Re: New Language

I am working on a conlang with an online friend.  The name of this
language is Kinikte, -te = language, the people who speak it are the
Kinikxe, and their homeland is Kiniklin.

Phonemes
Stops: p t k b d g
Nasals: m n n'/ñ (n' and ñ are simply different romanizations)
Fricatives: f s x v z j h
   X and J are /S/ and /Z/ respectively.  /f/ and /v/ are probably
   labiodental.
Liquids: l r
Glides: w y
Vowels: i e ay u o a
   ay represents /a/ or /&/, a represents /A/; ay is often written as a
   if there is no ambiguity (see below)
Syllable: C(l,r,w,y)V(C)
   h, w, and y cannot be syllably final.
   We haven't decided on exactly what combinations are legal.
Voiceless stops, nasals, voiceless fricatives, and liquids can all be
geminate.  Doubled voiced stops (which can occur in inflections) become
nasal-stop sequences, e.g., bb -> mb, doubled voiced fricatives are
degeminated, e.g., vv -> v

Vowel harmony: All vowels must be either front or back (recent loan
   words might violate this), for this reason, {ay} only needs to be
   written in words containing only low vowels
S/X and Z/J: Originally, s and x were allophones, as were z and j.  X
   and J occured before front vowels, S and Z before back vowels.
   That's still true in native words, and is active in inflectional
   morphology, but loan words have caused occurences of s and z before
   front vowels, and x and j before back ones.

Assimilation: Generally speaking, voice assimilates rightward, so that
pz -> ps, bs -> bz, ms -> mz.  An exception is prefixes.
Consonant-final prefixes assimilate to the root, ex-geges -> ejgeges (I
erred).  Nasal-final prefixes normally are an exception, e.g., an-kotus
-> ankotus (I see), but auxiliaries are an exception, an-sogas ->
anzogas (I can).

Minimal Word: All words, with the exception of gramatical words, such as
postpositions, conjunctions, unstressed pronouns, and the like, must be
at least two syllables.  Some roots are monosyllabic, but if they occur
without affixes, then -i/-u is added to the end, -yi/-wu if the root is
vowel-final.  For example, the root mok (fish) becomes moku in the
nomative singular, which normally carries no suffix.

Stress: Stress is bidirectional in Kinikte.  The primary stress is
placed on the penultimate syllable.  Secondary stress is on odd-numbered
syllables, except that the antepenult is never stressed.  For example:
(Using accutes for primary stress, grave for secondary)
Hantákex (I bite)
Hàntikákex (I am bitten)
Hàntikakéxxi (I am not bitten)
Hàntaketákex (I chew)
Hàntikàketákex (I am chewed)
Hàntikàketakéxxi (I am not chewed)

Stressed vowels in open syllables are automatically lengthened.  E.g.,
[han'ta:keS]

Morphology
Verbs
Format for all affixes will be C/V, that is, the form used with
consonants followed by the form used for vowels, so hex-/hetx- means,
"use hex- before consonants, hetx- before vowels", also, keep in mind
that vowel harmony is active, as is the s/x and z/j alternations, so
that prefix actually has four forms, hex-, hos-, hetx-, hots-; front is
the default form
Tense
Tense is marked by prefixes
Remote Past (Before yesterday): Hex-/hetx-
Distant Past (Yesterday): He-/h-
Past (Earlier today): Ne-/Ney-
Near Past (Just happened): Lep-/Lepp-
Present: Han-/hann-
Near Future: Tik-/Tikk-
Future: Gi-/Gitt-
Distant Future: Ti-/Tiv-
Remote Future: Hij-/Hidj-
Note that Lep- becomes Lem- before b-, while Tik- becomes Tin'- before
g-, because of voicing assimilation + the ban on doubled voiced stops,
while hex- and hij- become he- and hi- before initial j; ho- and hu-
before initial z.

Voice
Voice is marked with an infix that precedes the first vowel
Active: -
Passive: -ik-
Reflexive: -ix-
Reciprocative: -ar-

Mood/Person
Combination mood and person are marked with affixes
Declarative 1st Person: -xa/-x
Negative 1st Person: -xi/-xxi
Positive Question 1st Person: -re/-r
Negative Question 1st Person: -xir/-xxir
Declarative 2nd Person: -kay/-k
Neg. 2nd: -i/-yi (-u/-wu)
Pos. Q. 2nd: -me/-m
Neg. Q. 2nd: -im/-yim
Dec. 3rd: -
Neg. 3rd: -fi/-ffi
Pos. Q. 3rd: -ne/-n
Neg. Q. 3rd: -fin/-ffin

Nouns
Nouns are inflected for 9 cases and 3 numbers (singular, dual, plural)
          Sing          Dual          Plural
Intrans   -             -xi/-x        -ki/-k
Ergative  -             -xi/-xxi      -ki/-kki
Prim Obj  -im/-m        -xim/-xxim    -kim/-kkim
Sec Obj   -ep/-p        -xep/-xxep    -kep/-kkep
Construct -ij/-j        -xij/-xxij    -kij/-kkij
Locative  -iv/-v        -xiv/-xxiv    -kiv/-kkiv
Allative  -val          -xival/-xfal  -kival/-kfal
Ablative  -var          -xivar/-xfar  -kivar/-kfar

Intransitive is used with intransitive verbs
Primary Object refers to the direct object of a monotransitive verb, or
the indirect object of a ditransitive verb.  Secondary object is the
direct object of a ditransitive verb.  E.g.:
The man-intrans fell
The man-erg hit the boy-PO
The man-erg gave the boy-PO a cake-SO
Passive converts the Primary object to ergative/intransitive.  Thus:
The boy-intrans was hit
The boy-erg was given a cake-SO
Possessives are indicated by inflecting the *possessed* noun in the
construct case.  Thus:
The boy's father bought a cake
The boy-erg father-const bought cake-PO

Adjectives
Adjectives are inflected like nouns.  Degrees of comparison are marked
with suffixes:
Comparative: -pi/-ppi
Superlative: -je/-j
Equalitative: -te/-tte
Adverb: -ra/-rra
Adjectives precede the noun.

--
Cenedl heb iaith, cenedl heb galon
A nation without a language is a nation without a heart - Welsh proverb
ICQ: 18656696
AIM Screen-Name: NikTaylor42

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