The Language Creator
– from linguistic questionnaire to grammar, lexicon and texts.

A Grammar of Toer

Introduction

Scope and Purpose

This grammar provides a systematic description of the Toer language (the 1780th 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 Toer.

Typological Profile

It has a full set of ejective articulations, the highly uncommon basic word order OVS, a rich system of noun classes, ergative case marking, i.e., the object of a transitive verb is marked the same as the subject of an intransitive one, and an unusually extensive implosive inventory.

Phonology

Phoneme Inventory

Consonants

Toer has an extremely large consonant inventory, totalling 71 phonemes. Such a system is exceptional in scale.

It has a richly developed retroflex subsystem, an exceptionally large and contrastive set of fricatives, a highly developed aspirated consonant series, a full set of ejective articulations and a richly developed set of pharyngealised consonants.

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

labialphar. labialalveolarphar. alveolarpostalveolarlateralretroflexvelarphar. velar
stopp b pˤ bˤ d t dˤ tˤ ɖ ʈ k ɡ kˤ ɡˤ
aspirated stoppʰ pʰˤ tʰ tʰˤ ʈʰ kʰ kʰˤ
preaspirated stopht htˤ hʈ hk hkˤ
breathy stopdʱ dʱˤ ɖʱ ɡʱ ɡʱˤ
ejective stoppʼ pˤʼ tʼ tˤʼ ʈʼ kʼ kˤʼ
nasalm mˤ n nˤ ɳ ɳ̥ ŋ ŋˤ
trill/tap/flapɽ
fricativef v fˤ vˤ s z sˤ zˤ x ɣ xˤ ɣˤ
approximantw wˤ ɾ
affricatet͡ʃ
implosiveɓ ɓˤ ɗ ɗˤ ʄ ɠ ɠˤ

Vowels

Toer has more than 14 vowel qualities. This constitutes an exceptionally rich vowel inventory, with numerous distinct categories represented in the chart.

It has a fully developed system of nasal vowels matching the oral height distinctions, a fully contrastive long–short vowel distinction across the system, a maximally “square” vowel system balancing heights across backness, front rounded vowels (these are cross-linguistically relatively uncommon, but occur in a number of well-known languages, including French, German, Turkish and Mandarin) and an unusually fine-grained height system distinguishing four levels.

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

front unroundedfront roundedcentralback
closei ĩ y ỹ ʉ ʉ̃ u ũ
close-mide ẽ ø ø̃ ɵ ɵ̃ o õ
open-midɛ ɛ̃ œ œ̃ ɞ ɞ̃ ɔ ɔ̃
openɶ ɶ̃ a ã

Stress and Tones

Toer has neither phonemic stress nor lexical tone. Prosodic prominence and pitch variation are determined by pragmatic and discourse factors rather than by lexical contrasts.

Phonological Processes

Vowel Harmony

Vowel harmony does not exist in this language.

Writing System

Introduction

Toer is normally written using the Cyrillic alphabet, a script with a long and varied history across Eastern Europe and northern Asia. In this grammar, phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) are also used to give an unambiguous representation of sound.

The conventions adopted here follow standard Cyrillic practice for the language where that exists; where they do not, the IPA transcription should be taken as authoritative.

Orthography

Here are the various components of the orthography:

Simple letters

а /a/а’ /a̰/б /b/б̱ /ɓ/
в /v/г /ɡ/г̱ /ɠ/д /d/
д̇ /ɖ/д̱ /ɗ/е /e/е’ /ḛ/
з /z/и /i/и’ /ḭ/к /k, kʼ/
м /m/н /n/н̇ /ɳ/о /o, ɔ/
о’ /o̰, ɔ̰/п /p/р /ɾ/р̇ /ɽ/
с /s/т /t/т̇ /ʈ/у /u/
у’ /ṵ/ф /f/х /x/ч /t͡ʃ/
ы /ʉ/ы’ /ʉ̰/э /ɛ/э’ /ɛ̰/
ў /w/ғ /ɣ/қ /kʰ/ҭ /tʰ/
ҭ̇ /ʈʰ/ү /y/ү’ /y̰/ӈ /ŋ/
ӊ̇ /ɳ̥/ӕ̈ /ɶ/ӕ̈’ /ɶ̰/ӧ /œ/
ӧ’ /œ̰/ө /ø, ɵ/ө̆ /ɞ/ө̆’ /ɞ̰/
ө’ /ø̰, ɵ̰/ԥ /pʰ/

Multi-letter combinations such as digraphs

аа /aː/аан /ãː/ан /ã/
ан’ /ã̰/б̱ъ /ɓˤ/бъ /bˤ/
въ /vˤ/г̱ъ /ɠˤ/гъ /ɡˤ/
гһ /ɡʱ/гһъ /ɡʱˤ/д̣һ /ɖʱ/
д̱ъ /ɗˤ/дъ /dˤ/дһ /dʱ/
дһъ /dʱˤ/ее /eː/еен /ẽː/
ен /ẽ/ен’ /ḛ̃/зъ /zˤ/
ии /iː/иин /ĩː/ин /ĩ/
ин’ /ḭ̃/къ /kʼˤ, kˤ/мъ /mˤ/
нъ /nˤ/он /õ, ɔ̃/он’ /õ̰, ɔ̰̃/
оо /oː, ɔː/оон /õː, ɔ̃ː/пъ /pʼ, pˤ/
пъъ /pʼˤ/съ /sˤ/т̇ъ /ʈʼ/
тъ /tʼ, tˤ/тъъ /tʼˤ/ун /ũ/
ун’ /ṵ̃/уу /uː/уун /ũː/
фъ /fˤ/хъ /xˤ/ын /ʉ̃/
ын’ /ʉ̰̃/ыы /ʉː/ыын /ʉ̃ː/
эн /ɛ̃/эн’ /ɛ̰̃/ээ /ɛː/
ээн /ɛ̃ː/ѓӀ /ʄ/ўъ /wˤ/
ғъ /ɣˤ/қъ /kʰˤ/ҭъ /tʰˤ/
үн /ỹ/үн’ /ỹ̰/үү /yː/
үүн /ỹː/һк /hk/һкъ /hkˤ/
һт /ht/һт̣ /hʈ/һтъ /htˤ/
ӈъ /ŋˤ/ӕ̈н /ɶ̃/ӕ̈н’ /ɶ̰̃/
ӕ̈ӕ̈ /ɶː/ӕ̈ӕ̈н /ɶ̃ː/ӧн /œ̃/
ӧн’ /œ̰̃/ӧӧ /œː/ӧӧн /œ̃ː/
ө̆н /ɞ̃/ө̆н’ /ɞ̰̃/ө̆ө̆ /ɞː/
ө̆ө̆н /ɞ̃ː/өн /ø̃, ɵ̃/өн’ /ø̰̃, ɵ̰̃/
өө /øː, ɵː/өөн /ø̃ː, ɵ̃ː/ԥъ /pʰˤ/

Word Classes and Morphology

Number and Gender

Number

Toer does not have grammatical number.

Gender

Toer has the following noun classes:

Class cl.1 – for instance: бо’ӈ ‘leg’, гъи’ўо’м ‘rope’, гһыд̣һ ‘eye’, д̇ӧӧд̱ъӕ̈ӕ̈нтъъ ‘penis’, нъаад̣һ ‘surface’, пъуунсъ ‘top’, р̇ө̆нкъ ‘tongue’, съидһъуунг̱ъ ‘snake’, т̇ъөр̇ ‘Toer’, ғъӧк ‘inside’, ҭээфөөнк ‘breast’, һкоз ‘ear’, һтоўъ ‘nose’, ԥъөөнр̇ээндъ ‘vagina’.

Class cl.2 – for instance: б̱ъинъ ‘wife’, б̱ъөнтъъ ‘child’, гасииг̱ ‘snow’, гһъииф ‘wind’, д̣һоонвъот̇ ‘cloud’, дъӕ̈ӕ̈һкъаазъ ‘restaurant’, зө̆ӈъут̇ ‘wild boar’, къүн̇иўъ ‘fog’, н̇ӧнъ ‘fish’, нъусъ ‘woman’, пыыӊ̇ов ‘farmer’, р̇ө’къанк ‘mammal’, тъъад̇и ‘lion’, тъъө̆ө̆б ‘rain’, тъым ‘daughter’, фик ‘hand’, фо’н ‘mother’, хүфъӧнѓӀ ‘lamb’, чүӈ ‘city’, һкосъ ‘dog’.

Class cl.3 – for instance: въа’ғъ ‘south’, гъыысъӧф ‘smoke’, гһъык ‘mouth’, д̱еўъөөнб̱ъ ‘sand’, моониит ‘money’, н̇ииб̱уг̱ ‘dust’, н̇ӕ̈ӈө̆ө̆нпъ ‘ash’, пъъа’мъө̆нў ‘fat’, род ‘blood’, т̇ъи’вөтъ ‘faeces’, тъидъаасъ ‘bank’, тъоз ‘east’, тъөөмъеӈъ ‘ice’, қъүтүф ‘slime’, ӈээд̱еедъ ‘salt’.

Class cl.4 – for instance: буук ‘book’, гъөһкэмъ ‘bottle’, д̇анпъ ‘time’, дэпъ ‘table’, дһъӕ̈ӕ̈нкъ ‘bed’, кимъ ‘day’, къыд̇ ‘knife’, къөгъоог ‘binoculars’, мъөвъ ‘night’, пъааҭъөгъ ‘box’, съӧ’фъ ‘year’, т̇ӕ̈р ‘foot’, фъээкъ ‘west’, ғууб̱ъ ‘skin’, ғъотъъөнзъ ‘net’, ҭииг̱ъ ‘chair’, ҭӧг̱ъаанв ‘mortar’, һкъааһкъенс ‘religion’, һкъө̆пъъан’ӈъ ‘machine’, ԥъө̆ө̆т̇ ‘road’.

Class cl.5 – for instance: воонкъ ‘hair’, г̱ээнкъӧд̱ъ ‘bosom’, г̱ӧтъъэф ‘liver’, н̇ооӈанв ‘anus’, нүнһконъ ‘belly’, пъонсъӕ̈ѓӀ ‘knee’, пъүнөөнх ‘guts’, пъөг̱ъ ‘heart’, т̇ъиғө’зъ ‘root’, қө̆ө̆нзы’гъ ‘urine’.

Class cl.6 – for instance: банъоонр ‘fingernail’, гһъуўъ ‘tree’, гһъөф ‘tooth’, киибъӧӧѓӀ ‘bark’, съөнгъ ‘bone’, съөт̇ъөөнгһъ ‘wheat’, фиинтъъооӈ ‘apple’, чүўъ ‘fruit’, қъад̱ъ ‘meat’, һкъе’тант ‘cheese’, һт̣а’ғөөнб ‘flower’, ӊ̇инвө̆пъъ ‘horn’, ԥӧӧч ‘egg’.

Class cl.7 – for instance: бох ‘colour’, гонҭө̆ө̆нѓӀ ‘hunter’, д̇енһтъэкъ ‘dialect’, д̱ъиинүүнпъъ ‘court’, дъүбъ ‘father’, пъъӕ̈ӕ̈нд̱ъокъ ‘breath’, пъӕ̈ӕ̈нхъ ‘son’, пъөпъъ ‘idea’, пъөөтъъӧнтъ ‘God’, пӕ̈ӕ̈ғъуус ‘medicine’, роч ‘manner’, съег̱от ‘tail’, тиинвъ ‘boy’, фъафъ ‘husband’, фүүўъ ‘fight’, һкааб̱ъ ‘speech’, һтъам ‘man’, ӈө’р̇ ‘language’, ӊ̇өөндһъан’д ‘embrace’, ԥъүб̱ ‘sound’.

Class cl.8 – for instance: г̱еӈъабъ ‘forest’, г̱е’къ ‘land’, г̱ъэнг̱ъ ‘sky’, гһъуунв ‘fire’, д̇үғ ‘water’, даам ‘star’, дъӧӧннъ ‘sun’, дһинпъӧӧнхъ ‘stick’, мүнд̱ъинз ‘river’, н̇оонўъ ‘stone’, пъогһ ‘moon’, сӕ̈мъепъъ ‘plain’, тъӧр̇ ‘earth’, қъаабо’н̇ ‘lake’, һтъуѓӀ ‘sea’, һтъөөԥӕ̈тъ ‘mountain’.

Class cl.9 – for instance: б̱ъӧнзыыннъ ‘tower’, буум ‘north’, дһанў ‘house’, зэтъүп ‘worm’, къадэд̱ ‘grass’, къө̆г̱үк ‘seed’, маакиит ‘market’, пъент̇ъө̆ө̆нр̇ ‘brick’, съӕ̈ӕ̈г̱ъунч ‘wing’, т̇а’б̱ыык ‘feather’, т̇ъӧӧнзинр ‘library’, т̇ыўохъ ‘neck’, ўиб̱ъоонфъ ‘louse’, ғӧ’тъ ‘back’, һкэнкъ ‘leaf’, ӈээгһор ‘mouse’.

The Nominal Phrase

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

Въөв р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ ӈээгһор ҭихъ ԥөк г̱ъегыиинпъ нъусъ мъкъӧпъ къыд̇ ԥкъеӈ б̱ъиизъө̆’к.

[vˤɵv ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ ŋɛːgʱɔɾ tʰixˤ pʰøk ɠˤeɡʉĩːpʼ nˤusˤ mˤkʼˤœpˤ kʼˤʉɖ pʰkʼˤeŋ ɓˤiːzˤɞ̰kʼ]

vˤɵv
blind ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP ŋɛːgʱɔɾ
mouse tʰixˤ
three pʰ-
ABS pʰˤʉ
yon -ɶ̃k
cl.9 ɠˤeɡ
catch -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST nˤusˤ
woman mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 kʼˤʉɖ
knife pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ĩːŋ
cl.4 ɓˤiːzˤɞ̰kʼ
COMIT

“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 Toer stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

The noun displays the following derivational morphology: two suffixes, namely -рээ /-ɾɛː/ ‘little’ and -дһу /-dʱu/ ‘big’

The Adjective

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

Numerals

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

Determiners

In Toer, the determiner has the following structure: first, an obligatory prefix expressing case, comprising ԥ- /pʰ-/ ‘ABS’, мъ- /mˤ-/ ‘ERG’, қъ- /kʰˤ-/ ‘GEN’, гһ- /gʱ-/ ‘DAT’, к- /kʼ-/ ‘INS’, р- /ɾ-/ ‘VOC’, г- /ɡ-/ ‘ALL’, ф- /f-/ ‘LOC’, т̇- /ʈ-/ ‘ABL’ and д- /d-/ ‘PART’; second, the root; and finally, third, an obligatory suffix expressing gender, comprising -өд /-ɵd/ ‘cl.1’, -өнпъ /-ø#pˤ/ ‘cl.2’, -анўъ /-a#wˤ/ ‘cl.3’, -иинӈ /-i#ːŋ/ ‘cl.4’, -өр̇ /-ɵɽ/ ‘cl.5’, -ӧӧнс /-œ#ːs/ ‘cl.6’, -иф /-if/ ‘cl.7’, -ебъ /-ebˤ/ ‘cl.8’ and -ӕ̈нк /-ɶ#k/ ‘cl.9’.

Pronouns

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

In Toer, subject pronouns (but not object pronouns ones) are dropped unless they are stressed. Here is an example where neither of the pronouns are stressed:

Қеенгъ ғө̆ӈъ.

[kʰẽːɡˤ ɣɞŋˤ]

kʰẽːɡˤ
3.cl.2 ɣɞŋˤ
love

“He (the boy) loves her (the girl).”

 (2)

But here, the word corresponding to he (i.e., the subject) is stressed:

Қеенгъ ғө̆ӈъ қөөд̇.

[kʰẽːɡˤ ɣɞŋˤ kʰɵːɖ]

kʰẽːɡˤ
3.cl.2 ɣɞŋˤ
love kʰɵːɖ
3.cl.7

“He loves her.”

 (3)

Proper Nouns

Ҭыынсъө̆ғ ԥкъӧпъ гъааԥъӧт̇ъ Фъуунхы’дъ мъкъеф.

[tʰʉ̃ːsˤɞɣ pʰkʼˤœpˤ ɡˤaːpʰˤœʈʼ fˤũːxʉ̰dˤ mˤkʼˤef]

tʰʉ̃ːsˤɞɣ
Tusagh pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 ɡˤaːpʰˤœʈʼ
hate fˤũːxʉ̰dˤ
Fukhud mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7

“Fukhud hates Tusagh.”

 (4)

Possession

тиинвъ қъеф фиинтъъооӈ ԥкъас

[tĩːvˤ kʰˤef fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ pʰkʼˤas]

tĩːvˤ
boy kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ
apple pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -œ̃ːs
cl.6

“the boy’s apple”

 (5)
қөөд̇ фиинтъъооӈ ԥкъас

[kʰɵːɖ fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ pʰkʼˤas]

kʰɵːɖ
3.cl.7 fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ
apple pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -œ̃ːs
cl.6

“his (the boy’s) apple”

 (6)
миндһъ фиинтъъооӈ ԥкъас

[mĩdʱˤ fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ pʰkʼˤas]

mĩdʱˤ
1excl fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ
apple pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -œ̃ːs
cl.6

“my apple”

 (7)
Ўэнфъ ӊ̇ү’ўон қъӧпъ пъӕ̈ӕ̈нхъ ԥкъеф гэд̣һибыиинпъ гонҭө̆ө̆нѓӀ қъеф тъым мъкъӧпъ.

[wɛ̃fˤ ɳ̥y̰won kʰˤœpˤ pˤɶ̃ːxˤ pʰkʼˤef ɡɛɖʱibʉĩːpʼ ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ kʰˤef tˤʉm mˤkʼˤœpˤ]

wɛ̃fˤ
2 ɳ̥y̰won
neighbour kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 pˤɶ̃ːxˤ
son pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 ɡɛɖʱib
kiss -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ
hunter kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 tˤʉm
daughter mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

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

 (8)

Derivation

Toer has a few derivational processes. To illustrate this, let us start with a simple noun phrase:

хүфъӧнѓӀ

[xyfˤœ̃ʄ]

xyfˤœ̃ʄ
lamb

“a lamb”

 (9)

In the following, the word for little becomes an affix attached to lamb:

хүфъӧнрээ

[xyfˤœ̃ɾɛː]

xyfˤœ̃ʄ
lamb -ɾɛː
little

“a little lamb”

 (10)

Compounding

Verbs

Inflectional Categories

The verbal phrase clitics in Toer fall into two categories, proclitics and enclitics: first, a clitic expressing voice, comprising б̱үнвъ /ɓy#vˤ/ ‘passive’; second, a clitic expressing mode, comprising һкоог̱ъ /hkoːɠˤ/ ‘imperative’, нъар /nˤaɾ/ ‘conditional’ and хыығ /xʉːɣ/ ‘optative’; third, a clitic expressing negation, comprising г̱ъӧнтъъ /ɠˤœ#tʼˤ/ ‘NEG’; and finally, fourth, a clitic expressing question, comprising һкӕ̈ /hkɶ/ ‘Q’.

In addition, the verb is structured like this: the root followed by an optional suffix expressing ta, comprising -ыиинпъ /-ʉi#ːpʼ/ ‘PAST’.

The verb displays the following derivational morphology: two suffixes, namely -тъъо /-tʼˤɔ/ ‘begin’ and -д̣һүүн /-ɖʱy#ː/ ‘stop’

Ўэнфъ ғө̆ӈъ.

[wɛ̃fˤ ɣɞŋˤ]

wɛ̃fˤ
2 ɣɞŋˤ
love

“I love you.”

 (11)

Adverbs Minor Classes

Adpositions

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

дэпъ ԥкъеӈ нъаад̣һ тӕ̈нм

[dɛpˤ pʰkʼˤeŋ nˤaːɖʱ tɶ̃m]

dɛpˤ
table pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ĩːŋ
cl.4 nˤaːɖʱ
surface tɶ̃m
in

“on the table”

 (12)
пъааҭъөгъ ԥкъеӈ ғъӧк сӕ̈ўъ

[pʼaːtʰˤɵɡˤ pʰkʼˤeŋ ɣˤœk sɶwˤ]

pʼaːtʰˤɵɡˤ
box pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ĩːŋ
cl.4 ɣˤœk
inside sɶwˤ
to

“into the box”

 (13)
миндһъ б̱ъиизъө̆’к

[mĩdʱˤ ɓˤiːzˤɞ̰kʼ]

mĩdʱˤ
1excl ɓˤiːzˤɞ̰kʼ
COMIT

“with me”

 (14)

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.

Toer has Object–Verb–Subject (OVS) as its basic constituent order. Clauses begin with the object, followed by the verb, with the subject in final position. This is a rare but attested configuration in the world’s languages.

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

Гонҭө̆ө̆нѓӀ ԥкъеф тычыиинпъ қөндһөөс мъкъӧпъ.

[ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ pʰkʼˤef tʉt͡ʃʉĩːpʼ kʰɵ̃dʱøːs mˤkʼˤœpˤ]

ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ
hunter pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 tʉt͡ʃ
kill -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST kʰɵ̃dʱøːs
jaguar mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

“The jaguar killed the hunter.”

 (15)
Гонҭө̆ө̆нѓӀ қъеф тъым қъӧпъ һкосъ ԥкъӧпъ мъө̆н̇ыиинпъ тъъад̇и мъкъӧпъ.

[ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ kʰˤef tˤʉm kʰˤœpˤ hkosˤ pʰkʼˤœpˤ mˤɞɳʉĩːpʼ tʼˤaɖi mˤkʼˤœpˤ]

ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ
hunter kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 tˤʉm
daughter kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 hkosˤ
dog pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 mˤɞɳ
eat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST tʼˤaɖi
lion mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

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

 (16)

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 Toer 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, Toer 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.

ўэнфъ пъӕ̈ӕ̈нхъ қъеф пъинғъ қъӧпъ буук ԥкъеӈ

[wɛ̃fˤ pˤɶ̃ːxˤ kʰˤef pʼĩɣˤ kʰˤœpˤ buːk pʰkʼˤeŋ]

wɛ̃fˤ
2 pˤɶ̃ːxˤ
son kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 pʼĩɣˤ
friend kʰˤ-
GEN kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 buːk
book pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ĩːŋ
cl.4

“your son’s friend’s book”

 (17)

Case Marking

Toer uses ergative–absolutive case marking. The subject of an intransitive verb and the object of a transitive verb are treated alike and take the absolutive case, while the subject of a transitive verb is marked with the ergative case. From the point of view of such a system, this is a perfectly natural way to organise the clause: the absolutive marks the participant most directly involved in the event or state, while the ergative marks the additional participant that causes or controls a transitive event.

Ӈъызъ д̇еенн̇ ԥкъӧпъ.

[ŋˤʉzˤ ɖẽːɳ pʰkʼˤœpˤ]

ŋˤʉzˤ
sleep ɖẽːɳ
cat pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

“The cat is sleeping.”

 (18)
Ҭүүт̇ д̇еенн̇ ԥкъӧпъ.

[tʰyːʈ ɖẽːɳ pʰkʼˤœpˤ]

tʰyːʈ
run ɖẽːɳ
cat pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

“The cat is running.”

 (19)
Ӈээгһор ԥкъак т̇ө̆н̇иин̇ д̇еенн̇ мъкъӧпъ.

[ŋɛːgʱɔɾ pʰkʼˤak ʈɞɳiːɳ ɖẽːɳ mˤkʼˤœpˤ]

ŋɛːgʱɔɾ
mouse pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ɶ̃k
cl.9 ʈɞɳiːɳ
chase ɖẽːɳ
cat mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

“The cat is chasing the mouse.”

 (20)
Ӈээгһор ԥкъак г̱ъегыиинпъ д̇еенн̇ мъкъӧпъ.

[ŋɛːgʱɔɾ pʰkʼˤak ɠˤeɡʉĩːpʼ ɖẽːɳ mˤkʼˤœpˤ]

ŋɛːgʱɔɾ
mouse pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ɶ̃k
cl.9 ɠˤeɡ
catch -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɖẽːɳ
cat mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2

“The cat caught the mouse.”

 (21)

Conjunctions

Here is an example of a conjunction.

Қөндһөөс ԥкъӧпъ гһъыынд̱ъ ғаанпъобъ ԥкъӧпъ гһъыынд̱ъ тъъад̇и ԥкъӧпъ тычыиинпъ гонҭө̆ө̆нѓӀ мъкъеф.

[kʰɵ̃dʱøːs pʰkʼˤœpˤ gʱˤʉ̃ːɗˤ ɣãːpˤɔbˤ pʰkʼˤœpˤ gʱˤʉ̃ːɗˤ tʼˤaɖi pʰkʼˤœpˤ tʉt͡ʃʉĩːpʼ ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ mˤkʼˤef]

kʰɵ̃dʱøːs
jaguar pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 gʱˤʉ̃ːɗˤ
and ɣãːpˤɔbˤ
tiger pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 gʱˤʉ̃ːɗˤ
and tʼˤaɖi
lion pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 tʉt͡ʃ
kill -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɡõtʰɞ̃ːʄ
hunter mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7

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

 (22)

Modifiers and Determiners

The ordering of demonstratives, articles (if present), and other modifiers in Toer 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

Toer forms relative clauses by placing them before the noun they modify. The modifier takes the form of a finite clause that precedes the head noun without any relative pronoun. The clause shows ordinary clausal structure, with the role of the head noun recoverable from the syntactic position inside the clause.

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

Д̇еенн̇ ԥкъӧпъ гһө̆но’тъыиинпъ.

[ɖẽːɳ pʰkʼˤœpˤ gʱɞnɔ̰tˤʉĩːpʼ]

ɖẽːɳ
cat pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 gʱɞnɔ̰tˤ
pat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST

“I patted the cat.”

 (23)

We can now add a relative clause modifying the noun:

Ӈээгһор ԥкъак г̱ъегыиинпъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ д̇еенн̇ ԥкъӧпъ гһө̆но’тъыиинпъ.

[ŋɛːgʱɔɾ pʰkʼˤak ɠˤeɡʉĩːpʼ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ ɖẽːɳ pʰkʼˤœpˤ gʱɞnɔ̰tˤʉĩːpʼ]

ŋɛːgʱɔɾ
mouse pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ɶ̃k
cl.9 ɠˤeɡ
catch -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP ɖẽːɳ
cat pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 gʱɞnɔ̰tˤ
pat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST

“I patted the cat that caught the mouse.”

 (24)

Relative clauses may themselves contain other relative clauses:

Һкъе’тант ԥкъас мъө̆н̇ыиинпъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ ӈээгһор ԥкъак г̱ъегыиинпъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ д̇еенн̇ ԥкъӧпъ гһө̆но’тъыиинпъ.

[hkˤḛtãt pʰkʼˤas mˤɞɳʉĩːpʼ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ ŋɛːgʱɔɾ pʰkʼˤak ɠˤeɡʉĩːpʼ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ ɖẽːɳ pʰkʼˤœpˤ gʱɞnɔ̰tˤʉĩːpʼ]

hkˤḛtãt
cheese pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -œ̃ːs
cl.6 mˤɞɳ
eat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP ŋɛːgʱɔɾ
mouse pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ɶ̃k
cl.9 ɠˤeɡ
catch -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP ɖẽːɳ
cat pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 gʱɞnɔ̰tˤ
pat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST

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

 (25)

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

Кыынкъыиинпъ миндһъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ һкъе’тант ԥкъас мъө̆н̇ыиинпъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ ӈээгһор ԥкъак г̱ъегыиинпъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ д̇еенн̇ ԥкъӧпъ гһө̆но’тъыиинпъ.

[kʼʉ̃ːkʼˤʉĩːpʼ mĩdʱˤ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ hkˤḛtãt pʰkʼˤas mˤɞɳʉĩːpʼ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ ŋɛːgʱɔɾ pʰkʼˤak ɠˤeɡʉĩːpʼ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ ɖẽːɳ pʰkʼˤœpˤ gʱɞnɔ̰tˤʉĩːpʼ]

kʼʉ̃ːkʼˤ
buy -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST mĩdʱˤ
1excl ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP hkˤḛtãt
cheese pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -œ̃ːs
cl.6 mˤɞɳ
eat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP ŋɛːgʱɔɾ
mouse pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ɶ̃k
cl.9 ɠˤeɡ
catch -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP ɖẽːɳ
cat pʰ-
ABS kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 gʱɞnɔ̰tˤ
pat -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST

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

 (26)

Complementation Strategies

Toer 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:

Дъиичөөз гһӧпъ фъэсъүчыиинпъ фиинтъъооӈ де гһӧпъ хъөныиинпъ тиинвъ мъкъеф р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ.

[dˤiːt͡ʃɵːz gʱœpˤ fˤɛsˤyt͡ʃʉĩːpʼ fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ de gʱœpˤ xˤønʉĩːpʼ tĩːvˤ mˤkʼˤef ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ]

dˤiːt͡ʃɵːz
teacher gʱ-
DAT kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 fˤɛsˤyt͡ʃ
surprise -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST fĩːtʼˤɔːŋ
apple de
girl gʱ-
DAT kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 xˤøn
give -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST tĩːvˤ
boy mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7 ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP

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

 (27)

Quotes

Toer 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:

Ўэнфъ ғө̆ӈъ миндһъ р̇ӕ̈ӕ̈дһъөөхъ де гһӧпъ куубыиинпъ тиинвъ мъкъеф.

[wɛ̃fˤ ɣɞŋˤ mĩdʱˤ ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ de gʱœpˤ kuːbʉĩːpʼ tĩːvˤ mˤkʼˤef]

wɛ̃fˤ
2 ɣɞŋˤ
love mĩdʱˤ
1excl ɽɶːdʱˤøːxˤ
COMP de
girl gʱ-
DAT kʼˤa
the -ø̃pˤ
cl.2 kuːb
tell -ʉĩːpʼ
PAST tĩːvˤ
boy mˤ-
ERG kʼˤa
the -if
cl.7

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

 (28)

How to cite this grammar

Language Creator. 2026. A Grammar of Toer. Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.92, on 29 September 2026. https://languagecreator.org/grammar/5J90G

In BibTeX format:

@misc{LC-5J90G,
  year         = 2026,
  author       = {{Language Creator}},
  title        = {A Grammar of {Toer}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://languagecreator.org/grammar/5J90G}},
  note         = {Generated by the Language Creator, version 0.92, on 29 September 2026}
}

Supplementary Materials

A collection of illustrative texts and a bilingual dictionary (English–Toer / Toer–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/5J90G

Behind the scenes, the Language Creator stores the generated language in a JSON-based format known as ELD. The corresponding ELD file may be downloaded, edited as required, and reuploaded in order to regenerate the grammar, dictionary and texts.

To revisit the questionnaire settings used to generate this language, .

Language creation took 0.02 seconds; writing the grammar 0.07 seconds.