There is Sumerian language in this story, and transliteration is quite difficult considering the book I originally learned this in is lost to time (and multiple moves throughout my adult years), and online texts don't agree on translation. That's the difficulty of using an ancient, dead language; but I thought it would be fun to share with you!
Another thing that has been difficult is this is my first OC that I have written as a stand alone character. Usually, my OC's and reader inserts are just written to be a catalyst to Levi's growth and that's it. Oh, they have personality to be sure, but I'm always drawing off myself. What would I say to him? The banter is always how I would respond to the man. Kia (pronounced Kee-ya), still has my type of comebacks and witticisms, but she is being developed with her own plot and backstory. I'm also kind of stuck right now on where I want to take my character, so those of you who follow me I welcome feedback, and would be happy to talk about the story! You would of course be credited for ideas used. (Of course, feel free to comment even if you don't follow, I enjoy feedback!)
Following the introduction is a rather brief but helpful pronunciation key. All Sumerian words in the story will have a translation in parenthesis to help you along.
Vowels: (all vowels are spoken. If I was to say Kia, both vowels are spoken and it sounds as such: Kee-ya. There are no silent vowels in sumerian)
a as in "bother" or "father"
e as in "hey" or "stay"
i as in "key" "me"
o as in "coat" (but rarely found)
u as in "too"
The majority of consonants are the same as in the english language. Though they didn't
have an alphabet as we are used to, they did have a syllabary,
(think Japanese "Kana" script, it is very similar). Phonetically in
transliterations, the english manner of spelling is an attempt to approximate the Sumerian
pronunciation. Phonetic variations have been made to approximate sounds that are not a part of the English language.
Important examples below=
X as in German "ach"
CH (similar sound as above)
Q as in "Mike"
K (as above)
SH as in "short"
SS has been approximated as a hissing sound, which is common to Arabic dialects
Z has a "ts" sound, like saying pizza
I hope this doesn't turn into a difficult read due to the language. I don't use an overwhelming amount of Sumerian, but still. As always, please feel free to give feedback if you see a way to smooth out the language concerns. I am open to suggestions!
YOU ARE READING
Phases
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