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Revision as of 18:22, 27 February 2021

Introduction

Avalonian (c) Rebecca Ashling 2019-2021. I assert that the Avalonian conlang presented here is my intellectual property and confirm that Linguifex may post this material on their site.

Avalonian (Aval: Nakwatti Telkug) is a polysynthetic language of the affixal, scopal subtype. It has nominative-accusative morphosyntactic alignment with ergative morphology and canonical VSOX word order.

It is the majority language of the Avalonian Isles (Aval: Telku) and has approximately 36.8 million speakers. The Stannic Commonwealth of Avalon (Mag: Karatti Thaknat Anakte Telkug) comprises the entirety of the fictional islands of Lāki (OTL: Newfoundland), Rutterye (OTL: Nova Scotia peninsula) and Winnumit (OTL: Cape Breton Island).

In this timeline, Newfoundland, Cape Breton Island and the Nova Scotia peninsula ended up in the eastern side of the Atlantic after the breakup of Pangea and became the Avalonian Isles. The archipelago lies south-west of Ireland.

Inspiration

Avalonian grammar and morphology were inspired by the Inuktitut language. Its phonology was inspired by Finnish and Welsh.


Ethnography

The Avalonians are members of the oft-perscuted European Pygmy phenotype which is believed to have originated in the ancient Hercynian forest zone of central Europe some 8,000 years ago. The preferred self-designation by members of the European Pygmy phenotype is Hercynians (Aval: Lūki Herkiqyat).



Phonology

Orthoɡraphy

General Remarks On Orthography

Avalonian had no native script until the arrival of Irish monks in the 10th Century. The Latin alphabet (Aval: Ulyekatti Rumag) has undergone many changes and revisions over the centuries. The current version was adopted in 1908.

Avalonian spelling in Ulyekatti Rumag is a deep orthography which reflects the language's etymological history and phonological processes such as sandhi. The letters ⟨b, c, d, f, j, o, q, s, v, x, z⟩ are not used, even to spell foreign names.

Avalonian Alphabet

Latin Letter IPA Value
⟨a⟩ /ɔ/
⟨ā⟩ /ɑʊ/
⟨e⟩ /ɛ/
⟨ē⟩ /aɪ/
⟨g⟩ /ŋ/
⟨gh⟩ /ɣ/
⟨h⟩ /h/
⟨i⟩ /i/
⟨ī⟩ /eɪ/
⟨k⟩ /k/
⟨kh⟩ /x/
⟨kw⟩ /kxʷ/
⟨ky⟩ /kxʲ/
⟨l⟩ /l/
⟨lh⟩ /ɬ/
⟨m⟩ /m/
⟨mh⟩ /v/
⟨n⟩ /n/
⟨nh⟩ /z/
⟨p⟩ /p/
⟨ph⟩ /f/
⟨r⟩ /ɹ̠/
⟨rh⟩ /ʃ/
⟨t⟩ /t/
⟨th⟩ /s/
⟨tl⟩ /tɬ/
⟨tr⟩ /tʃ/
⟨u⟩ /u/
⟨ū⟩ /oʊ/
⟨w⟩ /w/
⟨wh⟩ /xʷ/
⟨y⟩ /j/
⟨yh⟩ /xʲ/

Consonants

Avalonian has a total of 25 consonants which according to the World Atlas of Lanɡuaɡe Stucture is an average inventory. The most striking features of the inventory, according to WALS, is the presence of lateral obstruents and the initial velar nasal. The consonants are displayed in the table below:

Labial Central Alveolar Lateral Alveolar Palato-Alveolar Palatal Plain Velar Labialised Velar Glottal
Plosive /p/ /t/ /k/
Affricate /tɬ/ /tʃ/ /kxʲ/ /kxʷ/
Voiceless Fricative /f/ /s/ /x/
Voiced Fricative /v/ /z/ /ɣ/
Nasal /m/ /n/ /ŋ/
Voiced Liquid /l/ /ɹ̠/
Voiceless Liquid /ɬ/ /ʃ/
Voiced Semivowel /j/ /w/
Voiceless Semivowel /xʲ/ /xʷ/
Aspirate /h/

Vowels

Avalonian has a total of 8 vowels, 4 monophthongs and 4 diphthongs. According to the World Atlas of Lanɡuaɡe Structures Magellanican has 4 vowel qualities which is a small inventory. Magellanican has a consonant to vowel quality ratio of 2.75 which according to WALS is an average ratio. Avalonian is unusual for not possessing any low vowels such as /a/. Diphthongs are treated as phonological long vowels. The vowels are displayed in the table below:

Short Front Long Front Short Back Long Back
High /i/ /eɪ/ /u/ /oʊ/
Mid /ɛ/ /aɪ/ /ɔ/ /ɑʊ/

Allophony

1) /p, t, k/ are realised as [pʰ, tʰ, kʰ] in word-initial position.

2) /p, t, k/ are realised as [b, d, ɡ] in coda position before a voiced fricative or nasal onset.

3) /tɬ, tʃ, kxʲ, kxʷ/ are realised as [tɬʰ, tʃʰ, kxʲʰ, kxʷʰ/ in word-initial position.

4) /m, n, ŋ/ are realised as [b, d, ɡ] in onset position after a coda liquid.

5) /ɹ̠/ is realised as [ʃ] in coda position before a voiceless onset.

6) /ɹ̠/ is realised as [ʒ] in coda position elsewhere.

7) /pp, tt, kk/ are realised as [pf, ts, kx].

8) /mm, nn, ŋŋ/ are realised as [mb, nd, ŋɡ].

9) /ll, ɹ̠ɹ̠/ are realised as [dɮ, dʒ].

10) /ɹ̠j, ɹ̠w/ are realised as [ʒ, ʒw].

11) In closed syllables /i, u/ are realised as [ɪ, ʊ].

Prosody

1) Words in Avalonian bear primary stress on the initial syllable.

2) Avalonian words bear secondary stress on every odd-numbered syllable following the initial syllable.

3) According to the World Atlas of Language Structures, the rhythm type is trochaic.

4) To an English speaker, Avalonian would appear to be spoken with a slower tempo than English is.

Phonotactics

1) The syllable template is (C)V(C). According to the World Atlas of Language Structures, this is a moderately complex syllable structure.

3) Permitted syllable coda consonants are /p, t, k, m, n, ŋ, l, ɹ̠/.

4) Consonant clusters may not have more than two segments.

5) Consonant clusters may only occur across syllable boundaries.

6) Permitted consonant clusters as per the table below:

P T K M N G L R
P
T
K
TL
TR
KY
KW
PH
TH
KH
MH
NH
GH
M
N
G
L
R
LH
RH
Y
W
YH
WH
H

a) Latin orthography used for clarity.

b) First consonant of consonant cluster runs along be top of table, second consonant of consonant cluster runs down riɡht of table.

c) √ in a cell means the indicated consonant cluster is permitted.

8) /i, eɪ/ may not follow /j/.

9) /u, oʊ/ may not follow /w/.

10) /eɪ, aɪ/ may not precede /j/.

11) /oʊ, ɑʊ/ may not precede /w/.

12) Long vowels may not occur in closed syllables.

13) Vowel clusters do not occur.

14) Canonical morpheme syllabification templates:

a) Roots: (C)V(C)- or (C)(C)V(C)CV(C)-

b) Suffixes: -(C)(C)V(C) or -(C)V(C)CV(C)

c) Particles: (C)V(C) or (C)(C)V(C)CV(C)

15) Monosyllabic roots are uncommon and mainly comprise pronouns and certain common nouns and verbs.

16) Monosyllabic suffixes may have a word-final allomorph consisting of a single coda consonant which is employed after a short vowel.

17) Roots originating through foreign borrowings may exceed two syllables.

Morphophonemics

Internal Sandhi

1) Consonant clusters resulting from suffixation undergo sandhi as per the table below:

P T K M N G L R
pp tp kp mp mp mp lp rp P
pt tt kt nt nt nt lt rt T
pk tk kk gk gk gk lk rk K
ptl v̄tl ktl ntl ntl ntl ll rtl TL
ptr v̄tr ktr ntr ntr ntr ltr rr TR
pky tky v̄ky gky gky gky lky rky KY
pkw tkw v̄kw gkw gkw gkw lkw rkw KW
pp tph kph mph mph mph lp rp PH
pth tt kth nth nth nth lt rt TH
pkh tkh kk gkh gkh gkh lk rk KH
pmh tmh kmh v̄mh v̄mh v̄mh lm rm MH
pnh tnh knh v̄nh v̄nh v̄nh ln rn NH
pgh tgh kgh v̄gh v̄gh v̄gh lg rg GH
pm tm km mm mm mm lm rm M
pn tn kn nn nn nn ln rn N
pg tg kg gg gg gg lg rg G
v̄lh v̄tl v̄lh nl nl nl ll ll L
v̄rh v̄tr v̄rh nr nr nr rr rr R
v̄lh v̄tl v̄lh nlh nlh nlh v̄lh v̄lh LH
v̄rh v̄tr v̄rh nrh nrh nrh v̄rh v̄rh RH
v̄yh v̄yh v̄ky gy gy gy ly ry Y
v̄wh v̄wh v̄kw gw gw gw lw rw W
v̄yh v̄yh v̄ky gyh gyh gyh lky rky YH
v̄wh v̄wh v̄kw gwh gwh gwh lkw rkw WH
v̄ph v̄th v̄kh v̄mh v̄nh v̄gh v̄lh v̄rh H

NOTES:

a) Latin script used for clarity.

b) First consonant of consonant cluster runs across top of table, second consonant of consonant cluster runs down riɡht of table.

c) The notation v̄ indicates the preceding vowel is lengthened.

2) If a three-segment consonant cluster results from suffixation then the first consonant of that cluster is deleted.

3) If a vowel cluster results from suffixation then an epenthetic /ŋ/ is inserted between the vowels.

4) If /eɪ, aɪ/ precedes /j/ due to suffixation then they are reduced to [i, ɛ].

5) If /oʊ, ɑʊ/ precedes /w/ due to suffixation then they are reduced to [u, ɔ].

6) The effects of internal sandhi are indicated in the orthography.

External Sandhi

1) External sandhi only occurs between words within the same clause.

2) There are two types of inter-word junctures:

a) word-final vowel + word-initial consonant

b) word-final consonant + word-initial consonant

3) Vowel + consonant junctures do not result in any changes.

4)

) The effects of external sandhi are not indicated in the orthography.

Morphology

General Remarks On Morpholoɡy

1) The morphological cateɡories used in Avalonian are summarised in the table below:

Category Description Inflected?
Noun Nouns, pronouns, numerals Yes
Verb Verbs, many adjectives, adpositions Yes
Suffix These express adjunction, verbal modality, inflection or derivation No
Particle Conjunctions, some adverbs, interjections No

2) Avalonian is an affixal polysynthetic lanɡuaɡe and only one root per word is permitted.

3) Compoundinɡ of roots does not occur.

4) According to the World Atlas of Language Structures, Avalonian has a predominant preference for suffixinɡ.


Nominal Morphology

General Remarks On Nominal Morphology

1) Nouns indicate distinct entities. Nouns are inflected for number, possessor, demonstration or case.

2) Maximal nominal structure:

nominal or verbal root + derivational suffix(es) + number suffix + possessive suffix + demonstrative suffix + case suffix

Number

1) Avalonian has a singulative-plurative number system

2) Nouns are divided into four number classes:

a) Class 1 nouns are countable. They have an inherent singular number. They take the plurative suffix -kkal to form the plural.

b) Class 2 nouns are countable. They have an inherent plural number. They take the singulative suffix -me (-m) to form the singular. NB: -m is a word-final allomorph of -me employed after a short vowel.

c) Class 3 nouns are countable but have no inherent number. This class comprises all countable monosyllabic nouns and many countable loan words. They must take the singulative suffix in the singular and the plurative suffix in the plural.

d) Class 4 nouns are non-countable. They may optionally take singulative to indicate a small part of the whole or the plurative to indicate many parts of the whole.

4) The number classes are summarised in the table below:

Number Class Countable Takes Singulative? Takes Plurative?
Class 1 yes no yes
Class 2  yes yes no
Class 3  yes yes yes
Class 4 no optional optional

Case

1) Case marks relationships between noun and noun or noun and verb.

2) Avalonian cases are summarised in the table below:

Case Abbreviation Suffix (Allomorph) Functions
Absolutive ABS -∅ a) Marks citation form of noun

b) Indicates definite O argument of a transitive verb

c) Marks definite S argument of an intransitive verb

Ergative ERG -gu (-g) a) Indicates definite A argument of a transitive verb

b) Indicates the possessor

Dative DAT -hē a) Marks indefinite A argument of a transitive verb

b) Indicates beneficiary of action

c) Used with a gerund indicates purpose or intent

Instrumental INST -tik a) Marks indefinite O argument of a transitive verb

b) Indicates indefinite S argument of an intransitive verb

c) Marks use of tool or instrument

d) Indicates proximal cause

Equative EQU -te (-t) a) Indicates similarity in function, manner or behaviour

b) Indicates similarity to, likeness to

c) Made or consisting of a particular substance

d) Indicates the souce of comparison.

Comitative COM -kwe a) Marks physical proximity or social connection to someone

b) Indicates collaborative effort with someone in a joint activity

c) Marks reciprocicity

d) Indicates possessor when copula used in 'have' construction

Locative LOC -ki (-k) a) Indicates place where

b) Marks time when

Allative ALL -wa a) Marks motion towards

b) Indicates time until

c) Marks destination or goal

d) Indicates change of state to

Ablative ABL -yā a) Indicates motion away from

b) Marks time since

c) Indicates the source or origin

d) Marks aversion to or opposition to

e) Indicates the source of comparison

f) Marks change of state from

Perlative PERL -am a) Marks motion across, along, through or by way of

b) Indicates duration

c) Marks mode or means of transport or transmission

d) Indicates reason, motive or ultimate cause

e) Marks topic of conversation

NB: Parenthesised forms are word-final allomorphs employed after a short vowel.

Pronouns

Personal Pronouns

1) Avalonian personal pronouns and their associated possessive suffixes are summarised in the table below:

Person Abbreviation Pronoun Possessive Suffix
1st Person Singular 1SG ni -nti
2nd Person Singular 2SG ki -kti
3rd Person Singular 3SG ti -tti
4th Person Sinɡular 4SG pi -pti
5th Person Singular 5SG li -lti
1st Person Paucal Exclusive 1PC EXCL nuk -ntuk
1st Person Paucal Inclusive 1PC INCL nikuk -niktuk
2nd Person Paucal 2PC kuk -ktuk
3rd Person Paucal 3PC tuk -ttuk
4th Person Paucal 4PC puk -ptuk
5th Person Paucal 5PC luk -ltuk
1st Person Plural Exclusive 1PL EXCL nat -ntat
1st Person Plural Inclusive 1PL INCL nikat -niktat
2nd Person Plural 2PL kat -ktat
3rd Person Plural 3PL tat -ttat
4th Person Plural 4PL pat -ptat
5th Person Plural 5PL lat -ltat

2) Clusivity is a relatively recent innovation in Avalonian and thus the inclusive pronouns and their possessive suffixes differ somewhat in form from the other paucal and plural pronouns.

3) Personal pronouns take case in the same manner as nouns.

Demonstrative Pronouns

1) Pronominal demonstratives are identical to the 3rd, 4th and 5th person pronouns.

2) Adnominal demonstratives are suffixes, believed derived from compounds of the 3rd, 4th, 5th person pronouns and the sole Old Jamilhin demonstrative ken.

3) Adnominal demonstrative suffixes are rarely used with core arguments except for emphasis.

4) The demonstratives are displayed in the table below:

Distance Abbreviation Locus Of Application Person Demonstrative Suffix
Proximal PROX Near speaker 3rd -tken
Medial MED Near hearer 4th -pken
Distal DIST Away from speaker and hearer 5th -lken
Emphatic Pronouns

These are no dedicated emphatic pronouns, but as verbs mark A, S and O arguments and Avalonian is pro-drop, the use of the pronouns correlating with these can be used for emphasis.

Reflexive Pronouns

These are no dedicated reflexive pronouns in Avalonian. Using the verbal absolutive pronominal suffix in the same number and person as the verbal ergative pronominal suffix is sufficient to convey reflexivity.

Interrogative Pronouns

1) There is one interroɡative pronoun: je 'who, what' which is undifferentiated for number.

2) All other interrogatives are built from this by adding the appropriate case. Eɡ: jek 'where?', jep 'with whom?'

3) There is an interrogative pronominal possessive suffix: -jet 'whose?'.

4) Suffixing -je to a noun gives the sense of 'which?'.

5) The canonical word-order of Avalonian is VSOX. Interrogative pronouns or nouns taking an interrogative suffix violate this by being fronted to before the verb.

6) When an interrogative pronoun is used with a verb, that verb takes plural agreement.

Relative Pronouns

Magellanican lacks relative pronouns and therefore uses a strategy of gap relativatisation.

Indefinite Pronouns

There is one indefinite pronoun: wahu 'somebody, something'. When placed before a noun it indicates the concept of 'any'. When used with a verb that verb uses plural agreement.

Negative Pronouns

There is one negative pronoun: tahu 'nobody, nothing'. When placed before a noun marks the concept of 'none'. When used with a verb that verb uses plural agreement.

Universal Pronouns

There is one universal pronoun: kal 'everybody, everything'. When placed before a noun in it indicates the concept of 'all' or 'each'. When used with a verb that verb uses plural agreement.

Adjectives

1) Avalonian has no true adjectives.

2) There are three types of adjective-equivalents:

a) Several derivational suffixes with an adjectival meaning attached to the noun.

b) A noun in equative case suffix following the noun they modify.

c) Relativised verbs following the noun.

Possessive Constructions

1) If only pronouns are involved as the possessor then the possessum is marked with the appropriate possessive suffix.

2) If a noun is involved as the possessor then the possessum is marked with the appropriate suffix, most commonly 3rd or 4th person, and the possessor takes the ergative case.

Numerals

1) Avalonian uses a hybrid vigesimal-decimal system.

2) The numerals of Avalonian are listed in the table below: u

Numeral
0 thera
1 pat
2 pik
3 irru
4 lur
5 parte
6 thī
7 hephi
8 rāthu
9 patrāthu
10 ampar
11 amparpat
12 amparpik
13 amparirru
14 ampallur
15 amparparte
16 amparti
17 amparhephi
18 amparrāthu
19 amparpatrāthu
20 ak
40 pikyak
60 irrugak
80 lurak
100 ennu
200 pikennu
1.000 milya
1.965 milya patrāthugennu irrugak parte
3.000 irrumilja
10.000 amparmilja
50.000
100.000
600.000
1.000.000
7.000.000

3) Numeral strings precede from left to right, highest exponent numerals first.

4) Numerals from 21 to 99 are formed by the appropriate vigesimal numeral plus the appropriate numeral from 1 to 19.

5) The decimal numerals from 100 and over are prefixed with a number from 1-9 as a multiplier.

6) Cardinal numerals precede the noun.

7) Ordinal numerals follow the noun and take the equative case. They take final position in the noun modifier string.

8) The numeral system bears a close resemblence to those used in Basque and Iberian. It is believed that it was loaned from a relative of Basque or Iberian spoken in pre-Celtic Gallaecia which places the latest limit on the loan at before 1300 BCE. The Avalonian Isles were a rich source of tin at the time which likely explains the borrowing.

Verbal Morphology

General Remarks On Verbal Morphology

1) Verbs express actions, processes or states of being. Verbs are inflected for A, S and O arguments, aspect, valency and mood.

2) Maximal verbal structure:

verbal or nominal root + derivational suffix(es) + aspect suffix + mood suffix + ergative pronominal suffix + absolutive pronominal suffix

Verbal Pronominal Suffixes

Person Absolutive Suffix (Allomorph) Ergative Suffix
1st Person Singular -ni (-n) -nti
2nd Person Singular -ki(-k) -kti
3rd Person Singular -ti(-t) -tti
4th Person Sinɡular -pi (-p) -pti
5th Person Singular -li (-l) -lti
1st Person Paucal Exclusive -nuk -ntuk
1st Person Paucal Inclusive -qkuk -niktuk
2nd Person Paucal -kuk -ktuk
3rd Person Paucal -tuk -ttuk
4th Person Paucal -puk -ptuk
5th Person Paucal -luk -ltuk
1st Person Plural Exclusive -nat -ntat
1st Person Plural Inclusive -nkat -niktat
2nd Person Plural -kat -ktat
3rd Person Plural -tat -ttat
4th Person Plural -pat -ptat
5th Person Plural -lat -ltat

NB: Parenthesised forms are word-final allomorphs employed after a short vowel.

Voice

1) Transitive verbs in Avalonian have three voices:

a) Active

b) Antipassive

c) Passive

2) These are indicated by the presence or absence of verbal pronominal suffices as per the table below:

Voice Abbreviation Ergative Suffix? Absolutive Suffix? Promoted Argument Case Of Demoted Argument Function
Active ACT Yes Yes N/A N/A No topicalisation of either argument
Antipassive ANTIP Yes No ERG DAT Topicalisation of A argument
Passive PAS No Yes ABS INST Topicalisation of O argument

3) Intransitive verbs do not indicate voice as their S argument is the only topic of the sentence.

Mood and Modality

1) Avalonian has four formally marked moods. These are listed in the table below:


Mood Abbrevation Suffix Function
Indicative IND -∅ Declarative statements
Interrogative INT -kī Polar Questions
Conditional COND -ntu "If" statements
Coordinative COORD -tkā Marks an action going on at the same time as another action.

2) Other distinctions of modality are conveyed by several derivational suffixes.

Negation

1) Negation is indicated by the particle taa. This precedes the verb.

2) taa can occur independently, having the meaning 'no!' or 'don't!".

The Imperative And Prohibitive

1) The imperative indicates that an order to perform an action is made. The base form of the verb marks the imperative.

2) The prohibitive marks that an order to not perform an action is made. The prohibitive is formed by placing the negative particle va before the base form of the verb.

Tense

Avalonian lacks tense as a grammatical category. However, tense-like functions are provided by several derivational suffixes.

Aspect

1) Avalonian has two aspects. These are listed in the table below:

Name Abbreviation Suffix Function
Imperfective IPFV -∅ Indicates an ongoing action
Perfective PFV -lle Marks a completed action

2) Other aspectual distinctions can be conveyed by several derivational suffixes.

The Gerund

1) The gerund uses the suffix -ken which is adde in lieu of pronominal ergative or absolutive suffixes

2) It transforms the verb into a noun which can be used much as any noun can.

Adverbs

1) Avalonian lacks true adverbs.

2) Forms conveying adverbial meanings appear in three classes:

a) A noun in equative case following a verb.

b) Several derivational suffixes with adverbial meanings attached to the verb.

Relativisation

1) Avalonian lacks relative pronouns and uses gap relativisation.

2) A relativised clause follows the noun it modifies.

Other Parts Of Speech

Adpositions

1) Avalonian lacks true adpositions.

2) It does have three classes of adposition-equivalents:

a) The non-core cases which have adpositional functions but are often quite general in their application.

b) Relativised stative verbs with an adpositional sense which are more specific in application than cases.

c) Suffixes on the verb.

Derivational Suffixes

1) There are hundreds of derivational suffixes in Avalonian and they fall into the following types:

a) Denominalisers

b) Deverbalisers

c) Attributive

d) Adverbial

e) Miscellaneous

2) Denominalisers turn a noun into a verb.

3) Derverbalisers turn a verb into a noun.

4) Attributives add a descriptive sense to nouns and verbs.

4) Adverbials impart various temporal and locative meanings to verbs

5) Miscellaneous suffixes change the meaning of nouns and verbs without changing their classes.

Syntax

Constituent order

Noun phrase

Verb phrase

Sentence phrase

Dependent clauses

Lexicon

Nouns

English Avalonian
amber (4) werhu
apple (1) hakar
automobile (1) karmat
Avalonian Isles (4) Telku
Avalonians (2) kammiri
banana (1) mhanana
bear (1) kaarha
beer (4) kurmi
beryl larhin
billy goat (1) aker
bird (2) hari
black tea (3) trā
blackbird (1) haha
boar (1) tarka
boat (1) kilja
borax qitte
boy (1) tunni
bread (4) aki
brother (1) larin
bridge (1) hilta
bull (1) ēhen
butter (4) empan
cat (1) kattu
cheese (4) kathan
cheetah (1) trita
chicken, hen (2) yara
chip, French fry (3) trip
coal munra
cockerel, rooster (1) kalyak
cows (2) pegi
celebration lipta
child (1) lāphi
chocolate (4) trakalat
coffee (4) kaphe
community kara
copper wēke
cost, price lhitu
crab (2) partag
cultivated field (1) heli
dagger qelha
darkness walru
dog-badger (marsupial) wekpek
dog (3) tar
doll (1) numwak
ducks (2) lakka
dwarf (mythological) takal
eel ninrak
elf qejak
face lurti
father atta
fellow (1) nihan
finger karak
finger-ring kerpun
fire (4) ghārhu
flower (1) wetta
football (1) phutpal
fort (1) rīkhi
forest nuna
fox (1) hintak
garden rhuuha
gay person (1)
girl (1) lirha
glass (substance) (4) lagya
goats (2) anū
gold (4) urre
good fortune qanak
grandfather qanra
grandmother qawha
green tea (3)
guinea pig (1) kamhē
heartbeat tumtum
horns (2) walaruk
horse (1) halti
horse-tapir (marsupial) tunta
house (1) enlu
ice hilku
idiot nalla
Indian Ocean Qinnik
iron (4) harna
island haari
king tanek
lady (1) anter
language nawha
letter quljek
life muuqe
liquor traju
liver jepil
lord antā
mammoth (marsupial) munnu
man (1) janak
mice (2) lukat
milk (4) enhe
money (2) thalir
month jelle
moon jelle
mountain kaja
mother amma
night natar
nitre qirkun
orange naran
otter (1) hirta
pasture (1) larre
people, folk, nation (2) lūki
pigs (2) urte
pillow qajen
pistol qelho jarhat
plough (1) kalte
puppet (2) keppē
rabbits (2) kebba
rain wakan
ram, male sheep (1) anri
rifle qelhat jarhat
road wiqe
salt (4) rhūne
sea (1) yēthā
shadow (2) yēthal
sheep (2) arti
silver (4) hirra
sister kaluu
sky lahi
slave, thrall (1) nhaka
social group qara
soft drink (4) kigkatpitkal
spear qelhat
spouse melki
stallion (1) kalluk
stone (substance) tulke
sugar (4) thukar
sun rhahaa
sword (1) rhigak
tavern puuni
temple turup
thing latpu
thumb (1) kulhu
tin (metal) (4) thakna
trans person (1) tranthi
tree rhugē
vampire (European) (1) wampir
voice (1) nawha
water (4) ninta
wind (4) whertu
wolf (1) lheyhu
woman (1) kimet
world (1) hanra
words (2) qulyek
zebras (2) theper

Verbs

English Avalonian
be awake alwin
be beautiful wata
be brave tathak
be cold hekal
be diseased narun
be English haakha
be free, have freedom elē
be good qiktuu
be important qaran
be kind taara
be thirsty arwaa
be wicked truke
bind netak
bite kalka
blame kāma
bully, dog, harry nipmin
carouse tijam
choose kiimi
die hirhu
discuss kenja
dream alar
drink kigkat
drive, strike rhanka
eat matu
enjoy tajak
examine nara
exist na
fade miki
fight jhunni
flee quktee
go palka
hate waren
hear lhaathi
help qalma
howl nawa
hunt rhikar
jump, leap phatte
kill qutkwa
laugh lalha
learn qitta
like tajak
love kimje
merit qirhu
return tuli
see hintu
sleep qikna
tell penta
urinate qurhuk
wander wilte
wane miki
weave kumuu

Suffixes

English Avalonian
agentive nominaliser -yuk
allow, let, permit -vhim
always -qutkuu
be big -pkak
be filled with -havit
be good -tara
be grey, be dressed in grey, be grey-haired, be old -litta
be hungry -karā
be lean, be skinny, be underfed -tīla
be red, be dressed in red, be red-haired -rutta
be white, be dressed in white, be fair-haired -karik
can -nnus
cute, sickly sweet, small, twee -tkal
for a time -tpi
forever -qyup
from mud, using mud -maru
group of things -kalve
have a nostalgic quality -yāri
have an urge to -kavhit
intend to -nnep
instrumental nominaliser -tpet
just now -tukhe
must -mithu
need -lyū
oblique nominaliser -kmhit
possibly -nē
so it is said -kpenta
still, nonetheless -jū
subjective/objective nominaliser -pin
through, piercing -knut
to be -mmek
to cause -tuva
to do -tuva
to have -min
to make -tuva
to regret -qevē
to seem -luthi
tomorrow -yerhe
truly -qathan
under -nnu
very -pkak
yesterday -lanti

Particles

English Avalonian
and yam
but yam
many (emphatic) rim

Example texts

Other resources