Gothedish

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Gothedish (Native: Guþþydske /ˈɡuːθʏtskə/) is an East Germanic language. One of its most distinctive feature is extensive palatalization, which is most likely due to Slavic influence.

Introduction

Gothedish is a descendant of Gothic, spoken by the Gothedes (Guþþyde).

Etymology

The ethnonym Guþþyde "Gothede" is derived from Gothic 𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰 gutþiuda "Goths", from *𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌰 guta "Goth" + 𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰 þiuda "people". Folk etymology derives it from Gud "God" (< Gothic 𐌲𐌿𐌸 guþ "God") + þyde "slave" (< Gothic *𐌸𐌹𐍅𐌰𐌹𐌳𐌰 þiwaida "enslaved"), in which case it means "slave of God". Guþþyde is declined as a strong feminine noun when referring to the Gothedes as whole and as a weak noun when referring to an individual.

Phonology

Consonants

Consonant phonemes of Standard Gothedish
Labial Dental Alveolar Palato-
alveolar
Velar Guttural
voiceless voiced1 voiceless voiced voiceless voiced voiceless voiced voiceless voiced voiceless voiced
Nasal m
[m]
hn
[n̥]
n
[n]
nj, mj
[ɲ]
(n)
[ŋ]2
Stop p, kv
[p]
b, gv
[b]
t
[t]
d
[d]
k, c3
[k]
g
[ɡ]
Affricate tj, ts, c3
[t͡s]
k(j), pj
[t͡ʃ]
g(j), bj
[d͡ʒ]
Fricative f, hv
[f]
v
[v]3
þ
[θ]
s
[s]
z, dj
[z]
sj, sk(j), fj, hj, -g4
[ʃ]
zj, rj, zg(j)
[ʒ]
ch2, -g
[x]
h
[h]
Approximant w
[w]
j, g4
[j]
Lateral hl
[ɬ]
l
[l]
lj
[ʎ]
Trill hr
[r̥]
r
[r]

Notes:

1 Voiced stops, affricates, and fricatives are devoiced word-finally. Word-final voiced stops and affricates are additionally fricatized, unless preceded by certain consonants (see orthography for more information).

2 Allophone of /n/ before velars.

3 In loanwords.

4 In palatalizing environments.

Vowels

Vowel phonemes of Standard Gothedish
Front Central Back
unrounded rounded
short1 long short long short long short long
Close i
[ɪ]
i, ie, ige
[iː]
y
[ʏ]
y, ye, ygi
[yː]
u
[ʊ]
u, ue
[uː]
Close-mid e
[eː]
ö, eo
[øː]
e, i
[ə]2
o
[oː]
Open-mid e
[ɛ]
ä, ea
[ɛː]
ö
[œ]
a
[ɐ]
o
[ɔ]
å, oa
[ɔː]
Open ä
[æ]
a
[äː]
å
[ɒ]
Narrow
diphthong
ei, egi, ägi
[ɛɪ̯]
oi, eu, ey, ögi
[œʏ̯]
ou
[ɔʊ̯]
Wide
diphthong
ai, agi
[aɪ̯]
åi, ågi, ogi
[ɔɪ̯]
au
[aʊ̯]

Notes:

1 Any vowel is lengthened when it has an acute accent or circumflex. Similarly, vowels followed by ⟨h⟩ are lengthened even if there is an intervening consonant. An exception is the digraph ⟨hj⟩, which shortens the preceding vowel.

2 In unstressed syllables. Dropped when immediately preceded by vowel or followed by vowel in the next syllable, unless that leads to a forbidden consonant cluster. Written ⟨i⟩ after palatalized ⟨g⟩ that is not preceded by ⟨i⟩.

Orthography

Gothedish can be written in various orthographies. The most commonly used is the Latin alphabet.

Latin (Lateinske) IPA Dialectal variants Perso-Arabic (Arabske) Old Gothic (Alþgutske) New Gothic (Neygutske) Cyrillic (Cyrillske) Examples
A a ɐ, aː1 ــَـ ، ــَا 𐌰 A a, Ā ā А а (Я я),
А́ а́ (Я́ я́)
hand /hɐnt/ "hand", apelpl̩/ "apple"
Á á; Â â 1 ــَا Ā ā; Â â А́ а́ (Я́ я́) hábde /ˈhbdə/, hâde /ˈhdə/ "had"
Ai ai aɪ̯3 ــَىْ 𐌰𐌾 Ag ag Ай ай (Яй яй) haiku /ˈhaɪ̯kuː/ "haiku"
Au au aʊ̯3 ــَـوْ 𐌰𐍅 Ay ay Аў аў (Яў яў) autoaʊ̯toː/ "car"
Ä ä æ, ɛː1 ɛ, eː ــٰـ ، ــٰى 𐌰𐌹 Ai ai, Āi āi Ѧ ѧ (Ѩ ѩ),
Ҍ ҍ (Ꙓ ꙓ)
ärþeærθə/ "earth", än /ɛːn/ "one"
Ea ea; Êa êa ɛː1 ــٰى Āi āi; Âi âi Ҍ ҍ (Ꙓ ꙓ) leazde /lɛːzdə/ "crawled", êan /ɛːn/ "property"
Å å ɒ, ɔː1 ɔ, oː ــٛـ ، ــٛو 𐌰𐌿 An an, Ān ān Ѫ ѫ (Ѭ ѭ),
Ѡ ѡ (Іѡ іѡ)
åsterɒstr̩/ "east", håbed /ˈhɔːbəθ/ "head"
Oa oa; Ôa ôa ɔː1 ــٛو Ān ān; Ân ân Ѡ ѡ (Іѡ іѡ) loakde /lɔːɡdə/ "lapped", hôad /hɔːθ/ "head"
Åi åi ɔɪ̯3 ــٛـىْ 𐍉𐌾 Ωg wg Ѫй ѫй (Ѭй ѭй) åi! /ɔɪ̯/ "oops!, ouch!"
B b b, V/NN-f, N-p2 V/NN-v-V ب ، ف 𐌱 B b Б б barn /bɐrn/ "child", hläb /ɬɛːf/ "bread", lamb /lɐmp/ "sheep"
Bj bj d͡ʒ, V/NN-ʃ, N-t͡ʃ2 ʒ ج ، ش 𐌱𐌾 Bg bg Бь бь gelåbjen /ɡəˈlɒd͡ʒn̩/ "to believe", gelåbj /ɡəˈlɒʃ/ "believe (sg. imper.)", ankumbj /ˈaːŋkʊnt͡ʃ/ "relax (sg. imper.)
C c3 k, t͡s К к; Ц ц calcienkɐlt͡sin/ "calcium"
Ch ch x خ 𐍇 X x Ӿ ӿ duchan /dʊˈxaːn/ "smoke"
D d d, V-θ, C-t2 V-ð-V د ، ث 𐌳 D d Д д dal /daːl/ "valley", god /goːθ/ "good", hund /hʊnt/ "dog"
Dj dj z, V/NN-s, N-t͡s2 d͡ʒ, V-ʃ, C-t͡ʃ;
ʒ, V-ʃ, C-t͡ʃ; d͡z
ز، س 𐌳𐌾 Dg dg Дь дь arbedjen /ˈɐrbəzn̩/ "to work", wӓdedj /ˈwɛːdəs/ "robber", andj /ɐnt͡s/ "end"
E e ɛ, eː 1 jɛ, jeː ــٖـ ، ــٖی 𐌴 E e, Ē ē Е е (Є є),
Е́ е́ (Є́ є́)
merjen /ˈmɛʒn̩/ "to preach", weg /wx/ "storm"
E e, I i ə4 ــَـ ، ــِـ 𐌰 Ă ă Э э (Ӭ ӭ) make /ˈmaːkə/ "I make", hugi /huːjə/ "mind, reason"
É é; Ê ê 1 jeː ــٖی 𐌴 Ē ē; Ê ê Е́ е́ (Є́ є́) lékjenen /lt͡ʃnn̩/ "to heal", wêmilhme /ˈwˌmiːlmə/ "stormcloud"
Ei ei ɛɪ̯ aɪ̯; əɪ̯; iː ــَی 𐌴𐌹 Ei ei Ей ей (Єй єй) eis /ɛɪ̯s/ "ice"
Eu eu œʏ̯ ɔɪ̯; aʏ̯; əʏ̯; œɪ̯ ـٰـوْ 𐌴𐌿 En en Eў еў (Єў єў) eu /œʏ̯/ "(for)ever"
Ey ey œʏ̯ ɔɪ̯; aʏ̯; əʏ̯; œɪ̯; yː ــٗی 𐌴𐌹𐌿 Ein ein Ёй ёй (Іёй іёй) ney /nœʏ̯/ "new"
F f f VS-v-VS ف 𐍆 F f Ф ф fisk /fɪsk/ "fish"
Fj fj ʃ ش 𐍆𐌾 Fg fg Фь фь hafjen /ˈhɐʃn̩/ "to lift"
G g ɡ, V-x, C-k2 V-ɣ-V گ 𐌲 Г r Г г god /ɡoːθ/ "good", dag /daːx/ "day", bårg /bɒrk/ "city, town"
d͡ʒ-, V-j-V, -ʃ2,5 V-ʒ-V ج ، ی ، ش Ѓ ŕ Гь гь gibend͡ʒiːbn̩/ "to give", hugi /ˈhuːjə/ "mind, reason", gvärþig /ˈbærθɪʃ/ "peaceful"
Gj gj d͡ʒ, V-ʃ, C-t͡ʃ V-ʒ-V; ʒ ج 𐌲𐌾 Гg rg Џ(ь) џ(ь) hugjen /ˈhʊd͡ʒn̩/ "to think, intend", andågj /anˈdɒʃ/ "face", angj /ɐnt͡ʃ/ "egg"
Gv gv b, V-f, C-p V-v-V; ɡw, V-x, C-k; gv, -kf ب ، ف 𐍁 Ч ɥ Гв гв gvärþj /bærs/ "peace",sangv /sɐmp/ "song"
H h h, Ø6 x; ɦ هـ 𐌷 Һ h Х х hund /hʊnt/ "dog", naht /naːt/ "night"
Hj hj ʃ ç ش 𐌷𐌾 Һg hg Ш(ь) ш(ь) hlahjen /ɬɐʃn̩/ "to laugh"
Hl hl ɬ, -ːl(-) xl; -ɬ- هل ، ل 𐌷𐌻 Һλ hλ Хл хл hlahjen /ɬɐʃn̩/ "to laugh", mahle /maːlə/ "juice"
Hn hn n̥, -ːn(-) xn; -n̥- هن ، ن 𐌷𐌽 ҺN hv Хн хн hnåt /ɔːt/ "nut", hn /lɛːn/ "loan"
Hr hr r̥, -ːr(-) ʂ; xr; χ; -r̥- هر ، ر 𐌷𐍂 Һp hp Хр хр hraben /aːbn̩/ "raven", huhr /huːr/ "hunger"
Hv hv f V-v-V; ʍ; ɸ; xʷ, -x; xf; kf ف 𐍈 Θ ɵ Хв хв hven /sɛːfn̩/ "to see"
I i ɪ, iː1 ــِـ ، ــِی 𐌹 I i, Ī ī И и (І і),
И́ и́ (Í í)
hven /ˈsɛːfn̩/ "to see"
Í í; Î î 1 ــِی Ī ī; Î î И́ и́ (Í í) niþj /nɪs/ "relative". ik /k/ "I"
Ie ie 1 iə̯ ــِی 𐌹𐌰 Iă iă Иэ иэ (Іэ іэ) friend /frnt/ "friend"
J j j ی 𐌾 G g Й й jah /jaː/ "and"
K k k ک 𐌺 K k К к katt /kɐt/ "cat"
t͡ʃ ʃ چ Ḱ ḱ Ч(ь) ч(ь) kinn /t͡ʃɪn/ "cheek"
Kj kj t͡ʃ ʃ چ 𐌺𐌾 Kg kg Ч(ь) ч(ь) kjel /miːt͡ʃl̩/ "big, great"
Kv kv p kʷ, -k; kf پ 𐌵 U u Кв кв kvimen /piːmn̩/ "to come"
L l l ل 𐌻 Λ λ Л л lamb /lɐmp/ "sheep"
Lj lj ʎ ڷ 𐌻𐌾 Λg λg Ль ль aljʎ/ "other"
M m m م 𐌼 M m М м mäze /mɛːzə/ "bigger"
Mj mj ɲ ݧ 𐌼𐌾 Mg mg Мь мь tamjen /ˈtɐɲn̩/ "to tame"
N n n ن 𐌽 N v Н н name /naːmə/ "name"
Nj nj ɲ ݧ 𐌽𐌾 Ng ng Нь нь sunj /sʊɲ/ "true"
O o ɔ, oː wɔ, woː ــࣷـ ، ــࣷو 𐍉 Ω w; Ω̄ w̄ О о (Іо іо),
О́ о́ (Іо́ іо́)
sokjen /sɔt͡ʃn̩/ "to search, investigate", bok /bk/ "writing, letter, contract"
Ó ó; Ô ô woː ــࣷو Ω̄ w̄; Ω̂ ŵ О́ о́ (Іо́ іо́)
Ö ö œ, øː ɥœ, ɥøː ــࣹـ ، ــࣹا 𐍉𐌹 Ωi wi; Ω̄i w̄i Ё ё (Іё іё),
Ö ö (Іö іö)
Eo eo; Êo êo øː ɥøː ــࣹو Ω̄i w̄i; Ω̂i ŵi Ö ö (Іö іö)
Oi oi œʏ̯ ɔɪ̯; aʏ̯; əʏ̯; œɪ̯ː ــࣷی 𐌰𐌿𐌹 Ani ani Ой ой (Іой іой)
Ou ou ɔʊ̯ aʊ̯; əʊ̯; uː ــࣷـوْ 𐍉𐌿 Ωw Ωw Оў оў (Іоў іоў)
P p p پ 𐍀 П ր П п
Pj pj t͡ʃ چ 𐍀𐌾 Пg րg Пь пь
R r r ɹ; ʀ; ʁ ر 𐍂 R p Р р
Rj rj ʒ ژ 𐍂𐌾 Rg pg Рь рь
S s s VS-z-VS س 𐍃 S s С с
Sj sj ʃ ش 𐍃𐌾 Sg sg Сь сь
Sk sk sk سک 𐍃𐌺 Sk sk Ск ск
ʃ ش Sḱ sḱ Щ(ь) щ(ь)
Skj skj ʃ ش 𐍃𐌺𐌾 Skg skg Щ(ь) щ(ь) hnaskj /n̥ɐʃ/ "soft"
T t t ت 𐍄 T t Т т
Tj tj t͡s s ڃ 𐍄𐌾 Tg tg Ть ть
Þ þ θ VS-ð-VS ث 𐌸 Ψ ф Ѳ ѳ
Þj þj s س 𐌸𐌾 Ψg фg Ѳь ѳь niþj /nɪs/ "relative"
U u ʊ, uː1 ــُـ ، ــُو 𐌿 Ո n, Ո̄ n̄ У у (Ю ю),
У́ у́ (Ю́ ю́)
Ú ú; Û û 1 ــُو Ո̄ n̄; Ո̂ n̂ У́ у́ (Ю́ ю́)
Ue ue 1 uə̯ ــُو 𐌿𐌰 Ոă nă Уэ уэ (Юэ юэ)
V v3 v, -f ڤ 𐌱 B b В в
W w w v; β و 𐍅 Y y В в; Ў ў
Y y ʏ, yː1 ɪ, iː1 ــࣺـ ، ــࣺو 𐌹𐌿 In in, Īn īn Ѵ ѵ (Іѵ іѵ),
Ѵ́ ѵ́ (Іѵ́ іѵ́)
Ý ‎‎ý; Ŷ ŷ 1 1 ــࣺو Īn īn; În în Ѵ́ ѵ́ (Іѵ́ іѵ́)
Ye ye 1 yə̯; iə̯ ــࣺو 𐌹𐌿𐌰 Ină ină Ѵэ ѵэ (Іѵэ іѵэ)
Z z z, -s ز Z z З з
Zj zj ʒ, -ʃ ژ 𐌶 Zg zg Зь зь
Zg zg زگ 𐌶𐌲 Zr zg Зг зг
ʒ ژ Zŕ zŕ Ж(ь) ж(ь)
Zgj zgj ʒ ش 𐌶𐌲𐌾 Zrg zrg Ж(ь) ж(ь)

1 Unmarked vowels are lengthened by default in “unchecked" syllables (i.e. stressed and followed by no more than one consonant) and are shortened otherwise. Short unchecked vowels are indicated by doubling the following consonant, and long checked vowels are indicated with special long forms. The circumflexed long forms are used when a letter (usually "b" or "g") has been dropped. Compound words and loanwords do not always conform to these rules. Note that long vowels may be pronounced shorter in closed and/or unstressed syllables; however, this shortening is non-phonemic.

2 V = vowel; C = consonant; N = nasal consonant; NN = non-nasal consonant; FV = front vowel; VS = voiced sound

3 In interjections and loanwords.

4 Unstressed. Written ⟨e⟩ in the Latin script, except adjacent to palatalized ⟨g⟩, where it is written ⟨i⟩ if there is no other indicator of palatalization. Dropped in pronunciation when followed by another vowel in the next syllable, unless that leads to a forbidden consonant cluster. Not written before sonorants in Gothic and Cyrillic scripts.

5 The velar consonants ⟨k⟩ and ⟨g⟩ as well as the clusters ⟨sk⟩ and ⟨zg⟩ are palatalized before the front vowels ⟨ä, e, i, ö, y⟩ and digraphs beginning in them. The voiced velar ⟨g⟩ is also palatalized after ⟨i⟩ and digraphs ending in it. Note that unstressed ⟨e⟩ /ə/ does not cause palatalization. Unpalatalized /(s)k, (z)g/ only occur before front vowels in loanwords, and may be indicated with a following ⟨h⟩ – i.e. ⟨(s)kh, (z)gh⟩.

6 Lengthens preceding vowel, even if an intervening consonant is present.

Prosody

Stress

In native words, stress is most often on the first syllable unless the word begins in an unstressed prefix. Loanwords may be stressed on any syllable.

Intonation

Phonotactics

Morphophonology

Word-final devoicing

The following changes affect voiced stops, fricatives, and affricates when they occur word-finally:

  • b /b/, bj /d͡ʒ/: devoiced to /p, t͡ʃ/ after nasals; otherwise devoiced and fricatized to /f, ʃ/.
  • d /d/, g /ɡ/, gj /d͡ʒ/: devoiced to /t, k, t͡ʃ/ after consonants; devoiced and fricatized to /θ, x, ʃ/ after vowels.
  • dj /z/: devoiced and defricatized to /t͡s/ after nasals; otherwise devoiced to /s/.
  • g /j/: devoiced and fricatized to /ʃ/.
  • z /z/, zj /ʒ/, v /v/: devoiced to /s, ʃ, f/.

Loanwords may not undergo fricatization - e.g. kitab /kɪˈtaːp/ "book". Some speakers may avoid this irregularity by completely replacing the final consonant with its unvoiced counterpart - e.g. ketap /kəˈtaːp/ (nativized form of kitab).

Palatalization

All consonants except for w, j, and v can be palatalized by adding j after the consonant. This specific form of palatalization is known as iotation. The originally labiovelar consonants hv, kv, and gv are iotated to hj, kj, and gj respectively.

It is rare for vowels to occur in productively iotating environments, but when that happens, the results are generally as follows (though individual lexemes may behave differently):

  • a + j → ä
  • ä, e + j → ei
  • å, o, ou + j → oi
  • u, ue + j → y
  • eu, y + j → ey
  • i, ei, oi, ie, ye unaffected

There is another form of palatalization that affects the consonants c, k, and g as well as the clusters sk and zg. These are palatalized before front vowels (ä, e, i, ö, y, ei, ey, eu, ie, ye) to /t͡s, t͡ʃ, d͡ʒ- ~ -j-, ʃ, ʒ/ respectively. Additionally, g is palatalized to /-j- ~ -ʃ/ after orthographic i (which therefore excludes ie and includes ei, oi, ai, and unstressed i /ə/). Unstressed e /ə/ does not cause palatalization.

The palatalization of (s)k and (z)g can be blocked by adding h after the consonant/cluster (i.e. (s)kh, (z)gh). This only occurs in loanwords. Some common words and morphemes do not indicate the lack of palatalization - e.g. kitab /kɪˈtaːp/ "book", -logie /lɔˈgiː/ "-logy". Many of these have nativized forms that may be preferred by some speakers - e.g. ketap /kəˈtaːp/, -logjie /lɔˈd͡ʒiː/.

Addition of -t-

These changes occur in the past stem of class 1 weak verbs (where -d- becomes -t- after obstruents) and the second person singular past indicative of strong verbs (which has the ending -t). Before applying these changes to class 1 weak verbs, remove the -j- in the present stem.

  • p, b + t → ft
  • nt, nd + t → nt
  • t, d, z + t → st
  • k, nk, g, ng + t → ht. This leads to the following changes to the preceding vowels (N represents a dropped nasal):
    • u + ht → åht
    • i + ht → äht
    • ou, uN + ht → uht
    • ei, iN + ht → iht
    • unstressed e /ə/ + ht → aht

Vowel shortening

When the addition of a consonantal suffix causes an originally open syllable preceded by a long vowel to become closed, vowel length is usually preserved. This is indicated with an acute accent or, in the case of ä, å, and ö, by replacing them with ea, oa, and eo respectively. However, the vowel is shortened (unless it has a circumflex or is followed by h) in the following circumstances:

  • When the following consonant is iotated (-j-) - e.g. skul-en /ˈskl-n̩/ "to have to" + -jeskulje /ˈskʊʎə/
  • When the vowel is followed by three or more consonants - e.g. gute /ˈɡtə/ "Goths" + -skegutske /ˈɡʊt.skə/ "Gothic"

Compound words

Compound words are head-final (like in German). Note that this differs from noun phrases, which are generally head-initial. The modifying noun(s) undergo the following changes (in this order) before adding onto the head noun:

  1. If the noun ends in an iotated consonant, the iotation is removed. Otherwise, leave it as it is.
  2. If the noun now ends in a -b or -d that would be fricativized, replace it with its fricative counterpart (f and þ respectively). Other voiced consonants are devoiced as usual, but this is not indicated in writing.
  3. If the noun ends in a schwa, it is dropped.

In some compounds, the modifying noun occurs in the genitive, in which case the above changes do not apply.

In compound words, the vowel length in each component is independent from the other component words. For example, under normal rules, the -u- in Guþþyde "Gothede" (< Gud "God" + þyde "slave") would be expected to be pronounced short due to being followed by two orthographic consonants. However, since it is followed by a single consonant in Guþ-, it is in fact pronounced long.

Historical phonology

Gothic to Middle Gothedish

  • Nasalization of geminate voiced plosives.
  • C + j > geminate palatalized consonant
  • Unstressed vowel reduction.

Middle Gothedish to Modern Gothedish

  • Diphthongization of long high vowels.
  • Vowel lengthening in stressed, unchecked syllables and shortening in unstressed/checked syllables.
  • Palatalization of velars before (and sometimes after) front vowels.
  • Further vowel reduction and simplification.
  • Hardening of voiced fricatives.
  • Labiovelars > Labials (except /w/).
  • Analogical changes.

Morphology

Cases

Gothedish has four cases: nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive. The genitive can be further declined as an adjective to agree with the noun it modifies/replaces, in which case final post-vocalic -s becomes -z- and genitives ending in a vowel add -z-.

e.g. mag "boy": mages "boyʼs", mage "boysʼ" (undeclined genitive) + -esmagezes "boyʼs / boysʼ (nom. m. sg.)"

Nouns

Nouns may be either strong or weak.

Strong nouns

Strong noun declension
Case Singular Plural
Masc./Fem. Neuter
Nominative/Accusative -(e) -es -e
Dative -e -em
Genitive -es -e
Example of masculine strong noun: hläb "bread, loaf"
Case Singular Plural
Nominative/Accusative hläb hläbes
Dative hläbe hläbem
Genitive hläbes hläbe
Example of neuter strong noun: bråd "bread"
Case Singular Plural
Nominative/Accusative bråd bråde
Dative bråde brådem
Genitive brådes bråde

Weak nouns

Weak noun declension
Case Singular Plural
Masc./Fem. Neuter Masc./Fem. Neuter
Nominative -e -e -es -en
Accusative -en -e -es -en
Dative -en -em
Genitive -es -en
Example of feminine weak noun: kvine "woman"
Case Singular Plural
Nominative kvine kvines
Accusative kvinen kvines
Dative kvinen kvinem
Genitive kvines kvinen
Example of neuter weak noun: härte "heart"
Case Singular Plural
Nominative/Accusative härte härten
Dative härten härtem
Genitive härtes härten

Adjectives

Like nouns, adjectives may be strong or weak. Most adjectives have both forms. The strong forms are used attributively (happy people) and predicatively (they are happy), while the weak forms are used nominally (the happy). Adjectives that only have one form use that form in all usages.

Adjectives have a special unmarked gender that can be used when the gender is unknown/unspecified/unimportant. It is more commonly used in informal language, and is proscribed when referring to an entity with known gender.

Strong adjectives

The gender-marked form is identical to the neuter in the plural. When referring to human beings, the masculine plural is used informally instead of the unmarked plural.

Strong adjective declension
Case Singular Plural
Masculine Neuter Unmarked Feminine Masculine Neut./unm. Feminine
Nominative -es -et - -e -e -e -es
Accusative -en -et - -e -es -e -es
Dative -em -es -em
Genitive -es
Example of strong adjective: skånj "beautiful"
Case Singular Plural
Masculine Neuter Unmarked Feminine Masculine Neut./unm. Feminine
Nominative skånjes skånjet skånj skånje skånje skånje skånjes
Accusative skånjen skånjet skånj skånje skånjes skånje skånjes
Dative skånjem skånjes skånjem
Genitive skånjes

Weak adjectives

Declined identically to weak nouns. The gender-unmarked form is identical to the neuter in both the singular and plural. In informal language, the masculine/feminine form is used in place of the unmarked (in both singular and plural) when referring to a human being.

Example of weak adjective: skånj "beautiful"
Case Singular Plural
Masculine/Feminine Neuter/Unmarked Masculine/Feminine Neuter/Unmarked
Nominative skånje skånje skånjes skånjen
Accusative skånjen skånje skånjes skånjen
Dative skånjen skånjem
Genitive skånjes skånjen

Pronouns and determiners

Personal pronouns

Gothedish personal pronouns
Person and number Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
1st Singular ik mik mis mein
Dual1 wit unks unks unker
Plural weis uns uns unser
2nd Singular Informal2 þou þuk þus þein
Formal2 jou eyk eys eyer
Dual1 jut inkvs inkvs inkver
Plural Informal2 jous eys eys eyer
Formal2 jous izzues izzues izzuer
3rd Singular Masculine sa hin himm his
Neuter hit hit
Unmarked þa þa
Feminine si si his
Plural Masculine þä þans þäm þis
Neut./unm. þo þo
Feminine þos þos
Reflexive sei sik sis sein

Notes:

1 In formal language, dual pronouns are used to refer to two people. They are rare in informal language and are considered archaic in most dialects (similar to English "thou").

2 Gothedish has T-V distinction in second person pronouns.

Demonstratives

There are three demonstratives in Gothedish: near (or proximal), middle (or medial), and far (or distal).

The near demonstrative is used for objects near to the speaker. It is declined as a regular strong adjective with the stem iss-.

Gothedish near demonstrative
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Singular Masculine isses issen issem isses
Neuter isset isset
Unmarked iss iss
Feminine isse isse isses
Plural Masculine isse isses issem isses
Neut./unm. isse isse
Feminine isses isses

The middle demonstrative is used for objects near to the listener. It is also used as a generic demonstrative without reference to distance. It is declined irregularly. Note that the plural forms are identical to the corresponding 3rd person personal pronouns.

Gothedish middle demonstrative
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Singular Masculine þas þan þamm þis
Neuter þat þat
Unmarked þa þa
Feminine þo þo þis
Plural Masculine þä þans þäm þis
Neut./unm. þo þo
Feminine þos þos

The far demonstrative is used for objects that are far from both the speaker and listener. It declines as a regular strong adjective with the stem jän-.

Gothedish far demonstrative
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Singular Masculine jänes jänen jänem jänes
Neuter jänet jänet
Unmarked jän jän
Feminine jäne jäne jänes
Plural Masculine jäne jänes jänem jänes
Neut./unm. jäne jäne
Feminine jänes jänes

Interrogative pronouns

The interrogative pronoun hva "what, who" is declined as the middle demonstrative.

Declension of interrogative pronoun hva "what, who"
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Singular Masculine hvas hvan hvamm hvis
Neuter hvat hvat
Unmarked hva hva
Feminine hvo hvo hvis
Plural Masculine hvä hvas hväm hvis
Neut./unm. hvo hvo
Feminine hvos hvos

The interrogative pronouns/determiners hvaþer "which (of two)" and hvarj "which (of many)" are declined as regular strong adjectives.

Numbers

The numbers 1-3 (and numbers ending in them) are fully declined. Other numbers from 4-99 take the dative ending -em and genitive ending -e and do not otherwise decline. Än "one" declines as a regular strong adjective.

Declension of än "one"
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Singular Masculine änes änen änem änes
Neuter änet änet
Unmarked än än
Feminine äne äne änes
Plural Masculine äne änes änem änes
Neut./unm. äne äne
Feminine jänes jänes

Twa "two" and þrie "three" decline irregularly.

Declension of twa "two"
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Plural Masculine twä twans twäm twangj
Neut./unm. twa twa
Feminine twos twos
Declension of þrie "three"
Nominative Accusative Dative Genitive
Plural Masc./fem. þreis þrins þrim þringj
Neut./unm. þrie þrie

Verbs

Gothedish verbs fall in three main categories: strong verbs, weak verbs, and preterite-present verbs. Each of these verb types are sub-divided in classes. All verbs form their infinitive in -(e)n and present participle in -(e)nd.

Strong verbs

Strong verbs form their past tense by vowel change (ablaut). There are seven classes of strong verbs, depending on how the stem changes in the past tense and past participle. The past participle is formed with the ending -(e)n.

Weak verbs

Weak verbs form their past tense and past participle with a dental suffix. There are two classes of weak verbs.

Preterite-present verbs

Non-finite forms

Participles function as adjectives. When nominalized, they can act as agent/patient nouns.

Syntax

Constituent order

Noun phrase

Verb phrase

Sentence phrase

Dependent clauses

Example texts

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 1)

Latin: Alle manskes wärþen gebårene freie jah ibene in wärde jah rähtem. Fraþje jah miþwist sind behibde, jah skulen hvarjandere in ahmen broþerskepes handelen.

Perso-Arabic: ال منسکس ورثن گبورن فری یاه ایبن ان ورد یاه رهتم۔ فرس یاه مثوست سند بهبد، یاه سکولن فژندر ان اهمن بروثرسکپس هندلن۔

Old Gothic: 𐌰𐌻𐌻𐌰 𐌼𐌰𐌽𐍃𐌺𐌰𐍃 𐍅𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌸𐌰𐌽 𐌲𐌰𐌱𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽𐌰 𐍆𐍂𐌴𐌹𐌰 𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐌹𐌱𐌽𐌰 𐌹𐌽 𐍅𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌳𐌰 𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐍂𐌰𐌹𐌷𐍄𐌼˙ 𐍆𐍂𐌰𐌸𐌲𐌰 𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐌼𐌹𐌸𐍅𐌹𐍃𐍄 𐍃𐌹𐌽𐌳 𐌱𐌰𐌷𐌹𐌱𐌳𐌰. 𐌾𐌰𐌷 𐍃𐌺𐌿𐌻𐌽 𐍈𐌰𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽𐌳𐍂𐌰 𐌹𐌽 𐌰𐌷𐌼𐌽 𐌱𐍂𐍉𐌸𐍂𐍃𐌺𐌰𐍀𐌰𐍃 𐌷𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌻𐌽˙

New Gothic: Aλλă manskăs yaipфv găbānpvă fpeiă gah ībnă iv yaipdă gah paihtm. Fpaфgă gah miфyist sivd băhibdă, gah skn̄lv ɵapgavdră iv ahmv brw̄фpskăpăs handλv.

Cyrillic: Аллэ манскэс вѧрѳн гэбѡрнэ фрейэ ях и́бнэ ин вѧрдэ ях рѧхтм. Фраѳӭ ях миѳвист синд бэхибдэ, ях ску́лн хваряндрэ ин ахмн бро́ѳрскэпэс хандлн.

Cyrillic 2.0: Алле манскес вӓрҫен гебåрене фреје јах ибене ин вӓрде јах рӓхтем. Фраҫье јах миҫвист синд бехибде, јах скулен хварьандере ин ахмен броҫерскепес ханделен.

IPA: /ˈɐlə ˈmɐnskəs ˈwærθn̩ gəˈbɔːrnə ˈfrɛɪ̯ə jaː ˈiːbnə ɪn ˈwærdə jaː ˈrɛːtm̩ || ˈfrʌsə jaː ˈmɪθwɪst sɪnt bəˈhɪbdə | jaː ˈskuːln̩ ˈfɐʒɐndrə ɪn ˈaːmn̩ ˈbroːθr̩ˌskəpəs ˈhɐndln̩/

Gloss: All-M.NOM.PL human_being-NOM.PL become.PRS-3PL engender.PP-M.NOM.PL free-M.NOM.PL and equal-M.PL.NOM in worth-DAT and right-DAT.PL. Reason.ACC and conscience.ACC be.PRS.3PL bestow.PP-M.NOM.PL, and should.PRS-3PL each_other-DAT in spirit-DAT brotherhood-GEN handle-INF.

Literal translation: All human beings become born free and equal in worth and rights. With reason and conscience they are bestowed, and they should to one another in the spirit of brotherhood behave.

Translation: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Other resources

Swadesh list