Word evolution game

[Travis B.]

[ˈniɯ̃s]
señśi
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

Breaking of long nasal vowels.

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[iˈʈɻɑːχ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

Separating of retroflex consonants into retroflex-liquid clusters.

[/ˌnɐˈɾɛndɚduːd/]

[ˈniɰ̃s]
señśi
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

unstressed vowels become glides when in contact with another vowel.

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[iˈtʃɻɑːχ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

palatalization of consonants adjacent to /i/.

[Travis B.]

[ˈniŋs]
señśi
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

[ɰ̃] > [ŋ]

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[iˈtʃɻɑwχ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[ɑː] > [ɑw]

[/ˌnɐˈɾɛndɚduːd/]

[ˈniŋz]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

voice assimilation

--

[iˈtʃɻɒχ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[ɑw] > [ɒ]

[Travis B.]

[ˈniŋgz]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

Stop epenthesis between nasals and fricatives.

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[iˈtʃɻʷɒχʷ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

Labialization before and after rounded vowels and /w/.

[foxcatdog]

new word
[ˈkʰʲeɾwe]
"a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox"

[Travis B.]

As I think the existing words have plenty of life left in them, I am retaining them.

[ˈkxʲeɾwe]
"a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox"

Aspirated consonants become affricates.

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[ˈniŋgz]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

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[iˈtʃɻʷɒχʷ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[/ˌnɐˈɾɛndɚduːd/]

[ˈxʲeɾwe]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

lenition of affricates

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[ˈniŋg]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

simplification of final clusters

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[iˈtʃʷɒ˞χʷ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[ɻʷɒ] > [ʷɒ˞]

[foxcatdog]

[ˈxʲeʙe]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

*ɾw > ʙ

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[ˈniŋ]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

Further simplification

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[iˈtʂɒ˞χʷ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

*tʃʷ > tʂ

As I think the existing words have plenty of life left in them, I am retaining them.

I mean technically you can go on forever and ever with the same word, i just thought its been three pages with the second one and more than that with the first.

[/ˌnɐˈɾɛndɚduːd/]

[ˈçeʙe]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

[xʲ] > [ç]

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[ˈniŋə]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

schwa-insertion after closed word-final syllables

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[iˈtʂɒ˞ɸ]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[χʷ] > [ɸ]

I mean technically you can go on forever and ever with the same word, i just thought its been three pages with the second one and more than that with the first.

that's fair, though at a certain point words seem to, for lack of a better term, 'run out of juice,' and what I think Travis is saying is that they've still got a fair amount of juice left in them, to which I agree.

[Travis B.]

[ˈçeβe]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

[ʙ] > [β]

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[ˈniːŋə]
ningz
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

Lengthening of vowels in stressed open syllables.

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[iˈtʂɒ˞f]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[˞ɸ] > [f]

I mean technically you can go on forever and ever with the same word, i just thought its been three pages with the second one and more than that with the first.

that's fair, though at a certain point words seem to, for lack of a better term, 'run out of juice,' and what I think Travis is saying is that they've still got a fair amount of juice left in them, to which I agree.

My criterion is when words get reduced to single CV syllables it might be a time to change, but before that point, if they can be kept alive (e.g. favoring sound changes that add segments or lengthen vowels or change vowels to diphthongs) they should be.

[foxcatdog]

[ˈçe:]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

Loss of intervocalic voiced obstruents

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[ˈniːgʟə]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

*ŋ > *gʟ

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[ˈtʂɒ˞f]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

Initial unstressed vowels lost

[foxcatdog]

My criterion is when words get reduced to single CV syllables it might be a time to change, but before that point, if they can be kept alive (e.g. favoring sound changes that add segments or lengthen vowels or change vowels to diphthongs) they should be.

You can change CV syllables it just forces different kinds of sound changes.

[foxcatdog]

My criterion is when words get reduced to single CV syllables it might be a time to change, but before that point, if they can be kept alive (e.g. favoring sound changes that add segments or lengthen vowels or change vowels to diphthongs) they should be.

You can change CV syllables it just forces different kinds of sound changes.

Also it kinda forces an endpoint which many languages don't go through although with the amount of sound changes these words go through you are simulating the change from proto out of africa to modern english

[Travis B.]

Please don't try to destroy words (emphasis, words) on purpose...

[ˈçe:j]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

Ejection of offglides after long vowels.

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[ˈniːgʷwə]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

[gʟ] > [gʷw]

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[ˈtʂɒ˞fə]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

Epenthesis of schwas after final consonants.

[foxcatdog]

[ˈçjø:]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

Nordicisation

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[ˈniːbjə]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

[gʷw] > [bj]

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[ˈtʂɒvə]
iṭṭaḫ
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

[f] > [v] in between vowels

[/ˌnɐˈɾɛndɚduːd/]

[ˈçjoe̯]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

breaking of long vowels

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[ˈniːbe]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

diphthong chain shift

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[ˈʈiʂɒvə]

i-epenthesis to break up affricates

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Also it kinda forces an endpoint which many languages don't go through although with the amount of sound changes these words go through you are simulating the change from proto out of africa to modern english

that it does, but notice that this is the word evolution game. if you're looking to realistically judge the evolution of a word over time, I suggest the Sound Change Quickie Thread.

[foxcatdog]

[ˈçoe̯]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

Loss of glides

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[ˈnaibe]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

Long vowel chain shift before voiced consonants

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[ˈiʂɒvə]

Arrenteisation

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[Travis B.]

[ˈçʷoe̯]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

Labialization of consonants before rounded vowels

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[ˈnaibːe]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

Gemination after offglides.

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[ˈiʂɒwvə]

[ɒ] > [ɒw]

[foxcatdog]

[ˈðᶣoe̯]
'a type of domestic marsupial resembling a fox'

*çʷ > ðᶣ

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[ˈnaipe]
nilga
‘grounds, plot of land; habitat, native environs; country’

*b: > *p

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[iʂɒwˈvə]
‘swordfight, duel, trial by sword; rivalry, debate’

Stress shifts from the initial to final syllable