176. The water here is not drinkable. to widur shir-n ea bwif payomagam.
Note: the negative suffix -n, which together with the particle ea negates a verb, can be suffixed to words other than nouns/pronouns (i.e., the subject of the verb), as it is here, affixed to shir/here.
(The suffix -magam is equivalent to English suffix -able/ible.)
177. What a dinner! There is so much food, it is not finishable.
fat jon cheshpen! ye p'dad so manga, ea bwif towumagam.
(cheshpen=dinner; p'dad=food; towu=finish)
178. Have you finished chopping down that tree?
prechi ka zhun towuzhu ste smiz taf daru?
(smiz=cut down; daru=tree)
179. He is such a good boy! bwid jon vripnu ste bel so!
(vripnu=boy)
180. It was such a wonder! fwif so jon hintva! or, fwif hintva so!
(hintva=wonder, marvel)
181. He was such an expert. fwid gnen so.
(gnen=expert)
182. I saw no one. bo-n ea zhun widzho opkan. or, bo-n ea kan zhun widzho.
183. May Yahweh answer you in the day of trouble.
frendu yahveh kra isa to strovur d'yun.
(frendu=answer; strovur=trouble)
184. As king, I proclaim a day of remembrance. o horiz, bo werzho jon mnrur d'yun.
(horiz=monarch, king, queen; mnrur=memory, remembrance)
185. I love animals as much as you (do). bo prigarzho n'vozn kisga ka.
(n'vo=animal; kisga=as much as)
186. I love animals as much as (I love) you. bo prigarzho n'vozn kisga kra.
187. I love animals as much as you (do), even as much as (I love) you!
bo prigarzho n'vozn kisga ka, sela kisga kra!
(sela=even)
188. Please excuse (forgive) me from this meeting; I am going through great (big) difficulties just now.
telbel mahaf bro id sif ksur; bo biyelluzha kom strovurzn ste mekris oshur.
(telbel=please; ksur=meeting; biyellu=to experience, go through, deal with [note: this verb takes the preposition kom]; mekris=big; oshur=now, right now)
189. Please don't wink at me like that. telbel, ban kwekh bro k'mar taf.
(kwekh-wink; taf=that)
190. I got a book from my parents. bo zhun geznzho jon vigov id slu alsenzn.
(gezn=get, receive; vigov=book; alsen=parent)
191. We fear it is an absolute necessity that you be here, even if you think you can't.
po dweyurzhi bwif chish iteste bwi ka shir, sela ba'y' ka mnrazhi ka-n ea m'gla.
(chish=mandatory; obligatory)
192. The time has come to go. to tur ateanzhu ste g'hal.
Note: the triple-form verb atean requires no aspectual suffix, but the suffix -zhu is used here to accentuate the "perfect" connotation (has come).
193. He is such a loving person, he could never be 'fear-able' (intimidating).
di jon nikh ste prigarlaf so, di-n ea zesh m'gla ste bwi dweyuragam.
194. There were some kind of nuts strewn all over the place.
ye zhun knovzn shtiz fat sprevtu salorr to shtam.
(knov=nut; sprev=strew [+ suffix -tu]; shtam=place)
195. I can't finish this now, but I'll have my secretary finish it.
bo-n ea m'gla ste towu sif oshur, gela zwe egzho slu fagnov ste towu fre.
(towu=finish; eg=tell, incite, have [somebody do smth']; fagnov=secretary)
196. Tell me here and now who you are.
dol bro shir zhef oshur kan bwik. or, dol bro shir zhef oshur kan ka.
197. I am grateful to you. bo vikhla kra.
(vikhla=to be grateful)
198. Take all your things, children; we must go now.
nem salorr slu rudurzn, fidtazn; chish pro ste g'hal oshur.
(nem=take)
199. Oh, my choice, desirable little piggy.
a, blu sushen ste m'yukis japfosek tsamusek.
(u=pig; -shen=diminutive suffix; m'yukis=little; japfosek=choice [adj.]; tsamusek=desirable)
200. There is one thing I ask (request) of (from) the Lord.
ye bus rudur bo haszho id to kiren.
(bus=one; has=request; kiren=lord)
Sunday, February 18, 2018
Friday, February 16, 2018
Sentences (149-175)
149. All humanity's sins were on Jesus on the cross.
salorr khizneyotiksa bwirkhzn fwiv ina yeshwa ina to kaliz.
(khizneyoti=humanity; bwirkh=sin; kaliz=cross)
150. By dying, Jesus defeated evil. par tsev, yeshwa zhun patizho duwiz.
(par=by; tsev=die, dying; pati=defeat; duwiz=evil)
151. I see a bear in your future. bo widzho jon wirkto isa klu wirdo.
(wid=see; wirkto=bear; wirdo=future)
152. I was thinking about you and remembered the day we went to the lake.
bo shan mnrazhi da kra zhef zhun mnrazho to d'yun po elel ites to laku.
(mnra=think [with aspectual suffix -zhi], remember [with aspectual suffix -zho]; d'yun=day; laku=lake)
153. He was moving and talking and drinking. di shan hagzhi zhef vazhi zhef payozhi.
154. Since you came, all is good. deg ka atean, salorr bel.
(deg=since [with reference to time]; atean=came; bel=good)
155. Since you came, we can begin. o ka atean, po m'gla ste mahiro.
(o=since [with reference to logical premise]; m'gla=to be able, can; mahiro=begin)
156. As the head of this family (as this family's head), I will make the decisions.
o sif komnrikksa kef, bo agu tots chukhnontazn.
(komnrik=family; chukhnonta=decision)
157. She forgave him (for) a lot. di zhun mahafzho manga dri.
(mahaf=forgive; manga=much [quantity])
158. She very much (i.e., strongly, deeply) forgave him. di zhun mahafzho dri menk.
(menk=much, very much [qualitatively])
159. Where are they? They are away? fur ti? bwit vekh.
(fur=where; vekh=away)
160. Have (some) humanity! fal khizneyoti!
161. We are loved by God. bwip prigartu ipra edwo.
(prigartu=loved; ipra=by [indicating agent])
162. I have communicated to him you don't want to travel with him.
bo zhun gwelzhu dri ka-n ea votelzhi ste hal komdri.
(gwel=communicate, convey [information]; votel=want; hal=travel; komdri=with him/her)
163. I insist that you take the gold. bo ruderzhi iteste hapish ka to avra.
(ruder=insist, emphasize; hapish=take; avra=gold)
Note: the grammatical formulation iteste+verb+noun/pronoun serves as the subjunctive in Vayoti. In this construction the verb takes no suffixes.
164. I want to emphasize (that) each person is free to come or go.
bo votelzhi ste ruder, gasht nikh bwid serkis ste gweam op g'hal.
(serkis=free; gweam=come; g'hal=go)
165. He's the kind of person you'd like to know. bwid to nikh shtiz ka zesh votelzhi ste gno.
(shtiz=kind)
166. Joseph of Arimathea took the body of Jesus. yosef id r'matazn zhun hapishzho yeshwaksa tomen.
(id=from; tomen=body)
167. I saw him walking towards me. bo zhun widzho dri igge pent ites bro.
(igge=indicates "at/in the process of" relative to a verb. i.e., "I saw him 'at walking' towards me; pent=walk)
168. Was it you I heard speaking with the children? prechi fwif kra bo zhun klisnezho igge va kom tots fidtazn?
(klisne=speak)
169. You promised me you would never give a thing to the monarch without my consent.
ka zhun bokhzhi bro ka-n ea k'fen zesh dozho rudur ites to horiz ban blu ow'kva.
(bokh=promise; rudur=thing; horiz=monarch; ow'kva=consent)
170. The bear is dancing. to wirkto fodisuzhi. (fodisu=dance)
171. Look! It's the dancing bear! uvli! bwif to wirkto ste fodisuzhi!
(Note: ste, placed before a verb in the indicative, turns that verb into an adjectival participle)
172. It is the bear that is dancing. bwif to wirkto gu fodisuzhi.
(gu=that, relative to the grammatical subject)
173. Do you see the bear dancing? prech ka widzho to wirkto igge fodisu?
(prech=alternate form of prechi)
174. I bought it for myself. bo zhun kafnazho fre fi pswen.
(kafna=buy; fi=for; pswen=self)
175. We fearfully entered the cold murky water.
po zhun gridzhi dweyursek itsa to widur ste gilkis merchenlaf.
(dweyursek=fearful[ly]; itsa=into; widur=water; gilkis=cold; merchenlaf=murky)
Note: in Vayoti, adjectives come after the nouns they modify, preceded by ste, and no matter how many adjectives are applied to a single noun, the word "and" is not interposed. Thus, a Vayoti phrase could read like "the house [ste] big brown old dilapidated scary". Note also that in Vayoti modifiers function as either adjectives or adverbs; when they function as adverbs they follow the verb, adjective or other adverb they modify without any intervening ste.
salorr khizneyotiksa bwirkhzn fwiv ina yeshwa ina to kaliz.
(khizneyoti=humanity; bwirkh=sin; kaliz=cross)
150. By dying, Jesus defeated evil. par tsev, yeshwa zhun patizho duwiz.
(par=by; tsev=die, dying; pati=defeat; duwiz=evil)
151. I see a bear in your future. bo widzho jon wirkto isa klu wirdo.
(wid=see; wirkto=bear; wirdo=future)
152. I was thinking about you and remembered the day we went to the lake.
bo shan mnrazhi da kra zhef zhun mnrazho to d'yun po elel ites to laku.
(mnra=think [with aspectual suffix -zhi], remember [with aspectual suffix -zho]; d'yun=day; laku=lake)
153. He was moving and talking and drinking. di shan hagzhi zhef vazhi zhef payozhi.
154. Since you came, all is good. deg ka atean, salorr bel.
(deg=since [with reference to time]; atean=came; bel=good)
155. Since you came, we can begin. o ka atean, po m'gla ste mahiro.
(o=since [with reference to logical premise]; m'gla=to be able, can; mahiro=begin)
156. As the head of this family (as this family's head), I will make the decisions.
o sif komnrikksa kef, bo agu tots chukhnontazn.
(komnrik=family; chukhnonta=decision)
157. She forgave him (for) a lot. di zhun mahafzho manga dri.
(mahaf=forgive; manga=much [quantity])
158. She very much (i.e., strongly, deeply) forgave him. di zhun mahafzho dri menk.
(menk=much, very much [qualitatively])
159. Where are they? They are away? fur ti? bwit vekh.
(fur=where; vekh=away)
160. Have (some) humanity! fal khizneyoti!
161. We are loved by God. bwip prigartu ipra edwo.
(prigartu=loved; ipra=by [indicating agent])
162. I have communicated to him you don't want to travel with him.
bo zhun gwelzhu dri ka-n ea votelzhi ste hal komdri.
(gwel=communicate, convey [information]; votel=want; hal=travel; komdri=with him/her)
163. I insist that you take the gold. bo ruderzhi iteste hapish ka to avra.
(ruder=insist, emphasize; hapish=take; avra=gold)
Note: the grammatical formulation iteste+verb+noun/pronoun serves as the subjunctive in Vayoti. In this construction the verb takes no suffixes.
164. I want to emphasize (that) each person is free to come or go.
bo votelzhi ste ruder, gasht nikh bwid serkis ste gweam op g'hal.
(serkis=free; gweam=come; g'hal=go)
165. He's the kind of person you'd like to know. bwid to nikh shtiz ka zesh votelzhi ste gno.
(shtiz=kind)
166. Joseph of Arimathea took the body of Jesus. yosef id r'matazn zhun hapishzho yeshwaksa tomen.
(id=from; tomen=body)
167. I saw him walking towards me. bo zhun widzho dri igge pent ites bro.
(igge=indicates "at/in the process of" relative to a verb. i.e., "I saw him 'at walking' towards me; pent=walk)
168. Was it you I heard speaking with the children? prechi fwif kra bo zhun klisnezho igge va kom tots fidtazn?
(klisne=speak)
169. You promised me you would never give a thing to the monarch without my consent.
ka zhun bokhzhi bro ka-n ea k'fen zesh dozho rudur ites to horiz ban blu ow'kva.
(bokh=promise; rudur=thing; horiz=monarch; ow'kva=consent)
170. The bear is dancing. to wirkto fodisuzhi. (fodisu=dance)
171. Look! It's the dancing bear! uvli! bwif to wirkto ste fodisuzhi!
(Note: ste, placed before a verb in the indicative, turns that verb into an adjectival participle)
172. It is the bear that is dancing. bwif to wirkto gu fodisuzhi.
(gu=that, relative to the grammatical subject)
173. Do you see the bear dancing? prech ka widzho to wirkto igge fodisu?
(prech=alternate form of prechi)
174. I bought it for myself. bo zhun kafnazho fre fi pswen.
(kafna=buy; fi=for; pswen=self)
175. We fearfully entered the cold murky water.
po zhun gridzhi dweyursek itsa to widur ste gilkis merchenlaf.
(dweyursek=fearful[ly]; itsa=into; widur=water; gilkis=cold; merchenlaf=murky)
Note: in Vayoti, adjectives come after the nouns they modify, preceded by ste, and no matter how many adjectives are applied to a single noun, the word "and" is not interposed. Thus, a Vayoti phrase could read like "the house [ste] big brown old dilapidated scary". Note also that in Vayoti modifiers function as either adjectives or adverbs; when they function as adverbs they follow the verb, adjective or other adverb they modify without any intervening ste.
Thursday, February 15, 2018
Sentences (123-148)
123. One grandmother gave me a cookie and the other gave me another.
bus snemitra zhun dozho jon bachk'yu bro zhef to alna zhun dozho bro plibus.
(snemitra=grandmother; bachk'yu=cookie; alna=other [a different one]; plibus=another [an additional one])
124. Please give me a very little bit of the milk.
do bro, telbel, chu melk kweshnshn.
125. We are the forgiven ones.
bwip tots mahaftunzn.
126. He takes nothing.
di-n ea fat hapishzho.
127. Whenever he comes, tell me.
opk'fen di tarr, dol bro. (tarr=will come)
128. What did you take? fat ka zhun nemzho?
129. I didn't take anything. bo-n ea zhun nemzho opfat. or, bo-n ea fat zhun nemzho.
130. A thinking man thinks! jon vretra ste mnrazhi, mnrazhi.
(Note: the particle ste turns the indicative verb "thinks" into an adjective. If the pronoun gu had been used instead of ste, then the sentence would mean "A man that thinks, thinks.")
131. We will hope and we will hope. NOTE: this Vayoti proverb utilizes the time and aspect determiners in such a way as to express a more complicated meaning than suggested by this flat English translation. Further explanation follows the Vayoti saying:
po swi pidokhzhi zhef po zwe pidokhzhu.
The future continuous swi and the intransitive suffix -zhi serve to convey something like "Ww will go on hoping", while the future indefinite zwe and the perfective suffix -zhu serve to convey something like "we will hope conclusively, right up to its materialization." Thus, the sense of the Vayoti proverb is that we will not stop hoping until our hope has been fully justified in its realization.
132. My mother bore me (gave me birth), and I was born. NOTE: Again this is a Vayoti saying which, in flat translation, strikes the English-speaker as absurdly obvious and innocuous. But the key to the real meaning lies in the two different verbs that English translates as "give birth" and "be born". The difference in connotation is the essence of this Vayoti saying.
blu mitra zhun s'yuzho bro zhef bo zhun daveluzhi.
The verb s'yu denotes the mere physical even of giving birth. The verb davelu, however, denotes a person's entering upon his/her own world-experience. The gist of the Vayoti saying is that, while your mother performed the vital task of giving birth, you took up at the same time the transcendent task of living a life of your own.
133. Why did he tell you to do that? f'yu di zhun egzho kra ste magu taf?
134. Summon every person in the town to come here. sprek gasht nikh isa to g'yuno ste gweam shir.
(gasht=every; nikh=person; g'yuno=town; gweam=come; shir=here)
135. I never had food like this. bo-n ea k'fen im p'dad k'mar sif.
136. Do you know when they will arrive? prechi ka gnozhi k'fen ti zwe low'tzhi?
(prechi=interrogative particle; low't=arrive--note that low't sounds something like lo-wut, so that low'tzhi is three syllables: lo-wut-zhi)
137. Do you know when they are to arrive? prechi ka gnozhi k'fen ti ste low't?
138. Tell me, are you coming in or going out? dol bro, ka gridzhi op kidzhi?
139. I would very much like you to accompany me from the boat to the house.
bo zesh votelzhi menk kra ste khi bro id to lanle ites to dam.
(votel=want; menk=very, very much; khi=accompany; lanle=boat; dam=house)
140. Don't tell me. Show me! ban dol bro. dweks bro!
141. Is that you who is coughing? taf ka gu ksalzhi? or, bwif ka gu ksalzhi?
(taf=that; ksal=cough)
142. If no one will do it, I will. ba'y' opkan ea agu fre, bo zwe. or, ba'y' opkan ea agu fre, bo agu.
Note that the verb "to do" in Vayoti is one of the special class, including "go, come, have, be" that does not require time determinants, inasmuch as there is a special form of each of these verbs vis-a-vis each tense. Thus bo agu is already "I will do", independent of any utilization of zwe or swi. But note that, should the speaker opt not to repeat agu in the second half of the sentence, he may replace it with zwe, much as in English we use the helping verb by itself ("I will"). Thus, the second half of the sentence may be formulated either as bo zwe or bo agu.
Notice that in freely spoken Vayoti a phrase like ba'y' opkan ea agu will effectively sound as ba'yopkaneagu, the a being stretched to indicate the merging of ea and agu.
143. Drink it all! payo fre salorr.
144. God has promised us life if we have faith in Christ.
edwo zhun bokhzhu pro gwevanta ba'y' po fal bedanta isa khristu.
(bokh=promise)
145. Ruth said to her husband's mother, "Don't forbid me to go with you to your home!"
rut zhun spel ites slu vadaksa mitra gdi, ban but bro ste g'hal komkra ites klu tumft!
(vada=husband; ban=without, or "don't"; but=forbid; komkra=with-you; klu=your; tumft=home)
146. It is Jesus Christ who founded the Church. bwif yeshwa khristu gu zhun butszho to kirrlukt.
(buts=to found; kirrlukt=Church, church)
Note the seeming disagreement between the form of the verb "be", with the "f" ending that indicates an inanimate subject, and the person to whom the verb points. Here the third-person inanimate form of bwi is proper because the connotation is not "He is Jesus Christ" but rather "It is Jesus Christ who...".
147. Jesus said, "Do not be judged, lest ye be judged."
yeshwa zhun spelzhi gdi, ban ariz itspanste bwi ka ariztu
(ariz=judge)
148. Word about Jesus went through all the countryside.
malva da yeshwa elel itar salorr to ka'y'ta.
(malva=word; elel=went; itar=throughout; ka'y'ta=countryside)
bus snemitra zhun dozho jon bachk'yu bro zhef to alna zhun dozho bro plibus.
(snemitra=grandmother; bachk'yu=cookie; alna=other [a different one]; plibus=another [an additional one])
124. Please give me a very little bit of the milk.
do bro, telbel, chu melk kweshnshn.
125. We are the forgiven ones.
bwip tots mahaftunzn.
126. He takes nothing.
di-n ea fat hapishzho.
127. Whenever he comes, tell me.
opk'fen di tarr, dol bro. (tarr=will come)
128. What did you take? fat ka zhun nemzho?
129. I didn't take anything. bo-n ea zhun nemzho opfat. or, bo-n ea fat zhun nemzho.
130. A thinking man thinks! jon vretra ste mnrazhi, mnrazhi.
(Note: the particle ste turns the indicative verb "thinks" into an adjective. If the pronoun gu had been used instead of ste, then the sentence would mean "A man that thinks, thinks.")
131. We will hope and we will hope. NOTE: this Vayoti proverb utilizes the time and aspect determiners in such a way as to express a more complicated meaning than suggested by this flat English translation. Further explanation follows the Vayoti saying:
po swi pidokhzhi zhef po zwe pidokhzhu.
The future continuous swi and the intransitive suffix -zhi serve to convey something like "Ww will go on hoping", while the future indefinite zwe and the perfective suffix -zhu serve to convey something like "we will hope conclusively, right up to its materialization." Thus, the sense of the Vayoti proverb is that we will not stop hoping until our hope has been fully justified in its realization.
132. My mother bore me (gave me birth), and I was born. NOTE: Again this is a Vayoti saying which, in flat translation, strikes the English-speaker as absurdly obvious and innocuous. But the key to the real meaning lies in the two different verbs that English translates as "give birth" and "be born". The difference in connotation is the essence of this Vayoti saying.
blu mitra zhun s'yuzho bro zhef bo zhun daveluzhi.
The verb s'yu denotes the mere physical even of giving birth. The verb davelu, however, denotes a person's entering upon his/her own world-experience. The gist of the Vayoti saying is that, while your mother performed the vital task of giving birth, you took up at the same time the transcendent task of living a life of your own.
133. Why did he tell you to do that? f'yu di zhun egzho kra ste magu taf?
134. Summon every person in the town to come here. sprek gasht nikh isa to g'yuno ste gweam shir.
(gasht=every; nikh=person; g'yuno=town; gweam=come; shir=here)
135. I never had food like this. bo-n ea k'fen im p'dad k'mar sif.
136. Do you know when they will arrive? prechi ka gnozhi k'fen ti zwe low'tzhi?
(prechi=interrogative particle; low't=arrive--note that low't sounds something like lo-wut, so that low'tzhi is three syllables: lo-wut-zhi)
137. Do you know when they are to arrive? prechi ka gnozhi k'fen ti ste low't?
138. Tell me, are you coming in or going out? dol bro, ka gridzhi op kidzhi?
139. I would very much like you to accompany me from the boat to the house.
bo zesh votelzhi menk kra ste khi bro id to lanle ites to dam.
(votel=want; menk=very, very much; khi=accompany; lanle=boat; dam=house)
140. Don't tell me. Show me! ban dol bro. dweks bro!
141. Is that you who is coughing? taf ka gu ksalzhi? or, bwif ka gu ksalzhi?
(taf=that; ksal=cough)
142. If no one will do it, I will. ba'y' opkan ea agu fre, bo zwe. or, ba'y' opkan ea agu fre, bo agu.
Note that the verb "to do" in Vayoti is one of the special class, including "go, come, have, be" that does not require time determinants, inasmuch as there is a special form of each of these verbs vis-a-vis each tense. Thus bo agu is already "I will do", independent of any utilization of zwe or swi. But note that, should the speaker opt not to repeat agu in the second half of the sentence, he may replace it with zwe, much as in English we use the helping verb by itself ("I will"). Thus, the second half of the sentence may be formulated either as bo zwe or bo agu.
Notice that in freely spoken Vayoti a phrase like ba'y' opkan ea agu will effectively sound as ba'yopkaneagu, the a being stretched to indicate the merging of ea and agu.
143. Drink it all! payo fre salorr.
144. God has promised us life if we have faith in Christ.
edwo zhun bokhzhu pro gwevanta ba'y' po fal bedanta isa khristu.
(bokh=promise)
145. Ruth said to her husband's mother, "Don't forbid me to go with you to your home!"
rut zhun spel ites slu vadaksa mitra gdi, ban but bro ste g'hal komkra ites klu tumft!
(vada=husband; ban=without, or "don't"; but=forbid; komkra=with-you; klu=your; tumft=home)
146. It is Jesus Christ who founded the Church. bwif yeshwa khristu gu zhun butszho to kirrlukt.
(buts=to found; kirrlukt=Church, church)
Note the seeming disagreement between the form of the verb "be", with the "f" ending that indicates an inanimate subject, and the person to whom the verb points. Here the third-person inanimate form of bwi is proper because the connotation is not "He is Jesus Christ" but rather "It is Jesus Christ who...".
147. Jesus said, "Do not be judged, lest ye be judged."
yeshwa zhun spelzhi gdi, ban ariz itspanste bwi ka ariztu
(ariz=judge)
148. Word about Jesus went through all the countryside.
malva da yeshwa elel itar salorr to ka'y'ta.
(malva=word; elel=went; itar=throughout; ka'y'ta=countryside)
Sentences (96-122)
96. Why have you distanced yourself from me?
f'yu ka zhun vekherzha id bro? ("id" can be alternatively "ida")
97. the waves and tides of time
tots turksa valkazn zhef t'venamzn (tide=t'venam; wave=valka; time=tur; -ksa=poss.suffix)
98. The ancient emperors had great force and fundamental power.
tots s'doksrizzn ste yavkris shan e'w'la ival virkam ste barkis zhef horval ste vudkis.
(e'w'la=to intrinsically possess, be endowed with--this verb takes the preposition ival)
99. There are people who show resistance to change.
ye khizne gu dwekzho gizhdava ik pahiva.
100. I am so sorry you won't be able to drop in on me tomorrow.
bo dukhala so ka-n ea zwe m'gla ste vishab bro merad'yun.
101. I have come so that they [might] have life, and have it abundantly.
bo ateanzhu iteste fal ti gwevanta zhef fal fre ashchentisek.
102. For God so loved the world, He gave His only-begotten Son, so that anybody that believes in Him would never perish but have eternal life.
gar edwo zhun prigarzho so to sa'y'dov, di zhun dozho slu bus davelutu shuntra, iteste opkan gu beda isa dri-n ea kfen zesh b'vezzhi gela kapo gwevanta ste ayu.
103. The spirits of the ancient elves live in the flowers of the beech trees.
tots evlenznksa ste yavkris feyalzn gwev isa tots il'n'durznksa lofurzn.
104. An alternative rendering of the phrase "the spirits of the ancient elves", using gu:
tots feyalzn gu tots evlenznksa ste yavkris\
105. Such shapes [as these] are characteristic of ghosts.
siftsso dwelizn ala ik murzn.
106. contrast "those children" with "such children as that"
tants fidtazn
tantsso fidtazn
107. contrast "these children" with "such children as these"
sints fidtazn
sintsso fidtazn
108. Such animals [as these] are typical of this place.
sintsso n'vozzn ala ik sif shtam.
109. Due to his lack of maturity, all of his knowledge has not become wisdom.
dlu atalyoti manksam-n'gar, salorr dlu gnova-n ea zhun wirtla edur.
(atalyoti=maturity; manksam=lack; n'gar=because of, on account of; gnova-knowledge; wirtla=become; edur=wisdom; note that "lack of maturity" in Vayoti is a "maturity lack," and the concept "due to his lack of maturity" is formulated in Vayoti as "his maturity lack due-to")
110. I am lacking enough strength to climb higher.
zuwal satiz manksala bro iteste erefo pliz harsek.
(zuwal=strength; satiz=enough; manksala=to lack [impers.]; erefo=climb; pliz=more; harsek=high)
111. Jesus Christ is the whole world's Savior.
yeshwa khristu bwi salorr to sa'y'dovksa bisnur.
112. Without Christ's salvation, we would all be without hope.
ban khristuksa bisva, pazhwe salorr ban pidokhva.
113. I don't enjoy her cooking but tolerate it.
bo-n ea brogzho dlu cherurva gela brukzho fre.
114. What our weakness couldn't do, Christ's strength did for us all.
fat plu uslag-n ea zhun m'gla ste magu, khristuksa zuwal danu fi pro salorr.
115. All the flowers are in full bloom.
salorr tots lofurzn bwit isa taltse ste plerkis.
116. I sealed the door intentionally so as to not allow the animals to enter.
bo zhun reg'yazho emnritskis to duravam itspanste yasuve tots n'vozzn ste grid.
(reg'ya=seal; emnritskis=intentionally; duravam=door; itspanste=so as not to; yasuve=allow; grid=enter)
117. The explorer said, "I have a lust for exploration!"
to sodtiz zhun spelzhi gdi bo fal jon druvam ik sodva!
(sodtiz=explorer; spel=say; gdi=direct speech marker; druvam=lust; ik=concerning; with respect to; sodva-exploration)
118. Having subdued all the then-known world, Alexander the Great said, "Now what?"
zhdupati salorr to tafur-gnotu sa'y'dov, aleksandros to barkis zhun spelzhi gdi, fat odnur?
119. This wine's flavor has an exquisite sophistication that surpasses description.
sif meffenksa gus'yur fal jon deskiz ste ardrikris gu sarrazzho widalva.
(meffen=wine; gus'yur=taste, flavor; deskiz=sophistication; ardrikris=exquisite; sarraz=surpass; widalva=description)
120. In spite of the fact that he is a very methodical man, there are methodological weaknesses in his work.
ifik di bwi jon vretra ste rekhodlaf menk, ye uslagzn ste rekhodsek isa dlu dromanta.
(ifik=despite, in spite of, despite the fact that; vretra=man; rekhodlaf=methodical; rekhodsek=methodological; dromanta=work)
121. No matter how far we must go, we will continue to go forward.
mi hule kits parru chish pro ste g'hal, po swi tinati ste g'hal agiv.
(mi hule=no matter; parru=far; chish=must [impers.]; tinati=continue; agiv=forward)
122. And if we don't reach our goal, at least we will precede others who will be able to surpass us.
zhef ba'y' po-n ea zwe nokekozho plu antna, ipra m'yen po zwe sherverzho alnazn gu zwe m'gla ste sarraz pro.
(ba'y'=if; nokeko=reach; antna=goal; ipra m'yen=at least, in any case; sherver=precede; alnazn=others)
f'yu ka zhun vekherzha id bro? ("id" can be alternatively "ida")
97. the waves and tides of time
tots turksa valkazn zhef t'venamzn (tide=t'venam; wave=valka; time=tur; -ksa=poss.suffix)
98. The ancient emperors had great force and fundamental power.
tots s'doksrizzn ste yavkris shan e'w'la ival virkam ste barkis zhef horval ste vudkis.
(e'w'la=to intrinsically possess, be endowed with--this verb takes the preposition ival)
99. There are people who show resistance to change.
ye khizne gu dwekzho gizhdava ik pahiva.
100. I am so sorry you won't be able to drop in on me tomorrow.
bo dukhala so ka-n ea zwe m'gla ste vishab bro merad'yun.
101. I have come so that they [might] have life, and have it abundantly.
bo ateanzhu iteste fal ti gwevanta zhef fal fre ashchentisek.
102. For God so loved the world, He gave His only-begotten Son, so that anybody that believes in Him would never perish but have eternal life.
gar edwo zhun prigarzho so to sa'y'dov, di zhun dozho slu bus davelutu shuntra, iteste opkan gu beda isa dri-n ea kfen zesh b'vezzhi gela kapo gwevanta ste ayu.
103. The spirits of the ancient elves live in the flowers of the beech trees.
tots evlenznksa ste yavkris feyalzn gwev isa tots il'n'durznksa lofurzn.
104. An alternative rendering of the phrase "the spirits of the ancient elves", using gu:
tots feyalzn gu tots evlenznksa ste yavkris\
105. Such shapes [as these] are characteristic of ghosts.
siftsso dwelizn ala ik murzn.
106. contrast "those children" with "such children as that"
tants fidtazn
tantsso fidtazn
107. contrast "these children" with "such children as these"
sints fidtazn
sintsso fidtazn
108. Such animals [as these] are typical of this place.
sintsso n'vozzn ala ik sif shtam.
109. Due to his lack of maturity, all of his knowledge has not become wisdom.
dlu atalyoti manksam-n'gar, salorr dlu gnova-n ea zhun wirtla edur.
(atalyoti=maturity; manksam=lack; n'gar=because of, on account of; gnova-knowledge; wirtla=become; edur=wisdom; note that "lack of maturity" in Vayoti is a "maturity lack," and the concept "due to his lack of maturity" is formulated in Vayoti as "his maturity lack due-to")
110. I am lacking enough strength to climb higher.
zuwal satiz manksala bro iteste erefo pliz harsek.
(zuwal=strength; satiz=enough; manksala=to lack [impers.]; erefo=climb; pliz=more; harsek=high)
111. Jesus Christ is the whole world's Savior.
yeshwa khristu bwi salorr to sa'y'dovksa bisnur.
112. Without Christ's salvation, we would all be without hope.
ban khristuksa bisva, pazhwe salorr ban pidokhva.
113. I don't enjoy her cooking but tolerate it.
bo-n ea brogzho dlu cherurva gela brukzho fre.
114. What our weakness couldn't do, Christ's strength did for us all.
fat plu uslag-n ea zhun m'gla ste magu, khristuksa zuwal danu fi pro salorr.
115. All the flowers are in full bloom.
salorr tots lofurzn bwit isa taltse ste plerkis.
116. I sealed the door intentionally so as to not allow the animals to enter.
bo zhun reg'yazho emnritskis to duravam itspanste yasuve tots n'vozzn ste grid.
(reg'ya=seal; emnritskis=intentionally; duravam=door; itspanste=so as not to; yasuve=allow; grid=enter)
117. The explorer said, "I have a lust for exploration!"
to sodtiz zhun spelzhi gdi bo fal jon druvam ik sodva!
(sodtiz=explorer; spel=say; gdi=direct speech marker; druvam=lust; ik=concerning; with respect to; sodva-exploration)
118. Having subdued all the then-known world, Alexander the Great said, "Now what?"
zhdupati salorr to tafur-gnotu sa'y'dov, aleksandros to barkis zhun spelzhi gdi, fat odnur?
119. This wine's flavor has an exquisite sophistication that surpasses description.
sif meffenksa gus'yur fal jon deskiz ste ardrikris gu sarrazzho widalva.
(meffen=wine; gus'yur=taste, flavor; deskiz=sophistication; ardrikris=exquisite; sarraz=surpass; widalva=description)
120. In spite of the fact that he is a very methodical man, there are methodological weaknesses in his work.
ifik di bwi jon vretra ste rekhodlaf menk, ye uslagzn ste rekhodsek isa dlu dromanta.
(ifik=despite, in spite of, despite the fact that; vretra=man; rekhodlaf=methodical; rekhodsek=methodological; dromanta=work)
121. No matter how far we must go, we will continue to go forward.
mi hule kits parru chish pro ste g'hal, po swi tinati ste g'hal agiv.
(mi hule=no matter; parru=far; chish=must [impers.]; tinati=continue; agiv=forward)
122. And if we don't reach our goal, at least we will precede others who will be able to surpass us.
zhef ba'y' po-n ea zwe nokekozho plu antna, ipra m'yen po zwe sherverzho alnazn gu zwe m'gla ste sarraz pro.
(ba'y'=if; nokeko=reach; antna=goal; ipra m'yen=at least, in any case; sherver=precede; alnazn=others)
Monday, December 18, 2017
Sentences (89-95)
89. He is my opponent but he is not my enemy.
bwid blu nami gela-n ea bwid blu vargov.
90. We heard them speak(ing) all day.
po zhun klisnezho tri ste va salorr d'yun.
[Note; the construction ste+verb, which is essentially the infinitive, serves to express "-ing" in sentences like "I see him running", "We watched him working", "John caught Joe napping."]
91. She commanded us to come and we have come.
di zhun sewirzho pro ste gweam, zhef po ateanzhu.
[Notes: the verb "to come" is one of the very few Vayoti verbs that has distinct root forms for the past, present and future tenses. Among the other such verbs are "to have" and "to go". In the case of these very unusual verbs, the present tense serves as both present tense form and infinitive form. Thus, in this sentences, both gweam and atean are the verb "come", the former being present tense and also, in this sentence particularly, in conjunction with ste, the infinitive "to come"; the latter, atean is the past tense (came). Verbs of this class do not requires the aspectual suffix, though they may be added, as -zhu was added here, for emphasis--which is why I italicized "have" in the English translation. In fact, even though each distinct form of the verbs in this class already indicates tense, the time determinatives may also be added for emphasis, just like the aspectual suffixes. Number 92 further illustrates this with the future tense form of gweam, which is tarr.]
92.
bo tarr = I will come
bo zwe tarr = I will come
bo zwe tarrzhu = I will surely come (there is no doubt this will be accomplished)
93. When the night comes, it will be dark.
sur to nesht tarr, fasre drokis.
[Remember: modifiers following nouns, in the capacity of attributive adjectives ("the brown house"), require ste (the house ste brown), but the same words functioning as either predicate adjectives (after "be"--the house is brown) or adverbs, do not require the particle ste.Note also that in Vayoti the proper formulation is, literally, not "When the night comes..." but "When the night will come...."]
94. I will (always, continually) cherish this hymn.
bo swi werkav isa sif smen.
[Remember that the aspectual suffix disappears before a preposition; thus there is no -zho attached to werkav. This particular verb, followed by isa, means "to cherish, prize", but followed by the preposition kom it means"to award, confer". The future continuous time determiner swi conveys that the speaker will not stop cherishing the hymn.]
95. Genesis 1:1-5
In the beginning God made the heavens and the earth.
isa to kefur edwo zhun kwerrzho tots rimzn zhef to hizhamen.
Now, the earth was without form and empty,
avor, to hizhamen fwi ban dweli zhef venkis.
darkness was above the deep's surface,
droyoti fwi supri to dovksa litsur, [dov=darkness; -ksa=possessive ending]
and God's Spirit was hovering over the water.
zhef edwoksa feyal shan gelom supri to widur.
And God said,
zhef edwo zhun spelzhi gdi, [gdi=a particle introducing direct speech]
Let there be light, and there was light.
hiye fa'y'lis, zhef ye zhun fa'y'lis.
God saw the light was good,
edwo zhun widzhi to fa'y'lis fwi bel, [Notice that where "that" may be omitted in English "God saw (that) the light was good", in Vayoti there is actually no other way to formulate this phrase; there is no equivalent "that" in Vayoti--rather you can only say, "God saw the light was good."]
and He separated the light from the darkness.
zhef di zhun duwomzho to fa'y'lis id to droyoti.
God called the light day, and the darkness He called night.
edwo zhun spelzho to fa'y'lis d'yun zhef to droyoti di zhun spelzho nesht.
And there was evening and there was morning--one day.
zhef ye zhun dov'yun, zhef ye zhun fajun--bus d'yun.
bwid blu nami gela-n ea bwid blu vargov.
90. We heard them speak(ing) all day.
po zhun klisnezho tri ste va salorr d'yun.
[Note; the construction ste+verb, which is essentially the infinitive, serves to express "-ing" in sentences like "I see him running", "We watched him working", "John caught Joe napping."]
91. She commanded us to come and we have come.
di zhun sewirzho pro ste gweam, zhef po ateanzhu.
[Notes: the verb "to come" is one of the very few Vayoti verbs that has distinct root forms for the past, present and future tenses. Among the other such verbs are "to have" and "to go". In the case of these very unusual verbs, the present tense serves as both present tense form and infinitive form. Thus, in this sentences, both gweam and atean are the verb "come", the former being present tense and also, in this sentence particularly, in conjunction with ste, the infinitive "to come"; the latter, atean is the past tense (came). Verbs of this class do not requires the aspectual suffix, though they may be added, as -zhu was added here, for emphasis--which is why I italicized "have" in the English translation. In fact, even though each distinct form of the verbs in this class already indicates tense, the time determinatives may also be added for emphasis, just like the aspectual suffixes. Number 92 further illustrates this with the future tense form of gweam, which is tarr.]
92.
bo tarr = I will come
bo zwe tarr = I will come
bo zwe tarrzhu = I will surely come (there is no doubt this will be accomplished)
93. When the night comes, it will be dark.
sur to nesht tarr, fasre drokis.
[Remember: modifiers following nouns, in the capacity of attributive adjectives ("the brown house"), require ste (the house ste brown), but the same words functioning as either predicate adjectives (after "be"--the house is brown) or adverbs, do not require the particle ste.Note also that in Vayoti the proper formulation is, literally, not "When the night comes..." but "When the night will come...."]
94. I will (always, continually) cherish this hymn.
bo swi werkav isa sif smen.
[Remember that the aspectual suffix disappears before a preposition; thus there is no -zho attached to werkav. This particular verb, followed by isa, means "to cherish, prize", but followed by the preposition kom it means"to award, confer". The future continuous time determiner swi conveys that the speaker will not stop cherishing the hymn.]
95. Genesis 1:1-5
In the beginning God made the heavens and the earth.
isa to kefur edwo zhun kwerrzho tots rimzn zhef to hizhamen.
Now, the earth was without form and empty,
avor, to hizhamen fwi ban dweli zhef venkis.
darkness was above the deep's surface,
droyoti fwi supri to dovksa litsur, [dov=darkness; -ksa=possessive ending]
and God's Spirit was hovering over the water.
zhef edwoksa feyal shan gelom supri to widur.
And God said,
zhef edwo zhun spelzhi gdi, [gdi=a particle introducing direct speech]
Let there be light, and there was light.
hiye fa'y'lis, zhef ye zhun fa'y'lis.
God saw the light was good,
edwo zhun widzhi to fa'y'lis fwi bel, [Notice that where "that" may be omitted in English "God saw (that) the light was good", in Vayoti there is actually no other way to formulate this phrase; there is no equivalent "that" in Vayoti--rather you can only say, "God saw the light was good."]
and He separated the light from the darkness.
zhef di zhun duwomzho to fa'y'lis id to droyoti.
God called the light day, and the darkness He called night.
edwo zhun spelzho to fa'y'lis d'yun zhef to droyoti di zhun spelzho nesht.
And there was evening and there was morning--one day.
zhef ye zhun dov'yun, zhef ye zhun fajun--bus d'yun.
Monday, December 11, 2017
Sentences (66-88)
66. I am grateful you don't feel hot.
bo satnakala ka-n ea tankzhi grakis.
67. They were having fun and being carefree and I was very pleased and gratified.
ti shan prankala zhef l'kala zhef bo zhun fwetla satnakala menk.
68. We are exultant (thrilled) in the Lord.
opo gavla isa to kiren.
69. The people were ecstatic about the Lord's words.
tots khizne shan hristla da tots kirenksa malvazn.
70. The people were ecstatic on account of (because of) the Lord's words.
tots khizne shan hristla tots kirenksa malvazn ngar.
71. Either me (I) or them (they)!
op bro op tri!
op bo op ti!
or,
op bo op iti!
72. Where my family (is), there my home (is).
fur blu komnrik, tir blu tumft.
73. He is a traveling man.
di jon vretra ste halzhi.
74. I was shaving.
bo shan brezha. (-zha = reflexive suffix)
75. I started shaving.
bo shan brezhe. (-zhe = inceptive suffix)
76. I have started shaving.
bo zhun brezhe.
77. I have shaved.
bo zhun brezhu. (-zhu = perfective suffix)
NOTE: the self-referential suffix -ps may be added to make explicit a reflexive action (on oneself) where the reflexive suffix has been sacrificed in favor of a different nuance (inceptive, perfective, intransitive). Thus, nos. 75, 76 and 77 may be further developed as follows:
bo shan brezheps (I started shaving myself)
bo zhun brezheps (I have started shaving myself)
bo zhun brezhups (I have shaved myself)
78. The one who wants a lot will not be satisfied.
ton gu votelzho manga-n ea zwe satnakala.
79. I remember my loving uncle very well.
bo mnrazho bel menk slu dritra ste prigarlaf.
80. I lovingly remember my huge aunt.
bo mnrazho prigarlaf slu drishwa ste entkis.
81. Give me some of that bread, please.
do bro chu taf varontiz, telbel.
82. "Thank you." "You're welcome."
tankzn. efwet.
83. While conversing, we heard a kind of snore.
gdukamavi, po zhun klisnezho jon fnov shtiz. (fnov=snore; shtiz=kind/some kind)
[NOTE: the prefix gdu- turns a verb into a present-tense adverbial participle; a Vayoti equivalent for "when" or "while" is not required; literally, this sentence translate as: "Conversing, we heard a snore some-kind."]
84. What kind?
fat shtiz? (fat = what)
or,
shtiz fat?
85. Having spoken long but not memorably, the speaker went to his chair.
zhduva delkis gela-n ea mnrurlaf, to vanur elel ites slu k'driya.
[NOTE: the prefix zhdu- turns a verb into a perfective adverbial participle (i.e., having done something); as with gdu-, the prefix alone is all that is required to establish the relationship between the prefixed verb and the sentence's main action; in Vayoti you do not put a word like "After" in front of the perfective adverbial participle; often in English we use a present-tense adverbial participle, preceded by "After", to convey the same as we'd say with "Having ______...." Example, "Having finished his work, he went home/After finishing his work, he went home." In Vayoti, however, these two connotations are strictly segregated from one another grammatically. Both the examples just given would be formulated with zhdu- in Vayoti.]
86. When they were kissing, light shone from their eyes.
sur ti shan kwasjizha, fa'y'lis shan chelagan id utlu wokzn.
[NOTE: because of the preposition id the verb chelagan takes no aspectual suffix.]
87. There is no food in the house.
banye p'dad isa to [or, ista] dam.
88. There will be no dogs on the beach.
banye zwe kwenzn ina to pal'yur.
bo satnakala ka-n ea tankzhi grakis.
67. They were having fun and being carefree and I was very pleased and gratified.
ti shan prankala zhef l'kala zhef bo zhun fwetla satnakala menk.
68. We are exultant (thrilled) in the Lord.
opo gavla isa to kiren.
69. The people were ecstatic about the Lord's words.
tots khizne shan hristla da tots kirenksa malvazn.
70. The people were ecstatic on account of (because of) the Lord's words.
tots khizne shan hristla tots kirenksa malvazn ngar.
71. Either me (I) or them (they)!
op bro op tri!
op bo op ti!
or,
op bo op iti!
72. Where my family (is), there my home (is).
fur blu komnrik, tir blu tumft.
73. He is a traveling man.
di jon vretra ste halzhi.
74. I was shaving.
bo shan brezha. (-zha = reflexive suffix)
75. I started shaving.
bo shan brezhe. (-zhe = inceptive suffix)
76. I have started shaving.
bo zhun brezhe.
77. I have shaved.
bo zhun brezhu. (-zhu = perfective suffix)
NOTE: the self-referential suffix -ps may be added to make explicit a reflexive action (on oneself) where the reflexive suffix has been sacrificed in favor of a different nuance (inceptive, perfective, intransitive). Thus, nos. 75, 76 and 77 may be further developed as follows:
bo shan brezheps (I started shaving myself)
bo zhun brezheps (I have started shaving myself)
bo zhun brezhups (I have shaved myself)
78. The one who wants a lot will not be satisfied.
ton gu votelzho manga-n ea zwe satnakala.
79. I remember my loving uncle very well.
bo mnrazho bel menk slu dritra ste prigarlaf.
80. I lovingly remember my huge aunt.
bo mnrazho prigarlaf slu drishwa ste entkis.
81. Give me some of that bread, please.
do bro chu taf varontiz, telbel.
82. "Thank you." "You're welcome."
tankzn. efwet.
83. While conversing, we heard a kind of snore.
gdukamavi, po zhun klisnezho jon fnov shtiz. (fnov=snore; shtiz=kind/some kind)
[NOTE: the prefix gdu- turns a verb into a present-tense adverbial participle; a Vayoti equivalent for "when" or "while" is not required; literally, this sentence translate as: "Conversing, we heard a snore some-kind."]
84. What kind?
fat shtiz? (fat = what)
or,
shtiz fat?
85. Having spoken long but not memorably, the speaker went to his chair.
zhduva delkis gela-n ea mnrurlaf, to vanur elel ites slu k'driya.
[NOTE: the prefix zhdu- turns a verb into a perfective adverbial participle (i.e., having done something); as with gdu-, the prefix alone is all that is required to establish the relationship between the prefixed verb and the sentence's main action; in Vayoti you do not put a word like "After" in front of the perfective adverbial participle; often in English we use a present-tense adverbial participle, preceded by "After", to convey the same as we'd say with "Having ______...." Example, "Having finished his work, he went home/After finishing his work, he went home." In Vayoti, however, these two connotations are strictly segregated from one another grammatically. Both the examples just given would be formulated with zhdu- in Vayoti.]
86. When they were kissing, light shone from their eyes.
sur ti shan kwasjizha, fa'y'lis shan chelagan id utlu wokzn.
[NOTE: because of the preposition id the verb chelagan takes no aspectual suffix.]
87. There is no food in the house.
banye p'dad isa to [or, ista] dam.
88. There will be no dogs on the beach.
banye zwe kwenzn ina to pal'yur.
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
Nouns, Writing and Spelling, Syntax
Nouns
The classic endings for nouns are -ov, -am, -iz, -en, -ur. Alternatively, typical nouns will end in a vowel. There is a substantial number of "irregular" nouns, however, the endings of which do not correspond to either of the foregoing descriptions.
Nouns denoting agency tend to end in either -nur or -tiz.
Nouns implying action, but not derived directly from verbs, often end in -(a)nta.
Nouns derived directly from verbs, especially gerunds (e.g., "his weakening led to our strengthening"), tend to end in -va.
Many nouns denoting abstract concepts end in -yoti. The nuance of this ending is akin to English endings -tion or -ness.
Writing and Spelling
This applies to the physical process of writing Vayoti in the Vayoti alphabet, which cannot yet be demonstrated on this site. But, for future reference:
The Vayoti alphabet was, apparently, developed on a "syllabic" concept. Nearly every consonant concludes in a "tail" at about the "middle" (what we would consider the top of a lower-case letter), custom-made to flow directly into any one of the five vowels, which of course begin at the same "middle” point. For an analogy, imagine writing a cursive lower-case “t” and from the crossbar of the “t” (not from the bottom!) flowing directly into a cursive lower-case “u”. An even better anaology is the word “be”, cursive, all lower-case.
Vowels, on the contrary, never connect to any following letter.
Thus, a hypothetical Vayoti word "balofiguze" would look to the English-speaker's untrained eye like five letters: ba lo fi gu ze, the "b" connecting with the "a" in what appears to be a single letter, likewise the "l" with the "o" and so on.
The exceptions are the following “tailless" consonants. They cannot be connected in writing to a following vowel or any other letter. Note that, because “s” is a tailless consonant, several other consonants incorporating “s” are likewise tailless:
ks
fs
ps
s
sp
sk
In this vein, note also that in Vayoti, there are many “single” letters representing sounds which we can represent in English only with a pair of letters (like sh, ch, ts). Consider, analogously, that our English “j” sound (joy, general) can only be represented in the alphabets of certain other languages by a combination of two letters, the first representing the d-sound, the next representing the zh-sound: “dzh”.
This is why the Vayoti alphabet contains so many more letters than the English one.. In Vayoti there are, besides the “normal” letters, distinct letters for each of these sounds: bl, br, bw, kl, kr, kw, kn, ks, dl, dr, dw, fl, fr, fw, fn, fs, gl, gr, gw, gn, gd, pl, pr, pw, pn, ps, sl, sr, sw, sm, sn, sp, st, sf, sk, tl, tr, tw, vl, vr, vw, vn, vz, zl, zr, zw, zn, zd, (a light guttural) kh, ch, zh, ts, sh, sht, shw, zhd, and perhaps the strangest to the English-speaker, mnr.
(Note: like English, Vayoti has as well its own “j[oy]” letter—a single letter, not a “dzh” combination.)
This long list of letters should not be intimidating. Frequently it is simply a matter of writing the basic letters, e.g., “f” and “l”, crunched together more closely to produce the single letter (“fl”). This is especially so with all the “combination letters” ending in -l or -w. “ks” and “fs” and “ps” are obvious mergers of k+s, f+s, and p+s.
The combination letters commencing with s- will require some habituation, as well as several other “unique”forms, among them kn, fn, gr, gn, gd, tr, zhd.
While the Vayoti letters kh, ch, zh, ts, sh and mnr may seem to the English-speaker to be “combination letters” because we represent the sounds with two or three letters in English, they are NOT combination letters in Vayoti. A true combination-letter in Vayoti is one based on two sounds for each of which there is a proper letter in its own right. Thus, “zhd” is a combination-letter, because there is a letter “zh” and a letter “d” in Vayoti. Likewise “sm”, because there is a letter “s” and a letter “m” and the letter “sm” is a separate letter combining these sounds. But the Vayoti letters kh, ch, zh, ts, sh and mnr are not considered combination-letters. “ch” is not a combination of two sounds, but a single sound, and letter, in Vayoti. Likewise with the rest—yes, even including, counter-intuitively, “mnr”, which the Vayoti-speaker conceptualizes NOT as a blend m+n+r but as a unique phoneme in its own right. This sound has ancient roots in a Proto-Indo-European semi-vocalic consonant.
On rare occasion, if the tail of a consonant interferes with the following letter, the tail can be left out.
If the tail of a consonant can comfortably flow into a following consonant, it is permissible. For instance, "n" is frequently found flowing directly into "t". The consonant "s", which itself does not flow into any other letter (it has no tail), is so formed that many other consonants naturally "want" to flow into it.
When three consonants are clustered together, these conventions are traditionally observed, though they are not rigid rules:
a. At the beginning of a word, the first sound (frequently s) is a single letter and the next two are a mixed letter; for example: s-pr; s-kl, s-tr.
b. Inside a word, it is the other way around: sp-r; sk-l, st-r.
c. There are exceptions to this rule, especially in connection with endings and suffixes. They do not, as a rule, present an "opportunity" to reconfigure single and mixed consonant letters, though such a reconfiguring may indeed already be evident in the word's established form.
In short, the lexical form of every word (as in any other language) has already been determined and fixed; it is not up to the writer to "decide" on this. Where there are irregular forms and "exceptions to the rule," they are fixed and "correct" in their own right.
Spelling Note: when the "gerunding" suffix –va is added to words already ending in –v, then the two v's are written out, i.e., vv, but they are pronounced as if there were a "doubling" accent over a single v, i.e., as a sustained but single consonant. They do not become separate syllables (v'v). For example: spenavva, which means "dependent."
Spelling Note: when the "gerunding" suffix –va is added to words already ending in –v, then the two v's are written out, i.e., vv, but they are pronounced as if there were a "doubling" accent over a single v, i.e., as a sustained but single consonant. They do not become separate syllables (v'v). For example: spenavva, which means "dependent."
Syntax
When modifiers are used as adverbs, they can be placed before the subject or after the entire ‘subject-verb phrase’ (which includes the subject, the time-determinant [in past and future] and of course the verb-with-suffix); you cannot break up the subject-verb phrase with a modifier.
Question words (who, what, why, etc.) can break the rule about subject-verb syntax! Before a verb they carry their simple meaning (e.g., Who is he? Why did you leave early?) But when they are placed between the negative particle ea and the verb, they take on a negative meaning, along the lines of “no one, nobody, nothing, never, no how”, etc.
An alternative method of expressing this is to use the word later in the sentence prefixed with op-. So, adding op- to fat (what) you get opfat, which means “nothing, nothing at all”. opk’fen means “never”, but k’fen also means “never” if it stands between ea and the verb. kan means “who?” but it means “no one” after ea, and opkan means “no one” if it’s used after the verb. Also, question words can have the “any-, -ever” sense if they are used without ea.
So, “he never speaks” can be:
di-n ea k’fen vazhi or di-n ea vazhi opk’fen
“Whenever he speaks” is opk’fen di vazhi
“Whoever speaks” – opkan vazhi
“Whatever he takes” – opfat di hapishzho
“What does he take?” - fat di hapishzho?
“He takes nothing” - di-n ea fat hapishzho or di-n ea hapishzho opfat
The word ngar has two meanings: it is an emphatic form of “because” (gar) and as such stands in the same place as it would if it were in the non-emphatic form, i.e., at the beginning of the phrase. But when ngar means “because of”, it stands after the word or phrase it refers to. So, “because of the rain” would go like this “the rain ngar…”. “Because of him” is dri ngar (note the use of the “accusative”, i.e., object-form of the pronoun – it is dri, not di).
In English we have these three ways of formulating an idea like the following:
1. Because he always finishes late… (e.g., my part of the job is always delayed.)
2. Because of his always finishing late…, etc.
3. Because of him always finishing late…, etc. (This is a colloquial and traditionally not very “correct” way of saying it.)
In Vayoti, numbers 1 and 3 exist, but number 2 doesn’t. And in general, formulation number 1 is far easier and to be preferred.
Version number 1 is formulated in Vayoti exactly the same way: “gar dri (always finishes late…)”. Or “ngar dri….”
Version number 3 (which we’ll call “version 2” in Vayoti, since there are only two!) goes like this, literally: “dri ngar ste always finishes late…, etc.” dri ngar expresses “because of him”; ste points to the following phrase as descriptive of “him”. This version is a bit more complicated, but it is also powerfully expressive.
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