Turian Language

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Turian Alphabet (High Cipritine dialect)[edit | edit source]

 

  • A - Short version: “a” as in “apple”. Long version: "aar" as is “father”.

 

  • AE - Prefix/middle of a word: long “a” as in “day”. Suffix: long “i” as in “cry”.

 

  • AI -  “i”, as in “cry”.

 

  • AU - “ow”, as in “owl”

 

  • B - Same as it is in English.

 

  • C - Hard “c”, as in “cat” - is often used interchangeably with the letter K as they both make the same sound, though C is more widely used than K in traditional Palaven dialects. C can also make a “ch” sound if it comes before either E, I, AE, or Y. To avoid confusion, galactic translators will often add in an H after a C, if C comes before any of these letters. This results in Anglicised versions of turian words, such as “Chellick” - the original turian spelling would be “Cellik”.

There are however times when C is interchangeable with the letter S. This trend is primarily seen in contemporary colonial dialects, especially on colonies which are the most distant from Palaven.

Following the Unification War, the names of many colonies and cities gradually changed over time to incorporate this new language trend. As such, the names of places like Cipritine, Macedyn, Thracia, and Xerceo now incorporate the “s” sound rather than their original c and “ch” sounds. Some language revivalists however refuse to adhere to this practice, instead using the original pronunciation in defiance of change, citing a need to protect traditional Palaven cultures from being forgotten.
 

  • D - Same as it is in English.

 

  • E - Short version: “eh” as in “bet”. Long version: “a” as in “date”.


  • EA - Pronounced as “ayah”. No human equivalent.


  • EI - “ay”, as in “day”

 

  • EU - “u”, as in “uranium”

 

  • F - Same as it is in English.

 

  • G - Hard “g”, as in “garden”. However, G can also make a “j” sound, as in “giant”, if it comes before either E, I, AE, or Y. Galactic translators will often substitute the “j” sound for a hard “g”, if G comes before any of these letters. This results in Anglicised pronunciation of turian words, such as “Gellix” - the original turian pronunciation is “Jellix”.

 

  • H - Hard “h”, as in “hat”.

 

  • I - Short version: “ih”, as in “sit”. Long version: “ee”, as in “machine”.


  • IA - Prefix: “y” as in “yellow”. Suffix: "eeah" - no human equivalent.

 

  • J - Hard “j”, as in “jump”. However, J can also make a “y” sound, as in “yellow”, if it comes before either E, I, AE, or Y. Galactic translators will often substitute the “y” sound for a hard “j”, if J comes before any of these letters. This results in Anglicised pronunciation of turian words, such as “Jirris” - the original turian pronunciation is “Yirris”.

 

  • K - Hard “k”, as in “kick” - is often used interchangeably with the letter C as they both make the same sound. K however is more widely used than C in contemporary colonial dialects, due to the fact C is often used in the place of S in these dialects.

 

  • L - Same as it is in English.

 

  • M - Same as it is in English.

 

  • N - Same as it is in English.

 

  • O - Short version: “o”, as in “off”. Long version: “oh”, as in “holy”.

 

  • OE - “oi”, as in “oil”.

 

  • P - Same as it is in English.

 

  • PH - Soft “f”, same as it is in English.

 

  • Q - Q is a confusing letter for any prospective student of High-Cipritine to grasp. The letter Q does not seem to follow any kind of universally accepted language rule and is open to personal interpretation. While it is often paired with the letter U (QU diphthong), as seen in English, it does not always make a “qw” sound when in this pairing. For example, in the name "Quarn" it does make a “qw” sound, but in the name "Qui’in" it makes a hard “k” sound instead. Mastery of the letter Q comes from learning the correct pronunciation of the individual words it is found within. When in doubt, take a stab at the “qw” pronunciation, as this tends to be the more common of the two.


  • QU - See above ^^^


  • R - Similar to the English version, albeit it is pronounced using an alveolar trill (otherwise known as a “rolled R”).


  • S - Same as it is in English.


  • T - Same as it is in English.

 

  • U - Short version: “o”, as in “foot”. Long version: “oo”, as in “hoot”.

 

  • UI - “wih”, as in “quick”.

 

  • V - same as it is in English.


  • X - “ks” sound, as in “books”. Similar to the English version, although it makes more of a clicking noise in the back of the throat. Can be considered a non-verbal sound.


  • Y - “i”, as in “cry”.


  • Z - Same as in English.


    THERE IS NO EQUIVALENT OF W IN THE TURIAN LANGUAGE.
 

Vowel Placement & Pronunciation Rules[edit | edit source]

How a particular vowel is pronounced depends entirely on where it is placed within a word. Short versions of vowels are used if a vowel is placed either as the starting letter of a word, or before the last syllable of a word. For example, let's use the word Invictus to explain short vowel forms. The I at the start of the word is pronounced in short form because it is the starting letter; therefore it would be pronounced as "ih". Likewise, the second I would also be pronounced in short form because it is placed before the last syllable of the word. Invictus has three syllables; IN-VIC-TUS - only vowels found in the first two syllables (IN and VIC) would be pronounced in short form.

Long forms of vowels are used when a vowel is located in either the final syllable of a word, or is the last letter of a word. Going back to the example of Invictus, the U would be pronounced in long form because it is placed within the last syllable of the word (TUS); therefore it would be pronounced as "oo", rather than the short form "o". Vowels at the ends of words are also always pronounced using their long form. For example, the A at the end of Oraka would always be pronounced in long form; therefore it would be pronounced as "aar", rather than the short form "a".

Now, let's use the word Galatana to revise what we've learned. Galatana has four syllables; GAL-LAT-TAN-A. The vowels found in the first three syllables would be pronounced in short form. The vowel in the last syllable, at the end of the word, would be pronounced in long form. Therefore, Galatana would be phonetically pronounced as "gal-lat-tan-aar" and NOT "gal-lat-tan-a".

Diphthongs[edit | edit source]

Turian diphthongs differ from human ones in that they do not follow the standard rule of the first vowel dictating the sound of the rest of the diphthong. For example, in English “ai” is always pronounced as a long “a”, as like “raider”, but for turians it is pronounced as a long “i” instead. This can confuse prospective human students of turian languages, and vice versa. 

The sounds which turian diphthongs make may also change depending on where they are located within a word. For example, “ae” makes a long “a” sound when used as a prefix or placed before the last syllable of a word, as seen in words like Aephus and Taetrus. However, if “ae” is fulfilling the role of a suffix, or is placed within the last syllable of a word, it makes a long “i” sound instead, as seen in words like Menae and Demael.

Turian languages rely heavily on diphthongs and thus these vowel combinations are included in their alphabet as individual alphabetical characters, rather than two separate ones joined together.