(Conlangs) Q&A Thread - Quick questions go here

[DesEsseintes]

Thai is an excellent example of a writing system that uses a variety of ways to represent diphthongs. The /ai a:i/ diphthongs are a good example. ท is one of the consonant symbols for /tʰ/. You can have:

a. one of the two dedicated symbols that represent /ai/

ไท /tʰai/ or /tʰa:i/ (the symbol is unspecified for length; marking for length is slightly deficient in Thai)
ใท /tʰai/

b. use a vowel diacritic + the consonant symbol for /j/

ทัย /tʰai/

c. use the letter for long aa + the consonant symbol for /j/

ทาย /tʰa:i/

For some other diphthongs and triphthongs, Thai may use a combination of up to four diacritics and letters

เทย /tʰɤi/
เทียว /tʰiau/

[Knox Adjacent]

So, cluster analysis vs unit analysis of (medial) consonants not withstanding, does the asymmetry between nasals and laterals irk you?

Nasal-plosive
Plosive-nasal
Plosive-lateral

But no Lateral-plosive.

No other clusters/units apply.

[Omzinesý]

I have a lang whose past tense is formed like that of German with two auxiliaries.

I have done.
I am come.

Which verbs could develop to past inferential markers?

I seem to have done.
I seem to be come.

I would still like to preserve the construction with the past (passive) participle.

[Dormouse559]

Which verbs could develop to past inferential markers?

I seem to have done.
I seem to be come.

"Seem" on its own already works for the "be" verbs. For the "have" verbs, how about "show"?

[Ahzoh]

Can lateral obstruents be sibilants?

[Creyeditor]

Can lateral obstruents be sibilants?

Interesting question. The answer is: "not really, I guess". Articulatorily, sibilants are defined by a central groove-like shape in the tongue that directs airflow from the blade of the tongue towards the back of the teeth. This causes a relatively high-pitched noise. So sibilants have only central airflow.
Laterals, on the other hand, have a central closure, which directs the airflow to one or both sides of the tongue, which causes a different kind of noise. This means, laterals have lateral airflow. Therefore, they cannot be sibilants.
This is not completely true, however. If you have a strong lung and a very flexible tongue, a kind of M-shaped cross-section could result in two different airflow, central directed and lateral. Such a sound would be a sibilant and a lateral.

[VaptuantaDoi]

Can lateral obstruents be sibilants?

I'm fairly sure I can produce a sibilant /ɬ/, it just takes a fair bit of effort.

Wikipedia claims some dialects of MSA have either simultaneous central-lateral non-sibilant ([θ͜ɬˤ]) and possibly also sibilant [s͜ɬ] fricatives. I think extIPA /ʪ/ is something approaching a central-lateral sibilant if not exactly that.

[Omzinesý]

Which verbs could develop to past inferential markers?

I seem to have done.
I seem to be come.

"Seem" on its own already works for the "be" verbs. For the "have" verbs, how about "show"?

Thanks
It was simpler than I thought

[LinguoFranco]

I'm working on a conlang. Phonology-wise it's nothing super interesting, just a syllable-timed agglutinative language.

One thing I am thinking about adding is word tone or pitch accent, but not sure how to go about it. Most pitch accent languages have contrastive vowel length, while I plan for long vowels to only occur allophonically in this language. I'm considering making it so that the pitch variations only occur in the accented syllable, and thus one high tone per word.

How would things like contours and sandhi work in a language whete the syllable is the TBU as opposed to the mora, and with a more agglutinative structure as opposed to an isolating one?

Most pitch accent languages seem to be either mora timed but with agglutination, or syllable timed but isolating. My lang is somewhere in between.