Katäfalsen

Revision as of 21:49, 13 July 2019 by Resangir (talk | contribs) (→‎Vowels)

Introduction

Katafalsen (pronunciation: [ˈkɑtɑfɑlsɛn]) is an apriori language, which is partially inspired by Basque, Hebrew and Latin. The aim was to construct a language with simple phonology along with unorthodox grammar and syntax. Katafalsen is highly synthetic and features a free word order and ergative-absolutive alignment.

Phonology

Consonants

The consonant phonemes of Modern Katafalsen are as follows:

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar
Nasal m
/m/
n
/n/
Stop voiced b
/b/
d
/d/
g
/g/
voiceless p
/p/
t
/t/
k
/k/
Fricative f
/f/
s
/s/
h
/x/
Approximant r
/ɹ/
j
/j/
w
/w/
Lateral approximant l
/l/

Vowels

The vowel inventory of Katafalsen is quite symmetrical as there are each three front, back, rounded and unrounded vowels.

Front Back
Unrounded Rounded Unrounded Rounded
Close i
/i/
y
/y/
u
/u/
Mid e
/e̞/
o
/o̞/
Open a
/ɑ/

The only vowel that distinguishes length is /ɑ/ contrasting phonemically with /ɑː/. The long vowel is represented by ä.
The sequences /ɑj/ and /ɑw/ are realised as diphthongs, while adjacent vowels are usually pronounced in hiatus.

Phonotactics