zgarde

Isgarian
The modern language of zgar

Table of Contents
Table of Contents............................................................................................. 1
1.

Phonology..................................................................................................... 2

1.Phonology
1.1. Phonemic Inventory
The following text deals with the standard pronunciation and orthography
of modern zgarde (in following refered to by its English name, Isgarian),
developed and regulated by the University of zgar. This standard is called
Standard Modern Isgarian in English, and often abbreviated as SM.

1.1.1. Vowel & Diphthong Inventory and Allophones

SM has a large inventory of vowels, with as much as 10 distinct vowel
phonemes, and up to 15 allophonic variants of these phonemes,
depending on a vowels position in regards to the stressed syllable. The
following are generally considered the standard vowel phonemes of
Standard Modern Isgarian:

CLOSE
CLOSEMID
MID
OPEN

THE VOWELS of Standard Modern Isgarian (SM)

FRONT
MID
BACK
r.
u.
r.
u.
r.
u.

i
y
()
( )
u

e
()
()
o
()
a

Note: Phonemic variations are in bold, allophones to these individual phonemes usually
grouped as Schwas in brackets

The individual vowel phonemes are reduced to one of the schwaallophones in syllables preceding the stressed syllable of a word. The open
vowel phonemes both reduce to the mid-schwa, while the close-mid
phonemes reduce to the close-mid schwas, depending on their grade of
roundedness. The closed vowel phonemes would ideally reduce to the
closed schwas, however, it has become general practice in all but the most
formal circles to reduce them to the two close-mid schwas, as well.

1.1.2. Consonant Inventory and Allophones

SMs consonant inventory, when compared to that of earlier states of that
language, has been simplified, especially when looking at the plosives all
voiced plosives but /g/ (which itself stems from a now-defunct voiced velar
fricative and does not correspond with the historical /g/ found in classical
Isgarian) have been lost completely, with only some fricatives still having
a phonemic distinction between voiced and unvoiced. Far greater is the
number of the remaining allophones: all nasal consonants, as well as the
trill /r/ and the lateral approximant /l/ posess an unvoiced allophone that
occurs in certain environments. SM has furthermore turned the geminated
unvoiced plosives of Classical Isgarian into aspirated stops.
CONSONANTS of Standard Modern Isgarian (SM)
Bilabial

Labiodental

Dental

Alveolar

Palatal

Velar

Nasal
Plosive
Fricative
Trill
Laterals &
Approxima
nts

mm m
p p

nm n
t t

rm r
lm l

sz

k k
x

Note: The unvoiced nasals, trill and lateral as well as the aspirated stops are in italics as
they are not phonemically independent, and simply an allophone of their voiced and/or
un-aspirated counterparts occurring in certain environments. The only non-fricative
phonemic distinction between a pair of voiced/unvoiced consonants is made between /k/
and /g/.

1.1.3. Diphthong Inventory

SM allows a number of diphthongs, however only between vowels of the
same degree of roundedness. Typically, most diphthtongs are only possible
if there is movement from the front to the back, but not vice-versa,
meaning /i/ is possible, but /i / is not. If two front or two back vowels fall
together, diphthongisation is possible in both directions. The only
exception to the front-to-back rule is the diphthong /a /. (This vowel
combination however exists also non-diphtongised, as /.a/ (romanised as
[o]).

1.2.

Phonotactics

The traditional syllable structure in Isgarian is (C)(T*,L*,A*)V(V)(T*)(C).

Consonant clusters on the onset thus can only be with a trill, lateral or
approximant as second consonant; consonant clusters in the ending only
with a trill as the first consonant. As consonants are optional, single-vowel
or single-diphthong syllables are possible, but rare.
Note: T stands for trills, L for laterals, A for approximants.

1.3.
Phone
me
a
e
i

y
o
u

1.4.

Romanisation
Romanisati Phone
on
me
a
f

e
i
x
o
s
u
z

k
k

Rom
.
f
v
h
s
z
sh
zh
k
kk
g

Dialectic variation

Phone
me
m
mm

n
nm

t
t

p
p

Rom
.
m
mh
n
nh
ng
ngh
t
tt
p
pp

Phone
me
r
rm

l
lm

Rom.
r
rh
l
lh
j

The Isgarian language is one boasting a number of distinct dialects and

accents SM is only the literary and formal standard, leaned closely on
the dialect of the capital city, Grhtazh [grr.ta], commonly called
so grhtazhe (lit. The Grhtazhian). The further one gets from
the capital, the more different the dialects get as well. Following is a list
of common dialectic variations that occur in certain dialects all across
the island.

Loss of all schwas but one, typically // or // (common in most

working-class dialects, especially in the southeast)
Palatalisation of plosives ahead of /j/, in some dialects even as far
as creating a new phoneme, / tts/ (a typical feature of the dialects
of the desert in the north and centre of zgar)
Aspiration of all unvoiced plosives in every environment (typical
for the south-coast metropole and second-biggest city Mrushng
[m.r.y])
Loss of /g/ - replacal either by /k/ or /k/ (in the south and west) or
by // (in the desert and some parts of the urban southeast)
Complete non-voiced pronunciation of all nasals (common in
west-coast dialects)