Ogres speak one language known as Gruun with several different dialects sprinkled in. Gruun is a simple tongue though many find some of the words challenging to pronounce. It is supposed to be spoken straight forward but the way you present it can make a huge difference in meaning. Mannerisms are also key in saying exactly what you want.
When one speaks Gruun, they are supposed to show power and strength. Each word to be said in confidence or the ogre will not take the speaker’s words as truth.
The Gruun language has 15 distinct consonant phonemes, 4 vowels (3 of which may be long or short), and 1 glide.
Phonetics
Gruun is the language of the ogres and depending on the clan, the pronunciation can be slightly varied. Because of this, the following are only ideals, not absolutes.
Consonants
Vowels
Gruun has 4 phonetically distinct vowel qualities, 3 of which can be either long or short, and 1 glide (y) that acts as either a vowel or consonant.
Diphthongs
Diphthongs are a combination of two vowel sounds to make one single sound. More to come with this section.
/ai/ - as in hair
/aÍ/ - as in grape
Semivowel Diphthongs are a combination of the semivowel y /j/ and a vowel
Stress
Ogres are up front individuals. They mean what they say so the stress in Gruun will fall on the first syllable. This can seem awkward at times for individuals first learning the language but will become easier in time.
Examples: Gruundark. You say it as [GROON-dahrk].
Phonological Constraints
Every language has a series of constraints on what possible words can occur in the language. For example, in English, you know that “think” and “plate” are possible words but “ntko” and “lkgho” are not. In Gruun there are similar standards as well.
* Gruun allows only (C)(C)V(V)(C)V, examples: Grak (C)(C)(V)(C)
* It is possible to have long words but it will need to follow the constraint.
* Y can be used as either a C or V but never at the beginning of a word. It can only be used after the first C.
* You will NEVER find a word that starts with a vowel and very rarely will one end it.
Grammar Basics
The language of Gruun has changed little over the entirety of the ogre race. This has brought little change to the way Gruun grammar works, keeping it consistent.
Grammar encompasses morphology (the way words are put together) and syntax (the way sentences are put together). In this section you will find the basics of how to construct a sentence in Gruun with more to come in later more specified sections.
Gruun Nouns: The Basics
In Gruun, nouns have a basic form, like grak which means “boulder”. There is no indefinite article (word for “a” or “an”). Since that’s the case, grak can also translate to a boulder instead of just boulder. Gruun does allow for a definite article (that little specifier word “the”) which is added to the end of the word. You add the suffix /-in/ to the word for example, grak would become grakin which means the boulder.
Number (Singular & Plural)
Like English nouns, Gruun nouns have singular and plural variants. If we talk about one boulder, we say grak. But boulders we add the suffix /-ar/ to the stem to get grakar. And, if we add the definite article, we come up with grakarin which means the boulders.
If the noun ends with a vowel, you drop the last vowel to add the suffixes. Such is the case with the word híyanna which means spear.
Gender
In Gruun, gender is not an inflectional category. The only traces of a gender system are found in the system of pronoun-antecedent agreement, although many are generally based on natural gender – the sex, or perceived sexual characteristics, of the pronoun’s referent.
Subject pronouns
Gruun pronouns work a lot like English except for when the ogre is talking about “I” or “me”. In a sentence, the ogre would never say I am strong, they would say Grak strong or Strong Grak while pounding once on their chest using their left fist to demonstrate that it is they who they are talking about. This is called illeism which is the act of referring to oneself in the third person. The reason ogres do this is to demonstrate who they are and should not be confused for idiocy.
Person & Number
We can think of pronouns as having two axes: x and y. If we think about them this way, our “y axis” is person, which relates the subject’s distance from the speaker. Put simply, if Gruun had a word for I it would be first person, you as the second, and he is a third person. Our “x axis” is number, which relates how many people are involved: one (singular) or many (plural).
Use han for he, har for she, and kath for it. The word for they does not change depending on gender. It will always stay the same.
*thrum, thruth, and thran are all derived from the Gruun word thur which means power.
Accusative
The accusative case is most typically used when a noun becomes the object of a sentence. If the noun ends in a consonant, the word is the stem as-is. If it ends in a vowel, the final vowel is stripped off. (This is only the basic.)
If the noun is to be plural, it follows very similarly to the singular though for vowel endings change slightly for vowel endings. If it is a vowel ending, change the /-ar/ to /-as/
Genitive
The genitive case is mostly used when the noun has a possession over something. If the singular noun ends with a vowel or single consonant, you form the genitive by adding the suffix /-ns/ to the stem of the noun. (This will be expanded on in a later section.)
Grak – add /-ns/ - Grakns híyanna - “Grak’s spear.”
Kifa – add /-ns/ - Kifans lairka – “Cat’s toy.”
If the singular noun ends with a double or triple consonant, you add the suffix /-yns/ to the stem of the noun.
Hist – add /-yns/ - Histyns killig – “Horse’s collar.”
Nouns with prepositions: Basics
As in English, Gruun prepositions are usually short words that relate nouns in time or space. These words are placed (“positioned”) before (“pre”) a noun.
One such case is the accusative. Many propositions in Gruun fall under this category but not all. The preposition laít which means about is followed by an accusative noun: laít kifas which means about cats. There are more to prepositions that will be explained in a separate section.
Gruun Verbs: The Basics
The basic “dictionary form” of Gruun verbs ends with either one of two endings. The word ends with the suffix /-ír/ if the stem of the verb ends in a consonant and /-rír/ if the stem of the verb ends in a vowel.
Examples: hafír (to have); mirír (to learn)
Verb Conjugation
In Gruun, the end of a verb (the /- ír/ or /-rír/) normally changes to reflect who is performing the action. Example: duu talur is you speak but for the “first person” it stays the same, Grak talír.
Tenses, Aspects, and Moods
Verbs reflect the subject’s person and number. They also tell you when and how something happens. The following is just the basics to give an idea on how the language is formed.
Past Tense
The past tense singular is usually formed by dropping the infinitival suffix –(r)ír.
dolír – “to endure” – Grak dol – “Grak endured”
The past tense plural is usually formed by dropping only the –r.
dolír – “to endure” – thrum dolí – “we endured”
Future Tense
The future tense of Gruun is very simple. The speaker will use the basic form of the verb with the irregular verb mak. This is similar to will in English. Han mirír is he learns, but han mak mirír means he will learn.
Imperative Mood
The imperative mood expresses commands or requests. In Gruun there is only one way to express the imperative mood. This is used both for informal requests as well as formal commands. To form, you simply add /-s/ to the infinitive form of the verb.
Bragírs cor kanna – “Taste this rabbit”, bragír being the verb for “taste”
Gruun Adjectives: Basics
The grammar of Gruun adjectives is similar to Gruun nouns. Most importantly, the ending of an adjective must match (“agree with”) the number and case of the noun it describes. The adjective will always follow behind the noun.
Gruun Adverbs: Basics
An adverb is a part of speech that modifies verbs or any part of speech other than a noun. Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives (including numbers), clauses, sentences, and other adverbs. Gruun adverbs are more straightforward than nouns, adjectives, and verbs. Regular adverbs simply add /–ry/ to the adjective stem.
For example, hyr which means new because hyrry which means newly.
“Irregular” adverbs do not stick to these pattern but are, so to speak, adverbs in their own right. They are often small words like gara which means only. They will have to be learned one by one.
Adverbs follow a verb, like the adverb fáskry does in han talír fáskry which means he speaks crazily.
Other Word Classes:
The following is a temporary collection of words that fit into other word classes than the most common ones.
Conjuctions
gí – or
fa – and
ni – but
fo - if
Determiners
cor – this
stra – that (Used when referring to an object that is close to you)
kirg – that (Used when referring to an object that is far away from you.)
Numerals: Basics
The Gruun language uses a base ten number system. The teens are compound words, and so are the following numbers. When you reach the twenties, in Gruun the word would be trokal which literally means “two ten.” If you wish to say twenty-one you would add fra after it to make trokalfra which literally means “two ten one.” This can seem confusing but to an ogre it makes perfect sense.
When numbers are used with a noun, the noun follows the numeral and may be in either plural or singular which does not change the meaning. Numerals also won’t decline.
Number Names
Syntax: Basics
Gruun word order is SVO (subject-verb-object), generally speaking, with the subject and verb inverted in questions and when a sentence begins with an adverb. It is very similar to English but with a few modifications, like the placing of adjectives and adverbs.
Basic Word Order
The basic word order is SVO just as in English. First comes the Subject (S), then comes the Verb (V), then comes the Object (O).
Grak kadj drosk. – “Grak (S) sharpened (V) the sword (O).”
When there is no object, the subject still precedes the verb, as it does in English.
Storhuun bíot – “Storhuun (S) roared (v).”
Questions require inversion of the verb and subject (the order is verb-subject-object):
Talur duu Gruun? – Literally “Speak (V) you (S) Gruun (O)?” but translates to “Do you speak Gruun?”
Gruun does allow for question words, such as fath which is what, to begin the question:
Fath cor? – “What is that?” (Literally “What that?”)
In Gruun there is no copula. In English, copula is the verb to be, so when in English we would say “X is Y”, “X was Y”, or “X will be Y” but not in Gruun. When you write just the X-NOM Y-NOM this means the same at X is Y. There is a lot more about this and the different cases of nouns which will be explained in full in the future.
