Re: Spoken Thoughts ( My second, better formed, non crappy Language)

On Thu, 28 Dec 2000, Eruanno none wrote:

> Halo,
> Some of you may know me, others, may not.  All the same:
Welcome!

> With all my knowledge ( which was very incomplete at the time ( and still is
> quite considerably insufficient )), I formed the language titled Eowend.
All of us are considerably insufficient in knowledge about languages.
Some know a little more than others, that's all.

> Needless to say, it being my first attempt, it failed miserably.
> I had no cases, no distinction between verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs,
> and what not...
Ah, just like that miserable failure among languages, Chinese!
Or that miserable failure among constructed languages, Loglan/Lojban!
(In other words, not all languages look like (Elven-)Latin.)

> Here is where you come in ( and I thank you for your time if you have made
> it thus far ).  I cannot decide what I should do about the articles, IE: The
> thing, compared to A thing.
Well, since you are making an art language, nobody can tell you what to
put in it.  There are four main options: both definite and indefinite
articles, like Germanic and Romance; definite only, like Celtic and
Greek and Semitic; indefinite only, like Iranian; neither, like Latin.
Personally I kinda favor either definite only or neither.

--
John Cowan                                   cowan@ccil.org
One art/there is/no less/no more/All things/to do/with sparks/galore
        --Douglas Hofstadter