Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

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Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

Hello fellow conlangers!

I wanted to share my latest work with the community.

Many of you know about the language Lortho - some through the posts about its writing system. This time around, I wanted to share an overview of the language here.
The Basics
  • Type: Agglutinating
  • Alignment: Nominative-Accusative
  • Word Order: VSO
  • Type of Writing System: Alphabet
  • Direction of Writing: Left-to-Right

Phonology

Consonants:

Code: Select all

                    | Labial | Alveolar  | Postalveolar | Velar | Glottal |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nasal               |    m   |    n      |              |       |         |
Plosive             | p pʰ b | t tʰ d dʰ |              | k kʰ  |         |
Fricative           |   f    |     s     |       ʃ      |       |    h    |
Lateral Approximant |        |     l     |              |       |         |
Tap or Flap         |        |     ɾ     |              |       |         |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vowels:

Code: Select all

          | Front | Central | Back |
------------------------------------
Close     |   i   |         |   u  |
Close-Mid |       |         |   o  |
Open-Mid  |   ɛ   |         |      |
Open      |       |    a    |      |
------------------------------------
Diphthongs:

/ei/, /ai/, /oi/, and /au/.
Phonotactics

Syllable Structure:
  • (C)(C)V(V)(C)1
Stress:
  1. Stress is on the penult of a word except :
    • -n verbs will always receive stress on the final syllable of the infinitive.
    • all verbs will retain the stress on the final syllable of the stem when conjugated
    • adverbs always receive stress on the final syllable
  2. Stress is neither given to prefixes nor suffixes except :
    • pluralized nouns will shift the stress to the penult

Orthography

The writing system is an alphabet, albeit it behaves similarly to an abugida. Consonant-vowel combinations are written in ligature form except for /i/ which is a stand alone vowel. With the recent updates to the writing system, the vowel [ɛ] can be written underneath the consonant as a separate glyph vs in ligature form. More about the writing system can be seen here.
Morphology

Nouns

Nouns in Lortho have three main features:
  1. They are one of three genders: masculine, feminine, or neuter
  2. All nouns are modified to denote case
  3. All nouns end in a vowel (there are exceptions)
Gender

Code: Select all

Masculine | Feminine | Neuter        |
--------------------------------------
-I        | -u       | -a            |
dharakhi  | dhammu   | hadikha       |
mountain  | chair    | country, land |
--------------------------------------

Grammatical Case

Code: Select all

Case         | Example        | Translation                      |
------------------------------------------------------------------
Nominative   | kansaptha      | the forest  (neut.)              |
Accusative   | kansaptha-me   | forest (dir obj)                 |
Dative       | kansaptha-mela | forest (ind obj)                 |
Genitive^2   | kansaptha-nau  | of the forest                    |
Lative^3a,b  | kansaptha-ina  | in/into the forest               |
Ablative     | kansaptha-nat  | out of/from the forest           |
Allative     | kansaptha-dan  | to/towards the forest            |
Prolative    | kansaptha-dar  | through/via/by way of the forest |
Instrumental | kansaptha-len  | using the forest                 |
Vocative     | fa-kansaptha   | Hey, Forest!                     |
------------------------------------------------------------------
Pluralization

Each noun class is pluralized by adding a suffix:
  1. Feminine (-u) and neuter (-a) nouns add the suffix –ne:
    • e.g.
      1. Fem: kansaphu [kanˈsapʰu] (tree); plural kansaphune [kansaˈpʰunɛ]
      2. Neut: hadikha [haˈdikʰa] (land, country); plural hadikhane [hadiˈkʰanɛ]
  2. Masculine (-i) nouns add the infix –en- before –i:
    • e.g. olakhi [oˈlakʰi] (boat); plural olakheni [olaˈkʰɛni]
  3. Masculine nouns ending in –ni will change the plural suffix to –emi:
    • e.g. phorenni [pʰoˈɾenːi] (peak, summit); plural phorennemi [pʰoɾɛnˈnɛmi]
Like Persian, nouns are not pluralized when counted.

Definite and Indefinite Articles

The definite article does not exist and is implied with the absence of the indefinite article. The indefinite article is the numeral 1 (ikhi). The counting system in Lortho is decimal (base 10) and you can see them here.

Verbs

There are currently three types of verbs4 :
  1. -o verbs
    • the verb stem is made by subtracting the final -o
    • e.g. konpharo (to speak); konpharin (I speak)
  2. -t verbs
    • the verb stem is made by changing the final -t to -d
    • e.g. lharit (to run); lharidin (I run)
  3. -n verbs
    • the infinitive is also the verb stem
    • e.g. shailan (to sit); shailanin (I sit)


Conjugation

Present Tense: konpharo

Code: Select all

------------------------------------------------------
Singular | Masc         | Fem          | Neut        |
------------------------------------------------------
1S       | konphar-in   | konpharun    | -           |
2S       | konphar-anni | konphar-annu | -           |
3S       | konphar-i    | konphar-u    | konphar-a   |
------------------------------------------------------
Plural   | Masc         | Fem          | Neut        |
------------------------------------------------------
1P       | konphar-inan | konphar-unan | -           |
2P       | konphar-amin | konphar-amun | -           |
3P       | konphar-imi  | konphar-imu  | konphar-ima |
------------------------------------------------------

Present Tense: thomit

Code: Select all

---------------------------------------------------
Singular | Masc        | Fem         | Neut       |
---------------------------------------------------
1S       | thomid-in   | thomid-un   | -          |
2S       | thomid-anni | thomid-annu | -          |
3S       | thomid-I    | thomid-u    | thomid-a   |
---------------------------------------------------
Plural   | Masc        | Fem         | Neut       |
---------------------------------------------------
1P       | thomid-inan | thomid-unan | -          |
2P       | thomid-amin | thomid-amun | -          |
3P       | thomid-imi  | thomid-imu  | thomid-ima |
---------------------------------------------------

Present Tense: shailan

Code: Select all

------------------------------------------------------
Singular | Masc         | Fem          | Neut        |
------------------------------------------------------
1S       | shailan-in   | shailan-un   | -           |
2S       | shailan-anni | shailan-annu | -           |
3S       | shailan-I    | shailan-u    | shailan-a   |
------------------------------------------------------
Plural   | Masc        | Fem         | Neut          |
------------------------------------------------------
1P       | shailan-inan | shailan-unan | -           |
2P       | shailan-amin | shailan-amun | -           |
3P       | shailan-imi  | shailan-imu  | shailan-ima |
------------------------------------------------------

Preterite:

The preterite of all verbs are made by adding the suffix -ikh before the personal endings:
  • e.g. konpharikhin (I spoke)
Adjectives

All adjectives are roots to which the corresponding gender suffix is added (-i, -u, -a) to agree with the gender of the noun which they modify. They are placed before the noun. They do not agree with number.

Adverbs

Adverbs are easily discernible since most end in -r and are usually placed before the word they modify; however, this is not a rule.

Agreement

Verbs must be conjugated in gender and number to agree with the subject, whether implicit or implied. Adjectives agree in gender, but not in number.

Special Markers

In order to form a question, the mandatory question marker kaura is placed at the beginning of the sentence.
Examples

Here you can find multiple written samples with IPA, romanization, translation, and interlinear glosses.
Footnotes:
  1. Onset consonant clusters are possible, though extremely rare.
  2. The genitive case is only one aspect of possession.
    1. For masculine nouns, the ending is -ena; feminine nouns change the -u to -o to form the diphthong -oina.
    2. There is no locative case. Lortho handles this mainly through context with the verb. For example:
      1. thomid-in kansaptha-ina
        live -1MSG forest.N-LAT
        I live in the forest

        vs
      2. lharid-in kansaptha-ina
        run-1MSG forest.N-LAT
        I run into the forest
  3. Stress is maintained on the final syllable of the verb stem.

https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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k1234567890y
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by k1234567890y »

not bad (:

the sound system reminds me of Indo-Aryan languages; while the case endings reminds me somewhat of the Finno-Ugric languages.

It seems to be an agglutinating language and it seems that the speakers must know their gender the gender of the receivers of the messages in order to speak it correctly.

I wonder how they deal with relative clauses(e.g. "the house which is big"), noun clauses(e.g. "the fact that we lost"), gerunds(e.g. the "finding a good job" part in "finding a good job is difficult", aux verbs(e.g. "I can fly", "I must go", etc.), definiteness(e.g. "a house" v.s. "the house"), sentences dealing with counterfactual facts(e,g, "if I were a bird..."), etc.?

Also how do they derive words i.e. createing new words from existing words(e.g. "hard" > "hardness"; "find" > "finding"; "land" + "lord" > "landlord", etc.)
I prefer to not be referred to with masculine pronouns and nouns such as “he/him/his”.
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by Scytheria »

I rather like it. What impresses me most is the way you've started to weave cultural artefacts into it to explain certain things, which gives a nice naturalistic feel. Also, you've avoided the temptation to have a ridiculous, unusable orthography and alien grammar, meaning that the result is potentially learnable.
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

k1234567890y wrote: 24 Apr 2018 00:43 not bad (:

the sound system reminds me of Indo-Aryan languages; while the case endings reminds me somewhat of the Finno-Ugric languages.
You are very perceptive! I did take a bit of inspiration from the Indo-Aryan languages for the consonants, while I took inspiration of the vowel system from Persian (in which I am fluent). I had every intention of using the vowel [ɑ] (from [ɒ]); however, when I pronounced the words containing this vowel I noticed that I would naturally lean towards [a] or [ɐ].
It seems to be an agglutinating language and it seems that the speakers must know their gender the gender of the receivers of the messages in order to speak it correctly.
Yes, this is the direction I am going with this. I have not truly practiced this language enough to see how well I can cope [xD].
I wonder how they deal with relative clauses(e.g. "the house which is big"), noun clauses(e.g. "the fact that we lost"), gerunds(e.g. the "finding a good job" part in "finding a good job is difficult", aux verbs(e.g. "I can fly", "I must go", etc.), definiteness(e.g. "a house" v.s. "the house"), sentences dealing with counterfactual facts(e,g, "if I were a bird..."), etc.?
Relative clauses are nearly uncharted territory for me, so I have yet to tackle these in depth. As far as the aux verbs, I have dabbled in them a bit where the aux verb is conjugated and the the secondary verb is left in the infinitive; much like English. The subjunctive mood is a little scary for me, but I think I will be able to come up with a nifty solution.
Also how do they derive words i.e. createing new words from existing words(e.g. "hard" > "hardness"; "find" > "finding"; "land" + "lord" > "landlord", etc.)
Another great question! Derivational morphology will be my next major project. Some of the nouns have been derived from verbs and vice versa; and the same goes for some adverbs which were derived from verbs. Right now, I am focusing building a lexicon without the use of derivations nor compounds so that I will be able to analyze how such new words can be created/derived.

Thanks for taking the time to comment!
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

Scytheria wrote: 24 Apr 2018 13:58 I rather like it. What impresses me most is the way you've started to weave cultural artefacts into it to explain certain things, which gives a nice naturalistic feel.
Thank you very much! As I trucked along with Lortho, I would discover certain words and their meanings. It not only helps building the naturalism, as you mentioned, but it also helps with the feeling of the culture and its people.
Also, you've avoided the temptation to have a ridiculous, unusable orthography and alien grammar, meaning that the result is potentially learnable.
Totally! I wanted to make something that was aesthetically pleasing as well as something somewhat practical.
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by Reyzadren »

Still my favourite conlang (that isn't my own) from a favourite conlanger, but you already knew that :P
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

Reyzadren wrote: 25 Apr 2018 23:39Still my favourite conlang (that isn't my own) from a favourite conlanger, but you already knew that :P
Indeed I did and thank you! I'm stoked that you are still following my progress.
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

For my wife's birthday, I wrote a small birthday note in Lortho on Egyptian papyrus. I couldn't be more happier about the final result.

Image

Here is the IPA, romanization, gloss, and translation (don't worry, it's not too personal):
Spoiler:

Code: Select all

[kʰaɾ luˈtʰaɾikʰin hin ˈmanːumɛ ˈhaɾlikʰinan bɛliˈʃikɔɪna]
khar luthar-ikh-in   hin     mannu  -me  harl-ikh-inan belishiko-ina
when meet  -PST-1MSG PN.1MSG PN.2FSG-ACC be  -PST-1MPL Belgium.F-LAT
When I met you we were in Belgium

Code: Select all

[dʰaniˈpoɾikʰin ˈdasaɾ pʰɾo͜lˈhana ɛˈfodʰaɪnan luˈnanɛmɛ]
dha-nipor-ikh-in   dasar 5 lhana  efodh-a  -inan luna   -ne-me
NEG-aware-PST-1MSG after 5 year.N have -FUT-1MPL child.N-PL-ACC
I didn't realize that 5 years later we would have children

Code: Select all

[ˈtʰaʃi ɛˈfodʰinan ˈikʰi ˈtʰaɾɛku ˈhaɾumɛ ˈhana muˈnaɾ ɛˈfodʰaɪnan ˈikʰi ˈmonu ˈhaɾumɛ]
thashi efodh-inan ikhi tharek -u haru  -me  hana     munar    efodh-a  -inan ikhi mon  -u haru  -me
now    have -1MPL one  perfect-F girl.F-ACC and.CONJ soon.ADV have -FUT-1MPL one  other-F girl.F-ACC
Now we have a perfect daughter and soon we will have another girl

Code: Select all

[dʰatʰuˈmɛdin ˈhaɾlin dʰuʃiˈnalimɛ]
dha-thumed-in   harl-in   dhu -shinal   -i-me
NEG-able  -1MSG be  -1MSG COMP-happy.ADJ-M-ACC
I can't be happier

Code: Select all

[ˈaʃin ˈmanːumɛ niˈminalɛn]
ash -in   mannu  -me  ni       -mina-len
love-1MSG PN.2FSG-ACC POSS.1MSG-soul-INST
I love you with my soul

Code: Select all

[paɾ ˈtodʰamɛ koˈɾaʃanau]
par       todha-me  korasha-nau
enjoy.IMP day.N-ACC birth.N-GEN
Enjoy your birthday

Code: Select all

[buˈsanikʰu lunˈdimu]
busan-ikh-u lun      -dimu
sign -PST-F POSS.2FSG-love.F
Signed, your love
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by masako »

Your artistry and creativity are matched only by your obvious compassion and care for your wife.

Kudos. I am in awe.
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by Reyzadren »

What are those grape things/fruits/vegetables/leaves? bbbourq eats healthy lol XD

Papyrus translation thread coming up~
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

masako wrote: 18 May 2018 20:12 Your artistry and creativity are matched only by your obvious compassion and care for your wife.

Kudos. I am in awe.
Aww. Thank you! I find that at times creating something as a gift is much more impactful than buying something.
Reyzadren wrote: 19 May 2018 01:07 What are those grape things/fruits/vegetables/leaves? bbbourq eats healthy lol XD

Papyrus translation thread coming up~
Ha! I have nine more papyrus pages. I plan on making manuscripts in the future. Though I might need to use another writing implement. I used a Pilot parallel pen for this art piece and the ink somewhat bled; albeit, minimally which made it look really nice. I want to experiment on other implements to see what works best for this specific type of papyrus.
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

Dhadakha—Lortho's writing system—has gone over a slight overhaul. I made a simplified version which makes it much easier to read. In addition, it allowed me to make a more practical handwritten version.

Script (font) samples:


Spoiler:

Original (bookish) script:

Image
Spoiler:

Simplified (common) script:

Image

Handwriting samples:


Spoiler:

Original handwriting sample:

Image
Spoiler:

Simplified handwriting sample:

Image
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

Lortho etymological discovery

The words for dusk and dawn are loan words from a previously unknown language. These are the current words:

thoskara [tʰos ·ˈka·ɾa] n. neut. dusk
thoskiru [tʰos ·ˈki·ɾu] n. fem. dawn

They are both compound words—thos- comes from (possibly) the verb troshdem [ˈtɾɔʃ·dem] (to transition?). Since the consonant cluster /shk/ does not exist in Lortho, it changed to /sk/. In addition, Lortho does not allow the consonant cluster /tr/ in onset, thus the r transitioned to aspiration. kara (night) and kiru (day) come from kar [kɒɾ] and keiro [ˈkeɪ·ɾoʊ] respectively. Thus, the original words were troshkar [tɾɔʃ ·ˈkɒɾ] and troshkeiro [tɾɔʃ ·ˈkeɪ·ɾoʊ]. I have no idea which language it is, but I can rest easy since I now know why they sounded strange to me. As far as I can tell, kara and kiru are only found in these two words. The (pure) Lortho word for “day” is todha [ˈto·dʰa]; however, the word for “night” has yet to reveal itself.

And oh, the excitement I have knowing there is another largely unknown language out there that has somehow etched its memory into Lortho!
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by eldin raigmore »

I find this pleasing.
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by masako »

bbbourq wrote: 23 Jan 2019 20:32 Dhadakha—Lortho's writing system—has gone over a slight overhaul. I made a simplified version which makes it much easier to read. In addition, it allowed me to make a more practical handwritten version.

Script (font) samples:


Spoiler:

Original (bookish) script:

Image
Spoiler:

Simplified (common) script:

Image

Handwriting samples:


Spoiler:

Original handwriting sample:

Image
Spoiler:

Simplified handwriting sample:

Image
Your font gives me certain feelings. [<3]
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Re: Lortho: An Artistic Conlang

Post by bbbourq »

I have delved into the world of LaTeX and I started a working Lortho -> English lexicon. In addition, there is now a PDF reference/pedagogical grammar of Lortho also using LaTeX.

Lexicon
Reference/Pedagogical Grammar

Yes, I have risen from my dormancy.
https://lortho.conlang.org

"Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't." - Mark Twain
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