Grammar and Sociolinguistics of Turnalon

[Semi-WIP: I've still got a few formatting issues to work out here, but the information is basically solid]
==Social Positioning & the Türnan Honorific System==
Perhaps one of the cores of Türnan society is the culture's complex honorific system, reflected heavily in its language. Like any such system, multiple factors have contributed to the Türnan honorific system's origins, including cultural isolation, cultural exceptionalism, external cultural stigma, and the polyamorous structure of the average Türnan family. Making distinctions between cultural insiders and outsiders, from nations down to individual families, is a part of everyday life in Ímaí Türna.
This in-group/out-group signaling most heavily impacts the grammatical forms of nouns, pronouns, verbs, and some determiners (particularly demonstratives). Some adjectives are also in/out-group-specific.
==Nouns==
===Noun Cases===
Türnalōn uses four noun cases:
Nominative is the doer of a verb: The boy poured the milkAccusative is the done-to of a verb: The boy poured the milkPossessive Construct is something possessed by something else: The boy poured the milk of the cow [1] [2]Dative is the recipient of something: The boy poured the milk into the bucket
ẹ̇ 	kẹ̇sá ơm 	ābenơȶơ 	ákálprás 	ōmʄẹ̇ta 	áȿkẹ̇ļá 	tús omaí
DEF:ART 	boy-NOM:N 	pour-PST:V 	ACC:N-cow 	milk-CON:N 	into 	DAT:N-bucket
"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"
 	Rule	Example
Nominative	If ends with oʊ̯: Particle after the noun: - loʊ̯m
Else: Particle after the noun: - oʊ̯m	kèsá ơm /keˈsa oʊ̯m/
boy (nominative)
Accusative	If starts with consonant & {i,e,a,o,u}: Prefix a-
If starts with consonant & {ai̯,ʊə̯,eɪ̯,oʊ̯}: Prefix ai̯-
If starts with consonant: Prefix ɔ-
Else: Prefix k-	ákálprás /ˈakalpɹas/
cow (accusative)
Possessive 
Construct	If ends with {i,e,a,o,u,ai̯,ʊə̯,eɪ̯,oʊ̯} & t: Suffix -oʊ̯tu
If ends with {ɪ,ɜ,ɔ,ʊ,ʌ} consonant: Change final consonant to tʊ
If ends with consonant: Change final consonant to tu
If contains {ɪ,ɜ,ɔ,ʊ,ʌ}: Suffix -tʊ
Else: Suffix -tu	ōmʄẹ̇ta /ɔmˈʧeɪ̯tʌ/
milk (possessive construct)
Dative 	If starts with vowel: Particle before the noun: tus -
Else: Particle before the noun: tu -	tús omaí /tus ˈomai̯/
bucket (dative)
----[1] The possessive construct case in Türnalōn is not interchangeable with Possessive Clusivity in pronouns, which can augment or in many cases completely replace the possessive construct noun case depending on context.
[2] This is the word for milk generally, or milk that has been separated from the animal. Milk still inside or actively coming out of the animal would also be called kálprás, and would be subject to collective noun conjugation. If the boy were milking the kálprás to fill the bucket, the sentence would be: 
ẹ̇ 	kẹ̇sá ơm 	ābenơȶơ 	ákálprátu 	kálprásíṙa 	áȿkẹ̇ļá 	tús omaí
DEF:ART 	boy-NOM:N 	pour-PST:V 	ACC:N-cow-CON:N 	milk-COL:N 	into 	DAT:N-bucket
"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"	"the boy poured (the) cow's milk into (the) bucket"
===Plural Nouns===
Nouns in Türnalōn can be singular, plural, or collective.
Singular 	No affix
ơpơdá /ˈoʊ̯poʊ̯da/
house
Plural 	If ends with {a,u,eɪ̯}C: Suffix -in
If ends with {e,i,ai̯,oʊ̯}C: Suffix -an
If ends with {o,ʊə̯}C: Suffix -en
If ends with {ɛ,ʊ,ʌ}C: Suffix -ɪn
If ends with ɪC: Suffix -ʌn
If ends with ɔC: Suffix -ɛn
Else: Suffix -nơpơdán /ˈoʊ̯poʊ̯dan/
houses
Collective	If ends with ai̯: Change final ai̯ to ˈaiɾa
If ends with vowel: Change final V to ˈiɾa
Else: Suffix -ˈiɾaơpơdíṙá /ˈoʊ̯poʊ̯ˌdiɾa/
neighborhood
 
===Collective Nouns===
Collective nouns in Türnalōn are specifically used to denote inalienable nouns, or nouns which are inextricable from one another. One could say that the nouns in question "belong" to each other, as well as sometimes belonging, as a group, to a person or other noun.
In the latter situation, collective nouns can sometimes be considered a part of the larger possessive clusivity and honorific system.
Body parts are often referred to using the collective case:bán: eyebánín: eyes (non-specific, abstract, or figurative)báníṙá: eyes (of a living creature)
====Formal Usage:====
In formal contexts, the possessive construct may be applied to the subject when applying the collective form to the object. In this circumstance, the possessive construct functions more like a genitive case, but utilizing the same morphological form. 
ẹ̇táná 	kèsátú 	báníṙá
DEF:ART-COL 	boy-CON:N 	eye-COL:N
"the boy's eyes"	"the boy's eyes"	"the boy's eyes"
====Informal Usage:====
In casual speech, the possessive construct is usually omitted when speaking about collective nouns where context is otherwise obvious.
ẹ̇táná 	kẹ̇sá 	báníṙá
DEF:ART-COL 	boy 	eye-COL:N
"the boy's eyes"	"the boy's eyes"	"the boy's eyes"
===Other Applications:===
When applying the possessive construct to the subject, applying the plural to an object normally considered collective may provide a significantly distinct, yet still grammatically and semantically correct sentence:
ẹ̇n 	kẹ̇sátú 	bánín
DEF:ART-PL 	boy-CON:N 	eye-PL:N
"the boy's eyes"	"the boy's eyes"	"the boy's eyes"
In this case the usage is figurative, or could be literal if the boy happens to possess some number of disembodied eyes!
==Determiners==
===Articles===
Articles are frequently dropped when using the Informal Mode, and/or when context is obvious (no need to say "the" bucket if there is only one bucket in question).
Definite 	ẹ̇ /eɪ̯/
the
Partitive 	sẹ̇ȿ /seɪ̯ʃ/
some
Indefinite	sá /sa/
a
===Article Conjugation===
Articles have plural agreement with nouns.
Singular 	No affix
ẹ̇ /eɪ̯/
the (singular)
Plural 	If ends with V: Suffix -n
Else: Suffix -eɪ̯n
ẹ̇n /eɪ̯n/
the (plural)
Collective	If ends with V: Suffix -tana
Else: Suffix -ana
ẹ̇táná /ˈeɪ̯tana/
the (collective)
Demonstration of Article Conjugation
ẹ̇ 	kem 	ẹ̇n 	kemẹ̇n 	ẹ̇táná 	kemíṙá
DEF:ART-SG 	apple 	DEF:ART-PL 	apple-PL 	DEF:ART-COL 	apple-COL
"the apple" 	"the apple"	"the apples" 	"the apples" 	"the apples (on a tree)" 	"the apples (on a tree)"
sá 	kem 	sátáná 	kemíṙá 	sẹ̇ȿèn 	kemn
INDEF:ART-SG	apple 	INDEF:ART-COL 	apple-COL 	PRTV:ART-PL 	apple-PL
"an apple" 	"an apple" 	"an apple (on a tree)"	"an apple (on a tree)"	"some apples (off the tree)"	"some apples (off the tree)"
==Demonstratives==
Türnalōn demonstratives use a three-way distinction. (Near me, near you, away from both of us.)
Like many other forms of speech in Türnalōn, demonstratives have case and clusivity/honorific agreement with nouns, adjectives, and pronouns.
 	Proximal	Medial	Distal
Singular 	íȶè /ˈiθe/
this	èlẹ̇ /eˈleɪ̯/
that (medial)	lẹ̇nè /ˈleɪ̯ne/
that (distal)
Plural 	íȶèn /ˈiθen/
these	ẹ̇lèn /ˈeɪ̯len/
those (medial)	lẹ̇nèȿ /ˈleɪ̯neʃ/
those (distal)
Colective	íȶènaí /ˈiθenai̯/
these (collective)	èlẹ̇naí /eˈleɪ̯nai̯/
those (medial collective)	lènẹ̇ȿaí /leˈneɪ̯ʃai̯/
those (distal collective)
This system is used to indicate both physical and social distance.
Depending on the subject and context, speakers are more likely to use the proximal form when speaking to or about insiders, the distal form when speaking about outsiders to insiders, and the medial form when speaking directly to outsiders.
The medial form is seen as a polite, neutral tone, and is often used in public interaction, business dealings, proclamations and government business, etc.
==Verbs==
Verbs have 5 forms:
Ancient past: A rare form reserved for storytelling, and for speaking of eras before the Türna first settled in the valley.Remote past: For speaking about things which happened "very long ago", but often still in living memory. Elders tend to use this form when speaking about their childhoods, for example.Past: For all other past events.Present: For things happening currently.Future: For most things which will or are expected to happen in the future.Remote Future: Most often used in the hypothetical or "someday" sense, but can also be used to describe the far future.
 	Rule	Example
Ancient past 	If contains consonant# & {a,u,eɪ̯}: Suffix -Ímaí̯
If contains consonant# & {e,i,ai̯,oʊ̯}: Suffix -amai̯
If starts with consonant & {o,ʊə̯}: Suffix -emai̯
If contains consonant# & {ɛ,ʊ,ʌ}: Suffix -ɪmai̯
If ends with ɪconsonant: Suffix -ʌmai̯
If ends with ɔconsonant: Suffix -ɛmai̯
Else: Suffix -mai̯	
súȶámaí /suˈθamai̯/
once danced/is said to have danced
Remote past 	If contains vowel# & {a,u,eɪ̯}: Suffix -θiʃ
If contains vowel# & {e,i,ai̯,oʊ̯}: Suffix -θaʃ
If contains vowel# & {o,ʊə̯}: Suffix -θeʃ
If contains vowel# & {ɛ,ʊ,ʌ,ɪ}: Suffix -θʌʃ
If ends with ɔ: Suffix -θɛʃ
If ends with vowel: Suffix -θoʊ̯ʃ
Else: Suffix -oʊ̯θoʊ̯ʃ	súȶátíȿ /ˈsuθatiʃ/
danced (long ago)
Past 	If contains vowel# & {a,u,eɪ̯}: Suffix -θi
If contains vowel# & {e,i,ai̯,oʊ̯}: Suffix -θa
If contains vowel# & {o,ʊə̯}: Suffix -θe
If contains vowel# & {ɛ,ʊ,ʌ,ɪ}: Suffix -θʌ
If ends with ɔ: Suffix -θɛ
If ends with vowel: Suffix -θoʊ̯
Else: Suffix -oʊ̯θoʊ̯	súȶátí /ˈsuθati/
danced
Present 	If ends with consonant: Suffix -eɪ̯
Else: Suffix -deɪ̯	súȶádẹ̇ /suˈθadeɪ̯/
dance
Future 	If starts with consonant & {i,e,a,o,u,ai̯,ʊə̯,eɪ̯,oʊ̯}: Prefix eɪ̯ʦu-
If starts with consonant & {ɪ,ɜ,ʌ,ɔ,ʊ}: Prefix eɪ̯ʦɔ-
Else: Prefix eɪ̯ʦ-	ẹ̇ʦúsúȶá /ˈeɪ̯ʦuˌsuθa/
will dance
Remote future	If starts with consonant: Prefix neɪ̯-
Else: Prefix neɪ̯m-	nẹ̇súȶá /ˈneɪ̯suθa/
will someday dance / may someday dance
===Other Verb Aspects===
Perfect 	No affix
om /om/
is
Imperfective	If ends with {ɔ,ʊ,ɜ,ʌ,ɪ} & vowel: Suffix -teɪ̯s
If ends with {ɔ,ʊ,ɜ,ʌ,ɪ} & consonant: Suffix -eɪ̯s
If ends with vowel: Suffix -ɹn
Else: Suffix -eɪ̯ɹn
lōnẹ̇s /ˈlɔneɪ̯s/
has spoken
Progressive 	If ends with {ɔ,ʊ,ɜ,ʌ,ɪ} & consonant: Suffix -ʊə̯n
If ends with {ɔ,ʊ,ɜ,ʌ,ɪ} & vowel: Suffix -nʊə̯
If ends with vowel: Suffix -la
Else: Suffix -ala
omílá /ˈomila/
is living
Habitual 	Particle after the verb: - ʃim
dơȶā ȿím /ˈdoʊ̯θɔ ʃim/
stands
=Pronouns & Clusivity=
==Personal Pronouns==
Due to their isolated environment, Türnan society was almost entirely insular for nearly 300 years, and in modern times the average Türna's interaction with other cultures is typically limited to commerce or travel. In addition, the complex structure of the average Türnan family requires clarity in one's relationship to others, biological or otherwise. As a result, the personal pronoun system of Türnalōn is easily the most complex on the continent, and possibly on the entire planet. A Türnan joke goes:
Q: How does one know his child is old enough for school?A: Her teacher is not her sister, and her bondsmother is no longer a stranger.
The joke hinges on both rhyming words (kaí = sister, faí = teacher), and the often incorrectly-applied pronoun usage of young children during language acquisition. It's arguably much funnier untranslated.
Q: íká ơȶènátú tèboútú púnom ẹ̇bá faínom?A: táẹ̇ onáfaílơtú nom onákaílơtú nom ȿaí, ơ táè másáná nom átáèko másánáko nomơȶơ ȿaí
== Modes & Clusivity ==
===Inclusive/Informal Mode===
The basic personal pronouns for in-group members are used by Türna, for Türna, and among Türna. The Inclusive mode, sometimes called the Informal mode, is the mode used between family members and close friends, and when speaking casually about other members of the in-group. If a Türna refers or speaks to a non-Türna using the Informal mode, it means the speaker considers the non-Türna to be family, or equivalent to family.
The Inclusive mode acts as the root for the Formal and Exclusive modes, using a surprisingly logical and regular system of affixes.
 	1st person	2nd person	3rd person animate	3rd person inanimate
Singular 	èná
/eˈna/
I	ơȶẹ̇ 
/oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯/
you	táè 
/ˈtae/
he, she, they (singular)	átí
/aˈti/
it
Plural 	ẹ̇nán 
/eɪ̯ˈnan/
we	ơȶènán 
/oʊ̯ˈθenan/
you (plural)	táènán 
/ˈtaenan/
they (plural)	átín 
/aˈtin/
they (plural, inanimate)
Collective	ná 
/na/
we all, 
our kind	ơȶèná 
/oʊ̯ˈθena/
you (collective)	táèíná 
/taˈei̯na/
they (collective), their kind	átíná 
/aˈtina/
they (collective, inanimate)
Collective case in personal pronouns is complex. 1st Person Personal Pronouns are especially of note. The most direct translation for the 1st Person Collective word ná would be "we all", but the unspoken implication is "we, as Türna" in effect speaking for the group as a whole. This form is frequently used singularly, that is, in place of ẹ̇ná, and when used in that context, means "I, as a Türna".
A person might use the collective singular to signal loyalty, to imply that they are a typical example of a Türna, somewhat analogous to the way one might say, "Americans like hot dogs", or as a form of evidentiality, to emphasize that of course something is true of them, because they are Türna.
ẹ̇ná 	bum 	hā ȿím 	nơ 	ẹ̇ 	tásaínẹ̇ȿ
1.COL:PRON 	love 	walk-PRE.HAB:V 	in 	DEF:ART 	forest
"I love walking in the forest"	"I love walking in the forest"	"I love walking in the forest"	"I love walking in the forest"	"I love walking in the forest"	"I love walking in the forest"
ná 	bum 	hā ȿím 	nơ	ẹ̇ 	tásaínẹ̇ȿ
1.COL:PRON	love	walk-PRE.HAB:V	in	DEF:ART	forest
"I/We all love walking in the forest"
"I, like all Türna, love walking in the forest"	"I/We all love walking in the forest"
"I, like all Türna, love walking in the forest"	"I/We all love walking in the forest"
"I, like all Türna, love walking in the forest"	"I/We all love walking in the forest"
"I, like all Türna, love walking in the forest"	"I/We all love walking in the forest"
"I, like all Türna, love walking in the forest"	"I/We all love walking in the forest"
"I, like all Türna, love walking in the forest"
The 2nd and 3rd Person Collective Case is used when referring to a smaller group of people, such as a family, sports team, subcultural group, etc. These tenses do not always hold the same Ímaí Türna-wide implications as the 1st Person tense, but are often used to generalize about the smaller group in similar ways.
===Formal Mode===
Formal mode is used when respect is called for: in business interactions, addressing mixed groups of insiders and outsiders, and addressing someone whose status is ambiguous. Formal pronouns agree with Medial demonstratives. This form is also the polite form used by outsiders when speaking to insiders about insiders.
Formal	If starts with vowel: Prefix s-
Else: Prefix sa-sơȶẹ̇ /ˈsoʊ̯θeɪ̯/
you (formal)
===Exclusive Mode===
In Türnalōn, Exclusive Mode is more expansive than a simple including/not-including you type of clusivity. Clusivity in Türnalōn extends to the entire language in multiple ways, including in the use of pronouns. Exclusive pronouns agree with Distal demonstratives. Exclusive mode should be used by outsiders when speaking about themselves and to other outsiders. It is also a form used by Insiders to refer to outsiders in less formal contexts - usage of the exclusive rather than the formal to address an outsider infers a degree of familiarity between speakers, while still maintaining a level of social distance.
Insiders never use the exclusive mode to refer or speak to other insiders. A Türna using the exclusive to refer to another Türna would be seen as both bizarre/nonsensical, and greatly offensive. Türna don't even use the exclusive to refer to Türnan social outcasts and despised criminals - it's simply not done.
Exclusive	Suffix -ko
ơȶẹ̇ko /oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯ko/
you (outsider)
==Personal Pronoun Cases==
Case conjugation for personal pronouns is similar, but not identical, to case conjugation for nouns. Personal pronouns are not modified for the nominative case (though certain other, non-personal pronouns may be). Note also that Collective pronouns use the suffix -na rather than -iɾa to denote the specific in-group signaling. Pronoun case is not conjugated by clusivity: the formality rules are applied to the word first, and the case is applied afterward.
===Singular===
 	1st person	2nd person	3rd person animate	3rd person inanimate
Accusative 	kẹ̇ná /keɪ̯ˈna/
me, myself	kơȶẹ̇ /koʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯/
you, yourself	átáè /aˈtae/
him/her/them (sg)
himself/herself/themselves (sg)	kátí /kaˈti/
it
possessive construct	ènátú /eˈnatu/
my, mine	ơȶẹ̇tú /oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯tu/
your, yours	táẹ̇tú /taˈeɪ̯tu/
his, hers, her (gen), 
theirs (sg), their (sg)	átítú /aˈtitu/
its
Dative 	tús èná /tus eˈna/
to me	tús ơȶẹ̇ /tus oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯/
to you	tú táẹ̇ /tu ˈtaeɪ̯/
to him, to her, to them (sg)	tús átí /tus aˈti/
to it
=== Plural ===
 	1st person	2nd person	3rd person animate	3rd person inanimate
Accusative 	kẹ̇nán /keɪ̯ˈnan/ 
us	kơȶènán /koʊ̯ˈθenan/ 
you all	átáẹ̇nán /aˈtaeɪ̯nan/
them (pl)	kátín /kaˈtin/ 
them (inanimate)
possessive construct	ẹ̇nántú /eɪ̯ˈnantu/
our, ours	ơȶẹ̇nántú /oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯nantu/
your (pl), yours (pl)	táènántú /ˈtaeˌnantu/
their (pl), theirs (pl)	átítú /aˈtitu/
theirs (ina), their (ina)
Dative 	tús ènán /tus eˈnan/ 
to us	tús ơȶẹ̇nán /tus oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯nan/ 
to you all	tú táènán /tu ˈtaenan/ 
to them (pl)	tús átíná /tus aˈtina/ 
to them (ina)
=== Collective ===
 	1st person	2nd person	3rd person animate	3rd person inanimate
Accusative 	áná 
/aˈna/
all of us	kơȶèná 
/koʊ̯ˈθena/
all of you all, your kind	átáẹ̇ná
/aˈtaeɪ̯na/
all of them, their kind	kátíná
/kaˈtina/
them (ina, col)
possessive construct	nátú 
/naˈtu/
all of our, all of ours	ơȶẹ̇nátú 
/oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯natu/
all of your, all of yours, belonging to your kind	táènátú 
/taeˈnatu/
all of theirs, belonging to all of their kind	átínátú
/aˈtinatu/
all of theirs (ina), all of their (ina)
Dative 	tú ná 
/tu na/
to us all	tús ơȶẹ̇ná 
/tus oʊ̯ˈθeɪ̯na/
to all of you all	tú táèná 
/tu ˈtaena/
to all of them, to all of their kind	tús átíná 
/tus aˈtina/
to all of them (ina)
=Numerals=
Numerical values in Türnalōn follow a very regular system. One through ten have their own words, the rest of the tens through one-hundred follow the structure: #Tens, #Ones. Note that the word for zero is also the word for "nothing".
ȿáơ 	ẹ̇ 	tí 	kú 	pā 	rơ 	lá 	lơn 	kẹ̇sè	omā 	kơȿ
zero	one	two	three	four	five	six	seven	eight	nine	ten
kơȿè 	tíkơȿpā 	kúkơȿlơn 	pākơȿtí
ten-one 	two-ten-four 	three-ten-seven 	four-ten-two
"eleven", "twenty-four", "thirty-seven", "fourty-two"	"eleven", "twenty-four", "thirty-seven", "fourty-two"	"eleven", "twenty-four", "thirty-seven", "fourty-two"	"eleven", "twenty-four", "thirty-seven", "fourty-two"
There are individual words for hundred, thousand, and million (though million is also the word for "unfathomably huge").
síl 	tōntẹ̇ 	kơbá
one-hundred	one-thousand	one-million
Numerals over 100 follow the same structure as the others, but with the zero specified, if it's present.
kúsílȿáơkơȿtí	rơtōntẹ̇ȿáơȿílákơȿáơ	tōntẹ̇ȿáơȿílȿáơkơȿtí
302 	5060 	1002
Counting requires a counter suffix appended to the number:
ẹ̇ do, 	tí do, 	kú do
one-COUNT, 	two-COUNT, 	three-COUNT
"one, two, three"	"one, two, three"	"one, two, three"
Counting backwards (down) uses the same counter, but has two different ways of reaching zero. The first is more formal/adult than the second:
kú do,	tí do,	ẹ̇ do,	ȿáơ
three,	two, 	one, 	zero
kú do,	tí do,	ẹ̇ do,	ȿaívás
three,	two, 	one, 	no.more/all.done
Category:Languages