Zompist Bboard Again

Lērisama wrote: ↑Tue Jan 13, 2026 5:03 pm I would have put this in the random phonology thread, but I found it quite hard to Romanise, so it's here. It's some kind of cross between Greenlandic, Mayan and something Amazonian maybe?

[m n ɲ (ŋ) (ɴ)] <m n ny n n>
[ppʰ ttʰ tt͡sʰ kkʰ qqʰ] <sp st sc sk sq>
[pp tt tt͡s kk qq] <sb' sd' sc' sk' sq'>
[pʰ tʰ t͡sʰ kʰ qʰ] <ps ts cs ks qs> / <p t c k q> in stressed onsets
[p t t͡s k q ʔ] <p t c k q '>
[s x (χ) h] <ss g g s>
[ɓ ɗ t͡sʼ kʼ qʼ] <b' d' c' k' q'>
[b d d͡z d͡ʑ] <b d z j>
[β ɾ j ɣ] <w r y g>
[ɸɸ ss ʂʂ ɕɕ xx] <ff ss ds ys gg>
[l] <l>

[i (iːu̯) əi̯ (əːy̯) əu̯ u] <i iw ai aiw au u>
[e ə̯ɛ (ə̆) ə̯ɔ o] <e ae ' ao o> (word-final schwa is unwritten)
[a (aːu̯) ɑ (ɑːɔ̯)] <a aw a aw> ([ɑ] around uvulars is <a>; [a] around uvulars is unwritten if schwa, otherwise [can this happen?] <e'>)
[a: a~] <ah/aa av> (<aa> if stressed except in an open monosyllable)

/ʁ/ omelet

/quʁiɾqə təpi qiɾqə suʁiːsiʁtaɾs paʁtqa təpasa qikʼiːʁ ʁakə jiɾji ʔə̃ɾqa quː qãɣa tuβsaʁ qəkʼu qaɾksi paː pati tə̃ʁtta ʁiqə̃βs jiɾɾjãːʁt kaβsɗujqiɣsa ɣəʁaːjɾãː βaβɾqajɾi ɾəɾqij jãɾqaʁ βa βuʔə̃jta ʔatãʁjqaβ qakitã βatij ʔəɣuːt͡sʼqajjiɾ tijãɾsaːʁj ɓu qiqəβ saʁqʼ ʔujaji/
[qʰə̯ɔːˈəi̯ɾqə tʰəˈpʰi ˈqʰəi̯ɾqə hoəːi̯ˈhettʰaɾsə ˈpʰɑttʰaqɑ tʰəˈpʰaːha ˈqʰəːi̯kʼeː ˈqʰɑːkə d͡ʑˈiɾd͡ʑi ʔãɴˈqʰɑ ˈqʰəːu̯ ˈqʰɑ̃ːɣã ˈtʰuːhɑː qʰəˈkʼu ˈqʰɑɾkihi ˈpʰaː ˈpʰaːt͡si tʰãttʰəˈtʰa ˈqʰə̯ɛːqə̃msə d͡ʑˈiɾdəɲɑ̃ːttʰə kʰaːu̯həluˈqʰəi̯ɣsa ɣaˈɑːʂʂãː baːu̯ɾaˈqʰɑʂʂi dəɾˈqʰəːi̯ d͡ʑˈɑ̃ɴqɑː ˈba ˈbuːʔĩsta ʔaˈtʰɑ̃ɲɲãqɑːɔ̯ qʰɑˈkʰiːtã ˈbaːt͡siː ʔəɣuːt͡sʼaˈqʰɑɕɕiɾ t͡sʰid͡ʑˈãnsɑːi ˈbu ˈqʰə̯ɛːqu ˈhɑqqə ʔud͡ʑˈaːji]
Qsaöhairq ts'pi qairq soäihsëstarss päst'qa ts'paasa qaiik'ëh qaak jirji anqa qauh qaagav tuusäh qs'k'u qarkisi pah paaci tsävsts'ta qaeeq'mss jird'nyävhst ksaus'luqaigssa gaäädsahv bauhrqadsi d'rqaii janqäh ba buu'ivssta atännyaqaoh qsakiitav baacih 'guhc'a qaysir csijansähi bu qaehqu häqq ujaayi.

now that I've composed the annual sentence, here's Zzyxwqnp

Analysis 1:
/p b mb t d nd ts dz ndz tɕ dʑ ndʑ tʂ dʐ k g/
/m n̪ n ɲ/
/f s ʂ ɕ x/
/w j/
/r~ʐ~ɣ/

/a ɒ e ə o i u z̩ v̩/ + nasal vowels + syllabic nasals
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩/

- /e ə/ don't contrast after palatals. /a ɒ/ don't contrast after labials. /ə o/ don't contrast after labials.
- /z̩ v̩/ can't appear after semivowels.
- Syllabic nasals can take three onsets: zero, a glottal stop, and /h/.

Some syllables are toneless, and have tone spread onto them by various rules. These are written with superscripts.

/ko^˧fɒ˧ dʑə˥ tʂv̩˩ ra˥˩ju˥ jĩ^˩sv̩^˩wo˩je^˩ wu˧mbv̩˩mɒ̃˧ | yĩ^˧kv̩˥je^˧ n̪ɒ̃˧pv̩˩xa˥tsz̩˩ xv̩˥˩ja˥ ɟə˥ dzẽ˧ndzu˧mɒ̃˩je^˧ mõ˧ka˥je^˧ ka˩ka˩ nẽ˩ka˥ re˧tɒ˧ kɒ̃˥tɒ˥˧je^˩ sz̩˥˩tsz̩˩ sv̩˩ fo^˩sɒ˩tsz̩˥ po˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/

Analysis 2:

/p b t d ts dz tʂ dʐ k g/
/m n̪ n ɲ/
/f s (z) ʂ ɕ x/
/w j/
/r/

/a ə i u/ + nasal vowels + syllabic nasals (arguably /ũ/, but this only otherwise appears in the sequence /wũ/)
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩/

m n̪ n > mb nd ndz / _V[-nasal]
t d nd n̪ > tɕ dʑ ndʑ ɲ / _j
a ə > ɒ o / C[+labial]_
i u ji wu > z̩ v̩ i u

/kwə^˧fa˧ djə˥ tʂu˩ ra˦˩jwu˥ jĩ^˩su^˩wə˩jə^˩ wu˧mu˩mã˧ | yĩ^˧ku˥jə^˧ n̪wã˧pu˩xa˥tsi˩ xu˥˩ja˥ ɟə˥ dzjə̃˧nu˧mã˩jə^˧ mwə̃˧ka˥jə^˧ ka˩ka˩ njə̃˩ka˥ rjə˧twa˧ kwã˥twa˥˧jə^˩ si˥˩tsi˩ su˩ fə^˩swa˩tsi˥ pə˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/

/p b mb t d nd ts dz ndz tɕ dʑ ndʑ tʂ dʐ k g/ ⟨p b mb t d nd c z nz qy jy njy q j k g⟩
/m n̪ n ɲ/ ⟨m nh n ny⟩
/f s ʂ ɕ x/ ⟨f s x xy h⟩
/w j/ ⟨w y⟩
/r~ʐ~ɣ/ ⟨r⟩

/a ɒ e ə o i u z̩ v̩/ ⟨a (o)a (y)e e o i u z v⟩
/ṽ/ ⟨v̨⟩
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩ 0/ ⟨v́ v̄ v̀ v̂ v⟩


/ko^˧fɒ˧ dʑə˥ tʂv̩˩ ra˥˩ju˥ jĩ^˩sv̩^˩wo˩je^˩ wu˧mbv̩˩mɒ̃˧ | yĩ^˧kv̩˥je^˧ n̪ɒ̃˧pv̩˩xa˥tsz̩˩ xv̩˥˩ja˥ ɟə˥ dzẽ˧ndzu˧mɒ̃˩je^˧ mõ˧ka˥je^˧ ka˩ka˩ nẽ˩ka˥ re˧tɒ˧ kɒ̃˥tɒ˥˧je^˩ sz̩˥˩tsz̩˩ sv̩˩ fo^˩sɒ˩tsz̩˥ po˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/

Kofā jyé qv̀ râyú yįsvwòye wūmbv̀mą̄. Yįkv́ye nhoą̄pv̀hácz̀ hv̂yá jyé zyę̄nzūmànye mǭkáye kàkà nę̀ká rētoā koą́toâye sẑcz̀ sv̀ fosoàcź pókèkè mm̀.

[p b mb t d nd ts~tɕ dz~dʑ ndz~ndʑ tʂ dʐ k g] ⟨p b mb t d nd c j nj cr jr k g⟩
[m n̪ n ɲ] ⟨m dn n ny⟩
[f s z ʂ ɕ x] ⟨f s z sr si h⟩
[w j] ⟨u i⟩
[r] ⟨r⟩

[z̩ v̩] ⟨y yv⟩
[i u] ⟨i u⟩
/a ə/ [o] ⟨a e o⟩

+ nasal vowels ⟨NV⟩ ⟨CVñ⟩
+ syllabic nasals ⟨NN⟩
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩/ ⟨á 0 ạ â⟩

/kwə^˧fa˧ djə˥ tʂu˩ ra˦˩jwu˥ jĩ^˩su^˩wə˩jə^˩ wu˧mu˩mã˧ | yĩ^˧ku˥jə^˧ n̪wã˧pu˩xa˥tsi˩ xu˥˩ja˥ ɟə˥ dzjə̃˧nu˧mã˩jə^˧ mwə̃˧ka˥jə^˧ ka˩ka˩ njə̃˩ka˥ rjə˧twa˧ kwã˥twa˥˧jə^˩ si˥˩tsi˩ su˩ fə^˩swa˩tsi˥ pə˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/
Kuofa jíe crỵv râíu ịñsỵvuọịe umbỵvma, iñkývie dnuapụhacýs hŷvía jíe jieñnyvmạie muokáie kạkạ nịeká rietua kuañtuâịe sŷcỵ sỵv fọsụacý pókẹkẹ mṃ.

/p b t d ts dz tʂ dʐ k g/ <p b t d ts dz ch j k g>
/m n̪ n ɲ/ <m n nh ny> / <mb nd ndz nj>
/f s (z) ʂ x/ <f s z sh h>
/w j/ <w y> (unwritten after semivowels)
/r/ <r>

/a ə i u/ <a e i u> + nasal vowels <-n> + syllabic nasals <mun pun fun>, <nun tun sun> etc.
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩/ <á ā à â>

/kwə˧fa˧ djə˥ tʂu˩ ra˦˩jwu˥ jĩ˩su˩wə˩jə˩ wu˧mu˩mã˧ | yĩ˧ku˥jə˧ n̪wã˧pu˩xa˥tsi˩ xu˥˩ja˥ djə˥ dzjə̃˧nu˧mã˩jə˧ mwə̃˧ka˥jə˧ ka˩ka˩ njə̃˩ka˥ rjə˧twa˧ kwã˥twa˥˩jə˩ si˥˩tsi˩ su˩ fə˩swa˩tsi˥ pə˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/
Kwefā dyé chù râyú yinsuwèye wūmbùmā. Yinkúye nwāpùhátsì hûyá dyé dzyēnndzūmàn-ye mēkáye kàkà nhyèká ryētwā kwántwâye sîtsì sù feswàtsí pékèkè mùn.

or /ə jə/ <o e>
Kwofā dé chù râyú yinsuwò e wūmbùmā. Yinkú e nwāpùhátsì hûyá dé dzēnndzūmàn e mōká e kàkà nhèká rētwā kwántwâ e sîtsì sù foswàtsí pókòkò mùn.

This is an official register, so we can reasonably transcribe it into the western dialect: (the colloquial language includes some grammatical differences)

/p b t d ts dz tʃ dʒ k g q/ <p b t d ts dz ch j k g q>
/m n ɲ ŋ/ <m n ñ ng>
/f v s z ʃ ʒ x ɣ χ ʁ/ <f/Cv v s z sh zh h r hh rh>
/w j/ <w y> / <-u -i>

/a ɛ ɔ e o i ɨ u/ <a e o ie uo i ü u>

Word tones:
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˦˩/ <Cá Ca Cà Câ>
/˩˧ ˩˦ ˦˩˥ ˩˦˩/ <CàCa CàCá CâCa CáCà>

/kofɔ˧ dʒe˥ tʃfɨ˩ ɣaju˦˩˥ ɲisfoj˩ wumvɨmɔ˩˧ | yiŋkuj˩˦˩ nɔpfɨxat˩˦˩ fujɛ˦˩˥ dʒe˥ dzɛndzumɔj˩ mokaj˩˦˩ kaka˩ nɛka˩˦ ɣɛtɔ˧ kɔntɔj˥˩ sɨt˥˩ sfɨ˩ pokɨkɨ˦˩ mɨ˩/
Kuofo jié chvǘ râyu ñisfoì wùmvümo, yínkuì nópfühàt fûye jié dzendzumòi muókaì kakà nèká reto kóntoi sǘüt sfǜ pókükü mǜ.

But this is terrible and we would do better to do it like Kangshi (although the substrate is Amqolic):

/p b t d ts dz tʃ dʒ k g q/ <p b t d ts dz ty dy k g kh>
/m n ɲ ŋ/ <m n ny ñ>
/f v s z ʃ ʒ x ɣ χ ʁ/ <f v s z sy zy x r h gh>
/w j/ <u j/i>

/a ɛ ɔ e o i ɨ u/ <a c q e o i w u>

/˥ ˧ ˩ ˦˩/ <-k -0 -p -j>
/˩˧ ˩˦ ˦˩˥ ˩˦˩/ <-b -d -s -z>

/kofɔ˩˦ dʒe˥ tʃfɨ˩ ɣaju˦˩˥ ɲisfoj˩ wumvɨmɔ˩˧ | yiŋkuj˩˦˩ nɔpfɨxat˩˦˩ fujɛ˦˩˥ dʒe˥ dzɛndzumɔj˩ mokaj˩˦˩ kaka˩ nɛka˩˦ ɣɛtɔ˧ kɔntɔj˥˩ sɨt˥˩ sfɨ˩ pokɨkɨ˦˩ mɨ˩/
Kofq dyek tyfwp rajus nyisfoip umvwmqb, jiñkuiz nvpfwxatz fujcs dyek dzcndzumqip mokaiz kakap nckad rctq kqntqij swtj sfwp pokwkwj mwp.

/p b mb t d nd ts dz ndz tɕ dʑ ndʑ tʂ dʐ k g/ <p b mb t d nd c z nz ch j nj tr dr k g>
/m n̪ n ɲ/ <m nh n ny>
/f s ʂ ɕ x/ <f s shr sh h>
/w j/ <w y>
/r~ʐ~ɣ/ <r>

/a ɒ e ə o i u z̩ v̩/ <a ao e eo o i u Cyi Cwu>
+ nasal vowels <Vn> except after nasals + syllabic nasals <'N> when ambiguous, otherwise <N>
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩/ <á ā à â>
toneless syllables left unmarked

/ko˧fɒ˧ dʑə˥ tʂv̩˩ ra˥˩ju˥ jĩ˩sv̩˩wo˩je˩ wu˧mbv̩˩mɒ̃˧ | yĩ˧kv̩˥je˧ n̪ɒ̃˧pv̩˩xa˥tsz̩˩ xv̩˥˩ja˥ ɟə˥ dzẽ˧ndzu˧mɒ̃˩je˧ mõ˧ka˥je˧ ka˩ka˩ nẽ˩ka˥ re˧tɒ˧ kɒ̃˥tɒ˥˧je˩ sz̩˥˩tsz̩˩ sv̩˩ fo˩sɒ˩tsz̩˥ po˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/
Kofāo jéo trwù râyú yinswuwòye wūmbwùmāo, yinkwúye nhāopwùhácyì hwûyá jéo zēnzūmāoye mōkáye kàkà nèká rētāo káontâoye syîcyì swù fosàocyî pókèokèo m̀.

or the western dialect:

/p b t d ts dz tʃ dʒ k g q/ <p b t d c z ch j k g q>
/m n ɲ ŋ/ <m n ny ng>
/f v s z ʃ ʒ x ɣ χ ʁ/ <f v s z sh zh x r xh rh>
/w j/ <w/-u y/-i>

/a ɛ ɔ e o i ɨ u/ <a e o ye wo yi i u>
/uw ɨj/ <uw iy>

/˥ ˧ ˩ ˦˩/ <Cá Ca Cà Câ>
/˩˧ ˩˦ ˦˩˥ ˩˦˩/ <àCà àCá âCá àCâ>

/kofɔ˧ dʒe˥ tʃfɨ˩ ɣaju˦˩˥ ɲisfoj˩ wumvɨmɔ˩˧ | yiŋkuj˩˦˩ nɔpfɨxat˩˦˩ fujɛ˦˩˥ dʒe˥ dzɛndzumɔj˩ mokaj˩˦˩ kaka˩ nɛka˩˦ ɣɛtɔ˧ kɔntɔj˥˩ sɨt˥˩ sfɨ˩ pokɨkɨ˦˩ mɨ˩/
Kwofo jyé chfì râyú nyìsfoi wùmvìmo, yìngkûi nòpfîxat fûyé jyé zènzumoi mwòkâi kàka nèkà reto kôntoi sît sfì pwôkiki mì.

/p b mb t d nd ts dz ndz tɕ dʑ ndʑ tʂ dʐ k g/ <p b m t d n c z l ch j ñ tr dr k g>
/m n̪ n ɲ/ <m n l ñ>
/f s ʂ ɕ x/ <f s sh x h>
/w j/ <w y>
/r~ʐ~ɣ/ <r>

/a ɒ e ə o i u z̩ v̩/ <a ak e ek o ik uk i u>
nasal vowels <n> / <ng>
syllabic nasals <un>
/˥ ˧ ˩ ˥˩/ <á ā à ah>

/ko^˧fɒ˧ dʑə˥ tʂv̩˩ ra˥˩ju˥ jĩ^˩sv̩^˩wo˩je^˩ wu˧mbv̩˩mɒ̃˧ | yĩ^˧kv̩˥je^˧ n̪ɒ̃˧pv̩˩xa˥tsz̩˩ xv̩˥˩ja˥ ɟə˥ dzẽ˧ndzu˧mɒ̃˩je^˧ mõ˧ka˥je^˧ ka˩ka˩ nẽ˩ka˥ re˧tɒ˧ kɒ̃˥tɒ˥˧je^˩ sz̩˥˩tsz̩˩ sv̩˩ fo^˩sɒ˩tsz̩˥ po˥kə˩kə˩ mm̩˩/
Kofāk jék trù râyú yinsuwòye wūkmùmāng, yinkúye nāngpùhácì hûyá jék zēlūmàngye mōnkáye kàkà lènká rētāk kángtâkye sîcì sù fosàkcí pókèkkèk mùn.

*p *t *k
*s
*w *ɾ *j
*m *n

*i *u
*e *o
*ɛ
*a

*ko is realised as *kʷa
All consonants are palatised before before vowels *i and *e
*e is realised as *ə in unstressed (secondary) syllables
Pitch accent is present but only in words of foreign origin. This vocabulary is however extensive.
*w does not occur before *u and *j does not occur before *i or *e

*pʲepʲe “phone” *kʷa “dog” *ɾuina “sapphire” *wɛa “young” *ɛmai “rain” *ɛkoɛɛ “coyote” *isaɾɛ “temple fire” *kʷamno “to think” *muswʲi “ash” *namta “thigh” *kanʲe “great” *sʲinʲi “light” *nʲi “ocean” *mʲikʷa “lonely” *moɾawʲen “crow” *mʲemʲe “boyfriend” *jajta “paradise” *ɛpʲeo “star”
*mawa “to kiss” *ekai "name of the language"

*p *t *k - p t k
*s - s
*w *ɾ *j - w d y
*m *n - m n

*i *u - i u
*e *o - e o
*ɛ - â
*a - a

/ko/ [kʷa] is written as qa
/e/ [ə] is written as ĕ
an apostrophe is used to separate any same base vowels (like in *wɛa wâ'a)

noticed a few mistakes in the vocab (?) so I fixed 'em for ya. I'm assuming that "unstressed (secondary) syllables" means initial stress. I also depalatalized before schwas, but it doesn't change this romanization so you're fine.

pepĕ, qa, duina, wâ'a, âmai, âqa'â'â, isadâ, qamno, muswi, namta, kanĕ, sini, ni, miqa, modawĕn, memĕ, yayta, âpĕo, mawa, ekai

caught the Kanye West reference btw.

The schwa allophone of *e still palatises. Whether it is the allophone in every syllable but the first or only the even numbered ones i'm still torn on.

*p *t *k ⟨p t k⟩
*s ⟨s⟩
*w *ɾ *j ⟨v r i⟩
*m *n ⟨m n⟩

*i *u ⟨i u⟩
*e *ə *o ⟨e a o⟩
*ɛ ⟨e⟩
*a ⟨a⟩

Palatalisation is written as ⟨i⟩ if the following vowel is not *i
*kʷa is written ⟨qo⟩
A null onset is treated as if it were palatalised before *e

*pʲepʲe *kʷa *ɾuina *wɛa *ɛmai *ɛkoɛɛ
⟨piepia qo ruina vea emai eqoee⟩
*isaɾɛ *kʷamno *muswʲi *namta *kanʲe *sʲinʲi
⟨isare qomno musvi namta kania sini⟩
*nʲi *mʲikʷa *moɾawʲen *mʲemʲe *jajta *ɛpʲeo *mawa
⟨ni miqo moravian miemia iaita epiao mava⟩
*ekai
⟨iekai⟩

/p t k/ <p t k>
/s/ <s>
/w ɾ j/ <w r j>
/m n/ <m n>

/i u/ <i u>
/e o/ <ie o>
/ɛ/ <e>
/a/ <a>

[kʷa] <qa>

pʲepʲe kʷa ɾuina wɛa ɛmai ɛkoɛɛ isaɾɛ kʷamno muswʲi namta kanʲe sʲinʲi nʲi mʲikʷa moɾawʲen mʲemʲe jajta ɛpʲeo mawa ekai
piepie qa ruina wea emai ekoee isare qamno muswi namta kanie sini ni miqa morawien miemie jajta epieo mawa ekai

*m
*b *l~n
*p *t *ts *tʃ
*p: *t: *ts: *tʃ: *k: *kʷ:
*pʰ *tʰ *tsʰ *tʃʰ *kʰ *kʷʰ *ʔh
*t’ *tʃ’ *k’ *kʷ’ *ʔ
*ɸ *s *ɣ *χʷ
*ɾ *ɢ̆
*r *ʀ
*j *w

*i *u
*ɪ *ʊ
*e *o
*ɛ *œ *ɔ
*a

*ĩ *ũ
*ẽ *õ
*ɛ̃ *ɔ̃
*ã

(C)C(ɪ/ʊ)V(:)(C)(C) syllable structure
Syllabicisation is kind of a mess the main rules appear to be the rhotic phonemes always before vowels or *w (enforced by the fact they gain prophetic vowels and *j deletes after them)
Besides that *b and *ɣ devoice after voiceless consonants
*j and *w are fricated after consonants and even devoice after aspirates and ejectives
C: marks a tense consonant which contrast with geminates
*n is an allophone of *l before a nasal vowel

mbɔ̃lti nãk tʃ:i tʰakʷʰm
lʊo ʀwɔ: sɣaɢ̆u ɸɪœ k’ʊa:
χʷoʔʊ pʰtsɪɔ̃ʀĩ k:ĩ kʷ’wejɾi ʔatsʰ
mĩ: tʃʰajʊœ:tʃ: bakʷ:kʷ rɪ:lʊits
tʃwẽɢ̆a sɛ̃t:ũ tã:ɣʊ: k:ɸɛɾu stsʰɛ̃:
χʷatsjɔ̃: t’u:t’u: wʊœ snẽ:χʷts:

*m <m>
*b *l~n <b l~n>
*p *t *ts *tʃ <p t ts ch>
*p: *t: *ts: *tʃ: *k: *kʷ: <pp tt tts tch kk kkw>
*pʰ *tʰ *tsʰ *tʃʰ *kʰ *kʷʰ *ʔh <ph th tsh chh kh khw 'h>
*t’ *tʃ’ *k’ *kʷ’ *ʔ <t' ch' k' kw' '>
*ɸ *s *ɣ *χʷ <f s g wh>
*ɾ *ɢ̆ <r gh>
*r *ʀ <rh g'>
*j *w <y w>

*i *u <ï ü>
*ɪ *ʊ <i u>
*e *o <ë ö>
*ɛ *œ *ɔ <e oe o>
*a <a>

*ĩ *ũ <î û>
*ẽ *õ <ê ô>
*ɛ̃ *ɔ̃ <é ó>
*ã <â>

C: <C^>

Mbólti nak ch^i thakwhm. Luö g'woo sgaghu fioe k'ua. Whö'u phtsiôg'î k^î kw'weyri 'atsh. Mîî chhayuoeech^ bakw^kw^öö riiluïts. Chwêgha sét^û tââguu k^feru stshéé. Whatsyóó t'uut'uu wuoe snêêwhts^.

alternatively C: <C̱>

Mbólti nak c̱hi thakwhm. Luö g'woo sgaghu fioe k'ua. Whö'u phtsiôg'î ḵî kw'weyri 'atsh. Mîî chhayuoeec̱h baḵwḵwöö riiluïts. Chwêgha séṯû tââguu ḵferu stshéé. Whatsyóó t'uut'uu wuoe snêêwhts̱.

*m ⟨m⟩
*b *l~n ⟨b l~n⟩
*p *t *ts *tʃ ⟨p t z c⟩
*p: *t: *ts: *tʃ: *k: *kʷ: ⟨pp tt zz cc kk qq⟩
*pʰ *tʰ *tsʰ *tʃʰ *kʰ *kʷʰ *ʔh ⟨ph th zh ch kh qh 'h⟩
*t’ *tʃ’ *k’ *kʷ’ *ʔ ⟨t' c' k' q' '⟩
*ɸ *s *ɣ *χʷ ⟨f s g x⟩
*ɾ *ɢ̆ ⟨d dd⟩
*r *ʀ ⟨r rr⟩
*j *w ⟨j w⟩

*i *u ⟨i u⟩
*ɪ *ʊ ⟨ì ù⟩ or ⟨i u⟩ before another vowel
*e *o ⟨e o⟩
*ɛ *œ *ɔ ⟨è ö ò⟩
*a ⟨a⟩

*ĩ *ũ ⟨ĩ ũ⟩
*ẽ *õ ⟨ẽ õ⟩
*ɛ̃ *ɔ̃ ⟨ê ô⟩
*ã ⟨ã⟩

Long vowels are doubled.

Initial glottal stops are omitted.

mbɔ̃lti nãk tʃ:i tʰakʷʰm
lʊo ʀwɔ: sɣaɢ̆u ɸɪœ k’ʊa:
χʷoʔʊ pʰtsɪɔ̃ʀĩ k:ĩ kʷ’wejɾi ʔatsʰ
mĩ: tʃʰajʊœ:tʃ: bakʷ:kʷ:o: rɪ:lʊits
tʃwẽɢ̆a sɛ̃t:ũ tã:ɣʊ: k:ɸɛɾu stsʰɛ̃:
χʷatsjɔ̃: t’u:t’u: wʊœ snẽ:χʷts:

Mbôlti nãk cci thaqhm. Luo qrwòò sgaddu fiö k'uaa. Xo'ù phziôrrĩ kkĩ q'wejdi azh. Mĩĩ chajuööcc baqqqqoo rììluiz. Cwẽdda sêttũ tããgùù kkfèdu szhêê. Xazjôô t'uut'uu wuö snẽẽxzz.

(Two identical geminates in a row? Seriously?)

Edit: Replaced ⟨qd qr⟩ with the better-looking ⟨dd rr⟩.

*m - m
*b *l~n - b l
*p *t *ts *tʃ - p t c ċ
*p: *t: *ts: *tʃ: *k: *kʷ: - pp tt cc ċċ k q
*pʰ *tʰ *tsʰ *tʃʰ *kʰ *kʷʰ *ʔh - ph th ch ċh kh qh h
*t’ *tʃ’ *k’ *kʷ’ *ʔ - tʔ ċʔ kʔ qʔ ʔ
*ɸ *s *ɣ *χʷ - f s ġ x
*ɾ *ɢ̆ - d g
*r *ʀ - r rr
*j *w - y w

*i *u - i u̇
*ɪ *ʊ - ı u
*e *o - ė ȯ
*ɛ *œ *ɔ - e œ o
*a - a

*ĩ *ũ - in u̇n
*ẽ *õ - ėn ȯn
*ɛ̃ *ɔ̃ - en on
*ã - an

*V: is written as V̄.
V̈ is used instead of V̇̄.

Mbonlti lank ċċi thaqhm.
Luȯ rrwō sġagu̇ fıœ kʔuā.
Xȯʔu phcıonrrin kin qʔweydi ʔach.
Mı̈n ċhayuœ̄ċċ baqqö rīluic.
Ċwėnga senttu̇n tānġū kfedu̇ schēn.
Xacyōn tʔūtʔū wuœ slēnxcc.

(nice try with that double identical geminate, but there's no non-geminate *kʷ, so I was able to romanize it as just q.)

This is for my sister language to Rihalle Kaafi that is yet unnamed. Maybe call it /reˈhəʎə ˈkʰapʰ/.

Vowels:

/i u/
/e ə o/
/a/

/ĩ ũ/
/ẽ ə̃ õ/
/ã/

/iː uː/
/eː əː oː/
/aː/

There may only be one long vowel in a word, and if there is one, it is always the stressed syllable. However, adding an affix or clitic to a word may make a long vowel pop up elsewhere in a word.

Nasal vowels may not be long, and may precede both nasal and oral consonants and be in final position.

'Schwas' really are not special in this scheme of things, not being really any different from any other vowel. Keep in mind that in practice they are the most common vowel.

Consonants:

/m n ɲ/
/b d̪ d dz dʒ/
/pʰ t̪ʰ tʰ tsʰ tʃʰ cʰ kʰ qʰ/
/t̪ʼ tʼ tsʼ tʃʼ cʼ kʼ qʼ/
/s ʃ ç x χ h/
/β ð z ʒ ɣ ʁ/
/r l ʎ/
/w j/

This clusterfuck of an inventory is largely the result of lost palatalization environments leaving phonemic palatalization behind (losing gemination leaving contrasts between the resulting allophones didn't help).

Note that ejectives are only weakly ejective, and may be realized as tenuis. In most cases aspirated stops and affricates outnumber them.

Dental stops are more common than alveolar stops, as alveolar stops are due to palatalization of underlyingly dental stops in the protolanguage that fell directly before another consonant, which blocked affrication of these stops. However, due to subsequent vowel elision, both dental and alveolar stops can now come before consonants.

Gemination was innovated after having been lost, from reduced consonant clusters (including ones resulting from vowel elision).

Phonotactics:

The syllable structure is C(C)V(ː)(C)(C)(C), with the exception that the first syllable in a word may begin with a vowel.

Stress is phonemic and mobile, and attaching affixes and clitics may result in unpredictable changes in stress, vowel length, vowel quality, and vowels appearing and disappearing.

Also note that due to sound changes, there is little rhyme or reason to the distribution of seemingly 'palatalized' and 'unpalatalized' consonants; there will be exceptions. Currently, the only firm rule is that palatalization does not apply directly before rounded back vowels, but this is of little help because in many cases 'palatalized' and 'unpalatalized' consonants overlap.

The example below does not demonstrate the full resulting language, but rather is what one would get if one applied the sound changes to Rihalle Kaafi along with the alignment changes already mentioned in the Conlang Random Thread.

/tsʰeˈhajʎβə ˈməl ˈqʼartsʰə ˈmatsʰjə ˈʃə ɲet̪ʰˈhoʎtsʰe ˈɣawb/
/bət̪ʰjeʃˈjər ˈɣawb ˈmat̪ʰ ˈbaːt̪ʰə ˈcʰəːʃjə ɲet̪ʰəʃˈrəçʎtsʰe ˈməl/
/aˈqʰod̪ː | aˈqʰod̪ː | aˈqʰod̪ː | aˈqʰod̪ː | aˈqʰod̪ː | aˈqʰod̪ː | aˈqʰod̪ː/

Sorry for interrupting with a question but is challenge restricted to Latin alphabet only or other writing systems like Cyrillic, Greek etc allowed?

þeprussianfrog wrote: ↑Fri Apr 17, 2026 6:52 am Sorry for interrupting with a question but is challenge restricted to Latin alphabet only or other writing systems like Cyrillic, Greek etc allowed?

I haven't known anyone to police it, so you with what appeals to you most.

þeprussianfrog wrote: ↑Fri Apr 17, 2026 6:52 am Sorry for interrupting with a question but is challenge restricted to Latin alphabet only or other writing systems like Cyrillic, Greek etc allowed?

I don't see any reason why you couldn't target other writing systems such as Greek or Cyrillic.