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Mila is the language spoken by colonisers on the planet Kukca. It is descended from, and mutually comprehensible with | Mila is the language spoken by colonisers on the planet Kukca. It is descended from, and mutually comprehensible with the constructed language, Proto-Mila, as spoken on the home planet of Kumja. It has about 3000 speakers living in five settlements spread along the Siska River. There are slight dialectal differences between each settlement, though these too are all mutually comprehensible. | ||
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==Dialectal Differences== | ==Dialectal Differences== | ||
There are five settlements in the lula world four are spread along the Siska River, from the West to East are the main town of iNukhin Litpa (given in the following description as IL), on the opposite bank is Ciɟriskin Sitka (CS), a harbour town further upstream Suɟin Sugra (SS) and the university town in the foothills iNukhin Kina (IK). These are joined by the mining town Jijgin Litpa (JL) to the north of iNukhin Litpa. Each of these have distinctive dialectal features which will be outlined below. | |||
===Differences in Pronunciation=== | |||
====Pronunciation of '''n''' [c ~ ɟ]==== | |||
There is a trend, stigmatised in IL, although it can also be found there to pronounce /c/ as [ʧ] and /ɟ/ as [ʤ]. This is absent from the South Bank dialects in IK and IL but can be found in those on the North Bank. The dialect of JL goes further and these are pronounced [ʃ] and [ʒ] respectively. | |||
====Pronunciation of Preconsonantal Vowels==== | |||
Although preconsonantal vowels are described as either /i/ or /u/ depending on whether they are coronal or not respectively and when not grammatical /a/ the accent of IK pronounces pre-[c ~ ɟ] and pre-[l] (whether this has disappeared or not) with lip rounding as [y]. This accent maintains a difference between such words as, for example, '''ɔυι''' [ʹkyhɐ] ''door'' and '''ɔιι''' [ʹkuhɐ] ''road'' which have merged to [ʹkuhɐ] in the other varieties. | |||
====Pronunciation of Coda Nasals==== | |||
Although coda /m/ and /n/ are pronounced as such in most dialects, they have merged in CS to become [n] when not followed by another consonant and they assimilate for place with the following consonant if one is present in the same word (this assimilation does not take place across word boundaries). Thus '''cɷo''' [ʹsumbɐ] ''syrup'' is pronounced [ʹsumbɐ] whereas '''cωo''' [ʹsinbɐ] ''still water'' is pronounced [ʹsimbɐ], the preconsonantal vowel being the indication of the former consonant /n/. | |||
====Stress==== | |||
In compound words in the standard language the main stress is usually given to the second element and the first element receives secondary stress. This is not the case in SS where both elements receive equal stress. In JL, if the first element has three syllables then the secondary stress of the compound shifts to the penultimate syllable. So a compound such as '''ɔʌι:ʌ:ω-vnʌ''' ''sloth'' which is pronounced [ˌkihinɐ ʹjiɟɾɐ] in the standard is pronounced [ʹkihinɐ ʹjiɟɾɐ] in SS and [kiˌhinɐ ʹjiʒɾɐ] in JL. | |||
====Syllable Structure==== | |||
In most accents words such as '''ιʌω''' ''to woo'' and '''ιωω''' ''density'' have merged to [ʹhinɐ]. The syllable structure differs however in SS and IK from the other accents. Elsewhere the syllable structures are identically arranged as [ʹhi.nɐ], however in SS and IK the structure is [ʹhi.nɐ] if a /r/ or /l/ has been elided, whereas it is [ʹhin.ɐ] if a sound has been degeminated. At the surface level this does not have much difference, but the two are stored differently and for speakers the syllable structure is a relevant feature. In the later history of the language this also becomes relevant. We can speak of a near-merger here for these two varieties. | |||
====Epenthetic Liquids==== | |||
In all the dialects coda /r/ and /l/ have been elided when preceded by /i/ and /u/ respectively, such that a word such as '''ιυι:ʌ''' ''to wake up'' has become [ʹhuhi] with no final /r/ and '''ιυι:υ''' ''also to sleep'' is [ʹhuhu] with no final /l/. This coda sound is completely lost in all positions everywhere apart from in JL where it reappears epenthetically when followed by a vowel. This is also extended intrusively to positions where it did not occur historically. ''I slept and dreamt'' is '''óoo-ω:ιυι-óoo-ω:ιωɷ:υ''' which is commonly pronounced [ɐp inʹhuhu ɐp inʹhinmu], but in JL it becomes [ɐp inʹhuhu'''ɫ''' ɐp inʹhinmu] where there was no historical /l/ present. This feature is open to ridicule by non-JL speakers and as such is often avoided when in conversation with outsiders. Older speakers are more likely to epenthesise the liquids based on historical position, whereas epenthesis intrusively is becoming more common amongst younger speakers. | |||
====The Pronunciation of '''υ''' /l/==== | |||
In SS and IK this sound has become [w]. In CS the velarisation is lost in onset position and is only [ɫ] in coda position. In the other towns it is [ɫ] in all positions. | |||
===Morphological Differences=== | |||
====Predicate Plurals==== | |||
Although in the standard language the plurality of the predicate is not shown, or if necessary is shown with constructions such as ''some ...'', ''all of ...'', ''three ...'' etc., in SS, IK and CS it is possible to show the plural of the predicate (and also the subject, though this is rarer) by making the object to be adjectival and adding '''υυυ''' [ɫuɫɐ] ''person'', vvv [jijɐ] ''animal'', '''ɾɾɾ''' [titɐ] ''thing nearby'', '''nnn''' [cicɐ] ''thing in sight'' or '''ooo''' [pupɐ] ''thing out of sight''. Abstract nouns also use '''ooo'''. The stress in these constructions falls on the adjective (so the object) and not the ''plural'' noun. | |||
====Present Tense==== | |||
The present tense marker on verbal forms is shown as '''ʌ:''' [i(ɾ)-]. There is some variation in its usage. In IL and CS this is usually omitted when it is followed by another prefix, so the present tense of '''ɔ:ɷvo''' [ug'mijbɐ] ''to overeat'' is written as '''ʌ:ɔ:ɷɔo''', so with the present tense marker, but it is pronounced without this marker as [ug'mijbɐ], whereas in SS and IK it is pronounced [irug'mijbɐ]. The accent of JL has gone further and the verbal prefix '''ʌ:''' is never pronounced, so '''ʌ:ɷvo''' to eat is just pronounced ['mijbɐ] and not [i'mijbɐ] as in the other towns, this is also often extended to the locative usage of this prefix in very common phrases. If the initial root sound has become a voiced sound because of the prefix, this voicing is often extended here even when the prefix is lost, so '''ʌ:cυc''' [iʹzuza] <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">pres</span>-swim will be pronounced [ʹzuzɐ]. | |||
===Semantic Differences=== | |||
===='''ιvo''' [hijbɐ] to happen==== | |||
'''ιvo''' [hijbɐ] to happen may be used colloquially to describe the usual action of a noun. So for a sentence such as ''the sun shines'' we may colloquially replace ''shines'' with ''happens'' in Mila. This is very commonly used colloquially for weather conditions in all towns, so ''rain falls'', ''snow falls'', ''wind blows'' etc. may replace the verb with ''happens'', '''ʌ:ιvo''' [ihijbɐ]. It may dialectally have more uses, though. In the Eastern and Southern towns of SS, IK and CS it is also used with animals to describe the noise they make, so ''a dog happens'' would mean ''a dog barks'' for example. This verb is not generally used this way in the remaining two towns. In JL the verb is often used instead of predicate forms. A sentence such as '''υʌɾ:n-oιń''' [ʹɫidic puʹhac] ''the boy is happy'' will commonly be produced in JL as '''υʌɾ:n-oιń-ʌ:ιvo''' [ʹɫidiʃ puʹhaʃ ʹhijba]. | |||
====Numerals==== | |||
The numerals up to ten are shown as having two forms which are described as long and short in the main dialect of IL, with the long forms being the usual ones for the numbers 1-5 and the short forms limited to mathematical descriptions. In the University of Inukhin Kina, however, where the sciences and mathematics are studied the short forms are the ones used as they can unambiguously show the numbers used. Here then, and also within the town, the short numbers are more commonly used in all settings and the long numbers are considered unrefined. | |||
==Other resources== | ==Other resources== | ||
For an online dictionary see http://conworkshop.info/view_language.php?l=PML | For an online dictionary see http://conworkshop.info/view_language.php?l=PML | ||