Ironiaans

Ironiaans is a fictional language developed for a speculative fiction setting. It is spoken by the Ironian people, a community described across novels, a tabletop role-playing game, and related media. The name combines the regional designation Ironia with the demonym suffix -aans, a convention used in the setting to mark languages and peoples.

In-universe, Ironiaans is said to have emerged from ancient migrations and long-standing trade networks in the highlands and river valleys. In real-world terms, it is a constructed language (conlang) created to convey subtle social stance and irony in dialogue, with attention to internal consistency, phonology, and word-building patterns.

Linguistic features include an agglutinative structure and a generally subject–object–verb (SOV) base order, though surface flexibility exists due to a rich case system. Nouns mark number and a set of cases, while verbs carry affixes for tense, aspect, mood, evidentiality, and polarity. Pronouns are often clitic and may be dropped when clear from verb agreement. The phonology comprises roughly 20–25 consonants and five vowels, with vowel length contrast and a modest use of stress on the final content syllable. An irony marker particle can attach to verbs or at the end of clauses to signal stance or rhetorical tone.

Writing uses a Latin-based alphabet with diacritics to denote vowel quality and some consonantal distinctions; a ceremonial script with runic influences appears in inscriptions. Dialects such as Northern Ironiaans and Southern Ironiaans show variations in vowel quality and affix forms.

In media, Ironiaans has been featured in literature and game materials, with dictionaries, grammars, and learner resources produced by fans and authors to support world-building and role-play.