Question about Belshai (language)

Yiuel Raumbesrairc · Post by **Yiuel Raumbesrairc** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 2:02 pm

This forum has been inactive for way too much time. And I have that question to zompist.

Belshai is a confederation of Cantons, much like Switzerland. However, I wondered how they communicate. Indeed, the local populations don't necessarly know all languages of the region, but how to leaders of the Confederacy discuss confederationnal matters? Is there some common Latin (unlikely), do they practice leader multilingualism (as in Switzerland?)?

I just wondered, as Belshai is my favorite of all Almean States.

Glenn · Post by **Glenn** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 11:58 am

I speculated about this once upon a time. According to Belshai's entry in the Almeopedia:

Belšai is a multicultural state, indeed, one of the few on Ereláe without a predominant ethnic group. Half a dozen languages are spoken there— Tei and Losaynu (both Eastern languages), Dowe (Wede:i), Telandi (Mei), two Lenani dialects, and a Tžuro language. Multilingualism is common, but the two most widely spoken dialects are the Sevisre dialect of Teland and the Tžuro dialect of Čibri.

From this passage, it appears that leader multilinguilism is one possibility; if a common language is in fact used for government affairs, my previous guess was Telandi, since the Cantonal Council, the closest thing to a central government, is located there. The fact that the Ajažril's statement to the Belshayins on Jippirasti (from the article on Jippirasti) is written in Telandi would tend to support this idea.

On the other hand, this may be only a coincidence, since Teland and the other southern cantons joined the Belshayin confederacy somewhat later, and there are central government bodies in other cities as well -- the external defence headquarters in Čibri and the Roads Commission in Murap. (Murap is located in Tei-speaking territory, but only a minority of the urban (as opposed to rural) residents there are Tei; I used to think this meant that the Tei had been pushed aside as the dominant group there, but it might reflect lower-class immigration for jobs instead. Čibri, interestingly enough, appears to be the one major city located in the core territory where the confederacy was first founded.)

At any rate, like Yuiel, I doubt the use of a common "Latin" or other premodern language, especially given Belshai's relatively recent formation (well, recent compared to the neighboring states, anyway); either a common modern tongue of government or Swiss-style multilingualism seems more likely.

Mark? Any comments?

p@ (a deep bow with a flourish),
Glenn

Post by **zompist** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 2:05 pm

Glenn's comments are accurate as usual. There's no one interlanguage. There's quite a bit of bilingualism, but even national institutions are organized regionally, so that most people can get by in their own language. Even leaders may just rely on interpreters.

The people most likely to be bilingual are middle class: merchants, civil servants, savants, officers and adjutants, professional interpreters, etc. Well-off families may send their sons on a grand tour of the south, so they can pick up Xurnese and standard Tžuro.

Yiuel Raumbesrairc · Post by **Yiuel Raumbesrairc** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 3:18 pm

That was pretty much what I believed it would be. Guess we can say we agree about conworlding.

I wanted to know because even though it superficially looks like Switzerland, there is a big difference because even though S. is multicultural, Belshai goes further into grouping a multi-religious, multi-lingual (from different language families) and multi-social society.

Is there anything that actually made it possible for such a multi-religious region to become that strong? This has always been, beyond language, my deepest question, since in our world, most multi-religious countries were formally single-religion...

I remember that day I went through the whole Historical Atlas and learned about Belshai. It has always been my favorite, ever since. Though I'm pretty sure it will never be possible to learn a language zomp imagined to be spoken there...

Post by **zompist** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 4:19 pm

Small states can sometimes prosper by sheer nimbleness. Belšai doesn't have the cultural hangups that cause Xurno and Skouras to resist the new ideas from the north. It's comfortable with multiculturalism and never thought of itself as the center of the world, so it happily absorbed them.

A modern terrestrial analogy might be the Benelux states, which helped set the EU process in motion. An older one could be al-Andalus, in its heyday the most prosperous region of Europe and a center of scholarship rivalling the center of the caliphate.

Serali · Post by **Serali** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 9:23 am

I was wondering about this for a while now, but do all Vedurian languages have scripts of their own? And I like the name "Belšai" In Käläli it would be written "Belšä". Almea has got to be one of the most developed and bad ass conworlds I've seen.

I have a lot of stuff like this about Tameridia but the maps are all in my head unfortunately.

Ah well at least I got the other stuff. Zompist you rule. Keep it up. And also how would one say boingy in the Vedurian languages ( and write them in the native scripts )?

To everyone else: Just asking so please don't kill me!

hwhatting · Post by **hwhatting** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 9:58 am

Serali wrote:I was wondering about this for a while now, but do all Vedurian languages have scripts of their own?

a) Verdurian is one language, the world is Almea. So it should be "Almean languages".
b) There's an overview over the scripts used on Ereláe in the Historical Atlas (go to map 3480c). For further information on scripts, best read the articles on individual languages and cultures in the Almeopedia.

Mornche Geddick · Post by **Mornche Geddick** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 10:03 am

Try working it out. Read everything on the Vitual Verduria webpage (with careful attention to the maps), and everything on Almeopedia under the heading of languages. Then make a list of all the languages and classify them like this:

Written (script posted)
Written (script not posted)
Possibly written, script unknown
Illiterate.

Serali · Post by **Serali** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 9:30 pm

I checked the map out at the number you told me and I found several names of scripts that I would like to see:

❤Eteodäole Alphabet
❤Demoshi Alphabet
❤Caolese logograms

So Zompist anything on these? I'm dying to know.

Mornche Geddick · Post by **Mornche Geddick** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 3:08 am

Eteodäole Alphabet? That's asking a lot.Their language is more like music than speech, and they can apparently say six things at one time!

Serali · Post by **Serali** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 6:56 am

Mornche Geddick wrote:Eteodäole Alphabet? That's asking a lot.Their language is more like music than speech, and they can apparently say six things at one time!

Oh! So it's one of those conlangs! Nice!

Drydic · Post by **Drydic** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 5:46 pm

Serali wrote:
Mornche Geddick wrote:Eteodäole Alphabet? That's asking a lot.Their language is more like music than speech, and they can apparently say six things at one time!
Oh! So it's one of those conlangs! Nice!

It requires 2-3 human brains to interpret it, and the script (to call it an alphabet is a gross simplification) is just as complex.

So sorry but you're out of luck.

Serali · Post by **Serali** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 6:04 pm

Awwwwwwwww! Really wanted to see it. So what about the others I asked about? Anything on those Zompist?

Post by **zompist** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:39 pm

Nothing yet. However, Cuolese logograms are descendants of the Wede:i logograms described in the Axunashin grammar.

Serali · Post by **Serali** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 5:50 am

So I would assume that they look something alike?