Proto-Cardial is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Cardial languages. It is estimated to have been spoken around 6.200 BC, and it's asociated to Cardium pottery.
Phonology
Consonants
|
|
Labial
|
Dental
|
Alveolar
|
Velar
|
Uvular
|
Glottal
|
| Sibilant
|
Lateral
|
| Nasals
|
*m
|
*n
|
|
|
*ŋ
|
|
|
| Stops
|
Ejective
|
*p'
|
*t'
|
|
|
*k'
|
*q'
|
|
| Voiceless
|
*p
|
*t
|
|
|
*k
|
*q
|
*ʔ
|
| Voiced
|
*b
|
*d
|
|
|
*g
|
*ɢ
|
|
| Affricates
|
Ejective
|
|
*ts'
|
*tʃ'
|
|
|
|
|
| Voiceless
|
|
*ts
|
*tʃ
|
*tɬ
|
|
|
|
| Voiced
|
|
*dz
|
*dʒ
|
|
|
|
|
| Fricatives
|
|
*s ~ *z?
|
*ʃ ~ *ʒ?
|
|
*x
|
*χ
|
*h
|
| Liquid
|
|
*l
|
*r
|
*ɬ
|
*ɫ
|
|
|
Vowels
|
|
Front
|
Central
|
Back
|
| High
|
*i
|
*ɨ
|
*u
|
| Mid
|
*e
|
*ə
|
*o
|
| Low
|
*æ
|
*ɐ
|
*a
|
The vowel system shows serious difficulties to be reconstructed, this is compounded by the lack of data and extreme vocalic changes in the daughter languages. Many authors have proposed a system of three central vowels that affect the consonants and that alternate between them in patterns of allophony and ablaut, this centralized system is very important to understand the stress.
| Centralized System
|
Palatized
|
Central
|
Labialized
|
| High
|
*ʲɨ /i/
|
*ɨ
|
*ʷɨ /u/
|
| Mid
|
*ʲə /e/
|
*ə
|
*ʷə /o/
|
| Low
|
*ʲɐ /æ/
|
*ɐ
|
*ʷɐ /a/
|
Stress
The reconstructed stress patterns is very simple and it is based on the system of centralized vowels as follows, "ə" and "ɨ" allow stress in the last syllable, while "ɐ" does not allow it, so "ɐ" always appears stressed in the penultimate syllable.
In daughter languages the "ɐ" stressed in the penultimate syllable losts the stress and...:
- disappears in southern Italy and Iberian peninsula.
- geminates the posterior consonant in the Mediterranean islands and northern Africa.
- the vowel lengthens gaining strength and weakening the vowels of the last syllabe until they disappear in higher stages, in Tartessian.
- the rest of the daughter families maintain the archaic stress pattern.
Morphology
Pronouns
|
|
Singular
|
Plural
|
| 1st person
|
Exclusive
|
*ʔɐgɐ ~ *ʔɐkɐ
|
*ŋɐ
|
| Inclusive
|
-
|
*bɐ
|
| 2nd person
|
Casual
|
*t'u
|
*χa
|
| Polite
|
*si
|
*χæ
|
| 3rd person
|
*sɐ
|
*sɐ?
|
| Demonstrative
|
Proximal
|
*ʔi
|
*hi
|
| Medial-proximal
|
*ʔe
|
*he
|
| Medial-distal
|
*ʔu
|
*hu
|
| Distal
|
*ʔa
|
*ha
|
| Indeterminate
|
*t'ɐ
|
*t'ɐ?
|
| Interrogative/relative
|
Thing (What)
|
*mɐ
|
*mɐ?
|
| Person (Who)
|
*ŋɨʃɐ
|
*ŋɨʃɐ?
|
Ablaut
|
|
Ablaut
|
Usage
|
| I
|
|
Verbs?
|
| II
|
A
|
|
Verbs?
|
| B
|
|
Verbs?
|
Phrase and Verbal paradigm
The type of verbal conjugation varies according to the type of phrase you want to build, only the following sentences are allowed.
Class I
- Subject is marked with: Nominative; Subject is allowed optionally
- Object is marked with: Absolutive; Object is allowed optionally
- Articles, relatives and postpositions are allowed optionally
- Verb is allowed; Mostly Intransitive
Verb
- The verbal stem suffers an ablaut of type IIa
| Direct Object (Abs.)
|
Indirect Object (Gen.)
|
Subject
|
VERB STEM
|
Transitivity
|
Perfective
|
Post-verb
|
Imperfective
|
Class II
- Subject is marked with: Nominative; Subject is allowed optionally
- Object is marked with: Absolutive; Object is allowed optionally
- Articles, relatives and postpositions are prohibited
- Verb is allowed; Mostly Transitive
Verb
- The verbal stem suffers an ablaut of type IIb
| Subject
|
VERB STEM
|
Object
|
Perfective
|
Class III
- Subject is marked with: Ergative; Subject is allowed optionally
- Object is marked with: Absolutive; Object is obligatory
- Articles, relatives and postpositions are allowed optionally
- Verb is obligatory; Only Transitive
Verb
- The verbal stem do not suffers an ablaut
| Subject (Erg.)
|
Object (Abs.)
|
VERB STEM
|
Transitivity
|
Perfectivity
|
Class IV
- Subject is marked with: Nominative; Subject is allowed optionally
- Object is not marked; Object is allowed optionally
- Articles, relatives and postpositions are allowed optionally
- Verb is allowed; Mostly Intransitive
Verb
- The verbal stem suffers an ablaut of type IIa
| Direct Object (Abs.)
|
Indirect Object (Gen.)
|
Subject (Abs.)
|
VERB STEM
|
Transitivity
|
Perfective
|
Post-verb
|
Imperfective
|
Class V
- Subject is marked with: Nominative; Subject is allowed optionally
- Articles and postpositions are prohibited; Relatives are allowed optionally
- Verb is allowed; Only Intransitive
Verb
- The verbal stem suffers an ablaut of type I
Lexicon
