Language for Dragons

I'll be using this blog for posting my ramblings on my various linguistic interests - mainly in the realms of conlanging and historical linguistcs.

[dragonlinguistics]

6th Lexember - Naswiyan pras "to imitate"

pras (s tr v); finite pərsa-

to imitate, mimic, copy

to recreate, reproduce

prasət (n B n)

imitation, mimicry

reproduction (mass)

prasət (c B n)

imitation, copy

reproduction (count)

[dragonlinguistics]

5th Lexember - Naswiyan sižħiwət "late"

sižħiwət (n B n)

lateness, being slowed or delayed

(dependent) late

Abstract of the inchoative of žħo "to be slow".

[dragonlinguistics]

4th Lexember - Naswiyan klit "to hail"

klit (a imp v); finite kəlta

to hail

klitət (n/c B n)

(neuter) hail

(common) hailstone

[dragonlinguistics]

3rd Lexember - Naswiyan fara "to say telepathically"

fara (a dit v); finite fərra- na

to say telepathically

mafruri (n C n)

telepathy

[dragonlinguistics]

2nd Lexember - Naswiyan karəs "to imagine"

karəs (a tr v); finite kərsa- ar

to imagine, conceive of, have an idea about

to visualise, depict, form an image of

karsət (n A n) - abstract of karəs

imagination, conception (mass)

visualisation, depiction (mass)

krisi (n C n) - passive participle of karəs

idea, concept

image, visualisation, depiction (count)

makrusi (n C n) - instrumental of karəs

imagination, mind's eye

[dragonlinguistics]

1st Lexember 2023 - Naswiyan qnipi "example"

qnipi (n C n)

demonstration piece

example, item used to typify a group

instance of a schema

Passive participle of qanəp "to show; to indicate; to demonstrate"

[possessivesuffix]

The lexicon of an Old European Afro-Asiatic language. Evidence from early loanwords in Proto-Indo-European | Historical Linguistics

Abstract The study examines the archaeolinguistic implications of Semitoid loanwords in Proto-Indo-European. Contact linguistics offer a uni

Oh well huh, speaking of substrates and Egyptian etc.: here's a brand new article proposing a former Afrasian branch in the Balkans, substratal to Proto-Indo-European

and yes this does at least sound like it would work better than trying to make PIE and PSem neighbors, or projecting binary Semitic–IE comparanda into Nostratic. TBD if anything more comes of this idea later on…

[dragonlinguistics]

That does sound fairly plausible, actually. It would also be a natural candidate for one of the later donors into Greek.

[dragonlinguistics]

stj "to smoke"

stj (verb; perfective sj(j)- "smoked", imperfective sš(j)- "is smoking", perfect ssw- "has smoked", imperative sw "smoke!", negative complement swt, active participle srj "who smokes", passive participle swnt "which is smoked")

to produce smoke (due to being heated)

to heat so that smoke is produced

Derivatives:

smj (c. n) "smoke; foul smell"

smt (adj) "smoky; foul-smelling"

sws (n. n) "incense; sweet smell"

sws (adj) "fragrant; sweet-smelling"

smws (c. n) "anger, rage; violent behaviour"

smsj (adj) "angry; violent"

Etymology: cognate with Sattuni þûm ~ þūmâs "smoke", Ašarite saui- "to smoke", suwaš "incense", saumūš "smoke", all from PIE *dʰuh₁- "to smoke", *dʰuh₁mós "smoke".

[dragonlinguistics]

jsj "to roast"

jsj (verb; perfective jsnj- "roasted", imperfective jš(j)- "is roasting", perfect jwjs- "has roasted", imperative jws "roast!", negative complement jws, active participle jsrj "who roasts", passive participle jsnt "which is roasted"

to roast, bake, cook

to singe

Derivatives:

jsj (adj) "scorched, singed"

jsrj (n. n) "oven"

Etymology: cognate with Sattuni ūþî "to burn while cooking" (pfv. ûwat, ipfv. ussét), ūntî "to keep warm in the oven" (pfv. ūnât, ipfv. ūnassét), ûþlá ~ ūþlâ "oven"; Ašarite ušneḫ- "to heat", ušdu "singed", reflecting Proto-Sattunic *usnáḫ-, from PIE *h₁ews- "to singe".

[dragonlinguistics]

sw(j)- "to burn, scald"

stj (verb; stative sw- "be burning hot", perfective sw(j)- "burned", imperfective sš(j)- "be burning", perfect ssw- "has burned", imperative sw "burn!", negative complement swt)

to burn, scald

to leave a painful mark

to inflame

Derivatives:

srj (adj; c. n) "(adj) feverish, ill; frantic, incoherent, delirious; (n) fever, illness"

sws (n. n) "burn mark"

Etymology: cognate with Sattuni þâ- ~ þáwī- "to mark, brand", Ašarite sūk- ~ saku- "to be hot", reflecting PIE *dʰegʷʰ- "to burn". Sattunic collectively points to an o-grade root aorist which is not found elsewhere in Indo-European, while the o-grade suffixed present is probably matched by Latin foveō "to warm". Sattunic þīfâþ "heat" is commonly linked to Shasite sfsj "midday" (via "heat of the day"), and further to Ašarite sattiš "heat", and claimed to be ultimately derived from *dʰegʷʰ- as *dʰegʷʰtís, but only the Ašarite word can be demonstrated to follow from such a preform.

[dragonlinguistics]

ys- "to burn (intr)"

ystj (verb; perfective ys- "burned", imperfective ysš- "be burning", perfect jjs- "has burned", imperative ys "burn!", negative complement yst)

to burn (intr), be on fire

to be in pain, suffer

Derivatives:

ysn(w)- (v) "to burn (tr), set on fire"

yss (n. n) "firewood, dry logs for burning; fuel"

jsrj (adj) "black"

Etymology: cognate with Sattuni êþatī "to burn (intr)", Ašarite ḫēsari "to burn (intr)", reflecting PIE *h₂éydʰ-. Sattuni īþrá "brittle" is plausibly cognate with Shasite jsrj "black", developing from a meaning "burnt" and reflecting *h₂eydʰró-, though the lack of zero-grade is peculiar.

[dragonlinguistics]

df- "to kindle"

dftj (verb; stative df "to be alight", perfective df(j) "kindled", imperfective dfš(j) "be kindling", perfect ddf "have kindled", imperative df "kindle!", negative complement dft)

to kindle a fire, burn kindling

to set events in motion

Derivatives:

dfs (n. n) "kindling, tinder, dry sticks or grass"

dfrj (c. n) "flaming torch"

Etymology: unknown. The verb is not attested in Sattuni, but the derivatives táfā ~ táffas "twig" and taflá "torch, light" are perfect matches, attesting to the antiquity of the verb. However, no Ašarite cognates are forthcoming, and connections in the rest of IE are uncertain. It has been suggested that Shasite dsrj "firebrand" and Sattuni tāþlá "lighter" represent the instrumental of this verb, since they do appear to contain the instrumental suffix, but the phonetics are difficult to reconcile as the apparent required *f ~ *w alternation is not established with any certainty.

[dragonlinguistics]

jjs "ash"

jjs (common noun; obl.sg. jjsj, pl. jjss)

ash, ashes

dust

Derivatives:

jjsn (adj) "ashen; dusty"

jjs(j)- (v) "to dust, clean dust from a surface or object"

jjsn(w)- (v) "to burn to ashes; to pulverise, smash to dust"

jjsk (c. n) "speck of dust"

Etymology: cognate with Sattuni â ~ âhas "ash", Ašarite ḫēš ~ ḫaššiš "ash", from Proto-Sattunic *ḫā́s ~ *ḫəss-, PIE *h₂éh₁s- "ash". jjsn(w)- is cognate with Sattuni âhānutī "to utterly destroy", showing an unclear suffix -ā- before the causative suffix -nu-.

[dragonlinguistics]

pjn "fire"

pjn (neuter noun; obl.sg. pjnj, nom-acc.pl. pjnj, obl.pl. pjns)

fire, flame

Derivatives:

pjnt (c. n) "fever"

pjnk (c. n) "spark"

pjnrj (c. n) "fire-tender"

Etymology: presumably goes back in some way to PIE *péh₂ur "fire", but it's hard to relate to Sattuni páur "fire" and Ašarite peḫur ~ paḫuniš "fire". Cf. also prj "pyre" which is likely also related, and perhaps equivalent to Greek πυρή "pyre".

[dragonlinguistics]

pr "rock wall"

pr (neuter noun; obl.sg. prj, nom-acc.pl. prj, obl.pl. prs)

natural rock wall

rocky outcrop, crag, cliff

Derivatives:

pr(j)- (v) "to scale a wall"

Etymology: disputed. On the one hand, it's evidently close formally and semantically to prn "rock", but on the other, it has a possible parallel in Sattuni páll ~ pállas "overlook; vista". If the latter is the correct connection, it would represent PIE *pél-s- "cliff".

[dragonlinguistics]

prn "rock"

prn (neuter noun; obl.sg. prnj, nom-acc.pl. prnj, obl.pl. prns)

(mass) rock, stone

(count) rock, boulder, large and rough fragment of stone

Derivatives:

prnk (c.n) "stone, pebble, small fragment of stone"

prn(j)- (v) "to throw a stone, (ipfv) to stone"

prns- (v) "to petrify (intr)"

prnsn(w)- (v) "to petrify (tr)"

Etymology: cognate with Sattuni pérān ~ pérnas "rock", Ašarite pirun ~ pirunaš "rock", from Proto-Sattunic *pérun-, cognate with Hittite peru ~ perunas, further related to Sanskrit párvata- "mountain". The origin of the suffix in the Sattuni nom-acc.sg. is unclear.

[dragonlinguistics]

grj "ridge"

grj (neuter noun; obl.sg. grjj, nom-acc.pl. grjj, obl.pl. grjs)

ridge, line of protrusion in a surface

sand dune, especially formed naturally

levee, especially deposited by the Nile flood

dorsal fin of a fish

Derivatives:

grj- (v) "to crest a ridge, dune, hill"

grs- (v) "to form, of sand dunes (always intr.)"

Etymology: related to Sattuni kárr ~ karrís "peak", Ašarite gurraš "mountain", ultimately from PIE *gʷórH- "mountain", but the details of the Proto-Sattunic form are unclear. Sattuni and Ašarite together seem to point to a root noun *gʷórrəs ~ *gʷərrés (thematised in Ašarite) but this would not give a Shasite form with a persistent j in the noun and denominal verb, but missing from the fientive verb.