Lesson:Metin/1: Sounds and declarative sentences

The sounds of Metin

Metin is famous among foreign learners for being the language "which knots the tongue and breaks the jaw." This reputation is not entirely undeserved, allthough the language does not confound learners with nonpulmonic consonants, it contains both retroflex, lateral, and palatal sounds, requiring much tongue acrobatics.

The consonants

k, g, j, and m are the same as their english counterparts, nothing new here. (Allthough g is always pronounced as in "game", never as in "gem". The k is always aspirated as in "key", never unaspirated like in "sky".

y is always pronounced as in "yes"

w is pronounced with narrowed lips, sometimes sounding like  a v.

l is always pronounced as in "lake", never as in "cold" even at the end of words.

r is pronounced with the tip of the tongue tapping the top of the mouth.

s and z sound for the most part like english s and z, but occasionaly the s will be prounounced like the th in "think", and z the th in "the".

ś and ź sound like the sounds in "shop" and "treasure" respectively. 

S and Z sound similar to sh and zh, but they are pronounced with the tongue tapping the top of the mouth, like with r.

t and d are pronounced like in english , but with the tongue-tip touching the teeth rather than the alveolar ridge. Like k, t is always aspirated.

T and D are pronounced with the tongue touching the roof of the mouth, like in S, Z, and r. These sounds are considered to be retroflex. T is always aspirated, like t and k.

c is pronounced like the english ch in "cheese".

f is pronounced similar to the English f, but with narrowed lips, and no teeth, like if one wanted to blow out a candle.

q is an uvular fricative, like the french r. It sounds like a gargle.

h is always pronounced as in "hat" even if it is at the end of a word, like in "sisuh"

x is pronounced like the spanish j, like the h sound but raspier.

gh, jh, Dh, dh, bh, zh, źh, and Zh are all aspirated sounds. There is no equivalent in English. To pronounce gh, say g and h at the same time, like in "foghorn." bh is b and h at the same time, like in "cabhood" zh is z and h at the same time, etc

ł is pronounced as in navajo or welsh. It sounds sort of like saying h and l at the same time.

s', z', ś', , t', c', j', d', dh', jh', zh', n', y' and zyh' are lateral sounds. To pronounce lateral s', place the tip of the tongue at the base of the bottom teeth, and the middle of the tongue against the front teeth, then attempt to make an s sound. t', d', and dh' are pronounced in the same manner, only this time, completely block the airflow with your tongue to make a popping sound. sy' is peonounced like s', except the tongue is also raised in the middle, to make a y sound simultaneously. c', j', y', and their derivations are pronounced in the same manner. If your mouth is forced farther open than is comfortable trying to make these sounds, you're doing it right. 

Vowels

i is pronouced as in "see"

a is pronouced as in "lot"

u is pronounced as in "food"

e is pronounced as in "let"

o is prnounced as in "road"

ë is pronounced as in "but"

ï is pronounced like the korean "ue",  sort of like the english "look."

æ is pronounced like the english "cat".

A is pronounced like english "caught" ( at least for some people).

Vowels with an apostrophe are pronounced like they have a y' after them. aa' could just as easily be written aay'.

Vowels written double are pronounced for twice as long  "uu" takes twice as log to say as "u"

There are no dipthongs, every vowel in a sequence is pronounced clearly

Declarative sentences

Declarative sentences are by far the simplest element of Metin syntax. They are used to state that one noun is another, as in English "That is a fish."      To translate such a sentence into Metin, first add "Dhaa", then the two nouns which are the same.

Examples:

Dhaa sime sita

DEC  person this

This is a person

Dhaa sh'amiił miji

DEC house wood

The house is wooden

Here is some vocabulary:

sime: person    sit'is: child  sitxa: man, boy     sibhi: woman, girl sisuh: friend, fellow sifen: his/ her sister sitlen: his/her brother

sh'amiił: house, dwelling sh'aDZao: city sh'aqum: garden, park

fïy'oa: table fïji: branch, stick fïgoon: chair, bench 

miji: wood 

ta, sita, fïta, mita: this (at hand) Za, siZa, fïZa, miZa: that (nearby) te, site... :That by you

yałta: here  yarZa: there  yałte: by you

Translation practice

1.That is a woman

2. The woman is a friend

3. The friend is Bhii' (translate as sibhii')

4. That by you is a man.

5.The man is Txen (translate as sitxen)

6. The man is Bhii's brother (translate as sitlen suoobhii')

7. The woman is Txen's sister. (translate as sifen suootxen.)

8. This is a chair

9. The chair is wooden

I.) Dhaa sime sitxa

II.) Dhaa fïy'oa miji

III.) Dhaa miZa miji

IV.) Dhaa sh'ate sh'amiił

V.) Dhaa sh'aZa sh'aDZao

Negative declarative

To negate a declaritive, that is to say that something is not something else, replace "dhaa" with "mimi"

mimi fïZa fïy'oa

NEG that table

that is not a table.

mimi sime sisuh

NEG person friend

The person is not a friend.

Translate

1.) The person is not a child.

2.) The friend is not Txen.

3.) The table is not wooden 

4.) The child is not Bhii's sister (sifen  suobhii'l

5.) The house is not Txen's (suootxen)

I.) mimi sh'amiil suoobhii'

II.) mimi fïte fïji

III.) mimi sit'is sibhi

IV.) mimi siZa sitxen

IV.) mimi sh'amiił miji