Warnings

Error

There are not enough sounds in your language to generate a sufficient set of unique of words! Enter more consonants and/or vowels or turn off custom options.

Error

There are not enough Word Patterns to create unique words. Try entering more multi-syllablic patterns and/or more phonemes. Don't forget about patterns for specific parts-of-speech!

Note

Error

Settings file is corrupted.

Note

Syllable Structure option is not compatible with Word Structure option, due to possibility of creating contradictory rules. It is only compatible with Custom Phonemes option (the one up the top).

Phonemes

Phonemes are the individual sounds of a language. This is not the same as the spelling! Phonemes are represented by the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), which is used to transcribe the exact pronunciation of words in all languages worldwide. IPA is written between /forward slashes/.

Becoming familiar with some of the IPA sounds will enhance your understanding of the languages generated by Vulgar.

Seed numbers

Each language is generated from a seed number, which can be used to re-generate a langauge. However, once you have clicked Edit This Language, the seed number is no longer needed.

Despite this, demo users will need to use the seed number method (as the demo version limits some of the custom input allowed). All custom settings that you have used must be re-entered along with the seed number.

Syllable structure

Syllable structure refers to how many consonants are permitted to appear on either side of the vowel. A syllable structure of (C)V means the syllable must have one vowel and an optional consonant at the beginning. It permits patterns such as tito, raleo, ala. Languages with this kind of simple structure include Swahili and Fijian. A syllable structure such as (C)(C)(C)V(C)(C) would allow more complex words such as strips, trainers. Most European languages have more complex structures.

Stress pattern

Stress pattern refers to which syllable in a word gets emphasis. English has no exact fixed pattern; the stress can fall on any syllable: VIGorous (first), emPLOYment (second to last), hoTEL (last). Most of the world's major languages have no fixed pattern, however some do. Finnish words have stress on the first syllable. Greek is second to last syllable. Persian has it on the last syllable.

IPA uses the ˈ symbol before the syllable to represent primary stress. The word siho /si ˈho/ would be pronounced siHO.

Sound change rules

All languages have phonemes that change slightly (or sometimes dramatically) based on the effects of other phonemes around it. These are known as phonological changes, and they can be expressed in rules. A rule such as e > i / _g means e turns into i before g.

For a more in-depth lesson on phonological rules, and the kinds of phonological rules that exist click here.

Diphthongs

A diphthong is when two vowel sounds combine into one. English has various diphthongs. For example, the word "light" /laɪt/ is comprised of /a/ and /ɪ/, but is perceived as one vowel.

Consider using diphthongs to expand your vowel inventory.

Adpositions

Adpositions are words that express spatial or temporal relations (in, on, under, towards, before) or mark various semantic roles (of, for). When adpositions come before the noun phrase they are called prepositions, i.e. in English: on the table. If they come after the noun phrase they are called postpositions. Languages that use postpositions include Chinese and Turkish.

Dropoff rate

Phonemes are ranked by frequency from left (most frequent) to right (least frequent). Fast rate makes frequent phonemes even more frequent, Medium creates a more even spread, and Equiprobable creates a perfectly even spread. When using Equiprobable, phonemes can be custom weighted by writing *multiplier. For example, p*10 makes p ten times more common than a phoneme without a weighting. To make it less likely, multiply by a decimal: p*0.4.

Illegal combinations

Specify sequences that can't occur in a word. For example, although w and u do occur in Japanese, wu does not.

This field supports RegEx matching, so you can specify vowels that cannot occur word-initially or finally, among other things.

Notes: Separate rules by space or new line. Rules apply to base words only; words created by base word + affix may violate a rule, however custom conditional affixes can overcome this. Rules about diphthongs may need the diphthong diacritic (ia̯) to be correctly matched, regardless of whether they are entered in vowel field with the diacritic or not.

Change alphabet order

Input orthographic letters in the new order you want them to be alphabetized, separated by spaces. Diagraphs are permitted.

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Settings added!

This language has been added to the custom settings and can now be edited.

Note: In the Demo version, the feature will only reproduce one grammar table, and 1 in 10 words of the added vocabulary. Instead you can use the Generate This Seed's Language button to reproduce the exact same language (in the Save Your Language section). You just won't be able to edit its grammar!