New Lang: Ramyó

Since my modem was broken for the past week or so, meaning I couldn't waste
hours of time on the Internet, I started work on another language.  I'd
started on it before a couple times but couldn't get it right, but I think
this is a little better.

Anyway, it's for a kind of people called daimyo[1] (natively: /4Àmjó/).
Orthographizing this should be horribly difficult so I'll be using X-SAMPA
here for this posting (and actual IPA images when it goes to my website
later).  BTW 'll be using acute and grave (or + and -, for what can't take
them) for high and low pitch/tone/whatever respectively, because it's even
impossibler to read with all those _H and _R and _F and _L tags floating
around.

    Phonemic Inventory

Consonantals
         lab    dent       retr    pal    vel   glot
Stops   p   b   t   d     t`   d` c   J\ k   g   ?
Frics   p\  B v T   D z Z s`   z` C   j\ x   G   h
Nasals  m_0 m   n_0 n     n`_0 n` J_0 J  N_0 n
Rhotes           4 r
Laterals         l K\

Semivowels
    5  w  j  3\`_^
(that last one is probably a very bad analysis of the sound..it's like "wr")

Vowels (short and long)
    i      u
    E 2 7~ o
      { A

...

    Root system

Native roots are not pronouncible.  They have defined consonants and pitch,
but no vowel (this is added later).  An example root is /h(+)4Z/ "countable
on one hand / less than five[2] / few".  The basic meaning of most roots is
given the same as the adjective, as this is the simplest producible form.
(Borrowed polysyllabic words may create roots that have vowels in them; frex
/m2-4(-)k/ "glowing / incandescent".)
...
The adjective stem is produced by adding a vowel into the stem and suffixing
/i/.  For /h(+)4Z/ the adjective stem is /hú4Zì/.  (The accent on the /i/ is
dependent on the vowel added.)  The adjective stem is actually a complete
word by itself, either.
...
The noun form is produced by applying a nominalizer to the adjective stem.
Suffixed nmlzrs with initial vowels drop the final /i/ of the adjective but
keep the pitch; those with initial consonants keep the /i/ unchanged.

    /rùmbì/   "three"
    /rùmbÈtí/ "triad" = /rùmbì/ + /Etí/

    /pí4ì/      "rainy"
    /pí4ì?7~:-+/ "rain" = /pí4ì/ + /?7~:/

    /4Àmí/   "daimyo"
    /4Àmjó/  "daimyo" = /4Àmí/ + /jo/

The nominalizer used depends on the class.  (I'm not sure whether they're
noun classes or adjective classes yet.)  There are at least twelve classes.
[/Etí/ is VIII (size and quantity), /?7~:/ is II (motions, actions), /jo/ is
X (animates).]

I know the noun stem is at least an independent word as an agent or a
subject.  I don't know yet if as a patient or other role it will take extra
endings.

Nouns are not marked for number, although a number adjective can be
prepended:

    /pí:cì4Àmjó/ "one daimyo" (/pí:cì/ "one")
    /rùmbì4Â:mjó/ "three daimyo" (/rùmbì/ "three")
        (the /Â/ because by "inference" (position) it has to have high
         and by "inheritance" (the root) it has to have low, so it lengthens
         and becomes falling: high-low)
...
The verb stem is produced by adding a vowel into the stem (which is
different from the adjective one, but corresponds) and suffixing /A/.  For
/p(+)4/ "rainy" the verb stem is /pÉ4Á/.

The verb stem can never stand alone; it must carry what is basically an
evidential marker.   There are three of these.

    /pÉ4ÁTò/
        (with /To/, meaning firsthand knowledge: It is raining, I know it)
    /pÉ4ÁkE3\`_^/
        (with /kE3\`_^/, meaning no knowledge: It may be raining)
    /pÉ4Ápùkì/
        (with /pukì/, meaning secondhand knowledge: It is raining, so I
hear)

Verbs are not marked for tense.
...

    Throwing it all together

The subject of a verb is prepended to the verb.

    /pí4ì?7~-+mÈltÁTó/ "The rain is warm". [/m(-)lt/, "warm"]
    /NÁ4kÊ:?ÉmÁTò/     "I'm/we're afraid".
                        [/N(+)4k/ with vowel repeat, "this";
                         /?(+)m/, "fearful"]

Negation:

    /mÀw?ípÉ4A:-+Tó/  "It is not raining". [/m(-)w?/ "not"]

Intensive and iterative are actually root additions, not compounding:

    /pÉ4ÁJi:-+Tó/  "It's raining heavily" [-/Jí/]
    /k2-m2-4î:kì/  "blinking, flashing on and off" [/k/- with vowel repeat]

**

Um, that's basically it for now.  Feedback?  Any bits actually impossible?


    *Muke!

[1] No, not feudal Japan.  Think actually more like Manhattan-clan-type
gargoyles sans petrificatibility.
[2] Daimyo have four fingers a hand...

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