ConScript/Kaldain
From Sedes Draconis
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The Classical Kaldain Script
A ConScript by Warmaster.
Origins
Internal
The Classical Kaldain script is an alphabetic writing system developed by the Ezleg people. The name means "speak-show". The oldest form of the script dates from c. 250 ZA (Zera Alm, "First Years") these early forms of the alphabet are somewhat chaotic and represented only the sounds to show the Ezleg language Kaldon from these early forms of the alphabet, known as primitive Kaldain there developed two different strands. The main strand developed into Early Kaldain the other developed into the inscribed Kaldain alphabet of the realm of Var Mina.
The Early Kaldain script differed in only small ways in the basic letters of the classical alphabet. (Mainly the omission of the F, S, SH, and most importantly, X letters, as well as some of the vowel letters) At this time (c. 500-1400 ZA) The Ezleg had only encountered the Kulezi, the Batarakleari, and the Seldar. All of the additional letters, as well as LL, J, HL, ?, CH, GH, Q, G, C, J, were added over time to represent sounds in the former of these two languages. (A Kaldain mode for writing Seldarin was not developed for over a further thousand years)
In 1231, in an interval between the vicious wars of Arihliruz, The Scholars of Oralath reformed the script. They added the voiceless, F, S, and SH, as well as the X Letter (which had been represented by KK beforehand) The other three changes had nothing to do with the needs of the Kaldon language, which did not posses those sounds, but for symmetry with the P,B, T,D, K,G pairs. They also cleaned up the additional letters and the vowel sounds, which still had variants. Thus they had created, very nearly, the Classical Kaldain alphabet. The Scholars of Oralath had no intention of this being used universally. They had done it merely to order their own documents.
But when the Ezleg were driven westward, it was the northern Ezleg, the people of Oralath and the lands around, which first came in contact with the Mavine, and thus, the script first spread to them (c. 1350 ZA) and then back to the southern Ezleg. By first years of the second era, the script was being used by most Ezleg. The period of the early second era, before the dark age, (0-1300 LN, Lear Nue, "the Years of the Moon") was the era of the Classical Kaldain. In this period it was used to write Kaldon, Seldarin, Batarakleari, and numerous human languages. The period of its use came to an end with the dark age, though it is not to say the script came to an end, it merely evolve into the much more extended New Kaldain which is discussed elsewhere.
External
I started making the Kaldain alphabet in summer 2001. Indeed, my first draft still exists with the date 11th July 2001 on it. The first Kaldain however, was a mere copy of the Roman alphabet. The symmetry of the letters, which existed even in that draft, did not extend to the sound, which included B,C,D,F,G,H,J,K,L,M,N,P,Q,R,S,T,V,W,X,Z and A,E,I,O,U. however, the form of the alphabet, if not the sounds, was partially formed as it is now. With the double hook marking the voiced consonant form. During that year, I finally began learning linguistics properly, and embarked on a massive revision of the Kaldain just before Christmas 2001, which eliminated the letter C among other things (up until then, the alphabet was called Caldain and the language Caldon however, without a complete language to work with, the alphabet sort of drifted aimlessly through 2002, with only a few minor revisions. However, when I finished my first version of my Kaldon grammar in February 2003, I embarked on a further revision of the Kaldain, which left the alphabet with its present history, and almost its present form. A few further revisions were taken just prior to placing my script here.
Notable Features:
- The Classical Kaldain script is written left to right. This was not true of the earlier forms of the script, which were variable in their direction, and indeed, the inscribed Kaldain of Var Mina is written either left to right or right to left, with the latter taking distinction.
- The Classical Kaldain script is an alphabet. The Ezleg have always had a good insight into sounds nad language, and even the ealiest forms of the primitive Kaldain were an alphabet. With no pictographic history to the letters.
- A primary distinctive feature of the script is how the main stops and fricatives are hooked as it were. The voiced sound is a double of the unvoiced, in the way that M is a double M and the way that P is half a B. this is partially a natural development, but for the pairs F,V S,Z and SH, ZH the letters were reformed to make this pattern.
Used to write: The script is used mainly to write Kaldon. However, it has been widely adapted to be used with other languages. The three Seldarin languages of Bairgarand, while they have their own script, are making Kaldain transcription schemes, as have the Batarakleari. The Kalrathen language is only written in Kaldain, and there are some thirty human language which are written in it. Also, but much less well known, the secretive Romine write their language using this alphabet at this time.
Charts
http://www.sedesdraconis.com/images/conscript/kaldainchart.jpg
The English letters for transcription have been chosen partially for IPA purposes, but also partially because that is how I have transcribed the letters in my roman representation of Kaldon. The Kaldon R is a trill, Hj is a voiceless palatal approximant, of which J is the voiced form. Hl is a voiceless Alveolar lateral fricative, of which Ll is the voiced form. X is a Voiced Uvular fricative. TS is the sound of German Z, (normally transcribed Tz in Kaldon) with DZ being the voiced equivalent. The vowel symbols are used discriminately to cover what is needed (Kaldon only needs six symbols) I have given a basic representation which covers their main uses. Again, though the diphthongs are normally used for the shown sounds, they are used in different positions in other languages when necessary. (Examples English words for diphthongs are for a non-rhotic, British dialect.)
Sample Text
http://www.sedesdraconis.com/images/conscript/kaldaintext.jpg
Transliteration: The above text is the first paragraph of a Kaldon version of the Babel Text. The Roman transcription is: Bair tëthebez erinalm alm këldon padhila aigaz kal tumalmez. Mavine glagizhunalm hlodë aigaz delen hlandalm dinenith zhinar aigaz taikweanalm thomila.
Translation:
Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.
I (Warmaster) have chosen the Babel text as it is the only Kaldon text of any length I have handy. There are certainly better texts to use, but this is a nice starting text.
A dedication: Thank you everyone at the Zompist BBoard, it's you people who have been helping me get this far of late. Thank you all.
