Re: How to start to make a language?

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----- Original Message -----
From: Carlos Reyes
To: CONLANG@LISTSERV.BROWN.EDU
Sent: Tuesday, August 06, 2002 11:01 AM
Subject: How to start to make a language?


Hello Everybody :
I have sent many emails about how to start to make a language. I'm going to
start Mäpnéet o Mapnêt. But I have not any knowledge of phonetic and
grammar. And , I hope you can give me an advice, since you have greater
knowledge of the area. I am thirteen years old and this one is the first
language that I am going to create. Please, Just I've got a little words,
like Hello, and Bye.
Please, I hope you can help me.
I speak spanish very fluently, because is my native language - Hablo español
muy fluido , porque es mi lengua nativa.
Bye!
Carlos Reyes

>>
Hi.

Well, I'm only 14, and started my lang Zitwbata last year. Also, please use
plain text.  Many cannot read HTML text here.

First thing to do is the Phonology.  The Consonants are determined by place
and how they are formed.

A stop is complete blockage of air and release (ie. English t, d, b, k,
etc.)
A fricative is like in english <th>, <sh>, and spanish <j> allowing some air
through, causing your tounge/lips to vibrate.
A Nasal is produced by not releasing, and allowing the sound to pass through
your nose, ie. English <n>, <m>.
An approximant is when you move your tongue a

Bilabial is with both lips <p>, <b>
Labiodental is with lips and teeth <f>, <v>
dental is with tongue and teeth <th>, <th>(soft)
Aleovelar is tongue and the aleovelar ridge, abouve the teeth...<t>, <d>
Palatal is at the top of the mouth <y>
Retroflex is the tip of the tounge curling back (no English examples)
Velar is the back of the tounge with the back(ish) of the mouth - <k>, <g>,
spanish <j>
Glottal is with the throat <h>

Vowels are dtermined by height and how far back. and whether they are
rounded or not.

front
high <ee>, spanish <i>
mid <e>
low <a> as in hat

mid
mid - the second 'o' in potato

back
high  <u> as in bus
mid <o> as in hot
low <a> as in father.

Grammar:
First, work out
A) Gender or not?
B) Cases?
C) Person inflected on Verbs
D) Which tenses on verbs?
E)Voices?

With Gender, it is important to remember it is not limited to masculine and
feminine.  Yuo can have neuter, or even say, a gender for things made of
rocks, or bark, or whatever.

Cases, only knowing spanish and English, cases may be tricky.  In some
languages they are used in place of some prepositions.

In the common language from which most European languages are derived there
are the following cases

Nominative the thing that does something
Accusative the thing that something is done to
Vocative The thing that is being adressed
Dative the thing thatsomething is done to or for
Ablative the thing something is done from
Locative the thing that something is in or on
Genetive the thing that something is of

Prepostions may still be nescessery, using wither the dative or ablative
case, normally. Or sometimes the accusative.

My Lang Zitwbata, has 4 cases, Accusative, Nominative, Dative and Genetive.
The Dative takes all prepositions.

Next, is person inflected ona verb ie. Spanish <llama>, he calls, <llamas>,
you call, <llamo> I call, etc. Is that done?

Next how is tense done? Present, Past, and Future, that is: is it done by an
extension on the verb, like in english, to bathe, I bathed, or by another
word with a past participle, I have bathed, or a unique way?

The same with the future.

Next, what about voice?

I am being stung by wasps and the wasps are stinging me are the same, but
you reverse the roles of subject and object...does your language do this?

There is a lot more, ie. Pronouns, etc. But that should get you started.
Afterwards, translate the babel passage of the bible, making up words as you
go along.