The Lendian language is spoken as a first language by approximately 110 million people, most of whom live in Lendosa. Significant Lendian-speaking communities also live in former Lendian-controlled territories such as Neoliliana and Caboteniasa. In addition, a large number of people learn Lendian as a second or third language, with the language serving as a lingua franca in many of the countries formerly under Lendian control.
History[]
For the most part, Lendian is derived from the ancient Liliani language, which was spoken by the peoples who colonised Lendosa around 2,300 years ago. The original languages have mostly disappeared except on off-shore islands, but there are a significant number of modern Lendian words which probably trace back to them.
Over the centuries following colonisation, the speech of Lendia's various regions drifted apart, owing mainly to time and distance but also to different influences from indigenous languages. Gradually, around eleven separate varieties formed — linguists are divided on whether they were truely separate languages or merely highly divergent dialects. An educated speaker of one variety could usually, with difficulty, comprehend slow, formal speech of another variety, but rapid, colloquial speech usually resulted in unintelligibility.
Over time, however, the various varieties of Lendian began to come together again — political unification, trade, and cultural exchange began to dissolve the boundaries, and the stronger local dialects began to fade. The most powerful and influential dialect was Azulian, spoken in the east of Lendia proper, and that formed the basis of the united Lendian language. Regional variations remained strong, however, until the advent of mass media, when most of the major differences fell away. The only variations to still exist in their original form are Teldian (in the central mountains of Lendia) and Sargonese (in the southeast of Piolsa) — apart from these, speakers of all dialects can usually understand one another. Strong accents still persist, as do differences in vocabulary and grammar, but radio, film, and television have ensured that most Lendian-speakers are familiar with the "standard" Azulian dialect in addition to their own. Azulian is the preferred dialect for formal situations, with the others tending to be more informal and colloquial.
Dialects[]
| Dialect | Area | Features |
|---|---|---|
| Alvaronian (or Arcostan) |
Northwestern Piolsa | Close to the Rezimanian dialect, and sometimes considered the same. Pronunciation close to standard Lendian. Tends to retain grammar and spelling forms which have disappeared elsewhere, or are considered archaic. Substantial difference between formal and informal speech, with formal speech using old forms more frequently. |
| Aspalian | Southwestern Lendia | Influenced to a considerable degree by the pre-colonial Paspalhite language. Strong accent, and uses a significant number of Paspalhite-derived words which are not found elsewhere. |
| Azulian | Eastern Lendia | The "standard" dialect of Lendian. Spoken in the east of Lendia proper, being used in the city of Gloria Libertatis and of the Neonian coast. It is the primary dialect of government, business, and media. Broadly "intermediate" in the extent to which it has deviated from the original Liliani. |
| Caerulian | Northeastern Piolsa | Informal speech quite similar to Videcian dialect. Formal language is considerably different, and is the closest dialect of Lendian to the original Liliani. (This is probably through conscious emulation — Caerulia has traditionally seen itself as more "true" to Liliana than other parts of Lendosa). |
| Catanian | Northern Piolsa | Pronunciation similar to Videcian, but with a large number of non-Lendian words included. (Catania was settled relatively late, and with less destruction of indigenous culture). Also has a number of highly noticable variations of syntax. |
| Melhorian | Northwestern Lendia | Similar to the Rivanian dialect, but with the distinguishing features even more pronounced. Includes a considerable number of Rabeli words, and some small aspects of Rabeli grammar. |
| Rezimanian | Southwestern Piolsa | Closely related to the Alvaronian dialect, and sometimes considered the same. Pronunciation close to standard Lendian. Tends to retain grammar and spelling forms which have disappeared elsewhere, or are considered archaic. Differs from Alvaronian in that there is not much difference between formal and informal language. |
| Rivanian | Northern Lendia | Distinctive pronunciation, probably derived from pre-colonial languages (Rivania, along with Melhoria and Catania, are probably the areas of Lendosa where non-colonist ancenstry is most evident). Vocabulary varies considerably from standard. Large gap between formal and informal language, more so than Alvaronian. |
| Sargonese | Southeastern Piolsa | Based on the Sargonese language, which is still spoken as a separate language in some parts. Final vowels of words are often faint or omitted altogether, and other words are pronounced with a strong accent and different word stress. Considered one of the strongest accents. |
| Teldian | Central Lendia | Based on the Teldian language, which is still spoken as a separate language in some parts. Pronunciation of individual sounds is similar to standard Lendian, but many words are changed somewhat. (eg, standard montana, meaning mountain, is montenni in Teldian). |
| Videcian | Central Piolsa | Often considered a mix of the Alvaronian dialect (to the west) and the Sargonese dialect (to the south). Similarities with Alvaronian include the archaic grammatical forms, while similarities with Sargonese include pronunciation. |
| Outside Lendosa | ||
| Connentale | Neoliliana | Largely based on the Azulian and Caerulian dialects, but with considerable influence from the Neoliliani language, particularly in terms of pronunciation. |
| Sanalandran | Xochimechatl | A mixture of all manner of other dialects, particularly Rivanian, Melhorian, Azulian, and Alvaronian. A significant amount of the local Xochimechatlan language is also incorporated. More recently, films and television from Lendia have become widespread, bringing the Sanalandran dialect closer to to the original Lendian again. |
| Teniasan | Caboteniasa | A mixture of the Azulian dialect (used by the colonial elite) and the Rezimanian and Sargonese dialects (used by the colonists), influenced somewhat by local languages. |
Phonology and script[]
Lendian is written with the Liliani script, although adopts a different order of letters. It does not use any additional letters, and standard Lendian does not use any diacritic marks. The pronunciation will often vary between different dialects — the table below the shows "standard" (that is, Azulian) pronunciations.
| Letter | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| A, a | Pronounced as in "far". |
| E, e | Pronounced as in "rest" when followed by a consonant, otherwise pronounced as in "bay". |
| I, i | Pronounced as in "machine". |
| O, o | Pronounced as in "open". |
| U, u | Pronounced as in "boot". |
| B, b | Pronounced as in "burn". |
| D, d | Pronounced as in "dog". |
| F, f | Pronounced as in "fold". |
| G, g | Pronounced as in "get". |
| H, h | Silent (but pronounced as in "hay" in some dialects). |
| J, j | Pronounced as in "jar". |
| L, l | Pronounced as in "lead". |
| M, m | Pronounced as in "milk". |
| N, n | Pronounced as in "need". |
| P, p | Pronounced as in "pen". |
| R, r | Pronounced as in "road". In some dialects, rolled. |
| S, s | Pronounced as in "sold". |
| C, c | Pronounced as in "cake" except when before "e" or "i", where it is pronounced as in "cell". |
| Z, z | Pronounced as in "zoo". |
| T, t | Pronounced as in "tall". |
| V, v | Pronounced as in "vine". |
| Q, q | Must be followed by "u", the result being pronounced as in "queen". |
| X, x | Pronounced either as in "box" or as in "loch" (largely arbitrary). |
| K, k | Pronounced as in "kite". Only used in borrowed words. |