Togarmite

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Togarmite/Lexicon
Togarmite/Swadesh list
דף זה בעברית
Togarmite
yn Þėrmiþ
Pronunciation[/ən θermiθ/]
Created by
SettingAzalic timeline
Afro-Asiatic

Togarmite or Thermite (yn Þėrmiþ /ən θermiθ/ or yn lysėn Þėrmi) is a "stem-Canaanite" Semitic language. It is inspired by Hebrew, Lithuanian, Germanic languages (particularly Icelandic), Greek and Alashian, another stem-Canaanite conlang.

Modern Togarmite retains the Semitic root-and-pattern morphology of Old Togarmite, but has undergone some phonological and grammatical restructuring, taking features of the Turkey-Northern Levant-Iranian sprachbund, in common with L-Persian, Padmanābha and English:

  • Grimm's law: The Old Togarmite aspirated stops φ θ χ (from Proto-Semitic *p t k) generally become spirants /f θ x/.
  • loss of grammatical gender
  • loss of the passive binyanim
  • loss of the suffix conjugation except in a few verbs
  • the use of the w-form (inherited from the Old Togarmite waw-consecutive) for the present progressive, mirroring English -ing < PIE *-nd-kwe
  • the development of a productive concatenative verb paradigm used to form verbs from other words, analogous to Germanic weak verbs

Todo

  • A few verbs derived from historical passive binyanim, analogized so they're weak verbs
  • Gzarot
  • Syntax
  • Declensions
  • Lots of triconsonantified Greek words
  • A bit more arabic isoglosses / semantic shifts in a general Arabic direction
  • Much less of an English relex: more consistent do-support, progressive forms used for imperfectives and VSO as in Welsh? Most "Englishy" bits should be literal translations of idioms, phrasal verbs and pragmatics, loss of grammatical gender, intense dialectal mixing in the early modern period with what appears to be occasional random unpredictable changes, and some vocabulary and affixes
  • Relex Modern Greek in places where it differs grammatically from English: yn before proper names?
  • Prepositional pronouns
  • more binyanim like syfȝel, asøfȝel, þasøfȝel and þystyfȝel?
  • Taxonomic names get calqued into Greek
  • CiCV:C > CyCVC, CaCV:C > CCVC

History

The Old Togarmite name for the language, Θėgarmīθ, is thought to have been borrowed from a pre-Togarmite source *Tāgarma. The name Togarmah from the same source is also attested in the Hebrew Bible. (The Greeks and the Romans called the Togarmite people Θηγαρμικοί and Thegarmici respectively.) The name of the language shows the Togarmite shift of Proto-Semitic ā to ė /e:/, mirroring the Canaanite shift ā > ō occuring in its close relative Hebrew.

Phonology

Consonants

Togarmite has 24 consonants, 22 of them inherited from Proto-Semitic. It gained /p/ during the Old Togarmite stage by adapting loans from Greek, Aramaic and Persian, e.g. parkes 'to act', from Ancient Greek praxis. It also merged Old Togarmite ħ /ħ/ and h /h/ into h /h/, OTog č /tʃ/ and š /ʃ/ into š /ʃ/ and OTog j and ž into ž. /tʃ/ is now found in more recent loans, mostly from Greek, Latin and English.

  • m n /m n/
  • p t c č k ' /p t ts tʃ k ʔ/
  • b d g /b d g/
  • f þ s š x h /f θ s ʃ x h/
  • w z ž ȝ /ʋ z ʒ (Philly L)/
  • l r j /l r j/

þ may be an unaspirated dental stop. d may be dental in some dialects.

Vowels

Modern Togarmite has 9 vowels in stressed syllables.

a e ė i o ø u y /ɑ ɛ e i o ø u (ə)/

ei au /ɛi ɔu/

Contrastive vowel length is present from elision of h in colloquial Togarmite: møþyhanan = [mø'θa:nan] instead of /møθə'hanan/

Stress

Stress in native words is on the first syllable after the last non-word-final y.

Orthography

In addition to the Hebrew, Latin and Avestan alphabets, Togarmite uses an abugida (a form of cursive linear Hangul) based on the Phoenician alphabet, called yn albėþ (after the first 2 letters).

The abjadi letter names: al, bėþ, gam, dal, hė, wau, zėn, žėn, tėþ, jød, xaf, lam, mėm, nun, ȝėn, fė, pė, cad, čad, køf, rėš, sin, šin, þau

Traditional Romanization

The traditional romanization of Togarmite is very unphonetic.

  • aCe for ė
  • English style unetymological OSL gone crazy
  • the orthography should also be templatic, gemination in weird places i.e. not necessarily related to Old Togarmite gemination
  • two scripts, Latin and Greek? works like hiragana and kanji
  • v for the vowel /ø/!

Dialects

Ethiopian dialect

some different vocab e.g. þėþ instead of wyhėb for 'give', døbrėn instead of þėma for 'topic'

some words can have different meanings in Ethiopian and Levantine leading to some funny misunderstandings

phonological differences ("ear" -> ødny)

a e ė i o ø u y [a e̞ ɛi i ɔ ɵ u (ə)]
ei au [ɒi ø:~øo]

a broad Ethiopian accent in Togarmite has random variation in some words like heno, šamo, šydo etc are pronounced hena, šama, šyda

-an -> -en is common in a broad Ethiopian accent (darxan -> darxen); this should typically happen only with agentives, otherwise møsaxen / møsaxan would be mixed up (that would be one of the telltale signs of a non-Ethiopian faking an accent)

Indian dialect

a e ė i o ø u y /a: e~ɪ ɛ: i o: ʊ u: ə/
ei au /ai ɔ:/

New World dialect

a e ė i o ø u y /a e ɪə i o ø u ə/ ei au /ɛi ɔu/

Pronouns

Personal

Modern Togarmite pronouns work similarly to modern Hebrew pronouns. The accusative pronouns derive from inflected foms of Old Togarmite ʔiθ (emphasis particle and accusative, related to Hebrew et and Arabic iyya-). The possessive pronouns are derived from inflected forms of Old Togarmite la-. The reflexive pronouns come from inflected forms of af 'nose'.

The semantics of hu, hi and že work like in West Country English. (Clarify)

I thou (m.) thou (f.) he she it we you (pl, polite) they
Nominative/Conjunctive nėx hu hi že nan aþøm høm
Objective/Disjunctive þi þax þex þau þa þež þanė þaxøm þaum
Possessive li lax lex lau la lež lanė laxøm laum
Reflexive/Intensive afi afax afex afau afa afež afnė afxøm afaum

The plural pronouns aþøm and høm can be used as gender-neutral pronouns in the singular, like English they.

Demonstrative

who? what? which? where? whither? whence? when? how? why? how much?
this žinė (sg); elinė (pl) heno me hė ȝeþo hėx xėrab
that ži (sg); eli (pl) šam šamo me šam šøm
what man ma ėjo ein eino men ein møran xeix maž xma, marby
all; every xølšar xølbar; xøl xøl xølein xøleino me xølein xølam xøl ør - -
any nuxšar nuxbar nux nuxein nuxeino me nuxein xølam nux ør me nux sebt -
some bilšar bilbar bil bilein bileino me bilein ly zman; bil zman bil ør me bil sebt -
none lėmšar lėmbar lėm lėmein lėmeino me lėmein lėfȝam lėm ør me lėm sebt -

Demonstratives come after nouns.

  • beiþ žinė 'this house'
  • kawi eli 'those lines'

Nouns

In some ways declension has simplified: Like Cubrite, Modern Togarmite has lost grammatical gender. The construct state has been lost, and the Old Togarmite definite state ʔan- has been reanalyzed as a separate definite article yn. Yn becomes ym before /m p b/.

However, declension has become more complicated in other ways. For example, Modern Togarmite has innovated more declension paradigms.

Regular declension

Most nouns have a regular plural in -i, from a conflation of Middle Togarmite absolute -in and construct .

Example: ȝėlam 'world'

ȝėlam 'world'
singular plural
indefinite ȝėlam ȝėlami
lysėn 'language'
singular plural
indefinite lysėn lysėni

Segolates

These nouns come from CVCC nouns in Proto-Semitic and thus are related to segolates in Hebrew.

xalb 'dog'
singular plural
indefinite xalb xlabi

Nisba nouns

An important declension class is comprised of nouns with the nisba suffix -i:

þėgami 'Togarmite'
singular plural
indefinite þėgami þėgamin

Singulative-collective nouns

These nouns have a marked singular in -t.

šeȝart '(strand of) hair'
singular plural
indefinite šeȝart šeȝar

Former feminines

This class consists of nouns that were feminine in Old Togarmite, which typically end in -t or and take a plural in -ėþ:

friþ 'fruit'
singular plural
indefinite friþ frijėþ
galt 'door' (altered from *dalt)
singular plural
indefinite galt glatėþ
þyxþøbt 'document'
singular plural
indefinite þyxþøbt þyxþøbėþ

-a nouns

These are mainly Greek and Aramaic words.

apoloža 'excuse (pretext)'
singular plural
indefinite apoloža apoložes

Greek ending in -ma can have a plural in -mata:

þėma 'topic'
singular plural
indefinite þėma þėmes / þėmata


By analogy, even native words ending in -a are declined this way:

heta 'sin'
singular plural
indefinite heta hetes

Irregulars

bennės 'human'
singular plural
indefinite bennės nės


ašt 'woman'
singular plural
indefinite ašt nysi

Adjectives

Adjectives do not decline.

Degree

Adjectives have a comparative form in yn-/ym- and a superlative in xøl-:

  • yn-xbur = bigger
  • xølxbur = biggest

A dedicated particle šøm (cognate to Arabic þumma) is used for 'than'.

Verbs

  • Past = (eroded) suffix conjugation that became analogized with the prefix present
    • The y- prefix is only used when the verb directly follows the subject pronoun: nėx yxþøb 'I wrote', nėx lė xþøb 'I didn't write'.
  • Present = from the bare w-form
  • Imperative
    • The imperative is negated with al: Xþøb! 'write!', Al xþøb! 'don't write!'
  • w-form = w + stem from the 3ms suffix conjugation in the f3øl binyan, past tense but with w- for the prefix in other binyanim
  • Infinitive
  • Participles
  • Progressive lu from *ȝalė-hu, c.f. wrthi in Welsh

The suffix conjugation does not survive unlike in most other Semitic languages, except in certain irregular verbs like 'to be'.

The citation form is the 2nd person singular imperative.

Binyanim

Modern Togarmite inherits all 8 binyanim of Old Togarmite. The þy- of Binyan 7 (þyfaȝel) verbs has become a productive derivational prefix, however.

Binyan 1: fȝøl

This binyan can take -ø- (e.g. xþøb 'to write'), -e- (sen 'to sleep') or -a- (tȝam 'to choose') as the theme vowel.

Binyan 1 conjugation: xþøb 'write'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx yxþøb aþ/eþ yxþøb hu/hi xþøb nan xþøb aþøm xþøb høm xþøb
past imperfective; past subjunctive nėx fiþ wyxþab aþ/eþ fiþ wyxþab hu/hi fė wyxþab nan fu wyxþab aþøm fu wyxþab høm fu wyxþab
present nėx wyxþab aþ/eþ wyxþab hu/hi wyxþab nan wyxþab aþøm wyxþab høm wyxþab
present progressive nėx lu wyxþab aþ/eþ lu wyxþab hu/hi lu wyxþab nan lu wyxþab aþøm lu wyxþab høm lu wyxþab
present subjunctive nėx yxþøban aþ/eþ yxþøban hu/hi xþøban nan xþøban aþøm xþøban høm xþøban
future nėx bė xþėb aþ/eþ bė xþėb hu bė xþėb nan bė xþėb aþøm bė xþėb høm bė xþėb
perfect li xþub lax/lex xþub lau/la xþub lanė xþub laxøm xþub laum xþub
imperative xþøb!
active participle xėþeb
passive participle xþub
w-form wyxþab
infinitive xþėb
Binyan 1 conjugation: num 'sleep'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx ynum aþ/eþ ynum hu/hi num nan num aþøm num høm num
past progressive; past subjunctive nėx fiþ wynaum aþ/eþ fiþ wynaum hu/hi fė wynaum nan fu wynaum aþøm fu wynaum høm fu wynaum
present nėx wynaum aþ/eþ wynaum hu/hi wynaum nan wynaum aþøm wynaum høm wynaum
present progressive nėx lu wynaum aþ/eþ lu wynaum hu/hi lu wynaum nan lu wynaum aþøm lu wynaum høm lu wynaum
present subjunctive nėx ynuman aþ/eþ ynuman hu/hi numan nan numan aþøm numan høm numan
future nėx bė nwėm aþ/eþ bė nwėm hu/hi bė nwėm nan bė nwėm aþøm bė nwėm høm bė nwėm
perfect li num lax/lex num lau/la num lanė num laxøm num laum num
imperative num!
active participle nėwem
passive participle num
w-form wynaum
infinitive nwėm

Binyan 2: faȝel

This binyan comes from the Proto-Semitic D-stem (related to Hebrew pi33el and Arabic fa33ala)

Binyan 2 conjugation: saxen 'inhabit'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx ysaxen aþ/eþ ysaxen hu/hi saxen nan saxen aþøm saxen høm saxen
past progressive; past subjunctive nėx fiþ wysaxen aþ/eþ fiþ wysaxen hu/hi fė wysaxen nan fu wysaxen aþøm fu wysaxen høm fu wysaxen
present nėx wysaxen aþ/eþ wysaxen hu/hi wysaxen nan wysaxen aþøm wysaxen høm wysaxen
present progressive nėx lu wysaxen aþ/eþ lu wysaxen hu/hi lu wysaxen nan lu wysaxen aþøm lu wysaxen høm lu wysaxen
present subjunctive nėx ysaxenan aþ/eþ ysaxenan hu/hi saxenan nan saxenan aþøm saxenan høm saxenan
future nėx bė saxun aþ bė saxun hu bė saxun nan bė saxun aþøm bė saxun høm bė saxun
perfect li møsaxan lax/lex møsaxan lau/la møsaxan lanė møsaxan laxøm møsaxan laum møsaxan
imperative saxen!
active participle møsaxen
passive participle møsaxan
w-form wysaxen
infinitive saxun

For 4-letter verbs such as parkes 'to act', the present tense is formed with the stem -C₁C₂ėC₃eC₄, like nėx yprėkes 'I act'.

Binyan 3: fėȝel

Binyan 3 conjugation: dėber 'speak'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx ydėber aþ/eþ ydėber hu/hi dėber nan dėber aþøm dėber høm dėber
past progressive; past subjunctive nėx fiþ wydėber aþ/eþ fiþ wydėber hu/hi fė wydėber nan fu wydėber aþøm fu wydėber høm fu wydėber
present nėx wydėber aþ/eþ wydėber hu/hi wydėber nan wydėber aþøm wydėber høm wydėber
present subjunctive nėx ydėberan aþ/eþ ydėberan hu/hi dėberan nan dėberan aþøm dėberan høm dėberan
future nėx bė dėbur aþ bė dėbur hu bė dėbur nan bė dėbur aþøm bė dėbur høm bė dėbur
perfect li mødėbar lax/lex mødėbar lau/la mødėbar lanė mødėbar laxøm mødėbar laum mødėbar
imperative - dėber! - - dėberu! -
active participle mødėber
passive participle mødėbar
w-form wydėber
infinitive dėbur

Binyan 4: afȝel

This binyan comes from the Proto-Semitic Š-stems thus corresponds to Hebrew hif3il and Arabic ʔaf3ala.

Binyan 3 conjugation: ažxer 'remind'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx ažxer aþ/eþ ažxer hu/hi ažxer nan ažxer aþøm ažxer høm ažxer
past progressive; past subjunctive fiti wažxer fit wažxer fė wažxer finė wažxer fitøm wažxer fu wažxer
present nėx ažėxer aþ/eþ ažėxer hu/hi ažėxer nan ažėxer aþøm ažėxeru høm ažėxeru
present progressive nėx še wažxer aþ/eþ še wažxer hu/hi še wažxer nan še wažxer aþøm šu wažxer høm šu wažxer
present subjunctive nėx ažxeran aþ/eþ ažxeran hu/hi ažxeran nan ažxeran aþøm ažxeran høm ažxeran
future nėx bė hažxur aþ bė hažxur hu bė hažxur nan bė hažxur aþøm bė hažxur høm bė hažxur
perfect li mažxar lax/lex mažxar lau/la mažxar lanė mažxar laxøm mažxar laum mažxar
imperative ažxer!
active participle mažxer
passive participle mažxar
w-form wažxer
infinitive ažxur

Binyan 5: ftyȝel

This binyan comes from the Proto-Semitic t-stem and shares similarities with the Hebrew binyan hitpa33el and Arabic ifta3ala. It is characterized by the þ- prefix that comes from the *t infix.

Meanings:

  • reflexive
  • reciprocal

The prefix þ metathesizes with C1 when

  • C1 = f x s š c h z ž ȝ: þf þx þs þš þh þz þž þȝ > ft xt st št ct ht zd žd ȝd
  • C1 = d t þ: þd þt þþ > d t þ
Binyan 4 conjugation: þlymed 'find one's way around'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx yþlymed aþ/eþ yþlymed hu/hi þlymed nan þlymed aþøm þlymed høm þlymed
past progressive; past subjunctive fiti wyþlymed fit wyþlymed fė wyþlymed finė wyþlymed fitøm wyþlymed fu wyþlymed
present nėx yþlėmed aþ/eþ yþlėmed hu/hi þlėmed nan þlėmed aþøm þlėmed høm þlėmed
present progressive nėx še wyþlymed aþ/eþ še wyþlymed hu/hi še wyþlymed nan še wyþlymed aþøm šu wyþlymed høm šu wyþlymed
present subjunctive nėx yþlymedan aþ/eþ yþlymedan hu/hi þlymedan nan þlymedan aþøm þlymedan høm þlymedan
future nėx bė hyþlymud aþ bė hyþlymud hu bė hyþlymud nan bė hyþlymud aþøm bė hyþlymud høm bė hyþlymud
perfect li møþlymad lax/lex møþlymad lau/la møþlymad lanė møþlymad laxøm møþlymad laum møþlymad
imperative yþlymed!
active participle møþlymed
passive participle møþlymad
w-form wyþlymėd
infinitive hyþlymud

Binyan 6: eþyfȝel

This binyan comes from the Nt-stem, with the mediopassive n- marker and the reflexive/reciprocal t-marker: the stem comes from *intap3il. cf. Hebrew nitpa33el, a variant of the hitpa33el binyan and the Arabic infa3ala binyan.

Binyan 5 conjugation: eþygdel 'grow up'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx eþygdel aþ/eþ eþygdel hu/hi eþygdel nan eþygdel aþøm eþygdel høm eþygdel
past progressive; past subjunctive fiti weþygdel fit weþygdel fė weþygdel finė weþygdel fitøm weþygdel fu waþygdel
present nėx eþygėdel aþ/eþ eþygėdel hu/hi eþygėdel nan eþygėdel aþøm eþygėdelu høm eþygėdelu
present progressive nėx še weþygdel aþ/eþ še weþygdel hu/hi še weþygdel nan še weþygdel aþøm šu weþygdel høm šu weþygdel
present subjunctive nėx eþygdelan aþ/eþ eþygdelan hu/hi eþygdelan nan eþygdelan aþøm eþygdelan høm eþygdelan
future nėx bė heþygdul aþ bė heþygdul hu bė heþygdul nan bė heþygdul aþøm bė heþygdul høm bė heþygdul
perfect li meþygdal lax/lex meþygdal lau/la meþygdal lanė meþygdal laxøm meþygdal laum meþygdal
imperative - heþygdel! - - heþygdelu! -
active participle meþygdel
passive participle meþygdal
w-form waþygdel
infinitive heþygdul

Binyan 8: styfȝel

This binyan comes from the Št-stem and is directly related to the binyan istaf3ala in Arabic and the very rare binyan hishtaf3el in Biblical Hebrew. Binyan 7 tends to form verbs involving conscious decision.

Binyan 8 conjugation: stytȝem 'try out'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx ystytȝem aþ/eþ ystytȝem hu/hi stytȝem nan stytȝem aþøm stytȝem høm stytȝem
past progressive; past subjunctive fiti wystytȝem fit wystytȝem fė wystytȝem finė wystytȝem fitøm wystytȝem fu wystytȝem
present nėx ystytėȝem aþ/eþ ystytėȝem hu/hi stytėȝem nan stytėȝem aþøm stytėȝem høm stytėȝem
present progressive nėx še wystytȝem aþ/eþ še wystytȝem hu/hi še wystytȝem nan še wystytȝem aþøm šu wystytȝem høm šu wystytȝem
present subjunctive nėx ystytȝeman aþ/eþ ystytȝeman hu/hi stytȝeman nan stytȝeman aþøm stytȝemun jystytȝemun
future nėx bė stytȝum aþ bė stytȝum hu bė stytȝum nan bė stytȝum aþøm bė stytȝum høm bė stytȝum
perfect li møstytȝam lax/lex møstytȝam lau/la møstytȝam lanė møstytȝam laxøm møstytȝam laum møstytȝam
imperative - stytȝem! - - stytȝemu! -
active participle møstytȝem
passive participle møstytȝam
w-form wystytȝem
infinitive stytȝum

Concatenative verbs

The concatenative paradigm, analogous to Germanic weak verbs, is formed by adding prefixes and suffixes, without changing the stem. The past and imperative forms are formed by adding -i or -ji to the noun, when no other suffix is added.

It is used for recent loan verbs like maksimezi 'to maximize', but can also be used to derive verbs from native nouns:

  • mydrasi 'to school' (from mydras 'school')
  • þaxili 'to consume' (from þaxil 'consumption', itself from the root √ʔ-x-l 'to eat')
  • žaxoji 'to entitle, to allow' (from žaxo 'right')
  • ȝeini 'to eye' (from ȝein 'eye')

The endings are mainly derived from Middle Togarmite forms of 3-y verbs.

  • [STEM]-i = active
  • þy-[STEM]-i = re-
  • mø- = active participle
  • -ėþ = infinitive
Weak verb conjugation: mydrasi 'to school'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx ymydrasi aþ/eþ ymydrasi hu/hi mydrasi nan mydrasi aþøm mydrasi høm mydrasi
past progressive; past subjunctive fiti wymydrasi fit wymydrasi fė wymydrasi finė wymydrasi fitøm wymydrasi fu wymydrasi
present nėx wymydrasi aþ/eþ wymydrasi hu/hi wymydrasi nan wymydrasi aþøm wymydrasi høm wymydrasi
present progressive nėx lu wymydrasi aþ/eþ lu wymydrasi hu/hi lu wymydrasi nan lu wymydrasi aþøm lu wymydrasi høm lu wymydrasi
present subjunctive nėx ymydrasan aþ/eþ ymydrasan hu/hi mydrasan nan mydrasan aþøm mydrasun høm mydrasun
future nėx bė mydrasėþ aþ bė mydrasėþ hu bė mydrasėþ nėbu mydrasėþ aþøm bė mydrasėþ høm bė mydrasėþ
perfect li mømydrasa lax/lex mømydrasa lau/la mømydrasa lanė mømydrasa laxøm mømydrasa laum mømydrasa
imperative mydrasi!
active participle mømydrasė
passive participle mydrasa
w-form wymydrasi
infinitive mydrasėþ

fe 'to be'

The verb fe 'to be' is perhaps the most irregular verb of the language; it uses the Proto-Semitic suffix conjugation in the past tense.

fe 'to be'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx fiþ aþ fiþ hu fė nan fu aþøm fu høm fu
past progressive; past subjunctive nėx fiþ fė aþ fiþ fė hu fė fė nan fu fė aþøm fu fė høm fu fė
present (nėx) (aþ/eþ) (hu/hi) (nan) (aþøm) (høm)
present progressive nėx lu fė aþ/eþ lu fė hu/hi lu fė nan lu fė aþøm lu fė høm lu fė
present subjunctive nėx yfijan aþ yfijan hu fijan nan fijan aþøm fijan høm fijan
future nėx bė fėþ aþ bė fėþ hu bė fėþ nan bė fėþ aþøm bė fėþ høm bė fėþ
imperative fe!
active participle hėwi
passive participle fuj
w-form
infinitive fėþ

xėl 'can'

xėl 'can'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx yxel aþ/eþ yxel hu/hi xel nan xel aþøm xel høm xel
past subjunctive nėx fiþ wėxel aþ fiþ wėxel hu fė wėxel nan fu wėxel aþøm fu wėxel fu wėxel
present nėx wėxel aþ wėxel hu wėxel nan wėxel aþøm wėxel høm wėxel
present subjunctive nėx yxelan aþ/eþ yxelan hu/hi xelan nan xelan aþøm xelun høm xelun
future nėx bė xėl aþ bė xėl hu bė xėl nan bė xėl aþøm bė xėl høm bė xėl
active participle -
passive participle fuj wėxel
w-form wėxel
infinitive xėl

høbė 'should; ought'

høba 'should; ought'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past nėx fiþ høbė aþ fiþ høbė hu fė høbė nan fu høbu aþøm fu høbu høm fu høbu
present nėx høbė aþ/eþ høbė hu/hi høbė nan høbu aþøm høbu høm høbu

ryšė 'to like'

ryšė 'to like'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx yrši aþ yrši hu yrši nan yršu aþøm yršu høm yršu
past subjunctive nėx fiþ wyrši aþ fiþ wyrši hu fė wyrši nan fu wyrši aþøm fu wyrši høm fu wyrši
present nėx ryšė aþ/eþ ryšė hu/hi ryšė nan ryšu aþøm ryšu høm ryšu
future nėx bė ryšėþ aþ bė ryšėþ hu bė ryšėþ nan bė ryšėþ aþøm bė ryšėþ høm bė ryšėþ
w-form wyrši
active participle rėši
passive participle ryšuj
infinitive ryšėþ

sėr 'to want'

sėr 'to want'
→ Person
↓ Tense
1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
past; conditional nėx sør aþ sør hu sør nan sru aþøm sru høm sru
past subjunctive nėx fiþ wasar aþ fiþ wasar hu fė wasar nan fu wasar aþøm fu wasar høm fu wasar
present nėx wasar aþ/eþ wasar hu/hi wasar nan wasar aþøm wasar høm wasar
future nėx bė sėr aþ bė sėr hu bė sėr nan bė sėr aþøm bė sėr høm bė sėr
w-form wasar
active participle sėr
passive participle sur
infinitive sėr

The auxiliary

The defective auxiliary (inf. and w-form , past, passive imperative bu, passive participle buj; from the conflation of two roots, one a cognate of Hebrew בא 'to come' and the other a cognate of Hebrew אבה 'to be willing') is used to form dynamic passives (with the passive participle) and the future (with the infinitive).

  • Yn galt lu bė fyþuh = The door is opening (being opened)
  • Yn galt bu fyþuh = The door (was) opened
  • Yn galt lež buj fyþuh = The door has been opened
  • Yn galt fyþuh = The door is open (lit. opened)
    • is not repeated for future + passive: both 'The door opens' and 'The door will open' are Yn galt bė fyþuh.
  • Dawid bė fþėh yn galt = David will open the door

Gzarot

Main article: Togarmite/Gzarot

In Semitic languages, gzarot (Hebrew גְּזָרוֹת‎, sg. gizra גִּזְרָה 'figure, form, pattern') are variations of an inflectional (especially verbal) paradigm that are determined by the choice of consonants in the consonantal root. Thus, a paradigm has not only a regular gizra but various irregular ones, which occur most commonly when

  • the consonantal root contains a "guttural" (ʔ ȝ h) or a semivowel (j w);
  • the consonantal root contains a n, since nC tends to assimilate into CC
  • the consonantal root has 2 letters.

Because Togarmite only uses the prefix conjugation, modern Togarmite gzarot are in some ways less bad than Hebrew gzarot; most of the irregularities occur in binyan fȝøl. However, there are often so many irregularities even within each gizra, and cases of analogy between verbs of different gzarot, that the concept of gzarot in Modern Togarmite has been questioned: in Togarmite, a "gizra" just describes general tendencies of verbs with a certain root consonant.

Prepositions

Some prepositions:

  • in 'in' [from PSem *ina], in yn > nyn
  • ly (l before V) 'of (possessive)'
  • by (b before V) 'by, at, with (instrumental), in (language)'
  • šyde 'out of' (from *śadiy-ah 'to the field')
  • me (men before V) 'from'
    • men yn aur 'from the light'
  • ȝem 'with (comitative)'
  • ȝal 'on': literary ȝlė
    • 3lei, 3lėx, 3lix, 3lėju, 3lėja, 3lėnė, 3lėxøm, 3lėjøm
  • lid 'to' (from *la-yad 'to the hand of')
  • løb 'into, in' (from *la-libb)
    • Nėx wamen løb žinė - I believe in this
    • Hu þ'yheb løba - He fell in love with her
  • ȝbar 'over'
  • þaþ 'under'
  • arþo 'down' (from *ʔarþ-ah "earthward")
  • darxyn 'along'
  • blėš 'without'

Syntax of prepositions

Numerals

Cardinal

0: cefry
1: had
2: šnein / attributive šnė
3: šlėš (animate šlėšt)
4: yrbaȝ (animate yrbaȝt)
5: mes (animate mest)
6: setš (animate setšt)
7: sabȝy (animate sabȝyt)
8: šmėni (animate šmėnt)
9: þesȝy (animate þesȝyt)
10: ȝašry (animate ȝašryt)
11: ȝašry wy had
12: ȝašry šnein
20: ȝešrin
30: šlėšin
40: yrbȝin
50: hymsin
60: setšin
70: sybȝin
80: šmėnin
90: þesȝin
100: meþ
101: meþ wy had
200: meþein
300: šlėš meþ
400: yrbaȝ meþ
1000: alf
2000: alfein
3000: šlėš alf
1000000: alfun
10^9: bėþfun
10^12: gamfun
etc.

Plural numerals usually take plural nouns. They used to take singular nouns, however this is considered archaic.

Numbers ending in digits "3" through "9" (thus ending in šlėš through þesȝy), or "10" (thus ending in ȝašry), have two forms depending on the animacy of the noun: hymes myrþemi 'five abacuses', but hymest ahwėþ 'five sisters'. The animate forms come from the masculine forms (reverse polarity) marked with *-t in Proto-Semitic.

Ordinal

Ordinals are formed using the pattern CCuC; as in English, "1st" and "2nd" are irregular, from elatives *ʔaʕlay- 'topmost' and *ʔaʕqab- 'the immediately following' respectively. In compound numerals, the last number word is inflected to the ordinal form.

  • 1st = olė
  • 2nd = okab
  • 3rd = šluš
  • 4th = rbuȝ
  • 5th = mus
  • 6th = stuš
  • 7th = sbuȝ
  • 8th = smun
  • 9th = þsuȝ
  • 10th = ȝšur
  • 11th = ȝašry w-olė
  • 12th = ȝašry w-okab
  • 13th = ȝašry šluš

etc.

Fractional

Fractional numerals are formed with the segolate pattern CøCCy (pl. CøCaCi). Compound numerals can be inflected as well, like in the case of ordinal numerals. The analogized form øhdy is used for numerals ending in "1".

  • half = gøb (from *gunb- 'side')
  • 3rd = šølšy
  • 4th = røbȝy
  • 11th = ȝašry w-øhdy

To express "m/n", Togarmite uses "m nths": "2/3" is šnė šølaši.

Syntax

Faulty accusative marker

The faulty accusative marker is used. It behaves like the MSA accusative case and the Welsh soft mutation for direct objects: when there is a constituent separating the verb or predicate from a second constituent, comes between the two constituents regardless of whether the second constituent is actually a direct object. Example:

  • Halex wyfė li šlėšt xlabi, wy ȝeþo lėš li nux. = I used to have three dogs, and now I don't have any.
  • Yn dėrest li ryšė li ȝyšėþ rab þamuni beiþ. = My teacher wants me to do a lot of homework.

Questions

Yes-no questions require the question marker ha to be placed at the beginning of the sentence.

What-questions have a syntax similar to English.

Existentials

The word is used to indicate existence. It is also used with the preposition ly 'to' or the possessive pronouns to indicate possession. The negative of is lėš.

  • Lėš mykėm ėn xølšar nyȝum. = There is no place where everyone is happy.
  • Ha iš lex zman? = Do you (f. sg.) have time?

Clauses

  • "if" = em
  • "then" = šøm
  • "though" = ax, xenax

Relative clauses

The relative pronoun žė is used for both relative and complement clauses. It may takes prepositional cases, just like English relative pronouns. The word žė is from PSem *ðā, the accusative singular form of the demonstrative *ðū; cf. Biblical Hebrew זו zu, Aramaic די .

For relative clauses whose heads are prepositional objects in the relative clause, there are three strategies:

  • the relativizer is treated as a resumptive pronoun which takes the preposition, like English which: yn gabry lid žė nėx ohab ym mauhab, lit. 'the man to which I gave the gift'. This syntax arose from the influence of surrounding languages like English.
  • the preposition goes to the end of the clause: yn gabry žė nėx ohab ym mauhab lid lit. 'the man which I gave the gift to'. This syntax arose from the native Semitic construction which used a resumptive pronoun on the preposition: after the resumptive pronoun lost the stress, the preposition lost its pronominal suffix and moved to the end of the clause.
  • A combination of both strategies can be used: yn gabry lid žė nėx ohab ym mauhab lid, lit. 'The man to which I gave the gift to'. This is the most common strategy with the other two considered archaic.

Derivation

Noun and adjective patterns

  • CaCCy(þ), CeCCy(þ), CøCCy(þ) = segolates
  • CyCiC = adjective; -able
  • CyCuC = adjective; color
  • CyCėC = some adjectives
  • CyCaCt, CyCeCt, CyCøCt
  • CaCøCt = describes a condition
  • CyCeCCaC = diminutive
  • myCCaC(t), meCCaC(t), myCCėC: noun, often denoting place
  • maCCaCt = causative version of myCCaC(t)
  • myCCeC(t) = instrument
  • maCCeCt = causative version of myCCeC(t)
  • þyCCuC, þyCCiC, þyCCėC = action or process
  • þyCCøCt (cognatized from Hebrew tiCCóCet) = system of things
  • CaCėC = agentive
    • xaþėb 'writer'
  • CaCCan = agentive; -an is an agentive
    • lamsan 'philanthropist' (felanþrøp is also common)
  • CaCCėn, CeCCėn, and CøCCėn = nouns, often an augmentative

Affixes

  • -an = forms agentives and adjectives
  • -in = collectives
    • lamusin 'charity'
  • -uþ = abstract noun
  • -i = forms adjectives
  • -iþ = forms adverbs
  • i- = non-, un-
    • ibyšari 'incorporeal'
    • iwøxli 'impossible'
  • -yr = someone who is characterized by X (from English)
    • wduȝyr 'know-it-all', from wduȝ 'knowledgeable'
  • -ri = -ry (from English)
    • kdėsri = sanctimoniousness, from kdės '(archaic) holy'
    • xal'anri = double standard or hypocrisy, from the agentive xal'an 'hypocrite' of √x-l-ʔ 'double'
  • afto- = self-
  • e- = a- (from ʔiC-, an assimilated form of the OTog preposition ʔin 'in'); these adjectives can usually only be predicative
    • e'est 'ablaze'
    • edarxy 'away'
    • eþal 'galore' (lit. a-mound)
    • emein 'drowned, lost forever', lit. awater
  • -byl = -able (from English -able and native abȝel 'to be able to')
  • þy- 're-'

Phrasebook

some phrases in Togarmite:

  • Slėm! - Hello! / Goodbye!
  • Slėm ȝlėxøm! - Hello! (formal)
  • Leilt tėb! / Num by tėb! - Good night! / Sleep well!
  • Jaum tėb! - Good day!
  • Exarus! / Exarus þax/þex/þaxøm! - Thanks!
  • Ȝem ryšan - Please / You're welcome
  • Þryhef þi - Excuse me, Pardon
  • Nėx nyhum - I'm sorry
  • Ma yn sem lax/lex/laxøm? - What's your name?
  • Yn sem li [name] - My name is [name]
  • Xeix wymar iþ [thing] in Þėgamiþ? - How do you say [thing] in Togarmite?
  • H' aþ/eþ/aþøm wydėber [language]? - Do you speak [language]?
  • Ȝem ryšan, mør že šėnėn - Please say it again
  • Hė lax/lex/laxøm - Here you go! (i.e. I just granted your request) (the source of the English expression is misinterpreted Togarmite)
    • Note: In Ethiopia it's spelled without the space.
  • Yn ryhaft li hu myli ȝem clėfi - My hovercraft is full of eels
  • En = Yes.
  • = No.

Sample texts

Schleicher

Yn xabš w' yn frasi

Xabš ly žė lė fė šamry ly jar frasi: had gor maȝrebt škul, had mol hemly xbur, wy had mol bennės by fiz. Yn xabš mar: "Mrur li yn leb, moran nėx wyrė bennės wyrxab frasi." Yn frasi mar: "Ažen, xabš! Mrur lanė yn leb moran nan wyrė žinė: bennės, ym bol, woši lid afau mylbast mum me šamry lyn xabš. Wy lėš lyn xabš iþ šamry." Moran yn xabš smaȝ žinė, hu mnaȝ lid yn šde.

Old Tog.:

An xabše wan φarasīn

Χabše, žė lė hawė šamre lawh, φarasīn yarʔe: yagōr ʔaħād marχabaθ šakūlaθ, wa-yaħmōl ʔaħād ħemle χabūr, wa-yaħmōl ʔaħād ħaφīzan ʔinės. Yāmār an χabše: Mār lī an lēb, bi-riʔėθī ʔinės rėχib φarasīn. Yāmārū an φarasīn: Sumaʕ an χabše! Mār lanė an lēb bi-riʔėθinė žīnė: ʔinės an baʕle yaʕšē lawh malbasaθ ħamūmaθ mēn šamre an χabšīn. Wa-lėš len-χabše šamre. Bi-šimėʕ an χabše žīnė, yamnāȝ ʔilė an šadi.

Hebrew:

הכבש והסוסים
כבש שכבר לא היה לו צמר ראה סוסים: אחד גרר עגלה כבדה, אחד נשא משא גדול, ואחד נשא בן אדם וזז מהר. אמר הכבש: "כואב לי לראות איך בן אדם רוכב סוסים." אמרו הסוסים: "הקשב, כבש, כואב לנו לראות זאת: בן אדם, האדון, עושה לעצמו בגד חמים מצמרו של הכבש. ולכבש כבר אין צמר." לאחר ששמע זאת, ברח הכבש לתוך המישור.

Lysėn þėgami, lysėn þlul

  • Had arþ, rab arþi; had galt, rab galti!
  • Jaumyn nėx wyxþab, amsyn nėx yxþøb; jaumyn nėx wytȝam, amsyn nėx ytȝøm!

A biology abstract

Nan wymdød yn þyglim efkarjotek meþycrer lyn wrišt TSP3 in Bruxorjon sponerču. TSP3 wykadek kinas kabelan rėxes ly prøtezenjon, mykėma bym mikrospørelata køtoknėji lyn ribosøm posatedek, wy xahus ly TSP3 rahibyn ma'man ly fėþ ym mojan ly karčin køboþrøtek. In þyxþøbt žinė nan wystydrex weþysmes þybhin xyli-ȝywur Rɪᴄᴇʀ-Jᴀʟɪɴꜱᴋɪ, žė ryxės TSP3 lid yn ȝaxuban føloxrøpsenas wykrė (p = 0.04) nyn øpotreløma ly køt Bruxorjon bri møran eþy'yfusi adenotoksen nmux. Ly þymacu žinė bė fėþ ramuzi mø'abjunė lid yn drės ly desklørøma sømbrøxi.

We measure the nucleating eukaryotic folding of the TSP3 gene in Bruchorium sponercii. TSP3 encodes a protezine-binding receptor kinase located at the cytotubular microsporellata of the quanticular ribosome, and malfunction of TSP3 is commonly believed to be the source of cybothrotic cancer. In this paper we prove using a Rɪᴇᴛᴢᴇʀ-Yᴀʟɪɴꜱᴋʏ double-blind test that TSP3 binding to the phyllochrypsinase inhibitor occurs (p = 0.04) in the hypotrellome of a healthy Bruchorium cell when adenotoxin concentrations are low. This research will have significant implications for the study of symbrychous descloroma.

Newton's laws of motion

I: Dbar wyšbaþ by demi, o by ȝyþėk enomorf, lulė ydraȝ wyparkes ȝal þež.

I: An object stays at rest, or at a constant speed, unless a force acts on it.

II: Yn šanuj nyn þyȝþik ly bšar hu myþxøni lid yn øþisi møþyfacar ȝal ym bšar; w' yn šanuj wykrė darxyn yn kau þykin ȝal žė øþisi ži bė møþyfacar ȝal.

II: The change in the momentum of a body is proportional to the force applied to the body; and the change occurs along the straight line on which that force is applied.

III: Iš ly xøl parkis iþ þyparkis is w' anteþet.

III: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

O how quickly the sculpture of life

O! Xma fiziþ ym myklaȝ ly heiwėþ
Šaber in temaša zytarter!
Ym mgiluþ lym malx ȝal yn þrøn lau
Bė xliliþ gruf dax by gali bor.
Aþøm, žė waþė mancabta hė,
Ȝabry hen yn Ylėh lawani ȝlėn arþ.
Xøl lanė mødajan ȝal ym parkisi lanė;
Hamnė wyhėb lid yn ȝni, w' agaþeržijėþ lid hawdud.

O how quickly the sculpture of life
Shattered into tiny fragments!
The splendor of the king on his throne
Is completely swept away by sea-waves.
Ye who come hither stationed here,
By the grace of God ye are guests on earth.
All of us are judged according to our actions;
Let us give to the needy, and do charity towards one another.

Warming Up To You

Weþyhmem lidax
Xenax aþ bė mėþ in xlėþ,
Nėx yrþybec nym mimuþ lax,
Ym mimuþ žė azė'en yn hakranuþ,
Yn ȝyli lyn wedȝy;
Yn gant žė lax sþul in žinė rybuȝ admyþ
Wy žė aþ bė nyžėr lid dwari.

Stairway To Heaven

Maȝlyþ lid yn Symeiniþ
Iš bolt žė hi šur
Xøl žė nėher že žahab
Wy hi wykna maȝlyþ lid yn symeiniþ

UDHR

Xøl nės mewølad rur w' is in akšoprepja wy žyxawi. Høm møþyhanan by ložeki wy synidisi wy høbu parkus lid hawdud in ruh l'ahwuþ.