Adelic Language Page

One of the most basic functions of any language is the naming of things. Words that name are called nouns. Nouns have three basic forms in Adelic: the single, the plural, and the possessive forms.

1. The Single Noun

The single noun is formed with the basic word stem and, if it is a short single-syllable stem, its unstressed -e ending.

Stem		Singular
beer		beer
gauft		gauft
bæmm-		bæmme
kidd-		kidde
gechl		gechl
jytt- + bisk		jyttbisk

2. The Plural Noun

The plural noun is formed by adding the unstressed suffix -er to the basic word stem.

Stem		Plural
alz		alzer
sæff		sæffer
sigg-		sigger
toktr		toktrer
vøt		vøter
selp- + tunn-		selptunner

3. The Possessive Noun

Possessive nouns are used as adjectives to limit other nouns. The use of adjectives is discussed below in the section on modifiers. The possessive noun is formed by adding the unstressed suffix -es to the basic word stem or the plural form.

Stem		Possessive
aavi		aavyes
alb-		albes
jween		jweenes
mooþr		mooþres
selk-		selkes
dønu		dønwes

In Adelic, although each noun is a word in itself, it cannot stand alone in a sentence. Each noun must be accompanied by a helping word called a determiner. The determiner indicates the noun's degree of identity and its function within the sentence. The noun and its determiner, together with any modifiers, make up a noun phrase.

4. The Determiners

There are a total of six determiners in Adelic. Three of them have inflected forms that are attached to the noun itself. These six determiners are grouped into three categories: definite, indefinite, and common.

i. The common
There are two determiners that identify nouns as belonging to a common class, but not unique in themselves. They are ævr and ænge. Ævr is used only before a noun which is the subject of a sentence.

ævr guus = house
Ænge is used only before a noun which is the direct object of a sentence. Its inflected form -ing is suffixed to the indirect object or the object of a preposition.

ænge guus = house
inne guusering = in houses
Neither ævr nor ænge
have an English equivalent.
ii. The indefinite
There are two determiners that indefinitely identify nouns. They are summe and ænne. Summe is used only before a noun which is the subject of a sentence.

summe guus = a house

Ænne is used only before a noun which is the direct object of a sentence. Its inflected form -en is suffixed to the indirect object or the object of a preposition.

ænne guus = a house
inne guusen = in a house
Both summe and ænne are translated as the English articles a or an.
iii. The definite

There are two determiners that give nouns a definite identity. They are se and de. Se is used only before a noun which is the subject of a sentence.

se guus = the house
De is used only before a noun which is the direct object of a sentence. Its inflected form -et is suffixed to the indirect object or the object of a preposition.

de guus = the house
inne guuset = in the house
Both se and de are translated as the English article the.

The following table provides an easy reference of all determiners and their cases:

	Common	Indefinite	Definite
Subject	ævr	summe	se
Dir. Obj.	ænge	ænne	de
Ind. Obj.	-ing	-en	-et

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