Interslavic/Morphology
The y/i rule and the o/e rule
Inflection is kept as regular as possible. Yet, the following rule should be applied to achieve maximum naturality:
After a soft consonant (j, č, š, ž, ť, ď, ň, ř, ľ), as well as after c:
- in endings beginning with y, this vowel is replaced with i
- in endings beginning with o, this vowel is replaced with e
Thus, while the basic adjectival and pronominal endings are -y, -ogo, -ym, -om etc., some adjectives and pronouns have -i, -ego, -im, -em instead. Likewise, compare žen-y with zemj-i, okn-o with moř-e, grod-ov with kraj-ev, and so on.
The y/i rule should be applied after k, g and h as well: legk-y, drug-y and suh-y become legk-i, drug-i and suh-i. This does not necessarily mean that the preceding velar consonant is softened.
The Slavic languages differ as to the degree in which the o/e rule is applied. For example, in Russian soft consonant + o sequences are a rarity, while Polish has only some lexicalised remnants of the rule (f.ex. królewski, but: królowa). In Slovianski, it is recommended to apply the o/e rule in case endings, although svežo/svežogo, s mužom or dňov cannot be considered incorrect either. Suffixes are better left intact, for reasons of transparency: svežosť, nočovati.
The y/i rule, on the other hand, applies in all possible situations. It is the only additional rule that should be learned when applying the orthography of Naučny Medžuslovjanskí on Slovianski grammar. When applying it, one should follow these two guidelines: - y can never follow a soft consonant - any consonant preceding i (except k, g, h) is soft by definition; therefore we write ti, li, ri, si etc. instead of ťi, ľi, ři, śi.
Nouns
Singular
| M | N | F1 | F2 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | -ø | -o (-e) | -a | -ø |
| Acc. | -ø/-a | -o (-e) | -ų | -ø |
| Gen. | -a | -a | -y (-e) | -i |
| Dat. | -u | -u | -ě (-i) | -i |
| Ins. | -om/-em | -om/-em | -ojų (-ejų) | -jų |
| Loc. | -ě (-i, -u) | -ě(-i,-u) | -ě(-i) | -i |
Plural
| M | N | F1 | F2 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | -y (-i) | -a | -y (-e) | -i |
| Acc. | -y (-i) / ov (-ev) | -a | -y (-e) | -i |
| Gen. | -ov (-ev) | -ø | -ø | -ij |
| Dat. | -am | -am | -am | -jam |
| Ins. | -ami | -ami | -ami | -jami |
| Loc | -ah | -ah | -ah | -jah |
- When a masculine noun is inanimate, the accusative has the same form as the nominative; when it is animate, the genitive is used instead.
- In words with the ending -ija, it deserves recommendation to shorten the ending to -ų: s Sŕbijų instead of s Sŕbijejų.
