RIJAN: Some Quotes

"The object of waging war is always to be in a better position in which to wage another war." ~1984
   
     "Za riaza nach shazozhka mahar zemver evova evom uan u lukar kuusivi shazom an'yr mahar."


"Strange are the ways of evil. We are false in the faces of our brothers. We are defying the will of our Councils. We alone, of the thousands who walk this earth, we alone in this hour are doing a work which has no purpose save that we wish to do it." ~Anthem

     "Neszadai evon zai shazdi nach malvaja. Evozar nesrizai uan zai kaari nach nuz vraterrai. Redakhazar za kerda nach nuz Zabkai. Nuztra kholai, nach zai myylai nin pedan ista gi, nuztra kholai uan ista uura shazozar u travadu nin necht'tenevu a riaza muura kerezar zu shazom."


"Listen to us, for we hold the future of mankind in our hands." ~Anthem

     "A'nuz aukek, abvair'kenvezar za batuula nach rijani uan nuz maani."


"Defeat, my Defeat, my deathless courage, You and I shall laugh together with the storm. And together we shall dig graves for all that die in us. And we shall stand in the sun with a will, And we shall be dangerous." ~The Madman

     "Venzazh, myya Venzazh,myya lokhaizh nescin morne, nuztra vol'elalazar uuntazi cin zu zylaat. Inde uuntazi nuztra vol'enuzhezar madarni par teld nin moron uan nuztra. Inde vol alentazar uan zu zol cin a kerda, Inde vol'evozar ykedai."


"Many words have been granted me, and some are wise, and some are false, but only three are holy: I will it!" ~Anthem

     "Muukai pali a'mi par'evon tratavdi, inde ai evon zavadai, inde ai evon nesriza, per zyna trei evon sanctai: Myya'li zu kerez!"

"Zu Zavdykaan inde zu Amonu; kur a Sinama Morozhka"--a Caaniyan

"The Philosopher and the Lover; to a Mistress Dying"
Sir William Davenant

Lover
Your Beauty, ripe, and calm, and fresh,
As Eastern Summers are,
Must now, forsaking Time and Flesh,
Add light to some small Star.

Philosopher
Whilst she yet lives, were stars decay'd,
Their light by hers, relief might find:
But Death will lead her to a shade
Where Love is cold, and Beauty blinde.

Lover
Lovers (whose Priests all Poets are)
Think ev'ry Mistress, when she dies,
Is chang'd at least into a Star:
And who dares doubt the Poets wise?

Philosopher
But ask not Bodies doom'd to die,
To what abode they go;
Since Knowledge is but sorrow's Spy,
It is not safe to know.

--------------------------------

"Zu Zavdykaan inde zu Amonu, kur a Sinama Morozhka"

Amonu
Vore ederavna, leznakh inde serkhaala, inde mynkhata,
Eki vyrjaati Eztraiji evon,
Tenzeva jetzta, krona inde kaan avnakhazhka,
Suuram kur a zetellkha nessur fozh.

Zavdykaan
Taka damya jetzta vifava, zetellkhai kormorovdai evogon,
Senn fozh nach damya, sezhuanno enkontragan:
Per Morne a'damya vol'pezarovu kur u mortuume
Kuusu amona evova thirri, inde ederavna nesvizda.

Amonu
Amonai (senn virestai evozhka teld lautaraani)
Penzen nin kaadi Sinama, kuan morova,
Kamvova kenesser ker a zetellkha:
Inde vur veleryovu neskessem zai lautaraani zavadai?

Zavdykaan
Per necht'vrakunat korpai avrakhai ker Morne,
Ker vaare tegu zavon;
Avair'zavaja zyna evova zu vizteilu nach desava,
Zavayam necht'evovu kesun.

RIJAN: Conditional

Wow. Only one post for all of 2013. I've resolved to fix the whole "not posting" thing. I need to work more on my conlangs; they're relaxing, and as I'm finishing up my senior year of high school, I desperately need catharsis.

Sooooo.....I've scoured the school library for books of poetry, and I'm picking out poems to translate. It helps with the lexicon and the grammar to actually have material to translate into the conlang, and since translation challenges online are few and far between (no, I'm NOT poring through Reddit boards for one or two measly challenges), I guess it's up to me to create my own. That said, I'll add this: Fellow conlangers! I'll be posting more translated works of literature, along with the original works, on this blog in the future. I might even translate some of my own work. If you feel up to the challenge, this is me throwing down the virtual gauntlet. Translate these into your own 'langs. Post them online if you dare. Leave comments with the translations.

BUT--I haven't translated my first poem of 2014 completely, yet. I started on it this evening, and was doing fine, until I hit a line that requires the conditional tense. And I haven't worked on Rijan in so long, I forgot the conditional. So I just spent the past hour riffling through my scattered notes and journals, hunting down the page on which I left my conditional notes. I haven't posted them yet, so I'll post them now.

For those of you who don't know what the "conditional tense" (or, properly, the "conditional mood") is, it's a grammatical mood (go figure) based on a hypothetical condition. I'm referring to your "ifs" and "woulds." While in English, the conditional verb is preceded by an auxiliary verb like "would," in Rijan, the verb "would" is replaced by a suffix.

Verb Endings

-AM
Myya'li       -agaz
Vore'li       -agav
Malya       -agavu
Damya       -agava
Nuztra       -agazar
Vuztra       -agazai
Senn'li       --agan

-EM
Myya'li       -egez
Vore'li       -egev
Malya       -egevu
Damya       -egeva
Nuztra       -egezar
Vuztra       -egezai
Senn'li       -egen

-OM
Myya'li       -ogoz
Vore'li       -ogov
Malya       -ogovu
Damya       -ogova
Nuztra       -ogozar
Vuztra       -ogozai
Senn'li       -ogon

Nunevati: My personal "Oh God, why?" language

I haven't been on here for quite some time, I know. I've been busy with some stuff involving friends, religion, job hunting, and the preservation of my sanity (i.e. vacation). I also started a new blog, The Valhalla Experiment, which focuses on one of my other hobbies: food. Feel free to check it out at valhallaexperiment.blogspot.com.

But I have been conlanging. It helps me catch those tiny details that have the potential to create major plot holes in the process of writing my novel. And since I'm very easy to bore, I began developing an entirely new language during the plane flights to and from New York. It's called Nunevati.

About Nunevati

Nunevati is a language spoken by the Nunevati people who inhabit the frozen north of Rijavvid, known as Nunevatia. Nunevatia is the only province of Rijavvid without a central Rijan government or even a Rijan religious majority, the result of the repeated failure of attempts to colonize and "civilize" the "savage" and "barbaric" Nunevati people. Because of this, Nunevatia is a haven for political and religious dissenters, and is used as a penal colony for those who find themselves on the wrong side of Rijan law.

Contrary to what Rijan anti-Nunevati propaganda would have you believe, Nunevati society is peaceful and very civilized, designed as the true utopia to counter Rijavvid's dystopia. Despite having a central government, much of the legislation passed in the province is done so by popular demand. There is a class system, but its design is a lateral one, based on function rather than an inherent hierarchy, and thus, is largely egalitarian.

The Nunevati people value knowledge and wisdom most highly, as it is the only way to truly better society and the world as a whole. The Nunevati language reflects this, and is designed with the purpose of enlightened discourse foremost in mind. This being said, the real reason I began Nunevati is because it is the biggest linguistic challenge I have undertaken to date, being the most complex language I ever have, and probably ever will, create.

Gender of Nouns

The vast majority of natural languages (and even most constructed languages) have a simple, sex-based gender system for nouns and adjectives, composed of the categories "masculine," "feminine," and often "neuter." (Languages such as English and Spanish, in order to further simplify things, have largely omitted the latter category.) Taking a page from the Native American languages described by John Wesley Powell in his On the Origin of Language, I decided to spice things up a bit. Therefore, Nunevati categorizes noun gender based on the sentience of the noun in question, rather than the inherent sex (or lack thereof). The gender categories are as follows, named for my own convenience rather than any desire to actually name them:

• Sentient, which actually refers to all living things. The Nunevati believe that all things which are alive are sentient. The "sentient" category is further subdivided into three groups:
• Sentient-locomotive, or "sentient-mobile," encompasses all living beings that are capable of locomotion, including humans (both men and women fit into the same gender category, which necessitates the use of different prefixes for "man" and "woman," but more on that later).
• Sentient-non-locomotive, or "sentient-sessile," living beings incapable of locomotion, such as plants and some mollusks.
• Sentient-abstract, which contains concepts which are not necessarily alive nor even tangible. The word for "God" fits into this category, along with "Love," "Death," "War," and "Hatred."
• Non-sentient, which is home to all other nouns and inanimate objects.

Gender Suffixes

Sentient

• Mobile:  -aff
• Sessile:  -ama
• Abstract: -az

Non-sentient:  -erra

Examples

Love                                      amataz

Human                                  emanaff

Man                                      lo'emanaff

Woman                                 la'emanaff

Pig                                        zaniaff

Broom                                  eskerra

House                                   kasaverra

Death                                   Moriaz

God                                      Jumaz

Tree                                     mevama

In addition, adding the suffix 'ka will make a noun plural.

Pronouns

1st person-singular:      Au-

1st person-plural:        Vira-

2nd person-singular:   Voth-

2nd person-plural:      Vozhe-

3rd person-singular:   Makh-

3rd person-plural:      Mannah-

Pronouns are always capitalized. Pronouns also carry suffixes; if the noun to which the pronoun is referring is an idea, for example, the pronoun would be "Makhaz."

Levels of Intensity of Statements

And now we get to the fun part. This is why I call Nunevati my personal "Oh God, why?" language. This is tricky for people to grasp because the grammar of the sentence doesn't factor into the equation when determining level of intensity--the content is what matters.

There are seven different "levels of intensity" for declarative sentences (three positive, three negative, and one neutral), as well as one level apiece for imperative and interrogative sentences.

Denoting each level of intensity is a suffix that every conjugated verb in the statement must carry, regardless of whether or not it is the "main verb." Suffixes set apart from the intensity suffixes with an apostrophe, such as 'mai and 'tai, denote tense. 'Mai is conditional, while 'tai is preterite, for example.

Declarative Sentences

1st Level--for strongly negative emotions and opinions; the first level is the highest level on the intensity spectrum that a negative statement can attain.

     Suffix: -yirah

     Makhaz eveyirah'tai ma haarakhaz luka inzeh ma yaamzehkaz nai ma Segway.

     ("That was the worst idea since the advent of the Segway.")

2nd Level--a somewhat weaker level of intensity for negative sentences.

     Suffix: -ahm

     Em Auhaff nekt'weldeahm'mai eym gohnerra, perchaziaz'ka nekt'eveyahm konstituazka.

     ("Although I would never carry a gun, restrictions on firearms are not constitutional.")

3rd Level--more neutral, but still decidedly negative.

     Suffix: -oira

     Ma sakyerra evehoira'tai sakmaltaz, aak Makherra evehoira'mai godmanerra.

     ("The food was edible, but it could have been better.")

4th Level--neither positive nor negative; for truly neutral statements.

     Suffix: -aula

     Auhaff nekt'teneyaula ninka malahaz ein ma taalaz ninvah.

     ("I have no opinion on the matter whatsoever.")

5th Level--more neutral, but still decidedly positive.

     Suffix: -lykta

     Em Auhaff nekt'shazlykta trogoherra'ka, Auhaff imfilykta nyn mariuanama tevlykta evem   legekozham.

     ("Although I don't do drugs, I agree that marijuana should be legalized.")

6th Level--the median level of intensity for positive sentences.

     Suffix: -meitz

     Au lautmeitz'tai ma filmerra.

     ("I enjoyed the film.")

7th Level--the strongest level of positivity that a sentence can attain.

     Suffix: -kauteh

     Makherra evekauteh'tai ma khoserra godteilerra inzeh pahnerra korterra.

     ("That was the greatest thing since sliced bread.)

AMARBWI: "Makál"

"Makál" kaf Stephen Crane

"Makál," ekalta-el uru-kuv'raku,

"Sa uru-gam, ara-akbát koskate,

Urók ré-el ek-lev,

Okt fenta tá-mitzkil-ek-uzu-lev,

Kestig-etz a-gita kalta éswar."

"Makál," ekalta-el uru-kuv'raku,

"Sa uru-háfke, ara-serset,

Uru-nákte, uru-kapez;

Okale mesé-el ek,

Pé ne'kat teté-el

A-vit kuv kaskel-ek-uzu."

I make-el u-kuv'raku taf-té,

Elek makál sa-el la-lev,

Uru-háfke, ara-serset,

Uru-nákte, uru-kapez;

I ne'kat teté-el

A-vit kuv kaskel-ek-uzu.

-----------------

"Truth" by Stephen Crane

"Truth," said a traveller,

"Is a rock, a mighty fortress;

Often have I been to it,

Even to its highest tower,

From whence the world looks black."

"Truth," said a traveller,

"Is a breath, a wind,

A shadow, a phantom;

Long have I pursued it,

But never have I touched

The hem of its garment."

And I believed the second traveller;

For truth was to me

A breath, a wind,

A shadow, a phantom;

And never had I touched

The hem of its garment.

AMARBWI: Pronouns and "Esh"

Presently, Amarbwi is an extremely underdeveloped conlang. I would love to say I was using "1st person singular," "2nd person plural," etc. in place of the pronouns to sound like I know more about what I'm doing than I actually do, but the truth is, I hadn't invented them yet. So I thought up some pronouns and a new verb a few minutes ago, because that's what I like to do to relax--I make up words and share them with people.

ESH ("TO HAVE")

La eshé     I have

Ev esha     You have

Les/Las/Ek eshk     He/She/It has

Ika shesh     We have

Vila eshi     You all have

Wosk eshek     They have

And, of course, the prefixes and suffixes are the same.

Les eshk-el a-renka.

He had a book.

AMARBWI: A Break from RIjan

Rijan is not the only conlang I've been working on. There are others, including Tyr-Alta, Nevaki, Rofniri, and Amarbwi, although Rijan has been taking up the majority of my time. As I start focusing more on these other conlangs, I'll preface the title of each non-Rijan post with the name of the language in caps (as I've done here). I've started translating Genesis 11:1-9 (the Tower of Babel excerpt) into Amarbwi, but I decided that that isn't the best way to introduce the fledgling language (especially since I've not recorded much of what I've been doing, and I need to write some things down somewhere or I'll forget them).

Amarbwi is the vernacular* language spoken in Amarbwa**, a region of Rijavvid. In its most basic form, it's a series of mono- and disyllabic sounds with prefixes and suffixes tacked on (we'll be using ? for glottal stops between vowels). For instance, let's look at the conjugation of the verb "to be."

TO BE (SÁT)

1st person singular:  SE
2nd person singular: SAK
3rd person singular: SA
1st person plural: SÉVU

2nd person plural: SAKVU
3rd person plural: SÁVU

SUFFIXES DETERMINE TENSE:

Preterite: -EL
Imperfect: -AIK
Future: -KU
Command: -AK
Conditional: -Ét


ARTICLES ARE PREFIXES:

A (m): URU-
A (f): ARA-
The (m): U-
The (f): A-

I ka a-gita sa?el kuv itz e'res'vu. ~Genesis 11:1


*Rijan is the standard trade language spoken across Rijavvid; each country/region has its own vernacular.
**I'm still working on that geography lesson I promised a while back.