Re: Parsing Open Syllables

*PLEASE* don't start new threads by replying to old ones, it's
*incredibly* annoying. Almost every email client that I know of has a
built-in address book and/or supports an external one!

--
Tristan.

On Tue, 13 Jan 2004, Gary Shannon wrote:

> So I'm thinking maybe it's about time I actually
> complete a full conlang with a grammar that covers all
> the bases and a vocabulary a few thousand words or
> more.  All my conlangs seem to get halfway there at
> most.
>
> So I'm putting together the preliminary material on
> what approaches this new, improved, destined to be
> completed conlang will use and my thoughts turned to
> open syllables.
>
> I've always favored open syllables.  They are neat and
> tidy and east to synthesize.  But there's a parsing
> probelem with the spoken language.  When you hear
> "konali" is that "ko nali" or is it "kona li"?  Longer
> sequences of sounds get even more difficult to parse.
> So here's the solution that occured to me as I was
> dozing off last night:
>
> Words take the form CVV or VCVV or CVCVV or VCVCVV or
> CVCVCVV or VCVCVCVV, etc., where the final syllable
> must always have a vowel pair and no other syllable in
> a word is permitted to have a vowel pair.
>
> If you hear "konialiu" there is only one way to parse
> it: "konia liu", since "ko nialiu" breaks the vowel
> pair rule.
>
> Words may occasionally end in three vowels as in
> "taui" but when that happens they are invariably
> pronounced with a glottal stop after the first vowel
> "ta'ui" and the main stress for the word falls on the
> first vowel after the stop.
>
> When the final vowels of a word are the same as in
> "tapii" they are separated buy a glottal stop:
> "tapi'i" and the main stress for the word falls on the
> vowel _before_ the stop.
>
> I'm thinling my alphabet will be 21 letters; the Roman
> alphabet minus C,J,Q,Y,X.
>
> --gary
>
--
Tristan

Reply