Aterran Imperial

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Modern Standard Imperial
Drikva Yakke
Pronunciation[ˈdrik.vɑ ˈjɑk.ʃe]
Created byBenJamin P. Johnson,

creator of:

curator of:

Date2020
SettingPlanet Aterra

Drikva Yakke /ˈdrik.vɑ ˈjɑk.ʃe/, or Modern Standard Imperial, is a standardized analytic language developed from an earlier creolized form of of various ancient languages, though it still retains a rather deep orthography from an earlier form. It is written in the Imperial Script (Kuggi Yakke /ˈkuɡ.ʒi ˈjɑk.ʃe/), which is an alphabet originally written vertically in syllable blocks, but is now most commonly written left-to-right in individual letters. The block-form letters are still commonly used similarly to how majuscule letters are used in Latinate scripts.

Phonology

The Imperial Language is actually a snapshot of several languages over the course of several centuries. While the written language changed very little in that time, the spoken language changed significantly, and the word order and syntax became much more rigid. In a way, it is analogous to Latin, the Classical form of which would barely be understood by speakers of Vulgar Latin a few centuries later, but the word forms remained largely the same.

Consonants

  Labial Dental Coronal Palatal Dorsal
Stop p · b t · d     k · ɡ
Fricative f · v θ · ð s · z ʃ · ʒ · h
Nasal m   n   ŋ
Lateral   l ɮ    
Trill     r    
Approximant       j  

Vowels

  Front Back
High i · · u
  ɪ · · ʊ
Mid e · · o
  ɛ · · ɔ
Mid æ · · ɑ

Diphthongs

There were no diphthongs in Old Imperial; The modern diphthongs are contractions or earlier bi-syllabic constructions. E.g. meu ‘I’ was pronounced as /ˈme.u/ rather than the modern /mew/.

  Front Back
Mid-High ej ew
Low-High aj aw