Re: Universal Translation Language

> > In my language, adjective-noun seems very awkward, so I'm wondering how
> > you came to the above conclusion!
>=20
> Genitive chains, e.g. "the king's messenger's horse's hoof's shoe's nail"
> vs. "nail of shoe of hoof of horse of messenger of king". I like the 1st,
> can't tolerate the 2nd, so it has to be GN ... then that drags the
> adjectives leftward as well, though some natlangs do have GN with NA orde=
r.

Ah, I see we have opposite tastes in genitive (<=3D=3D> adjectival) chains!
I like putting the "root" of the whole construction first and letting the
modifiers trail after, for the reasons that
  a) it seems natural to put the most essential part of the chain first, an=
d
  b) putting the modifiers after the root means you can elaborate on the ro=
ot
     as much as you want without having to decide upon your description
     beforehand, e.g. "the lake blue and calm and relecting the mountains a=
nd
     the clouds like a giant silver mirror, etc.", rather than "the blue...
     calm... lake, which reflects the mountains and the clouds like a giant
     silver mirror."  You see, you're forced to put any longer descriptions
     after the noun anyways, even in English.
  c) adjectives and verbs are the same thing in Arov=EBn; the shift from ve=
rb
     to adjective and back is simply a shift of focus -- so it's reasonable
     to have adjectives follow the noun if verbs do.  Inversion is possible
     in both cases, but it's more common for verbs.
    =20

> But I've been putting adjectives-with-objects to the right of the noun,
> e.g. "bona minfemo vadia xolo =3D pretty little-girl going-to school",
> which is likely incorrect or inoptimal in 12 different ways. Also
> I end up compounding in modifier-modified order, maybe not so good.
> It's a sort of relexed New Jersey 1960's English after all.
So 'vadia' is thought of as an adjective rather than a progressive verb?
In Arov=EBn:
  Tinv=EByl g=EBle vrinda by=EBlvi=F1en.  (vrindo as verb)
  Tinv=EByl g=EBle vrinde by=EBlvi=F1ayne.  (vrindo as adjective)

But so do I compound in modifier-modified order -- that's what distinguishe=
s a
modifier in a compound from an adjective modifier:
  v=EByl tinde  --  tindye v=EByl  --  tinv=EByl ( =3D tind-v=EByl)


Josh

        _/_/      _/_/  _/_/_/_/   Joshua Shinavier            =20
         _/        _/  _/         Loorenstrasse 74, Zimmer B321=20
        _/        _/  _/_/_/_/   CH-8053 Z=FCrich              =20
 _/    _/  _/    _/        _/   Switzerland                 =20
_/_/_/_/  _/_/_/_/  _/_/_/_/   jshinavi@g26.ethz.ch

Danov=EBn pages: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Crete/5555/ven.htm