Oravia Core Grammar
Learn the basics in 10 simple points and start making sentences right away. If you'd like to learn it with more detail, please see the course Learn Oravia.
Grammar at a Glance
4 core markers: a (subject), i (verb), e (direct object), u (indirect object)
Flexible word order: markers show role
Simple negation: add -um to any word
Overview
Oravia is a simple, flexible language. Meaning is carried by short function markers and a compact vocabulary. Word order is flexible: you can use the order that feels natural to you.
Pronunciation
B C D F G H J L M N P R S T V W Y
All pronounced as you would expect in English or IPA, with the details of:
- C pronounced as in cake (IPA k)
- H pronounced as in house (IPA h, ʁ or x)
- J pronounced as in jello (IPA dʒ)
- R pronounced as 'tt' in butter (IPA ɾ, r)
A E I O U:
- A as in father (IPA ɑ)
- E as in cellar (IPA ɛ)
- I as in creek (IPA i)
- O as in door (IPA ɔ)
- U as in flu (IPA u)
If you pronounce E and O closed like in Spanish (IPA e and o), that's fine too!
Stress: On the penultimate syllable.
Example:
- iLIru
1. Pronouns and Possession
Pronouns:
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| nim (I) | nima (we) |
| run (you) | runa (you, pl) |
| hay (he/she/they) | haya (they, pl) |
Possessive: Add -e to the pronoun (nime = my, hayae = their, etc.)
2. The Four Core Markers
Markers go before the word or phrase they mark:
Core Markers
a = subject (doer/experiencer)
i = verb (main action)
e = direct object (what the verb acts on)
u = indirect object (recipient, often English "to/for")
Pattern:
Example:
Because roles are marked (a/e/u), word order is flexible and you can copy the natural order of your own language.
Since this website is in English, I will follow English word order in the core grammar examples.
3. Describing Words (Modifiers)
A modifier goes right before the word it describes.
Examples:
Because of the markers, any word can go in any role. For example, if you say a yungi this means "[subject] brave", if you say i yungi this means "[verb] to dare". If you say yungi falen, this means "bold child".
4. Two Core Prepositions
Use these instead of a large set of prepositions:
Connectors
en = location/time ("in, on, at")
de = source/possession ("of, from")
Examples:
5. Coordination and Contrast
Coordinators
su = and/with
mai = but
dou = or
eta = so, therefore
Example:
6. Negation
Negate by adding -um to the word you want to negate.
Examples:
Rule: -um negates the word it attaches to.
7. Aspect (Optional)
Generally, aspect is only used if you want to specify it. The default is just the bare verb (i + word).
Aspect Markers
-ar = completed action
-is = yet to start action
Note: If your language uses past and future tenses, ar may feel past-like and is may feel future-like. That intuition will serve you well most of the time! The key difference is that they mark completion relative to a context, not calendar time. There are a few cases in which they don't correspond exactly, but we will cover this in another opportunity.
Examples:
8. Questions and "What/That" Clauses
ce = what / general question
ca = what / that / which (clause link)
Examples:
You can combine ca/ce with other words to form more connectors and questions. The version starting with "ce" is a question, and the one with "ca" is used in affirmatives and connecting clauses.
ceora / caora = why/because (ce/ca what + ora reason)
cei / caei = who (ce/ca what + ei person)
celi / cali = when (ce/ca what + li time)
cenon / canon = how (ce/ca what + non way)
cedom / cadom = where (ce/ca what + dom place)
9. Verb Stacking
When you want to complement a verb with another verb, you can put them in a sequence, repeating i before each one. Unlike English, there is no "to" connecting them.
ando = can (able to)
anidai = want
anifou = need
dairan = like
Examples:
10. Compounds
Oravia has a small vocabulary, and as such, there is full creativity and flexibility to create new expressions.
To use multiple words to express a single concept, we attach -a at the end of the modifying words.
Here are some examples of compounds:
lufua bei = air-vehicle = airplane
waa jasru = ocean-bend = bay
lufua yahlul = air-soft = fluffy
waa garel = water-up = fountain
yalgaia mus = small-bug = ant
li selyino = time-plan = schedule
waa dom = water-land = island
Notice you can be as specific as you'd like by adding more descriptions to your compound. If you think lufua bei (air-vehicle) is not enough specificity for what you want to express as airplane, you can for example say jeluina lufua bei (winged-air-vehicle).
To give flavors or fine-grained meaning to words, we can merge two of them together with an hyphen, like this:
falen-li = child-time = childhood
tohpu-vanvu = sad-walk = to trudge, move with sadness
bo-bortal = house-enter = to enter a house
elivon-ilaluan = wisdom-speak = to speak with wisdom
ilofun-vardei = hesitant-look = to peek with doubt
If you are unsure whether you want a compound or hyphenated expression, just use whatever feels right to you. Chances are, either works!
You've Got the Essentials of Grammar!
You now know:
- The 4 core markers (a/i/e/u)
- How to negate with -um
- How to mark aspect (optional)
- How to ask questions (ce)
- Prepositions (en/de)
- Core connectors (ca) and coordinators (su/mai/dou/eta)
- Verb stacking and creating new expressions
You can start building sentences right away! Why don't you search some words in the Vocabulary and give it a try on Discord?
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