Versions
There have been a few published versions of Toaq:
- Toaq (Dzu) alpha, released in August 2013, documented here.
- Toaq beta, released in September 2017 on “toaq.org”, documented here.
- Toaq gamma, the current version, released in September 2021 on toaq.net, documented in the refgram.
Beyond the grammar writeup, little is preserved of the alpha version. Toaq beta was a complete reboot.
Between the beta and gamma versions, there were gradual official changes in the language as spoken on Discord and elsewhere.
Comparison of versions
Alpha (2013) | Beta (2017) | Gamma (2021) | |
---|---|---|---|
Consonants | It had /v/ and /ʒ/. | /m n ŋ pʰ b tʰ d kʰ g t͡sʰ t͡ɕʰ d͡ʑ f s ɕ h ɾ l/ | Beta + /ɲ d͡z ʔ/ |
Vowels | /a e i o u/ | /a e i o u/ | Beta + /ə/ |
Phonotactics | There were glides (/gja/ "meet"), long vowels (/daː/ "woman"), consonant clusters (/sna/ "house"). |
Good old CV(q). | Still CV(q). Well, there's a glottal stop onset now, which is kinda like (C)V(q). |
Tones | 8 + neutral: āáăảâàãạa[1] | 7 + neutral: | 6 + neutral: Tone is per-word, not per-syllable. |
“You are very beautiful” | Tōu dāe téq na. | Jảq dẻ súq da. | Jảq dẻ súq da. |
“The John who met you is my friend” | Pāı mí Djāq gyủ ca téq na góu na.[2] | Pảı mí Jảq gëq hóa súq na jí da. | Pảı mí Jảq gëq hóa súq cy jí da. |