Appendix:Zaduusel script
Zaduusel is the orthography of Kinuk'aaz, the langauge of the Omec race. The word itself in Kinuk'aaz translates to "writing". In contrast to other Votan writing systems, it is fully alphabetic, with some distinct features.
Background
David J. Peterson, the creator of the Kinuk'aaz language and the Zaduusel script, designed three writing systems for three other Votan languages (Irathient, Castithan, and Indojisnen). These were employed extensively by the art department of Defiance. Peterson was informed early on by production that there was no need for a writing system for Kinuk'aaz. He was well into developing the language, and had already begun translating the script, when Suki Parker, a professional in the art department, contacted him via email and asked if he was creating a writing system for the Omec. Peterson replied saying that he had previously been informed that such a system would not be necessary, but if the art department felt differently, they were welcome to try to get approval from show management. Peterson had largely forgotten about this correspondence, when some months later he received another email from Parker, confirming that the creation of the Omec writing system had been approved. Even though the writing system was created and introduced at a relatively advanced stage of production, it was featured in the first episode of the season.
Initial design considerations
In the initial stages of designing the Omec writing system, Peterson reached out to Parker for interior shots of the Omec ship to serve as a source of inspiration. He then experimented with various shapes, as seen in the sketch below. In his view, it is suited for writing with an edged pen, which is also seen in the sketch:
Type of script
The Zaduusel script is an alphabet. The choice to make it so was driven by two primary considerations.
Firstly, Peterson sought to underscore the distinctiveness of the Omec culture in contrast to other Votan groups. While other Votan languages incorporated palatals in significant ways, the Omec language would eschew them entirely. The Votans favored a base-20 numerical system, whereas the Omec would prefer base-10. The use of syllabic writing systems was prevalent among the Votans, but the Omec were to use an alphabet. This deliberate divergence reinforced the idea of the Omec's detachment from the broader Votan community.
Secondly, Peterson was mindful of the time constraints. Alphabets have a smaller set of characters, reducing the workload for font creation and coding. Additionally, he aimed to expedite the project as a token of gratitude to Suki Parker, Steve Geaghan, and the entire art department, who had made the writing system's creation possible. In this context, an alphabet presented the most practical solution. However, the script would still include some additional complexities.
Direction of writing
The Zaduusel alphabet primarily follows a left-to-right writing orientation, largely due to the constraints imposed by certain computer programs. However, Peterson ensured that Zaduusel could effectively be written from top-to-bottom as well, a feature unique among the Votan writing systems. This flexibility was introduced to the orthography at the request of the art department.
Characters
The letters of the Zaduusel alphabet appear in Zaduusel alphabetical order, going from left-to-right and from top-to-bottom, in the following table:
Notes:
- * Implosive Phonemes: The characters denoted by d' and b' represent implosive phonemes that have become obsolete in the language. Notably, both d' and b' are now pronounced as their regular voiced counterparts, d and b, respectively.
- † Original Long Vowels: Certain characters marked with a dagger symbol (†) denote the original long vowels that have undergone pronunciation changes. For clarification, what was once *ee is now pronounced as ii, *oo as uu, and *uu as üü.
Consonant Mutation
However, the table above is not a complete overview of the writing system. It is essential to consider the system of mutation of consonant letters. In the Zaduusel alphabet, each consonant exhibits four distinct forms: plain, imperfect, perfect and geminate. These forms are typically represented distinctly in writing, even though they may not always result in different pronunciation. The specifics of when and how these forms are utilized will be discussed later. In short, the imperfect form is generally n followed by the plain consonant, the perfect form is used between vowels in certain contexts, and the geminate form is the plain consonant doubled. Below are two tables illustrating all four forms for each consonant:
Below are two tables illustrating all four forms for each consonant:
TABLE 1
TABLE 2
In the tables provided above, it can be observed that m and n have geminate forms in place of the imperfect forms. It is important to note that these geminate forms serve as the default imperfect form for 'm' and 'n' in everyday usage. While there do exist distinct imperfect forms for these characters, they reserved for formal writing, and the result of analogy. This practice is somewhat akin to the use of the umlaut in words like "coöperate," which is more mostly associated with specific publications like The New Yorker.
Number system
The number system, which uses base-10, is described in the following table:
The plain forms are all shown here with a leading zero. Numbers are written in three number segments with a comma separating each segment. The first number in a segment is receives a type of diacritical mark in the form of a curl on the left, and the following two numbers are written in their plain form.
Punctuation
In the table below can be seen the punctuation marks of Zaduusel:
Note: Peterson has stated that he has forgotten his intended purpose for the stroke.