My "translation" of Schleicher's Fable (it's not a proper translation btw)
Posted: Thu Nov 30, 2023 3:23 pm
How does my "translation" of Schleicher's Fable look?
I've given an English version of the Fable (from Wikipedia), then a linguistic gloss version of how it will translate into my conlang, followed by an English approximation of the conlang (for reference); this is due to my conlang currently lacking the vocabulary for a proper translation which I will work on when I get more time, maybe next week if I get the time. I've never made a conlang with cases and so this one has been more of a learning curve than my other conlang; so feedback and the inevitable "wtf have you done that?" would be appreciated.
A few things to note: (1) the language uses the partitive and accusative cases to mark telicity, a bit like Finnish. The object in the partitive means the action is incomplete, ongoing, or its completeness is unknown; the accusative marks a completed action: e.g. I drink.PST water.PTV = I drank (some of) the water; I drink.PST water.ACC = I drank (all of) the water, etc. However one.NUM noun.PTV means "one of noun" (2) "my, our, your" etc is a suffix on the possessed noun which I gloss as noun-our.CASE. (3) in case it isn't clear: .GNO means 'gnomic aspect' - a tenseless aspect used for general truths,or when there is no reference to a specific tense etc. (4) the general word order is SOV, adj-noun, though with participles these look SVO if you think of the participle as a verby thing.
Schleicher's Fable
‘A sheep that had no wool saw horses, one of them pulling a heavy wagon, one carrying a big load, and one carrying a man quickly. The sheep said to the horses: "My heart pains me, seeing a man driving horses." The horses said: "Listen, sheep, our hearts pain us when we see this: a man, the master, makes the wool of the sheep into a warm garment for himself. And the sheep has no wool." Having heard this, the sheep fled into the plain.’
wool-less.ADJ.SG sheep.NOM.SG horse.PL.ACC see.SG.PST, one.NUM them.PTV pull.APTCP heavy.SG wagon.PTV, one.NUM carry.APTCP big.SG load.PTV, and.CONJ one.NUM carry.APTCP man.PTV quickly.ADV. Sheep.SG.NOM horse.PL.DAT say.SG.PST: “heart-my.DAT pain.SG.GNO, see.GER man.NOM drive.APTCP horses.PTV.” horse.PL.NOM say.PL.PST: “listen.IMP sheep.SG.NOM, heart.PL-our.DAT pain.SG.GNO when this we see.GNO: man.SG.NOM, master.SG.NOM, wool.ACC sheep.SG.GEN warm.SG garment.ALL himself.DAT make.GNO. And sheep.SG.NOM wool.ACC no.NEG have.GNO.” Hear.PRFPTCP this, sheep.NOM plain.ALL flee.PST.SG
(a) wool-less sheep horses saw, one (of) them pulling (a) heavy wagon, one carrying (a) big load, and one carrying (a) man quickly. (The) sheep (to) (the) horses said: “(it) my heart pains, seeing (a) man driving horses.” (The) horses said: Listen, sheep, (it) our hearts pains when this we see: (a) man, (the) master, (the) wool of (the) sheep into (a) garment for himself makes. And (the) sheep wool not has.” Having heard this, (the) sheep (in)to the plain ran.
I've given an English version of the Fable (from Wikipedia), then a linguistic gloss version of how it will translate into my conlang, followed by an English approximation of the conlang (for reference); this is due to my conlang currently lacking the vocabulary for a proper translation which I will work on when I get more time, maybe next week if I get the time. I've never made a conlang with cases and so this one has been more of a learning curve than my other conlang; so feedback and the inevitable "wtf have you done that?" would be appreciated.
A few things to note: (1) the language uses the partitive and accusative cases to mark telicity, a bit like Finnish. The object in the partitive means the action is incomplete, ongoing, or its completeness is unknown; the accusative marks a completed action: e.g. I drink.PST water.PTV = I drank (some of) the water; I drink.PST water.ACC = I drank (all of) the water, etc. However one.NUM noun.PTV means "one of noun" (2) "my, our, your" etc is a suffix on the possessed noun which I gloss as noun-our.CASE. (3) in case it isn't clear: .GNO means 'gnomic aspect' - a tenseless aspect used for general truths,or when there is no reference to a specific tense etc. (4) the general word order is SOV, adj-noun, though with participles these look SVO if you think of the participle as a verby thing.
Schleicher's Fable
‘A sheep that had no wool saw horses, one of them pulling a heavy wagon, one carrying a big load, and one carrying a man quickly. The sheep said to the horses: "My heart pains me, seeing a man driving horses." The horses said: "Listen, sheep, our hearts pain us when we see this: a man, the master, makes the wool of the sheep into a warm garment for himself. And the sheep has no wool." Having heard this, the sheep fled into the plain.’
wool-less.ADJ.SG sheep.NOM.SG horse.PL.ACC see.SG.PST, one.NUM them.PTV pull.APTCP heavy.SG wagon.PTV, one.NUM carry.APTCP big.SG load.PTV, and.CONJ one.NUM carry.APTCP man.PTV quickly.ADV. Sheep.SG.NOM horse.PL.DAT say.SG.PST: “heart-my.DAT pain.SG.GNO, see.GER man.NOM drive.APTCP horses.PTV.” horse.PL.NOM say.PL.PST: “listen.IMP sheep.SG.NOM, heart.PL-our.DAT pain.SG.GNO when this we see.GNO: man.SG.NOM, master.SG.NOM, wool.ACC sheep.SG.GEN warm.SG garment.ALL himself.DAT make.GNO. And sheep.SG.NOM wool.ACC no.NEG have.GNO.” Hear.PRFPTCP this, sheep.NOM plain.ALL flee.PST.SG
(a) wool-less sheep horses saw, one (of) them pulling (a) heavy wagon, one carrying (a) big load, and one carrying (a) man quickly. (The) sheep (to) (the) horses said: “(it) my heart pains, seeing (a) man driving horses.” (The) horses said: Listen, sheep, (it) our hearts pains when this we see: (a) man, (the) master, (the) wool of (the) sheep into (a) garment for himself makes. And (the) sheep wool not has.” Having heard this, (the) sheep (in)to the plain ran.