Search found 168 matches

by Porphyrogenitos
Wed Mar 28, 2018 11:26 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Nostratic, Eurasiatic, Mitian, ...
Replies: 217
Views: 79004

Re: Nostratic, Eurasiatic, Mitian, ...

Africanists are much more inclined towards macro-relationship than today's Eurasianists, it seems, though the support for Nilo-Saharan seems to be waning lately, and Khoisan has pretty much been abandoned. Is there actually good evidence for Niger-Congo? Khoisan has absolutely been completely rejec...
by Porphyrogenitos
Mon Feb 26, 2018 10:53 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

I think so, but that would still make the language very unusual, as phonologies with a functional velar-uvular distinction in fricatives are very few and far between. Is this really the case? It's very areal, for sure, but there's a heck of a lot of North American languages in the PNW with this dis...
by Porphyrogenitos
Sun Feb 25, 2018 2:54 am
Forum: None of the above
Topic: Classical Composers
Replies: 103
Views: 42750

Re: Classical Composers

Salmoneus, I really liked your speculation on the future of classical and pop music and their place in musical history. I just wanted to add my two cents to this. I pretty much exclusively listen to classical music. I don't have any knowledge whatsoever of music theory, so it goes to show that it's ...
by Porphyrogenitos
Fri Jan 19, 2018 1:08 am
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

Voiceless nasals could become voiceless fricatives at the corresponding place of articulation, like /m̥/ > /ɸ/ or /n̥/ > /θ/
by Porphyrogenitos
Mon Nov 06, 2017 9:27 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: The Innovative Usage Thread
Replies: 2452
Views: 413517

Re: The Innovative Usage Thread

Not sure of a better place to put this, but I wanted to share: I just realized that maybe there’s an incipient sound change in English where word-final /nt/ is simplified to /t/, as demonstrated by misspellings/confusions such as “tenant” for “tenet”, “dominate” for “dominant”, “laminant” for “lamin...
by Porphyrogenitos
Mon Nov 06, 2017 6:30 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Why does Lat. /ka'tena/ > N. It. /kad'æŋna/?
Replies: 14
Views: 4795

Re: Why does Lat. /ka'tena/ > N. It. /kad'æŋna/?

- Some varieties of Italian Romance not only preserve a neuter (like Romanian), but some in fact have up to four grammatical genders - Some varieties of Italian Romance have innovated gender marking on verbs, and some have even developed gender marking on prepositional phrases How did these innovat...
by Porphyrogenitos
Fri Nov 03, 2017 2:28 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Why does Lat. /ka'tena/ > N. It. /kad'æŋna/?
Replies: 14
Views: 4795

Re: Why does Lat. /ka'tena/ > N. It. /kad'æŋna/?

/uno/ > /vuk/?? Wow. That is really weird. I dont think I've ever seen a sound shift of /n/ > /ŋ/ > /k/, especially not in final position where nasals are usually favored. But yeah, it looks like the map is correct, and in fact, if Im reading the paper right, they claim a regular shift of /n/ > /ŋn...
by Porphyrogenitos
Sat Oct 28, 2017 6:26 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

Has there been recorded an unconditional change of [ɔ/o] to [œ/ø]? More or less, yes, at least if it's part of a larger vowel system where there's another shorter/laxer o-like consonant. E.g. in some English varieties, such as the Baltimore dialect, /oʊ/ is fronted almost all the way to /øʊ/ or eve...
by Porphyrogenitos
Thu Oct 05, 2017 7:19 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: The Innovative Usage Thread
Replies: 2452
Views: 413517

Re: The Innovative Usage Thread

My roommates, who are from New York City, sometimes use a rather strange verb: fucks - as in, that's the base, uninflected form. It only appears after the auxiliary can , as in "I can fucks with that" or "He can fucks with that." Fucks with means "to manage, handle, or work with [something]", clearl...
by Porphyrogenitos
Tue Sep 26, 2017 8:48 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

Most lenitions of /s/ seem to take /z/ or /h/ as initial pathways; i.e.

/s/ > /h/ > /∅/
/s/ > /z/ > /ʐ/ or /r/ or /ɹ/

Can anyone think of any other outcomes for lenited /s/, or any other initial pathways? Especially in a voiced environment?
by Porphyrogenitos
Thu Sep 21, 2017 6:12 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Porphyrogenitos' scratchpad
Replies: 16
Views: 6289

Re: Porphyrogenitos' scratchpad

Some ideas for a language with templatic reduplication I've had: Clusters are only permissible syllable-initially. Permissible clusters consist of a nasal + homorganic stop, a stop + a liquid, or a stop both preceded by a homorganic nasal and followed by a liquid. Stops in clusters are always voiced...
by Porphyrogenitos
Sat Sep 02, 2017 2:00 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

They could also simply become geminates.
by Porphyrogenitos
Fri Sep 01, 2017 9:52 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Porphyrogenitos' scratchpad
Replies: 16
Views: 6289

Re: Porphyrogenitos' scratchpad

You have a biconsonantal root now! Is that intentional? Oh, huh. I didn't even notice that. That's interesting. Though those two consonants, /tm/, are probably gonna stay smushed together like that, unless a suffix is added that shifts the original stress one syllable to the right. Also note that t...
by Porphyrogenitos
Fri Sep 01, 2017 9:16 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Porphyrogenitos' scratchpad
Replies: 16
Views: 6289

Re: Porphyrogenitos' scratchpad

Here's a little thing I came up with about a language with an unmarked default/masculine and a marked feminine, that switches to a default/feminine and marked masculine system. Likely undergoing further revision after I read up some more on masculine-feminine noun classes outside IE. This contrasts ...
by Porphyrogenitos
Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:48 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

Sorry, it's kind of a weird question. From Latin? Not from Latin - from any historical/phonological starting point you wish. It doesn't have to be masculine/feminine, but that's what I intend to do with it. Sorry Im not sure I understand the question. Wouldnt the unmarked form always be predictable ...
by Porphyrogenitos
Wed Aug 30, 2017 12:32 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

I was getting some input on this on Tumblr, but I'm gonna ask here too: Can anyone think of a change besides final vowels reduced to schwa > final consonants deleted > schwa deleted (much as in French) by which a predictable/regular marked form could become unpredictable/irregular - thus allowing it...
by Porphyrogenitos
Tue Aug 29, 2017 8:51 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Masculine-feminine gender systems beyond IE
Replies: 10
Views: 3664

Masculine-feminine gender systems beyond IE

Does anyone know anything about non-Indo-European languages with masculine-feminine grammatical gender/noun class systems? Or any links to articles or papers discussing them, or (especially) their historical development?
by Porphyrogenitos
Tue Aug 22, 2017 11:59 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Metathesis in languages that are mostly CV?
Replies: 7
Views: 3522

Re: Metathesis in languages that are mostly CV?

Oh and metathesis to maintain CV structure is how a lot of languages developed infixes.

E.g. ak + ole = akole, but ak + tura = *aktura, so the onset of the root is switched with the affix to make takura.
by Porphyrogenitos
Tue Aug 22, 2017 11:39 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Isolating languages outside East Asia
Replies: 8
Views: 3166

Re: Isolating languages outside East Asia

You may be interested in this paper by John McWhorter, who says it's not a coincidence that extremely isolating languages are only found in East Asia, a certain area of West Africa, and among the languages conventionally considered creoles - that radical analyticity (as opposed to moderate degrees o...
by Porphyrogenitos
Sun Aug 13, 2017 9:54 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

smii wrote:Would ɨ > y be realistic, if the original vowel system was /i ɛ u o ɑ/?
Do you mean it was originally /i ɛ u o ɑ ɨ/? If so, that's perfectly fine.
by Porphyrogenitos
Wed Jul 26, 2017 11:09 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Sound Change Quickie Thread
Replies: 2827
Views: 613833

Re: Sound Change Quickie Thread

So I like the syllable stress and weight system of Wiyot , which is a bit unusual but has a certain appeal, and am trying to use it (or something similar) in a conlang: Wiyot syllables always begin with consonants or consonant clusters, which are followed by a vowel. This vowel may be long or short....
by Porphyrogenitos
Tue Jul 25, 2017 11:19 pm
Forum: Conlangery & Conworlds
Topic: Turning vowel reduction into ablaut
Replies: 25
Views: 13500

Re: Turning vowel reduction into ablaut

Very interesting. After reading this I tried out a tiny scheme of my own like this, using just /i a u/ and two syllable types - CV and CV: - and with the stress falling on the heaviest of the last two syllables. Short unstressed /i u/ became [ɨ]; short unstressed /a/ became [ə]; but after alevolars ...
by Porphyrogenitos
Thu Jun 08, 2017 1:33 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Curiosities from the languages of Italy
Replies: 10
Views: 3911

Re: Curiosities from the languages of Italy

Even though Robert Hall did posit /ɪ/ and /ʊ/ in Proto-Romance Phonology (1976), for stressed syllables at any rate, it's very common for scholars to refer to your "Western" 7-vowel system as "Proto-Romance", "Common Romance" or even "Vulgar Latin", even when they do recognize a stage with a 9-vowe...
by Porphyrogenitos
Tue Jun 06, 2017 4:42 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Curiosities from the languages of Italy
Replies: 10
Views: 3911

Re: Curiosities from the languages of Italy

Just out of curiosity, did you take that "Proto-Romance" vowel system from the book? I mean, it was what the book had, but I didn't really, since I've read about the Romance languages before and that's just the standard reconstruction of the Proto-Romance vowel system, e.g. as seen in this Wikipedi...
by Porphyrogenitos
Sun Jun 04, 2017 4:48 pm
Forum: Languages & Linguistics
Topic: Curiosities from the languages of Italy
Replies: 10
Views: 3911

Re: Curiosities from the languages of Italy

Okay, so you know how the Romance languages are often divided into primary branches based on how they resolved the Proto-Romance vowels? E.g. as shown here: http://i.imgur.com/SULagd7.png Well, it turns out Sicilian and some related Calabrian dialects have done something slightly different. They've ...