Constructed Scripts

This forum is for constructed languages, both those invented by UniLang members and those already existing.

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Pasie
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Constructed Scripts

Postby Pasie » 2015-08-20, 17:35

I'm making a conlang, but I'm having trouble with it's script (Latin script is getting boring, and no other real scripts have the same vowels and consonants). Could someone help me? Any tips? It has 18 vowels and 15 consonants (Extremely tonal) and I'm happy with any kind of writing: Pictographic, logographic, syllabaries, etc. Thanks! :D

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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby linguoboy » 2015-08-20, 17:55

Pasie wrote:I'm making a conlang, but I'm having trouble with it's script (Latin script is getting boring, and no other real scripts have the same vowels and consonants).

Actually, most of them do. What other "real scripts" are you looking at?
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Pasie
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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Pasie » 2015-08-20, 18:37

Pasie wrote:I'm making a conlang, but I'm having trouble with it's script (Latin script is getting boring, and no other real scripts have the same vowels and consonants).


Actually, most of them do. What other "real scripts" are you looking at?


Sorry, dunno how to do the quotes...
Other scripts I've been looking at are one like Japanese, Georgian, Armenian, Tengwar (it's a conscript, I know), Tamil, Arabic, Russian (I know that's a language, but I forgot what their script was called), ancient Egyptian and Persian. :?

Koko

Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Koko » 2015-08-20, 19:10

Pasie wrote:Sorry, dunno how to do the quotes...

Don't worry, just wait until you need to create a table :lol:

Russian (I know that's a language, but I forgot what their script was called)

Cyrillic ;)

What exactly are you looking for in your script?

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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Pasie » 2015-08-20, 19:25

Koko! I've seen you post a comment on almost every page :lol: !

For what I'm looking for, a script with: somewhat simplicity (Kinda like Cyrillic or the simple Japanese characters) and the glyphs look nice together (well, they don't look weird when written beside each other). Thanks!

iodalach93

Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby iodalach93 » 2015-08-20, 19:49

Have you already considered Burmese alphabet? I find it very elegant and mysterious, and it's got a way to mark tonal differences.

Koko

Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Koko » 2015-08-20, 19:54

Pasie wrote:Koko! I've seen you post a comment on almost every page :lol: !

Well, I like to post here :P

For what I'm looking for, a script with: somewhat simplicity (Kinda like Cyrillic or the simple Japanese characters) and the glyphs look nice together (well, they don't look weird when written beside each other). Thanks!

Hmm, any particular features after that? Like, does it contain all the vowels in your conlang? All the consonants? Does it look a good fit for it? Do you want to use an existing script?

Given the size of your vowel inventory, I'd say Cyrillic is your best bet if you want an existing script cause it has a lot of vowel symbols. How many of your vowels are allophones (variations) of others?

Or you could do Burmese. Not sure how many vowel signs that has though (depending on how many you actually want to give a sign to).

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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby linguoboy » 2015-08-20, 20:06

Koko wrote:Given the size of your vowel inventory, I'd say Cyrillic is your best bet if you want an existing script cause it has a lot of vowel symbols.

No alphabet is poorer in vowel symbols than the Latin (except arguably the Arabic, depending on how you view the combinations of vowel points and full characters used to indicate long vowels/diphthongs).
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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Mentilliath » 2015-08-21, 17:17

The Latin alphabet works quite well for Halvian vowels, considering there truly are only five vowel sounds. Nonetheless, in my conscript, I have created additional symbols for their long qualities.

Anyway, if you're looking for an alphabet with many vowels, you could look into Cyrillic (though I have a tendency to see this one as "distorted Latin" and I don't care for it much), but also take a look at the Armenian and Georgian alphabets, both of which have many symbols. Many of them are consonants, but you could take symbols for consonants that don't exist in your language and apply them to additional vowels.
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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Irkan » 2015-08-21, 17:56

I can't give any sources right now, but I think there is a language that recently started using c, x, q and a couple more as vowels, because they had too many and didn't want to use diacritics. Maybe something like that might interest you, though it seems you might not have as many consonants to spare.

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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby ltrout99 » 2015-08-21, 18:57

Pasie wrote:I'm making a conlang, but I'm having trouble with it's script (Latin script is getting boring, and no other real scripts have the same vowels and consonants). Could someone help me? Any tips? It has 18 vowels and 15 consonants (Extremely tonal) and I'm happy with any kind of writing: Pictographic, logographic, syllabaries, etc. Thanks! :D


Why not mix scripts? You say you are looking at certain scripts, why not take what you like from each of those and assign them to your vowels. You said no other scripts have the same vowels and consonants so I would say you are going for a true alphabet, so just find what you like from each script and assign them one to one with your sounds.
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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby nathlang » 2021-12-19, 12:29

Is there a constructed script similar to (alphabetic kanji)? I like the idea of it but personally the resulting "kanji" look kind of ugly to me. I like the look of actual kanji, but I like the idea pronunciation built into it as this script does.

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Re: Constructed Scripts

Postby Dormouse559 » 2021-12-20, 16:48

nathlang wrote:Is there a constructed script similar to (alphabetic kanji)? I like the idea of it but personally the resulting "kanji" look kind of ugly to me. I like the look of actual kanji, but I like the idea pronunciation built into it as this script does.

The closest things I know of are syllabic-block scripts, like Block Script, which works a bit like Hangeul. But Omniglot has a lot of entries; maybe it has something more like kanji.
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