Azkali language: Difference between revisions

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The origins of the Azkali language are disputed. The leading theory is that Azkali originated in southeast Baphia, and that speakers of Proto-Azkali migrated south into the [[Azkali peninsula]]. The date of this hypothesized migration is unclear - however, most estimates place it as being approximately nine thousand years ago. There are other theories that have been proposed for Proto-Azkali's origins, most notably the [...] conondrum, positing an origin in [...], which would supposedly explain the similiarity of some words between Proto-Azkali and Proto-Mallo-Brausian, and the Brausian hypothesis, positing an origin in northern Brausia. All of these theories have substantial proof supporting them, but the hypothesis with the most is the Baphian hypothesis

The ~~oldest example of the Azkali language being written is from~~ around 5000 BCE, ~~in an ancient form of what~~ is ~~believed to be~~ the [[Azkali ~~alphabet]]~~. ~~If the date~~ is ~~correct, this would make~~ the Azkali alphabet ~~one of the oldest extant writing systems in the world.~~

The Merwa complaint, dated around 5000 BCE, is the oldest extant text of Azkali writing. It is written in the Old Azkali alphabet

=== ~~Proto-Azkali~~ (8000-6000 BCE) ===

=== Pataxea (8000-6000 BCE) ===

See main article: ''[[~~Proto-Azkali language~~]]''

See main article: [[Pataxea]]

=== Classical Azkali (1500 BCE) ===

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== Phonology ==

According to most analyses, Azkali has a modest vowel system of five vowels, notably including the lack of a rounded back mid vowel, instead being unrounded. The estimated number of allophones of these vowels is between ten and twelve, though some dialects have as many as fifteen. Some analyses posit these allophones as phonemic, possibly making Azkali the language with one of the largest vowel systems in the world. The chart shown below describes the Southern Azkali, Eastern Azkali, and Chekearoa dialect vowels, as well as the vowels of Standard Azkali.

~~{| class="wikitable"~~

~~|+Standard Azkali vowel phonemes~~

!

~~! colspan="2" |Front~~

~~! rowspan="2" |Central~~

~~! rowspan="2" |Back~~

|-

!

~~!Short~~

~~!Long~~

|-

~~!Close~~

|i

~~|i:~~

|

|u

|-

~~!Near close~~

|ɪ

|

|ə

~~|ʊ̜~~

|-

~~!Close mid~~

|e

~~|e:~~

|

|ɤ

|-

~~!Open mid~~

|ɛ

|

|-

~~!Open~~

|æ

~~|æ:~~

|a

~~|a:~~

|}

~~The pronunciation of these vowels changes depending on the phonological environment that surrounds it. The following is a list of most allophonic variation in regards to vowels:~~

* Word initially, ~~/i/ is pronounced as /ɪ/~~. The ~~sole exception to this rule that can be found~~ is ~~ironically the word ''azkali''.~~

=== Vowels ===

* Word initially, ~~/a/ is pronounced~~ as ~~/æ/~~.

According to most analyses, Azkali has a modest vowel system of five vowels, notably including the lack of a rounded back mid vowel, instead being unrounded. The estimated number of allophones of these vowels is between twenty and twenty four, though some dialects have as many as thirty. Some analyses posit these allophones as phonemic, possibly making Azkali the language with one of the largest vowel systems in the world. The chart shown below describes the Southern Azkali, Eastern Azkali, and Chekearoa dialect vowels, as well as the vowels of Standard Azkali.

* Word finally, /a/ is pronounced as ~~either a schwa~~, ~~or occasionally it is not said at all~~.

* /e/, ~~when followed by /t̪s̻/, /t̺s̺/, /s̻/, /s̺/, /θ/~~, and ~~/ð/~~, ~~is pronounced~~ as ~~/ɛ/.~~

* Word initially, or before /k/, /u/ is pronounced as ~~/ʊ̜/, i.e a less rounded (or sometimes completely unrounded) pronunciation~~ of ~~/ʊ/.~~

* '''continue later I'm lazy'''

~~The following demonstrates every~~ Azkali ~~vowel phoneme and allophone~~. ~~Phonemes are bolded, whilst allophones are italicized~~

{| class="wikitable"

|+Azkali vowel ~~phones~~

|+Azkali vowel phonemes

!

!Front

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/a/

|}

The pronunciation of these vowels changes depending on the phonological environment that surrounds it. There are in general three main rules:

# (Phonemic) vowels at the end of words are heightened and or elongated.

# (Phonemic) vowels at the start of words are centralized.

# (Phonemic) vowels that are stressed are lowered.

From there, there are a larger number of sub-rules which modify each of the main rules. These are the rules for /i/:

# At the start of a word, /i/ is pronounced as /ɨ:/.

# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /i/ is pronounced as /ɨ/.

# In the sequences /ui/, /iu/, or /ei/, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ/.

## In the case of /iu/, if it is at the start of a word, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ:/.

# When stressed, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ/

## At the start of a word, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ:/.

These are the rules for /u/:

# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜:/

# In any sequence of /u/ and another vowel, regardless of order, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜/

## If said sequence is at the start of the word, and /u/ is the first phoneme in the sequence, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜:/

# When stressed, /u/ is pronounced as /ɘ̝/.

These are the rules for /e/:

# At the start of a word, /e/ is pronounced as /ɛ:/.

# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /e/ is pronounced as /ɛ/.

# In any sequence of /e/ and another vowel, only when /e/ is the first vowel in the sequence, /e/ is pronounced as /ɵ:/.

## In the case of /ei/, however, /e/ is pronounced as /e/. However, if /ei/ starts a word, the /e/ is pronounced as /e:/.

# When stressed, /e/ is pronounced as /ɜ/.

# In a sequence of an affricate and /e/, the /e/ is pronounced as /ɛ/.

These are the rules for /ɤ/:

# At the start of a word, /ɤ/ Is pronounced as /ɤ̞:/.

# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ɤ̞/ (mid, instead of close-mid).

# In any sequence of /ɤ/ and another vowel, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ə/.

## If said sequence is at the start of the word, and /ɤ/ is the first phoneme in the sequence, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ɤ:/.

# When stressed, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ɜ/.

These are the rules for /a/:

# At the start of a word, /a/ is pronounced as /æ:/.

# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /a/ is pronounced as /æ/.

# In any sequence of /a/ and an other vowel, /a/ is pronounced as /ə/.

## If said sequence is at the start of the word, and /a/ is the first phoneme in the sequence, /a/ is pronounced as /ɜ/.

# When stressed, /a/ is pronounced as /ɑ:/.

The following demonstrates every Azkali vowel phoneme and allophone. Phonemes are bolded, whilst allophones are italicized.

{| class="wikitable"

|+Azkali vowel phones

! rowspan="2" |

! colspan="2" |Front

! colspan="2" |Central

! colspan="2" |Back

|-

!short

!long

!short

!long

!short

!long

|-

!Close

|'''i'''

|''i:''

|''ɨ''

|''ɨ:''

|'''u'''

|''u:''

|-

!Near close

|''ɪ''

|''ɪ:''

|''ɘ̝''

|

|''ʊ̜''

|''ʊ̜:''

|-

!Close mid

|'''e'''

|''e:''

|

|''ɵ:''

|'''ɤ'''

|''ɤ:''

|-

!Mid

|

|''ə''

|

|''ɤ̞''

|''ɤ̞:''

|-

!Open mid

|''ɛ''

|''ɛ:''

|''ɜ''

|

|-

!Open

|''æ''

|''æ:''

|'''a'''

|

|''ɑ:''

|}

=== Consonants ===

{| class="wikitable"

|-

! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |

! rowspan="2" |~~'''~~Bilabial~~'''~~

! rowspan="2" |Bilabial

! colspan="2" |~~'''~~Alveolar~~'''~~

! colspan="2" |Alveolar

! rowspan="2" |~~'''~~Dental~~'''~~

! rowspan="2" |Dental

! rowspan="2" |~~'''~~Palatal~~'''~~

! rowspan="2" |Palatal

! rowspan="2" |~~'''~~Velar~~'''~~

! rowspan="2" |Velar

! rowspan="2" |~~'''~~Glottal~~'''~~

! rowspan="2" |Glottal

|-

!Lamino-

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alveolar

|-

! colspan="2" |~~'''~~Nasal~~'''~~

! colspan="2" |Nasal

|'''m'''

/m/

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|

|-

! colspan="2" |~~'''~~Plosive~~'''~~

! colspan="2" |Plosive

|'''p'''

/p/

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|

|-

! colspan="2" |~~'''~~Affricate~~'''~~

! colspan="2" |Affricate

|

|'''tz'''

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|

|-

! rowspan="2" |~~'''~~Fricative~~'''~~

! rowspan="2" |Fricative

!voiceless

|

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|

|'''dh'''

|'''d'''

/ð/

|

|-

! colspan="2" |~~'''~~Approximant~~'''~~

! colspan="2" |Approximant

|'''rr'''

/ɹ̠ʷ/

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|

|-

! colspan="2" |~~'''~~Tap~~'''~~

! colspan="2" |Tap

|

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Contrasting with almost all of the languages that geographically surround it, Azkali has no true voiced stops. The only analog to a voiced stop, romanized as <g>, is a voiced velar lateral affricate ([ɡʟ̝]) in somewhat more than half of all recorded dialects. The other half pronounce it as /g/. Dialects that pronounce g as /ɡʟ̝/ are what are known as ''[[Zigeran (Azkali language)|zigeran]]'' dialects.

The Azkali consonant system is characterized by (1) four nasal phonemes, two of which, the voiced palatal and velar nasals (marked in parentheses in the above table), are fairly uncommon; (2) in most dialects, the lack of voiced stop altogether; (3) in about half of all dialects, the presence of the voiced velar lateral affricate /ɡʟ̝/, an extremely rare phoneme, in the place of a voiced velar stop; (4) the existence of a distinction between lamino-dental and apico-alveolar voiceless sibilant fricatives; (5) the existence of voiceless and voiced dental fricatives; and (6), the distinction between the voiced labialized post-alveolar approximant and the voiced alveolar tap.

The Azkali consonant system is characterized by (1) four nasal phonemes, two of which, the voiced palatal and velar nasals (marked in parentheses in the above table), are fairly uncommon; (2) in most dialects, the lack of voiced stop altogether; (3) in about half of all dialects, the presence of the voiced velar lateral affricate /ɡʟ̝/, an extremely rare phoneme, in the place of a voiced velar stop; (4) the existence of a distinction between lamino-dental and apico-alveolar voiceless sibilant fricatives, a distinction seen in only a handfull of other languages; (5) the existence of voiceless and voiced dental fricatives, possibly due to aereal influences from Loremese; and (6), the distinction between the voiced labialized post-alveolar approximant and the voiced alveolar tap.

The phoneme /h/ is extremely variable — most dialects, including the Otzeipao, Chekearoa, Atzogui(riki), and Kalilondan dialects pronounce it as /h/. However, most inland dialects and the Achari dialect substitute /h/ with it's voiced variant /ɦ/. Further still, Northern dialects and the Hadheri neighborhood of Chekearoa, especially starting around the 1960s, have began to pronounce /h/ as /x/. In most dialects /h/ is pronounced as /x/ in rapid speech, but again this is not a universal phenomenon, as even in rapid speech Otzeipao dialects regularly keep the pronunciation as /h/.

There are a large range of dialects, and many of them have radically different phonetic inventories compared to standard Azkali dialects.

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Azkali nouns are overtly declined for six grammatical cases (the '''ergative, absolutive, possessive, privative, dative,''' and '''instrumental''') and three numbers (the '''singular, paucal,''' and '''plural'''), lacking grammatical gender. Azkali verbs conjugate for four moods (the '''indicative, conditional, hypothetical''', and '''imperative'''), three tenses (the '''far past, past,''' and '''non past'''), and in two verbs, person. Azkali verbs also have past and future participle, gerundive, and agentive forms. Save irregular verbs, Azkali verbs have some seventeen unique verbal forms.

[[File:Old book gathering.jpg|thumb|The oldest surviving copy of the [[Azalyi Gazi Chixgartai Ka]], at the [[Museum of Azkali History (Otzeipao)|Museum of Azkali History]] in Otzeipao. The copy shown is estimated to have been written between 900 BCE to 1,100 BCE.]]

Azkali is usually considered an ~~agglunative~~ language~~, though its verbs are fusionally constructed. Azkali nouns are constructed much more agglutinatively than verbs~~; for example, the noun ''[[Anakimateyagezereketara (song)|anakimateyagezereketara]]'' means "accomplished with the great relatives", or "with the help of the great relatives"~~; this~~ can be broken down as ''a-(n)-akimateya-gez-(e)-rek-(e)-tar-a'', where:

Azkali is usually considered an agglutinative language; for example, the noun ''[[Anakimateyagezereketara (song)|anakimateyagezereketara]]'' means "accomplished with the great relatives", or "with the help of the great relatives". This can be broken down as ''a-(n)-akimateya-gez-(e)-rek-(e)-tar-a'', where:

{| class="wikitable"

|+

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This example is somewhat misleading, as a more analytical construction would be used colloquially, but is still representative of most formal texts.

Verbs, structurally speaking, are much more simpler than nouns. Azkali verbs only conjugate for tense and mood, with the exception of ''isan'' (to be) and ''huka'' (to do), which conjugate differently in regards to person. There is one conjugation which is extremely regular. Azkali conjugation remains remarkably simpler when compared to it's surrounding languages in different language families; compound verbal forms are extremely simple, though in general fairly uncommon.

Azkali is a ''strictly'' subject-verb-object language, contrasting with its neighboring Mallo-Brausian and Paleo-Azkali languages. Azkali is primarily a head-initial language. Azkali nouns go before adjectives, auxiliary verbs go before main verbs, and possesses go before possessors. Notably, Azkali uses a combination of postpositions and prepositions, with prepositions predominating. Further still, a number of prepositions fuse with the noun they modify.

Azkali is a ''strictly'' subject-verb-object language, contrasting with its neighboring Mallo-Brausian and Paleo-Azkali languages. Pronouns are never deleted, even when they are clear by context; as such, Azkali is classified as an anti [[w:Pro-drop_language|pro-drop language]]. The lack of deleting pronouns when they are clear by context is a relatively new phenomena, caused by the drastic simplification of Azkali conjugation between the 1900s and 2000s. Azkali frequently employs [[w:Serial_verb_construction|serial verb constructions]], especially in cases in which the verbs occur as a part of the same larger action, or if they occur simultaneously.

Azkali is primarily a head-initial language. Azkali nouns go before adjectives, auxiliary verbs go before main verbs, and possesses go before possessors. Notably, Azkali uses a combination of postpositions and prepositions, with prepositions predominating. Further still, a number of prepositions fuse with the noun they modify.

== Argot and slang ==

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
 The origins of the Azkali language are disputed. The leading theory is that Azkali originated in southeast Baphia, and that speakers of Proto-Azkali migrated south into the [[Azkali peninsula]]. The date of this hypothesized migration is unclear - however, most estimates place it as being approximately nine thousand years ago. There are other theories that have been proposed for Proto-Azkali's origins, most notably the [...] conondrum, positing an origin in [...], which would supposedly explain the similiarity of some words between Proto-Azkali and Proto-Mallo-Brausian, and the Brausian hypothesis, positing an origin in northern Brausia. All of these theories have substantial proof supporting them, but the hypothesis with the most is the Baphian hypothesis
-The oldest example of the Azkali language being written is from around 5000 BCE, in an ancient form of what is believed to be the [[Azkali alphabet]]. If the date is correct, this would make the Azkali alphabet one of the oldest extant writing systems in the world.
+The Merwa complaint, dated around 5000 BCE, is the oldest extant text of Azkali writing. It is written in the Old Azkali alphabet
-=== Proto-Azkali (8000-6000 BCE) ===
+=== Pataxea (8000-6000 BCE) ===
-See main article: ''[[Proto-Azkali language]]''
+See main article: [[Pataxea]]
 === Classical Azkali (1500 BCE) ===
@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 == Phonology ==
-According to most analyses, Azkali has a modest vowel system of five vowels, notably including the lack of a rounded back mid vowel, instead being unrounded. The estimated number of allophones of these vowels is between ten and twelve, though some dialects have as many as fifteen. Some analyses posit these allophones as phonemic, possibly making Azkali the language with one of the largest vowel systems in the world. The chart shown below describes the Southern Azkali, Eastern Azkali, and Chekearoa dialect vowels, as well as the vowels of Standard Azkali.
-{| class="wikitable"
-|+Standard Azkali vowel phonemes
-!
-! colspan="2" |Front
-! rowspan="2" |Central
-! rowspan="2" |Back
-|-
-!
-!Short
-!Long
-|-
-!Close
-|i
-|i:
-|
-|u
-|-
-!Near close
-|ɪ
-|
-|ə
-|ʊ̜
-|-
-!Close mid
-|e
-|e:
-|
-|ɤ
-|-
-!Open mid
-|ɛ
-|
-|
-|
-|-
-!Open
-|æ
-|æ:
-|a
-|a:
-|}
-The pronunciation of these vowels changes depending on the phonological environment that surrounds it. The following is a list of most allophonic variation in regards to vowels:
-* Word initially, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ/. The sole exception to this rule that can be found is ironically the word ''azkali''.
+=== Vowels ===
-* Word initially, /a/ is pronounced as /æ/.
+According to most analyses, Azkali has a modest vowel system of five vowels, notably including the lack of a rounded back mid vowel, instead being unrounded. The estimated number of allophones of these vowels is between twenty and twenty four, though some dialects have as many as thirty. Some analyses posit these allophones as phonemic, possibly making Azkali the language with one of the largest vowel systems in the world. The chart shown below describes the Southern Azkali, Eastern Azkali, and Chekearoa dialect vowels, as well as the vowels of Standard Azkali.
-* Word finally, /a/ is pronounced as either a schwa, or occasionally it is not said at all.
-* /e/, when followed by /t̪s̻/, /t̺s̺/, /s̻/, /s̺/, /θ/, and /ð/, is pronounced as /ɛ/.
-* Word initially, or before /k/, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜/, i.e a less rounded (or sometimes completely unrounded) pronunciation of /ʊ/.
-* '''continue later I'm lazy'''
-The following demonstrates every Azkali vowel phoneme and allophone. Phonemes are bolded, whilst allophones are italicized
 {| class="wikitable"
-|+Azkali vowel phones
+|+Azkali vowel phonemes
 !
 !Front
@@ Line 90: / Line 42: @@
 /a/
 |}
+The pronunciation of these vowels changes depending on the phonological environment that surrounds it. There are in general three main rules:
+# (Phonemic) vowels at the end of words are heightened and or elongated.
+# (Phonemic) vowels at the start of words are centralized.
+# (Phonemic) vowels that are stressed are lowered.
+From there, there are a larger number of sub-rules which modify each of the main rules. These are the rules for /i/:
+# At the start of a word, /i/ is pronounced as /ɨ:/.
+# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /i/ is pronounced as /ɨ/.
+# In the sequences /ui/, /iu/, or /ei/, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ/.
+## In the case of /iu/, if it is at the start of a word, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ:/.
+# When stressed, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ/
+## At the start of a word, /i/ is pronounced as /ɪ:/.
+These are the rules for /u/:
+# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜:/
+# In any sequence of /u/ and another vowel, regardless of order, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜/
+## If said sequence is at the start of the word, and /u/ is the first phoneme in the sequence, /u/ is pronounced as /ʊ̜:/
+# When stressed, /u/ is pronounced as /ɘ̝/.
+These are the rules for /e/:
+# At the start of a word, /e/ is pronounced as /ɛ:/.
+# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /e/ is pronounced as /ɛ/.
+# In any sequence of /e/ and another vowel, only when /e/ is the first vowel in the sequence, /e/ is pronounced as /ɵ:/.
+## In the case of /ei/, however, /e/ is pronounced as /e/. However, if /ei/ starts a word, the /e/ is pronounced as /e:/.
+# When stressed, /e/ is pronounced as /ɜ/.
+# In a sequence of an affricate and /e/, the /e/ is pronounced as /ɛ/.
+These are the rules for /ɤ/:
+# At the start of a word, /ɤ/ Is pronounced as /ɤ̞:/.
+# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ɤ̞/ (mid, instead of close-mid).
+# In any sequence of /ɤ/ and another vowel, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ə/.
+## If said sequence is at the start of the word, and /ɤ/ is the first phoneme in the sequence, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ɤ:/.
+# When stressed, /ɤ/ is pronounced as /ɜ/.
+These are the rules for /a/:
+# At the start of a word, /a/ is pronounced as /æ:/.
+# At the end of a syllable that is not word final, /a/ is pronounced as /æ/.
+# In any sequence of /a/ and an other vowel, /a/ is pronounced as /ə/.
+## If said sequence is at the start of the word, and /a/ is the first phoneme in the sequence, /a/ is pronounced as /ɜ/.
+# When stressed, /a/ is pronounced as /ɑ:/.
+The following demonstrates every Azkali vowel phoneme and allophone. Phonemes are bolded, whilst allophones are italicized.
+{| class="wikitable"
+|+Azkali vowel phones
+! rowspan="2" |
+! colspan="2" |Front
+! colspan="2" |Central
+! colspan="2" |Back
+|-
+!<small>short</small>
+!<small>long</small>
+!<small>short</small>
+!<small>long</small>
+!<small>short</small>
+!<small>long</small>
+|-
+!Close
+|'''i'''
+|''<small>i:</small>''
+|''<small>ɨ</small>''
+|''<small>ɨ:</small>''
+|'''u'''
+|''<small>u:</small>''
+|-
+!Near close
+|''<small>ɪ</small>''
+|''<small>ɪ:</small>''
+|''<small>ɘ̝</small>''
+|
+|''<small>ʊ̜</small>''
+|''<small>ʊ̜:</small>''
+|-
+!Close mid
+|'''e'''
+|''<small>e:</small>''
+|
+|''<small>ɵ:</small>''
+|'''ɤ'''
+|''<small>ɤ:</small>''
+|-
+!Mid
+|
+|
+|''<small>ə</small>''
+|
+|''<small>ɤ̞</small>''
+|''<small>ɤ̞:</small>''
+|-
+!Open mid
+|''<small>ɛ</small>''
+|''<small>ɛ:</small>''
+|''<small>ɜ</small>''
+|
+|
+|
+|-
+!Open
+|''<small>æ</small>''
+|''<small>æ:</small>''
+|'''a'''
+|
+|
+|''<small>ɑ:</small>''
+|}
+=== Consonants ===
 {| class="wikitable"
 |-
 ! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |
-! rowspan="2" |'''Bilabial'''
+! rowspan="2" |Bilabial
-! colspan="2" |'''Alveolar'''
+! colspan="2" |Alveolar
-! rowspan="2" |'''Dental'''
+! rowspan="2" |Dental
-! rowspan="2" |'''Palatal'''
+! rowspan="2" |Palatal
-! rowspan="2" |'''Velar'''
+! rowspan="2" |Velar
-! rowspan="2" |'''Glottal'''
+! rowspan="2" |Glottal
 |-
 !Lamino-
@@ Line 105: / Line 168: @@
 alveolar
 |-
-! colspan="2" |'''Nasal'''
+! colspan="2" |Nasal
 |'''m'''
 /m/
@@ Line 118: / Line 181: @@
 |
 |-
-! colspan="2" |'''Plosive'''
+! colspan="2" |Plosive
 |'''p'''
 /p/
@@ Line 131: / Line 194: @@
 |
 |-
-! colspan="2" |'''Affricate'''
+! colspan="2" |Affricate
 |
 |'''tz'''
@@ Line 142: / Line 205: @@
 |
 |-
-! rowspan="2" |'''Fricative'''
+! rowspan="2" |Fricative
 !<sub>voiceless</sub>
 |
@@ Line 160: / Line 223: @@
 |
 |
-|'''dh'''
+|'''d'''
 /ð/
 |
 |-
-! colspan="2" |'''Approximant'''
+! colspan="2" |Approximant
 |'''rr'''
 /ɹ̠ʷ/
@@ Line 176: / Line 239: @@
 |
 |-
-! colspan="2" |'''Tap'''
+! colspan="2" |Tap
 |
 |
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 Contrasting with almost all of the languages that geographically surround it, Azkali has no true voiced stops. The only analog to a voiced stop, romanized as <g>, is a voiced velar lateral affricate ([ɡʟ̝]) in somewhat more than half of all recorded dialects. The other half pronounce it as /g/. Dialects that pronounce g as /ɡʟ̝/ are what are known as ''[[Zigeran (Azkali language)|zigeran]]'' dialects.
-The Azkali consonant system is characterized by (1) four nasal phonemes, two of which, the voiced palatal and velar nasals (marked in parentheses in the above table), are fairly uncommon; (2) in most dialects, the lack of voiced stop altogether; (3) in about half of all dialects, the presence of the voiced velar lateral affricate /ɡʟ̝/, an extremely rare phoneme, in the place of a voiced velar stop; (4) the existence of a distinction between lamino-dental and apico-alveolar voiceless sibilant fricatives; (5) the existence of voiceless and voiced dental fricatives; and (6), the distinction between the voiced labialized post-alveolar approximant and the voiced alveolar tap.
+The Azkali consonant system is characterized by (1) four nasal phonemes, two of which, the voiced palatal and velar nasals (marked in parentheses in the above table), are fairly uncommon; (2) in most dialects, the lack of voiced stop altogether; (3) in about half of all dialects, the presence of the voiced velar lateral affricate /ɡʟ̝/, an extremely rare phoneme, in the place of a voiced velar stop; (4) the existence of a distinction between lamino-dental and apico-alveolar voiceless sibilant fricatives, a distinction seen in only a handfull of other languages; (5) the existence of voiceless and voiced dental fricatives, possibly due to aereal influences from Loremese; and (6), the distinction between the voiced labialized post-alveolar approximant and the voiced alveolar tap.
+The phoneme /h/ is extremely variable — most dialects, including the Otzeipao, Chekearoa, Atzogui(riki), and Kalilondan dialects pronounce it as /h/. However, most inland dialects and the Achari dialect substitute /h/ with it's voiced variant /ɦ/. Further still, Northern dialects and the Hadheri neighborhood of Chekearoa, especially starting around the 1960s, have began to pronounce /h/ as /x/. In most dialects /h/ is pronounced as /x/ in rapid speech, but again this is not a universal phenomenon, as even in rapid speech Otzeipao dialects regularly keep the pronunciation as /h/.
 There are a large range of dialects, and many of them have radically different phonetic inventories compared to standard Azkali dialects.
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 Azkali nouns are overtly declined for six grammatical cases (the '''ergative, absolutive, possessive, privative, dative,''' and '''instrumental''') and three numbers (the '''singular, paucal,''' and '''plural'''), lacking grammatical gender. Azkali verbs conjugate for four moods (the '''indicative, conditional, hypothetical''', and '''imperative'''), three tenses (the '''far past, past,''' and '''non past'''), and in two verbs, person. Azkali verbs also have past and future participle, gerundive, and agentive forms. Save irregular verbs, Azkali verbs have some seventeen unique verbal forms.
 [[File:Old book gathering.jpg|thumb|The oldest surviving copy of the [[Azalyi Gazi Chixgartai Ka]], at the [[Museum of Azkali History (Otzeipao)|Museum of Azkali History]] in Otzeipao. The copy shown is estimated to have been written between 900 BCE to 1,100 BCE.]]
-Azkali is usually considered an agglunative language, though its verbs are fusionally constructed. Azkali nouns are constructed much more agglutinatively than verbs; for example, the noun ''[[Anakimateyagezereketara (song)|anakimateyagezereketara]]'' means "accomplished with the great relatives", or "with the help of the great relatives"; this can be broken down as ''a-(n)-akimateya-gez-(e)-rek-(e)-tar-a'', where:
+Azkali is usually considered an agglutinative language; for example, the noun ''[[Anakimateyagezereketara (song)|anakimateyagezereketara]]'' means "accomplished with the great relatives", or "with the help of the great relatives". This can be broken down as ''a-(n)-akimateya-gez-(e)-rek-(e)-tar-a'', where:
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 This example is somewhat misleading, as a more analytical construction would be used colloquially, but is still representative of most formal texts.
-Verbs, structurally speaking, are much more simpler than nouns. Azkali verbs only conjugate for tense and mood, with the exception of ''isan'' (to be) and ''huka'' (to do), which conjugate differently in regards to person. There is one conjugation which is extremely regular. Azkali conjugation remains remarkably simpler when compared to it's surrounding languages in different language families; compound verbal forms are extremely simple, though in general fairly uncommon.
+Azkali is a ''strictly'' subject-verb-object language, contrasting with its neighboring Mallo-Brausian and Paleo-Azkali languages. Azkali is primarily a head-initial language. Azkali nouns go before adjectives, auxiliary verbs go before main verbs, and possesses go before possessors. Notably, Azkali uses a combination of postpositions and prepositions, with prepositions predominating. Further still, a number of prepositions fuse with the noun they modify.
-Azkali is a ''strictly'' subject-verb-object language, contrasting with its neighboring Mallo-Brausian and Paleo-Azkali languages. Pronouns are never deleted, even when they are clear by context; as such, Azkali is classified as an anti [[w:Pro-drop_language|pro-drop language]]. The lack of deleting pronouns when they are clear by context is a relatively new phenomena, caused by the drastic simplification of Azkali conjugation between the 1900s and 2000s. Azkali frequently employs [[w:Serial_verb_construction|serial verb constructions]], especially in cases in which the verbs occur as a part of the same larger action, or if they occur simultaneously.
-Azkali is primarily a head-initial language. Azkali nouns go before adjectives, auxiliary verbs go before main verbs, and possesses go before possessors. Notably, Azkali uses a combination of postpositions and prepositions, with prepositions predominating. Further still, a number of prepositions fuse with the noun they modify.
 == Argot and slang ==