Role-Play History | Development of the Language
Rihannsu is a living language, and so is not static; but it changes much more slowly then English. Four major periods may be discerned in its development.
First, of course, was the creation of the language from Old High Vulcan. The grammar and syntax developed at this time are still in use today, as well as nearly all the vocabulary. The main effect of history has been to build and expand on this base rather than to transform it.
Next was the Journey from Vulcan to the Homeworlds, a period of about two hundred years (ships’ time -- much more time elapsed for the non-relativistic universe.) The Journey’s main effect was a smoothing out of the original language, as it was put into practical and exclusive use for the first time. Additions to vocabulary related mainly to astronomical phenomena which the Travelers encountered for the first time, and to the developing religion/philosophy of the Elements and “matter as god.”
The third period began with planetfall and lasted some ?? years. The basis of the language did not change significantly during this time, but dialects began to develop. However, communication and education were maintained well enough that these linguistic drifts were minor, equivalent to the accents found in the twentieth-century United States. Vocabulary was enlarged as the Rihannsu named the life-forms of their new worlds. Words for geographical features that had not existed on Vulcan, such as oceans and islands, were also added. The various arts which flourished during this time enriched the language as well.
The fourth and present period began with the Rihannsu’s first encounter with an alien race. This sparked the expansionist phase of their history as they frantically rushed to colonize worlds and build up an empire. In the largely isolated colonies, the language drifted in many different directions. Even more influential than isolation was the effect of contact with alien languages, alien technology, and alien ways of thought. Despite the intense Rihanha xenophobia, outside words and ideas crept into the language. This was especially true on conquered worlds, where the language of the native species profoundly affected that of the colonists. In addition, technological vocabulary grew by leaps and bounds, and old astronomical terms which had largely dropped out of use were revived.
Note: This and several other sections on Rihannsu syntax and phonology were passed on to me anonymously. No plagiarism is intended, I just thought they were well worth putting up! If you are the original author, please contact me so I can give you credit.
The Rihannsu language as it appears in this text has been strongly influenced by the model written by Diane Duane in her books My Enemy, My Ally and The Romulan Way. She describes the language as fluid, with fewer fricatives than Vulcan (which we assume has many), and sounding somewhere between Welsh and Latin to terrans. Although it has been necessary to deviate slightly from her specific model, for the most part we've done our best to construct an integrated language from the various sources that is both consistent and realistic.
Some of the ideas that are used extensively in this text include the fact that Rihannsu language is written using a system of characters, each of which corresponds exactly to a specific sound in the spoken language. Thus, the spelling of the word will always tell you how it is to be pronounced. (See the Phonology.) Different dialects of Rihannsu may either pronounce all occurances of a sound differently, or spell the word differently, to result in a different pronunciation, but will never have two seperate pronunciations for the same character groupings.
Also, some of the words that appear in more canonical sources (D'Deridex, Apnex sea, Jolan True) are spelt in an anglicised fasion, and the standard Rihannsu written here may appear somewhat different. This is usually the case in translating alien languages (cf. Klingon "Kahless" to tlhIngan "Qe'les") and no cause for alarm.
In addition, the names that appear in Star Trek: The next generation are assumed to all be house names for purposes of simplicity. We operate under the premise that house-names (last names) take a (t') or (tr') prefix depending on the sex of the rihanha in question. In reality, ST:TNG uses a different naming system than Diane Duane's, but this is a minor point in terms of language as a whole.
Phonology
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