Vrkhazhian: Difference between revisions

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Vrkhazhian (ʾAšdu Yat-Vṛḵaž) is a Western Hašakam language that is spoken by the Vrkhazhi who live in [[Vṛḵaẕ|the Empire of Yat-Vṛḵaž]]. The earliest form of this language, known as Classical Vrkhazhian, was spoken as early as 950 years ago.
<big>
Vrkhazhian (''Śād Warḫāsaḫ'' "Mouth of Vrkhazh") is a language that is spoken by the Vrkhazhians who live in [[The Vrkhazhians|Warḫāsam]].
{{infobox
{{infobox
|image=Flag-Vrkhazh.png
|image=VrkhazhianFlagSRLT.png
|size=350px
|size=350px
|bg=#6BB6B6
|bg=#32cdcd
|name=Vrkhazhian
|name=Vrkhazhian
|native=ʾAšdu Yat-Vṛḵaž
|native=Śād Warḫāsaḫ, Warḫāsāli
|pronounce=/ʔaçˈdu jatβɹ̩ˈxaʝ/
|pronounce=[ˈɬɑːd wɑr.ˈxɑː.sɑx], [wɑr.xɑː.ˈsɑː.li]
|in=Vrkhazh (Yat-Vṛḵaẕ)
|in=Vrkhazh (Warḫāsam)
|script=ʾAḵuva Yat-Vṛḵažikam
|script=Añmānas
|tree=Hašakam Languages
|tree=Proto-Ch'ahdic
:Himoshian
:Proto-A
::Taksheyut 
::Proto-AA
:::Proto-Vrkhazhian
:::Proto-AAA
::::Classical Vrkhazhian
::::Old Vrkhazhian
:::::'''Modern Vrkhazhian'''
:::::'''Imperial Vrkh.'''
|morph=highly fusional, weakly agglutinative
:::::'''Common Vrkh.'''
|morph=agglutinative, triconsonantal root-based morphology
|ms=nominative-accusative  
|ms=nominative-accusative  
|wo=SOV/VSX
|wo=Free word order, but typically verb-initial
|creator=[[User:Ahzoh|Malcolm G. Holborne]]}}
|creator=[[User:Ahzoh|Malcolm G. Holborne]]}}




==History==
==History==
===Dialects===
===Registers===
Vrkhazhian has two major dialects and several minor dialects. The area of the two dialects are divided by two distinct sides; the north-eastern portion of Vrkhazh contains the majority of speakers of Mukhebic, while the south-western portion of Vrkhazh contains the majority of speakers of Uzerian. The numerous smaller dialects are spread in and around these two halves with varying degrees of density.
Vrkhazhian is divided into two primary registers:


The table below lists the two major dialects:
* Imperial Vrkhazhian ('''Ḳabbāˀas''' ''"The Royal [Speech]"'') is the written variety of Vrkhazhian based upon a dialect of Old Vrkhazhian spoken by the founder of the Empire, Ezu-Nardikh the Great, and his supporters.
 
* Common Vrkhazhian ('''Lumbāˀas''' ''"The Common [Speech]"'') is the spoken variety based around the dialect of the capital city of Uzur.
{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
|+Dialects of Vrkhazhian
|-
! Dialect
! Location
|-
| Uzerian
| South-West Vrkhazh (originating from the city of ʾUzer)
|-
| Mukhebic
| North-East Vrkhazh (originating from the city of Muḵeb)
|}
 
Mukhebic is considered the dialect of business and trading, and originated from Mukheb, and along with Qazhd, make up the Pillars of Trade and Commerce. Uzerian is considered the dialect of politics and military affairs, originating from Uzer, the Capital City where the Emperor or Empress resides. When conducting business and trading with others, it is expected to communicate in the Mukhebic dialect while the Uzerian dialect is used for everything involving politics and the military. The knowledge and fluency of both dialects is a must for any meaningful life in the Vrkhazhian Empire.


==Phonology==
==Phonology==
===Consonants===
===Consonants===
The table below shows the 37 consonant phonemes found in the Uzerian dialect of Vrkhazhian:
The table below shows the 25 consonant phonemes found in Vrkhazhian. Letters in angle brackets indicate where the romanization of the phoneme differs from its IPA representation.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
 
|+Vrkhazhian Consonantal Phonemes
{|class="wikitable article-table" style="text-align:center;"
|-
|-
! colspan=2|
! style="width: 8em;" rowspan="2" colspan="2" |  
!Bilabial
! style="width: 4em;" rowspan="2" | Bilabial
!Alveolar
! colspan="2" | Coronal
!Palatal
! style="width: 4em;" rowspan="2" | Velar
!Velar
! style="width: 4em;" rowspan="2" | Glottal
!Uvular
!Glottal
|-
|-
!colspan=2|Nasal
! style="width: 4em; font-size: smaller" | Central
| '''m''' [m]
! style="width: 4em; font-size: smaller" | Lateral
| '''n''' [n]
|
|
| '''ṉ''' [ɴ]
|
|-
|-
!rowspan=3|Stop
! colspan="2" | Nasal
!<small>Light</small>
| m
| '''p͛''' [ʰp]
| n
| '''t͛''' [ʰt]
|
|
| '''k͛''' [ʰk]
| ŋ ⟨'''''n̮'''''⟩
| '''q͛''' [ʰq]
|
|-
!<small>Plain</small>
| '''p''' [p] '''b''' [b]
| '''t''' [t] '''d''' [d]
|  
|  
| '''k''' [k] '''g''' [g]
| '''q''' [q]
| '''ʾ''' [ʔ]
|-
|-
!<small>Dark</small>
! rowspan="3" | Stop
| '''ṗ''' [pʶ]
! style="font-size: smaller" | Voiceless
| '''ṭ''' [tʶ]
| p
|  
| t
|
|
|
| k
| rowspan="3" | ʔ ⟨'''''ˀ'''''⟩
|-
! style="font-size: smaller" | Ejective
| pʼ ⟨'''''ṗ'''''⟩
| tʼ ⟨'''''ṭ'''''⟩
|
|
| kʼ ⟨'''''ḳ'''''⟩
|-
|-
!colspan=2|Affricate
! style="font-size: smaller" | Voiced
|
| b
| '''ẕ''' [t͡s]
| d
| '''č''' [c͡ç] '''j''' [ɟ͡ʝ]
|
|
|
|
| g
|-
|-
!colspan=2|Fricative
! rowspan="3" | Fricative
| '''f''' [ɸ] '''v''' [β]
! style="font-size: smaller" | Voiceless
| '''s''' [s] '''z''' [z]
| f
| '''š''' [ç] '''ž''' [ʝ]
| s
| '''ḵ''' [x] '''ḡ''' [ɣ]
| ɬ ⟨'''''ś'''''⟩
| '''ḥ''' [χ]
| x ⟨'''''ḫ'''''⟩
| '''h''' [h]
|  
|-
|-
!colspan=2|Approximant
! style="font-size: smaller" | Ejective
|
| '''r''' [ɹ]
| '''y''' [j]
| '''w''' [w]
|
|
| sʼ ⟨'''''ṣ'''''⟩
| ɬʼ ⟨'''''ṣ́'''''⟩
|
|
|
|-
|-
!colspan=2|Trill
! style="font-size: smaller" | Voiced
|
|
| '''ř''' [r]
| z
| ɮ ⟨'''''ź'''''⟩
|
|
|
| '''ṟ''' [ʀ~ʁ]
|  
|  
|-
|-
!colspan=2|Lateral Approximant
! colspan="2" | Liquid
|
|
| '''l''' [l]
| r
| l
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" | Semivowel
| w
|
|
|
|
|
| j ⟨'''''y'''''⟩
|-
!colspan=2|Lateral Fricative
|
|  
|  
|| '''ś''' [ʎ̝̊]
|
|
|
|-
|-
|}
|}
<div style="font-size: smaller; line-height: 1.25em; margin-bottom: 0.33em">''Where consonants appear in pairs, the left is voiceless and the right is voiced.</div>
All consonants except for /j w ʔ/ can be geminated (pronounced twice as long) which is indicated in writing by simply doubling the letter.
 
===Vowels===
===Vowels===
{| class="IPA" cellspacing="0px" cellpadding="0" style="text-align:center; background:none;"
Vrkhazhian possesses the following monophthongs:
|- style="text-align:center; font-size:smaller;"
{|class="wikitable article-table" style="text-align:center;"
|style="padding-bottom:3px;"| &nbsp;
| style="width: 60px;" | '''Front'''
| style="width: 60px; word-spacing: -.3em;" | '''Near- front'''
| style="width: 60px;" | '''Central'''
| style="width: 60px;word-spacing: -.3em;" | '''Near- back'''
| style="width: 60px;" | '''Back'''
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | '''Close'''
!
| style="height: 210px;" colspan=5 rowspan=7 | <div style="position: relative;">[[File:Blank vowel trapezoid.svg|300px]]<div style="background:none; position:absolute; top:0; left:0;">
! style="width: 70px; " |Front
{| style="position:relative; width:300px; height:210px; text-align:center; background:none;"
! style="width: 70px; " |Back
|-
|-
| style="width:300px; height:210px; text-align:center; background:none; font-size:120%;"|
!Close
| i iː
| u uː
|-
!Open
| ɛ ɛː
| ɑ ɑː
|}


<!-- CLOSE VOWELS -->
The short vowels /ɛ ɑ i u/ are represented in writing as ⟨e a i u⟩ while the long vowels /ɛː ɑː iː uː/ are either represented with a macron ⟨ē, ā, ī, ū⟩ or a circumflex ⟨ê, â, î, û⟩. The usage of a circumflex in writing is to indicate vowel coalescence as a result of the contraction of the weak consonants /ʔ j w/.
<div style="position: absolute; left: 13%; width: 1em; top: 8%; background: none;">'''i'''</div>
<div style="position: absolute; left: 69%; width: 1em; top: 24%; background: none;">'''u'''</div>


<!-- NEAR-CLOSE VOWELS -->
===Allophony===
====Plosives====
*The plosives /p b t d k g/ assimilate in voicing when they precede a plosive of the same place of articulation. An example of this allophony is demonstrated with the verb '''alad-''' "fight, oppose": under normal circumstances its stem is '''alad-''' such as in '''aladna''' "I fought, I opposed"; however, when, for example, the first person plural subject suffix '''-ta''' is  added, it becomes '''alatta''' "we fought, we opposed"
*The plosives /p b t d k g/ also assimilate in voice and manner of articulation when they precede fricatives of the same place of articulation


<!-- CLOSE-MID VOWELS -->
====Nasals====
*???


<!-- MID VOWELS -->
====Fricatives====
<div style="position: absolute; left: 40%; width: 1em; top: 45%; background: none;">'''e̞'''</div>
*the fricatives /s z ɬ ɮ/ assimilate in voice and manner of articulation when they precede another fricative of the same place of articulation.
<div style="position: absolute; left: 57%; width: 1em; top: 43%; background: white;">'''ə'''</div>
*the fricatives /s z ɬ ɮ/ become affricates word-initially.
<div style="position: absolute; left: 78%; width: 1em; top: 46%; background: none;">'''o̞'''</div>


<!-- OPEN-MID VOWELS -->
====Other====
*The velar consonants /ŋ k g x/ become partially-rounded [ŋ͗ k̹ g͗ x̹] or fully-rounded [ŋʷ kʷ gʷ xʷ] before back vowels.


<!-- NEAR-OPEN VOWELS -->
===Symmetrical Assimilation===
 
{|
<!-- OPEN VOWELS -->
|
<div style="position: absolute; left: 77%; width: 1em; top: 69%; background: none;">
{| class="wikitable"  
'''a'''</div>
|}
</div></div>
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | &nbsp;&nbsp;'''Near-close'''
! Components
! Result
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | '''Close-mid'''
| b + p
| rowspan="2" | pp
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | '''Mid'''
| m + p
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | '''Open-mid'''
| p + b
| rowspan="2" | bb
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | '''Near-open'''
| m + b
|-
|-
| style="height: 30px; font-size: smaller; text-align: right;" | '''Open'''
|}
|}
<div style="font-size: smaller; line-height: 1.25em; margin-bottom: 0.33em">''The vowel phoneme /a/ is analyzed as being a continuum of open vowels ranging from front to back that are in free variation.</div>
|
 
|
{|class="wikitable article-table" style="text-align:center;"
|
|+Romanization of Vowel Phonemes
|
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Components
! Result
|-
| d + t
| rowspan="2" | tt
|-
|-
!
| n + t
! style="width: 40px; " |Front
! style="width: 40px; " |Central
! style="width: 40px; " |Back
|-
|-
!Close
| t + d
| '''i''' [i]
| rowspan="2" | dd
|
| '''u''' [u]
|-
|-
!Mid
| n + d
| '''e''' [e̞]
| '''ə''' [ə]
| '''o''' [o̞]
|-
|-
!Open
|colspan="3"| '''a''' [a]
|}
|}
 
|
{| class="wikitable"
|
|+Vrkhazhian Diphthongs
|
! IPA
|
! Letter
{| class="wikitable"  
! Example
|-
|-
! Components
! Result
|-
|-
| ae̯
| g + k
| aẏ
| rowspan="2" | kk
| '''eye''' , p'''ie'''
|-
|-
| n̮ + k
|-
|-
| ao̯
| k + g
| aẇ
| rowspan="2" | gg
| c'''ow''', '''ou'''t
|-
|-
| n̮ + g
|-
|-
| ɛo̯
|}
| eẇ
| m'''ayo'''naise
|-
|}
|}


===Allophony===
===Asymmetrical Assimilation===
*The alveolar stop consonants /t d/ become [θ ð] in word-final positions after front vowels.
{|
*The velar stop consonants /k g/ are assimilated into /q/ near /q ʰq ɴ χ/.
|
*The nasal consonants /n ɴ/ are analyzed as [n] before alveolar consonants, [ɲ] before palatal consonants, [ŋ] before velar consonants (including /w/), and [ɴ] before uvular consonants.
{| class="wikitable"  
*The vowels /a i ə u/ are lowered to [ɑ e̞ ɐ o̞] if they occur after /q ʰq ɴ χ/.
 
===Syllable Structure===
The syllable structure of Vrkhazhian is analyzed as (C)C(V)(C)(C), where C stands for a consonant, V stands for a vowel. The consonants ⟨r m n⟩ also have syllabic counterparts /ɹ̩ m̩ n̩/ which are romanized as ⟨ṛ ṃ ṇ⟩.
 
Words cannot have a vowel hiatus, so an epenthetic /h/ is added between the two vowels.
 
====Onset====
The follow table lists the possible consonants that can occur as the onset:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| Nasal:
! Components
:/m/, /n/, /ɴ/
! Result
|-
|-
| Stop:
| p + f
:/p/, /ʰp/, /pʶ/, /b/, /t/, /ʰt/, /tʶ/, /d/,
| rowspan="3" | ff
:/k/, /ʰk/, /g/, /q/, /ʰq/, /ʔ/
|-
|-
|Stop plus Nasal:
| b + f
:/dm/, /km/, /gm/, /qm/
|-
|-
| Stop plus Stop:
| m + f
:/pt/, /pʔ/, /bd/, /tp/, /tʔ/, /db/,
:/kp/, /kb/, /kt/, /kd/, /kʔ/, /gb/,
:/gd/, /gʔ/
|-
|-
|Stop plus /j w/:
|}
:/kj/, /gj/, /ʔj/
|
:/kw/, /gw/, /qw/, /ʔw/
|
|-
|
|Stop plus Fricative:
|
:/kɸ/, /gβ/, /kç/, /gʝ/
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|Stop plus Liquid:
:/pɹ/, /tɹ/, /kɹ/, /qɹ/
:/pr/, /br/, /kr/, /gr/, /qr/,
:/pʀ/, /tʀ/, /kʀ/, /qʀ/,
:/pl/, /ql/
|-
| Affricate:
:/t͡s/, /c͡ç/, /ɟ͡ʝ/
|-
|-
| Fricative:
! Components
:/ɸ/, /β/, /s/, /z/, /ç/, /ʝ/, /x/, /ɣ/, /χ/, h/
! Result
|-
|-
| Fricative plus Nasal:
| t + s
:/sm/, /zm/, /sn/, /zn/
| rowspan="3" | ss
|-
|-
| Fricative plus Stop:
| d + s
:/zb/, /zg/, /xp/, /xt/, /ɣb/, /ɣd/
|-
|-
| Fricative plus Affricate:
| n + s
:/çc͡ç/, /ʝɟ͡ʝ/
|-
|-
| Fricative plus Fricative:
:/sɸ/, /zβ/, /sx/, /zɣ/
|-
|-
|Fricative plus /w/:
| t + z
:/sw/, /zw/, /çw/, /ʝw/, /xw/, /ɣw/, /χw/
| rowspan="3" | zz
|-
|-
|Fricative plus Liquid:
| d + z
:/sɹ/, /zɹ/, /çɹ/, /ʝɹ/, /xɹ/, /ɣɹ/, /χɹ/,
:/ɸr/, /βr/, /xr/, /ɣr/, /χr/,
:/sʀ/, /zʀ/,
:/sl/, /zl/, /çl/, /ʝl/, /xl/, /ɣl/, /χl/
|-
|-
| Approximant:
| n + z
:/j/, /w/
|-
| Liquid:
:/ɹ/, /r/, /ʀ/, /l/, /ʎ̝̊/
|-
|-
|}
|}
 
|
====Nucleus====
|
Any of the vowels and diphthongs can appear in a syllable as well as the syllabic consonants /ɹ̩ m̩ n̩/
|
 
|
====Coda====
{| class="wikitable"  
The following table lists the possible consonants that can occur as the coda:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| Nasal:
! Components
:/m/, /n/, /ɴ/
! Result
|-
|-
| Nasal plus Stop:
| t + ś
:/mt/, /nt/
| rowspan="3" | śś
|-
|-
| Stop:
| d + ś
:/p/, /ʰp/, /pʶ/, /b/, /t/, /ʰt/, /tʶ/, /d/,
:/k/, /ʰk/, /g/, /q/, /ʰq/, /ʔ/
|-
|-
| Stop plus Stop:
| n + ś
:/pt/, /kt/
|-
|-
| Stop plus Fricative:
| t + ź
:/kɸ/, /kç/,
| rowspan="3" | źź
|-
|-
| Affricate:
| d + ź
:/t͡s/, /c͡ç/, /ɟ͡ʝ/
|-
|-
| Fricative:
| n + ź
:/ɸ/, /β/, /s/, /z/, /ç/, /ʝ/, /x/, /ɣ/, /χ/, h/
|-
|-
| Fricative plus Stop:
|}
:/çt/, /ʝd/, /xp/, /xt/, /xk/, /ɣb/, /ɣd/, /ɣg/
|
|
|
|
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| Fricative plus Affricate:
! Components
:/çc͡ç/, /ʝɟ͡ʝ/
! Result
|-
|-
| Approximant:
| k + ḫ
:/j/, /w/
| rowspan="3" | ḫḫ
|-
|-
| Liquid:
| g + ḫ
:/ɹ/, /r/, /ʀ/, /l/, /ʎ̝̊/
|-
|-
|Liquid plus Stop:
| n̮ + ḫ
:/ɹp/, /ɹb/, /ɹt/, /ɹd/, /ɹk/, /ɹg/, /ɹq/,
:/rp/, /rb/, /rt/, /rd/, /rk/, /rg/, /rq/,
:/ʀp/, /ʀb/, /ʀt/, /ʀd/, /ʀk/, /ʀg/, /ʀq/,
:/lp/, /lb/, /lt/, /ld/, /lk/, /lg/ /lq/
|-
|Liquid plus Fricative:
:/ɹɸ/, /ɹβ/, /ɹs/, /ɹz/, /ɹç/, /ɹʝ/, /ɹx/, /ɹɣ/,
:/rɸ/, /rβ/, /rç/, /rʝ/, /rx/, /rɣ/, /rχ/,
:/ls/, /lz/, /lç/, /lʝ/, /lx/, /lɣ/, /lχ/
|-
|-
|}
|}
|}
===Syllable Structure and Prosody===
The basic syllable structure is maximally (C)V(V)(C) whereby any syllable can begin with any consonant except for /ʔ/ and any syllable can end with any consonant except for /ʔ j w/. Vrkhazhian strongly dislikes consonant clusters in the onset or coda of a syllable and typically inserts vowels to break the offending clusters. The epenthetic vowels typically mirror the adjacent vowel.


===Stress===
Stress in Vrkhazhian is based on syllable weight, of which there are three degrees: light (V, CV); heavy (CVC, CV̄, CV̂), and superheavy (CV̄C, CV̂C).
Stress is penultimate if the last syllable is open, and ultimate if the last syllable is closed.


==Grammar==
==Grammar==
Line 380: Line 303:
{{main|Nouns in Vrkhazhian}}
{{main|Nouns in Vrkhazhian}}


Vrkhazhian nouns are called '''maḡimud''' (singular '''maḡimu'''). They are declined for case, gender, and number. Specifically there are five cases (nominative, accusative, genitive, allative, and ablative) and two numbers (singular and plural). Additionally, Vrkhazhian has three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine and neuter. These genders are based on sex and strictly semantic, thus most nouns, such as inanimate objects, fall into the category of neuter.
Vrkhazhian nouns are called '''ğanūm''' (singular '''ğanum'''). They are declined for case, gender, and number. Specifically there are four cases (nominative, vocative, accusative, instrumental, and vocative) and two numbers (singular and plural). Additionally, Vrkhazhian has two grammatical genders: masculine and feminine. When referring to humans, deities, and certain animals, masculine refers to beings and animals of the male sex as well as beings that identify with the male gender while feminine refers to beings and animals of the female sex as well as beings that identify with the female gender. When referring to non-humans, masculine refers to wild or dangerous animals (e.g. '''sammali''' "crocodile") or inanimate non-living things (e.g. '''adgi''' "sand") while feminine refers to domesticated or safe animals (e.g. '''ḫusu''' "horse") or more animate non-living things (e.g. '''masû''' "sea").
 
Nouns can also be placed into what are called "states". There are only two states: the governed state ('''taṗšišu'''), or ''status rectus'', and the construct state ('''samlilu'''), or ''status constructus''.
The construct state is used in genitive constructions to mark the head noun (possessed noun), while the Genitive case is used to mark the dependent (modifying) noun or adjective. In Vrkhazhian, the head noun and the modifying noun/adjective are called '''malgigu''' and '''palgugu''', respectively. Nouns that that are not placed in the construct state are considered to be in the governed state, which is the default state of all nouns.
 
Lastly, Vrkhazhian can be said to have a third noun state, the definite state, which is indicated by the proclitic "ṛ-". A noun placed in this state is indicated to be a particular one (or ones) identifiable to the listener. It may be something already mentioned or uniquely specified. The clitic is attached to the noun and the adjective(s) that modify the noun. When it is placed before a noun starting with ⟨ř⟩, then it is allomorphed to '''ʾoř-'''.
 
====Adjectival morphology====
Adjectives in Vrkhazhian are marked for gender and number in agreement with the noun they modify. Adjectives follow nouns except for adjectives pertaining to colours, which instead precede the noun. Adjectives are almost entirely derived from verbs, with a few exceptions.
 
Most adjectives take the form ʾeC₁C₂aC₃, such as this adjective derived from the verb '''d-n-n''' (to be heavy):
{| class="wikitable"
|+ "Heavy"
!
! Adjective (masc.) !! Adjective (fem.) !! Adjective (neut.)
|-
! Singular
| ''ʾednan-i'' || ''ʾednan-a'' || ''ʾednan-u''
|-
! Plural
| ''ʾednan-il'' || ''ʾednan-an'' || ''ʾednan-ud''
|-
|}
Adjectives pertaining to colours take the form C₁aC₂C₂aC₃, such as this adjective derived from the verb '''ḵ-r-m''' (to be white):
{| class="wikitable"
|+ "White"
!
! Adjective (masc.) !! Adjective (fem.) !! Adjective (neut.)
|-
! Singular
| ''ḵarram-i'' || ''ḵarram-a'' || ''ḵarram-u''
|-
! Plural
| ''ḵarram-il'' || ''ḵarram-an'' || ''ḵarram-ud''
|-
|}
Adjective pertaining to diseases take the form C₁aC₂awaC₃, such as this adjective derived from '''s-ḡ-b''' (to decay, to rot):
{| class="wikitable"
|+ "Necrotic"
!
! Adjective (masc.) !! Adjective (fem.) !! Adjective (neut.)
|-
! Singular
| ''saḡawab-i'' || ''saḡawab-a'' || ''saḡawab-u''
|-
! Plural
| ''saḡawab-il'' || ''saḡawab-an'' || ''saḡawab-ud''
|-
|}
Adjectives also have elative counterparts. The elative takes the form C₁aC₂C₁aC₃ and conveys a superlative meaning in most contexts and a comparative meaning in contexts involving comparisons.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ "Heavier/heaviest"
!
! Adjective (masc.) !! Adjective (fem.) !! Adjective (neut.)
|-
! Singular
| ''dandan-i'' || ''dandan-a'' || ''dandan-u''
|-
! Plural
| ''dandan-il'' || ''dandan-an'' || ''dandan-ud''
|-
|}
Elative adjectives pertaining to colours are formed by suffixing -it to a colour adjective.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ "Whiter/whitest"
!
! Adjective (masc.) !! Adjective (fem.) !! Adjective (neut.)
|-
! Singular
| ''ḵarram-iti'' || ''ḵarram-ita'' || ''ḵarram-itu''
|-
! Plural
| ''ḵarram-itil'' || ''ḵarram-itan'' || ''ḵarram-itud''
|-
|}


====Verbal morphology====
====Verbal morphology====
{{main|Verbs in Vrkhazhian}}
{{main|Verbs in Vrkhazhian}}


Vrkhazhian verbs are called '''madsiṟud''' (singular '''madsiṟu'''). Because Vrkhazhian is a triconsonantal root language, the fundamental part of the verb form is the transfix, a discontinuous affix inserted between a root (which is collectively called '''masčišu''' and translated as "pattern"), though they primarily only convey the grammatical voices (active, passive, causative, and reflexive). There are five tenses (past, past progressive, present, present progressive, and future) and these are indicated by prefixes attached to the base form. There is only one aspect: the perfect, called '''saẕkeru''', which is indicated by reduplicating the entire verb. Additionally, there are also five moods (indicative, jussive, subjunctive, commissive, and propositive) and these are also indicated by prefix, placed closer to the base form than the tense prefixes. Lastly, verbs are also conjugated for number, singular and plural, with the plural indicated by the suffix '''-am'''.
Vrkhazhian verbs are called '''narībūm''' (singular '''narībum'''). Because Vrkhazhian is a triconsonantal root language, the fundamental part of the verb form is the transfix, a discontinuous affix inserted between a root, though they primarily only convey the grammatical voices (active and passive). There are only two tenses (future and non-future) and these are indicated by prefixes attached to the base form. Additionally, there are also two moods (indicative and subjunctive) although the indicative is unmarked. Lastly, verbs are also conjugated for number, singular and plural, with the plural indicated by the suffix '''-am'''.


When referring to a particular verb pattern, they are referred to by a derivation of the canonical (exemplary) verb '''d-s-ṟ''' (to do, to perform, to execute, to act). For example, when referring to the verb pattern of the citation form of a verb, which is the active present singular indicative, it is called '''dusaṟ''' because that is the active present singular form of the verb.
When referring to a particular verb pattern, they are referred to by a derivation of the canonical (exemplary) verb '''p-r-ḫ''' (to say, to speak). For example, when referring to the verb pattern of the citation form of a verb, which is the first person singular realis, it is called '''paruḫna''' because that is the first person singular realis form of the verb.


===Pronouns===
====Adjectival morphology====
====Personal Pronouns====
Adjectives in Vrkhazhian are marked for gender, case, and number in agreement with the noun they modify.
In Vrkhazhian, there are 14 pronouns, each of which have their own forms for each of the five cases. In singular and plural, the 2nd and 3rd persons differentiate gender, while the 1st person does not. Instead, the 1st person plural pronouns are distinguished by clusivity: the inclusive 1st person plural includes the speaker and the addressee, while the exclusive 1st person plural excludes the addressee.
 
{| class="wikitable"
Most adjectives are derived from verbs and take the form C₁aC₂C₂aC₃. Below is an example adjective derived from the verb '''s-g-l''' (to be old) with the meaning of "old":
|+Personal Pronouns
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
! colspan=2 | || colspan=2 | Nominative || colspan=2 | Accusative || colspan=2 | Genitive || colspan=2 | Allative || colspan=2 | Ablative
|+ s-g-l (to be old)
! rowspan=2| || colspan=2 | Nominative || colspan=2 | Accusative || colspan=2 | Genitive
|-
|-
! colspan=2|Person || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural
! Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural || Singular || Plural
|-
|-
! rowspan=2|1st
! Masculine
!<small>inclusive</small>
| ''saggal-im'' || ''saggal-īm''|| ''saggal-is'' || ''saggal-īs'' || ''saggal-in'' || ''saggal-īn''
| rowspan=2|žaẏ "I" || yeš "we" || rowspan=2|šadib || ʾažib || rowspan=2|šadik || ʾažik || rowspan=2|šadiš || ʾažiš || rowspan=2|šadit || ʾažit
|-
|-
!<small>exclusive</small>
! Feminine
| ṉal "we" || ṉalib || ṉalak || ṉaleš || ṉalat
| ''saggal-um'' || ''saggal-ūm'' || ''saggal-us'' || ''saggal-ūs'' || ''saggal-un'' || ''saggal-ūn''
|-
|-
! rowspan=2|2nd
! Neuter
!<small>masculine</small>
| ''saggal-as'' || ''saggal-ās'' || ''saggal-as'' || ''saggal-ās'' || ''saggal-aḫ'' || ''saggal-āḫ''
|  ʾaši "you" ||  ʾašam "you" || ʾašib || ʾašmib || ʾašak || ʾašmak || ʾačeš || ʾačmeš || ʾačat || ʾačmat
|-
|-
!<small>feminine</small>
|}
| ʾata "you" || ʾatam "you" || ʾatib || ʾatmib || ʾatak || ʾatmak || ʾateš || ʾatmeš || ʾatat || ʾatmat
 
=====Demonstrative Adjectives=====
Like English, Vrkhazhian makes a two-way distinction between near ('this, these' known as "proximal") and far ('that, those' known as "distal") demonstrative expressions. Besides number, as in English, Vrkhazhian also distinguishes masculine and feminine gender as well as case.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|+Proximal Demonstrative ("this", "these")
|-
|-
! rowspan=3|3rd
! style="width: 6em;" rowspan="2" |  
!<small>masculine</small>
! colspan="2" | Feminine
| ḡal "he" || moz "they" || ḡalib || mozib || ḡalak || mozak || ḡaleš || modeš || ḡalat || modat
! colspan="2" | Masculine
! colspan="2" | Neuter
! colspan="2" | Inanimate
|-
|-
!<small>feminine</small>
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
| ḡan "she" || mag "they" || ḡanib || magib || ḡanak || magak || ḡaneš || mageš || ḡanat || magat
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
|-
|-
!<small>neuter</small>
! Nominative
| ḥol "they" || ṗal "they" || ḥolib || ṗalib || ḥolak || ṗalak || ḥoleš || ṗaleš || ḥolat || ṗalat
| ''aḫḫ-um''
| ''aḫḫ-ūwa''
| ''aḫḫ-im''
| ''aḫḫ-īya''
| ''aḫḫ-am''
| ''aḫḫ-āya''
| rowspan="2" | ''aḫḫ-as''
| rowspan="2" | ''aḫḫ-āsa''
|-
|-
! colspan=2|4th
! Accusative
|colspan=2 Align="center"|ʾaḥ "one" ||colspan=2 Align="center"|ʾaḥib ||colspan=2 Align="center"|ʾaḥak ||colspan=2 Align="center"| ʾaqeš ||colspan=2 Align="center"|ʾaqat
| ''aḫḫ-us''
| ''aḫḫ-ūsa''
| ''aḫḫ-is''
| ''aḫḫ-īsa''
| ''aḫḫ-as''
| ''aḫḫ-āsa''
|-
|-
! Ergative
| ''aḫḫ-un''
| ''aḫḫ-ūna''
| ''aḫḫ-in''
| ''aḫḫ-īna''
| ''aḫḫ-an''
| ''aḫḫ-āna''
| ''aḫḫ-an''
| ''aḫḫ-āna''
|-
! Genitive
| ''aḫḫ-uḫ''
| ''aḫḫ-ūwa''
| ''aḫḫ-iḫ''
| ''aḫḫ-īya''
| ''aḫḫ-aḫ''
| ''aḫḫ-āya''
| ''aḫḫ-aḫ''
| ''aḫḫ-āya''
|-
|}
|}
The 4th person pronoun is a special pronoun that refers to generic or indefinite persons, usually translated as "one". An example of this is in the sentence:
''ʾAd ʾaḥ tubedu susal, ʾaḥ ḥolib wiplal.''
"If one takes a book, one must give it [back]."


====Demonstrative Pronouns====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
There are three kinds demonstrative pronouns for three kinds of deixis: proximal, medial, and distal. The proximal indicates an object near the speaker, the medial indicates an object near the addressee, and the distal indicates and object away from both the speaker and the addressee. Demonstrative pronouns always mark their referent as definite.
|+Distal Demonstrative ("that", "those")
{| class="wikitable"
! || colspan=3 | Deixis
|-
|-
! Number || Proximal || Medial || Distal
! style="width: 6em;" rowspan="2" |  
|- align="center"
! colspan="2" | Feminine
! colspan="2" | Masculine
! colspan="2" | Neuter
! colspan="2" | Inanimate
|-
|-
|'''Singular''' || ''ʾib'' "this"||''ʾani'' "that" || ''maẏ'' "that"  
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
|-
|-
|'''Plural''' || ''ʾibim'' "these"||''ʾanim'' "those" || ''maẏm'' "those"
! Nominative
|}
| ''idd-um''
 
| ''idd-ūwa''
====Interrogative Pronouns and Adverbs====
| ''idd-im''
There are four interrogative pronouns and four interrogative adverbs.
| ''idd-īya''
{| class="wikitable"
| ''idd-am''
|+ Interrogative Pronouns
| ''idd-āya''
! English
| rowspan="2" | ''idd-as''
! Vrkhazhian
| rowspan="2" | ''idd-āsa''
|-
|-
| who? || ''ʾalim''
! Accusative
| ''idd-us''
| ''idd-ūsa''
| ''idd-is''
| ''idd-īsa''
| ''idd-as''
| ''idd-āsa''
|-
|-
| what? || ''hamat''
! Ergative
|-
| ''idd-un''
| which? || ''ʾaqab''
| ''idd-ūna''
|-
| ''idd-in''
| how many? || ''ʾawar''
| ''idd-īna''
| ''idd-an''
| ''idd-āna''
| ''idd-an''
| ''idd-āna''
|-
|-
! Genitive
| ''idd-uḫ''
| ''idd-ūwa''
| ''idd-iḫ''
| ''idd-īya''
| ''idd-aḫ''
| ''idd-āya''
| ''idd-aḫ''
| ''idd-āya''
|-
|}
|}


{| class="wikitable"
===Pronouns===
|+ Interrogative Adverbs
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
! English
|+ Imperial Vrkhazhian Pronouns
! Vrkhazhian
|-
|-
| where? || ''sahal''
! rowspan="3" |  
! colspan="8" | Independent
! colspan="2" | Bound
|-
|-
| how? || ''ʾim hamat''
! colspan="4" | Nominative
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" | Accusative
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" | Ergative
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" | Possessive
|-
|-
| when? || ''naḵ''
! colspan="2" | Affirmative
! colspan="2" | Negative
|-
|-
| why? || ''ʾičam''
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Person
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
|-
|-
|}
! 1st
 
| ''āni''
====Relative Pronouns====
| ''āti''
The conjugation of the relative pronoun is as follows:
| ''tunni''
{| class="wikitable"
| ''tutti''
! Number !! Nominative !! Accusative !! Genitive !! Allative !! Ablative
| ''nêsi''
|- align="center"
| ''têsi''
| ''nêni''
| ''têni''
| ''-ni''
| ''-ti''
|-
|-
! '''Masculine singular'''
! 2nd
|''noki'' || ''ṇkibi'' ||''sažmi'' ||''ṇkeši'' ||''ṇkati''  
| ''āma''
| ''āman''
| ''tumma''
| ''tumman''
| ''mêsi''
| ''mināsi''
| ''mêni''
| ''mināni''
| ''-mi''
| ''-min''
|-
|-
!'''Masculine plural'''  
! 3rd
|''ṇkil'' || ''nokbil'' ||''sažmil'' ||''nokšil'' ||''noktil''
| ''āsa''
| ''āsan''
| ''tussa''
| ''tussan''
| ''kêsi''
| ''kināsi''
| ''kêni''
| ''kināni''
| ''-ki''
| ''-kin''
|-
|-
!'''Feminine singular'''
|''noka'' || ''ṇkiba'' ||''sažma'' ||''ṇkeša'' ||''ṇkata''
|-
!'''Feminine plural'''
|''ṇkan'' || ''nokban'' ||''sažman'' ||''nokšan'' ||''noktan''
|-
!'''Neuter singular'''
|''noku'' || ''ṇkibu'' ||''sažmu'' ||''ṇkešu'' ||''ṇkatu''
|-
!'''Neuter plural'''
|''ṇkad'' || ''nokbad'' ||''sažmud'' ||''nokšud'' ||''noktud''
|}
|}
The relative pronoun agrees in gender and number with its referent. Additionally it changes the word order of a relative clause to OSV if the referent is an object of a relative clause in the active voice. If the relative clause is in the passive voice then the word order is always changed to SVX.


===Numerals===
Vrkhazhian uses a base-12 system of numerals, which is a positional notation numeral system using twelve as its base. In this system, the number ten can be written as ⟨X⟩, and the number eleven as ⟨E⟩.
Cardinal numerals precede the nouns they modify and are placed in the governed state, while ordinal numerals are placed in the absolute state, losing all case endings; cardinal numerals also agree in gender with the noun they modify. An example of this are the nouns ''vakkami'' and ''ʾalkadu'' (which becomes ''ʾalikdud'' in the plural); when a numeral is placed before them they become ''tibsi vakkami'' (one king) and ''mastalu ʾalikdud'' (six soldiers). The table below lists the numbers from 1 to 12.   


{| class="wikitable"
|+ Numerals
! Numbers
! Cardinal
(masc.)
! Cardinal
(fem.)
! Cardinal
(neut.)
! Ordinal
(neut.)
|-
! 1
| ''tibsi'' || ''tibsa'' || ''tibsu'' || ''ʾayun''
|-
! 2
| ''sasri'' || ''sasra'' || ''sasru'' || ''hassir''
|-
! 3
| ''lamni'' || ''lamna'' || ''lamnu'' || ''halmin''
|-
! 4
| ''pśedi'' || ''pśeda'' || ''pśedu'' || ''hapśid''
|-
! 5
| ''ẕarsi'' || ''ẕarsa'' || ''ẕarsu'' || ''haẕris''
|-
! 6
| ''mastali'' || ''mastala'' || ''mastalu'' || ''hamastil''
|-
! 7
| ''ʾarami'' || ''ʾarama'' || ''ʾaramu'' || ''haʾrim''
|-
! 8
| ''šalbi'' || ''šalba'' || ''šalbu'' || ''hašlib''
|-
! 9
| ''zapri'' || ''zapra'' || ''zapru'' || ''hazpir''
|-
! X (10)
| ''yagmi'' || ''yagma'' || ''yagmu'' || ''haẏgim''
|-
! E (11)
| ''ḵteli'' || ''ḵtela'' || ''ḵtelu'' || ''haḵtil''
|-
! 10 (12)
| ''sẕeki'' || ''sẕeka'' || ''sẕeku'' || ''hasẕik''
|-
|}


===Syntax===
=====Interrogative and Relative Pronouns=====
{{main|Syntax in Vrkhazhian}}
Vrkhazhian possesses a simple set of interrrogative pronouns that also serve as relative pronouns:
====Nominal phrases====
Relative clauses follow the noun while numerals and appositions precede the counted noun. All adjectives except colours follow the noun. An example of some of these features is the nominal phrase ''ṛ-Vakkam Yat-Vṛḵaž, ʾIḥamek ʾAraš-Hijiẕud, tumeṭaju šujak numḥaḥ.'' "Arash-Hijitsud Ihamek, the Emperor of Vrkhazh, united his people" which is analyzed in the following table:


{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|+Imperial Vrkhazhian Interrogative Adjectives
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |
! colspan="2" | Feminine
! colspan="2" | Masculine
! colspan="2" | Neuter
! colspan="2" | Inanimate
|-
|-
!Word
!Meaning
!Analysis
!Part of the nominal phrase
|-
|-
| ''ṛ-Vakkam'' || emperor || nominative construct state || rowspan='2' valign='middle' | Apposition
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Singular
! style="width: 4.2em;" | Plural
|-
|-
| ''Yat-Vṛḵaž'' || Vrkhazh || unmarked neuter genitive singular
! style="width: 7em;" rowspan="4" | "Who / What"
! style="width: 6em;" | Nominative
| ''ḫamt-um''
| ''ḫamt-ūwa''
| ''ḫamt-im''
| ''ḫamt-īya''
| ''ḫamt-am''
| ''ḫamt-āya''
| rowspan="2" | ''ḫamt-as''
| rowspan="2" | ''ḫamt-āsa''
|-
|-
| ''ʾIḥamek ʾAraš-Hijiẕud'' || Arash-Hijutsud Ihamek || unmarked masculine nominative singular || Proper Noun (subject)
! Accusative
| ''ḫamt-us''
| ''ḫamt-ūsa''
| ''ḫamt-is''
| ''ḫamt-īsa''
| ''ḫamt-as''
| ''ḫamt-āsa''
|-
|-
| ''tumeṭaju'' || people || neuter accusative singular || rowspan='3' valign='middle' | Relative clause
! Ergative
| ''ḫamt-un''
| ''ḫamt-ūna''
| ''ḫamt-in''
| ''ḫamt-īna''
| ''ḫamt-an''
| ''ḫamt-āna''
| ''ḫamt-an''
| ''ḫamt-āna''
|-
|-
| ''šujak'' || his || third person masculine genitive singular
! Genitive
| ''ḫamt-uḫ''
| ''ḫamt-ūwa''
| ''ḫamt-iḫ''
| ''ḫamt-īya''
| ''ḫamt-aḫ''
| ''ḫamt-āya''
| ''ḫamt-aḫ''
| ''ḫamt-āya''
|-
|-
| ''numḥaḥ'' || unite || active past singular
! colspan="10" |  
|-
|-
|}
! rowspan="4" | "How Many"
 
! Nominative
====Sentence syntax====
| ''???''
There are two basic word orders in Vrkhazhian that are used depending on the grammatical voice of the sentence. In sentences with the active voice, the basic word order is Subject-Object-Verb (SOV), while in sentences with the passive voice, the basic word order is Verb-Subject-Oblique (VSX). Compare an active sentence:
| ''???''
 
| ''???''
:'''ʾAšol ṛ-ʾalikdud ṛ-t-ʾulludud ʾuldam.'''
| ''???''
{| class="wikitable"
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| Align="center" | ''ʾAšol'' || Align="center" | ''ṛ-ʾalikdud'' || Align="center" | ''ṛ-t-ʾulludud'' || Align="center" | ''ʾuldam''  
! Accusative
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| All || Align="center" | DEF-soldier-NOM.NEUT.PL || Align="center" | DEF-ACC-civilian-NEUT.PL || Align="center" | guard\ACT.PRES-PL
! Ergative
|}
| ''???''
:"All of the soldiers guard the civilians."
| ''???''
 
| ''???''
vs. a passive sentence:
| ''???''
 
| ''???''
:'''Nikšemam ṛ-havir ṛ-makšimud ʾim Hiqal.'''
| ''???''
{| class="wikitable"
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| Align="center" | ''Nikšemam'' || Align="center" | ''ṛ-havir'' || Align="center" | ''ṛ-makšimud'' || Align="center" | ''ʾim'' || Align="center" | ''Hiqal''
! Genitive
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| PST-build\PASS-PL || Align="center" | DEF-mercury || Align="center" | DEF-golem-NOM.NEUT.PL || Align="center" | by || Align="center" | Hiqal-OBL
|}
|}
:"The mercury golems were built by Hiqal"


The verb root '''ʾ-l-d''' (to guard), in the first example, is conjugated for active past singular in the active sentence agreeing in number with the subject "soldiers", while the verb root '''k-š-m''' (to build [physical]) in the second example is conjugated in the passive past plural, agreeing in number with the subject "the mercury golems".
===Numerals===
Vrkhazhian uses a base-12 system of numerals, which is a positional notation numeral system using twelve as its base. In this system, the number ten can be written as ⟨X⟩, and the number eleven as ⟨E⟩.


==Writing System==
Numerals behave like noun/pronouns.
The Vrkhazhian Akhuva (ʾAḵuva Yat-Vṛḵažikam [ʔaxuβa jat βɹ̩xaʝikam]) is the official writing script of Vrkhazhian. The script consists of 33 letters, 12 numeral glyphs, and 6 vowel diacritics.
The writing direction of the script is boustrophedon, and can start in any horizontal direction preferred, though the most common starting direction is Right-to-Left.


===History===
The table below lists the numbers from 1 to 12.    
The script has been in use for at least 950 years, with few changes and alterations to the letter forms since it's inception. The script is a descendant of the Proto-Vrkhazhian logographic script.


===Letter names===
{| class="wikitable"
====Standard letters====
|+ Numbers
The table below lists the 33 letters of the Akhuva:
|-
{|
! Glyph
|
! Numeral
{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
! Cardinal
|+ʾAḵuva Yat-Vṛḵažikam
! Ordinal
|-
|-
! Letter !! Name !! width="110px" | Meaning !! Phoneme
! [[File:Ayn.PNG|30px|Tibsa]]
! 1
| ''tibsas''
| ''tabbas-''
|-
|-
| [[File:Alakh.PNG|30px|ʾAlaḵ]] || ʾAlaḵ || wind, breath || '''ʾ''' [ʔ]
! [[File:Nim.PNG|30px|Susra]]
! 2
| ''śiṭṭas''
| ''śaddaṭ-''
|-
|-
| [[File:Khav.PNG|30px|Ḵav]] || Ḵav || human || '''ḵ''' [x]
!
! 3
| ''miḫlas''
| ''maḫḫal-''
|-
|-
| [[File:Vav2.PNG|30px|Vav]] || Vav || cane || '''v''' [β]
!
! 4
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| [[File:Hith.PNG|30px|Hit]] || Hit || lock || '''h''' [h]
!
! 5
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| [[File:Dat.PNG|30px|Dat]] || Dat || skull || '''d''' [d]
!
! 6
| ''taftas''
| ''taffat-''
|-
|-
| [[File:Tsim.PNG|30px|Ẕim]] || Ẕim || fruit, blood || '''ẕ''' [t͡s]
!
! 7
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| [[File:Bal.PNG|30px|Bal]] || Bal || path || '''b''' [b]
!
! 8
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| [[File:Sum.PNG|30px|Sum]] || Sum || tunnel || '''s''' [s]
!
! 9
| ''nuḫras''
| ''naḫḫar-''
|-
|-
| [[File:Zhat.PNG|30px|Žat]] || Žat || helmet || '''ž''' [ʝ]
!
! X
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| [[File:Thal.PNG|30px|Ṭam]] || Ṭam || horn, curve || '''ṭ''' [tʶ]
!
! E
| ''???''
| ''???''
|-
|-
| [[File:Yav.PNG|30px|Yav]] || Yav || scythe || '''y''' [j]
!
! 10
| ''ḫarṭas''
| ''ḫarraṭ-''
|}
|}
|
 
{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
===Syntax===
|+ʾAḵuva Yat-Vṛḵažikam
{{main|Syntax in Vrkhazhian}}
====Nominal phrases====
Noun phrases have the following overall order: (numeral) noun (genitive noun) (adjective/relative clause) (demonstratives)
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
! Letter !! Name !! width="100px" | Meaning !! Phoneme
| Align="center" | ''śimās'' || Align="center" | ''aḫās''
|-
|-
| [[File:Kah.PNG|30px|Kaf]] || Kaf || water || '''k''' [k]
| house-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span> || this-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span>
|-
|-
| [[File:Ge.PNG|30px|Gēb]] || Geb || wing || '''g''' [g]
| Align="center" colspan='2'| this house
|-
|-
| [[File:Lam.PNG|30px|Lam]] || Lam || hand || '''l''' [l]
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| [[File:Ma'.PNG|30px|Maʾ]] || Maʾ || bowl, cup || '''m''' [m]
| Align="center" | ''śimās'' || Align="center" | ''mannabās'' || Align="center" | ''aḫās''
|-
|-
| [[File:Nesh.PNG|30px|Neš]] || Neš || peace || '''n''' [n]
| house-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.pl</span> || beautiful-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.pl</span> || this-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.pl</span>
|-
|-
| [[File:Ghaym.PNG|30px|Ḡaẏm]] || Ḡaẏm || name || '''ḡ''' [ɣ]
| Align="center" colspan='3'| these beautiful houses
|-
|-
| [[File:Phak.PNG|30px|Ṗas]] || Ṗas || poison || '''ṗ''' [pʶ]
|}
Numerals behave like nouns, thus when they are used to quantify another noun they are placed in the construct state. In turn, determiners and adjectives agree in gender and number with the numeral rather than the possessing noun.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| [[File:Pak.PNG|30px|Pak]] || Pak || head || '''p''' [p]
| Align="center" | ''tufta'' || Align="center" | ''śimāḫ'' || Align="center" | ''aḫas''
|-
|-
| [[File:Jim.PNG|30px|Jim]] || Jim || pillar || '''j''' [ɟ͡ʝ]
| six-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span> || house-<span class="smallcaps">gen.inan.pl</span> || this-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span>
|-
|-
| [[File:Ru.PNG|30px|Ruḡ]] || Ruḡ || snake || '''r''' [ɹ]
| Align="center" colspan='3'| these six houses
|-
|-
| [[File:Fash.PNG|30px|Faš]] || Faš || vulture || '''f''' [ɸ]
|}
|}
|
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
|+ʾAḵuva Yat-Vṛḵažikam
|-
|-
! Letter !! Name !! width="100px" | Meaning !! Phoneme
| Align="center" | ''tufta'' || Align="center" | ''śimāḫ'' || Align="center" | ''mannabas'' || Align="center" | ''aḫas''
|-
|-
| [[File:Shim.PNG|30px|Šim]] || Šim || house || '''š''' [ç]
| six-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span> || house-<span class="smallcaps">gen.inan.pl</span> || beautiful-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.fem.sg</span> || this-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span>
|-
|-
| [[File:Waj.PNG|30px|Wad]] || Wad || shield || '''w''' [w]
| Align="center" colspan='4'| these six beautiful houses
|-
|-
| [[File:Tal.PNG|30px|Tal]] || Tal || gate || '''t''' [t]
|}
Relative clauses are made by infixing '''-ēs-''' to the verb subject suffix of the relative clause:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| [[File:Rrat.PNG|30px|Ṟaš]] || Ṟaš || shoulder || '''ṟ''' [ʀ]
| Align="center" | ''ḳebbis'' || Align="center" | ''assalmabakki'' || Align="center" | ''māˀaḫtēsi''
|-
|-
| [[File:Chi.PNG|30px|Čit]] || Čit || hook || '''č''' [c͡ç]
| king-<span class="smallcaps">nom.masc.sg</span> || people\<span class="smallcaps">cons.inan.sg-3ms.obl</span> || <span class="smallcaps">nfut-</span>put_together<span class="smallcaps">-3ms.rel</span>
|-
|-
| [[File:Zab.PNG|30px|Zab]] || Zab || branch || '''z''' [z]
| Align="center" colspan='3'| a king who united his people
|-
|-
| [[File:Rhat.PNG|30px|Řat]] || Řat || fear, tail || '''ř''' [rʷ]
|}
Relative clauses can also be made by the use of the interrogative pronoun '''arr-''' "(the one) who", agreeing in number and gender with the main clause's referent.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
| [[File:Lham.PNG|30px|Ḻam]] || Śam || tree || '''ś''' [ʎ̝̊]
| Align="center" | ''assalmabas'' || Align="center" | ''arras'' || Align="center" | ''ḳebbis'' || Align="center" | ''māˀaḫti''
|-
|-
| [[File:Qhak.PNG|30px|Ḥak]] || Ḥak || roof || '''ḥ''' [χ]
| king-<span class="smallcaps">nom.masc.sg</span> || who-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span>|| people\<span class="smallcaps">cons.inan.sg-3ms.obl</span> || <span class="smallcaps">nfut-</span>put_together<span class="smallcaps">-3ms</span>
|-
|-
| [[File:Qar.PNG|30px|Qaẇt]] || Qaẇt || sheep || '''q''' [q]
| Align="center" colspan='4'| the people who the king united
|-
|-
| [[File:Nhod.PNG|30px|Ṉod]] || Ṉod || ear || '''ṉ''' [ɴ]
|}
|}
|}


====Vowel diacritics====
{| class="wikitable"
The Akhuva is an abjad, thus vowels are not represented in most texts. However, vowel diacritics may be used to aid learners in reading the text and to reduce ambiguities.
{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
|+Mambinud Yat-Vṛḵažikam
|-
! Letter
! Name
! Meaning
! Phoneme
|-
| [[File:Ah.PNG|30px|Maʾlibu]]
| Maʾlibu
| exposed
| '''a''' [a]
 
|-
|-
| [[File:Ee.PNG|30px|Mařkiku]]
| Align="center" | ''ummuḫdas'' || Align="center" | ''arras'' || Align="center" | ''ku'' || Align="center" | ''rabdāmūs'' || Align="center" | ''taḳūstan''
| Mařkiku
| fallen
|'''e''' [e̞]
 
|-
|-
| [[File:Eh.PNG|30px|Yatu]]
| palace-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span> || who-<span class="smallcaps">nom/acc.inan.sg</span> || at || guards-<span class="smallcaps">nom.fem.pl</span> || <span class="smallcaps">futi</span>-lie_down-<span class="smallcaps">3fp</span>
| Yatu
| ground
|'''i''' [i]
 
|-
|-
| [[File:Oh.PNG|30px|Ḵoṭu]]
| Align="center" colspan='5'| the palace where guards might reside
| Ḵoṭu
| circle
| '''o''' [o̞]
 
|-
|-
| [[File:Oo.PNG|30px|Muḵepu]]
| Muḵepu
| emptiness
| '''ə''' [ə]
|-
| [[File:Uu.PNG|30px|Ḥmolu]]
| Ḥmolu
| throne
| '''u''' [u]
|}
|}


{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
====Sentence syntax====
|+Kburad Yat-Vṛḵažikam
The basic word order of Vrkhazhian is SOV. Vrkhazhian has two primary voices, active and applicative:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
! Letter
| Align="center" | ''aldāmīs''  || Align="center" | ''ilgūn'' || Align="center" | ''amtan''
! Name
! Phoneme
|-
|-
| [[File:Yay.PNG|30px|ʾAẇdu Yav]]
| warrior-<span class="smallcaps">nom.masc.pl</span> || fish-<span class="smallcaps">acc.fem.pl</span> || <span class="smallcaps">nfut</span>-eat\<span class="smallcaps">act</span>-<span class="smallcaps">3mp</span>
| ʾAẇdu Yav
| '''ẏ''' [e̯]
 
|-
|-
| [[File:Waw.PNG|30px|ʾAẇdu Wad]]
| Align="center" colspan='3' | The warriors ate some fish
| ʾAẇdu Wad
|}
| '''ẇ''' [o̯]


|}
{| class="wikitable"
 
====Numerals====
{| class="wikitable" id="letters_chart"
|+Kiḏifad Yat-Vṛḵaẕikam
|-
|-
! Numeral
| Align="center" | ''aldāmīs'' || Align="center" | ''ḫagrākan'' || Align="center" | ''ilgūn'' || Align="center" | ''āˀamtan''
! Number
! Name
|-
|-
| [[File:Sxan.PNG|30px|Šemt-]]
| warrior-<span class="smallcaps">nom.masc.pl</span> || dog-<span class="smallcaps">acc.fem.pl</span>-<span class="smallcaps">3mp</span> || fish-<span class="smallcaps">acc.fem.pl</span> || <span class="smallcaps">nfut</span>-eat\<span class="smallcaps">appl</span>-<span class="smallcaps">3mp</span>
| 0
| Šemt- ("none")
 
|-
|-
| [[File:Ayn.PNG|30px|Tibs-]]
| Align="center" colspan='4' | The warriors fed their dogs some fish
| 1
|}
| Tibs-


|-
| [[File:Nim.PNG|30px|Sasr-]]
| 2
| Sasr-


|-
The verb root '''ñ-m''' (to eat), in the first example, is conjugated for active nonfuture masculine plural in the active sentence agreeing in number and gender with the subject "warriors", while the same verb root in the second example is conjugated in the passive nonfuture feminine plural, agreeing in number and gender with the subject "fish".
| [[File:Daj.PNG|30px|Lamn-]]
| 3
| Lamn-
 
|-
| [[File:Hat.PNG|30px|Pśed-]]
| 4
| Pśed-
 
|-
| [[File:Azha.PNG|30px|Ẕars-]]
| 5
| Ẕars-
 
|-
| [[File:Apeth.PNG|30px|Mastal-]]
| 6
| Mastal-
 
|-
| [[File:Aram.PNG|30px|ʾAram-]]
| 7
| ʾAram-
 
|-
| [[File:Shab.PNG|30px|Šalb-]]
| 8
| Šalb-
 
|-
| [[File:Adik.PNG|30px|Zapr-]]
| 9
| Zapr-
 
|-
| [[File:Yam.PNG|30px|Yagm-]]
| 10/X
| Yagm-
 
|-
| [[File:Ijith.PNG|30px|Ḵtel-]]
| 11/E
| Ḵtel-
 
|}


==Writing System==
==Vocabulary==
==Vocabulary==
==Example text==
==Example text==
[[Category:Conlangs]] [[Category:A_priori_conlangs]] [[Category:Vrkhazh]]
[[Category:Conlangs]] [[Category:A_priori_conlangs]] [[Category:Vrkhazh]]
</big>

Latest revision as of 16:21, 1 November 2024

Vrkhazhian (Śād Warḫāsaḫ "Mouth of Vrkhazh") is a language that is spoken by the Vrkhazhians who live in Warḫāsam.



VrkhazhianFlagSRLT.png
Vrkhazhian
Śād Warḫāsaḫ, Warḫāsāli
Pronounced: [ˈɬɑːd wɑr.ˈxɑː.sɑx], [wɑr.xɑː.ˈsɑː.li]
Spoken: Vrkhazh (Warḫāsam)
Writing system: Añmānas
Genealogy: Proto-Ch'ahdic
Proto-A
Proto-AA
Proto-AAA
Old Vrkhazhian
Imperial Vrkh.
Common Vrkh.
Typology
Morphological type: agglutinative, triconsonantal root-based morphology
Morphosyntactic alignment: nominative-accusative
Basic word order: Free word order, but typically verb-initial
Credits
Creator: Malcolm G. Holborne


History

Registers

Vrkhazhian is divided into two primary registers:

  • Imperial Vrkhazhian (Ḳabbāˀas "The Royal [Speech]") is the written variety of Vrkhazhian based upon a dialect of Old Vrkhazhian spoken by the founder of the Empire, Ezu-Nardikh the Great, and his supporters.
  • Common Vrkhazhian (Lumbāˀas "The Common [Speech]") is the spoken variety based around the dialect of the capital city of Uzur.

Phonology

Consonants

The table below shows the 25 consonant phonemes found in Vrkhazhian. Letters in angle brackets indicate where the romanization of the phoneme differs from its IPA representation.

Bilabial Coronal Velar Glottal
Central Lateral
Nasal m n ŋ ⟨n̮⟩
Stop Voiceless p t k ʔ ⟨ˀ⟩
Ejective pʼ ⟨ṗ⟩ tʼ ⟨ṭ⟩ kʼ ⟨ḳ⟩
Voiced b d g
Fricative Voiceless f s ɬ ⟨ś⟩ x ⟨ḫ⟩
Ejective sʼ ⟨ṣ⟩ ɬʼ ⟨ṣ́⟩
Voiced z ɮ ⟨ź⟩
Liquid r l
Semivowel w j ⟨y⟩

All consonants except for /j w ʔ/ can be geminated (pronounced twice as long) which is indicated in writing by simply doubling the letter.

Vowels

Vrkhazhian possesses the following monophthongs:

Front Back
Close i iː u uː
Open ɛ ɛː ɑ ɑː

The short vowels /ɛ ɑ i u/ are represented in writing as ⟨e a i u⟩ while the long vowels /ɛː ɑː iː uː/ are either represented with a macron ⟨ē, ā, ī, ū⟩ or a circumflex ⟨ê, â, î, û⟩. The usage of a circumflex in writing is to indicate vowel coalescence as a result of the contraction of the weak consonants /ʔ j w/.

Allophony

Plosives

  • The plosives /p b t d k g/ assimilate in voicing when they precede a plosive of the same place of articulation. An example of this allophony is demonstrated with the verb alad- "fight, oppose": under normal circumstances its stem is alad- such as in aladna "I fought, I opposed"; however, when, for example, the first person plural subject suffix -ta is added, it becomes alatta "we fought, we opposed"
  • The plosives /p b t d k g/ also assimilate in voice and manner of articulation when they precede fricatives of the same place of articulation

Nasals

  • ???

Fricatives

  • the fricatives /s z ɬ ɮ/ assimilate in voice and manner of articulation when they precede another fricative of the same place of articulation.
  • the fricatives /s z ɬ ɮ/ become affricates word-initially.

Other

  • The velar consonants /ŋ k g x/ become partially-rounded [ŋ͗ k̹ g͗ x̹] or fully-rounded [ŋʷ kʷ gʷ xʷ] before back vowels.

Symmetrical Assimilation

Components Result
b + p pp
m + p
p + b bb
m + b
Components Result
d + t tt
n + t
t + d dd
n + d
Components Result
g + k kk
n̮ + k
k + g gg
n̮ + g

Asymmetrical Assimilation

Components Result
p + f ff
b + f
m + f
Components Result
t + s ss
d + s
n + s
t + z zz
d + z
n + z
Components Result
t + ś śś
d + ś
n + ś
t + ź źź
d + ź
n + ź
Components Result
k + ḫ ḫḫ
g + ḫ
n̮ + ḫ

Syllable Structure and Prosody

The basic syllable structure is maximally (C)V(V)(C) whereby any syllable can begin with any consonant except for /ʔ/ and any syllable can end with any consonant except for /ʔ j w/. Vrkhazhian strongly dislikes consonant clusters in the onset or coda of a syllable and typically inserts vowels to break the offending clusters. The epenthetic vowels typically mirror the adjacent vowel.

Stress in Vrkhazhian is based on syllable weight, of which there are three degrees: light (V, CV); heavy (CVC, CV̄, CV̂), and superheavy (CV̄C, CV̂C).

Grammar

Morphology

Overview

Vrkhazhian is a highly inflecting language, and morphologically, it is a triconsonatal root language: a kind of non-concatenative morphology whereby its roots consist of an abstract set of consonants which a pattern of vowels called transfixes are placed between. Most of these roots consist of three consonants (triliteral), though there are many words that consist of two-letter (biliteral) and four-letter (quadriliteral) roots. Very rare, however, are five-letter (pentaliteral) roots, all of which are entirely nouns.

Nominal morphology

Main article: Nouns in Vrkhazhian

Vrkhazhian nouns are called ğanūm (singular ğanum). They are declined for case, gender, and number. Specifically there are four cases (nominative, vocative, accusative, instrumental, and vocative) and two numbers (singular and plural). Additionally, Vrkhazhian has two grammatical genders: masculine and feminine. When referring to humans, deities, and certain animals, masculine refers to beings and animals of the male sex as well as beings that identify with the male gender while feminine refers to beings and animals of the female sex as well as beings that identify with the female gender. When referring to non-humans, masculine refers to wild or dangerous animals (e.g. sammali "crocodile") or inanimate non-living things (e.g. adgi "sand") while feminine refers to domesticated or safe animals (e.g. ḫusu "horse") or more animate non-living things (e.g. masû "sea").

Verbal morphology

Main article: Verbs in Vrkhazhian

Vrkhazhian verbs are called narībūm (singular narībum). Because Vrkhazhian is a triconsonantal root language, the fundamental part of the verb form is the transfix, a discontinuous affix inserted between a root, though they primarily only convey the grammatical voices (active and passive). There are only two tenses (future and non-future) and these are indicated by prefixes attached to the base form. Additionally, there are also two moods (indicative and subjunctive) although the indicative is unmarked. Lastly, verbs are also conjugated for number, singular and plural, with the plural indicated by the suffix -am.

When referring to a particular verb pattern, they are referred to by a derivation of the canonical (exemplary) verb p-r-ḫ (to say, to speak). For example, when referring to the verb pattern of the citation form of a verb, which is the first person singular realis, it is called paruḫna because that is the first person singular realis form of the verb.

Adjectival morphology

Adjectives in Vrkhazhian are marked for gender, case, and number in agreement with the noun they modify.

Most adjectives are derived from verbs and take the form C₁aC₂C₂aC₃. Below is an example adjective derived from the verb s-g-l (to be old) with the meaning of "old":

s-g-l (to be old)
Nominative Accusative Genitive
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Masculine saggal-im saggal-īm saggal-is saggal-īs saggal-in saggal-īn
Feminine saggal-um saggal-ūm saggal-us saggal-ūs saggal-un saggal-ūn
Neuter saggal-as saggal-ās saggal-as saggal-ās saggal-aḫ saggal-āḫ
Demonstrative Adjectives

Like English, Vrkhazhian makes a two-way distinction between near ('this, these' known as "proximal") and far ('that, those' known as "distal") demonstrative expressions. Besides number, as in English, Vrkhazhian also distinguishes masculine and feminine gender as well as case.

Proximal Demonstrative ("this", "these")
Feminine Masculine Neuter Inanimate
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Nominative aḫḫ-um aḫḫ-ūwa aḫḫ-im aḫḫ-īya aḫḫ-am aḫḫ-āya aḫḫ-as aḫḫ-āsa
Accusative aḫḫ-us aḫḫ-ūsa aḫḫ-is aḫḫ-īsa aḫḫ-as aḫḫ-āsa
Ergative aḫḫ-un aḫḫ-ūna aḫḫ-in aḫḫ-īna aḫḫ-an aḫḫ-āna aḫḫ-an aḫḫ-āna
Genitive aḫḫ-uḫ aḫḫ-ūwa aḫḫ-iḫ aḫḫ-īya aḫḫ-aḫ aḫḫ-āya aḫḫ-aḫ aḫḫ-āya
Distal Demonstrative ("that", "those")
Feminine Masculine Neuter Inanimate
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
Nominative idd-um idd-ūwa idd-im idd-īya idd-am idd-āya idd-as idd-āsa
Accusative idd-us idd-ūsa idd-is idd-īsa idd-as idd-āsa
Ergative idd-un idd-ūna idd-in idd-īna idd-an idd-āna idd-an idd-āna
Genitive idd-uḫ idd-ūwa idd-iḫ idd-īya idd-aḫ idd-āya idd-aḫ idd-āya

Pronouns

Imperial Vrkhazhian Pronouns
Independent Bound
Nominative Accusative Ergative Possessive
Affirmative Negative
Person Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
1st āni āti tunni tutti nêsi têsi nêni têni -ni -ti
2nd āma āman tumma tumman mêsi mināsi mêni mināni -mi -min
3rd āsa āsan tussa tussan kêsi kināsi kêni kināni -ki -kin


Interrogative and Relative Pronouns

Vrkhazhian possesses a simple set of interrrogative pronouns that also serve as relative pronouns:

Imperial Vrkhazhian Interrogative Adjectives
Feminine Masculine Neuter Inanimate
Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural Singular Plural
"Who / What" Nominative ḫamt-um ḫamt-ūwa ḫamt-im ḫamt-īya ḫamt-am ḫamt-āya ḫamt-as ḫamt-āsa
Accusative ḫamt-us ḫamt-ūsa ḫamt-is ḫamt-īsa ḫamt-as ḫamt-āsa
Ergative ḫamt-un ḫamt-ūna ḫamt-in ḫamt-īna ḫamt-an ḫamt-āna ḫamt-an ḫamt-āna
Genitive ḫamt-uḫ ḫamt-ūwa ḫamt-iḫ ḫamt-īya ḫamt-aḫ ḫamt-āya ḫamt-aḫ ḫamt-āya
"How Many" Nominative ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???
Accusative ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???
Ergative ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???
Genitive ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???

Numerals

Vrkhazhian uses a base-12 system of numerals, which is a positional notation numeral system using twelve as its base. In this system, the number ten can be written as ⟨X⟩, and the number eleven as ⟨E⟩.

Numerals behave like noun/pronouns.

The table below lists the numbers from 1 to 12.

Numbers
Glyph Numeral Cardinal Ordinal
Tibsa 1 tibsas tabbas-
Susra 2 śiṭṭas śaddaṭ-
3 miḫlas maḫḫal-
4 ??? ???
5 ??? ???
6 taftas taffat-
7 ??? ???
8 ??? ???
9 nuḫras naḫḫar-
X ??? ???
E ??? ???
10 ḫarṭas ḫarraṭ-

Syntax

Main article: Syntax in Vrkhazhian

Nominal phrases

Noun phrases have the following overall order: (numeral) noun (genitive noun) (adjective/relative clause) (demonstratives)

śimās aḫās
house-nom/acc.inan.sg this-nom/acc.inan.sg
this house
śimās mannabās aḫās
house-nom/acc.inan.pl beautiful-nom/acc.inan.pl this-nom/acc.inan.pl
these beautiful houses

Numerals behave like nouns, thus when they are used to quantify another noun they are placed in the construct state. In turn, determiners and adjectives agree in gender and number with the numeral rather than the possessing noun.

tufta śimāḫ aḫas
six-nom/acc.inan.sg house-gen.inan.pl this-nom/acc.inan.sg
these six houses
tufta śimāḫ mannabas aḫas
six-nom/acc.inan.sg house-gen.inan.pl beautiful-nom/acc.fem.sg this-nom/acc.inan.sg
these six beautiful houses

Relative clauses are made by infixing -ēs- to the verb subject suffix of the relative clause:

ḳebbis assalmabakki māˀaḫtēsi
king-nom.masc.sg people\cons.inan.sg-3ms.obl nfut-put_together-3ms.rel
a king who united his people

Relative clauses can also be made by the use of the interrogative pronoun arr- "(the one) who", agreeing in number and gender with the main clause's referent.

assalmabas arras ḳebbis māˀaḫti
king-nom.masc.sg who-nom/acc.inan.sg people\cons.inan.sg-3ms.obl nfut-put_together-3ms
the people who the king united
ummuḫdas arras ku rabdāmūs taḳūstan
palace-nom/acc.inan.sg who-nom/acc.inan.sg at guards-nom.fem.pl futi-lie_down-3fp
the palace where guards might reside

Sentence syntax

The basic word order of Vrkhazhian is SOV. Vrkhazhian has two primary voices, active and applicative:

aldāmīs ilgūn amtan
warrior-nom.masc.pl fish-acc.fem.pl nfut-eat\act-3mp
The warriors ate some fish
aldāmīs ḫagrākan ilgūn āˀamtan
warrior-nom.masc.pl dog-acc.fem.pl-3mp fish-acc.fem.pl nfut-eat\appl-3mp
The warriors fed their dogs some fish


The verb root ñ-m (to eat), in the first example, is conjugated for active nonfuture masculine plural in the active sentence agreeing in number and gender with the subject "warriors", while the same verb root in the second example is conjugated in the passive nonfuture feminine plural, agreeing in number and gender with the subject "fish".

Writing System

Vocabulary

Example text

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