Syrunian
| SYRUNIAN al-linża sirunija : אל-לינזּא סירונײא | |
| Pronunciation: | / alːinˈʒa sirʊˈnija / |
| Spoken in: | once: Roman Province of Syria now: Syria, Israel |
| Timeline: | Alternate |
| Total speakers: | 3 million |
| Genealogical classification: | Indo-European
|
| Written in: | a Hebraic alphabet and the Latin alphabet |
| Historically also written in: | the Hebrew, Arabic and Syriac abjads; the Greek and Coptic alphabets |
| Created by: | |
| Iuhan Culmæria | December 2010 |
| Relevant admired projects : |
Carrajina; Bâzrâmani |
Syrunian is a Romance conlang, or romlang. The goal was to create a plausible descendant of Latin, that sounds (and acts, at times) like a Semitic language.
It is derived from a Vulgar Latin used in Roman Syria. It has influences of Hebrew and the Syriac/Aramaic of the Early Christians. There are ‘late’ borrowings from Arabic and contemporary loans from French and English, like l-aurdinatur from the French “l’ordinateur” (computer).
Syrunian is more of a ‘personal language’ – besides the verb eʦer (to be), it is an unnaturally regular language.
Etymology
“al Linża Sirunija” is derived from the Syrian-Latin phrase: illa lingua Siria Romane or ‘the language Syrian Roman’ (=the Syrian Latin language)
Siria + Rumania → Sirija + Runnia → Siri_+ Runija → Sirirunija → Sirunija
Alt-history
Syiac (a dialect of Aramaic) prevailed as a literary language throughout Mesopotamia. Hebrew was the liturgical language of Judaism. Both languages were used by the people as mother tongues.
The history of Syrunian begins with the Roman Empire, in the Province of Syria. As the Romans established their Empire they spread the Latin language.
The city of Antioch was the capital of Syria. It was one of the largest cities in the ancient world, as well as one of the largest centres of trade and industry. Syria was one of the wealthiest and more populous provinces of the Roman Empire. As a result, Latin was adopted as a common vernacular, despite the Latin giving way to Greek in the Eastern Empire.
Syrian Latin
As a result of this setting and the influences, the Latin used in Syria evolved differently to the Latin in other areas of the Empire which would eventually become the modern Romance languages. The exposure to Semitic languages like Hebrew and Aramaic greatly influenced the development of Syrian Latin, most superficially, in terms of pronunciation.
During the Roman and Early Christian periods, a number of Syriac and Hebrew terms (mostly terms for religion and geography) were absorbed into the language.
Islam and the First Crusade
From 637, the province was conquered by Islam, which was becoming popular in the Mediterranean; Arabic would become lingua franca of the entire Middle East.
The first Crusade and the establishment of Crusader States reintroduced Latin, but alongside Old French. In time, the Islamic part of Syria had become a centre of anti-crusader activity, and had strong Arabic traditions.
Post World War I
The Ottoman Empire eventually dissolved. In 1922 the League of Nations split the dominion of the former Syria. What was to become modern-day Syria was put under French mandate.
Syria under French mandate exposed Syrunian to French for a second time. The first encounter had been during the Crusades.
Syrunian in Modern times
The Syrunian language is that of a minority community in South-western Syria bordering Israel and Lebanon. Due to their language, Syrunian communities have been generally distanced from society – including the Israeli-Palestinian/ Arab conflict.
Phonology
Consonants
| Consonants | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bilab. | Labiod. | Dent. | Alv. | Post-alv. | Palat. | Velar | Uvular | Glott. | |||||||||||
| Nasal | /m/ M (מ(ם | /n/ N (נ(ן | |||||||||||||||||
| Plosive | /p/ P פ | /b/ B ב | /t/ T ט | /d/ D ד | /k/ C ק | /g/ G ג | [q] Q (כ(ך | /ʔ/ A א | |||||||||||
| Fricative | /f/ F ף | /v/ V וּ | /θ,ð/ Θ ת | /s/ S ס | /z/ Z ז | /ʃ/ Ϭ ש | /ʒ/ Ż זּ | /x/ Ħ ח | [χ] Q (כ(ך | /h/ H ה | |||||||||
| Affricate | /ts/ TS (צ(ץ | /ʧ/ Ċ (צּ(ץּ | /ʤ/ Ġ גּ | ||||||||||||||||
| Approximants | /w/ U ו | /j/ I(J) י | |||||||||||||||||
| Trill | [r] R ר | [ʀ] R ר | |||||||||||||||||
| Lateral Approximant | /l/ L ל | ||||||||||||||||||
Vowels
/a/ A א
/e, ɛ, ə/ E ע
/i/ I י
/u, ʊ/ U ו
/aj/ AI אי
/aw, ɔ/ AU או
/eɪ/ EI עי
/ij/ II ײ
/wi/ UI וי
Allophones
I, as creator reserve the right to create formal allophonic rules.
I don’t find phonology as interesting as the other parts of language and believe that any potential speaker community will naturally develop allophones.
General linguistic characteristics
Syntax
The predominant word order in Syrunian is VSO (Verb – Subject – Object). VSO is the word order of Biblical Hebrew, Classical Arabic and probably Literary Syriac as well. Within the noun phrase, both adjectives and possessors follow nouns. Possessors precede adjectives when modifying the same noun. Syrunian uses prepositions, some of which are prefixing clitics.
Morphology
Syrunian is more inflecting than most Romance languages and is comparable to Romanian. Nouns resemble Syriac/ Aramaic nouns, but their forms derive from Latin.
Pronouns
When using pronouns, there are optional isolated forms which may be used. The meaning does not change - only the emphasis and focus of the statement.
| Isolated pronoun forms | |||||||||
| __1 sg_ | _2 sg_ | _3M sg_ | _3F sg_ | _1 pl_ | _2 pl_ | _3M pl_ | _3F pl__ | ||
| Emphatic | iħ | ti | lu | la | nus | vus | ilar | ilat | |
| Absolute | miħ | tiv | lui | nust | vust | luir | |||
| Construct | me | te | eu | eut | nuσt | vuσt | eur | eurit |
- sabaq Ihedas Ieσuim ahal-Senhedris
betrays Judas Jesus to-the-Priests' Council
Judas betrays Jesus to the Council of Priests. - Pronominal form:
sabaqleheu ahal-Senhedris
sabaq-le-eu ah-al-Senhedris
betrays-he-him to-the-Priests' Council
--or-- - Isolated form:
sabaq lu lui ahal-Senhedris
betrays he him to-the-Priests' Council.
Both forms translate to "He betrayed Him to the Council of Priests."
Nouns
Syrunian only has a definite article «al-» which is a contraction of the Latin pronoun illa and resembles the Arabic article al-.
Syrunian nouns have two genders: masculine (for explicitly the masculine) and feminine (or ‘common’). The gender is expressed in verb conjugation, not on the noun itself.
Three numbers in Syrunian: the singular, plural and dual, although the dual number only applies to certain nouns that come in pairs, like eyes, arms and socks.
There are three states in Syrunian, the emphatic, absolute and construct states. The inflection of many nouns make used of vowel shifts that resemble Semitic inflections.
- the Emphatic is used to emphasise the topic of a sentence and is comparable to a vocative case. It is also being used as a nominative case more and more.
- the Absolute is a prepositional case that also covers the role of an accusative.
- the Construct state is used to mark the possessèd, unlike the Latin Genetive which marked the possessor.
Adjectives agree eith the noun in case and number/ (Dual numbers take plural adjectives. Adjectives never inflect for the dual.)
| Inflection of “meleq” (Mayor): | |||
| singular | plural | ||
| Emphatic | meleq | meleqi | |
| Absolute | melqim | melqis | |
| Construct | melqe | melqes |
| Inflection of “regiσ” (King): | |||
| singular | plural | ||
| Emphatic | regiσ | regiσi | |
| Absolute | regσim | regσis | |
| Construct | regσe | regσes |
| Inflection of “uhl” (eye): | ||||
| singular | plural | dual | ||
| Emphatic | uhul | uhuli | uhlajn | |
| Absolute | uhlim | uhlis | a-uhlajn | |
| Construct | uhle | eules | d-uhlajn |
Examples:
- duna al-meleq al-livre Cefa Iuhanim
gives the-mayor the-book-(of) Peter (to)-John - luqat al-meleq al-regσim
speaks the-mayor (to)-the-king
Verbs
Syrunian verb conjugations follow the Semitic “Perfect/ Imperfect” distinction, but does so in both the Past and Future like a Romance language. There is only one simple present.
There are five different conjugations:
- eʦer
- terminaison -er
- terminaison -ir
- terminaison -σar
- terminaison -ar
| Conjugation of ‘eʦer’ – to be (irregular) | |||||||||
| present | past perf. 1 | past perf. 2 | past imperf. | future perf. | future imperf. | conjunctive perf. | conj. imperf. | ||
| 1 (eħ) | sum | fi | ħav esse | esem | ħavra esse | ser | ħaveb esse | etej | |
| 2 (tu) | es | fis | ħavs esse | eses | ħavras esse | sers | ħavebs esse | etejs | |
| 3 fem (la) | est | fit | ħavt esse | eset | ħavrat esse | sert | ħavevt esse | etejt | |
| 3 masc (lu) | esit | fir | ħaviθ esse | eseθ | ħavriθ esse | sereθ | ħavbiθ esse | etejθ | |
| 1 PL (nus) | sums | fims | ħavems esse | esums | ħavrems esse | serums | ħavbims esse | etejms | |
| 2 PL (vus) | ez | fisʦ | ħaveʦ esse | eseʦ | ħavreʦ esse | sereʦ | ħavbeʦ esse | etejʦ | |
| 3 PL (ilar) | sunt | frunt | ħavent esse | esent | ħavrent esse | serent | ħavbent esse | etejnt |
GERUND: al-essu
IMPERATIVE: serut!
| Conjugation of ‘amar’ – to love (regular –ar) | ||||||||
| present | past perf. | past imperf. | future perf. | future imperf. | conjunctive perf. | conj. imperf. | ||
| 1 (eħ) | ama | ħav amu | amab | ħavra amu | amara | ħaveb amu | amra | |
| 2 (tu) | amas | ħavs amu | amabs | ħavras amu | amaris | ħavebs amu | amarajs | |
| 3 fem (la) | amat | ħavt amu | amavt | ħavrat amu | amarit | ħavevt amu | amarajt | |
| 3 masc (lu) | amatr | ħaviθ amu | amabr | ħavriθ amu | amaritr | ħavbiθ amu | amarajtr | |
| 1 PL (nus) | amamr | ħavems amu | amabimr | ħavrems amu | amaramr | ħavbims amu | amarajmr | |
| 2 PL (vus) | amamin | ħaveʦ amu | ambamin | ħavreʦ amu | amramin | ħavbeʦ amu | amrajʦ | |
| 3 PL (ilar) | amant | ħavent amu | ambant | ħavrent amu | amarant | ħavbent amu | amrajnt |
GERUND: al-amar
IMPERATIVE: amrut!
Texts
These texts are outdated. Once I have completed the GRAMMAR REVISION, the texts will be revised as well.
Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Sunt nasħuntaθs aunes ħuni libers, eħuals et sam al-dihnte al-żihursqe. Sunt dunati luir dal raσnim dal cusħentsimsqe et est-ċi avulet q’ agiσint ilar sifral-autres sam al-sfirte fraθres.
סונט נאסחוטאתס אונעס חוני ליבערס ,עחואלס עט סאם אל-דיהנטע אל-זּיהורסכע. סונט דונאטי לויר דאל-ראשנים דאל-קוסחעצימסכע עט עסט-צּי אוּולעט כ אגישינט ילאר סיףראל-אוטרעס סאם אל-סףירטע ףראתרעס.
Pronunciation
/sunt nasxʊ:ntaðz awnez xʊ:ni liberz exwa:ls et sam: al di:ntɛ: al ʒihʊ:rsqə sunt duna:ti lwir dal raʃni:m dal kusχɛ:ntsims qə et esttʃi avulɛ:t qagiʃi:nt ila:r sifralawtrɛ:s samal sfirtɛ: fraθrɛ:s/
- /q/ = [q] or [χ]
Gloss
- _sunt nasħuntaθs aunes ħuns libers, eħuals et sam al-dihnte al-żihurs| qe._
be.3P bornPP all people.E free , equal and with the-dignity.C the-rights| and.
“all people are born free, equal and with the dignity and the rights.”
- _sunt dunati luir d| al raσnim d| al cusħentsims| qe_
be.3P givePP them.A of| the-reason.A of| the-conscience.A| and
“to them are given of the reason and of the conscience”
- _et est-ċi avulet q’ agiσint ilar sifr| al-autres sam al-sfirte fraθres_
and is-it proper REL act.3P they.E unto| the-others.C with the-spirit.C brothers.C “and it is proper that they act unto the others with the spirit of brothers.”
Who wants us stopped?
desiθra eħ sħaver, est-ċe qis qi vult qej sums nus iħunʦezis ; ħraviuramenth, fer qhu ?
“I wish to know who it is who wishes us stopped, and moreover, why?”
ina σeh, fer qhu ? hatu, se ne-sħavrejms nus qej farvams, eħru qej ne sħavrejnt pazinna persuns auters ; et, se ne sħavrejnt persuns qej farams, aheh, fer qhu est qelci deθremin fral fruħibσun dal-le q’ etejt faħis ?
“Yes, why? For, if we do not know what we are doing, then it follows no one else does either; and, if no one knows what we are going to do, well then, why is someone so determined to prevent us from doing it?”
Gloss
- _desiθra eħ sħaver, est-ċe qis qi vult qej sums nus iħunʦezis ;_
desire I to.know, is-it who that wants that are we forbidden ;
- _ħraviuramenth, fer qhu ?_
more.weightily, for why?
- _ina ϭeh, fer qhu ? hatu, se ne-sħavrejms nus qej farvams,_
indeed yes, for why? For, if not-know we what we.do[subj],
- _eħru qej ne sħavrejnt pazinna persuns auters ;_
thus that not-know[subj] at.all persons other ;
- _et, se ne sħavrejnt persuns qej farams,_
and, if not-know[subj] persons what we.do[fut]
- _aheh, fer qhu est qelci deθremin fral fruħibϭun dal-le q’ etejt faħis ?_
well, for why is someone determined for.the-prohibiting of.the-it that be[subj] done ?
