alarn

Alarn is a fictional constructed language introduced in speculative fiction and linguistic experiments. It is described as a language isolate with a distinctive phonology, morphology, and syntax, designed to illustrate how typological features interact with world-building. In the in-universe history, Alarn is said to have arisen in the Velaran highlands around the 12th century and subsequently spread to neighboring communities, developing regional dialects.

Phonology centers on a relatively small set of phonemes: consonants p, t, k, m, n, s, l, r and a glottal h; vowels a, e, i, o, u. There are no consonant clusters, and syllables are typically CV or CVC. Stress is predictable, commonly landing on the root syllable, and the language exhibits a syllable-timed rhythm in grammars. Length distinctions and vowel quality contrasts are maintained in careful phonologies.

Alarn is analyzed as an agglutinative language with a basic SOV word order. Nouns inflect for case (nominative, ergative, oblique) and definiteness via suffixes. Verbs carry aspect and mood suffixes and may show subject agreement through clitics or suffixes. Negation occurs with a preceding particle, while questions are formed with a sentence-final particle or through intonation. Adjectives typically follow nouns, and modifiers agree in number with the nouns they modify in some dialects.

Writing uses a featural alphabet of about 24 letters, with diacritics marking vowel length and subtle phonetic distinctions. Medieval Velaran manuscripts describe the script as elegant and compact, though modern practice often uses transliteration into the Latin alphabet for accessibility. Within the fictional world, Alarn is studied by language enthusiasts and appears in several novels and role-playing settings, where it serves as a source of linguistic puzzles and world-building texture.