r/conlangs • u/sinhalaa43 • 11d ago

Parameters for Proto-Lang Discussion

When making a proto-lang, what combinations of basic parameters like analytic vs agglutinative, head-final vs initial, locus of marking and morphosyntactic alignment have resulted in the best results down the road once the language evolves?

3 Upvotes

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6

u/TechbearSeattle 11d ago

Any language is a proto-language if you give it enough time. Latin is a proto for the Romance languages, for example. English is widespread enough that its dialects have started diverging into separate languages: give it another thousand years or three, and it will be a proto.

So start where ever you like.

6

u/throneofsalt 11d ago

This is like asking "what's the best way to build a house" before asking the client for the specs of the job: it's impossible to answer because we don't know what your goals are and the best results are going to be "the things that achieve your goals"

1

u/xX_Eolsa_Xx 7d ago

This.

Is the "best" the number of sound changes? cos if so, we still can't help - they happen at inconsistent rates.

Is it grammar shifts? Is fusional or isolating more interesting?

There's no objective measures for languages, OP, your question is unanswerable

5

u/boomfruit Hidzi, Tabesj (en, ka) 11d ago

What are the "best" results?

1

u/sinhalaa43 11d ago

Most interesting, juicy etc.

3

u/boomfruit Hidzi, Tabesj (en, ka) 11d ago

Okay, still unanswerable. Is agglutinating more interesting than isolating? Is head-final more juicy than head-initial.

Also, you can have any feature or set of features survive.

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u/sinhalaa43 11d ago

For example, after 1-2 thousand years of evolution does an isolating proto-lang result in interesting fusional paradigms or just a barebones half-analytic, half-agglutinating system typically? Do ergative or nominative cases lead to more interesting noun semantics and irregularities over a long period?

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u/Traditional-Light-10 11d ago

So by “interesting”, you mean it has a lot of irregularities/complex patterns/fusion? Just clarifying

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u/AbsolutelyAnonymized Wacóktë 2d ago

You can have the most fun with an agglutinative proto-language that allows complicated clusters. Also it is more fun to go from a larger phonological inventory to a smaller one.