/ - boat, absolutive
- zivan /ziɥaɴ/ - boat, ergative
- myaewntayn /mʲɛuɴtaiɴ/ - mountain, absolutive
- myaewntayn-ga / mʲɛuɴtaiɴga/ - mountain, ergative
Final vowel has breathy or tense voice
For nouns where the vowel of the last syllable has breathy or tense voice, the situation is more complicated. They all take ergative suffixes of the form C V ɴ, where C is a consonant and V is a vowel. V is almost always /i/, except after /t/ or /d/, when it is /u/. However it is not possible to predict C, as shown by the examples below:
- tieyláae /teilɛʔː/ - shirt, absolutive
- tieyláaesin /teilɛʔːsiɴ / - shirt, ergative
- píey /peiʔ/ - book, absolutive
- píeykin /peiʔkiɴ/ - book, ergative
- kùe /kɨɦ/ - goods, absolutive
- kùezin /kɨɦziɴ/ - goods, ergative
- rè /ʁɘɦ/ - red object, absolutive
- rèdun /ʁɘɦduɴ/ – red object, ergative
- kúow /kouʔ/ - cup, absolutive
- kúowpin */kouʔpiɴ/ - cup, ergative
- píeylánkáe /peiʔlaɴʔkɛʔ/ - blanket, absolutive
- píeylánkáetun /peiʔlaɴʔkɛʔtuɴ/ - blanket, ergative
- wùerù /wɨɦʁuɦ/- frog, absolutive
- wùerùgin /wɨɦʁuɦgiɴ/ - frog, ergative
While it may seem that the consonant inserted before the –in (or –un) suffix is random, there are some patterns. Firstly, the inserted consonant is always an obstruent (oral stop, affricate or fricative), and never a sonorant (nasal or approximant). Secondly, observe that, when the final vowel of the absolutive stem has tense voice, the inserted consonant is always voiceless, while if the final vowel of the absolutive stem has breathy voice, the inserted consonant is always voiced. These two rules hold across the language.
Also, for readers with knowledge of whatever language Antarctican borrowed the particular noun stem from, note that the “inserted” consonant almost perfectly corresponds with the consonant at the end of the word e.g. the word for “frog”, (wùerù /wɨɦʁuɦ/ in the absolutive case), is in fact descended from the English word “frog”. However, Antarctican does not like final consonants, so the final “g” was lost in the absolutive form. However in the ergative form, there is another vowel following the “g”, so it “reappears”, and the ergative form of the word is wùerùgin /wɨɦʁuɦgiɴ/. A similar story happens with the “t” in the word for “blanket”, which is also derived from English.
Stem changes
However, for some of the nouns with breathy or tense voice on the final vowel of the absolutive stem, there are changes in the stem when they take the ergative suffix. These involve a change in vowel phonation to modal voice, and a change in vowel quality. e.g.
sitùen /sitɨɴɦ/- wound caused by a sting (e.g. a bee or a jellyfish), absolutive
suetin-gin /sɨtiɴgiɴ/ - wound caused by a sting (e.g. a bee or a jellyfish), ergative (not *sitùen-gin)
As a rule,
if the final vowel undergoes a change, and the second last vowel has the same
voicing as the final vowel, then they both change e.g.
qùylèn /ʔuiɦlɘɴɦ/ - island, absolutive
quoyliendun /ʔoileɴduɴ/ - island, ergative (not *qùilèndun)
tùrèen
/tuɦʁɘːɴɦ/ - fashionable items, absolutive
tuoriiendun /toʁeːɴduɴ/ - fashionable items, ergative
síeykúow
/seiʔkouʔ/ - a small amount, absolutive
suekuhli /sɨkuɬi/ - a small amount, ergative
If there are even more consecutive syllables with the same voicing on the vowel, then this rule applies to every single one of them e.g.
qámáeláy /ʔaʔmɛʔlaiʔ/ - prey, absolutive
qamielaeykin /ʔamelɛikiɴ/ - prey, ergative
The changes in vowel quality and vowel voicing may appear random, but in fact they are not. The vowel quality of the new vowel can be predicted using the table blow. The vowels in the first two columns change to their equivalent in the third column e.g. When sitùen changes to sitin-gin, we can see that ùe changes to i (first column of the table).
However, if the vowel is followed by a syllable beginning with a modally voiced consonant before a modally voiced vowel, then the vowel from the fourth column is used e.g. when qùylèn changes to quoyliendun, the ùy changes to uoy, since the next syllable begins with a modally voiced consonant -l-, followed by a modally voiced vowel -ie-.
Also, if the vowel is followed by a syllable beginning with a voiceless consonant followed by another modally voice vowel, then the vowel from the fifth column is used e.g. when qámáláy changes to qamielaeykin, the á changes to ae, since the next syllable begins with the voiceless -k-, followed by the modally voiced -i-.
| Tense voice | Breathy voice | Modal, normal | Modal, before a voiced consonant followed by another modal vowel | Modal, before a voiceless consonant followed by another modal vowel | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| íey | ùe | i | i | ue | |
| éy | ùey | ii | ii | uue | |
| áe / áae | è / èe | ie / iie | ie / iie | e / ee | |
| á / áa | òe / òoe | a / aa | a / aa | ae / aae | |
| úow | ù | u | uo | u | |
| éw | ùew | uu | uow | uu | |
| óe | ùo | o | ao | o | |
| áey / áaey | èy / èey | iey / iiey | iey / iiey | ey / eey | |
| áy / áay | òey / òoey | ay / aay | ay / aay | aey / aaey | |
| úoy / úuoy | ùy / ùuy | uy / uuy | uoy / uuoy | uy / uuy | |
| áew / áaew | èw / èew | iew / iiew | iew / iiew | ew / eew | |
| áw / áaw | òew / òoew | aw / aaw | aw / aaw | aew / aaew | |
| ów / óow | ùow / ùuow | uow / uuow | ow/ oow | uow / uuow |
There are many, many other nouns that decline according to this pattern. All of the nouns that end in /ɴ/ or contain a long vowel in the final syllable undergo vowel changes in the stem e.g.
táen /tɛɴʔ/ - weather, absolutive
tenchin /tɘɴciɴ/ - weather, ergative
kòoe /kɜɦː/ - membership card, absolutive
kaadun /kaːduɴ/ - membership card, ergative
However, the converse is not true. For nouns
with non-modally voiced final vowels, but that do not end in /ɴ/ or a long
vowel, some undergo vowel changes e.g.
qùenòe /ʔɨɦnɜɦ/ - eel, absolutive
qinajin /ʔinaɟiɴ/ - eel, ergative
While others do not e.g.
kùe /kɨɦ/ - goods, absolutive
kùezin /kɨɦziɴ/ - goods, ergative
There are some nouns that have identical absolutive forms, but are distinguished in the ergative e.g.
ká /kaʔ/ - fence, absolutive
kaechin /kɛciɴ/ - fence, ergative
ká /kaʔ/ - coconut milk, absolutive
kátlin /katɬiɴ/ coconut milk, ergative
Obstruent Voicing
If the absolutive form has a voiceless obstruent (oral stop, affricate or fricative), that is surrounded by breathy voice vowels (possibly with /ɴ/ separating them), when the breathy voiced vowels acquire modal voice in the ergative form, the voiceless obstruent does too, becoming modally voiced e.g.
nyùewsùeylèn /ɲɨuɦsɨɦiɦlɘɴɦ/ - New Zealand, absolutive
nyuuziiliendun /ɲuːziːleɴduɴ/ - New Zealand, ergative
This
sometimes applies to word initial consonants as well e.g.
pùelùe /pɨɦlɨɦ/ - bridge, absolutive
bilidlin /bilidɮiɴ/ - bridge, ergative
pòey /pɜiɦ/ - baby, absolutive
baybyin /baibʲiɴ/ - baby, ergative
But sometimes it does not e.g.
pòey /pɜiɦ/ - page, absolutive
paydlin /paidɮiɴ/ - page, ergative
If the absolutive form of a noun has a voiceless obstruent (oral stop, affricate or fricative), that is preceded by a syllable with a modally voiced vowel, and is followed by a vowel with tense voice, if this tense voiced vowel becomes modally voiced in the ergative form, then the voiceless obstruent before it acquires modal voice too e.g.
yíeysitlíeynyíey /jeiʔsitɬeiʔɲeiʔ/ - mutton, absolutive
yíeysidlinyuekin /jeiʔsidɮiɲɨkiɴ/ - mutton, ergative
Here we can
see that the /tɬ/ in the absolutive form has changed to /dɮ/ in the
ergative form.
For word initial voiceless obstruents followed by tense voiced vowels in the absolutive
form, which change to modal voice vowels in the ergative form, sometimes this change
also occurs e.g.
támá /taʔmaʔ/- victim of a scam / swindle, absolutive
damaesin /damɛsiɴ/ - victim of a scam / swindle, ergative
However others
do not e.g.
kán-kúow /kaɴʔkouʔ/ - prisoner, absolutive
kan-gukin /kaɴgukiɴ/ - prisoner, ergative
Sonorant Devoicing
Another similar pattern occurs in sonorants. If, in the absolutive form, they are preceded by a syllable with a modally voiced vowel, and followed by a breathy or tense voiced vowel that changes in the ergative (to have modal voice), then the sonorant becomes devoiced. /w/ becomes /f/, /l/ becomes /ɬ/, /j/ becomes /ç/, and /ʁ/ becomes /χ/, voiced nasals become prestopped e.g.
yuuwíey /juːweiʔ/ - clothes, absolutive
yuufekin /juːfɘkiɴ/ - clothes, ergative
qaetienòelùn /ʔɛtenɜɦluɴɦ/ - heart, absolutive
qaetetnaluonzin /ʔɛtɘtnaloɴziɴ/ - heart, ergative
Comitative Case
How this is formed also depends on the frontness and phonation of the final vowel:
Last Vowel of Abs. Form has Modal Voice
Last Vowel of Abs. Form is not a Back Vowel
In this case, take the absolutive form, raise /a/ to /ɛ/ and centralise any other front vowels e.g.
ziva /ziɥa/
- boat, absolutive
zivae /ziɥɛ/ - boat, comitative
myaewntayn
/mʲɛuɴtaiɴ/ - mountain, absolutive
myaewntaeyn /mʲɛuɴtɛiɴ/ - mountain, comitative
qagiriey /ʔagiʁei/ - agreement, absolutive
qagirey /ʔagiʁɘi/ - agreement, comitative
Last Vowel of Abs. Form is a Back Vowel
In this case, take the absolutive form, and suffix /pmu/ e.g.
ton /tɔɴ/- change (as in coins, money), absolutive
tonpmu /tɔɴpmu/ - change (as in coins, money), comitative
duoliiengun /doleːŋuɴ/ - dragon, absolutive
duoliiengunpmu /doleːŋuɴpmu/ - dragon, comitative
paehuown /pɛχouɴ/ - dust, absolutive
paehuownpmu /pɛχouɴpmu/ - dust, comitative
yuenpiluoy - /jɨɴpiloipmu/ - employee, absolutive
yuenpiluoypmu - /jɨɴpiloipmu/ - employee, comitative
Other Cases
If the last vowel of the absolutive form has tense or breathy voice, the comitative is formed differently. Here, it is formed by taking the ergative, deleting any final /ɴ/ or /ga/ that had been inserted as a suffix, and then suffixing /ʔu/ e.g.
sitùen /sitɨɴɦ/ - wound caused by a sting (e.g. a bee or a jellyfish), absolutive
suetin-gin /sɨtiɴgiɴ/ - wound caused by a sting (e.g. a bee or a jellyfish), ergative
suetin-giqu /sɨtiɴgiʔu/ - wound caused by a sting, comitative
tieyláae
/teilɛʔː/ - shirt, absolutive
tieyláaesin /teilɛʔːsiɴ / - shirt, ergative
tieyláaesiqu /teilɛʔːsiʔu/ - shirt, comitative
píey /peiʔ/ - book, absolutive
píeykin /peiʔkiɴ/ - book, ergative
píeykiqu /peiʔkiʔu/ - book, comitative
kùe /kɨɦ/ - goods, absolutive
kùezin /kɨɦziɴ/ - goods, ergative
kùeziqu /kɨɦziʔu/ - goods, comitative
rè /ʁɘɦ/ - red object, absolutive
rèdun /ʁɘɦduɴ/ – red object, ergative
rèduqu /ʁɘɦduʔu/ – red object, comitative
kúow /kouʔ/ - cup, absolutive
kúowpin /kouʔpiɴ/ - cup, ergative
kúowpiqu /kouʔpiʔu/ - cup, comitative
píeylánkáe /peiʔlaɴʔkɛʔ/ - blanket, absolutive
píeylánkáetun /peiʔlaɴʔkɛʔtuɴ/ - blanket, comitative
píeylánkáetuqu /peiʔlaɴʔkɛʔtuʔu/ - blanket, ergative
wùerù /wɨɦʁuɦ/ - frog, absolutive
wùerùgiqu /wɨɦʁuɦgiɴ/ - frog, ergative
wùerùgin /wɨɦʁuɦgiʔu/ - frog, comitative
Pronominal Possession
Where English would use possessive pronouns (“my”, “your”), Antarctican uses possessive prefixes. The base forms of each are listed in the table below:
| Prefix | Usage |
|---|---|
| myi- /mʲi/ | 1st person singular, 1st person exclusive plural |
| yiew- /jeu/ | 1st person inclusive plural |
| ti- /ti/ | 2nd person |
| wa- /wa/ | 3rd person, topicalised |
| si- /si/ | 3rd person, non-topicalised |
So, in the absolutive
case, “my clothes” or “our clothes” (not including you) would be myiyuuwíey /mʲijuːweiʔ/, “your clothes” would be tiyuuwíey /tijuːweiʔ/ etc.
Phonation spreading
However, with some nouns that have breathy or tense voice on their first vowel, the voice “spreads” back to the prefix, changing the modally voiced vowel in the base form to its tense voice or breathy voice equivalent (see the table before) e.g.
kánkúow /kaɴʔkouʔ/ - prisoner, absolutive
myíeykán-kúow /mʲeiʔkaɴʔkouʔ/ - my prisoner, absolutive (not *myikán-kúow)
tíeykán-kúow /teiʔkaɴʔkouʔ/ - your prisoner, absolutive (not *tikán-kúow)
pùelùe /pɨɦlɨɦ/ - bridge, absolutive
myùepùelùe /mʲɨɦpɨɦlɨɦ/ - my bridge, absolutive (not *myipùelùe)
tùepùelùe /tɨɦpɨɦlɨɦ/ - your bridge, absolutive (not *tipùelùe)
If, for any given word, phonation spreads onto one particular prefix, then it will spread onto any prefix that attaches to that word e.g. there are no words that take myíey- as their 1st person (exclusive) possessive prefix, but ti- or tùe as their 2nd person possessive prefix.
However, if, in the ergative form, the first vowel changes to no longer have breathy or tense voice (i.e. it now has modal voice), then modally voiced forms of the prefixes are always used when talking about possessing a noun in the ergative case e.g.
kánkúow /kaɴʔkouʔ/ - prisoner, absolutive
kan-gukin /kaɴgukiɴ/ - prisoner, ergative
myíeykán-kúow /mʲeiʔkaɴʔkouʔ/ - my prisoner, absolutive
myikan-gukin /mʲikaɴgukiɴ/ - my prisoner, ergative
pùelùe /pɨɦlɨɦ/- bridge, absolutive
bilidlin /bilidɮiɴ/ - bridge, ergative
myùepùelùe /mʲɨɦpɨɦlɨɦ/ - my bridge, absolutive
myibilidlin /mʲibilidɮiɴ/ - my bridge, ergative
However, with other nouns, phonation never spreads e.g.
támá /taʔmaʔ/ - victim of a scam / swindle, absolutive
myuetámá /mʲɨtaʔmaʔ/ - my victim of a scam / swindle, absolutive (not *myíeytámá)
Prediction
If a noun begins with a glottal stop (which does not count as either voiced or voiceless), then phonation never spreads from it onto a prefix e.g.
qámáelái /ʔaʔmɛʔlaiʔ/ - prey, absolutive
myiqámáelái /mʲiʔaʔmɛʔlaiʔ/ - my prey, absolutive (never *myíeyqámáelái)
qòepèn /ʔɜɦpɘɴɦ/ - one who is / was / is to be avenged, absolutive
myiqòepèn /mʲiʔɜɦpɘɴɦ/ - my one who is / was / is to be avenged, absolutive (never *myùeqòepèn)
In other cases, whether or not the phonation spreads onto the prefix cannot always be predicted. The only time when it is possible to do so is for absolutive nouns, if, in the ergative form, the first vowel loses its breathy or tense phonation and becomes modally voiced. In this case, the rules are given below:
Sonorant Initial Stem
If the absolutive stem begins with a sonorant (nasal or approximant), and that sonorant becomes devoiced when the vowel after it acquires modal voice in the ergative form, then the phonation never spreads in the absolutive form upon taking a prefix e.g.
mòoe /mɜɦː/ - betel nut, absolutive
pmaagin /pmaːgiɴ/ - betel nut, ergative
myimòoe /mʲimɜɦː/ - my betel nut, absolutive
Otherwise,
phonation always spreads if the word begins with a sonorant e.g.
máláeyáa /maʔlɛʔjaʔː/ - manners, absolutive
malieyaaetun /malejɛːtuɴ/ - manners, ergative
myíeymáláeyáa /mʲeiʔmaʔlɛʔjaʔː/ - my manners, absolutive
Stem starts with /s/
If the absolutive stem begins with /s/, then tense voice never spreads when it takes a prefix e.g.
síeykúow /seiʔkouʔ/ - a small amount, absolutive
myisíeykúow /mʲiseiʔkouʔ/ - my small amount, absolutive (never *myíeysíeykúow)
sásaechin /saʔsɛciɴ/ - stab wound, absolutive
myisásaechin /mʲisaʔsaɛciɴ/ - my stab wound, absolutive
In the case of absolutive nouns with breathy voice on the first vowel, if, in the ergative form, the initial /s/ becomes voiced /z/, then the breathy voice spreads when the absolutive form takes a prefix e.g.
sòemùe /sɜɦmɨɦ/ - (major) wife, absolutive
zamibyin /zamibʲiɴ/ - (major) wife, ergative
myùesòemùe /mʲɨɦsɜɦmɨɦ/ - my (major) wife, absolutive (not *myisòemùe)
But if, in
the ergative form, the first vowel acquires modal voice but the initial
consonant stays as voiceless /s/, then in the absolutive form, the breathy
voice never spreads e.g.
sòepyùe /sɜɦpʲɨɦ/ - speech (as in words, not a formal speech), absolutive
sabyishin /sabʲiçiɴ/ - speech (as in words, not a formal speech), ergative
myisòepyùe /mʲisɜɦpʲɨɦ/ - my speech (as in words, not a formal speech), absolutive
Other stems
If the absolutive stem begins with another obstruent (oral stop, affricate or fricative), and that obstruent stays voiceless even when followed by a modally voiced vowel (in the ergative form), then tense phonation spreads when the absolutive form takes a prefix e.g.
kánkúow /kaɴʔkouʔ/ - prisoner, absolutive
kan-gukin /kaɴgukiɴ/ - prisoner, ergative
myíeykán-kúow /mʲeiʔkaɴʔkouʔ/ - my prisoner, absolutive
táen /tɛɴʔ/ - weather, absolutive
tenchin /tɘɴciɴ/ - weather, ergative
myíeytáen /mʲeiʔtɛɴʔ/ - my weather, absolutive
But if the obstruent becomes voiced, then tense phonation cannot spread e.g.
támá /taʔmaʔ/ - victim of a scam / swindle, absolutive
damaesin /damaɛsiɴ/ - victim of a scam / swindle, ergative
myitámá /mʲitaʔmaʔ/ - my victim of a scam / swindle, absolutive
And vice versa, if the obstruent becomes voiced in the ergative form, then tense phonation is blocked from spreading but breathy phonation spreads e.g.
pùelùe /pɨɦlɨɦ/ - bridge, absolutive
bilidlin /bilidɮiɴ/ - bridge, ergative
myùepùelùe /mʲɨɦpɨɦlɨɦ/ - my bridge, absolutive
pòey /pɜiɦ/- baby, absolutive
baybyin /baibʲiɴ/ - baby, ergative
myùepòey /mʲɨɦpɜiɦ/ - my baby, absolutive
And if the obstruent stays voiceless in the ergative form, then breathy voice does not spread e.g.
pòey /pɜiɦ/ - page, absolutive
paydlin /paidɮiɴ/ - page, ergative
myipòey /mʲipɜiɦ/ - my page, absolutive
Irregular Nouns
A handful of nouns are irregular, taking special forms whenever they are prefixed. These can be divided up into a few categories.
First Consonant Becomes /ŋ/
If the initial consonant of a noun is /k/ or /g/, often it changes to /ŋ/ when the noun takes a prefix. e.g.
gali /gali/ - hole, absolutive
myingali /mʲiŋali/ - my hole, absolutive
In such a case, if the first vowel has tense or breathy voice, then it always spreads onto the prefix e.g.
kùe /kɨɦ/ - goods, absolutive
myùengùe /mʲɨɦŋɨɦ/ - my goods, absolutive
kíeyváy /keiʔɥaiʔ/ - tongue, absolutive
myíeyngíeyváy /mʲeiʔŋeiʔɥaiʔ/ - my tongue, absolutive
Syllable Insertion
For a few nouns, an additional syllable is inserted between the prefix and the stem. The consonant is unpredictable and depends on the noun, but the vowel is always modally voiced /i/ and is never followed by /ɴ /. For any given noun, this will be the same regardless of the prefix e.g.
bun /buɴ/ - pants, absolutive
myizibun /mʲizibuɴ/ - my pants, absolutive
tizibun /tizibuɴ/ - your pants, absolutive
Tense voice is always blocked from spreading in such cases e.g.
tlíeynáe /tɬeiʔnɛʔ/ - business, absolutive
myibyitlíeynáe /mʲibʲitɬeiʔnɛʔ/ - my business, absolutive
But breathy voice will always spread onto both the prefix and the inserted syllable e.g.
pùey /pɨiɦ/ - section, absolutive
myùetlùepùey /mʲɨɦtɬɨɦpɨiɦ/ - section, absolutive
Syllable Insertion and Nasalisation
Some words undergo both of the above changes when they take a prefix e.g.
gay /gai/ - gift, absolutive
myibyigay /mʲibʲiŋai/ - my gift, absolutive
If the initial syllable of the unprefixed word has tense voice, then this spreads onto the inserted syllable, but not onto the actual prefix e.g.
kúow /kouʔ/ – bigot, absolutive
myipyíeyngúow /mʲipʲeiʔŋouʔ/ – my bigot, absolutive (not *myíeypyíeykúow)
If the initial syllable of the unprefixed noun has breathy voice, then this spreads on to both the inserted syllable and the prefix:
kùeròe /kɨɦʁɜɦ/- grudge, absolutive
myùepyùengùeròe /mʲɨɦpʲɨɦŋɨɦʁɜɦ/ - my grudge, absolutive
First Syllable Deleted
A considerable number of nouns lose their initial syllable when they take a prefix. In such cases, the prefix always has tense voice e.g.
puekaay /pɨkaːi/ - star, absolutive
myíeykaay /mʲeiʔkaːi/ - my star, absolutive
fuekirami /fɨkiʁami/ - swelling, absolutive
myíeykirami /mʲeiʔfikiʁami/ - my swelling, absolutive
The only words that undergo this process are ones that begin with a voiceless obstruent (oral stop, fricative or affricate), immediately followed by modally voiced /ɨ/ or /i/, immediately followed by a second voiceless obstruent. Many, but by no means all of these words originated in English, where they began with clusters of /s/ + voiceless consonant. The proto language did not like these clusters and so inserted a vowel to break them up. However when they took a prefix this insertion was no longer necessary. A later sound change put tense voice on all syllables which ended in a voiceless consonant, and deleted that consonant e.g.
sitùen /sitɨɴɦ/ - wound caused by a sting (e.g. a bee or a jellyfish),
absolutive
myíeytùen /mʲeiʔtɨɴɦ/ - my wound caused by a sting (e.g. a bee or a jellyfish), absolutive
suekiraeypi /sɨkiʁɛipi/ - a scrape, absolutive
myíeykiraypi /mʲeiʔkiʁaipi/ - my scrape, absolutive
Syllable Deletion with Ejectivisation
A similar but separate sound change applies to a few words, all of which have íey as their first vowel, with the second vowel having tense voice. Like before, the first vowel is deleted and the prefix takes tense voice. However, the consonant immediately after the prefix changes to an ejective e.g.
síeypyíey /seiʔpʲeiʔ/ - spit, absolutive
míeyppyíey /mʲeiʔpʼʲeiʔ/ - my spit, absolutive
líeyká /leiʔkaʔ/ - square, absolutive
myíeykká /mʲeiʔkʼaʔ/ - my square, absolutive
If the second syllable begins with /l/, then this always converts to /tsʼ/ rather than /tɬʼ/ e.g.
chilúo /cilouʔ/ - banner, absolutive
myíeyttsúow /mʲeiʔtsʼouʔ/ - my banner, absolutive
Other irregular nouns
There are other nouns that behave in other ways to those described above when they take a prefix. What happens needs to be remembered for each noun, however note that the prefixes for irregular nouns always take tense voice e.g.
kíey /keiʔ/ - mouth, absolutive
myíeytli /mʲeiʔtɬi/ - my mouth, absolutive
Possession by a Noun
Antarctican distinguishes alienable and inalienable possession ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Possession_(linguistics)#Alienable_and_inalienable ). Both are marked with prefixes on the possessed noun. These are wiey- for alienable possession and nu- for inalienable possession (the possessor always takes the absolutive case):
kùeròetùu /kɨɦʁɜɦtuɦː/ - bone, absolutive
yini /jini/ - dog, absolutive
wieykùeròetùu yini /weikɨɦʁɜɦtuɦː jini/ - the dog’s bone, absolutive, alienable (i.e. the one that it eats, buries etc.)
nukùeròetùu yini /nukɨɦʁɜɦtuɦː jini/ - the dog’s bone, absolutive, inalienable (i.e. the one that is a part of it)
Where English would compound nouns together, or use one to modify another. Antarctican uses the alienable possessive construction e.g.
qaaehaan
/ʔɛːχaːɴ/ - food, absolutive
wieyqaaehaan yini /weiʔɛːχaːɴ jini/ - dog food, absolutive
Whatever voice spreads from a noun onto a pronominal possessive prefix, also always does so to an alienable or inalienable possessive prefix e.g.
kánkúow /kaɴʔkouʔ/ - prisoner, absolutive
myíeykánkúow /mʲeiʔkaɴʔkouʔ/ - my prisoner, absolutive
wáeykán-kúow /wɛiʔkaɴʔkouʔ/ - prisoner, absolutive, alienable possessive
pùelùe /pɨɦlɨɦ/ - bridge, absolutive
myùepùelùe /mʲɨɦpɨɦlɨɦ/ - my bridge, absolutive
wèypùelùe /wɘiɦpɨɦlɨɦ/ - bridge, absolutive, alienable possessive
mòoe /mɜɦː/ - betel nut, absolutive
myimòoe /mʲimɜɦː/ - my betel nut, absolutive
wieymòoe /weimɜɦː/ - betel nut, absolutive, alienable possessive
pmaagin /pmaːgiɴ/ - betel nut, ergative
myuepmaagin /mʲɨpmaːgiɴ/ - my betel nut, ergative
weypmaagin /wɘipmaːgiɴ/ - betel nut, ergative, alienable possessive
Reciprocal Possession
In Antarctican, there is no singular vs. plural marking. However, some nouns that imply a relationship (e.g. friend, brother, enemy, coworker), have special forms to indicate a pair or group of people / things where that relationship is reciprocal e.g. where English would say “They are friends / brothers / enemies / coworkers (of each other)”.
These forms are generally constructed by reduplicating the first syllable of the noun, in the same “slot” where possession would be marked e.g.
buraza /buʁaza/ - brother, absolutive
buburaza /bubuʁaza/ - brothers (of each other), absolutive
yieruoy /jeʁoi/ - ally, absolutive
yieyieruoy /jeʁoi/ - allies (of each other), absolutive
However, the inserted syllable cannot have a long vowel, a diphthong, or end in /ɴ/. If it would do so then it is truncated e.g.
duuolaa /doːlaː/ - coworker, absolutive
duoduuolaa /dodoːlaː/ - coworkers (of each other), absolutive
nayba /naiba/ - neighbour, absolutive
nanayba /nanaiba/ - neighbours (of each other), absolutive
kúowntátu /kouɴʔtaʔtu/ – acquaintance, absolutive
kúokúowntátu /koʔkouɴʔtaʔtu/– acquaintances (of each other), absolutive
The same rules about spreading and non-spreading of phonation onto possessive prefixes, and the resultant vowel changes, also apply to the possessive prefixes e.g.
sátuozii /saʔtoziː/ – enemy, absolutive
myisátuozii /mʲisaʔtoziː/ – my enemy, absolutive
sasátuozii /sasaʔtoziː/ - enemies (of each other), absolutive
rùy /ʁuiɦ/- rival, absolutive
myùerùy /mʲɨɦʁuiɦ/ - my rival, absolutive
rùrùy /ʁuɦʁuiɦ/ - rivals (of each other), absolutive
firiendun /fiʁeɴduɴ/ – friend, ergative
myuefiriendun /mʲɨfiʁeɴduɴ/ – my friend, ergative
fuefiriendun /fɨfiʁeɴduɴ/ – friends (of each other), ergative
A few nouns have irregular reciprocal possessive forms e.g.
wùerèn /wɨɦʀɘɴɦ/ - friend, absolutive
fiwùerèn /fiwɨɦʀɘɴɦ/ - friends (of each other), absolutive
These arise from when the first vowel has breathy or tense voice, but the first consonant is underlyingly a voiced stop, a prestopped nasal, or a fricative other than /s/. These can only occur before modally voiced vowels, and are thus modified before the vowel with breathy or tense voice. But if the voicing is blocked from spreading onto the prefix, then the underlying consonant will surface there.