George Boeree | Summing up?

Here are my recommendations, based on our discussions so far:

pronouns:

me
te
le
nos
vos
los

[io, tu, and el become optional subject/emphatic in LFN]

possessives -- the same, preceding the noun [in pijin and LFN]

articles la and un optional in pijin

plural -s
past -va
future -ra
[same for pijin and LFN]

no infinitive/gerund in -r
no abstract nouns in -ia

lo followed by noun, adj, or verb instead
auxiliary verbs followed by verb in simple form [perhaps also in LFN?]

[-r and -ia optional alternatives in LFN -- needed for sophisticated
conversation!]

no  passive participle in -da
no active participle in -nte

passive expressed by sentence structure:  "he was hit" > "someone hit
him"
active participle expressed by clause:  "the wilting plant" > "the plant
that wilted"

[LFN keeps -da and -nte, and allows pijin contructions as well, very
useful for sophisticated communications!]

word order must be the same for pijin and LFN, although some flexibility
should be permitted:

subject -verb - [object]

[preposition] - [article/demonstrative/possessive] - [number/indefinite]
- [mal/bon] - noun - [adjectives] - [prepositional phrases/clauses]

[auxiliary verb] - main verb - [adverbs] - [adverbial phrases]

adverbs modifying adjective precede the adjective (universal in European
languages).
adverbs and adverbial phrases modifying verb/sentence may also come at
the beginning of the sentence.

please note that word order does not need to be taught and memorized:
the rules will be absorbed intuitively from use!!!!  As is, they are in
keeping with the romance languages, and disagree with germanic languages
only in placing the adjective after the noun.

Pijin should have a basic vocabulary of somewhere around 500 words. This
latter task is difficult, and I look forward to our dealing with it.
Kevin's work will be expecially significant here!  With a little
concentration, a reasonably intelligent person could learn it in a week,
or even a weekend.

I am beginning to think that our original "three layers" should really
be two:  pijin and a slightly modified LFN.  LFN with its 1400 basic
words and 4,000 word dictionaries, actually IS "criol."  The only thing
that is needed for the last, most sophisticated level, is another layer
of vocabulary of technical words for various professions -- perhaps as
many as 10,000 to 20,000 words in total.  It is this last step that most
occupies my interests.

This is a lot of info to process -- please send your opinions!

George

--

C. George Boeree, PhD
cgboeree@...
www.ship.edu/~cgboeree

"I like reality.  It tastes of bread." -- Jean Anouilh

"Cloquet hated reality but realized it was still the only place to get a
good steak." -- Woody Allen