Toło
The Toło (Far. Talo, "Tlaliolz") are an ethnic and religious group concentrated in urban centers of Huyfárah. They descend from religious separatists of the Epuonim ("infidel") movement, who in the 290s fled to the Tal under Prince Daodas, absorbing some of the local Tlaliolz.
Huyfárah mounted a military campaign against this group. About a third managed to flee south to Kuaguatia, settling there and becoming known as the Puoni. The remaining survivors were captured and sold as indentured servants throughout the empire. Within a couple generations most were able to buy their freedom and established communities in Ussor and the southern cities. By 400, Mɨdu was the center of their culture.
The Toło do not consider themselves ethnically Fáralo, though they are genetically nearly identical to the surrounding population. A child is considered Toło if he has at least one Toło parent. They have often suffered from the religious prejudices of their Etúgə neighbors throughout their history, but during the Lewsfárah period they came to occupy a key role in administration and intellectual life. By ca. 800 they were accepting converts, and by 1100 they comprised about a third of the population of Mɨdu.
The Toło are usually referred to as such in reference to their ethnicity, and Epɨm in reference to their religion. Due to conversion, there is a group of people who consider themselves Epɨm but ethnically Fáralo.
Dialect
Much of the Toło population of Mɨdu speak a distinctive dialect of Namɨdu. Most can use the standard dialect as well, though they may retain something of a Toło accent.
The most distinctive features of the dialect are as follows:
- [ʀ] for initial /r/ and historical /rr/.
- [ʒ] for historical /rw/ and /lw/, which the standard language as simplified to /r/ and /l/. This is most distinctive in the relativizer "that," pronounced [ʒɛmɐ] or [ʒmɐ], and the interrogative particle [ʒɛ] (standard [rɛmɐ], [lɛ]).
- [e] for /ɨ/, while the standard dialect is in the process of merging the phoneme into /i/, /u/, and /ɛ/.
- Fortition of /mm nn ɲɲ/ to [mb nd ɲɟ].
- Generalized mutation of /w/ to /s/ in the nominative, whereas the standard has this only in a few words. This usage is extremely stigmatized, and many speakers will attempt to lose it, though may consequently suffer from hypercorrection.
- Conservation of Classical stress in a few words, thus [ɛ'pem] for Epɨm.
- Preservation of some Tlaliolz vocabulary, such as miluyo "calm; self-assured," and nittsi "woman."
- Usage of leps for the third day of the week rather than ekɨ.
- Usage of mama for "nothing," from mai-mai (standard mipi).
- Usage of tutu for an Etúgə person. The Etúgə may consider this offensive.
- Reduplicated ideophonic words and interjections, such as gitsa-gitsa "wait a minute," some of which have been borrowed into the standard language.
This dialect is normally known as (Forło) Natoło, though the Toło themselves may avoid labeling it as forło.