Illyrian Senet

Illyrian Senet is a language of Iriyan Jaya primarily used in Illideljanoil and Johnsonium. It is a creole based on Senet, the pan-Island constructed auxilliary language. An estimated 2,100,000 Illyrians speak this as a first language.

History

Shortly after Brigolian settlement began in the early 1700s, the Brigolians began bringing a people known as the Illyrians to Iriyan Jaya as indentured servants. The Illyrians at this time spoke Illyro-Brigolian, or standard Brigolian with altered grammar. As the Illyrians gained a foothold in Island society, they started incorporating the local indigenous languages, primarily Chalkyitsik into their speech.

The modern language can be attributed to the efforts of Shaki O'Kapila and her son Joto O'Shaki, of Clear Brush. They circulated a leaflet in their village, Better living through Senet in 1809 in which they urged their fellow Illyrians to be "more Islander than the Islanders themselves," as a way of acculturating completely. Illyrians everywhere took this to heart, and within a generation, Illyrians across the Island were speaking Senet - albeit with Illyrian grammar.

Grammar

Illyrian Senet's most striking characteristic is its grammar. While Senet uses a Subject Verb Object grammar, common to all other languages of Iriyan Jaya and to Brigolian, Illyrian Senet uses Subject Object Verb grammar, with an even more different Object Subject Verb grammar for questions. Linguists attribute this to the grammar of an unknown ancient Illyrian language, not unlike the Shu-Mai phenomenon of tone inflection similar to the extinct Shai-Tel onto a monotone Senet language.

In non-linguistic terms, the basic Senet sentence Jenny vango san Ipariki (Jenny goes to Ipariki) would be spoken in Illyrian Senet Jenny san Ipariki vango (Jenny to Ipariki goes). The question Serit Jenny vanit san Ipariki (Is Jenny going to Ipariki?) would be spoken in Illyrian Senet San Ipariki Jeny vango (To Ipariki Jenny goes?). This has the effect of sounding like 'backwards speech' to the average Senet speaker.