#diaeresis

whatss that lil accent mean

How to Evolve Your #Conlang - Part 1: Sound Change

Languages are never set in stone, and your conlang shouldn’t really be either. This is to be the first part of a recurring series on the basics of historical linguistics and how to evolve your conlang. In this first part, I will discuss the various kinds of sound changes that can occur and how to apply them to conlanging.

The obvious way to use historical linguistics in conlanging is to first…

Un tréma is this sign ¨ that you find mainly over vowels e, i + u, over vowels u + y in last names/locations and over vowels a, o + u in borrowed words. It has three functions : #1. It indicates the necessity of pronouncing separately two graphemes instead of treating them like a couple. #2. It makes a vowel mute. #3. It symbolises an umlaut (germanic sign). 

Nouns : Noël (Christmas, m), ciguë (hemlock, f), canoë (canoe, m), oïl (former name of northern/central France, bits of Belgium + Switzerland), skaï (old pu leather from the 80s), raï (north african music), ouïe (hearing, f), caïd (mob boss, m), coït (coitus, rare), païen-ne (pagan), laiüs (long annoying speech, patter, m), aïeux (forefathers), aïeul-e (grandparent), caïman (cayman, m), bonsaï (bonsai, m), naïveté (naivety, f), laïcité (secularity, f), héroïne (female heroin of a novel, drug, f), glaïeul (gladiolus, m), faïence (earthenware, f), égoïsme (selfishness, m), héroïsme (heroism, m), ambiguïté (ambiguousness, f), coïncidence (coincidence, f), dadaïsme (dadaism, m), Aïd-El-Kebir (Eid al-Adha), paranoïa (paranoia, f), 

Adjectives : aiguë (high-pitched, sharp (pain), f), exiguë (cramped, tiny, f), ambiguë (ambiguous, f), contiguë (adjacent to, f), naïf/naïve (naive), laÏc/laïque (secular, religion-neutral), haï-e (hated), inouï-e (incredible, never heard of before), ovoïde (egg-shaped, ép), Hawaïen-ne (Hawaiian), égoïste (selfish, ép), stoïque (stoical, ép), héroïque (heroic, ép), hébraïque (hebraic, hebrew, ép), archaïque (archaic, ép), 

Verbs : ouïr (to hear, old/rare), haïr (to hate), laïciser (to secularise), 

Others : ô!, aïe (ouch!), taïaut (hunt vocabulary, fam means ‘go!’ or ‘run!’), par ouï-dire (by hearsay, invariable)

The diaeresis are two dots that are often placed above a vowel. It is used when 2 vowels that are next to each other can be pronounced as one sound, but shouldn’t be.

The diaeresis is placed on the following 14 letter combinations: ee, ei, eu, ie, aa, ae, ai, au, ui, uu, oe, oi, oo and ou. Example: poëzie (poetry), reünie (reunion), koloniën (colonies), ruïne (ruin).

Rule 1: words that end on French or Spanish letter combinations are exceptions: eum, ien, eus and ei. Example: petroleum (petrol), opticien (optician).

Rule 2: when there are more than 2 lettercombinations, then the vowel after the i does not get a diaeresis. The e or i after that does. Example: begroeiing (vegetation), aaien (petting), knieën (knees), mozaïek (mosaic), geëerd (honoured)

Rule 3: when a number is written in full, it sometimes needs a diaeresis. Example: tweeëntwintig (twenty-two), drieëndertig (thirty-three). You can find more info on this here.

Rule 4: you don’t put it on compiled words. Example: ‘na-apen’ (silly way of saying 'to imitate’) not naäpen, 'zee-egel’ (sea urchin) not zeeëgel.

Rule 5: words that end on a 'ie’ that’s not stressed get 'iën’ in plural. Example: koloniën (colonies), provinciën (provinces).

Rule 6: words that end on a 'ie’ that is stressed get 'ieën’ in plural. Example: knieën (knees), industrieën (industries), melodieën (melodies).

Rule 7: another exception is that there is no diaeresis when there is a suffix. Example: lila-achtig (lila-like), not lilaächtig.

Accents in English writing 👀

n. See dieresis.

n. The separation or resolution of one syllable into two; – the opposite of synæresis.

n. A mark ( ¨ ) placed over the second of two adjacent vowels to indicate that they are to be pronounced as separate sounds rather than a diphthong, as in naïve.