Table of Contents


Tsaihänni

Intro

Tsaihänni is the first language I've put serious thought into for a while (as of 8 Nov. 2015). This document is a sketchpad of all I've written on it thus far. Many things are missing or incomplete (phoneme frequencies, basic lists for TAM/cases/etc), but I feel that it's ready enough for feedback. Please, once you're done, go back to the thread if that's what brought you here and tell me what you think. If you don't really want to look at the phonology, hover over the sidebar to the left and click on "Grammar Testing Bed" for all sorts of examples.

Tsaihänni

tsai=hä-nni

tsɑ͡içɐnːi

1PL=talk-NMZ

tsai=hä-nni

tsɑ͡içɐnːi

1PL=talk-NMZ

'*our speech*'

Culture

There is no culture yet, but I imagine that there will be soon. (TODO).

Phonology

Phonemes Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Back
Nasal Hard m n ɲ ŋ
Round ɲʷ ŋʷ
Soft ɲʲ ŋʲ
Plosive Hard p b t d k g
Round pʷ bʷ tʷ dʷ kʷ gʷ
Soft pʲ bʲ tʲ dʲ kʲ gʲ
Affricate Hard t͡s d͡z t͡ɕ d͡ʑ
Round bʷ͜vʷ tʷ͜sʷ dʷ͜zʷ tʷ͜ɕʷ dʷ͜ʑʷ
Soft bʲ͜vʲ tʲ͜ʃʲ dʲ͜ʒʲ tʲ͜ɕʲ dʲ͜ʑʲ
Fricative Hard f v s z ɕ ʑ ç x ʝ~ɣ χ~ħ ʁ~ʕ
Soft fʲ vʲ ʃʲ ʒʲ ɕʲ ʑʲ xʲ ɣʲ χʲ ʀj~ʀ̆j
Approximants w l lʲ ɥ j
Graphemes Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Back
Nasal Hard m n gn ng
Round mw nw gnw ngw
Soft mj nj gnj ngj
Plosive Hard p b t d k g
Round pw bw tw dw kw gw
Soft pj bj tj dj kj gj
Affricate Hard ts dz tsh dzh
Round bvw tsw dzw tshw dzhw
Soft bvj tsj dzj tshj dzhj
Fricative Hard f v s z sh zh h kh gh hh r
Soft fj vj sj zj shj zhj khj ghj hhj rj
Approximants w l lj ui j

Phonemes Front Center Back
High i ʏ~y ɨ u
Mid-High e~ɛ ɪ o
Mid-Low ɛ̞ œ ə ɔ
Low æ~a ɑ
Dipthongs e͡i œ͡y o͡i ɑ͡ɪ ɐ͡i ɑ͡ɔ ɐ͡o
Graphemes Front Center Back
High i ü ï u
Mid-High e ì o
Mid-Low ë ö a å
Low æ aa
Dipthongs e͡i œ͡y o͡i ɑ͡ɪ ɐ͡i ɑ͡ɔ ɐ͡o

Syllable Structure

The Structure is: (F)(C|R)V(j|ʁ|l|w)(C)(s|ɕ)(t)[1].

TODO: Phoneme frequency.

Stress and Isochrony

Primary stress almost always falls on the penultimate syllable. Secondary stress is more finicky and needs to be sorted out (TODO).

TODO: The rest.

Basic Grammar and Syntax

The default word order is SVO, but parts can shift around in a non-configurationalmanner, with less important or older elements dropping toward the end of the sentence.

There are no noun classes, save a vestigial class for animate females and endeared terms, with its usage transitioning toward only the latter.

Verbs

Ye Table of Declensions

A Singular Plural
1 mä- -
2 -
3 e-
3F ta- tü-
A Singular Plural
1
2
3
3F

Some ideas

Grammar Testing Bed

Sample Sentences

Dao gwöügn.

dao

dɑ͡ɔ

man[ABS]

gwöü-gn

gʷœ͡yɲ

[3S.A]eat-ANTIP

dao gwöü-gn

dɑ͡ɔ gʷœ͡yɲ

man[ABS] [3S.A]eat-ANTIP

The man eats (it).

Daom egwöü må.

dao-m

dɑ͡ɔm

man-ERG

e-gwöü

ˈe.gʷœ͡y

3S.ERG-eat[3S.P]

bread[ABS]

dao-m e-gwöü må

dɑ͡ɔm ˈe.gʷœ͡y mɔ

man-ERG 3S.ERG-eat[3S.P] bread[ABS]

The man eats the bread.

Må gwöüyn.

bread[ABS]

gwöü-yn

gʷœ͡yɥn

eat[3S.P]-PASS

må gwöü-yn

mɔ gʷœ͡yɥn

bread[ABS] eat[3S.P]-PASS

The bread is eaten.

Tshïh legwöügn.

tshï-h

tɕɨç

3[ABS]-PL

le-gwöü-gn

ˈle.gʷœ͡yɲ

3PL.A-eat-ANTIP

tshï-h le-gwöü-gn

tɕɨç ˈle.gʷœ͡yɲ

3[ABS]-PL 3PL.A-eat-ANTIP

They are eating (something, e.g. a meal).

Gwöükwä!

gwöü-kwä

gʷœ͡ykʷa

gwöü-kwä

gʷœ͡ykʷa

Eat!

Vrom tapit sä.

vro-m

vʁom

3S.F-ERG

ta-pi-t

ˈtɑ.pɪt

3S.F.A-set[3S.P]-PST

it[ABS]

vro-m ta-pi-t sä

vʁom ˈtɑ.pɪt sɐ

3S.F-ERG 3S.F.A-set[3S.P]-PST it[ABS]

She set it down.

Vro tapisht.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

ta-pi-sh-t

ˈtɑ.pɪɕt

3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST

vro ta-pi-sh-t

vʁo ˈtɑ.pɪɕt

3S.F[ABS] 3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST

She set herself down. (She sat down.)

Vro tapishtign.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

ta-pi-sh-t-(i)gn

ˈtɑ.pɪɕ.tɪɲ

3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST-ANTIP

vro ta-pi-sh-t-(i)gn

vʁo ˈtɑ.pɪɕ.tɪɲ

3S.F[ABS] 3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST-ANTIP

Reflexive verbs are always intransitive, and thus cannot be antipassive.

Vrom tapisht.

vro-m

vʁom

3S.F-ERG

ta-pi-sh-t

ˈtɑ.pɪɕt

3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST

vro-m ta-pi-sh-t

vʁom ˈtɑ.pɪɕt

3S.F-ERG 3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST

Reflexive verbs are always intransitive, and thus cannot take an ergative argument.

Vro tapimt.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

ta-pi-m-t

ˈtɑ.pɪmt

3S.F.A-set-STAT-PST

vro ta-pi-m-t

vʁo ˈtɑ.pɪmt

3S.F[ABS] 3S.F.A-set-STAT-PST

She sat. (She was sitting.)

Vro tapimtign.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

ta-pi-m-t(i)-gn

tɑˈpɪm.tɪɲ

3S.F.A-set-STAT-PST-ANTIP

vro ta-pi-m-t(i)-gn

vʁo tɑˈpɪm.tɪɲ

3S.F[ABS] 3S.F.A-set-STAT-PST-ANTIP

Stative verbs are always intransitive, and thus cannot be antipassive.

Vro tapimsht.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

ta-pi-m-sh-t

ˈtɑ.pɪmɕt

3S.F.A-set-STAT-REFL-PST

vro ta-pi-m-sh-t

vʁo ˈtɑ.pɪmɕt

3S.F[ABS] 3S.F.A-set-STAT-REFL-PST

A verb cannot be both stative and reflexive.

Vro tapisht shönen.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

ta-pi-sh-t

tɑˈpɪɕt

3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST

shön-en

ˈɕœn.ɛn

quick-ADV

vro ta-pi-sh-t shön-en

vʁo tɑˈpɪɕt ˈɕœn.ɛn

3S.F[ABS] 3S.F.A-set-REFL-PST quick-ADV

She sat quickly.

Vro natapishät shönen.

vro

vʁo

3S.F[ABS]

na-ta-pi-sh-ät

nɑ.tɑˈpɪɕ.ɐt

EVID-3S.F.A-set-REFL-FUT

shön-en

ˈɕœn.ɛn

quick-ADV

vro na-ta-pi-sh-ät shön-en

vʁo nɑ.tɑˈpɪɕ.ɐt ˈɕœn.ɛn

3S.F[ABS] EVID-3S.F.A-set-REFL-FUT quick-ADV

She will sit quickly.

Dzjï napishätkja shönen fiyenës

dzjï

dʑʲɨ

2S[ABS]

na-pi-sh-ät-kja

nɑ.piˈɕɐt.kʲa

EVID-[2S.A]set-REFL-FUT-IMP

shön-en

ˈɕœn.ɛn

quick-ADV

fiy-ën=ës

fiˈjɛn.ɛs

smooth-ADV=and

dzjï na-pi-sh-ät-kja shön-en fiy-ën=ës

dʑʲɨ nɑ.piˈɕɐt.kʲa ˈɕœn.ɛn fiˈjɛn.ɛs

2S[ABS] EVID-[2S.A]set-REFL-FUT-IMP quick-ADV smooth-ADV=and

You will sit quickly and smoothly.

Em mähät i vro

e-m

em

1S-ERG

mä-hä-t

mɐˈçɐt

1S.A-say[3S.O]-PST

i

i

PREP

vro

vʁo

3S.F

e-m mä-hä-t i vro

em mɐˈçɐt i vʁo

1S-ERG 1S.A-say[3S.O]-PST PREP 3S.F

I said (it) to her.

Em mähänwäsjt i sä

e-m

em

1S-ERG

mä-hä-gnj-äsj-t

mɐçɐɲjɐi̯ʃʲtʲ

1S.A-say-APL-3S.F.O-PST

i

i

PREP

it

e-m mä-hä-gnj-äsj-t i sä

em mɐçɐɲjɐi̯ʃʲtʲ i sɐ

1S-ERG 1S.A-say-APL-3S.F.O-PST PREP it

I told (her) it.

Phrasebook

Erlä hhaf!

erlä

eʁlɐ

morning[ABS]

hhaf

ħɑf

hello

erlä hhaf

eʁlɐ ħɑf

morning[ABS] hello

Good morning!
Colloquially “Ëlläkhakh!”, a corruption of the original phrase.

Tshja, tshja. Mïnyi ghunnje is.

tshja

tɕʲɑ

yes

tshja

tɕʲɑ

yes

mïn-yi

ˈmɨn.ji

very

ghun-nje

ˈɣun.nʲe

big-GEN

is

is

[3S.A]be[3S.O]

tshja tshja mïn-yi ghun-nje is

tɕʲɑ tɕʲɑ ˈmɨn.ji ˈɣun.nʲe is

yes yes very big-GEN [3S.A]be[3S.O]

[Yes, yes. It's very big.](https://www.reddit.com/r/conlangs/comments/3s3m9s/how_many_words_are_in_your_conlangs/cwtzlgv)

Sentences for Testing Conlang Syntax

Tjæ såkhäng.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så-kh-äng

sɔxɐŋ

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-GNO

tjæ så-kh-äng

tʲæ sɔxɐŋ

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-GNO

The sun illuminates. (*gnomic*)

Tjæ såkh.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så-kh

sɔx

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS

tjæ så-kh

tʲæ sɔx

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS

The sun illuminates. (The sun is shining.)

Tjæ såkht.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så-kh-t

sɔxt

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-PST

tjæ så-kh-t

tʲæ sɔxt

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-PST

The sun illuminated. (The sun shone.)

Tjæ nasåkhät.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

na-så-kh-ät

nɑˈsɔx.ɐt

EVID-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

tjæ na-så-kh-ät

tʲæ nɑˈsɔx.ɐt

sun[ABS] EVID-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

The sun will shine. (The speaker knows this to be true.)

Also:

Tjæ såkhätnäng.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så-kh-ätn-äng

sɔˈxɐt.nɐŋ

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT-GNO

tjæ så-kh-ätn-äng

tʲæ sɔˈxɐt.nɐŋ

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT-GNO

The sun will shine. (It is general knowledge so.)

Tjæ nuiösåkhät.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

nuiö-så-kh-ät

nɥœˈsɔ.xɐt

HSY-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

tjæ nuiö-så-kh-ät

tʲæ nɥœˈsɔ.xɐt

sun[ABS] HSY-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

The sun will shine. (The speaker has heard this to be true.)

Tjæ nusåkhät.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

nu-så-kh-ät

nuˈsɔ.xɐt

INFER-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

tjæ nu-så-kh-ät

tʲæ nuˈsɔ.xɐt

sun[ABS] INFER-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

The sun will shine. (The speaker infers.)

Tjæ maisåkhät

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

mai-så-kh-ät

mɑ͡iˈsɔ.xɐt

UNSURE-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

tjæ mai-så-kh-ät

tʲæ mɑ͡iˈsɔ.xɐt

sun[ABS] UNSURE-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

The sun will shine. (The speaker is uncertain, but thinks it likely.)

Tjæ sååkhëni

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så~å-kh-ëni

ˈsɔːx.ɛni

[3S.A]illuminate~PERF.CONT-IMPRS-PERF.CONT

tjæ så~å-kh-ëni

tʲæ ˈsɔːx.ɛni

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate~PERF.CONT-IMPRS-PERF.CONT

The sun has been shining.

Tjæ såkh mïn

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så-kh

sɔx

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS

mïn

mɨn

more

tjæ så-kh mïn

tʲæ sɔx mɨn

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS more

The sun is shining again.

Tjæ nasåkhät erläb.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

na-så-kh-ät

nɑˈsɔ.xɐt

EVID-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT

erlä-b

eʁlɐb

morning-ESS

tjæ na-så-kh-ät erlä-b

tʲæ nɑˈsɔ.xɐt eʁlɐb

sun[ABS] EVID-[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS-FUT morning-ESS

The sun will shine tomorrow.

Tjæ såkh hhlien.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

så-kh

sɔx

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS

hhli-en

ˈħli.e̞n

blind-ADV

tjæ så-kh hhli-en

tʲæ sɔx ˈħli.e̞n

sun[ABS] [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS blind-ADV

The sun shines brightly. (The sun shines blindingly.)

Tjæ hhliyi såkh.

tjæ

tʲæ

sun[ABS]

hhli-yi

ˈħli.ji

blind[ABS]-PTCP

så-kh

sɔx

[3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS

tjæ hhli-yi så-kh

tʲæ ˈħli.ji sɔx

sun[ABS] blind[ABS]-PTCP [3S.A]illuminate-IMPRS

The bright sun shines. (The blinding sun shines.)

Ghjoh immje sigaltign.

ghjo-h

ɣʲoç

person[ABS]-PL

im-nje

imːʲe̞

all-GEN

si-gal-t(i)-gn

siˈgɑl.tɪɲ

3PL.A-shout-PST-ANTIP

ghjo-h im-nje si-gal-t(i)-gn

ɣʲoç imːʲe̞ siˈgɑl.tɪɲ

person[ABS]-PL all-GEN 3PL.A-shout-PST-ANTIP

All the people shouted.

Ghjoh sunnje sigaltign.

ghjo-h

ɣʲoç

person[ABS]-PL

sun-nje

sunːʲe̞

some-GEN

si-gal-t(i)-gn

siˈgɑl.tɪɲ

3PL.A-shout-PST-ANTIP

ghjo-h sun-nje si-gal-t(i)-gn

ɣʲoç sunːʲe̞ siˈgɑl.tɪɲ

person[ABS]-PL some-GEN 3PL.A-shout-PST-ANTIP

Some of the people shouted.

TODO: The rest of these.


  1. The final (t) only appears when not preceeded by a /t/ or /d/. ↩︎