Kola: Difference between revisions

'''Kola''' (Native: ጅቆለ /d͡ʒɨkʼolə/, Latin script: ''Jïqolä'') is a Bantu language spoken by the Kola people (ወቆለ ''wäqolä'')<!-- in Eritrea and the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.-->.

<!-- What sounds does your language use? -->

====Ge'ez Abugida====

! style="font-size:90%"| {{IPA|h}}

|አ (ኧ)||ኡ||ኢ||ኣ||ኤ||እ||ኦ||colspan="6" style="background:#cccccc"|&nbsp;

'''Note:'''

The base forms for non-labialized guttural (uvular, pharyngeal, and glottal) consonants are not normally used, since they do not occur with the vowel /ə/ except in ideophones. If they do appear, they are generally used interchangeably with the /a/ forms (except for the uvulars). In ideophones, /(ʔ)ə/ is written as ኧ; the rest simply use their base forms (despite the ambiguity for /h/, /ħ/, and /ʕ/).

! Letter

|A a || a

|Ä ä || ə

|B b || b

|C c || t͡ʃʰ

|Ch ch || t͡ʃ’

|D d || d

|E e || e

|F f || f

|G g || ɡ

|Gh gh || ʁ

|H h || h

|Hh hh || ħ

|I i || i

|Ï ï || ɨ

|J j || d͡ʒ

|K k || kʰ

|Kh kh || χ

|L l || l

|M m || m

|N n || n

! Letter

|Ny ny || ɲ

|Ng ng || ŋ

|O o || o

|P p || pʰ

|Ph ph || p’

|Q q || k’

|Qh qh || ʕ

|R r || r

|S s || s

|Sh sh || ʃ

|T t || tʰ

|Th th || t’

|U u || u

|V v || v

|W w || w

|X x || t͡s’

|Y y || y

|Z z || z

|(Zh zh) || ʒ

|’ || ʔ

! rowspan="2" | Pharyngeal

<small>¹</small> The distinction between /d͡ʒ/ and /ʒ/ has been lost in the standard language (where they occur in free variation), but is still present in some dialects.

<small>³</small> All consonants have labialized allophones before the rounded vowels /o/ and /u/. The distinction between plain and labialized gutturals is neutralized in this position. Most consonants can also occur labialized before other vowels, but they behave more as sequences of consonant + /w/ (except for ''-wa'', which behaves as a vowel).

|+'''Vowel phonemes'''

! Central<sup><small>1</small>

! Mid

^{<small>1</small>} The central vowels /ɨ, ə, a/ are actually pronounced closer to [ɪ̈, ɜ, ä] respectively. They have front allophones [ɪ, ɛ, æ] after palatal/postalveolar consonants and rounded allophones [ʊ̈, ɞ, ɒ̈] after labialized consonants (including ''w'').

The maximum allowed syllable structure is CVC word-medially and CVCC word-finally. Consonant clusters with more than two consonants are broken up by inserting the epenthetic vowel /ɨ/. /ɨ/ is also added (in speech only) after a word-final consonant cluster when the following word begins in a vowel.

*Sonorant + non-glottal obstruent - e.g. /nt, mpʼ, ls/

*Voiceless velar/guttural (non-labialized) or labial obstruent + /t/, /s/, or /ʃ/ - e.g. /ft, kʼt, ħʃ, ʔs/

*Voiceless fricative (non-labialized) + stop - e.g. /st, ftʼ, ʃkʼ/ - EXCEPTION: /f/ cannot be followed by a labial stop

Any other word-final cluster is broken with /ɨ/. Alternatively, a word-final /i/ may be added, especially in loanwords - e.g. ዓቅሊ ''qhaqli'' /ʕakʼli/ "reason, common sense" (from Arabic عقل /ʕaql/).

Word-initially, a consonant can cluster with ''l, r, y,'' or ''w''. Other word-initial clusters in loanwords are resolved through various means.

Within a word, most two-consonant clusters are allowed in theory. Some clusters do not occur due to coalescence (e.g. ''l'' + ''r'' → ''rr''; ''t'' + ''d'' → ''dd'') Guttural consonants do not normally cluster with each other, except in some loanwords (where they often fuse anyway) - e.g. ማዕሃድ ''maqh'had'' /maʕhad/ "institute" (also ማሓድ ''mahhad'' /maħad/).  

If three consonants cluster within a word, the first two are subject to the same restrictions as word-final clusters, and the third must be ''l, r, y,'' or ''w'' - e.g. ጅንግሊዝ ''Jïn'gliz'' /d͡ʒɨŋɡliz/ "English (language)".  

*u > w / K_ (i.e. labializes gutturals)

*u, i > Ø / C_V (between morphemes)

*When sandhi results in a "short" vowel (''ä, ï'') being replaced with a "long" vowel (''u, i, a, e, o''), a following geminate consonant is degeminated. This degemination does not occur when the "long" vowel is due to a labialized or guttural consonant (see below).

 

*When the vowel "ä" occurs after non-labialized guttural (uvular, pharyngeal, or glottal) consonants, it becomes "a". The same change occurs before vowelless gutturals.

*Labiovelar consonants followed by ''ä'' or ''ï'' can be written and pronounced as their non-labialized counterparts followed by ''o'' or ''u'' respectively (except for ''w'', which has no non-labialized counterpart and therefore remains written ''w''. Note that all consonants are labialized in pronunciation before ''o'' and ''u'', so the delabialization only occurs in writing.

*The vowels ''e'' or ''i'' can be replaced with ''ä'' or ''ï'' respectively after palatal consonants.

b, w . v

(d͡ʒ > ʒ)

k’, kʰ, g > χ, ħ, ʕ

ŋ > ʁ

=====Nasalization=====

χ, ʁ > ħ, ʕ

g, ʁ, ʕ > d͡ʒ, (ʒ, ʒ)

ŋ, ʔ, k’, kʰ, g > ŋʷ, w, kʷ’, kʷʰ, gʷ

χ, ħ, h > χʷ

 

ʁ, ʕ > ʁʷ

'''Grand master plan'''

 

ɟ > Ø / i_i, i_ɪ (maybe also ɪ_i, ɪ_ɪ) - for class 5/6 nouns, the *ɟ is also dropped from the plural by analogy

k, g > k͡x, g͡ɣ / _i, _u

[-voiced +prenasalized +stop/affricate ] > [-prenasalized +aspirated] (i.e. mp, nt, etc > pʰ, tʰ, etc for all voiceless stops and affricates)

[-voiced -aspirated +stop/affricate ] > [+voiced] / in grammatical morphemes

χ, ʁ  > ħ, ʕ (this does not affect the labialized equivalents)

ʒ > d͡ʒ (not in all dialects)

e, o > ə / _ / _C:

 

eC:, oC: > eC, oC

wɨ, jɨ > u, i / C_C

wə, jə > o, e / C_C

ə > a / after non-labialized guttural consonant, before guttural consonant that is \followed by a (including from ä) or ï/Ø

! rowspan="2" | Class !! rowspan="2" | Noun prefix !! colspan="4" | Concord prefixes<small>¹</small> || rowspan="2" | Typical meaning(s)

! Pronominal !! Subject !! Object !! Adjective

| mï-; - || yï- || ya- || mï- || mï- || Humans, animate

| wä- || wä- || colspan="2" | wa- || wä- || Plural of class 1

| mï- || wï- || colspan="2" | wu- || mï- || Inanimate

| mï- || jï- || colspan="2" | ji- || mï- || Plural of class 3

| zï-; - || lï- || colspan="2" | li- || zï- || Augmentatives, various

| mä- || yä- || colspan="2" | ya- || mä- || Plural of class 5, mass nouns

| jï- || shï- || colspan="2" | shi- || jï- || Tools/artefacts, diminutives, languages, various

| vï- || vï- || colspan="2" | vi- || vï- || Plural of class 7

| N-; -<small>²</small> || yï- || colspan="2" | yi- || N- || Animals, inanimate

| N-; - || ĵï- || colspan="2" | ĵi- || N- || Plural of classes 9 & 11

| lï- || lï- || colspan="2" | lu- || lï- || Abstract, manner/way/culture

| gä- || gä- || colspan="2" | ga- || gä- || Diminutives

| dï- || dï- || colspan="2" | du- || dï- || Plural of class 12

| wï- || wï- || colspan="2" | wu- || wï- || Abstract, countries/lands

| g(w/ï)-<small>³</small> || g(w/ï)- || colspan="2" | gu- || g(w/ï)- || Infinitives

| bä- || bä- || colspan="2" | ba- || bä- || Location, "against", "to the detriment of"

| g(w/ï)- || g(w/ï)- || colspan="2" | gu- || g(w/ï)- || Approximate location, direction, "for", "to", "to the benefit of"

<small>¹</small> Subject and object concords are used for the subject and object of a verb respectively, and adjective concords are used with adjectives. Other words use pronominal concords.

These concord prefixes are considered formal and old-fashioned, and are normally replaced with animacy-based concords. Words agreeing with animate nouns use classes 1/2, while those agreeing with inanimate nouns use classes 9/10. When a modifier is used with a noun, the concord prefix can optionally be omitted.

With nouns, class 16 and 17 behave as prepositions. Their concord prefixes may be used with verbs; otherwise, the prefix appears at the beginning of the noun phrase.

<small>²</small> N- = initial nasalization

<small>³</small> (w/ï) = -w- added before vowels

<small>⁴</small> Inanimate nouns (especially those whose plural form is identical to their singular) can form an alternative plural by adding the class 6 prefix ''mä-'' to either their singular or plural. Similarly, animate nouns (especially those not already in class 1) can add the class 2 prefix ''wä-''.

<small>⁵</small> Diminutive and augmentative prefixes may be added before the prefix of the base noun or directly to the stem. Locative prefixes are always added to the beginning of the noun phrase before any other prefixes and/or modifiers.

:e.g. ''gä-'' + ''zichä'' → ጌጨ ''gechä'' or ገዚጨ ''gäzichä'' "little eye"

::''bä-'' + ''zichä'' → በዚጨ ''bäzichä'' (NOT *ቤጨ ''bechä'') "in (an) eye"

::''bä-'' + ''lä-'' "the" + inanimate concord + ''-ngolä'' "red" + ''zichä'' → በለጎለ ዚጨ ''bälägolä zichä'' "in the red eye"

The definite article is ለ ''lä'' (invariant), which attaches to the beginning of the noun phrase, immediately after any locative prefixes or other prepositions - e.g. ለዚጨ ''läzichä'' "the eye"; በለዚጨ ''bäläzichä'' "in the eye".

Kola does not have an indefinite article.

<!-- Numbers:

1: ሙ mu /mu/

2: ውሊ wïli /wɨli/

3: ጣጥ thath /t’at’/

4: ኔ ne /ne/

5: ጫን chan /t͡ʃ’an/

6: ቃጘ qangä /k’aŋə/

7: ጦሎ tholo /t’olo/

8: ናኔ nane /nane/

9: ሰጛን sängan /səŋan/

10: ቁም qum /k’um/

'''Infinitive''' is a class 15 noun - e.g. ግዬደ ''gyedä'' "to walk" (stem: ''-yedä'').

'''Agent''' nouns are class 1/2 - e.g. <!--ሜደ ''medä'' "person who walks" (pl: ዌደ ''wedä'');--> ምዬዝ ''myez'' "person who walks; companion" (pl: ወዬዝ ''wäyez'').