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<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<!-- Global site tag (gtag.js) - Google Analytics -->
<script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=UA-125924205-1"></script>
<script>
window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
gtag('js', new Date());
gtag('config', 'UA-125924205-1');
</script>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=1024" />
<title>Toaq - A tonal logical language</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="toaq.css">
<link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Trade Winds' rel='stylesheet'>
<link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Bentham' rel='stylesheet'>
<link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Luckiest Guy' rel='stylesheet'>
<style>
</style>
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="57x57" href="/apple-icon-57x57.png">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="60x60" href="/apple-icon-60x60.png">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="72x72" href="/apple-icon-72x72.png">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="76x76" href="/apple-icon-76x76.png">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="114x114" href="/apple-icon-114x114.png">
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="120x120" href="/apple-icon-120x120.png">
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<link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="180x180" href="/apple-icon-180x180.png">
<link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="192x192" href="/android-icon-192x192.png">
<link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="32x32" href="/favicon-32x32.png">
<link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="96x96" href="/favicon-96x96.png">
<link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="16x16" href="/favicon-16x16.png">
<link rel="manifest" href="/manifest.json">
<meta name="msapplication-TileColor" content="#ffffff">
<meta name="msapplication-TileImage" content="/ms-icon-144x144.png">
<meta name="theme-color" content="#ffffff">
</head>
<body>
<script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/2.1.1/jquery.min.js">
</script>
<script>
/*** AUTOMATIC WORD DEFINITION TOOLTIPS FOR TOAQ TEXTS ***/
function with_escaped_html(text) {
return text.replace(/[&<>"']/g, function(ch) {
switch (ch) {
case '&':
return '&';
case '<':
return '<';
case '>':
return '>';
case '"':
return '"';
default:
return ''';
/* ''' in another option in HTML5, but is absent from
HTML4. */
}
});
};
function normalized(toa) {
return toa.normalize('NFD')
.replace(/i/g, 'ı')
.replace(/[\u0300-\u030f]/g, '')
.replace(/[^0-9A-Za-zı'_\-]+/g, ' ')
.replace(/ +/g, ' ')
.trim()
.toLowerCase();
}
$.getJSON(
"https://toaq.github.io/dictionary/dictionary.json",
function(dict) {
// `dict` is the content of the loaded dictionary.json.
var hoetoalai = "'’a-zA-Zıāēīōūȳáéíóúýäëïöüÿǎěǐǒǔảẻỉỏủỷâêîôûŷàèìòùỳãẽĩõũỹ"
+ "ĀĒĪŌŪȲÁÉÍÓÚÝÄËÏÖÜŸǍĚǏǑǓẢẺỈỎỦỶÂÊÎÔÛŶÀÈÌÒÙỲÃẼĨÕŨỸ"
+ "\u0300-\u030f";
var re = new RegExp(
"<[^>]*>|[" + hoetoalai + "]+|[^<" + hoetoalai + "]", "g");
$(".with_tooltip_definitions").each(function() {
// Loading the Toaq text from the elements of class `with_tooltip_definitions`:
var content = $(this).html();
/* Splitting the content into an array of things that are either
Toaq words or are other stuff (blanks, HTML tags…): */
content = content.match(re);
content.forEach(function (item, index, array) {
// For each item in `content`, we check whether it's a Toaq word:
if ((new RegExp("["+hoetoalai+"]")).test(item[0])) {
/* It is a Toaq word, so we get a normalized form of it
(removing diacritics and having dotless i's: */
var normalized_word = normalized(item);
// Now we look up the dictionary for the word:
dict.forEach(function (entry, i, arr) {
if (normalized(entry.toaq) == normalized_word) {
// We have found the word in the dictionary.
// Now we create a tooltip containing its definition:
var def = with_escaped_html(entry.english)
.replace(/▯/g, "___");
array[index] = '<div class="tip">' + item
+ '<span class="tiptext">' + normalized_word
+ ' : ' + def + '</span></div>';
}
/* If we don't find the word in the dictionary, no tooltip
is created. Nothing will happen when hovering the word
with the mouse pointer. */
});
}
});
// Adding the result of our work to the `with_tooltip_definitions` element:
$(this).html(content.join(""));
});
// Checking for errors on JSON dictionary loading:
}).error(function(jqXHR, textStatus, errorThrown) {
console.log("getJSON error: " + textStatus);
console.log("Incoming Text: " + jqXHR.responseText);
});
</script>
<div class="headerimage"><img src="images/Logo.png"></div>
<div class="version"><em>public <b>beta</b> version</em></div>
<div class="revision"><em>published<br>2017/09/21</em></div>
<header style="border:2px dashed red; margin: 1em 0; padding: 1em; text-align: center;">
This document describes an old <a href="https://toaq.me/Versions">beta version</a> of Toaq.<br>
To learn the latest version, see <a href="/TwE">Toaq with Ease</a> or the <a href="/refgram/00/">reference grammar</a>.
</header>
<h1 id="TOC" class="nocount">Table of Contents</h1>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#preface"><b>PREFACE</b></a> </li>
<li> <a href="#phonology"><b>PHONOLOGY</b></a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#consonants">CONSONANTS</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#vowels">VOWELS</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#syllable">THE SYLLABLE</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#syntax"><b>SYNTAX</b></a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#tones">THE TONES</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#two-part_tones">Pronunciation of two-part tones in diphthongs</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#neutral_tone">Pronunciation of the neutral tone</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#tone_functions">Tone functions</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#sentence_structure">SENTENCE STRUCTURE</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#fragments">FRAGMENTAL SENTENCES</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#predicates">THE PREDICATE PHRASE</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#simple_predicates">Simple predicates</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#serial_predicates">Serial predicates</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#names">Names</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#quotations">Quotations</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#compound_predicates">Compound predicates</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#borrowings">Borrowings</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#personal_reference_predicates">Personal reference predicates</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#numbers">Numbers</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#bigger_numbers">Bigger numbers</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#inexact_quantities">Inexact quantities</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#ordinal_numbers">Ordinal numbers</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#predicatizers">Predicatizers</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#terms">TERMS</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#argument_phrases">Argument phrases</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#concrete_arguments">Concrete arguments</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#content_clauses">Content clauses</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#properties">Properties</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#relative_clauses">Relative clauses</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#linking_words">Linking words</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#prepositional_phrases">Prepositional phrases</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#adverbs">Adverbs</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#function_words">FUNCTION WORDS</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#illocution">Illocution markers</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#prenex">The prenex</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#topical_prenex">Topical prenex</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#applied_prenex">Applied prenex</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#prefixes">Prefixes</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#quantifiers">Quantifiers</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#interrogative_prefixes">Interrogative prefixes</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#statement_prefixes">Statement prefixes</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#conjunctions">Conjunctions</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#termsets">Termsets</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#free_modifiers">Free modifiers</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#interjections">Interjections</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#parentheticals">Parentheticals</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#incidental_clauses">Incidental clauses</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#vocative">The vocative</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#sentence_prefixes">Sentence prefixes</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#appendix"><b>APPENDIX</b></a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#sample_text">SAMPLE TEXT</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#tools">VARIOUS TOOLS</a>
<ol>
<li> <a href="#dictionary">The dictionary</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#parser">The parser</a> </li>
<li> <a href="#autohotkey">AutoHotkey script for Toaq tone marks</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#tonal_pangrams">TONAL PANGRAMS</a> </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li> <a href="#final_words"><b>FINAL WORDS</b></a> </li>
</ol>
<br>
<hr>
<h1 id="preface">PREFACE</h1>
<p><span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> (pronounced [tʰo.aŋ]) is a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructed_language" target="_blank">constructed language</a> based on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First-order_logic" target="_blank">predicate logic</a>. It is also a tonal language — that is, it uses changes in pitch to distinguish grammatical meaning. Its richness in tones enables it to express things very succinctly, because grammatical information (like part of speech) is largely expressed via tone rather than separate function words.</p>
<p>The vocabulary of <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> is generally a-priori, though in a select few cases some inspiration may have been taken from such wonderful languages as Mandarin Chinese and Thai, while some words bear resemblance to corresponding roots in Lojban.</p>
<p>Within the spectrum of constructed languages, <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> would fall into <a href="http://www.joerg-rhiemeier.de/Conlang/classification.html" target="_blank">engelang</a> territory, because it was created with specific (objectively testable) goals in mind. In particular, <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> is supposed to be a language that is...</p>
<dl>
<dt><span class="tick">✔</span> built on the foundations of predicate logic</dt>
<dt><span class="tick">✔</span> unambiguously translatable into logic by ways of an unambiguous syntax and interpretation rules</dt>
<dt><span class="tick">✔</span> regular</dt>
<dt><span class="tick">✔</span> simple (i.e., having a small number of rules)</dt>
<dt><span class="tick">✔</span> flexible</dt>
<dt><span class="tick">✔</span> succinct</dt>
</dl>
<p>However, the above features would mean little to the author if the language were not also beautiful regardless of them. Words are being slowly and carefully selected for each concept and the dictionary has been designed according to principles of logic, consistency and extensibility. The aesthetics of the language are just as important to the author as the underlying logic, so perhaps it would be more fitting to speak of <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> as an engineered artlang.</p>
<p>The <a href="#appendix">appendix</a> at the end of this document contains a <a href="#sample_text">sample text</a> along with a voice recording of the same text, as well as other useful supplements.</p>
</p>But first, the author wishes an enjoyable journey through this document.</p>
<br>
<hr>
<h1 id="phonology">PHONOLOGY</h1>
<p><span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> comes with a simple phonology that is characterized by a complete lack of consonant clusters. Its syllables are rich in vowels and carry one of eight tones, giving the language a melodic character.</p>
<h2 id="consonants">CONSONANTS</h2>
<p>There are 18 consonant phonemes.</p>
<table class="phonemes">
<tr>
<th></th>
<th>Labial</th>
<th>Alveolar</th>
<th>Palatal</th>
<th>Velar</th>
<th>Glottal</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Nasals</td>
<td>m</td>
<td>n</td>
<td></td>
<td>ŋ</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Plosives</td>
<td>pʰ b</td>
<td>tʰ d</td>
<td></td>
<td>kʰ g</td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Affricates</td>
<td></td>
<td>t͡sʰ</td>
<td>t͡ɕʰ d͡ʑ</td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Fricatives</td>
<td>f</td>
<td>s</td>
<td>ɕ</td>
<td></td>
<td>h</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Taps</td>
<td></td>
<td>ɾ</td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Laterals</td>
<td></td>
<td>l</td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
<td></td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>Many of these phonemes have several valid allophones that may be used by people unable to use the standard pronunciation. For example, any palatal sound may be replaced by its post-alveolar counterpart.</p>
<p>Below is a list of phoneme-grapheme correspondences along with possible alternative pronunciations.</p>
<table class="graphemes">
<tr>
<th>Phoneme</th>
<th>Grapheme</th>
<th>Alternative<br>pronunciation</th>
<th></th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/m/</td>
<td>m</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/m.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/n/</td>
<td>n</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/n.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/ŋ/</td>
<td>q</td>
<td>[ɳ] [ɲ] [ɴ]</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/q.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/pʰ/</td>
<td>p</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/p.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/b/</td>
<td>b</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/b.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/tʰ/</td>
<td>t</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/t.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/d/</td>
<td>d</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/d.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/kʰ/</td>
<td>k</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/k.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/g/</td>
<td>g</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/g.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/t͡sʰ/</td>
<td>c</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/c.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/t͡ɕʰ/</td>
<td>ch</td>
<td>[t͡ʃ]</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/ch.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/d͡ʑ/</td>
<td>j</td>
<td>[d͡ʒ]</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/j.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/f/</td>
<td>f</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/f.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/s/</td>
<td>s</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/s.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/ɕ/</td>
<td>sh</td>
<td>[ʃ]</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/sh.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/h/</td>
<td>h</td>
<td>[x] [χ]</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/h.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/ɾ/</td>
<td>r</td>
<td>[r]</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/r.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>/l/</td>
<td>l</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/l.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<p><b>NEW:</b> <a href="http://toaq.org/letters/" target="_blank">Interactive keyboard of Toaq letters</a></p>
<br>
<h2 id="vowels">VOWELS</h2>
<p>There are five vowel phonemes: /a/, /u/, /i/, /o/ and /e/.</p>
<table class="graphemes">
<tr>
<th>Grapheme</th>
<th>Pronunciation</th>
<th>Alternative<br>pronunciation</th>
<th></th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>a</td>
<td>[a]</td>
<td></td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/a.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>u</td>
<td>[u]</td>
<td>[ʊ] in closed syllables</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/u.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>i</td>
<td>[i]</td>
<td>[ɪ] in closed syllables</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/i.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>o</td>
<td>[ɔ]</td>
<td>[o] before /a/</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="./letters/sounds/o.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>e</td>
<td>[ɛ]</td>
<td>[e] before /a/ and /o/</td>
<td><audio class="letter" controls="">
<source src="letters/sounds/e.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<p>The following diphthongs exist: </p>
<dl>
<dt>/ai/, /ao/, /ui/ and /oi/ (falling diphthongs)</dt>
<dt>/ua/, /uo/, /ue/</dt>
<dt>/ia/, /iu/, /io/, /ie/</dt>
<dt>/oa/, /oi/, /oe/</dt>
<dt>/ea/, /ei/, /eo/</dt>
<dt>/iai/, /iao/</dt>
<dt>/uai/, /uao/</dt>
</dl>
<p>When /i/ is the final part of a falling diphthong, it may be pronounced [ɪ] or [j].</p>
<p>When /o/ is the final part of a falling diphthong, it may be pronounced [ʊ] or [w].</p>
<p>Phonetically, all but the first row of diphthongs are technically disyllabic (or bimoraic) (except /ao/), but they can still occur as part of the same syllable, because a <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> syllable may contain up to three moras, more on that in the following section.</p>
<p>Vowel length is not phonemic. In slow and clear speech, stressed vowels tend to be long in open syllables and short in closed syllables, and vowels are generally short in syllables which carry the neutral tone. However, pronouncing a vowel longer or shorter than usual does not render a word invalid.</p>
<p><b>NEW:</b> <a href="http://toaq.org/letters/" target="_blank">Interactive keyboard of Toaq letters</a></p>
<br>
<h2 id="syllable">THE SYLLABLE</h2>
<p class="warning"><b>ATTENTION:</b> <a href="https://toaqlanguage.wordpress.com/2019/07/25/on-the-sounds-of-toaq-phonology-update/" target="_blank">Due to a recent update to Toaq's phonotactics, syllables can now begin with a vowel.</a></p>
<p>The syllable structure of <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> is based around moras and can be illustrated by the following diagram.</p>
<div class="headerimage"><img src="images/syllable.png"></div>
<p>A syllable may have anywhere from one to three moras. For the purpose of counting moras, the initial consonant plus the following vowel count as one mora, the next vowel counts as the second mora and a third vowel or a final consonant count as the third mora.</p>
<p>Every syllable carries one of eight <a href="#tones">tones</a>.</p>
<p>Any consonant other than /ŋ/ is a valid initial. Consonant clusters (combinations of more than one consonant phoneme in a row) are not permissible in onset position, but can occur at the word or syllable boundary (/ŋ/ followed by a simple onset).</p>
<p>The vowel group in the middle of a syllable is subject to the following constraints:</p>
<dl>
<dt>A falling diphthong (/ai/, /ao/, /ui/ and /oi/) must not be followed by another vowel.</dt>
<dt>The vowel /a/ can only be followed by /i/ and /o/.</dt>
<dt>The vowel /u/ can only appear as part of the first mora of a syllable</dt>
<dt>A falling diphthong can only appear as part of the first mora of a syllable or in combination with the preceding rising diphthong /ia/ and /ua/.</dt>
<dt>The vowels /o/ and /e/ may not be followed by a diphthong.</dt>
<dt>No vowel may be repeated.</dt>
</dl>
<p>The coda can either be empty or /ŋ/. The coda cannot be /ŋ/ after a falling diphthong (/ai/, /ao/, /ui/ and /oi/).
<p>As mentioned in the previous section, any combination of two vowels other than the falling diphthongs /ai/, /ui/ and /oi/ is pronounced disyllabically or bimoraically. Also, the emphasis is always on the first vowel of a syllable, even in a rising diphthong, unless the syllable begins with a simple vowel followed by /ao/, in which case the /a/ is stressed. For example, <span class="toaq">puaq</span> is pronounced [ˈpʰu.aŋ] and not [pʰu.ˈaŋ] let alone [pʰwaŋ], <span class="toaq">jia</span> is pronounced [ˈd͡ʑi.a] and not [d͡ʑi.ˈa] or [d͡ʑja], and <span class="toaq">kuao</span> is pronounced [kʰu.ˈa.o] or [kʰu.ˈa.ʊ] and not [ˈkʰu.a.o] or [ˈkʰu.aʊ].</p>
<p>The list of possible syllables resulting from the above rules are summarized by the following table:
<table class="syllableflowchart">
<tr>
<th style="width:50px" rowspan="24">m<br>n<br>p<br>b<br>t<br>d<br>k<br>g<br>c<br>ch<br>j<br>f<br>s<br>sh<br>h<br>r<br>l</th>
<td style="width:50px" bgcolor="#cff28c" rowspan="3">a</td>
<td style="width:50px" colspan="2">q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">i</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">o</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#cff28c" rowspan="7">u</td>
<td colspan="2">q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td rowspan="3">a</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>i</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>o</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">i</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>o</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>e</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#cff28c" rowspan="6">i</td>
<td colspan="2">q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td rowspan="3">a</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>i</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>o</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>o</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>e</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#cff28c" rowspan="4">o</td>
<td colspan="2">q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>a</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">i</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">e</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td bgcolor="#cff28c" rowspan="4">e</td>
<td colspan="2">q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>a</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="2">i</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>o</td>
<td>q</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>This table can be read from left to right like a flowchart. By starting in the left-most column (the consonants) and always going to a cell that is adjacent to the right edge of the cell you are currently in, you will always get a valid syllable. Also, once you have reached a light green cell, you can stop at any moment as you will already have a complete syllable.</p>
<p>This is a list of example words for each possible kind of syllable:</p>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>Syllable</th>
<th>Example</th>
<th>Pronunciation</th>
<th>Translation</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CV</td>
<td><span class="toaq">ji</span></td>
<td>[d͡ʑiː]</td>
<td><em>"I, me, myself"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CVq</td>
<td><span class="toaq">raq</span></td>
<td>[ɾaŋ]</td>
<td><em>"about, pertaining to"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CVv</td>
<td><span class="toaq">jai</span></td>
<td>[d͡ʑaj]</td>
<td><em>"to be happy"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CvV</td>
<td><span class="toaq">dua</span></td>
<td>[ˈduː.a]</td>
<td><em>"to know"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CvVq</td>
<td><span class="toaq">ruaq</span></td>
<td>[ˈɾuː.aŋ]</td>
<td><em>"to assert"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>CVV</td>
<td><span class="toaq">keo</span></td>
<td>[ˈkʰeː.o]</td>
<td><em>"but, however"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Cvai</td>
<td><span class="toaq">nuai</span></td>
<td>[ˈnuː.aj]</td>
<td><em>"money"</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Cvao</td>
<td><span class="toaq">luao</span></td>
<td>[lu.ˈaː.ʊ]</td>
<td><em>"lip"</em></td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>A speaker of <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> need not be consciously aware of all these rules, unless they wish to invent new words, but then they can consult a table such as the one above or check with a parser. A fluent speaker, however, is likely to have the possible syllables as well as their correct pronunciation internalized through exposure and usage and will have an intuitive understanding of what can and cannot be a <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> syllable.</p>
<p><b>NEW:</b> <a href="http://toaq.org/letters/" target="_blank">Interactive keyboard of Toaq letters and syllable endings</a></p>
<br>
<hr>
<h1 id="syntax">SYNTAX</h1>
<p><span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span>'s syntax is where most of the magic happens. While the language, at its core, consists of almost nothing but predicates, it is the tones that perform various grammatical functions to create a rich and elegant syntax.</p>
<h2 id="tones">THE TONES</h2>
<p class="warning"><b>ATTENTION:</b> <a href="https://toaqlanguage.wordpress.com/2019/07/25/on-the-sounds-of-toaq-phonology-update/" target="_blank">There has been an update to the tones.</a></p>
<p>There are eight meaningful tones in <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span>. The following table lists for each tone its name, its spelling, an image describing its pitch contour and an example word using that tone (the first tone is shown adjacent to another tone, because it cannot occur in isolation).</p>
<br>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>Even tone</th>
<th>Rising tone</th>
<th>Falling-rising<br> tone</th>
<th>Falling tone</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ā</td>
<td>á</td>
<td>ǎ</td>
<td>ả</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="images/1.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/2.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/3.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/4.png" width="100px"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq">dảqmīq</span><br><em>"to be eternal"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_1.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">pái</span><br><em>"the friend"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_2.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">chǐ</span><br><em>"who believe"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_3.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">mải</span><br><em>"to love"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_4.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>Rising-falling<br> tone</th>
<th>Low tone</th>
<th>Creaky rising<br> tone</th>
<th>Neutral tone</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>â</td>
<td>à</td>
<td>ã</td>
<td>a</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="images/5.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/6.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/7.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/8.png" width="100px"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq">jêo</span><br><em>"that it's true"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_5.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">tì</span><br><em>"at"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_6.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">fãq</span><br><em>"often"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_7.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">hi</span><br><em>"which"</em><br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/tone_8.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>Listen to the sound examples to get a better idea of how each tone should sound.</p>
<br>
<h3 id="two-part_tones">Pronunciation of two-part tones in diphthongs</h3>
<p>There are three tones that go through two phases, with a change of direction in pitch in the middle. These tones are the falling-rising tone, the rising-falling tone and the creaky falling-rising tone. When these tones are part of a diphthong, it is important that the falling part of the tone begin on the stressed vowel (which will always be the first vowel of a syllable, unless the syllable contains vowel + /ao/. See the section on <a href="#syllable">syllable structure</a>). </p>
<p>The following table shows how diphthongs are to be pronounced when they carry one of these tones, using the example syllable <span class="toaq">neo</span>.</p>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>Falling-rising<br>tone</th>
<th>Rising-falling<br>tone</th>
<th>Creaky falling-rising<br>tone</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq">něo</span><br>nè + ó<br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/falling_rising.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">nêo</span><br>né + ẻo<br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/rising_falling.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
<td><span class="toaq">nẽo</span><br>nè + ʔ + éo<br><audio controls="">
<source src="audio/creaky.mp3" type="audio/mp3">Your browser does not support the audio element.</audio></td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>It is recommended to listen to the sound examples. They are more exact and probably more meaningful than the explanation in terms of tone combinations.</p>
<br>
<h3 id="neutral_tone">Pronunciation of the neutral tone</h3>
<p>The neutral tone is special in that there is no universally correct pronunciation. In general, syllables carrying the neutral tone are unstressed, lighter and shorter than other syllables, but more importantly, their pronunciation in terms of pitch depends on the tone of the previous syllable. One could also say that the first seven tones are <em>absolute</em> tones and the eigth tone is a <em>relative</em> tone.</p>
<p>The following table shows how the neutral tone (grey) is pronounced after each of the seven main tones (green):</p>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>1 + 8</th>
<th>2 + 8</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="images/1.png" width="100px"><img src="images/18.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/2.png" width="100px"><img src="images/28.png" width="100px"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq">Tỉ<u>shā da</u>.</span><br><em>"There's an arrival taking place."</em></td>
<td><span class="toaq">súq bi</span><br><em>"as for you..."</em></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>3 + 8</th>
<th>4 + 8</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="images/3.png" width="100px"><img src="images/28.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/4.png" width="100px"><img src="images/48.png" width="100px"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq">tǎo na</span><br><em>"those who act"</em></td>
<td><span class="toaq">Jải ba.</span><br><em>"May there be happiness."</em></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>5 + 8</th>
<th>6 + 8</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="images/5.png" width="100px"><img src="images/48.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/6.png" width="100px"><img src="images/48.png" width="100px"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq"><u>dâi tu</u> rái</span><br><em>"that anything is possible"</em></td>
<td><span class="toaq"><u>tì sa</u> rái</span><br><em>"somewhere"</em></td>
</tr>
</table>
<br>
<table class="tones">
<tr>
<th>7 + 8</th>
<th>8 + 8</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><img src="images/7.png" width="100px"><img src="images/28.png" width="100px"></td>
<td><img src="images/8.png" width="100px"><img src="images/88.png" width="100px"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span class="toaq">dǔa <u>bũ na</u></span><br><em>"those who do not know"</em></td>
<td><span class="toaq">jí <u>ru sa</u> pái</span><br><em>"me and some friends"</em></td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>It should be noted that a hyper correct pronunciation of the neutral tone is not required, as long as the produced tone cannot be confused with the first tone. The reason for this will become apparent later on.</p>
<br>
<h2 id="tone_functions">Tone functions</h2>
<p>The tones introduced in the last section all have very specific functions. Their job is to specify to which part of speech a given word belongs. Each tone corresponds to a different part of speech. The following table lists the correspondences:</p>
<br>
<table>
<tr>
<th>Tone#</th>
<th>Tone Name</th>
<th>Unicode</th>
<th>ASCII</th>
<th>Function</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>1</td>
<td>Even tone</td>
<td>ā</td>
<td>a-</td>
<td>Compound</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>2</td>
<td>Rising tone</td>
<td>á</td>
<td>a/</td>
<td>Argument phrase</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>3</td>
<td>Falling-rising tone</td>
<td>ǎ</td>
<td>aV</td>
<td>Relative clause</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>4</td>
<td>Falling tone</td>
<td>ả</td>
<td>a?</td>
<td>Predicate phrase</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>5</td>
<td>Rising-falling tone</td>
<td>â</td>
<td>a^</td>
<td>Content clause</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>6</td>
<td>Low tone</td>
<td>à</td>
<td>a\</td>
<td>Preposition</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>7</td>
<td>Creaky rising tone</td>
<td>ã</td>
<td>a~</td>
<td>Adverbial phrase</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>8</td>
<td>Neutral tone</td>
<td>a</td>
<td>a</td>
<td>Particle</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p>Instead of writing the ASCII tone marks, it is also acceptable to write the tone numbers after a syllable to indicate its tone.</p>
<p>When a word carries one of these tones on its first syllable, it marks the beginning of a new phrase of the respective kind. For example, a word carrying a rising tone becomes (or starts) an argument phrase (a noun), and a word carrying a falling tone becomes (or starts) a predicate phrase (a verb), and so on.</p>
<p>Tones 1 through 7 apply exclusively to predicate words. Any predicate word can carry any of those seven tones, and each tone produces a different part of speech.</p>
<p>On the other hand, the 8th tone (neutral tone) can only appear in function words (i.e. every word that is not a predicate word). A predicate word can never carry the neutral tone.</p>
<p>Usually, the tone of the preceding syllable will influence the pronunciation of a function word in the neutral tone as shown in the previous section.</p>
<p>Unlike the tones found in many natural languages, where a different tone signifies a different lexical entry, the tones in <span class="toaqlanguage">Toaq</span> never change the lexical content of a word, so even if a speaker were to get the tones wrong, the listener would still get a rough idea of what the sentence is about and would only have to guess how the different parts are related syntactically.</p>
<p>The different tones and the parts of speech they create will be discussed in detail in later sections.</p>