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[[Category:Romance conlangs]]
{{Lucus|languages}}
{{Language|
{{Language|
| English =
| English = Gallo-Romance
| native =
| native =  
| dialect English =
| dialect English = Rhodrese
| dialect native =
| dialect native = Rhodray, Borgonzay
| country =
| country = Burgundy
| nativecountry =
| nativecountry = [[Althist:Borgonze|Borgonze]]
| universe =
| universe = [[Lucus]]
| speakers =
| speakers = several million
| family =
| family = Indo-European
| branch =
| branch = Italic
| subbranch =
| subbranch = Romance
| word-order =
| word-order = SVO
| morphological-type =
| morphological-type = inflecting
| morphosyntactic-alignment =
| morphosyntactic-alignment = accusative
| author =
| author = [[User:Melroch|BPJ]]
| date =
| date = 2007
| background-color = white
| background-color =
| heading-background = coral
| heading-background = lightsteelblue
| width =
| width =
}}
}}
[[Image:Borgonze.jpg|frame|center|Approximate outline of [[Althist:Borgonze|Borgonze]] superimposed on [[althist:OTL|OTL]] modern France. The borders certainly need to be adjusted to correspond to natural boundaries.]]
__TOC__


== The name of the language ==
== Alphabet and pronunciation ==


The modern name of the language as a whole should be something like '''''Borgonzay''''' < {{SC|*Burgundiense}} (i.e. the Romance language of ''Burgundia'', parallel to ''Français'' for the Romance language of ''Francia'') with two main dialect groups ''Rhodray'' along the Rhodre (Rhône) and ''Saugonay'' along the Saugone (Saône). The problem is that in the ATL there was also a Germanic language ''Borgonzc < *burgundiska'' which survived long enough to become a written language in books with Latin letters. In contradistinction to this language the Romance language of [[User:Melroch/Borgonze|Borgonze]] was of course called ''Romanz'' or some variation thereof and any derivative of ''*Burgund'' would be inappropriate, but ''Romanz'' would be equally inappropriate in contradistinction to ''Français/Frantxay'' (or perhaps ''Francien/Frantxiá''), not to speak of the Rumantsch and Romand{{ref|Romand}} of Switzerland.
Digraphs which appear bold in the left column below are considered separate letters of the alphabet.


The likely situation is that they all be ''Romant/Romanz/Romand/Romantx'' as a group compared to ''*Franconais/Borgonzc{{ref|Borgonzc}}/Allemand'', but by other, geographical names, and so ''Rhodray'' is still a plausible name, based on the fact that it is spoken along the Rhuodre-Saugone (Rhône-Saône) valley. Nothing like ''Borgonzay, Borgonzá'' < {{SC|*Burgundianum}} or ''Borgongá'' < {{SC|*Burgundicanum}} seems me enough differendiated from ''Borgonzc/Borgondesc'' < {{SC|*Burgundiska}} or ''Borgonzong'' < {{SC|*Burgundionicum}}, nor as appealing.  
{| class="aligntop" style="width:80%; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; vertical-align: top;"
! style="width: 20%; font-size: small;" | Letter
! style="width: 20%; font-size: small;" | Pronunciation
|
|-
! A a
| class="IPA" | a, ə
| Stressed '''a''' is {{IPA|[a]}}, unstressed '''a''' is {{IPA|[ə]}}.
|-
| Ai ai, Ay ay
| class="IPA" | ai̯
| The only difference between '''ai''' and '''ay''' is that theoretically final '''ai''' is unstressed while final '''ay''' is stressed. In practice final '''ai''' occurs mostly in unstressed monosyllabic particles like ''mai''.
|-
| Ao ao, Au au
| class="IPA" | au̯
| These digraphs are pronounced alike.  Their distribution is partly governed by etymological criteria, in that '''ao''' is found where there was {{SC|al}} or {{SC|ol}} in Latin, and '''au''' where there was {{SC|au}} or {{SC|a}}β' in Vulgar Latin, but the main criterion is whether related forms with i-affection have '''eo''' or '''eu'''. These criteria are of course related, in that the i-affected form of original {{SC|al}} or {{SC|ol}} was originally {{SC|el}}, which became '''eo''', while the i-affected form of original {{SC|au}} or {{SC|a}}β' was '''eu'''.
|-
! B b
| class="IPA" | b, p
| Pronounced {{IPA|[p]}} at the end of a word.
|-
! C c
| class="IPA" | k, s
| Pronounced {{IPA|[s]}} before '''e, i''' and '''y''' and {{IPA|[k]}} elsewhere.


''Saugonay'' for the language as a whole isn't appealing to me either; perhaps the Rhuodre part of the valley has always been dominant?  To the extent that I've worked out the differences between the northern and southern dialects the standard language slants towards the southern dialects, similar to Italian and Provençal rather than towards the Northern, more French-like dialectsThe one feature where the standard goes with the north is the outcome of labial + {{SC|j}} and labial + liquid which are ''u(n)dg/un(j), ul, ur'' {{IPA|/udʒ/, /ul/, /ur/}} in the north but labial + ''-e, -o, -re'' {{IPA|/ɪ, ʊ, ɾɪ/}} in the south{{ref|labial-sonorant}}. rather than being consciously cross-dialectal the standard builds on the actual situation in central dialects around Lojú (Lyon).
The older 'soft' pronunciation of '''c''' was {{IPA|[ts]}}. This pronunciation is preserved in some dialects, and some purists think that it ought to still be the standard pronunciation.  Other dialects have {{IPA|[θ]}} as the soft pronunciation of '''c''', and those speakers may use that pronunciation when speaking standard Rhodrese.{{ref|soft_c}}
|-
| Ch ch
| class="IPA" | k
| Note that the Rhodrese pronunciation of '''ch''' differs from the French but agrees with the Italian.
|-
| Ç ç
| class="IPA" | s
| This is the traditional spelling for the 'soft' pronunciation of '''c''' in other positions than before '''e, i''' and '''y'''. The above remarks about the 'soft' pronunciation of '''c''' apply equally to '''ç'''.  Some dialects often have '''ç''' before '''a''' where the corresponding French word has '''ch''', e.g. ''çaod'', standard Rhodrese ''caod'', Fr. ''chaud''; ''ciar'', standard Rhodrese ''chiar'', Fr. ''cher''.
|-
! D d
| class="IPA" | d, ð. t
| Pronounced {{IPA|[t]}} at the end of a word, {{IPA|[ð]}} after a vowel or '''r''' inside a word and {{IPA|[d]}} elsewhere, including at the beginning of a word.  Some speakers have {{IPA|[θ]}} for '''d''' after a vowel at the end of a word.
To pronounce '''d''' after a vowel as {{IPA|[z]}} or zero is considered sub-standard. Some speakers whose dialects have these pronunciations use a hard {{IPA|[d]}} in all word-internal positions.
|-
| dg
| class="IPA" | ʤ, ʧ
|
|-
! E e
| class="IPA" | e, ɛ, ɪ
| Stressed '''e''' is {{IPA|[e]}} or {{IPA|[ɛ]}}. Unstressed '''e''' is {{IPA|[ɪ]}}, even where it derives from Latin {{SC|a}}
|-
| Eu eu
| class="IPA" | y
|
|-
| Eo eo
| class="IPA" | eu̯, ɛu̯
|
|-
! F f
| class="IPA" | f
|
|-
! G g
| class="IPA" | g, ɣ, ʤ, k
|
|-
| Gh gh
| class="IPA" | g, ɣ
|
|-
! H h
| class="IPA" | Ø
|
|-
! I i
| class="IPA" | i, ɪ
|
|-
| Ia ia
| class="IPA" | ja
|
|-
| Iao iao
| class="IPA" | jau̯
|
|-
| Ie ie
| class="IPA" | jɛ
|
|-
| Ieo ieo
| class="IPA" | jɛu̯
|
|-
| Io io
| class="IPA" | iu̯
|
|-
! J j
| class="IPA" | ʤ
|
|-
! K k
| class="IPA" | k
|
|-
! L l
| class="IPA" | l
| Some speakers pronounce '''l''' as {{IPA|[ɺ̢]}} (cf. '''ll''') at the beginning of words.
|-
| Gl gl
| class="IPA" | ʎ
|
|-
| Ll ll
| class="IPA" | ɺ̢
| A lateral retroflex flapSome speakers who don't have this sound in their dialect pronounce '''ll''' as {{IPA|[dl]}}.
|-
! M m
| class="IPA" | m
|
|-
! N n
| class="IPA" |
|
|-
| Gn gn
| class="IPA" | ɲ
|
|-
! O o
| class="IPA" | o, ɔ, ʊ
|
|-
! P p
| class="IPA" | p
|
|-
! Q q
| class="IPA" | k
|
|-
! R r
| class="IPA" | ʁ, ɾ
|
|-
| rr
| class="IPA" | ʁ
|
|-
! S s
| class="IPA" | s, z
|
|-
| Sc sc
| class="IPA" | sk, ʃ
|
|-
| Sç, sç
| class="IPA" | ʃ
|
|-
| Sdg, sdg
| class="IPA" | ʒ, ʃ
| {{IPA|[ʃ]}} at the end of words.
|-
| S'dg, s'dg
| class="IPA" | zʤ, sʧ
| {{IPA|[sʧ]}} at the end of words.
|-
| Sg, sg
| class="IPA" | ʒ, zɡ, sk
| {{IPA|[ʒ]}} before '''e, i''' and '''y''', e.g. ''basgiar'' {{IPA|[bəˈʒjaɾ]}}; {{IPA|[sk]}} at the end of words; {{IPA|[zɡ]}} elsewhere.
|-
| S'g, s'g
| class="IPA" | zʤ
| {{IPA|[zʤ]}} before '''e, i''' and '''y'''.
|-
| ss
| class="IPA" | s
|
|-
! T t
| class="IPA" | t
|
|-
| Tx tx
| class="IPA" | ʧ
|
|-
! U u
| class="IPA" | u, ʊ
|
|-
| Ua ua
| class="IPA" | wa
|
|-
| Ue ue
| class="IPA" | ø
|
|-
| Uo uo
| class="IPA" | wo
|
|-
! V v
| class="IPA" | v
|
|-
! W w
| class="IPA" | v, w
|
|-
! X x
| class="IPA" | ks, gz
|
|-
! Y y
| class="IPA" | j, i, ɪ
|
|-
| Yo yo
| class="IPA" | jo, jɔ, iu̯
|
|-
! Z z
| class="IPA" | z
|
|}
 
 
 
== Liquid consonants ==
 
Rhodrese has five distinct liquid phonemes, developed out of Latin single and double double liquids and some combinations of liquid and consonant. The spelling of these phonemes is consistent:
 
* {{IPA|/ɾ/}} is written ''r''.
* {{IPA|/l/}} is written ''l''.
* {{IPA|/ʎ/}} is written ''gl'' (and {{IPA|/gl/}} is written ''ghl'').
* {{IPA|/ʁ/}} is written ''rr'' except after a consonant or at the beginning of a word, where it is written ''r''.
* {{IPA|[ɹ]}} is an allophone of {{IPA|/ɾ/}} which occurs before a consonant and before a pause. However some speakers have {{IPA|[ʁ]}} or {{IPA|[χ]}} which are allophones of {{IPA|/ʁ/}} in this position, so in fact the distinction between {{IPA|/ɾ/}} and {{IPA|/ʁ/}} is neutralized there.
* {{IPA|/ɽˡ/}} is written ''ll''. The distinction between between {{IPA|/ɽˡ/}} and {{IPA|/l/}} is only maintained between vowels. {{IPA|[ɽˡ]}} occurs instead of {{IPA|[l]}} word-initially if the preceding word ends in a vowel and word finally if the next word begins in a vowel. In modern Rhodrese this is shown in spelling only with the masculine singular definite article before a word beginning in a vowel (and in the contractions ''della, alla, delli, alli'' etc.).
 
The following table Illustrates the origins of these sounds in Vulgar Latin.
 
 
<table class="gridtable IPA">
<tr>
<th style="width: 12%;">Position<hr>Latin</th>
<th style="width: 12%;">#__</th>
<th style="width: 12%;">V__V</th>
<th style="width: 12%;">__C</th>
<th style="width: 12%;">__’C</th>
<th style="width: 12%;">__#</th>
<th style="width: 11%;">__’#</th>
</tr><tr>
<th class="smallcaps">r</th>
<td>ʁ</td>
<td>ɾ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">d</th>
<td>d</td>
<td>ɾ</td>
<td>{{ref|dC}}</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>Ø/t</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">rr</th>
<td>—</td>
<td>ʁ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">dr, d’r</th>
<td>dʁ</td>
<td>ʁ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">tr, t’r</th>
<td>tʁ</td>
<td>ʁ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">n’r</th>
<td>ʁ</td>
<td>ʁ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
<td>ɹ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">l</th>
<td>l/ɽˡ</td>
<td>l/w</td>
<td>w</td>
<td>w</td>
<td>w</td>
<td>w</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">ll, l’n</th>
<td>l/ɽˡ</td>
<td>ɽˡ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>l/w</td>
<td>l</td>
<td>l</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">t’l, d’l</th>
<td>l/ɽˡ</td>
<td>ɽˡ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>l</td>
<td>l</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">lj, llj, gl, g’l</th>
<td>ʎ</td>
<td>ʎ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>w</td>
<td>ʎ</td>
<td>ʎ</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th class="smallcaps">kl, k’l</th>
<td>kl</td>
<td>ʎ</td>
<td>—</td>
<td>w</td>
<td>ʎ</td>
<td>ʎ</td>
</tr>
</table>
=== Examples ===
 
<table>
<tr>
<th align="left" style="width: 15%;">Vulgar Latin</th>
<th align="left" style="width: 66%;">Rhodrese</th>
</tr><tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illo pede}}</td>
<td align="left">''el pier'' {{IPA|/pjɛɾ/}} pl. ''li pir''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illo patre}}</td>
<td align="left">''el piar'' (Old Rh. ''pearr'') pl. ''li pier''!</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|laudare}}</td>
<td align="left">''lauriar'' {{IPA|/ləwɾˈjaɾ/}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|rotundu}}</td>
<td align="left">''rodon'' {{IPA|/ʁʊˈdɔn/}}, f. ''rodonde'' {{IPA|/ʁʊˈdɔndɪ/}} or {{IPA|/ʁʊˈdɔnɪ/}}, pl. ''reden''.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|petra}}</td>
<td align="left">''pierre'' {{IPA|/ˈpjɛʁɪ/}}{{ref|pierre}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|quadraginta}}</td>
<td align="left">''quarrante''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|senior}}</td>
<td align="left">''ser'' 'Mr.' ( and analogical ''sir'' 'Messrs.') cf. ''segnaur'' 'lord' &lt; {{SC|seniorem}}.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|ponere habet}}</td>
<td align="left">''porrat'' {{IPA|/pʊˈʁat/}} 's/}he will put'</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illu bellu}}</td>
<td align="left">''el bel''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illa stella}}</td>
<td align="left">''l'estelle''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illo malo}}</td>
<td align="left">''el mao''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illa mala}}</td>
<td align="left">''la male''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illo stab'lu}}</td>
<td align="left">''ell estabo''</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illi oc'li}}</td>
<td align="left">''igl egl'' (sg. ''ell egl''){{ref|aghle}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illo filio}}</td>
<td align="left">''el fegl'' pl. ''li figl'' 'son, children' (Old Rh. ''el figl, li figl'')</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illo filiolu}}</td>
<td align="left">''el figláo'' pl. ''li figléo'' 'brat'{{ref|figlao}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td align="left">{{SC|illa fil[j]ina}}</td>
<td align="left">''la figline'' pl. ''li figlí'' 'daughter'{{ref|figline}}</td>
</tr>
</table>


=== Notes ===
=== Notes ===
==== {{note|Romand}} Romand and Rumantsch ====
I wonder what Rumantsch and Romand would be called in the ATL.
Romand would most probably be something like ''Helvetxan < *{{SC|Helveticanum}}'',
notwithstanding its spread over a larger area than Roman Helvetia. Compared to [[Wikipedia:Franco-Provençal language#toc|the map here]] it would in any case extend further east but not as far west as Franco-Provençal does in OTL, since the western part of the Franco-Provençal area will be R/B in the ATL, and so F-P/Romand will in the ATL more specifically be ''the'' language of western Switzerland, which may well comprise Savoy and Val d'Aosta in the ATL, so ''Helvetxan'' will be a more appropriate name in the ATL than it may be in OTL.
Rumantsch would possibly be ''Rumantsch'' in the ATL too ''if'' it need define itself primarily in contradistinction to Allemannic German there too, although its status and spread would probably be stronger in the ATL. If so it might well be {{SC|*Raeticanum}}. It would be spelled ''Retxan'' since in that case I'd also expect its orthography to be Italian and R/B-influenced rather than German-influenced and use ''tx'' instead of ''tsch'' and ''x'' for {{IPA|/ʃ/}} and perhaps ''sg(i)'' for {{IPA|/ʒ/}} instead of ''sch'' for both. I imagine international words with ''x'' would have got pronounced with {{IPA|/ʃ/}} or written with ''xh'' {{IPA|/ks/}} analogous with ''ch'' and ''gh'' for unpalatalized {{IPA|/k/}} and {{IPA|/g/}} before ''e'' or ''i''.  Some orthographic difference from R/B would be likely and healthy given the four-way differentiation {{IPA|/ts—tɕ—tʃ—k/}} where R/B only has three-way {{IPA|/ts—tʃ—k/}}, and the intervening Romand/Helvetxan.  I'd expect the same confusion over the spelling of {{IPA|/ʒ/}} arise as in R/B. If [[User:Melroch|I]] had designed ''[[Wikipedia:Romansh#Standardisation|Rumantx Grixun]]'' I would have used these spellings and also probably accent marks to differentiate {{IPA|/e/}} ''é'' and  {{IPA|/ɛ/}} ''è'' from  {{IPA|/ə/}} ''e'' and {{IPA|/o/}} ''ù'' from {{IPA|/ɔ/}} ''o''.  I would definitely have used ''ç'' for {{IPA|/tɕ/}} rather than ''tg'', which looks daft word initially — compare ''tgirar'' and ''çirar''! — but ''çh'' in those words where {{IPA|/tɕ/}} is in dialectal variation with {{IPA|/k/}}, which would leave ''ch'' unambiguous for {{IPA|/χ/}} in those cases where all dialects have that sound. In the ATL this latter would then be a late differentiation from an earlier situation with variation between ''c'' and ''ç/cz''. See the pronunciation guide in [http://www.unifr.ch/rheto/documents/Gramminstr.pdf this grammar (PDF)] and the [http://rm.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumantsch#Cumparanza_da_la_variaziun_rumantscha comparative table of dialect forms in the Rumantsch Wikipedia].


==== {{note|Borgonzc}} Borgonzc ====
{{note|dC}} To the extent that '''d / __C''' existed in Latin it was assimilated to the following consonant. The main exception was {{SC|dj}} which in Old Rhodrese became either {{IPA|/dz/}} ''z'' or {{IPA|/dʒ/}} ''j, g''.
''Borgonzc'' as a Romance form may be a haplology of {{SC|*Burgundioniscum}} — perhaps ''Borgondesc'' or ''Borgonzonesc'' are more likely.


==== {{note|labial-sonorant}} Labial + sonorant ====
{{note|pierre}} Since the plurals of {{SC|petra}} and {{SC|pede}} became homophones in Rhodrese the former is strictly an uncountable mass noun. To denote 'piece(s) of stone' ''pierghe'' pl. ''pirg'' &lt; {{SC|petrica}}, or if the stone(s) be larger ''el pierráu'' &lt; {{SC|petrone}} are used. Many of the ''sensu stricto'' Rhodrese dialects, like several Italian dialects, have forms like ''el pried, li prid'' as if from {{SC|preta, pretae}} but these are strictly banned from the written language. The personal name {{SC|Petrus}} is now used only in the semi-learned form ''Piedre'' or in the originally Provençal form ''Pair'', but the adjective ''pierraus'' (O.Rh. ''perrous'') and the surnames ''Pirrí'' and ''Pierrot'' are still current. ''Pier'' is used as an ethnic slur for a Frenchman (cf. French ''Pierre'' {{IPA|/pjɛʁ/}} &lt; {{SC|Petrus}})
Examples:
* {{SC|capio}}  
*:> northern ''txautx''
*:> southern ''cope/cobe''
*:> standard ''cautx''
* {{sc|stabulum}}
*:>  northern ''etau''
*:>  central ''esta(v)o''
*:>  southern ''estable''
*:>  standard ''estaul''


:Standard orthography normally doesn't reflect l-vocalization, which is lacking in the southern dialects, but is reflected in medieval manuscripts from the central area, where postvocalic ''l'' was reintroduced as a prestige social variant under southern influence, and as a conscious distancing from ''Frantxay''.
{{note|aghle}} ''egl'' {{IPA|/ɛʎ/}}, the plural of ''ogl'' {{IPA|/ɔʎ/}} should not be confused with ''eghle'' {{IPA|/ˈɛglɪ/}} the plural of ''aghle'' {{IPA|/ˈaglɪ/}} &lt; {{SC|aquila}}.


{{note|figlao}} The pejorization in the meaning of ''figláo'' {{SC|filiolus}} was no doubt due to confusion with a supposed or real ''**figláu'' &lt; {{SC|filione}}.


* {{sc|caprum}}  
{{note|figline}} ''la figline, li figlí'' is an example of how the ending {{SC|-ina}} became productively added to nouns and nominalized adjectives denoting female living beings after the plurals of paired masculine/feminine designations had become identical. This happened also with names: the lady Claudine and her maid Clauzine (&lt; {{SC|-ina}} added to the male name Clauz &lt; {{SC|Claudius}} are a staple pair of the traditional Borgonzay comedy. Sometimes the endings ''-áu'' {{SC|-one}} or ''-air'' {{SC|-ariu}} were added to the masculine designation instead of or in addition to adding {{SC|-ina}} to the feminine designation. This was however a rule only with trees and their fruits as ''perair'' 'pear-tree' and ''paire'' 'pear'.
*:> northern ''txaur''
*:>  southern ''cabre''
*:>  standard ''caur''
* N.B. {{sc|eximius}}
*:> northern ''sceundg''
*:>  southern ''esceme'' (plural ''escime'')
*:>  standard ''esceundg''.


{{R3 pages}}
{{R3 pages}}
[[Category:Conlangs by Melroch]]
[[Category: Conlangs]]
[[Category: a posteriori conlangs]]

Latest revision as of 15:21, 4 November 2012



Rhodrese
Rhodray, Borgonzay
Spoken in: Burgundy (Borgonze)
Conworld: Lucus
Total speakers: several million
Genealogical classification: Indo-European
Italic
Romance
Gallo-Romance
Rhodrese (Rhodray, Borgonzay)
Basic word order: SVO
Morphological type: inflecting
Morphosyntactic alignment: accusative
Writing system:
Created by:
BPJ 2007
Approximate outline of Borgonze superimposed on OTL modern France. The borders certainly need to be adjusted to correspond to natural boundaries.

Alphabet and pronunciation

Digraphs which appear bold in the left column below are considered separate letters of the alphabet.

Letter Pronunciation
A a a, ə Stressed a is [a], unstressed a is [ə].
Ai ai, Ay ay ai̯ The only difference between ai and ay is that theoretically final ai is unstressed while final ay is stressed. In practice final ai occurs mostly in unstressed monosyllabic particles like mai.
Ao ao, Au au au̯ These digraphs are pronounced alike. Their distribution is partly governed by etymological criteria, in that ao is found where there was al or ol in Latin, and au where there was au or aβ' in Vulgar Latin, but the main criterion is whether related forms with i-affection have eo or eu. These criteria are of course related, in that the i-affected form of original al or ol was originally el, which became eo, while the i-affected form of original au or aβ' was eu.
B b b, p Pronounced [p] at the end of a word.
C c k, s Pronounced [s] before e, i and y and [k] elsewhere.

The older 'soft' pronunciation of c was [ts]. This pronunciation is preserved in some dialects, and some purists think that it ought to still be the standard pronunciation. Other dialects have [θ] as the soft pronunciation of c, and those speakers may use that pronunciation when speaking standard Rhodrese.[1]

Ch ch k Note that the Rhodrese pronunciation of ch differs from the French but agrees with the Italian.
Ç ç s This is the traditional spelling for the 'soft' pronunciation of c in other positions than before e, i and y. The above remarks about the 'soft' pronunciation of c apply equally to ç. Some dialects often have ç before a where the corresponding French word has ch, e.g. çaod, standard Rhodrese caod, Fr. chaud; ciar, standard Rhodrese chiar, Fr. cher.
D d d, ð. t Pronounced [t] at the end of a word, [ð] after a vowel or r inside a word and [d] elsewhere, including at the beginning of a word. Some speakers have [θ] for d after a vowel at the end of a word.

To pronounce d after a vowel as [z] or zero is considered sub-standard. Some speakers whose dialects have these pronunciations use a hard [d] in all word-internal positions.

dg ʤ, ʧ
E e e, ɛ, ɪ Stressed e is [e] or [ɛ]. Unstressed e is [ɪ], even where it derives from Latin a
Eu eu y
Eo eo eu̯, ɛu̯
F f f
G g g, ɣ, ʤ, k
Gh gh g, ɣ
H h Ø
I i i, ɪ
Ia ia ja
Iao iao jau̯
Ie ie
Ieo ieo jɛu̯
Io io iu̯
J j ʤ
K k k
L l l Some speakers pronounce l as [ɺ̢] (cf. ll) at the beginning of words.
Gl gl ʎ
Ll ll ɺ̢ A lateral retroflex flap. Some speakers who don't have this sound in their dialect pronounce ll as [dl].
M m m
N n
Gn gn ɲ
O o o, ɔ, ʊ
P p p
Q q k
R r ʁ, ɾ
rr ʁ
S s s, z
Sc sc sk, ʃ
Sç, sç ʃ
Sdg, sdg ʒ, ʃ [ʃ] at the end of words.
S'dg, s'dg zʤ, sʧ [sʧ] at the end of words.
Sg, sg ʒ, zɡ, sk [ʒ] before e, i and y, e.g. basgiar [bəˈʒjaɾ]; [sk] at the end of words; [zɡ] elsewhere.
S'g, s'g [zʤ] before e, i and y.
ss s
T t t
Tx tx ʧ
U u u, ʊ
Ua ua wa
Ue ue ø
Uo uo wo
V v v
W w v, w
X x ks, gz
Y y j, i, ɪ
Yo yo jo, jɔ, iu̯
Z z z


Liquid consonants

Rhodrese has five distinct liquid phonemes, developed out of Latin single and double double liquids and some combinations of liquid and consonant. The spelling of these phonemes is consistent:

  • /ɾ/ is written r.
  • /l/ is written l.
  • /ʎ/ is written gl (and /gl/ is written ghl).
  • /ʁ/ is written rr except after a consonant or at the beginning of a word, where it is written r.
  • [ɹ] is an allophone of /ɾ/ which occurs before a consonant and before a pause. However some speakers have [ʁ] or [χ] which are allophones of /ʁ/ in this position, so in fact the distinction between /ɾ/ and /ʁ/ is neutralized there.
  • /ɽˡ/ is written ll. The distinction between between /ɽˡ/ and /l/ is only maintained between vowels. [ɽˡ] occurs instead of [l] word-initially if the preceding word ends in a vowel and word finally if the next word begins in a vowel. In modern Rhodrese this is shown in spelling only with the masculine singular definite article before a word beginning in a vowel (and in the contractions della, alla, delli, alli etc.).

The following table Illustrates the origins of these sounds in Vulgar Latin.


Position
Latin
#__ V__V __C __’C __# __’#
r ʁ ɾ ɹ ɹ ɹ ɹ
d d ɾ [2] ɹ Ø/t ɹ
rr ʁ ɹ ɹ ɹ
dr, d’r ʁ ɹ ɹ
tr, t’r ʁ ɹ ɹ
n’r ʁ ʁ ɹ ɹ
l l/ɽˡ l/w w w w w
ll, l’n l/ɽˡ ɽˡ l/w l l
t’l, d’l l/ɽˡ ɽˡ l l
lj, llj, gl, g’l ʎ ʎ w ʎ ʎ
kl, k’l kl ʎ w ʎ ʎ

Examples

Vulgar Latin Rhodrese
illo pede el pier /pjɛɾ/ pl. li pir
illo patre el piar (Old Rh. pearr) pl. li pier!
laudare lauriar /ləwɾˈjaɾ/
rotundu rodon /ʁʊˈdɔn/, f. rodonde /ʁʊˈdɔndɪ/ or /ʁʊˈdɔnɪ/, pl. reden.
petra pierre /ˈpjɛʁɪ/[3]
quadraginta quarrante
senior ser 'Mr.' ( and analogical sir 'Messrs.') cf. segnaur 'lord' < seniorem.
ponere habet porrat /pʊˈʁat/ 's/}he will put'
illu bellu el bel
illa stella l'estelle
illo malo el mao
illa mala la male
illo stab'lu ell estabo
illi oc'li igl egl (sg. ell egl)[4]
illo filio el fegl pl. li figl 'son, children' (Old Rh. el figl, li figl)
illo filiolu el figláo pl. li figléo 'brat'[5]
illa fil[j]ina la figline pl. li figlí 'daughter'[6]

Notes

^  To the extent that d / __C existed in Latin it was assimilated to the following consonant. The main exception was dj which in Old Rhodrese became either /dz/ z or /dʒ/ j, g.

^  Since the plurals of petra and pede became homophones in Rhodrese the former is strictly an uncountable mass noun. To denote 'piece(s) of stone' pierghe pl. pirg < petrica, or if the stone(s) be larger el pierráu < petrone are used. Many of the sensu stricto Rhodrese dialects, like several Italian dialects, have forms like el pried, li prid as if from preta, pretae but these are strictly banned from the written language. The personal name Petrus is now used only in the semi-learned form Piedre or in the originally Provençal form Pair, but the adjective pierraus (O.Rh. perrous) and the surnames Pirrí and Pierrot are still current. Pier is used as an ethnic slur for a Frenchman (cf. French Pierre /pjɛʁ/ < Petrus)

^  egl /ɛʎ/, the plural of ogl /ɔʎ/ should not be confused with eghle /ˈɛglɪ/ the plural of aghle /ˈaglɪ/ < aquila.

^  The pejorization in the meaning of figláo filiolus was no doubt due to confusion with a supposed or real **figláu < filione.

^  la figline, li figlí is an example of how the ending -ina became productively added to nouns and nominalized adjectives denoting female living beings after the plurals of paired masculine/feminine designations had become identical. This happened also with names: the lady Claudine and her maid Clauzine (< -ina added to the male name Clauz < Claudius are a staple pair of the traditional Borgonzay comedy. Sometimes the endings -áu -one or -air -ariu were added to the masculine designation instead of or in addition to adding -ina to the feminine designation. This was however a rule only with trees and their fruits as perair 'pear-tree' and paire 'pear'.