Ring A: 9/20: iljena

Pete Bleackley
[ Relay 14 | Ring A | Ring B | Ring C | Conlangs | Participants ]
[ iljena | Smooth English | Grammar | Vocabulary ]

<< qangr gurzbekugteq Kamakawi >>

iljena

nsaka fraga : inkena

awnis wense!

eljen ispeka:
abarte ebret ftana etves ebret, eqpep abarte often tlata eljen.
uburutu birt ekjew bruto ahawme ksata ensed uburutu baret hawem.
hops ejten ebrot teluf hput.
hiwm akawge ubret.
epwer birt pawra ikepato.
edned birt umbari abrito ijerm eparl.
ekraj birt ukrej ajarme.
esneg birt tlata alajne.
uhiwem ipenj iteld tahle.
hwima jorem ijerm.
korojo.

Smooth Translation

The second part : Magic speaks.

Let us sing!

The language of the Leyen:
The spirit recieves the spirits light for your spirit, Qpp's spirit receives the light for all Leyen.
The spirit does not give the plant's spirit to him if fire's spirit does not fight him.
jtn's spirit works until night darkens.
He give's the lake its spirit.
The wind's spirit gives the wind which blows on our heads [see translator's note].
The tree's spirit gives shade and protects them from danger.
Virtue's spirit gives them virtue.
Love's spirit gives to all Leyen.
He guides the weak and the children, and comforts them.
He makes them love each other.
Virtue endures.

Translator's Note: The previous version decribed the wind as "blowing on our heads and clothing". However, Leyen don't wear clothing, as it would interfere with their vibrissae.

Grammar

The most important feature of iljena grammar is that each word is both a noun and a verb. The consonants of the word comprise the nominal root, while the vowels and their arrangement with respect to the consonants give the verbal sense. An iljena sentence has no subject or object - everything is a participant in the action described, and each word describes the role that one participant plays in the action. Humans learning iljena (Literally "ljn speak", ljn (normally rendered "Leyen" in English) being the self-designation of the speakers) often find it difficult to chose appropriate vowels for the participant that they regard as the object, while ljn learning human languages have difficulty with the idea of separating objects from their actions. Word order is used to convey the flow of the action between the participants, and to bring together closely related participants. As "The Essential Guide to Alien Languages" puts it, "Morphologically, iljena is essentially a Semitic language turned up to 11. Syntactically, it is essentially a slightly exaggerated version of Mandarin."

If this all seems a bit abstract, an example sentence might help:

ewtag kvis mohn
student.have raven.perch hand.hold
The student's raven perches on his hand.

Vocabulary

Noun roots

brt spirit
dnd tree
frg part
ftn twilight: a comfortable level of light
hps time
hwm he/she
jrm they
jtn A proper name
kjw plant
kpt head
krj virtue, moderation, goodness
kst condition
kwg lake
ljn Leyen: crepuscular sentient bipeds with vibrissae over their entire bodies
mbr shade
nkn magic
nsd fire
nsk second thing
pnj weak thing
prl danger
pwr wind
qpp A proper name. Looks non-native in origin
sng love
spk language
thl calm
tld child
tlf dark night
tlt all
tvs you
wns we

Verb patterns (the numbers 123 represent consonant positions)

12a3a be
12u3 stop
12u3o undergo
1a23a blow
1a23e touch
1a2e3 fight
1e23e sing
1e2u3 darken
1i23 give
1o23 hold
1o2e3 love
1o2o3o endure
a12i3 command
a12i3o protect
a1a23e receive
e12e3 have
e12o3 work
e1a23 go
i12e3a speak
i1e23 benefit
i1e23o sense with vibrissae
o12e3 belong
u12a3i cover
u12e3 come
u1u2u3u do not

<< qangr gurzbekugteq Kamakawi >>

Index

February 19th, 2007
Comments? Suggestions? Corrections? You can drop me a line.
zpentrabvagiktu@theiling.de
Schwerpunktpraxis
Datenschutz