Re: Alphabet

--- (from SuomenkieliMaa) ---
So, what sort of alphabet/phonetic system did you
dabble with?  I, for one, particularly relish
languages which do not make use of Roman letters.
-----------------------------

I tried to make something that worked similarly to
Roman letters, but not exactly the same.  I wanted it
to look vaguely familiar, such as when an English
speaker looks at Greek writing.  My "phonetic
discoveries" consisted of deriving p, b, and m (as well
as other similar sound relationships) from the same
basic letter, with a "hard (voiceless)" marker and
a "don't open your mouth (nasal)" marker to
differentiate.  I might still try to do something like
that, but in studying more languages, I've realized
that (at least to my own knowledge) no writing systems
in existence actually do that.

Perhaps I can play historian and have archaic versions
of the letters that are similar to what I created
before; and then later, more evolved versions that give
each letter a more distinctive feel.

I see a lot of people discussing ways to write their
languages using Roman letters.  Do most people here
tend to create new alphabets or do they stick to
established writing systems?  I suppose that each would
have its benefits.  Even if I created a beautiful and
supremely useful new alphabet, I'd still get more
instight out of looking at my language-to-be in the
Roman alphabet, which speaks more directly to me.

 - John

Replies