Venyarin - The Superior Tongue

Not too much on Venyarin yet... A few things here.

GRAMMAR

    Word order is Subject-Object-Verb. The language is heavily inflected, for example adjectives and adverbs aren't free morphemes (they're interchangable, in fact). It is also heavily based on a great number of cases like the Ugro-Finnic languages. Quite strangely, though, this congruity never reached pronouns; they're free morphemes.

PHONETICS

    Firstly, Venyarin uses a voiced uvular trill, represented by gh. It is rolled softly, though. It has the plosives p, t, c, b, d, g. The alveolar frickative s shows up, and the alveopalatal zh, as well as v and f, but they are done bilabially (like blowing out a candle). There's an alveolar flap r, and then l, y, w, h, m and n. The vowels are u (as in food) i (as in pea) o (as in tome) e (not in English - kinda like say) and a (as in father). If you're confused about the vowels, they're just like Japanese.

A little taste of Venyarin...

Ardain mendela.
(The world has changed.)

Ghaimor an sir celem.
(I feel it in the water.)

Masile an sir celem.
(I feel it in the earth.)

Faimor an sir valam.
(I smell it in the air.)

An Anwen min. In fain min lam kalidison. An hilaninon vinari. Amale fulari.

(I am Arwen. I am here for your aid. Hear my voice. Return to the light.)

Yes. It looks very very very very much like Tolkien's Eldarin languages. But look at this Sindarin line with a similar translation:
Im Arwen. Telin le thaed. Lasto beth nin. Tolo dan na ngalad.

Notice the difference.

First two lines of Nagocumíslir (Book of Aeons):

    Ia! Am ghálin, malamaíwir mánas, cunoghálin manías, Sálidor fa ranávis mánas.

    Fas inílir, fa lávoas, fa cámbasoneni cunotácin amís halíras.

4-20-2003: I'm working on a grammar and dictionary, though most of my time is going toward Draconic. Expect more someday.


Copyright ©2003 by Ikkakujyu, except the LotR stuff. All rights reserved.