User:Aegon/High Valyrian Tutorial/W1-1

The High Valyrian Writing System

Introduction

The Valyrian writing system is a mixed script that features an alphabetic component, an iconic component, and a paradigmatic component. All three elements are used simultaneously.

Alphabetic glyphs are used purely for their phonetic value. Most of the time they indicate a single consonant and sometimes they are used for long vowels or sequences of sounds.

Iconic glyphs can stand for whole words, can be augmented to form different words, or inflections of the same word.

Paradigmatic glyphs are glyphs that generally have other functions and are used in specific verbal and nominal paradigms to indicate inflections.

Punctuation

Double dots indicate full stops and separate sentences, regardless of if they are statements, questions, or exclamations.

Single dots separate words. No spaces appear in the High Valyrian sentence. All full words are separated with single dots to clearly state when one word ends and the other begins.

Paradigmatic Glyphs

Grammatical Number

PILE indicates the collective number.

Noun Determinatives

BLOOD is an uncommon determinative for 1aq. nouns.

FIRE is a determinative for 2sol. nouns. DRAKARYS is an occasional determinative for 2sol. nouns, to imply martial danger or a connection to dragons.

ICE is a determinative for 3ter. nouns. IRON is a determinative for substances and names of the 3ter. declination.

SHIP is a determinative for 3aq. nouns.

DRAGON is a determinative for dangerous or venerable nouns and dragon names for 4sol. nouns. BIRD is a common determinative for 4sol. nouns and rarely as a determinative for other avian nouns.

WOMAN is a determinative for female animate nouns of any class.

Adjective Determinatives

TRUE is a common determinative for class II adjectives and especially superlatives.

Verb Conjugation

GO indicates the aorist tense.

GO-NECK indicates the third person aorist agreement.

Valyrian has a derivation where the perfective form of the verb can be turned into a new stem (so urnegon “to see”; ūndan “I saw”; ūndegon “to catch sight of”). When these repurposed perfectives are spelled, a silent H is used to separate the verb stem from the rest of the inflection.

J is also used in verbal conjugation for the past tense [e] series.

Z is used for third person inflection.