Natively known as: Urnati /Urnaˈti/
Urnati was the language spoken around the world until The Cataclysm. After thatt, most languages derived from Urnati, some changing dramatically. The common language is currently the Orsholonian dialect of this language and is understood by the vast majority of Arnathians.
…and he stood holding his hat and turned his wet face to the wind…
no me sikun bal qa qekin no miva qa komim em om miva
Pronunciation: /no me siˈkun bal qa qeˈkin no miˈva qa koˈmim em om miˈva
Urnati word order: and he stood holding his hat and turned his wet face to the wind
Spelling & Phonology
Consonant inventory: /b g k l m n p q r s v w/
| ↓Manner/Place→ | Bilabial | Labiodental | Alveolar | Velar | Labio-velar | Uvular |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ||||
| Stop | p b | k g | q | |||
| Fricative | v | s | ||||
| Approximant | w | |||||
| Trill | r | |||||
| Lateral approximant | l |
Vowel inventory: /a e i o u/
Tones: ˧
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| High | i | u |
| High-mid | e | o |
| Low | a |
Syllable structure: Custom defined
Stress pattern: Second — stress is on the second syllable
Phonological changes (in order of application):
- v → m / #_V
- g → w / V_
Grammar
Main word order: Subject-Verb-Object-Oblique. “Mary opened the door with a key” turns into Mary opened the door with a key.
Adjective order: Adjectives are positioned before the noun.
Adposition: prepositions
Noun
| Singular | No affix min> /min/ |
| Plural | If ends with vowel: Suffix -m Else: Suffix -i˧m mini˧m> /miˈni˧m/ |
Articles
Urnati has no definite article ‘the’, or indefinite article ‘a’.
Pronouns
| 1st singular | o> /o/ I, me |
| 2nd singular | iq> /iq/ you |
| 3rd singular masc | me> /me/ he, him, it |
| 3rd singular fem | sor> /sor/ she, her, it |
| 1st plural | pub> /pub/ we, us |
| 2nd plural | mi> /mi/ you (all) |
| 3rd plural | u> /u/ they, them |
Possessive determiners
| 1st singular | ro> /ro/ my |
| 2nd singular | es> /es/ your |
| 3rd singular masc | qa> /qa/ his, its |
| 3rd singular fem | a> /a/ her, its |
| 1st plural | i> /i/ our |
| 2nd plural | me> /me/ your |
| 3rd plural | e> /e/ their |
Verbs
| Present | If ends with vowel: Suffix -nle˧ Else: Suffix -o˧nle˧ zumeiono˧nle˧> /zuˈmeiˌono˧nle˧/ |
| Past | Suffix -a˧b zumeiona˧b> /zuˈmeiˌona˧b/ |
| Remote past | If ends with vowel: Suffix -s Else: Suffix -e˧s zumeione˧s> /zuˈmeiˌone˧s/ |
| Future | Suffix -o˧ zumeiono˧> /zuˈmeiˌono˧/ |
Perfect aspect
Perfect aspect in English is exemplified in ‘I have read this book’,
which expresses an event that took place before the time spoken
but which has an effect on or is in some way still relevant to the present.
In Urnati, the perfect is constructed with an affix
| Perfect | Suffix -i˧l zumeioni˧l> /zuˈmeiˌoni˧l/ |
Derivational morphology
Adjective → adverb = Suffix -o˧w
Adjective → noun (the quality of being ) = Suffix -a˧
Adjective → verb (to make something ) = If ends with vowel: Suffix -b
Else: Suffix -a˧b
Noun → adjective (having the quality of ) = Suffix -i˧
Noun → adjective relating to noun (e.g. economy → economic) = If ends with vowel: Suffix -n
Else: Suffix -i˧n
Noun → verb (to create ) = Suffix -i˧
Verb → adjective (result of doing ) = If ends with vowel: Suffix -go˧
Else: Suffix -u˧go˧
Verb → adjective (likely to do ) = If ends with vowel: Suffix -we˧
Else: Suffix -a˧we˧
Verb → noun (the act of ) = Suffix -a˧
Verb → noun that verb physically produces (e.g. build → building) = If ends with vowel: Suffix -knu˧
Else: Suffix -e˧knu˧
One who s (e.g. paint → painter) = Suffix -i˧
Place of (e.g. wine → winery) = If ends with vowel: Suffix -q
Else: Suffix -e˧q
Diminutive = If ends with vowel: Suffix -gvru˧
Else: Suffix -u˧gvru˧
Augmentative = If ends with vowel: Suffix -pri˧
Else: Suffix -e˧pri˧