Verbis Diabolo Grammar
Verbis Diabolo is a fusional language.
Background
Verbis Diabolo is a non-naturalistic a posteriori artistic constructed language, or artlang. The development of the language focused on its artistic qualities, based on the concept of a "corrupted tongue." Verbis Diabolo is not designed for practical learning or everyday use; rather, it serves as an art piece meant for examination.
Phonology
Main page: Appendix:Verbis Diabolo pronunciation
Notably, the language features ingressive breathing, which is featured in some tenser scenes of Penny Dreadful.
Vocabulary
Main article: Verbis Diabolo Vocabulary
The language being a posteriori indicates that all words within the language are derived from existing natural languages, although they may not be immediately recognizable, being altered in various ways compared to their source. The vocabulary draws from diverse sources, including Koranic Arabic, Akkadian, Middle Egyptian, Attic Greek, Latin, Farsi, and Turkish. Some words are the result of blending two or more words from different source languages. Some high-frequency examples of this include nebratron "master" (a blend of Middle Egyptian and Greek) and mastigahra "witch" (a blend of three words from Latin and Arabic).
Grammar
The grammar of Verbis Diabolo lacks uniformity. Beyond the auxiliaries and object suffixes described below, the language is largely ad hoc. The structure of a sentence is typically governed by the first word, although it may change unexpectedly in the middle of a sentence, without any apparent reason. Certain words may shift meanings arbitrarily. The intention was that the language can only be understood by those who are "touched", and to create an incomprehensible and corrupted amalgamation of natural languages, forming the "Devil's tongue."
An example of the language is given below in the form of a line from episode 203 spoken by Evelyn Poole, where doubled vowels and consonants denote length, ü represents [y], dh [ð], and y [j]:
- Ye moruwaakh eedh ye krederuu an Nebratron beselrayeb dünasse, shadesenori.
- "You are foolish to think you can defy the Master, my sister."
Auxiliaries
The most salient consistent element of the grammar is a set of auxiliaries which serve to orient sentences in time and space. Notably, the frequently appearing word etsí is as a third person singular present tense auxiliary form, a characteristic that contributes to its higher frequency of use. The auxiliaries are all sourced from Greek, but with phonetic inversion and simplification.
Object suffixes
The language features a series of object suffixes which can be appended to verbs and prepositions.