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Re: Lexicons and Langauge Borrowing

From:JOEL MATTHEW PEARSON <mpearson@...>
Date:Wednesday, March 17, 1999, 2:56
> On Mon, 15 Mar 1999, FFlores wrote: > > > Borrowing words (lexicon) from natlangs is another thing. I wouldn't > > judge anybody who does that (anybody in the list?). You might borrow > > words if you are deriving a futuristic language based on an actual > > language. I don't do that, and don't borrow words from any natlang, > > at least at a conscious level.
Most of the vocabulary for Tokana is completely made up (like Sally, I carry around a little book with me so that I can write down meanings that need words attached to them, and occasionally words that need meanings attached to them). Occasionally, however, the odd unconscious or semi-conscious borrowing sneaks in. Some examples: "san" = "blood" An obvious (but unconscious) borrowing from French "sang" "aun" = "if" Apparently borrowed from Middle / Early Modern English "an" = "if". "lalia" = "play" "lalitsan, kilalitsan" = "plaything, toy" More-or-less conscious borrowing from Malagasy "milalao" = "play" "toun" = "stone, rock" Influence from English "stone" (which has a very appropriate sound, in my opinion) Those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. There are no doubt others - including many that I'm not even aware of, I'm sure. My general strategy for making up words is to decide on a meaning that needs to be lexicalised, and then go from there. Sometimes I make do with a compound based on existing roots. Other times - especially if the meaning is a 'basic' one which should by rights have its own root - I just let the proper combination of sounds 'come to me'. As a result, a lot of sound symbolism and onomatopoeia has crept into Tokana. Matt.