A language, Rihalle Kaafi

[Travis B.]

Predicative possession

Predicative possession is expressed with the existential copula pfv. ya, ipfv. ye, imp. aya with the possessed NP as its subject and the possessor as the object of the dative adposition se. Note that often the word order is changed so se and its object come before the possessed subject.

[Travis B.]

A name

I have now given this language a name, rihalle kaafi:

'language of the people' (n. m. inan.): rihalle kaafi from obj. nmlz. ri- + 'speak' (v. pfv.) hall + const. -e + 'people' (n. m. anim.) kaaf + gen. -i

'speak' (v.): pfv. hall, ipfv. hell, imp. uhall
'people' (n. m. anim.): kaaf

[sasasha]

I’m enjoying this, and the example sentences. Does it have a wider Semitic influence, or do its speakers have some intended connection with Semitic language speakers, or did you borrow kitaab just because?

[Travis B.]

I’m enjoying this, and the example sentences. Does it have a wider Semitic influence, or do its speakers have some intended connection with Semitic language speakers, or did you borrow kitaab just because?

I borrowed kitaab because it is a very common loanword for 'book' even though I did not intend on it having any special amount of Semitic influence (even though a few things such as lack of /p/ are vaguely inspired by certain Semitic languages).

[Travis B.]

Applicatives

Applicatives are inserted directly before the verb stem, or in the case of imperative verbs, between the imperative prefix a- or u- and the rest of the verb stem.

qi- creates a comitative verb out of a verb, with the extra argument being the comitative argument. If the comitative argument is omitted, a reflexive comitative argument is implied. Note that when such comitative verbs are passivized the direct object is promoted to the subject.

se- creates a dative verb out of a verb, with extra argument being an instrument. The direct object can be omitted, but the dative argument is obligatory. Note that such dative verbs can be passivized, with the dative argument being promoted to the subject.

me- creates an instrumental verb out of a verb, with extra argument being an instrument. The direct object can be omitted, but the instrumental argument is obligatory. Note that such instrumental verbs, with the instrumental argument being promoted to the subject.

[Travis B.]

About kitaab, I have decided that this language is an isolate or a member of a small family surviving from the Ancient Near East in some corner of the Middle East, probably somewhere in present-day western Iran, northern Iraq, and/or eastern Turkey. Its speakers had their own religion back when, but they have largely converted to Islam in past centuries, with some believing in a syncretistic religion combining influences from their historical religion, Islam, and Christianity.

[Travis B.]

There are dialects where /i u/ merge with /iː uː/ as [i u] (or, before /q qʼ χ ʁ/, as [e o]) in unstressed syllables.

There are dialects where /χ ʁ/ have shifted to [ħ ʕ], with palatalization not applying. In these dialects unpalatalized /hh/ merges with /χχ/ as [ħː]. Note that retraction of preceding vowels still applies.

[Travis B.]

There are dialects in which /ɑː/ is realized as [ɒː] or even [ɔː] in stressed syllables and as [ɒ] or even [ɔ] in unstressed syllables. Before /q qʼ χ ʁ/ in these dialects it is realized as [ɒː] or [ɒ] depending on stress, and it does not merge with unstressed /ɑ/, which is realized as [ɑ], with /æː/, which is realized as [ɑː] or [ɑ] depending on stress, or with /æ/, which is realized as [ɑ]. In these dialects /ɑw/ before /{C,#}/ is realized as [oː] or [o] depending on stress and /ɑːw/ before /{C,#}/ is realized as [oːw] or [ow] depending on stress.

[Travis B.]

There are dialects in which palatalized /k kʼ/ become [tɕ tɕʼ], [tʃ tʃʼ], or even merge with palatalized /t tʼ/ as [ts tsʼ]. Note that in these dialects before consonants they merge with /t tʼ/ as [t tʼ].

[Travis B.]

In many dialects, excluding dialects that pharyngealize /χ ʁ/, palatalized /χ ʁ/ is realized as [ç ʝ] (so that palatalized /χ/ merges with palatalized /h/), [ɕ ʑ], or even as [ʃ ʒ] so as to merge with palatalized /s z/.

[Travis B.]

There are dialects in which coda, non-geminate /h/ is elided, being replaced by lengthening short vowels in stressed syllables and all vowels in unstressed syllables, allowing long vowels to appear outside stressed syllables. This takes the form of /iːh æːh ɑːh uːh ih æh ɑh uh æːjh ɑːwh æjh ɑwh/ becoming [iː æː ɑː uː iː æː ɑː uː ɛːj ɔːw ɛː ɔː] in stressed syllables and [iː æː ɑː uː eː ɐː ɐː oː ɛːj ɔːw ɛː ɔː] in unstressed syllables.

There are dialects in which un-palatalized onset /h/ is pharyngealized as [ħ] even when non-geminate.

There are dialects in which palatalized intervocalic /h/ merges with /j/ as [j].

There are dialects in which intervocalic /f/ becomes [f] in the onset of stressed syllables and is elided otherwise, being replaced with a long vowel for two adjacent equal vowel phonemes and otherwise [j] being inserted if the following vowel phoneme is a front vowel phoneme and [w] being inserted if the following vowel phoneme is a back vowel phoneme.

There are dialects with additional consonant phonemes /dz ts tsʼ/ realized as [dz ts tsʼ] when not palatalized and as [dʒ tʃ tʃʼ] when palatalized. These merge with /z s s/ in the standard dialect, becoming [z s s] when not palatalized and [ʒ ʃ ʃ] when palatalized. However, these merge with /d t tʼ/ in other dialects.

[Travis B.]

Dialects

Eastern dialect

The standard variety is based largely off the eastern dialect, with the exception that many subdialects of the eastern dialect have rounding of /ɑː/.

Some extreme eastern subdialects preserve /dz ts tsʼ/ as independent phonemes.

Some extreme eastern subdialects do not lower unstressed /i u/ except before uvular consonant phonemes.

Central dialect

Most subdialects of the central dialect merge /dz ts tsʼ/ with /z s s/ but some (particularly north central dialects) merge them with /d t tʼ/.

The central dialect generally has coda, non-geminate /h/ elision with compensatory lengthening.

The central dialect generally has pharyngealization of /χ ʁ/ except in west central subdialects.

The central dialect strengthens intervocalic /f/ to [f] at the start of stressed syllables and otherwise elides it, with hiatus resolution.

Central dialects have palatalized /k kʼ/ becoming [tʃ tʃʼ], except east central subdialects where they become [tɕ tɕʼ], and south central subdialects where they merge with palatalized /t tʼ/ as [ts tsʼ] (note that affrication is generally prevented before another consonant, where then they instead become [t tʼ]).

West central subdialects have palatalized /χ ʁ/ be realized as [ç ʝ].

Central dialects are characterized by elision of short vowels in unstressed syllables. This takes the form of that when, a word is divided into trochees extending left and right from the start of the stressed syllable, short vowels in the second syllable of each trochee are elided unless a sequence of four or greater consonants would result or a short vowel is word-final. Note that this is applied after palatalization and the determining of the position of the stressed syllable, so consonant clusters that are heterogeneous with regard to palatalization may result.

Western dialect

The western dialect largely preserves /dz ts tsʼ/ as independent phonemes.

The western dialect does not lower unstressed /i u/ except before uvular consonant phonemes.

Southwestern dialects merge palatalized intervocalic /h/ with /j/ as [j]

Western dialects have palatalized /χ ʁ/ be realized as [ɕ ʑ], except for extreme western subdialects where they are realized as [ʃ ʒ] so as to merge with palatalized /s z/.

Voiceless plosives are aspirated in western dialects.

[Travis B.]

Diminutives

Diminutives are expressed by suffixing nouns with -(y)em. They are often used in a lexicalized fashion for expressing things such as terms for young animals.

Interrogatives

Interrogative words, and noun phrases to which interrogative clitics are attached, are moved to the start of the sentence with a gap left behind.

There are the following interrogative pronouns:

	Form
Independent animate	k'at
Independent inanimate	k'aw
Independent locative	k'ar
Independent method	k'am
Independent reason	k'ay
Dependent demonstrative	k'a
Dependent possessive	k'u
Yes/no question	k'e

[Travis B.]

Numbers

Numbers 1-5 function like demonstratives. They are clitics that precede their nouns.

	Form
1	nam
2	taa
3	ah
4	fey
5	qaa

Numbers 6-9 are formed by placing '5' qa before numbers 1-4.

	Form
6	qanam
7	qataa
8	qaah
9	qafey

Numbers 10, 20, 100, 1000, and 10000 are feminine inanimate nouns. Numbers 20, 100, 1000, and 10000 take the clitics for 1-9 as multipliers. They are combined by placing them in apposition, from largest to smallest. They precede the nouns they qualify. Note that clitics for numbers 1-9 are combined with them for the smallest place by attaching those clitics directly to the noun.

	Form
10	haay
20	seew, dialectally ts'eew
100	tahan
1000	sedat
10000	q'arrat

As an example '92579 years' is qafeyq'arrat taasedat qaatahan ahseew haay qafeyfeddya.

[Travis B.]

Quotations

There is a quotative particle ey which precedes quoted words, phrases, clauses, sentences, and passages. It may be marked for ergative case if the quotation happens to be used as an agent.

Quotations are agreed with as masculine inanimate.

[Travis B.]

Possession by animates

Possession by explicit animates is commonly expressed by placing a possessive clitic agreeing with the possessor before the possessee, which is put in construct state, followed by the possessor in genitive case.

[Travis B.]

Classical Rihalle Kaafi

The classical language had some of the following attributes:

• A lack of palatalization
• A preservation of vowel length in unstressed syllables
• A lack of neutralization of unstressed /æ ɑ/
• A lack of lowering of unstressed /i u/
• A lack of frication of intervocalic /b d/
• A phonemic distinction between /ts tsʼ s/ [ts tsʼ s] <ts ts' s>
• A phonemic distinction between /dz z/ [dz z] <dz z>
• A phonemic distinction between /χ ħ h/ [χ ħ h] <x xh h>
• A phonemic distinction between /ʁ ʕ/ [ʁ ʕ] <g gh>
• The existence of a distinct vocative case, expressed with final -u after consonants and (identical to the ergative case) with lengthening final short vowels
• Separate perfective, imperfective, stative, and imperative conjugation for all verbs, with all verbs having four principle parts
• The wider use of the subjunctive, which was also used as an optative
• The systematic use of the perfective non-past to express the future
• The sparing use of modals
• The lack of a retrospective and prospective
• Greater freedom of placement of agreement clitics, which may often be separated from the verb proper by adverbs or even by arguments or (!) adpositions; this also applies to dependent pronoun clitics in general, e.g. w.r.t. adpositions
• Greater freedom of placement of arguments, whether verb arguments or adpositional arguments; adpositions need not be contiguous with their arguments
• The use of direct case with animate arguments and ergative case with inanimate arguments of some adpositions, such as the dative, benefactive, and comitative adpositions; this is still sometimes seen in conservative language in the modern language
• The use of the accusative case to express experiencers, e.g. Tadaxhilla nuwaddan 'My father is hot.'
• The use of object clitics to express experiencers, e.g. Nidafiist 'I am cold.'
• The use of -(u)m to mark definite absolute state nouns and adjectives; this goes after degree, gender, case, and number affixes
• The general lack of nominalizing prefixes attached to verbs, which may be also put directly in accusative or ergative case
• A lack of distinction between illative/allative, inessive/adessive, and elative/ablative adpositions; while the different forms do exist, they are mostly a matter of the particular individual's native dialect rather than the intended meaning
• The avoidance of long strings of possessors as is commonly found in the modern language
• Formation of plurals in many words by /æ ɑ i u æː ɑː iː uː/ > /æː ɑː iː uː æːj ɑːw iːj uːw/ in the initial syllable; note that this may be combined with the usual affixing plural formation as found in the modern language

Note that the classical language is commonly used today with the phonology of the standard language or the phonology of the individual speaker's native dialect. It is mostly academics who preserve the original pronunciation, which is not commonly known by the public at large.

[Travis B.]

Definiteness

Definiteness can be optionally expressed by placing animate A (and in conservative language, the objects of adpositions that normally take nominative-absolutive case* for animate arguments) in ergative case, and inanimate O and the objects of adpositions that normally take nominative-absolutive case for inanimate argument in accusative case. Note that no such marking is possible for S.

* Previous references to 'direct' case mean nominative-absolutive case.

[Travis B.]

Conditional sentences

Conditional sentences are expressed by placing the protasis (the 'if'-clause) in conditional mood and the apodosis in subjunctive mood next to one another without any kind of conjunction.

[Travis B.]

Clitic omission

When there would be two 3rd person inanimate agreement clitics for a verb that differ only in that one is a subject clitic and one is an object clitic, the object clitic is normally omitted.