Proto-Jánjéo-Ájnfamo

Proto-Jánjéo-Ájnfamo
Period	around -4000 YP to -3500 YP
Spoken in	eastern Tuysáfa
Total speakers	unknown
Writing system	unknown
Classification	Ájnljo
Typology
Basic word order	unknown
Morphology	unknown
Alignment	unknown
Credits
Created by	unknown

PJÁ (Proto-Jánjéo-Ájnfamo) is the language predecesor to both Jánjéo and Ájnfamo languages. Unlike other Ájnljo languages in eastern Tuysáfa, it's rather conservative, as well as it's daughter languages.

Phonology

Consonants

Nasals	m		n
Stops & affricates	p	c͡p ~ t͡pʲ ~ cʷ (?) <c>	t		k
Fricatives			s	ʃ <x>
Sonorants			r l

Vowels

	Front	Back
Low	i	u
High	ɛ <e>	ɔ <o> ɑ <a>

Semivowels

w j

/ɑ/ is realised as [a] before j - [ɑ] [ɑw], [aj]

Syllable structure is CVS. Words are one or two syllables long and the two parts of the twosyllable words are most often independant words as well. Furthermore each syllable has one of two tones, high and low. Low is unmarked, high is marked with acute accent.

Syntax

Word order is rather strict SVO. Adverbs of time tend to go before the subject, adverbs of frequency and probability somewhat so. Following the object are adverbs of place and of manner, in this order. Typically for the earlier Ájnljo languages, PJÁ uses causative constructions with the particle mú:

S mú O V (O2) - S makes O do V (to O2)

S mú O N - S turns O into N

S mú O A - S makes O A

S mú O - S creates(brings into existance)/activates/employs O - this one is rather ambiguous, depending on the context and words. It has wide range of meanings into other Ájnljo languages, where present.

The equivalent of causative constructions for the subject are:

S cej N - S turns into N

S cej A - S gets/becomes A

PJÁ is overwhelmingly head-initial, with adjectives coming after nouns and adverbs after adjectives.

Morphology

PJÁ has no inflectional morphology at all, not even for number - adverbs are used for that. It has compound words, though in most cases they can also be analysed as set phrases. However, some roots are becoming grammaticalised with specific function already, e.g. náj- meaning -er and mow-, denoting general participle and gerund.

The language has retained somewhat the productivity of employing serial verbs construction, limiting at two at most, with the majority of them becoming one word. There is a slight tendency consequently to make new serial verbs out of the new bisyllabic ones.

Adverbs of number most commonly used in the place of numeral morphology:

• pu - one
• ka - many
• now - some, several
• pumow - alone
• kow - little, few
• xó - no, none
• si - two
• ké - great number of, extremely many, a myriad
• sipu - three
• siro nu - some, paucal number, litterally 'about five', five Q
• ka nu - unknown number

The three four are most commonly used. However, when the number can be understood from the context, adverbs are usually not used.