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Difference between revisions of "Kobold language"

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(Inspiration for kobold language)
(Adjust to match my own findings from disassembly - the number of secondary syllables is actually 0-2, not 0-3, so the longest word is 18 letters)
Line 6: Line 6:
  
 
Kobold-language words do not actually have a proper English translation; however, Kobold-language objects and individual kobolds will maintain the same name over time.
 
Kobold-language words do not actually have a proper English translation; however, Kobold-language objects and individual kobolds will maintain the same name over time.
 
 
  
 
==Alphabet and Graphemics==
 
==Alphabet and Graphemics==
Line 39: Line 37:
  
 
Peculiarities:
 
Peculiarities:
*The letter ''h'' only appears in the digraphs ''ch'' and ''sh.''
+
*The letter ''h'' only appears in the digraphs ''sh'', ''th'', and ''ch''.
*The letter ''n'' only appears in the digraphs ''ng, nk,'' and ''sn.''
+
*The letter ''n'' only appears in the digraphs ''ng'', ''nk'', and ''in'', and the trigraph ''rsn''.
*The letter ''y'' only appears in the digraph ''ay.''
+
*The letter ''y'' only appears in the digraph ''ay''.
  
 
The letters Q, V, W, X, and Z of the [[wikipedia:ISO basic Latin alphabet|ISO basic Latin alphabet]] do not occur in the Kobold alphabet.
 
The letters Q, V, W, X, and Z of the [[wikipedia:ISO basic Latin alphabet|ISO basic Latin alphabet]] do not occur in the Kobold alphabet.
Line 176: Line 174:
 
===Syllables===
 
===Syllables===
  
Kobold has three kinds of syllables, ''primary,'' ''secondary,'' and ''final.'' Every word is composed of one or two primary syllables, zero to three secondary syllables, and one final syllable. Words must begin with a primary syllable, end with a final syllable, the penultimate syllable must be a primary syllable, and all others must be secondary syllables. Therefore, the following structures are allowed:
+
Kobold has three kinds of syllables, ''primary,'' ''secondary,'' and ''final.'' Every word is composed of one or two primary syllables, zero to two secondary syllables, and one final syllable. Words must begin with a primary syllable, end with a final syllable, the penultimate syllable must be a primary syllable, and all others must be secondary syllables. Therefore, the following structures are allowed:
 
<center>
 
<center>
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
{| class="wikitable"
Line 200: Line 198:
  
 
====Primary Syllables====
 
====Primary Syllables====
Every primary syllable is of the [[wikipedia: Syllable#Components|syllable structure]] C<sub>1</sub>(C<sub>2</sub>)V. C<sub>1</sub> is mandatory, and can be one of many consonants; C<sub>2</sub> is an optional [[wikipedia: Approximant consonant|approximant]], which can be either ''r'' or ''l;'' and V is a vowel.
+
Every primary syllable is of the [[wikipedia: Syllable#Components|syllable structure]] C<sub>1</sub>(C<sub>2</sub>)V. C<sub>1</sub> is mandatory, and can be one of many consonants; C<sub>2</sub> is an optional [[wikipedia: Approximant consonant|approximant]], which can be either ''r'' or ''l''; and V is a vowel.
*The allowed consonants for C<sub>1</sub> are: ''b, ch, d, f, g, j, k, l, p, s, sh, st, t,'' and ''th.''
+
*The allowed consonants for C<sub>1</sub> are: ''b'', ''d'', ''st'', ''sh'', ''s'', ''t'', ''th'', ''ch'', ''l'', ''f'', ''g'', ''k'', ''p'', and ''j''.
*The allowed consonants for C<sub>2</sub> are: ''r,'' ''l,'' or nothing.
+
*The allowed consonants for C<sub>2</sub> are: ''r'', ''l'', or nothing.
 
**'''Exception:''' The consonant cluster ''ll'' is forbidden.
 
**'''Exception:''' The consonant cluster ''ll'' is forbidden.
*The allowed vowels for V are: ''a, ay, ee, i, o,'' and ''u.''
+
*The allowed vowels for V are: ''a'', ''o'', ''u'', ''ay'', ''ee'', and ''i''.
 
**'''Exception:''' The digraph vowels ''ay'' and ''ee'' can only be present in the penultimate syllable of a word (if this is also the initial syllable, it is still allowed).
 
**'''Exception:''' The digraph vowels ''ay'' and ''ee'' can only be present in the penultimate syllable of a word (if this is also the initial syllable, it is still allowed).
  
 
====Secondary Syllables====
 
====Secondary Syllables====
 
Every secondary syllable is of the simple form CV. C is one of a handful of consonants, and V is a vowel.
 
Every secondary syllable is of the simple form CV. C is one of a handful of consonants, and V is a vowel.
*The allowed consonants for C are: ''b, d, f, g, k,'' and ''l.''
+
*The allowed consonants for C are: ''b'', ''d'', ''l'', ''f'', ''g'', and ''k''.
*The allowed vowels for V are: ''a, i, o,'' and ''u.''
+
*The allowed vowels for V are: ''a'', ''i'', ''o'', and ''u''.
  
 
====Final Syllables====
 
====Final Syllables====
Every final syllable is of the structure (C<sub>1</sub>)C<sub>2</sub>R. C<sub>1</sub> is optional, and can be ''r, l, n,'' or ''m,'' though their allowed usage is limited; C<sub>2</sub> is mandatory, and can be one of several consonants; R is a [[wikipedia: Syllable#Rime|rime]] that is limited to one of the four endings ''-er, -in, -is,'' or ''-us.''
+
Every final syllable is of the structure CR. C is one of several consonants or consonant clusters, while R is a [[wikipedia: Syllable#Rime|rime]] that is limited to one of the four endings ''-is'', ''-us'', ''-er'', or ''-in''.
*The allowed consonants for C<sub>1</sub> are: ''r, l, m,'' and ''n.''
+
*The allowed consonants for C are: ''m'', ''r'', ''ng'', ''b'', ''rb'', ''mb'', ''g'', ''lg'', ''l'', ''lb'', ''lm'', ''k'', ''nk'', ''ld'', ''d'', and ''rsn''.
**''r'' is only allowed before ''b'' and ''sn.''
+
*The allowed rimes for R are: ''is'', ''us'', ''er'', and ''in''.
**''l'' is only allowed before ''b, d, g,'' and ''m.''
+
**'''Exception:''' The rimes ''er'' and ''in'' are not allowed if the penultimate syllable's vowel is ''ee'' or ''i''.
**''n'' is only allowed before ''g'' and ''k.''
 
**''m'' is only allowed before ''b.''
 
*The allowed consonants for C<sub>2</sub> are: ''b, d, g, k, m, l, r,'' and ''sn.''
 
*The allowed rimes for R are: ''er, in, is,'' and ''us.''
 
  
Note that the consonant C<sub>1</sub> is likely not meant to actually begin the final syllable, but rather to be appended to the penultimate syllable. For example, the kobold name ''Krudulugrilgus'' would be enunciated as ''Kru-du-lu-'''gril'''-gus'', not ''Kru-du-lu-gri-'''lgus.'''''
+
Note that the consonant C is likely not meant to actually begin the final syllable, but rather to be appended to the penultimate syllable. For example, the kobold name ''Krudulugrilgus'' would be enunciated as ''Kru-du-lu-'''gril'''-gus'', not ''Kru-du-lu-gri-'''lgus.'''''
  
 
==Vocabulary==
 
==Vocabulary==
As mentioned above, Kobold has no set vocabulary, being formed entirely of procedurally generated proper names. The shortest possible words would be 5 letters and 2 syllables, like ''jomus.'' While nothing known about the rules of the language limits the length of a word, the longest observed word so far is the personal name ''thrushrutlichokuldus'' at 20 letters and 6 syllables.
+
As mentioned above, Kobold has no set vocabulary, being formed entirely of procedurally generated proper names. The shortest possible words would be 5 letters and 2 syllables, like ''[[:File:Sober.jpg|sober]]''. While nothing known about the rules of the language limits the length of a word, the longest observed word so far is the personal name ''stribikistreersnis'' at 18 letters and 5 syllables.
  
 
==Inspiration==
 
==Inspiration==

Revision as of 17:56, 6 July 2020

Not to be confused with COBOL.

The Kobold language is one of the languages the player will come across. This language is used in-game for the names, groups, and civilizations of kobolds.

Kobold is governed by different rules than the four main languages. Kobolds have the UTTERANCES creature token, which means their language has no pre-defined vocabulary. Instead, the language consists entirely of proper names built by hard-coded rules, which are detailed below.

Kobold-language words do not actually have a proper English translation; however, Kobold-language objects and individual kobolds will maintain the same name over time.

Alphabet and Graphemics

The letters of the Kobold alphabet are:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
Majuscule forms (also called uppercase or capital letters)
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U Y
Minuscule forms (also called lowercase or small letters)
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p r s t u y

Of these 21 letters, six (A, E, I, O, U, and Y) represent vowels, while the other fifteen represent consonants.

Peculiarities:

  • The letter h only appears in the digraphs sh, th, and ch.
  • The letter n only appears in the digraphs ng, nk, and in, and the trigraph rsn.
  • The letter y only appears in the digraph ay.

The letters Q, V, W, X, and Z of the ISO basic Latin alphabet do not occur in the Kobold alphabet.

Letter Frequency

Based on a sample of 120 kobold names, the approximate letter frequencies can be established:

Letter Frequency
a 7.8%
b 4.7%
c 0.9%
d 3.6%
e 4.2%
f 2.4%
g 4.3%
h 3.6%
i 8.6%
j 1.5%
k 2.9%
l 10.8%
m 1.9%
n 2.7%
o 4.9%
p 1.3%
r 8.1%
s 11.4%
t 3.6%
u 9%
y 1.9%

Phonotactics

The Kobold language has 16 distinguishable consonant phonemes, forming the phonological consonant inventory:

Labial Dental Alveolar Post-alveolar Velar
Nasal m [m] n [n*]
Plosive p [p], b [b] t [t], d [d] k [k], g [g]
Affricate ch [t͡ʃ], j [d͡ʒ]
Fricative f [f] th [θ] s [s] sh [ʃ]
Approximant r [r]
Lateral l [l]

*The phoneme represented by n likely has the allophone [ŋ] before g and k.

Syllables

Kobold has three kinds of syllables, primary, secondary, and final. Every word is composed of one or two primary syllables, zero to two secondary syllables, and one final syllable. Words must begin with a primary syllable, end with a final syllable, the penultimate syllable must be a primary syllable, and all others must be secondary syllables. Therefore, the following structures are allowed:

No. of syllables Structure
2 syllables 1-F
3 syllables 1-1-F
4 syllables 1-2-1-F
5 syllables 1-2-2-1-F
6 syllables 1-2-2-2-1-F

Primary Syllables

Every primary syllable is of the syllable structure C1(C2)V. C1 is mandatory, and can be one of many consonants; C2 is an optional approximant, which can be either r or l; and V is a vowel.

  • The allowed consonants for C1 are: b, d, st, sh, s, t, th, ch, l, f, g, k, p, and j.
  • The allowed consonants for C2 are: r, l, or nothing.
    • Exception: The consonant cluster ll is forbidden.
  • The allowed vowels for V are: a, o, u, ay, ee, and i.
    • Exception: The digraph vowels ay and ee can only be present in the penultimate syllable of a word (if this is also the initial syllable, it is still allowed).

Secondary Syllables

Every secondary syllable is of the simple form CV. C is one of a handful of consonants, and V is a vowel.

  • The allowed consonants for C are: b, d, l, f, g, and k.
  • The allowed vowels for V are: a, i, o, and u.

Final Syllables

Every final syllable is of the structure CR. C is one of several consonants or consonant clusters, while R is a rime that is limited to one of the four endings -is, -us, -er, or -in.

  • The allowed consonants for C are: m, r, ng, b, rb, mb, g, lg, l, lb, lm, k, nk, ld, d, and rsn.
  • The allowed rimes for R are: is, us, er, and in.
    • Exception: The rimes er and in are not allowed if the penultimate syllable's vowel is ee or i.

Note that the consonant C is likely not meant to actually begin the final syllable, but rather to be appended to the penultimate syllable. For example, the kobold name Krudulugrilgus would be enunciated as Kru-du-lu-gril-gus, not Kru-du-lu-gri-lgus.

Vocabulary

As mentioned above, Kobold has no set vocabulary, being formed entirely of procedurally generated proper names. The shortest possible words would be 5 letters and 2 syllables, like sober. While nothing known about the rules of the language limits the length of a word, the longest observed word so far is the personal name stribikistreersnis at 18 letters and 5 syllables.

Inspiration

D4Dwarf.png This article or section has been rated D for Dwarf. It may include witty humour, not-so-witty humour, bad humour, in-jokes, pop culture references, and references to the Bay12 forums. Don't believe everything you read, and if you miss some of the references, don't worry. It was inevitable.


Toady has said in an interview that the kobold language was created in imitation of his and Threetoe's childhood language developed to speak to cats. (BlindIRL interview, 2020/06/11, youtube link to follow)

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