Languages

• Spoken in: Beal
• Language family: Gulf
• Pronunciation: Beel-tik, Byal-tik (biːl-tɪk, bʲɑl̪-tɪk)

Categorized as one of the Gulf languages, but so esoteric that a Ceannic expression for something confusing or jargon-heavy is “It's all Bealtic to me.”

• Spoken in: Ceannis
• Language family: Gulf
• Pronunciation: Kyan-ik ('kʲɑn-ɪk)

Pronounced with a hard C, and in two syllables. (So, not See-on-ick, She-on-ick, She-ann-ick, Sey-ann-ick, or evan Kee-on-ick…)

Blanket term for several closely-related languages. In fact, they're close enough that linguists disagree about where the boundaries are.

Federal government documents, and the marketing departments of national chains, require everything to be translated into at least three: Northern Ceannic, Southern Ceannic, and Plains Ceannic. Local governments and companies may use another variety if it's the dominant one in the region, or may default to one of the Big Three.

Primary spoken language of Ceannis.

Uses a T-V distinction (familiar vs. formal) in its second-person pronouns. That is, when Thorn says “how are you?” to his sister, it has a different “you” than the same phrase addressed to President Romarin.

All varieties of Ceannic have both masculine and feminine third-person pronouns (he/him and she/her), and makes the plural third-person pull double duty (singular they) when people need another gendered pronoun.

Describes sexuality on an 'interest-in-gender' scale, with less-interest-in-women, interest-in-anyone, less-interest-in-men and no-interest-at-all as the most common options. It is common to softpedal by using the “less interest” word instead of the “no interest” word, as directly stating you have no interest in men or women is considered rude.

Parents pick the baby's pronouns along with the name, and the kid can change them later if they want.

No longer spoken. Precursor to the modern Ceannic language family. The Epic of Rhódon was written in this.

Old Ceannic uses acute accents and grave accents, but they’ve fallen out of style in most of the modern varieties. Still seen in proper nouns that date back centuries, e.g. Sir Rhódon, Aibreán, or Iùlag.

• Spoken in: Getsun (primary language)
• Language family: West Peninsular
• Pronunciation: Geh-tsoo-neeze (ɡe̞-t͡suː-'niːz)

From the same family as the primary languages of neighboring countries Doyon and Kinyon.

Has a special babies-only pronoun, which is gender-neutral, and used along with a baby's placeholder-nickname. Regular pronouns are conferred around age 5, based on the child's preference. Adult Getsunese speakers can feel awkward or unrepresented in languages whose pronouns aren't differentiated by age.

• Spoken in: United Islands (official language)
• Language family: Equatorial
• Pronunciation: ˈaɪ-lən-dɚ

Primary language of Maimakteros, largest island in the United Islands, and always used on official documents throughout the country.

One dialect uses a complex system of pronouns that change based on a person's gender, age, and level of status (in relation to whoever's talking about them). The mainstream dialect, developed between traders, is much simpler and more streamlined. However, the distinctions are still culturally-intuitive enough that most native speakers can follow the elaborate pronouns, and sometimes break them out for theatrical or comedic effect. (Non-native speakers are immediately lost.)

• Spoken in: Ceannis, Beal, Homu, others (minority language)
• Language family: Steppes
• Pronunciation: You-dish ('juː-dɪʃ)

Historical language of the Iuilic people.

Now used within traditional Iuilic communities in many countries.

• No longer spoken
• Language family: Gulf (common ancestor)
• Pronunciation: ɡʌlf

Incredibly ancient precursor to most of the languages in the central Gulf region, including Bealtic, Martan, and all varieties of Ceannic.

• Spoken in: Sønheim (primary signed language)
• Language family: Mountain Sign
• Pronunciation: Seun-hyme Syne ('sœn-haɪm saɪn)

The most common sign language used by deaf residents of Sønheim. Fluent users are common even in formerly-regions where Sønska isn't the primary spoken language, because it was already used in many of those regions before they were annexed by Sønheim. (It…may have been called something different back then.)

Also used by servants to communicate unobtrusively.

• Spoken in: Sønheim (official language)
• Language family: Polar
• Pronunciation: Seun-skuh ('sœn-skʌ)

Officially, all citizens of Sønheim are supposed to be able to communicate in Sønska. Unofficially, local governments try to fund translation services between Sønska and the local native language, whether it's from the same language family (such as Månborska) or a different one (such as Slavska).

Uses vowels Å, Ö, and Ø, as well as acute accents, producing letters like ó and á.

Sønska has reflexive possessive pronouns. That is, the phrase “Leif went to Thorn’s apartment and shared some of his coffee” has a different “his” depending on whether it refers to Leif’s coffee or Thorn’s coffee.

Uses both masculine and feminine third-person pronouns (he/him and she/her). Has a longstanding singular pronoun specific to nonbinary/agender people (rendered as ze/zer). To native speakers, the idea of using a plural pronoun as a singular sounds like word salad.

Describes sexuality on a 'desire-for-sex' scale, with active-sexual (feels spontaneous desire towards other people), responsive-sexual (not driven to seek out sex, but can have desire stimulated by someone else’s actions) and non-sexual (no desire for sex, in any circumstances) being the options. Also has words for how many genders you are attracted to, rendered as monosexual if they only feel desire for one gender, and multisexual for the rest.

In some regions baby pronouns are handled like in Ceannis, but in others people use the singular pronouns ze/zir until the child is old enough to make their own choice.

• Spoken in: Getsun (minority language)
• Language family: West Coastal
• Pronunciation: Swee-yun-eez (swiː-jun-'iːz)

A few closely-related indigenous languages from the island of Suiyun, now part of Getsun. Still widely-spoken in many communities, although the speakers tend to be bilingual with Getsunese (which, in spite of the similar name, is from an unrelated family).

• Spoken in: Tamapoa (official language)
• Language family: Miniature
• Pronunciation: Tah-muh-pyoo-shun (ta̠-mə-'pju-ʃən)

Spoken by Tamaputians. Part of a language family that's spoken by both tinies and giants (on a coast of the United Islands that faces the Tamaputian archipelago).

Only has one personal pronoun, regardless of gender, age, or anything else.