Ephemeral Tongue (Taharim)
Spoken In: Lysaeris, the Ephemeral Expanse, and Tahata communities.
Evolved From: Sylvaneth (Pre-Fissure Elven); diverged post-Fissure.
Script: Angular geometric glyphs with tonal diacritics, carved; direction adapts to surface.
Type: Fusional, SVO. Particle vi is a multi-purpose linker.
Common Use: Daily speech, ritual, and nomadic record-keeping among the Tahata.
Taharim is the living language of the Tahata Elves. It descends from Sylvaneth and diverged after the Fissure, carried across the Ephemeral Expanse by a people who do not stay still. Where other tongues calcified inside institutions, Taharim was preserved by walking. The Tahata carry it by using it, daily, until the language bends to their rhythm.
Its single linking particle vi threads through almost every phrase. Its script adapts direction to whatever surface is at hand.
"We carve our history into bark and keep walking. By the time anyone finds the marker, we're elsewhere. That's the point."
— Firal Ethyn, Tahata ranger
Grammar
Noun Case
Four cases. Example root: pael (path).
| Case | Form | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | pael | /páel/ |
| Objective | paela | /páela/ |
| Genitive | paelir | /páelir/ |
| Locative | paelth | /páelθ/ |
Verb Paradigm
Root example: tral- (to travel).
| Tense | Form | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| Present | tral | /trál/ |
| Past | trala | /trála/ |
| Future | tralir | /trálir/ |
| Imperative | tralk! | /trálk/ |
Pronouns
| Pronoun | Taharim | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| I | vai | /vái/ |
| You (sg) | thu | /θú/ |
| He | so | /só/ |
| She | sa | /sá/ |
| It | an | /án/ |
| We | navir | /návir/ |
| They | ir | /ír/ |
Numbers
| Number | Taharim | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | nyth | /nɪ́θ/ |
| 1 | yn | /ɪ́n/ |
| 2 | dyl | /dɪ́l/ |
| 3 | tren | /trén/ |
| 4 | kyr | /kɪ́r/ |
| 5 | mel | /mél/ |
| 6 | shyr | /ʃɪ́r/ |
| 7 | sev | /sév/ |
| 8 | kren | /krén/ |
| 9 | thol | /θól/ |
| 10 | vorn | /vórn/ |
Vocabulary
| English | Taharim | IPA | Symbol |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water | Yalen | /jálen/ | ⏂⟇⎅⏃⍀ |
| Hello | Vairth | /váirθ/ | ⍌⟇⍜⏣⏙ |
| Goodbye | Paelir | /páelir/ | ⍂⟇⏃⎅⍜⏣ |
| Light | Soraen | /sóraen/ | ⍓⎔⏣⟇⏃⍀ |
| Night | Thyren | /θɪ́ren/ | ⏙⏂⏣⏃⍀ |
| Tree | Lainith | /láiniθ/ | ⎅⟇⍜⍀⍜⏙ |
| Forest | Lainor | /láinor/ | ⎅⟇⍜⍀⎔⏣ |
| Whisper | Wythel | /wɪ́θel/ | ⏃⍾⏂⏙⏃⎅ |
| Path | Pael | /páel/ | ⍂⟇⏃⎅ |
| To gather | Karun | /kárun/ | ⍖⟇⏣⍾⍀ |
| Track | Paelan | /páelan/ | ⍂⟇⏃⎅⟇⍀ |
| Ranger | Firal | /fíral/ | ⌇⍜⏣⟇⎅ |
| Wind | Vairen | /váiren/ | ⍌⟇⍜⏣⏃⍀ |
| Star | Aelith | /áeliθ/ | ⟇⏃⎅⍜⏙ |
| Echo | Sharen | /ʃáren/ | ⍕⟇⏣⏃⍀ |
| Freedom | Varun | /várun/ | ⍌⟇⏣⍾⍀ |
Slang
| English | Taharim | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| Lame | Nith | /níθ/ |
| Fast | Zath | /záθ/ |
| Friend | Kresh | /kréʃ/ |
| Quick escape | Fyrn | /fɪ́rn/ |
| Joke | Jyr | /dʒɪ́r/ |
| Secret | Ryn | /rɪ́n/ |
| Problem | Nyk | /nɪ́k/ |
| Strange | Vyra | /vɪ́ra/ |
| Deceive | Kesh | /kéʃ/ |
| Confused | Vel | /vél/ |
| Gossip | Thyn | /θɪ́n/ |
| Surprise | Fysh | /fɪ́ʃ/ |
| Nonsense | Bren | /brén/ |
| Bastard | Krath | /kráθ/ |
| Screw you | Shyk | /ʃɪ́k/ |
| Trickster | Velk | /vélk/ |
Common Phrases
| English | Taharim | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| May your path be clear | Pael vi wythel | /páel vi wɪ́θel/ |
| Embrace the journey | Tureth vi faln | /túreθ vi fáln/ |
| Forest whispers, listen | Lainor wythel, tho | /láinor wɪ́θel θó/ |
| Strength in unity | Koren vi thorel | /kóren vi θórel/ |
| Path is a song | Pael vi shara | /páel vi ʃára/ |
| We find refuge in the wild | Navir vi raval yneth | /návir vi rával ɪ́neθ/ |
| Leaves tell the past | Leth tho elth | /léθ θó élθ/ |
| Nature's gift to us | Hura vi myn | /húra vi mɪ́n/ |
| The forest hides us | Lainor yneth | /láinor ɪ́neθ/ |
| Wind in the elder trees | Vairen vi lainith | /váiren vi láiniθ/ |
| Songs of the wind | Shara vi vairen | /ʃára vi váiren/ |
| Follow the track | Tho paelan | /θó páelan/ |
| Dance with the flames | Lark vi vair | /lárk vi váir/ |
| Always together | Thirin vi thorel | /θírin vi θórel/ |
| We travel, always | Navir tral thorel | /návir trál θórel/ |
| No | Nar | /nár/ |
Writing System
| Symbol | Sound (IPA) |
|---|---|
| ⏚ | /b/ |
| ⏁ | /d/ |
| ⌇ | /f/ |
| ⎎ | /ɡ/ |
| ⌿ | /h/ |
| ⍝ | /dʒ/ |
| ⍖ | /k/ |
| ⎅ | /l/ |
| ⍏ | /m/ |
| ⍀ | /n/ |
| ⍂ | /p/ |
| ⏣ | /r/ |
| ⍓ | /s/ |
| ⏗ | /t/ |
| ⍌ | /v/ |
| ⏃⍾ | /w/ |
| ⍘ | /ks/ |
| ⏂ | /j/ (consonant); /ɪ/ (as vowel) |
| ⏢ | /z/ |
| ⍕ | /ʃ/ |
| ⏙ | /θ/ |
| ⎒ | /tʃ/ |
| ⟇ | /a/ |
| ⏃ | /e/ |
| ⍜ | /i/ |
| ⎔ | /o/ |
| ⍾ | /u/ |
| ⟇̈ | /ɛ/ |
| ⏃̈ | /ə/ |
| ⍜̈ | /ɪ/ |
| ⎔̈ | /œ/ |
| ⍾̈ | /y/ |
Phonology & Prosody (Elven melody, gnomish edges)
Consonants: /b d f ɡ h dʒ k l m n p r s t v w ks j z ʃ θ tʃ/.
Vowels: /a e i o u/ plus the front set /ɛ ɪ œ y/ (ä ë ï ö ü) and the gliding diphthongs ai, ae.
Tone (the Sylvaneth inheritance): Taharim keeps a light high tone on the root syllable (marked ´ in the IPA), the worn-down remnant of the sung ancestor, kept alive by daily nomadic use rather than frozen in ritual. The linking particle vi and grammatical words stay toneless.
The gnomish seam (Glimmertongue): long trade contact with gnomes left two marks. (1) The angular, geometric script, where Sylvaneth's was flowing. (2) A loan stratum of clipped, consonant-cluster words for craft, travel, and trade, Karun (gather), Kresh (friend), Krath, Kren, Fyrn, Shyk, the kr-/thr- shapes of Glimmertongue, sitting beside the flowing elven core (Vairen, Lainor, Aelith).
Elven melody, gnomish edges, carried by a people who never stop walking.