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Bźatga: Difference between revisions
→Phonology and Orthography
(Created page with " <!-- Template area --> ==Phonology and Orthography== ===Orthography=== Bźatga is written with the following 18 letters of the Latin alphabet:<br /> ''a b c d e g i j l m n...") |
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===Stress=== | ===Stress=== | ||
Stress placement is regularly on the first syllable of a word. The only exception to this is in words with an unstressed prefix, the vowel of which is marked with a breve, e.g. ''căbrova'' "tribesman" /kɐˈbrɔvɐ/. | Stress placement is regularly on the first syllable of a word. The only exception to this is in words with an unstressed prefix, the vowel of which is marked with a breve, e.g. ''căbrova'' "tribesman" /kɐˈbrɔvɐ/. | ||
===Phonetic Processes=== | ===Phonetic Processes=== | ||
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====Palatalisation==== | ====Palatalisation==== | ||
Palatalisation is an allophonic process whereby certain consonants are affected by a following ''i''. This mainly affects the sonorants ''l'', ''n'' and ''r'', which are altered to their secondary form, and the letters ''d'' and ''t'' which become ''ẑ'' and ''ŝ'' respectively. For example, ''dana'' "gift", pl. ''dańi'', ''cata'' "pool", pl. ''caŝi''. | Palatalisation is an allophonic process whereby certain consonants are affected by a following ''i''. This mainly affects the sonorants ''l'', ''n'' and ''r'', which are altered to their secondary form, and the letters ''d'' and ''t'' which become ''ẑ'' and ''ŝ'' respectively. For example, ''dana'' "gift", pl. ''dańi'', ''cata'' "pool", pl. ''caŝi''. | ||
====Alternation of ''j/i'' and ''v/u''==== | |||
As stated above, there are six dipthongs in Bźatga: ''ai, ei, oi'' and ''au, eu, ou''. These are only permitted to occur before a consonant or at the end of a word. When any of these comes to occur before a vowel, the second element becomes ''j'' or ''v'' respectively, e.g. ''saide'' "(he) seeks" but ''saja'' "seek!". The same is true in reverse, so ''dova'' "black" becomes ''doudra'' "blackness". | |||
Because of this alternation, only ''a, e'' and ''o'' can usually occur before ''j'' and ''v''. In a few rare cases the combination ''iv'' occurs, which becomes ''û'' before a consonant, e.g. ''łiva'' "colour" becomes ''łûleda'' "colourful, coloured". | |||
Whenever the combinations ''**ji'' and ''*vu'' would occur as a result of inflexion or derivation, the consonant is lost and the remaining ''i'' or ''u'' forms a diphthong with the preceding vowel. The same occurs to the combination ''*ovi'', which becomes ''oî''. The second element of a diphthong formed in this way is marked by a caret, not to show a difference in pronunciation from the unmarked form, but to show the absence of the consonant. This process can clearly be seen in the declension of the adjective ''dova'' "black": ''dova'' (NAsg), ''doû'' (Osg, < *''dovu''), ''doî'' (Pl, < *''dovi''). Note also the change of ''*iji'' > ''î'' and ''*ivu, *iju'' > ''û'' (e.g. ''bźija'' "power, status", Osg. ''bźû'', pl. ''bźî''). | |||
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]] | [[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]] | ||
[[Category:Conlangs]] | [[Category:Conlangs]] | ||