Lungorian, or e'pele Lungu [eʔpele luŋgu] (alternatively known as Lungorese) is a minority language spoken by the Lungores on Pluto. compared to many other Plutonian languages, like Ankuese, Lungorian has a very small consonant inventory and only three vowels: /i/, /e/, and /u/, lacking the nearly universal /a/. also unlike its neighbor languages, Lungorian is an isolating language.
/a/ appears only in learned borrowings, such as in Nakalēlu (Natlel). in standard speech, Nekelēlu is more common.
Lungorian, as an isolating language, has no affixes. it also has a relatively small vocabulary. complex ideas require many small words to be put together. the Lungorian word for "computer" is uku-uku dū pete lūlu wu susē u'ngūngu nge-nge gi'i, which literally translates to "it holds the hard slick substance from which the light moves erratically," more legibly "electric tool."
Example sentance: Lupe kegu'e 'ununu wi gi!
go-work-need-1sg-EXC
I need to go to work!
[ˈlupe keˈguʔe ʔuˈnunu βi gi]
Lungorian only has two pronouns: wi, meaning me, and de, meaning not me. so, the sentence "lupe kegu'e 'ununu de gi!" can mean "He/she/they/it/you need[s] to go to work!" depending on the context.
Lungorian has a unique "screech" register (e'pele Kiriri), in which Lungores screech at ultrasonic frequences not even their Anku neighbors can hear.
Lungorian has a large amount of homophones, and that number is only increasing as younger Lungores have begun to devoice initial consonants (lupe kegu'e 'ununu de gi -> lupe kegu'e 'ununu te ki). those who speak with this sound change may assign a high pitch to words which already had voiceless initials, and a low tone for those who are now devoiced.
pi [pi] "small" -> [pí]
bi [bi] "air" -> [pì]
while this is currently nonstandard, Lungorian may become fully tonal within the next few generations. how exciting!
consonants:
/m/ /n/ /ŋ/
/p/ /b/ /t/ /d/ /k/ /g/ (/q/) /ʔ/
/s/ /z/
/l/ /ɾ/ /w/ /j/
/q/ occurs only in loanwords from Xalese or Ankuese
/β/ is the most common realization of /w/
vowels:
/i/ (/y/) /u/
/e/
(/o/) (/a/)
/y/ comes from a slur of /iu/
/o/ is an occasional allophone of /u/ word-initially
/a/ is only in learned borrowings
/u/ may be reduced to /Cʷ/ word-finally.