Dzetcavu
Introduction
Phonology
Consonants
| Bilabial | Dental | Alveolar | Post Alveolar | Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voicless | p /p/ | t /t/ | k /k/ | ||
| voiced | b /b/ | d /d/ | g /g/ | |||
| Nasal | m /m/ | n /n/ | ||||
| Fricative | voiceless | f /f/ | s /s/ | c /ʃ/ | x /x/ | |
| voiced | v /v/ | z /z/ | j /ʒ/ | ĝ /ɣ/ | ||
| Trill | r /r/ | |||||
| Lateral Approximant | l /l/ | |||||
| Affricate | voiceless | ps /ps/ pc /pʃ/ pf /pf/ |
ts /ts/ tc /tʃ/ |
ks /ks/ kc /kʃ/ | ||
| voiced | bz /bz/ bj /bʒ/ bv /bv/ |
dz /dz/ dj /dʒ/ |
gz /gz/ gj /gʒ/ | |||
Vowels
| Front | Back | Diphthongs | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i /i/ | u /u/ | ui /ui/ |
| Near-Close | ī /ɪ/ | ||
| Close-Mid | e /e/ | o /o/ | ei /ei/ |
| Open | a /a/ | ai /ai/ |
Orthography
Romanized Alphabet
Dzetcavu Alphabetical Order
p b t d k g m n r f v s z c j x ğ l i u ī e o a
Syntax
Word Order
- VOS/VPA
- Modifier second
Morphology
Morphosyntactic Alignment
- Ergative-Absolutive
Verbs
Tense
Tenses, other than the present, in Dzetcavu are indicated by tense particles proceeding the verb. There are five tense particles: past, near past, future, near future, and the infinite.
Past
psio
Near Past
sega
Future
degz
Near Future
codz
Infinite
datcī
The Infinite Particle
The infinite "tense" particle is not so much a tense marker as a lack-of-tense marker. The infinite tense is used most often when stating facts or making promises and oaths. Any other situation where tense is not a factor, the infinite tense is used. It can also be used to make emphasize a declaration of some sort such as a declaration of faith, love, or guilt.
Imperative Mood
-ij Verbs
| Simple | Progressive | Perfect | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | |
| 1st Person | -i | -iac | -ri | -ric | ||
| 2nd Person | -iz | -ita | -riz | -rita | ||
| 3rd Person | -ize | -izev | -rize | -riev | ||
-uj Verbs
| Simple | Progressive | Perfect | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | |
| 1st Person | -u | -uīc | -ru | -ruc | ||
| 2nd Person | -uz | -utī | -ruz | -rut | ||
| 3rd Person | -uzī | -uzīv | -ruzī | -ruv | ||
-īj Verbs
| Simple | Progressive | Perfect | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | |
| 1st Person | -ī | -īc | -rī | -rīc | ||
| 2nd Person | -īz | -īt | -rīz | -rīt | ||
| 3rd Person | -īze | -īv | -rīze | -rīv | ||
-ej Verbs
| Simple | Progressive | Perfect | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural | |
| 1st Person | -e | -ec | -re | -rec | ||
| 2nd Person | -ez | -eta | -rez | -ret | ||
| 3rd Person | -eze | -ezev | -reze | -rev | ||