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A Grammar of Wang

Introduction

Scope and Purpose

This grammar provides a systematic description of the Wang language (the 1041st one produced by the Language Creator), outlining its sound system, word formation and syntactic structure, with the aim of presenting a coherent account of the language as an integrated whole. Attention has been paid to both regular patterns and minor irregularities, as these together define the internal balance of the language.

The grammar is accompanied by a bilingual dictionary and a collection of illustrative texts, offering material for further study and comparison. The examples have been selected to demonstrate typical constructions and to give a sense of the language in extended use. The description is intended as a reference work for linguists and language enthusiasts alike, and as a foundation for any future research, teaching or creative adaptation of Wang.

Typological Profile

It has a maximally developed dental–alveolar opposition.

Phonology

Phoneme Inventory

Consonants

Wang has a moderately large consonant inventory, with 29 phonemes.

It has a maximally developed dental–alveolar opposition and a broad set of voiced–voiceless oppositions.

The table below presents the full inventory of consonant phonemes in Wang. The chart lists all places and manners of articulation attested in the language.

labialdentalalveolarpostalveolarlateralpalatalvelarglottal
stopp b d t k ɡ
nasalm n ɲ ŋ
trill/tap/flapr
fricativef v ð θ s z ʃ ʒ x ɣ h
approximantw l j
affricatet͡s d͡ʒ t͡ʃ

Vowels

Wang has 11 vowel qualities, forming a relatively large inventory. The system distinguishes several vowel categories, as indicated in the chart, offering a wide range of vocalic contrasts.

It has a maximally “square” vowel system balancing heights across backness, an unusually fine-grained height system distinguishing four levels and a moderately reduced system of unstressed vowels.

The table below presents the full inventory of vowel phonemes in Wang. The system comprises the distinct vowel qualities listed in the chart.

frontback
closei u
close-mide o
open-midɛ ɔ
openæ ɑ

Stress and Tones

Wang has phonemic stress but no lexical tone. Stress consistently falls on the first vowel of the root, and no contrastive tonal distinctions are made.

Phonological Processes

Vowel Harmony

Vowel harmony does not exist in this language.

Writing System

Introduction

Wang is normally written using the Latin alphabet, whose familiarity makes it straightforward for most readers. For clarity and precision, phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) are also provided throughout this grammar.

Orthography

Here are the various components of the orthography:

Simple letters

a /ɑ/b /b/d /d/e /e/
f /f/g /ɡ/h /h/i /i/
j /d͡ʒ/k /k/l /l/m /m/
n /n/o /ɔ/p /p/r /r/
s /s/t /t/u /u/v /v/
w /w/y /j/z /z/ä /æ/
æ /ɛ/ð /ð/ñ /ɲ/ó /o/
ğ /ɣ/

Multi-letter combinations such as digraphs

ai /ai/au /au/ch /t͡ʃ/
kh /x/ng /ŋ/sh /ʃ/
th /θ/tz /t͡s/zh /ʒ/
ɔi /ɔi/

Word Classes and Morphology

Number and Gender

Number

Wang does not have grammatical number.

Gender

Wang does not have genders or noun classes.

The Nominal Phrase

Nominal phrases in Wang can be exemplified by the following example:

Ñaf thóğ chingag ñaf zheñ maf jich pó ğuj lór rapälɔitay.

[ˈɲɑf ˈθoɣ t͡ʃiˈŋɑɡ ˈɲɑf ˈʒeɲ mɑf ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ ˈpo ˈɣud͡ʒ ˈlor rɑpæˈlɔitɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈθoɣ
woman t͡ʃiˈŋɑɡ
COMIT ˈɲɑf
the ˈʒeɲ
knife mɑf
PAST ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ
catch ˈpo
yon ˈɣud͡ʒ
three ˈlor
blind rɑ-
plur pæˈlɔit
mouse -ɑj
ACC

“The woman with the knife caught those three blind mice.”

 (1)

In the following, we shall look at the various components in more details.

There are no clitics in the nominal phrase.

The Noun

The noun in Wang consists of first, an optional prefix expressing number, comprising ra- /rɑ-/ ‘plur’; second, the root; and finally, third, an optional suffix expressing case, comprising -ay /-ɑj/ ‘ACC’, -ip /-ip/ ‘GEN’, -aw /-ɑw/ ‘DAT’, -äj /-æd͡ʒ/ ‘INS’, -uth /-uθ/ ‘VOC’, -iz /-iz/ ‘ALL’, -ad /-ɑd/ ‘LOC’, -uh /-uh/ ‘ABL’ and -ir /-ir/ ‘PART’.

The Adjective

The adjective in Wang stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Numerals

The numeral in Wang stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Determiners

The determiner in Wang stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Pronouns

The pronoun in Wang stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Wang always includes the personal pronouns, even if they are not stressed. This is similar to English, where the only way to distinguish "he loves her" from "he loves her" and "he loves her" is the stress. So the following corresponds exactly to English in this regard:

Haij zbɔing haij.

[ˈhaid͡ʒ ˈzbɔiŋ ˈhaid͡ʒ]

ˈhaid͡ʒ
3.sing ˈzbɔiŋ
love ˈhaid͡ʒ
3.sing

“He (the boy) loves her (the girl).”

 (2)

Proper Nouns

Ñaf Miñis shänil ñaf Vukhauday.

[ˈɲɑf miˈɲis ʃæˈnil ˈɲɑf vuˈxaudɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the miˈɲis
Minyis ʃæˈnil
hate ˈɲɑf
the vuˈxaud
Vukhaud -ɑj
ACC

“Minyis hates Vukhaud.”

 (3)

Possession

ñaf skadip ñaf sätzið

[ˈɲɑf ˈskɑdip ˈɲɑf sæˈt͡sið]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈskɑd
boy -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the sæˈt͡sið
apple

“the boy’s apple”

 (4)
haij ñaf sätzið

[ˈhaid͡ʒ ˈɲɑf sæˈt͡sið]

ˈhaid͡ʒ
3.sing ˈɲɑf
the sæˈt͡sið
apple

“his (the boy’s) apple”

 (5)
mum ñaf sätzið

[ˈmum ˈɲɑf sæˈt͡sið]

ˈmum
1excl.sing ˈɲɑf
the sæˈt͡sið
apple

“my apple”

 (6)
Ñaf gikotip ñaf sɔis maf pibæb mol ñaf khäğiñip ñaf ngigay.

[ˈɲɑf ɡiˈkɔtip ˈɲɑf ˈsɔis mɑf piˈbɛb ˈmɔl ˈɲɑf xæˈɣiɲip ˈɲɑf ˈŋiɡɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the ɡiˈkɔt
hunter -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the ˈsɔis
daughter mɑf
PAST piˈbɛb
kiss ˈmɔl
2.sing ˈɲɑf
the xæˈɣiɲ
neighbour -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the ˈŋiɡ
son -ɑj
ACC

“The hunter’s daughter kissed your neighbour’s son.”

 (7)

Derivation

Wang has no derivational processes.

shtað vizaim

[ˈʃtɑð viˈzaim]

ˈʃtɑð
a viˈzaim
lamb

“a lamb”

 (8)

Note how none show up here:

Haij maf hós maf nof shtað tais vizaimay shtäzdäñ.

[ˈhaid͡ʒ mɑf ˈhos mɑf ˈnɔf ˈʃtɑð ˈtais viˈzaimɑj ʃtæˈzdæɲ]

ˈhaid͡ʒ
3.sing mɑf
PAST ˈhos
want mɑf
PAST ˈnɔf
have ˈʃtɑð
a ˈtais
little viˈzaim
lamb -ɑj
ACC ʃtæˈzdæɲ
COMP

“She wanted to have a little lamb.”

 (9)

Compounding

Verbs

Inflectional Categories

The verbal phrase clitics in Wang fall into two categories, proclitics and enclitics: first, a clitic expressing negation, comprising piv /piv/ ‘NEG’; second, a clitic expressing ta, comprising maf /mɑf/ ‘PAST’; third, a clitic expressing mode, comprising ğum /ɣum/ ‘imperative’, shäv /ʃæv/ ‘conditional’ and dar /dɑr/ ‘optative’; and finally, fourth, a clitic expressing voice, comprising chip /t͡ʃip/ ‘passive’.

The verb itself does not have any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Mum zbɔing mol.

[ˈmum ˈzbɔiŋ ˈmɔl]

ˈmum
1excl.sing ˈzbɔiŋ
love ˈmɔl
2.sing

“I love you.”

 (10)

Adverbs Minor Classes

Adpositions

There is one type of clitic in the adpositional phrase, namely an enclitic (placed finally), expressing root.

hɔim ñaf yuz

[ˈhɔim ˈɲɑf ˈjuz]

ˈhɔim
in_surface ˈɲɑf
the ˈjuz
table

“on the table”

 (11)
ðung ñaf sizheğ

[ˈðuŋ ˈɲɑf siˈʒeɣ]

ˈðuŋ
to_inside ˈɲɑf
the siˈʒeɣ
box

“into the box”

 (12)
chingag mum

[t͡ʃiˈŋɑɡ ˈmum]

t͡ʃiˈŋɑɡ
COMIT ˈmum
1excl.sing

“with me”

 (13)

Syntax

Basic Clause Structure

Constituent Order

Constituent order describes the typical arrangement of the subject (S), verb (V) and object (O) in simple declarative clauses. It is a fundamental parameter in grammatical description and forms one of the clearest ways of characterising the overall structure of a language’s clause system.

Wang employs Subject–Verb–Object (SVO) as its basic word order. The subject is followed by the verb, with the object occurring in post-verbal position. This ordering is widely attested across the world’s languages.

The following examples illustrate the basic, unmarked, constituent order in Wang.

Ñaf pazhäng maf khäm ñaf gikotay.

[ˈɲɑf pɑˈʒæŋ mɑf ˈxæm ˈɲɑf ɡiˈkɔtɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the pɑˈʒæŋ
jaguar mɑf
PAST ˈxæm
kill ˈɲɑf
the ɡiˈkɔt
hunter -ɑj
ACC

“The jaguar killed the hunter.”

 (14)
Ñaf ğustæsh maf tauğ ñaf gikotip ñaf sɔisip ñaf zhdaisay.

[ˈɲɑf ɣuˈstɛʃ mɑf ˈtauɣ ˈɲɑf ɡiˈkɔtip ˈɲɑf ˈsɔisip ˈɲɑf ˈʒdaisɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the ɣuˈstɛʃ
lion mɑf
PAST ˈtauɣ
eat ˈɲɑf
the ɡiˈkɔt
hunter -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the ˈsɔis
daughter -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the ˈʒdais
dog -ɑj
ACC

“The lion ate the hunter’s daughter’s dog.”

 (15)

The language has a fixed constituent order, and major phrases normally appear in a predictable position in the clause. Movement for discourse reasons is highly restricted: topics and foci are expressed not by rearranging elements, but through dedicated constructions such as clefts, focus clauses or topic–comment frames. Constituents remain continuous, and both the relative order of phrases and the internal structure of each phrase are stable. As a result, significant deviations from the basic word order are ungrammatical, and discourse structure is managed through these specialised constructions rather than through word-order variation.

Noun Phrases

Structure and Order

The internal structure of noun phrases in Wang reveals typologically significant preferences in the ordering of nominal constituents. This includes the position of adjectives, numerals, and possessors relative to the noun, each of which can offer clues to the overall headedness of the language.

Possessive constructions are head-final: the possessor precedes the possessed noun. For example, Wang expresses “the child’s toy” with the equivalent of “child toy”. This ordering is found in many SOV and postpositional languages and aligns with a broader tendency towards modifier-first structures.

mol ñaf ngigip ñaf tungip ñaf libær

[ˈmɔl ˈɲɑf ˈŋiɡip ˈɲɑf ˈtuŋip ˈɲɑf libɛr]

ˈmɔl
2.sing ˈɲɑf
the ˈŋiɡ
son -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the ˈtuŋ
friend -ip
GEN ˈɲɑf
the libɛr
book

“your son’s friend’s book”

 (16)

Case Marking

Wang uses nominative–accusative case marking. The subject of an intransitive verb and the subject of a transitive verb are treated alike and take the nominative case, while the object of a transitive verb is marked with the accusative case. This is the familiar pattern from many European languages: the grammar groups together the participants that function as subjects and marks the participant affected by a transitive action separately.

Ñaf chɔir chäzh.

[ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir ˈt͡ʃæʒ]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat ˈt͡ʃæʒ
sleep

“The cat is sleeping.”

 (17)
Ñaf chɔir pauñ.

[ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir ˈpauɲ]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat ˈpauɲ
run

“The cat is running.”

 (18)
Ñaf chɔir shiraung ñaf pälɔitay.

[ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir ʃiˈrauŋ ˈɲɑf pæˈlɔitɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat ʃiˈrauŋ
chase ˈɲɑf
the pæˈlɔit
mouse -ɑj
ACC

“The cat is chasing the mouse.”

 (19)
Ñaf chɔir maf jich ñaf pälɔitay.

[ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir mɑf ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ ˈɲɑf pæˈlɔitɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat mɑf
PAST ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ
catch ˈɲɑf
the pæˈlɔit
mouse -ɑj
ACC

“The cat caught the mouse.”

 (20)

Conjunctions

Here is an example of a conjunction.

Ñaf gikot maf khäm ñaf rapazhängay saung ñaf ratzämisay saung ñaf rağustæshay.

[ˈɲɑf ɡiˈkɔt mɑf ˈxæm ˈɲɑf rɑpɑˈʒæŋɑj ˈsauŋ ˈɲɑf rɑt͡sæˈmisɑj ˈsauŋ ˈɲɑf rɑɣuˈstɛʃɑj]

ˈɲɑf
the ɡiˈkɔt
hunter mɑf
PAST ˈxæm
kill ˈɲɑf
the rɑ-
plur pɑˈʒæŋ
jaguar -ɑj
ACC ˈsauŋ
and ˈɲɑf
the rɑ-
plur t͡sæˈmis
tiger -ɑj
ACC ˈsauŋ
and ˈɲɑf
the rɑ-
plur ɣuˈstɛʃ
lion -ɑj
ACC

“The hunter killed the jaguars, the tigers and the lions.”

 (21)

Modifiers and Determiners

The ordering of demonstratives, articles (if present), and other modifiers in Wang provides further insight into the structure of the noun phrase. These elements frequently exhibit fixed positions and may reveal whether the language favours head-initial or head-final patterns.

Complex Sentences

Relative Clauses

Wang forms relative clauses by placing the relative clause after the noun it modifies. The clause follows the internal word order of ordinary finite clauses. A dedicated relativising marker introduces the clause and identifies the relationship between the head noun and its role inside the relative clause.

To illustrate how relative clauses work, let us begin with a simple sentence:

Mum maf chavón ñaf chɔiray.

[ˈmum mɑf t͡ʃɑˈvon ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔirɑj]

ˈmum
1excl.sing mɑf
PAST t͡ʃɑˈvon
pat ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat -ɑj
ACC

“I patted the cat.”

 (22)

We can now add a relative clause modifying the noun:

Mum maf chavón ñaf chɔir, lach maf jich ñaf pälɔitay.

[ˈmum mɑf t͡ʃɑˈvon ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir, ˈlɑt͡ʃ mɑf ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ ˈɲɑf pæˈlɔitɑj]

ˈmum
1excl.sing mɑf
PAST t͡ʃɑˈvon
pat ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat ˈlɑt͡ʃ
RELPRON mɑf
PAST ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ
catch ˈɲɑf
the pæˈlɔit
mouse -ɑj
ACC

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse.”

 (23)

Relative clauses may themselves contain other relative clauses:

Mum maf chavón ñaf chɔir, lach maf jich ñaf pälɔit, lach maf tauğ ñaf ñigolay.

[ˈmum mɑf t͡ʃɑˈvon ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir, ˈlɑt͡ʃ mɑf ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ ˈɲɑf pæˈlɔit, ˈlɑt͡ʃ mɑf ˈtauɣ ˈɲɑf ɲiˈɡɔlɑj]

ˈmum
1excl.sing mɑf
PAST t͡ʃɑˈvon
pat ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat ˈlɑt͡ʃ
RELPRON mɑf
PAST ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ
catch ˈɲɑf
the pæˈlɔit
mouse ˈlɑt͡ʃ
RELPRON mɑf
PAST ˈtauɣ
eat ˈɲɑf
the ɲiˈɡɔl
cheese -ɑj
ACC

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse that ate the cheese.”

 (24)

Finally, here is an example containing several layers of embedding:

Mum maf chavón ñaf chɔir, lach maf jich ñaf pälɔit, lach maf tauğ ñaf ñigol, lach maf mɔich mum.

[ˈmum mɑf t͡ʃɑˈvon ˈɲɑf ˈt͡ʃɔir, ˈlɑt͡ʃ mɑf ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ ˈɲɑf pæˈlɔit, ˈlɑt͡ʃ mɑf ˈtauɣ ˈɲɑf ɲiˈɡɔl, ˈlɑt͡ʃ mɑf ˈmɔit͡ʃ ˈmum]

ˈmum
1excl.sing mɑf
PAST t͡ʃɑˈvon
pat ˈɲɑf
the ˈt͡ʃɔir
cat ˈlɑt͡ʃ
RELPRON mɑf
PAST ˈd͡ʒit͡ʃ
catch ˈɲɑf
the pæˈlɔit
mouse ˈlɑt͡ʃ
RELPRON mɑf
PAST ˈtauɣ
eat ˈɲɑf
the ɲiˈɡɔl
cheese ˈlɑt͡ʃ
RELPRON mɑf
PAST ˈmɔit͡ʃ
buy ˈmum
1excl.sing

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse that ate the cheese that I bought.”

 (25)

Complementation Strategies

Wang introduces complement clauses with a dedicated complementiser, similar to English that. The complementiser appears at the beginning of the embedded clause and signals that the clause functions as a syntactic argument. The embedded clause is fully finite and displays the same tense, aspect and agreement patterns as independent clauses.

The following example illustrate how complement clauses function:

Ñaf skad maf ró ñaf dukaw shtað sätziðay shtäzdäñ maf jastɔil ñaf gitæraw.

[ˈɲɑf ˈskɑd mɑf ˈro ˈɲɑf ˈdukɑw ˈʃtɑð sæˈt͡siðɑj ʃtæˈzdæɲ mɑf d͡ʒɑˈstɔil ˈɲɑf ɡitɛrɑw]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈskɑd
boy mɑf
PAST ˈro
give ˈɲɑf
the ˈduk
girl -ɑw
DAT ˈʃtɑð
a sæˈt͡sið
apple -ɑj
ACC ʃtæˈzdæɲ
COMP mɑf
PAST d͡ʒɑˈstɔil
surprise ˈɲɑf
the ɡitɛr
teacher -ɑw
DAT

“It surprised the teacher that the boy had given the girl an apple.”

 (26)

Quotes

Wang expresses quoted or reported speech without a dedicated quotative particle. Quotations appear as ordinary clauses, distinguished only by the surrounding syntactic context or by the use of verbs of speaking.

Here is an example of how quotations are expressed:

Ñaf skad maf yoth ñaf dukaw mum zbɔing mol shtäzdäñ.

[ˈɲɑf ˈskɑd mɑf ˈjɔθ ˈɲɑf ˈdukɑw ˈmum ˈzbɔiŋ ˈmɔl ʃtæˈzdæɲ]

ˈɲɑf
the ˈskɑd
boy mɑf
PAST ˈjɔθ
tell ˈɲɑf
the ˈduk
girl -ɑw
DAT ˈmum
1excl.sing ˈzbɔiŋ
love ˈmɔl
2.sing ʃtæˈzdæɲ
COMP

“The boy told the girl that he loved her.”

 (27)

How to cite this grammar

Language Creator. 2026. A Grammar of Wang. Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.92, on 25 July 2026. https://languagecreator.org/grammar/15CLP

In BibTeX format:

@misc{LC-15CLP,
  year         = 2026,
  author       = {{Language Creator}},
  title        = {A Grammar of {Wang}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://languagecreator.org/grammar/15CLP}},
  note         = {Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.92, on 25 July 2026}
}

Supplementary Materials

A collection of illustrative texts and a bilingual dictionary (English–Wang / Wang–English) accompany this grammar. The complete work – comprising the grammar, dictionary and texts – may also be downloaded in ODT or DOCX format.

Readers are encouraged to share observations or corrections via the feedback form. The present page may be accessed directly at:

https://languagecreator.org/grammar/15CLP

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