Hlou-Shum languages

Hlou-Shum languages/Lexicon

The Hlou-Shum languages (Eevo: bo brits Lloo-Xwm; Hlou: Ntzog Ntzog Schlaub-Xul; Ko: lees yoo ndoigh Hloobh-Xoo) are a small family of languages native to Verse:Tricin/Bjeheond. Most modern Hlou-Shum languages are tonal. The proto-language, Proto-Hlou-Shum (PHS), is about 2500 years old. The family is based on the idea of IE languages recast as Hmong-like languages. Hlou-Shum languages had much more importance in the past, but today Windermere is more dominant in Bjeheond.

Family tree

• Proto-Hlou-Shum
  • Hlou (Ntzog Schlaub)
  • Shum (llhau syuun)
  • Ko (lees ndoigh Komh)
  • Clooa (Mois de la Crouet)
  • Liai (hmyg Liaid)
  • Tlu (χμωωβ Τλωδ)
  • Vreed

Timeline

Proto-Hlou-Shum: 2500 years BP

Writing system

Proto-Hlou-Shum was written with a system of logographs. Hlou, Ku and Shumian developed the logographs separately into their own writing systems.

Phonology

The following presents Schlomo Schngellstein's reconstruction of Proto-Hlou-Shum.

Phonotactics

The typical Proto-Hlou-Shum word had the structure

(preinitial) + (C)C(r/l)V(C)(C)^tone.

Preinitials were unstressed derivational prefixes.

Initials

• p t ḱ k kw ʔ
• np nt nḱ nk nkw
• b d ǵ g gw
• nb nd nǵ ng ngw
• f z s x h (z, s, x as in Basque)
• tz ts tx
• ntz nts ntx
• dz ds dx
• ndz nds ndx
• m n ń y r l w

s-series > ɬ-series in some descendants

Ku and Clooa gain uvulars through velars + r/l.

Nuclei

a e i o u ə ai au ei ou iə uə - a few more vowels for Liai

Nasal vowels?

Coda

Allowed finals: just -ŋ, -k, -h, -ʔ

Cheshirized grammatical particles -> lenition, eclipsis in Ku

Tones

3 tones: -0, -H, -X

Grammar

Proto-Hlou-Shum was head-initial like Vietnamese.

Reduplication

Total reduplication was used for noun plurals, verbal imperatives, and adverbs from adjectives.

Some descendants turned this into partial reduplication.

Derivation

• s-: nominalization, "metonymy", adjectivizer
  • louʔ 'spring (season)' > slouʔ 'springlike, where there is spring'
• -ʔ: nominalization
  • lou 'to plant' > louʔ 'spring (season)'
• n- preinitial
• r- preinitial
  • lenition in Hlou
• D- preinitial (dentalizes some consonants in Shum)

Reflexes

Initials

Hlou

Initial clusters (not every cluster may be allowed)

• pl tl ṭl ḱl kl ʔl > pl tl trl kl kl schl
• npl ntl nṭl nḱl nkl > npl ntl ntr nkl nkl
• bl dl ḍl ǵl gl > bl dl drl gl gl
• nbl ndl nḍl nǵl ngl > nbl ndl ndr ngl ngl
• fl vl sl > fl fl schl
• tzl tsl txl > tz ts tx
• ntzl ntsl ntxl > ntz nts ntx
• dz ds dxl > z s x
• ndzl ndsl ndxl > nl nl nl
• ml nl ṇl > ml nl nr
• pr, br > pf, v
• kr, gr > sch
• tr, dr > tr, dr
• sp, st, sṭ/str, stl, sc, sk > schm, schn, schr, schl, x, sch
• sm, sn, sṇ, sń > schm, schn, schr, x
• stz sts stx > tz ts tx

The D-preinitial: some d- series become dz-series

The n-preinitial turns some consonants into prenasalized consonants

The r-preinitial (some koineization)

• r-p r-t r-ṭ r-ḱ r-k r-ʔ > f t tr sch sch h
• r-np r-nt r-nṭ r-nḱ r-nk > mpf ntz ntr nk nk
• r-b r-d r-ḍ r-ǵ r-g > v d dr j g
• r-nb r-nd r-nḍ r-nǵ r-ng > mpf nd ndr ng ng
• r-f r-v r-z r-s r-x r-h > f w ntz nts ntx h
• r-tz r-ts r-tx > z s x
• r-ntz r-nts r-ntx > ntz nts ntx
• r-dz r-ds r-dx > j j j
• r-ndz r-nds r-ndx > ntz nts ntx
• r-m r-n r-ṇ r-ń r-y r-l r-w > w n nr j j drl r
• r-Cl > drl, trl, ndrl, ntrl

-k > glottal stop final

Shum

s- triggers tone split

b p > bh p

sb sp > b p

np nb > b mh

spr pr > ph p

sbr br > bh bh

nCl, r.Cl > nl or nlh

l > l, D.l > ll

f > h

Tones

Hlou

• -H > -n
• -ʔ (unmarked tone), -X > -b

Sample

ʔouh ʔak zamX-zamX

The Sheep and the Horses