Præta

Præta, formally known as iâ Xiroþs Prætâ / jə ˈʃi.roθs ˈpræ.tə / ("the Shirerithian Speech"), is the official language of Shireroth. Standard Præta, also known as Kaȝsars Prætâ, the Kaiser's Præta, or Uikstâs Prætâ, Script Præta, is the chancery standard used by the Golden Mango Throne and its ministries.

History

Præta derives from the Brookshirese or Prætaic Language Family, specifically the prestige dialect spoken at Raynor I's court. This form of Præta, or Old Præta, bears extensive lexical influence from Khaz Modanian, the now lost language of the Empire of Khaz Modan. Old Præta was introduced to the Shirekeep region and portions of the Red Elwynn during the First Era as a result of concerted efforts to resettle the greater Shirekeep region and western Goldshire with more reliable subjects.

The usage of Old Præta drifted into diverging dialects by the end of the First Era, prompting the reassertion of a centralized standard with the onset of the Second Era, this time derived mostly from the dialect prevalent in Monty Crisco. Middle Præta succeeded in penetrating to the mouth of the Elwynn River and further into Goldshire. New Præta, or the contemporary form, was established in an archaic mode under Kaiser John II and refined under Kaiseress Viviantia I.

Orthography and Phonology

Consonants

		Labial		Coronal		Palatal		Velar
Nasal		⟨ M m ⟩ / m /		⟨ N n ⟩ / n /
Plosive		⟨ P p ⟩ / p /	⟨ B b ⟩ / b /	⟨ T t ⟩ / t /	⟨ D d ⟩ / d /			⟨ K k ⟩ / k /	⟨ G g ⟩ / g /
Affricate						⟨ Tz tz ⟩ / tʃ /	⟨ Z z ⟩ / dʒ /
Fricative	sibilant			⟨ S s ⟩ / s /		⟨ Sz sz ⟩ / ʃ /
	non-sibilant	⟨ F f ⟩ / f /	⟨ V v ⟩ / ʋ /	⟨ Þ þ ⟩ / θ /		⟨ Hz hz ⟩ / ç /	⟨ Ï ï ⟩ / j /	⟨ H h ⟩ / h /
Approximant
Trill				⟨ R r ⟩ / r /
Lateral Fricative				⟨ Ł ł ⟩ / ɬ /	⟨ L l ⟩ / l /

⟨ dz ⟩ common in Early New Praeta for / dʒ /, now deprecated.

⟨ ï ⟩ is sometimes written ⟨ i ⟩ or ⟨ ı ⟩ by nonstandard texts.

/ n / before a velar consonant is rendered as a velar nasal

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
High	⟨ i ⟩ / i /	⟨ î ⟩ / ɪ̈ /	⟨ u ⟩ / u /
Mid	⟨ e ⟩ / e /	⟨ â ⟩ / ə /	⟨ o ⟩ / o /
Low	⟨ æ ⟩ / æ /		⟨ a ⟩ / ɑ /

⟨ â ⟩, / ə / is not found in stressed syllables.

⟨ î ⟩, / ə / is found in Early New Praeta, now written ⟨ â ⟩ and pronounced / ə /.

Writing Rules

Nouns are capitalized in all instances. Words of other classes are capitalized at the beginning of a sentence.

Lexicon

Præta Lexicon

The core and bulk of the Præta lexicon derives from Common Brookshirian and have been with the language since Old Præta. A large portion, notably concerning matters of prestige, government, and magic, are borrowed from the language of Khaz Modan, due to their hegemonic influence over Brookshire before the founding of Shireroth. Others yet have entered the language from Goldshire and Elwynn and from cultures beyond the borders if the Imperial Republic.