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Yalbi

A language based on Ithkuil with the goal of preserving sanity

Morphology

Most of Ithkuil’s categories have been reformed into derivational suffixes; most of the rest have been modified somewhat.

Case

Like Ithkuil, Yalbi has nearly a hundred cases. Each case is declined somewhat like a suffix, having three types. A brief description of each case follows. Most of these cases are identical to their Ithkuil counterparts, however some cases have been eliminated or moved and some have been replaced.

Transrelative cases

Abbreviation Name Use
OBL Oblique Content
IND Inducive Agent + patient
ABS Absolutive Patient
ERG Ergative Agent
EFF Effectuative Enabler
AFF Affective Experiencer
DAT Dative Indirect object
DER Derivative Inanimate force or non-deliberate stimulus
SIT Situative Cause
??? Identical? “X is …”

Appositive cases

Abbreviation Name Use
POS Possessive Alienable control/oversight
PRP Proprietive Official ownership or possession accepted by society
GEN Genitive Inalienable or intrinsic ownership
PDC Productive Creator/author/originator
ITP Interpretative “as seen by X”/”through the eyes of X”
OGN Originative Literal/figurative origin
PAR Partitive Quantitative/content-to-container
COR Correlative Abstract association (“spatial coordinates”/”relative to X”)
CPS Compositive Literal/figurative source substance or thing consumed in action

Associative cases

Abbreviation Name Use
ESS Essive Contextual role/name
COM Comitative Accompaniment; not necessarily same action (“with X”)
CNJ Conjunctive Accompaniment; same activity (“along with X”/”alongside X”)
INS Instrumental Used by agent to accomplish action
APL Applicative Current utilization (“used for X”/”used as X”)
PUR Purposive Intended/general utilization (“meant for X”)
UTL Utilitative Being utilized, but not present action (“while using X”)
CSD Considerative “according to X”/”in X’s oppinion”
ASI Assimilative Simile (“like X”)

Relational cases

Abbreviation Name Use
PRD Predicative Dependent or relying on
REF Referential “regarding X”/”pertaining to X”
CLA Classificative “in rows” or “count by fives”
BEN Benefactive “for the sake of X”/”out of respect for X”
TSP Transpositive “on behalf of X”/”in place of X”/”instead of X”/”for X”
CMM Commutative “in exchange for”
DEP Dependent Contingent circumstance (“depending on X”)
PVS Provisional “in the case of X”/”if X”/”provided that there is X”
CMP Comparative “as opposed to X”/”versus X”

Temporal cases

Abbreviation Name Use
ASS Assessive “per X”/”for each X”
CNR Concursive Temporal locative (“happened yesterday”)
ACS Accessive Instant in time (“upon impact”)
PER Periodic Multiple events scattered throughout
PRO Prolapsive Event takes entire duration (“through X”)
PCV Precursive “before X”/”prior to X”/”preceding X”
PCR Postcursive “after X”/”subsequent to X”/”following X”
ELP Elapsive Time since/until event (“X ago”/”X from now”)
??? ???????? “since X”/”until X”

Spatial cases

Abbreviation Name Use
LOC Locative Location (“in X”/”by X”/”at X”)
ORI Orientative Direction serving as forward (“feet-first”/”sideways motion”)
PSV Procursive Orientational reference point (“turned her back on him”)
ALL Allative Motion towards (“towards X”/”headed home”)
ABL Ablative Motion away from (“from the direction of X”)
NAV Navigative “down the street”/”diagonally”
??? ???????? “spatially releative to X”
??? ???????? Goal
EPS Episodic Period of repetition (“every three days”/”each year”/”by day”/”at every X”)

Adverbial cases

Abbreviation Name Use  
CON Concessive “despite X”/”in spite of X”/”regardless of X”/”no matter what”  
EXC Exceptive “except for X”/”excluding X”  
AVR Aversive “for fear of X”/”to avoid X”  
CVS Conversive Exception to a hypothetical situation (“unless X”/”if not for X”)  
TFM Transformative “to X”/”until X”/”into X”  
FUN Functive “(in a manner) characterized by X”  
VOC Vocative Direct address  
SIT Situative Cause; “considering X”/”taking X into account”  
??? ???????? “regardless of X”/”whether or not X”  

Comparison cases

[TODO]

Illocution

Yalbi’s Illocution merges Ithkuil’s Illocution and Sanction.

Abbreviation Name Use
ASR Assertive Neutral statement
ALG Allegative Proposition open to challenge/refutation
IPU Imputative Rebuttable assertion otherwise assumed to be true
THR Theoretical Testable hypothesis/theory
EXV Expatiative Hypothesis/theory that may not be verifiable
DIR Directive Command (“Make it happen such that X”)
IRG Interrogative Question (used with <some suffix that hasn’t been invented yet> [TODO])
ADM Admonitive Warning (“Be wary of X”)
OPT Optative Wishing (“If only X”)
HOR Hortative Encouragement/suggestion (“Let X”)
DEC Declarative Formal announcement; effecting a change per se

Note that Yalbi’s Optative illocution resembles Hortative illocution from Ithkuil, and that Hortative illocution has changed.

Validation

Validation identifies how the speaker knows the information that is being communicated. Validation has been greatly expanded compared to Ithkuil. Note that Validation is only used with Assertive, Allegative, and Imputative illocutions.

Abbreviation Name Use
EPI Epistemic Common knowledge or human convention
AXM Axiomatic Universal truth
PRT Participatory Involved in action
CNF Confirmative Direct observation/knowledge
IDV Indirective Witnessed direct evidence
CNL Conclusory Conclusion from evidence
INF Inferential Inference
ASM Assumptive Assumption
ITU Intuitive Intuition/feeling
SBJ Subjective Opinion
PSM Presumptive Hearsay; trustworthy source
PPT Purportive Hearsay; unknown trustworthiness
PUT Putative Hearsay; untrustworthy source

Perspective

Perspective has been copied almost directly from Ithkuil.

Abbreviation Name Nominal meaning Verbal meaning
M Monadic Singular An event occurring once or repeated within one context
U Unbounded Plural (not collective) An event occurring multiple disconnected times
N Nomic All instances ever Universal rule (eg. “Gravity is one of the fundamental forces”)
A Abstract The idea of X; X-ness “Timeless” verb form (infinitives, gerundives, etc.)

Abstract perspective is not permitted with main verbs.

Collective nouns are shown using <some suffix that hasn’t been invented yet>. [TODO]

Here are some examples of Perspective in use:

Gloss English
to like-ASR-N I-AFF cookie-OBL-M “I like a cookie.”
to like-ASR-N I-AFF cookie-OBL-U “I like [some] cookies.”
to like-ASR-N I-AFF cookie-OBL-N “I like [all] cookies.”
to like-ASR-N I-AFF cookie-OBL-A “I like cookie-ness.”
to jump-ASR-M I-IND “I am jumping.”
to jump-ASR-U I-IND “I have jumped [several disconnected times].”
to jump-ASR-N I-IND “I jump [in general].”
to jump-OBL-A I-INDp “the idea of me jumping”
necktie-ASR-M it-OBL “It’s a necktie.”
necktie-ASR-U it-OBL “It has been a necktie [several disconnected times].”
necktie-ASR-N it-OBL “It is a necktie [in general].”
necktie-OBL-A it-OBLp “the idea of it being a necktie”

Essence

Yalbi’s Essence is identical to Ithkuil’s Essence, except that RPV Representative has been renamed to RPS Representational, to better match NRM Normal.

Abbreviation Name Use
NRM Normal A real thing that exists (or a real event)
RPS Representational Something which doesn’t really exist (or doesn’t really happen)

Context

Yalbi’s Context is similar to Ithkuil’s Context, but without the Amalgamative or Functional. Additionally, RPS Representational has been renamed to MTR Metaphorical to reduce confusion.

Abbreviation Name Use Example
EXS Existential Default context; no special meaning “It’s a cat.”
MTR Metaphorical A metaphor for something “It’s a (metaphorical) cat.”

Note that the Metaphorical context operates independently from Essence; one can have a metaphor for a thing which really exists, or a metaphor for a thing which does not exist.

Yalbi’s MTR Metaphorical essence is based on to Ithkuil’s RPS Representational context, while Yalbi’s RPS Representational essence is based on to Ithkuil’s RPV Representative essence. Confused yet?

Case-frame

Yalbi uses case-frames to emulate subordinate clauses. A case-frame always begins a “framed verb,” a verb with Case instead of Illocution and Validation. The final word of a case frame carries rising tone; thus a one-word case-frame consists of a single verb with rising tone. Alternatively, the word o may be used to end a case-frame. [TODO] Case-frames work exactly as they do in Ithkuil, so just go and read JQ’s explanation for now.