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| | [[User:Rivendale|Click Here to see disclaimer]] |
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| == '''Overview''' == | | {{Infobox|name=Dal’qörian|pronounce=ɗælkuɹi:jæn (Eng: Dalcurian)<br>[[Media:Dalcurian.ogg|hear pronunciation]]|tu=Present|species=Human|in=[[Dalcuria]] |no=over 3 million|script=Latin alphabet<br>(Dalcurian variant)|tree= [[Thaduracian|Thaduracian]]<br> [[Proto-Dalcurian|Proto-Dalcurian]]<br> [[Old Dalcurian|Old Dalcurian]]<br> Middle Dalcurian<br> Modern Dalcurian|morph=Analytic (standard)<br/> Semi-synthetic (Halcarnian)|ms=Nominative-Accusative (pronouns only)|wo=SVO/SOV|creator=Dayle Hill|date= 2003-ongoing}} |
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| First of all, through my own experiences, I have purposely used only basic grammar terminology in this article, and I have also included brief descriptions of grammatical words and expressions in each respective sections. This is because I want newcomers to conlanging not to feel intimidated by heavy terminology and explanations. As I can remember when I first began to create dal'qörian, I was very confused with 'intense, grammatical explanations'. Of course, when creating a language, one must have some understanding of grammar to begin with, however, for the above reasons I have written this article in simple English.<BR/>I should also state that most of the examples and references here are based in comparison to the English language.
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| dal'qörian (pronounced: ''dal-koo-ree-yan'') is a 3 year old conlang invented by myself ([[User:Rivendale|Rivendale]]). It's basic style is Indo-European, and although mainly arbitrarily invented, many words are drawn from English, German, Welsh, Cornish and Latin. To date, the language is fully functional, with a dictionary of around 10,000 references, words and phrases, idioms, (including a small colloquial element), fully grammatical, and the language also includes around 400 'dal'qörian' people's names. All the countries of the world have also been 'dal'qöranized, (as in ''anglisized'').<br/>The language actually sounds like a hybrid of Romance and eastern European languages. Here is a quick taster:
| | [[Image:Welcome note in dalscript.jpg]] |
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| | '''[[Dal'qörian Script|For more on the Dalcurian Script, click here]]''' |
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| '''ela mantábel, am gravætas ön jerandel, nämambr eƒragörädn ön equahörädn.
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| '''éren Þöldr, máriÞ resæÞámn ön qevésenámn, néba qväombr,, ön, máriÞ ela, am perös qve beröjelperös, agöentr. | | <font color=#151B8D><span style="font-size: 16px">''' Qiöra qoÞ. Aca re bán? Binä, te intevönæÞ dis déalecti Dal’qöria, velcamör ela. DérÞ, diö descöbræ däáträdn qörabárämösel qve májä, niaságrämös, liläárämös,, ön salö ni ænÞal degérø dis oragéanámn tiÞöra-lintöni di vosérämös qve tiÞöra qedérÞas.<br/>Binä, öcra di épø taÞ diö icaÞr besöcér siÞ intevönæÞ, iquirquas qnáÞr diöra,, ön méla diö, máriÞ éanö qomenträmösel ödri qualtédrämösel, iquirquas é-mäl binöra,, ödri méla diö natindr éanö enörämösel,, taÞ binä gä’ábravaqur,, ön diö qönér,, taÞ diö nöacr önestár,, nes efragörädnas maqur taÞ dérÞ: ''[email protected]. uk''''' |
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| ''All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
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| ''They should be endowed with reason and conscience and act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
| | <span style="font-size: 16px">'''Hi, and welcome to the Dalcurian language website. Here, you’ll find detailed descriptions of its grammar, pronunciation, style, and a basic history of its origins right up to its present day usage.<br/>I would like to thank you for taking the time to peruse this website, and if you would like to email me with any comments or questions, or if you notice any mistakes that you feel you could correct me on, then please feel free to do so at''': '''''dwhmusic32@yahoo.co.uk''''' |
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| '''Style'''
| | Through my own experiences, I have purposely simplified the grammatical terminology in this article, and I have also included brief descriptions of grammatical words and expressions in each respective section. This is because I want newcomers to language study not to feel intimidated by heavy terminology and explanations. As I can remember when I first began to study German, I was very confused with 'intense grammatical explanations'. Of course, when studying or creating a language, one must have some understanding of grammar to begin with. However, for the above reasons I have, for the most part, written this article in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Simple_English_Wikipedia simple English].<BR/>I should also state that most of the examples and references here are based in comparison to the English language. |
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| dal'qörian is a 'rhotic' language; the letter 'r' is pronounced after every vowel. It's pronounciation is very deliberate. In fact, by and large, dal'qörian is quite formal; it has no 'slang' form, although there is a small colloquial element to it.
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| I created this language out of my interest in Elvish. I became fascinated with Lord of the Rings when the films were released. With that, I started studying the Quenyan alphabet and learned to write using the Tengwar system. I've also studied German for the last 3 years. Through learning German, I 're-educated' myself in English grammar and around the same time began to create dal'qörian.<br/>Initially, I wanted dal'qörian to sound like Elvish, to be spoken with a 'flowing tongue' if you like. However, as it developed, I guess it took on its own flavour and sounds-which is fine by me; it gives it its own character then.
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| == '''Alphabet and pronunciation''' ==
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| {| border="1"
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| ! letter !! letter name !! pronunciation
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| |-
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| ! a
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| | al || as in cat
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| |-
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| ! b
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| | bri || as in bat
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| |-
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| ! c
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| | ca || as in cat
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| |-
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| ! d
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| | da || as in day
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| |-
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| ! e
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| | era || as in end
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| |-
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| ! f
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| | ƒe || as in fall
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| |-
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| ! g
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| | géø || ''see special pronounciation''
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| |-
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| ! h
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| | hal || as in hat
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| |-
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| ! i
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| | il || as in kill
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| |-
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| ! j
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| | öja || as in the French name ''Jean''
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| |-
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| ! l
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| | lá || as in like
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| |-
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| ! m
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| | ma || as in man
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| |-
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| ! n
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| | na || as in not
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| |-
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| ! o
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| | ol || as in top
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| |-
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| ! p
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| | pä || as in pat
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| |-
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| ! q
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| | qöc || as in 'k' in kick
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| |-
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| ! qu
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| | q'qöa || as in quick
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| |-
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| ! r
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| | ræ || ''see special pronunciation''
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| |-
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| ! s
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| | siri || as in sit
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| |-
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| ! t
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| | tø || as in take
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| |-
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| ! v
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| | vála || as in van
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| ! x
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| | séca || as in wax
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| |-
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| ! y
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| | yenta || ''see special pronounciation''
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| |}
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| '''special vowels and characters'''
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| {| border="1"
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| ! letter !! letter name !! pronunciation
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| ! ä
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| | äli || as in 'ey' in they (see also special pronunciation)
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| ! á
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| | áli || long as in bar
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| ! é
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| | éga || long as in feel
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| ! ö
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| | öli || long as in cool
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| |-
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| ! ø
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| | ø || as in German doch
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| ! æ
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| | æ || as in the 'i' in find
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| |-
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| ! Þ
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| | eÞ || th as in bath but not in the
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| |}
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| ===='''special pronunciations'''====
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| '''g''' is pronounced hard at the beginning and middle of a word, like g in ''get'' but soft at the end of a word,like g in the German word ''swanzig''.<br/>'''r''' is an ''alveolar trill''. Its place of articulation is alveolar which means it is articulated with the tip of the tongue against the alveolar ridge (or just behind the top teeth). It can be likened to the way in which a Scottish person with a strong accent would say ''great, straight, road'', etc.<br/>'''ä''' is pronounced like the ey in ''they''. However, at the end of a word, or where it is separated by a high apostrophe, it is pronounced 'ey ya'.<br/>'''y''' is always pronounced as the English upper case 'y'.<br/>'''q''' on its own is only found at the beginning of a word, including words that are separated by a high apostrophe, as in ''dal’qörian'' or ''qatáj''-cat, and is always pronounced like an English 'k'.<br/>'''c''' only appears in the middle or end of a word such as ''qurvecsár''-to annoy and ''dörac''-through, and is sounded like an English hard 'c'.<br/>'''x''' is used only to denote a negative word and attaches to the end of a verb. (see ''verbs'' and ''negatives'')
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| As well as being a 'rhotic' lanuage, dal'qörian is also PHONETIC; its spoken exactly as it is written. Once you have learned to pronounce the letters, speaking and reading dal'qörian should be relatively easy. For example, ''dal'qörian'' is pronounced ''dal-koo-ree-yan''. Here are a few more examples, in syllabic form, to give you a flavour of how words sound:
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| ! dal'qörian !! meaning !! phonetic pronunciation
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| ! strömi
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| | hot || stroo-mi
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| ! binä
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| | I/Iam || bin-Aya
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| ! stæcnáÞrädn
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| | thankless || sty-kun-arth-rey-dun
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| ! ädiáda
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| | yesterday || ey-dee-ar-da
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| ! yenø
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| | immense || why-en-och
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| ! ødérämös
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| | steadiness || och-dee-rey-mooss
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| ! qsendaréø
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| | scenario || ku-send-a-ree-och
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| ! embáragadöraj
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| | puppy || em-bar-ra-gad-oo-raj
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| ! siagentöj
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| | aunty || see-a-gent-ooj
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| |}
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| =='''Grammar'''==
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| ==='''Adjectives'''===
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| Many adjectives in English have recognizable endings such as: ''able/ible, al, ful, ic, ive,less, ous''. However, there are many adjectives that do not have specific endings, for example, colours. The past participle of verbs can also be used as adjectives. For example, in the sentence, "He was abandoned as a child", ''abandoned'' is the past participle of the verb ''abandon'', but in the sentence, "He was an abandoned child", ''abandoned'' becomes an adjective because it describes an attribute of the noun ''child''.
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| dal’qörian has no specific endings for adjectives except:
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| * When the past participle of a verb is used as an adjective (looses the prefix '''gä’''' and adds the suffix '''ädn''')<br/>
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| * When an adjective has a relative verb (formed by adding the suffix '''ädn''' to an infinitive):
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| {| border="1"
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| ! infinitive !! past participle !! adjective
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| ! námbr-''to abandon''
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| | gä’námbr-''abandoned'' || námbrädn-''abandoned''
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| ! qurivecsár-''to anger''
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| | gä’qurivecsár-''angered'' || qurivecsárädn-''angry''
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| ! tsöcr-''to touch''
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| | gä’tsöcr-''touched'' || tsöcrädn-''touched''
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| ''example text'':
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| * '''mæ gä’námbr di arangájel qve mæöra'''. ''He abandoned his children''.<br/>
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| * '''mæ ni námbrädn arangáj'''. ''He is an abandoned child.''
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| * '''Jödran gä’tsöcr di gæatéj qve diöra'''. ''Jordan touched your guitar.''<br/>
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| *'''binä, gerödn taÞ Þonábrämös, disiri tsöcrädn'''. ''I'm very touched by that gesture.''<br/>
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| *'''diö gä’ábravecsár binöra'''. ''You have angered me.''<br/>
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| *'''binä qurivecsárädn'''. ''I'm angry.''
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| ===='''Comparison of adjectives'''====
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| In English, many adjectives are compared by adding the suffixes ''er'' and ''est'' with the definite article ''the'':
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| ! absolute !! comparative !! superlative
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| ! fast
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| | faster || the fastest
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| ! late
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| | later || the latest
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| |}
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| Another way of comparing adjectives is with ''more'' and ''the most'':
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| {| border="1"
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| ! absolute !! comparative !! superlative
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| ! achievable
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| | more achievable || the most achievable
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| ! advanced
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| | more advanced || the most advanced
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| |}
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| In dal'qörian, both of these constructions are rendered with the prefix '''te''' with words beginning with a consonant, and '''tev''' with those beginning with a vowel:
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| {| border="1"
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| ! absolute !! comparative !! superlative
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| ! araciev-''late
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| | tev'araciev-''later'' || di tev'araciev-''the latest''
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| ! bracödrädn-''achievable''
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| | te'bracödrädn-''more achievable'' || di te'bracödrädn-''the most achievable''
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| |}
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| ===='''Comparative sentence patterns'''====
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| There are three types of comparative sentence: ''positive, comparative'' and ''superlative''.<br/>'''Positive sentences''' are those such as:
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| * ''The pie is not '''as nice as''' it was yesterday''.
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| * ''One picture is '''as nice as''' the next''.
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| * ''It’s '''as good as''' it gets''!
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| In dal'qörian, these are formed with the word '''säsa''' which goes before the adjective:
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| * '''séÞa epnij ''säsa stæ’quraläla'' ädiáda'''. ''The pie is '''not as nice as''' yesterday''. (In comparative sentences, adverbs of time do not begin the sentence. See Adverbs)
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| * '''sia gä’létr di vaÞriámn,, ön sia ''säsa gé’älig'' söcasendras'''. '' She told the truth and was '''as honest as''' possible.
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| Using the intensifier '''esti''' with '''säsa''' also renders the equivalent of ''just as...as'', which is slightly more emphatic:
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| * '''binä ''säsa esti sæadörädn'' diöra'''. '' I’m '''just as surprised as''' you''.
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| '''Comparative sentences''' are those such as:
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| * I’m more intelligent than you.
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| * The train is faster than the car.
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| * It was less noticeable than yesterday.
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| These are simply formed with the comparative form of the adjective and '''nas'''-''than'':
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| * '''binä ''tev’ilalägra nas'' diöra'''. ''I'm '''more intelligent than''' you.''
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| * '''Sahán ni ''tev’éagöra evédrátsi nas'' Sösan'''. ''Shane is a '''better driver than''' Susan.''
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| * '''tiÞ ''gé’natinträdn stæmériÞ nas'' ädiáda'''. ''It ''was less noticeable than'' yesterday.''
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| Sentences such as: "''You are getting taller and taller. The wind is blowing stronger and stronger'' etc, (where the adjectice is compared with itself), are formed with the adverb '''brát'''-''still'' ('''brát''' is also used as the conjunction ''but'') and the comparative:
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| * '''diö vädenária brát te’viténa'''. ''You are getting taller and taller''. (lit: ''You are becoming still taller'').
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| * '''di ateméj löbria brát te’herecöl'''. ''The wind is blowing stronger and stronger''. (lit: ''The wind is blowing still stronger'').
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| '''Superlative sentences''' are those such as:
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| * ''I’m the best guitar player''.
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| * ''This is the happiest I’ve seen her''.
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| * ...''and worst of all, she said I wasn’t attractive''!
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| The first two examples are formed as in English:
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| * '''binä di tev’éagöra gæatéjátsi'''. ''I'm the best guitar player.''
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| * '''séÞa di te’qurnöra,, taÞ binä gä’ábravisör siöra'''. ''This is the happiest I've seen her.''
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| As in the third example, the form ''adj + of all'' is formed by adding the adverbial suffix '''as/ni''' to the comparative adjective:
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| * '''minäla, te ména, gä’ábra-eƒragör di iáda,, brát ''tev’éagöras'', ména, lintöni Tradiáda, mösárax nöreÞár'''. ''We’ve been given the day off but '''best of all''', we don’t have to go back until Wednesday''. ('''mösárax'''-''must not'' in dal'qörian renders the English equivalent of ''do not have to'', see '''Verbs''')
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| ===='''Adjective endings'''====
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| dal'qörian adjectives fall under one of 3 categories: ''verbal-derivative, noun-related or non-derivative'''.
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| ====='''Verb-derivative adjectives'''=====
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| In dalqörian, ''Verb-derivative'' adjectives are those which have a 'verbal' relative. If the adjective is derived from an infinitive, it must add the suffix '''ädn:
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| {| border="1"
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| ! verb !! adjective
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| ! iquir-''to like''
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| | '''iquirädn'''-''likeable''
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| ! döfindr-''to afford''
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| | '''döfindrädn'''-''affordable''
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| |}
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| If the past participle of the verb is used as the adjective, this must lose its participle prefix '''gä'''' and again add the suffix '''ädn''':
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| {| border="1"
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| ! past participle !! adjective
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| ! gä'amár-''captivated''
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| | '''amárädn'''-''captivated''
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| ! gä'lilör-''irritated''
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| | '''lilörädn'''-''irritated''
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| |}
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| It's very important to remember this rule with ''past participle adjectives.'' For example, if you were to translate the sentence:
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| ''I am captivated by her looks.''
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| using the participle:
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| '''binä, máriÞ di gesibniel qve siöra, ''gä'amár'''''
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| then this would translate back as:
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| ''I captivated with her looks'''
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| which of course makes no sense. You must use the adjective ending:
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| '''binä, máriÞ di gesibniel qve siöra, ''amárädn'''''.
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| ====='''Noun-related adjectives'''=====
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| ====='''Non-derivative adjectives'''=====
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| ===='''Adjective tense'''====
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| ====='''Past tense denoting ''was/were'''''=====
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| dal’qörian has a unique past tense inflection with adjectives. This is because dal’qörian has no literal equivalent of the auxiliary verbs ''was/were'' and the perfect tense ''had been''. This is formed with the prefix '''gé’''' and when used with an adjective, it renders ''was/were'' or ''had been''. Here are some examples: (Note: modifying words like '''disiri'''-''very'', '''disénig'''-''quite'' and '''veclérÞ'''-''really'', always FOLLOW the adjective in the past tense but PRECEDE it in the present and future):
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| * '''sia gé’vélø'''. ''She was nasty''.
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| * '''ädiáda, tiÞ gé’strömi disénig'''. ''It was quite hot yesterday''. (lit: ''Yesterday, it was hot quite'').
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| * '''éren, gé’lenandrädn veclérÞ'''. ''They were really helpful''. (lit: ''They were helpful really'').
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| * '''di ødörämösel gé’vemörädn disiri'''. ''The instructions were very clear''.
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| As you can see, ''was'' or ''were'' is denoted by a singular or a plural noun/pronoun.
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| ====='''Adjective continuous past'''=====
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| Because of the dal'qörian tense system, ambiguity can arise on many occasions if it is not used correctly. Lets look at this example sentence:
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| * ''She has been depressed for a very long time''.
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| The past tense ''has been'' implies that she 'had' become depressed in the past and 'still is'. So the action of being depressed is 'still' on going. However, we cannot literally translate this sentence into dal'qörian because we cannot say ''has been''. A common mistake might be to put the sentence into the ''adjective past tense'':
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| * '''öcra tirimiÞ, sia gé’námaroqu disiri'''. ''She was very depressed for a long time''.
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| This however, would be conveying the wrong message because ''was'' would imply that she is no longer depressed when, in fact, she is. We would only use this tense if we wanted to say:
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| * ''She '''had been''' very depressed for a long time''. (and no is longer)
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| So, for this kind of continuous past formation (with adjectives/adverbs only), where the ‘state’ is still on going, we use the present tense with the preposition '''sintra'''-''since'':
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| * '''sintra tirimiÞ, sia disiri námaroqu'''. (lit: ''Since a long time, she is very depressed''. Translating as: ''She has been depressed for a very long time'').
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| The first part of the sentence tells us that the action had begun in the past; the second part, being in the ''present indicative'', tells us that the action is still on going.
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| '''NOTE''': When stating the ''continuous past'' regarding the ''existential'' position of people or objects, you would normally use the verb '''Þalár'''-''reside''. However, in colloquial dal'qörian, the verb can be omitted:
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| * '''sintra sol qömblel, éren gä’ábraÞalár dérÞ'''. (lit: ''Since six weeks, they have resided here''. Translating as: ''They have been here for six weeks'').
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| ====='''Adjective future tense'''=====
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| In dal'qörian, there are two ways in which the future tense with adjectives can be constructed. Firstly, the verb '''néba'''-''be'' is not used. The verb '''vädenár'''-''become'' is used instead. (see '''Verbs''' for verb inflections):
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| * '''di quádrátsi gä’ságr,, taÞ vonériáda ''vädenáræ'' strömi'''. ''The weather man said it will be hot tomorrow''. (lit: ''The weather man said, that tomorrow '''will become''' hot'').
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| * '''méla diö viti’behalbrädn,, nes siaparenöi ''vädenáræ'' disiri quranöra'''. ''Mummy will be very happy if you behave well''. (lit: ''If you are well behaved, then Mummy '''will become very''' happy'').
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| Again in a colloquial sense (and somewhat idiomatically), you can add the future suffix '''ræ''' to the pronoun '''tiÞ'''-''it'' (or the compound form '''tätiÞ'''-''that it'' when introducing a subordinate clause) and refer the adjective reflexively back to the noun, just like a verb
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| * '''iáda, tiÞræ vélø tiÞöra'''. ''It will be hot today'' (lit: ''Today, it will hot itself'')
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| * '''di quádrátsi gä’ságr, tätiÞræ vonériáda strömi tiÞöra'''. ''The weather man said it will be hot tomorrow.'' (lit: ''The weather man said that it will tomorrow hot itself'').
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| '''NOTE:''' The adverb ''tomorrow'' in the last example must follow the contraction '''tätiÞræ''' as it would normally follow the subordinating conjunction '''taÞ'''.
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| ===='''Attributive and Predicative adjectives'''====
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| ''Attributive'' adjectives precede the noun they describe. This is the exactly the same in dal'qörian:
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| * '''eÞöa ''sangtörädn'' esteplédrämösel'''. ''Some '''controlled''' explosions''
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| * '''di ''qurnöra'' angaráj'''. ''The '''happy''' child.''
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| * '''di ''ädøni'' sájel'''. ''The '''old''' men.''
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| * '''ni ''qalba'' fléj'''. ''The '''black''' fly.''
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| ''Predicative'' adjectives occur 'after' the noun but not immediately; they follow a verb, (normally a form of the verb to ''be''). Again, this the same in dal'qörian:
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| * '''di arangáj ''tirigör qurnöra''.''' ''The child '''seems happy'''''
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| * '''di iádel ''vädenária te’vélø''.''' ''The days '''are getting colder'''''.
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| However, the adjective must still follow the verb when in conjunction with prepositional word order:
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| * '''di iádel, dörac Vinti, ''vädenária te’vélø''.''' ''The days '''are getting colder''' through the winter''.
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|
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| ===='''Post positive adjectives'''====
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| These are adjectives that, in English, immediately follow a noun 'without' a verb, especially in certain institutionalized expressions:
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| * ''the Governor '''General'''''
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| * ''the Princess '''Royal'''''
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| * ''times '''past'''''
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| Post position is obligatory when the adjective modifies a pronoun:
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| * ''something '''useful'''''
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| * ''everyone '''present'''''
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| * ''those '''responsible'''''
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| They are also commonly found together with ''superlative-attributive'' adjectives (although not obligatory):
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| * ''the shortest route '''possible'''''
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| * ''the worst conditions '''imaginable'''''
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| * ''the best hotel '''available'''''
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| In dal'qörian, (with the exception of institutional titles of position), the postpositive adjective is ALWAYS introduced 'after' the noun as a '''taÞ''' clause:
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| * '''di Siasájarega’Lamæa.''' ''The Princess Royal''
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| * '''di Vitihæarátsi’Algemérädn.''' ''The Governor General''
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| but:
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| * '''sáÞ épø, taÞ gä’ábragör'''. ''Times past.'' (lit: ''Those times, that have gone.'')
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| * '''eÞöa, taÞ vosérädn.''' ''Something useful.'' (lit: ''Something, that is useful.'')
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| * '''yetrasáb, taÞ qedérÞ.''' ''Everyone present.'' (lit: ''Everyone, that is present''. Colloquailly, you can use '''eladiö-''you all'').
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| * '''sáÞ, taÞ gé’Þerapönas.''' ''Those (who were) responsible'' (Note here that the dal'qörian example is in the past tense, however the English translation can still be ''those responsible''; tense becoming clear from conext).
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| * '''di te’tiriø vécan, taÞ söcasendras.''' ''The shortest route possible''. (lit: ''The shortest route, that is possible'').
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| * '''di tev’éagöra gasániabödä, taÞ aviablos.''' ''The best hotel available''. (lit: ''The best hotel, that is available'').
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| * '''séÞa te’darø qurnisæ, taÞ minä näocr æmöaÞr.''' ''These are the worst conditions imagineable''. (lit: ''These are the worst conditions that I could imagine'').
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| NOTE: Lets take a look at this last example. There are some adjectives which do not exist in dal'qörian, that are quite common in English. This is because dal'qörian only allows for 'one' adjective to be formed from a verb, thus taking the adjective ending '''ädn'''. However, in English, more than one adjective may be derived from a verb taking either ''able'' or ''ive'' as an ending:
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| {| border="1"
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| ! verb !! adjective 1 !! adjective 2
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| |-
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| ! to imagine
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| | imaginative || imaginable
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| |-
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| ! to predict
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| | predictive || predictable
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| |-
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| ! to describe
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| | descriptive || describable
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| |}
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| Where there are two such adjectives in English, only one of these exists in dal'qörian; that being the ''ave/ive'' equivalent (although there are many verbs in English that only form one or the other eg: to ''seduce'' only forms ''seductive'' as an adjective, and to ''deploy'' only forms ''deployable'' as an adjective, both being rendered in dal'qörian with the ending ''ädn''). So, in order to equate the ''able/ible'' form, you have to ‘verbalize’ the sentence, as in the example.
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| ===='''Inherent and non-inherent adjectives'''====
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| Most attributive adjectives denote some ‘attribute’ of the noun which they modify. For instance, the phrase ''a red car'' may be said to denote a car which is red. In fact most adjective-noun sequences such as this can be loosely reformulated in a similar way:
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| * ''an old man-a man who is old''
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| * ''difficult questions-questions that are difficult''
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| * ''round glasses-glasses that are round''
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| This applies equally to postpositive adjectives:
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| * ''something understood-something which is understood''
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| * ''those responsible-those who are/were responsible''
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| In each case the adjective denotes an attribute or quality of the noun, as the reformulations show. Adjectives of this type are known as INHERENT adjectives. The attribute they denote is, as it were, inherent in the noun which they modify. However, not all adjectives are related to the noun in the same way. For example, the adjective ''small'' in ''a small businessman'' does not describe an attribute of the businessman. It cannot be reformulated as ''a businessman who is small''. Instead, it refers to a businessman whose 'business' is small. We refer to adjectives of this type as NON-INHERENT adjectives. They refer less directly to an attribute of the noun than inherent adjectives do. Here are some more examples, showing the contrast between inherent and non-inherent:
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| '''Inherent'''
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| * ''distant hills''
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| * ''a complete chapter''
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| * ''a heavy burden''
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| * ''an old man''
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| '''Non-inherent'''
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| * ''distant relatives''
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| * ''a complete idiot''
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| * ''a heavy smoker''
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| * ''an old friend''
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| Putting the non-inherent adjectives into a clause then changes the meaning all together:
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| * ''relatives who are distant''
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| * ''an idiot who is complete''
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| * ''a smoker who is heavy''
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| * ''a friend who is old''
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| In dal'qörian, attributive adjectives are NEVER used as non-inherent adjectives. This is because, in dal'qörian, almost all attributive adjectives carry only an attributive meaning. For example, to say literally '''ni vätös sécösatrátsi'''-''a heavy smoker'', would imply that the ‘smoker’ was of a ‘heavy stature’ and not that he smoked heavily. Again, the adjectives must be avoided but there are a number of ways in which non-inherent formations can be rendered. One way is to verbalize the sentence and modify it with an adverb that relates to the adjective:
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| * '''mæ vätösas sécösatr'''. ''He smokes heavily''. (see '''Adverbs''' for word order)
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| Although this does not directly describe an attribute of ‘the smoker’ himself, it still describes an attribute of his smoking which, in turn, tells us more about ‘him’.
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| * '''ni qömpal qvéamø di äda-épø.''' ''An old friend'' (lit: ''A friend out of the past'')
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| * '''tev’araciev, binä, máriÞ ni qömpal qvéamø äda épø, vehitøamria.''' '' I'm meeting an old friend later'' (lit: ''Later,I am, with a friend out of the past, meeting'').
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| * '''geræÞ tamlájel.''' ''Distant relatives'' (in dal'qörian, these are known as ''slight relations'')
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| Unfortunately, there is no ’list’ that depicts each and every equivalent of an English non-inherent phrase. Through your learning of dal'qörian, it will become apparent as to which words can be replaced or used, and how sentences can simply be re-formed.
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| ===='''Nominal adjectives'''====
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| Certain adjectives are used to denote a class by describing one of the attributes of the class. For example, ''the poor'' denotes a class of people who share a similar financial status. Other nominal adjectives are:
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| * ''the old''
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| * ''the sick''
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| * ''the wealthy''
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| * ''the blind''
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| * ''the innocent''
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| A major subclass of nominal adjectives refers to nationalities:
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| * ''the French''
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| * ''the British''
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| * ''the Japanese''
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| However, not all nationalities have corresponding nominal adjectives. Many of them are denoted by plural, proper nouns:
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| * ''the Germans''
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| * ''the Russians''
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| * ''the Americans''
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| * ''the Poles''
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| Nominal adjectives do not refer exclusively to classes of people. Indeed some of them do not denote classes at all:
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| * ''the opposite''
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| * ''the contrary''
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| * ''the good''
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| Comparative and superlative forms can also be nominal adjectives:
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| * ''The best is yet to come.''
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| * ''The elder of the two.''
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| * ''The greatest of these.''
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| * ''The most important among them.''
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| We refer to all of these types as nominal adjectives because they share some of the characteristics of nouns (hence nominal) and some of the characteristics of adjectives. They have the following nominal characteristics:
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| ː They are preceded by a determiner (usually the definite article ''the'')<br/>ː They can be modified by adjectives (''the gallant French, the unfortunate poor'')<br/>ː They are gradable (''the very old, the extremely wealthy'')<br/>ː Many can take comparative and superlative forms (''the poorer, the poorest'')
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| In dal'qörian, when an adjective is used in a nominal sense, it takes the noun ending '''ämös'''. This 'adds' to those which already end in '''ädn''' and, where a non-inflected adjective ends in a vowel, the vowel is dropped. Exceptions are those which depict nationality, and comparative and superlative forms:
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| * '''di EƒrancaniÞ'''-''the French''
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| * '''di BretæniÞ'''-''the British''
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| * '''di GemæniÞ'''-''the Germans''
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| Now look at this table. The first 4 examples are ''non-inflected'' adjectives (they do not have a verbal or nounal relative). Ending with a vowel, the vowel is removed and the noun ending '''ämös''' is added. The last 3 examples are ''verb-inflected'' adjectives (those derived from an infinitive) in which case the noun ending goes on top of the adjective ending:
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| {| border="1"
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| ! adjective !! nominal adjective form
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| |-
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| ! stæni-opposite
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| | '''di stænämös'''-''the opposite''
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| |-
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| ! éagöra-good
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| | '''di éagörämös'''-''the good''
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| |-
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| ! talgresta-''guilty''
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| | '''di talgrestämös'''-''the guilty
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| |-
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| ! ädøni-''old''
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| | '''di ädønämös'''-''the old''
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| |-
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| ! täcélosträdn-''injured''
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| | '''di täcélosträdnämös'''-''the injured''
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| |-
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| ! stælilangörädn-''bald''
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| | '''di stælilangörädnämös'''-''the bald''
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| |-
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| ! neÞörädn-''brave''
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| | '''di neÞörädnämös-''the brave''
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| |}
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|
| | =='''Sub categories'''== |
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| This rule changes with adjectives that have a 'nounal' relative (those where a noun is derived from the adjective, thus taking the ending '''ámn'''). '''ámn''' is removed altogether and replaced with '''ämös''':
| | ===[[Dalcurian language and basic history|Dalcurian language and basic history]]=== |
|
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|
| * '''talgresta'''-''guilty''
| | ===[[Dalcurian alphabet and pronunciation|Dalcurian alphabet and pronunciation]]=== |
|
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| * '''di talgrestámn'''-''the guilt''
| | ===[[dal'qörian adjectives|Adjectives]]=== |
|
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|
| BUT
| | ===[[dal'qörian adverbs|Adverbs]]=== |
|
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| * '''di talgrestämös'''-''the guilty''
| | ===[[dal'qörian verbs|Verbs]]=== |
|
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|
| NOTE: You must also try to avoid the mistake of removing '''ädn''' from verb related adjectives when using them in a nominal position. For example, '''di täcélosträdnämös''' means ''the injured'', but if '''ädn''' was omitted, '''di täcélosträmös''' means ''the injury''. Your knowledge of verb related and non-verb related adjectives will be of great importance in understanding this part of dal'qörian grammar.
| | ===[[dal'qörian prepositions|Prepositions]]=== |
|
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|
| ===='''Resultant adjectives'''==== | | ===[[Dal'qörian negatives|Negatives]]=== |
|
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| These are adjectives that, in English, are placed after the noun they modify and reflects a change that occurs by action of the verb on the noun:
| | ===[[Dal'qörian nouns|Nouns]]=== |
|
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| * ''She wiped the glass clean''. (The glass was dirty)
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|
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| * ''He painted the fence white.'' (The fence was a different colour before he painted it)
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|
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|
| If you place the adjectives 'before' the noun, then this changes the meaning altogether:
| | ===[[Dal'qörian Cases|Case]]=== |
|
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| * ''She wiped the clean glass''. (The glass is already clean as she wipes it)
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| * ''He painted the white fence''. (The fence is already white before he paints it)
| | ===[[Dal'qörian pronouns|Pronouns]]=== |
|
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|
| In dal'qörian, a resultant adjective 'immediately follows' the verb, and unlike in English, it 'precedes' a pronoun:
| | ===[[Dalcurian punctuation|Punctuation]]=== |
|
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|
| * '''sia gä’ipr nørädn di gläj.''' ''She wiped the glass clean'' (lit: ''She wiped clean the glass'')
| | ===[[Dal'qörian Telling the time|Time]]=== |
|
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|
| * '''mæ gä’emblär etiri di peremitij.''' ''He painted the fence white.''
| | ===[[Dal'qörian numbers|Numbers]]=== |
|
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|
| * '''sia gä’ipr nørädn tiÞ.''' ''She wiped it clean'' (lit: ''She wiped clean it''.)
| | =='''Miscellaneous word and phrase lists'''== |
|
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|
| * '''mæ gä’emblär etiri tiÞ.''' ''He painted it white''. (lit: ''He painted white it''.)
| | ====[[Dal'qörian colours|Colours]]==== |
| | ====[[dal'qörian days/months/seasons|Days/months/seasons]]==== |
| | ====[[dal'qörian describing people|Describing people]]==== |
| | ====[[dal'qörian countries|Names of Countries]]==== |
| | ====[[Dalcurian hello/goodbye please/thankyou|Hello/goodbye Please/thankyou]]==== |
| | ====[[Dalcurian intensifiers|Intensifiers]]==== |
| | ====[http://docs.google.com/View?id=dmh9tc5_92r9dbhhr English Dalcurian Dictionary]==== |
|
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|
| ==='''Adjectives with prepositions'''=== | | ====Links:==== |
| | [http://www.omniglot.com '''Omniglot'''] |
|
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|
| ===='''Dynamic adjectives'''====
| | [[Websites in Dalcurian|Various webpages in Dalcurian]] |
|
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|
| | [[Category:Conlangs]] |
| | [[Category:Dalcurian]] |
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| | {{Dalcurian}} |
| Page still under construction
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