Lesson 12: Conditionals and where to go next
One last piece of grammar: two useful ways to say if.
Grammar
Daefer: if this is the case...
Use daefer for a real possibility or cause-and-effect condition.
daefer run i anvu, i anvu su
Click to Reveal Translation
*If you go, I go too.*Iliciu: imagine this instead...
iliciu means imagine. It sets up a hypothetical or counterfactual situation.
iliciu a nim a run, i anvu
Click to Reveal Translation
*If I were you, I would go.*Notice that by using daefer or iliciu, we avoid many complicated verb forms in other languages such as English.
Vocabulary
Building blocks
ELI — virtue. Mnemonic: Ethical Living Ideals.
VER — safety, security. Mnemonic: French verrou, a lock or bolt.
ELO — social virtues. Mnemonic: Portuguese elo, a link or bond.
Words
| Oravia | Meaning | Breakdown |
|---|---|---|
| elireva | truth, true | ELI virtue + REVA accurate/real |
| anever | secure, safe | ANE static action + VER safety |
| eloele | freedom, free | ELO social virtues + ELE self-expansion |
| iliciu | imagine | ILI cognition + CIU creative product |
Put it together
From earlier lessons
beivu = car
do / ando = can
ciureva = photo
anidai = want
eleyel = love
yudur = difficult
daefer a beivu a anever, i do i anvu
Click to Reveal Translation
*If the car is safe, I can go.*iliciu a nim a run, i anro, eta i anvu
Click to Reveal Translation
*If I were you, I would decide and then go.*i ilian ca a ciureva a elireva
Click to Reveal Translation
*I know that the picture is accurate / true to reality.*i eleyel e eloele
Click to Reveal Translation
*I love freedom.*Your turn
Write one sentence with daefer and one with iliciu.
Mini Review
Quick review:
This is the last lesson of this course!
How much Oravia do you know now?
Oravia is fast to learn, and it was designed with a purposefully small vocabulary that is very powerful combined with the grammatical and expressive features of the language. It has about ~860 dictionary words built mostly from ~260 building blocks. In these twelve lessons you've met about 65 building blocks, roughly a quarter of the building-block system.
The six words in Lesson 11 were never taught as vocabulary. More than 40 other dictionary words also have breakdowns made entirely from pieces in this short course.
The simple form is usually enough
This course has mostly used Oravia's simple core.
When you need more precision, you can add it: mark singular or plural explicitly, distinguish moving into a place from moving toward it, or make other distinctions that these twelve lessons haven't covered. Most everyday sentences work fine with the simple form. The philosophy is a simple system that has options for disambiguation or more precision if needed.
Final reading
Everything below has appeared somewhere in the course, including a few words you worked out in Lesson 11.
Read as much as you can first. If a word has slipped your mind, open the reading tips without revealing the translation.
Reading tips
lis — one day / sometime in the future
eofa — friend
anvu — go
wiltan — city
lealei — forest
yalwol — wide
leirih — tree
yaltan — big
leipili — flower
oipili — cute
ilaluan — say / tell
eleyel — love
visomo — stomach
anifou — need
mo — food / eat
apasoi — hurry
lisoi — soon
anona — give
fasu — sibling
Lis, nim su eofa i anvu de wiltan en lealei.
A lealei a yalwol, su a leirih a yaltan.
En lealei, a leipili a oipili.
Eofa i ilaluan ca hay i eleyel e lealei.
Nim visomo i anifou e mo, eta nim i apasoi.
Lisoi, nim su eofa i anvu en wiltan.
En wiltan, i anona e leipili u fasu.
Fasu i ilaluan ca a leipili a oipili.
Reveal the reading
One day, my friend and I go from the city to the forest.
The forest is wide, and the tree is big.
In the forest, a flower is cute.
My friend says that they love the forest.
My stomach needs food, so I hurry.
Soon, my friend and I go to the city.
In the city, I give the flower to my sibling.
My sibling says that the flower is cute.
Try Oravia with other people
If you only know what's in this Primer, that's already enough to start. Join the Discord and write a few lines in Oravia: introduce yourself, say something about your day, ask a question, or reply to someone else. Use the dictionary as much as you need.
Keep going
You can use Oravia now. Read something, write a few lines about your day, or make a ridiculous compound.
If you continue into the Complete Course, a lot will already be familiar, but more in-depth. Because of that, you may go faster if something feels easy, but I recommend that you start from the beginning. As you explore further, there will be more to discover such as changing clusters of words or adding speaker stances.