Oburax

Phonology

Consonants

	s	sʲ	ʃ
p	t̪	tʲ	k
w- -b-	d̪	j- -dʲ-	-g-
mb	nd̪	ndʲ	ŋg
m	n̪	nʲ
	l	lʲ	r

The somewhat backwards distribution of initial glides vs. medial voiced stops originates in that the voiced stops (except /d/) originate from medial voicing of voiceless stops; modern medial voiceless stops come from former consonant clusters of sibilant+stop. Thus, some /p t tʲ k/ alternate with /b d dʲ g/. Medial [j w] do exist, but these are non-phonemic glides following a high vowel.

Clusters of voiced stop + voiceless stop are realized with glottalization of the 1st stop and weak voicing of the 2nd: thus /sud̪ka/ [sud̪̚ʔg̊a], /wæmbtʲek/ [wæmʔd̥ʲek].

Dialectal variation

In some dialects initial prenasal stops denasalize to yield new voiced stops; in some other, southern ones initial /w/, /j/ → /b~g/, /dʲ/. Also, in some dialects /p/ can become [ɸ] intervocally.

A more frequent dialectal (incl. colloquial standard speech) feature is the palatalization of /s l/ to /sʲ lʲ/ near front vowels, which tends to go with velarization of remaining /l/. More innovating dialects (which also realize /sʲ tʲ (n)dʲ/ as [ɕ tɕ (n)dʑ]) palatalize /ʃ/ as well.

Distribution

/w-/ does not occur before difthongs ending in /u/. Co-occurrence of two consecutiv prenasalized stops in a word is highly rare; from loanwords it seems a change *ⁿB-ⁿB → N-ⁿB has occurred historically. Clusters comprising two sibilants are prohibited, as are clusters of mixed palatalization (eg. ˣ/sʲt/, ˣ/lnʲ/; but /r/ may combine with consonants of any palatality).

Vowels

i		ɯ	u
e	ø
æ		ɑ	ɒ

Vowels are long in an initial syllable, except before a consonant cluster (incl. prenasal stops). Long /ɒ/ is typically [ɔː]. Word-initially, long /e ø/ gain a glide: [jeː ɥøː]

Standard Oburax also has the difthongs /ie iø iu eu au ou/. Before a consonant other than a velar or /ʃ/, /iu/ is realized as [y(ː)]. Distribution of the /iV/ difthongs and /ou/ is somewhat limited: they may only occur in monosyllabic roots. /au/ is rarely maintained in colloquial speech and is usually pronounced identical to /ou/; monofthongization to [o(ː)] is not infrequent, especially outside of lengthening environments, but is considered substandard.

In non-initial syllables, a simpler inventory is found: /i u e a ɨ ə/. The last two become [i e] near palatalized consonants, approximately [ɯ ə] otherwise. A distinction between /e/ and /ə/ may remain, as approximately [ɛ] vs. [e̱].

For Proto-Oburax, a 2×3 six-vowel system in the 1st syllable can be sketched, *i *ï *u *ä *a *å. This was expanded via medial glide loss:

• *ij → i, *iw → iu
• *ïj → i, *ïw → u (?)
• *uj → *yi → [y] (= /iu/), *uw → u
• *äj → eː → ie (but *äjⁿB → eⁿB), *äw → eu
• *aj → ei → e, *aw → au (→ ou)
• *åj → *øi → ø, *åw → au (→ ou)

Instances of /eu au/ may additionally go back to vowel breaking, eg. *äŋk *älk *aŋk *alk → euŋg eul(ə)k aul(ə)k.
(whence ou, *øː → iø? dialect mixture? loss of other medials?)

Eastern dialects

• ɒ → o
• ɯ → ʌ
• ie iø → i y (not universal; a few areas retain ie, as well as yø for *øː)
• iu eu → yu øu (→ y ø)
• ɑ → ɒ (most innovativ subdialects)

Southern dialects

• ø → o (archaism or innovation?)
• retention of /au/
• [y(ː)] → i
• fortition of transitional glides, eg. /pi.a/ [pija], /ʃeu.a/ [ʃeuwa] > [pidʲa], [ʃeuba] (not universal; may occur elsewhere too, cf. initial glide fortition?)

The Biru dialect has even added a stop at the end of monosyllabic words ending in a high vowel, if no coda otherwise exists:

• /i/ → /idʲ/, /ɯ/ → /ɯg/, /u iu eu au ou/ → /ub ib eb ab ob/

other possible archaisms etc:

• [uj] for some [y(ː)]
• mid vowels 1: fully archaic [ei oi (j)e (ɥ)ø], pro e ø ie iø
• mid vowels 2: in suffixed shortening environments [e ø], pro ie iø
• mid vowels 3: initially [jeː ɥøː], pro ie iø

Morphophonology

<T D> etc. are shorthand for the two series of coronals (or three sibilants).

Roots can be of eight different basic shapes:

• Monosyllabic: σ
  1. (C)V
     • Vowel-initial suffixes may lead to various vowel contractions.
  2. (C)VC
     • C₂, if a stop, may alternate between voiced (intervocally) and voiceless (otherwise).
  3. (C)VC(P)
     • C₃ is always a voiceless stop and only surfaces before vowel-initial suffixes. Appearing clusters include /pT/, /mbT/, /mbk/, /ST/, /Tk/, /d̪k/, /nDk/, /kT/, /ŋgT/.
  4. (C)V(S/P)
     • C₂ is always a sibilant, C₃ a voiceless stop. The stop is the default; the sibilant surfaces before certain consonant-initial suffixes, typically nasals (also //ST//+/L/ > /SL/). Some assimilations also apply, eg. /sʲ/+/l r/ > /sl sr/.
• Sesquisyllabic: σ(σ)
  1. (C)VC(ə)C
     • [ə] is lost before a vowel-initial suffix. C₂ may alternate between voiced and voiceless, if a stop. C₃ is always a voiceless stop or a liquid.
  2. (C)VC(ə)(C)
     • A small set of words with the consonantism //LN ld̪ rd̪//. Resembles the previous class, except C₃ fails to appear in certain forms (e.g. word-finally).
• Bisyllabic: σσ
  1. (C)VCəC
     • Most roots with C₂ and C₃ both sonorants fall here.
  2. (C)VCɨC
     • Generally invariant, save for possible stop voicing. C₃ is always a voiceless stop or a liquid; /t̪ tʲ lʲ/ are rare here.

Types σ₃, σ₄, σ(σ)₁, σ(σ)₂, σσ₁ are basically in complementary distribution: the inflection type is determined by the identity of C₂ and Cɜ. The main exception are //ST// roots, which may be σ₃ or σ₄, and nominal //pT// roots, which may be σ₃ or σ(σ)₂ (all verbs are the latter).

Derived stems may pattern similar to σ₁ roots, σσ₂ roots, σ(σ)₁ roots, or σ₄ roots.

Grammar

Core cases

• nominativ: -a; -na for difthongoid monosyllables?
• genetiv-locativ: -∅
• accusativ: -ek
• dativ:

Obliq cases

• stacked on the prev.
• 2×4 locational cases
• collectiv case

Number

• nominal marking deficient (only for acc, some nom?)
• verbal marking for subjects; objects in certain cases?

Lexicon

Semicompatible dump

/pil/ /sʲin/ /wik/ /ŋgip/ /rinʲəs/ /iu/

/dek/ /dek-s/ /derəm/ /tʲeŋg/ /we/ /keŋg/ /neʃ/ /jek/ /sedʲət/

/wæm/ /sʲæk/ /wæl/ /æ/

/tønʲ/ /søp/ /køt/ /møtət/

/sɯ/ /ŋgɯr/ /pɯ/ /tʲɯt/ /lɯp/

/tʲarəp/ /warət/ /ʃan/ /ʃand/ /lak/ /at/ /kau/ /samb/

/mbuk/ /dun/ /mugə/ /sum/ /sut/ /sudək/ /wus/ /tʃu/ /pu/ /rul/