Where can I find out how to speak the language?

[Frith-Rae]

to my knowledge there is no "written" form of this language - if by written you mean in some fancy letters with a special font..no. I've only seen it in regular type/text...

If you mean "written" as in a dictionary, its in the RP Wikki linked above!

[Liëka]

This is very interesting; as a newbie browser, I hadn't seen anything of this language elsewhere, and would love to get to grips with it. I learnt ClaWrite, which was a dragon script, but as that was only another alphabet, and all you had to do was substitute letters, it hardly counts. :P Still useful for diary entries though, but I digress.

...I'm assuming using a broken form is acceptable (i.e. a few words substituted in a sentence), as I doubt fluency will happen for.... ehm, quite a while. ^^;

And any hints in learning technique are much appreciated! xD; Are there any fully fluent Dragons on here?

[pajlizard]

You generally pick it up as you go along, t'was the way I learnt it! It's surprisingly easy once you know the general patterns of sounds and stuff (Eg, -o suffixes for masculine words, -ea for feminine words.. Things like that!)

Most of the stuff I know I just remember, but when I fist decided to get to know it proper-like a wrote myself down a little sheet with handy/interesting/common words and thins~ c8

Broken is fine Slee uses mostly broken, but sometimes it's amusing to try to construct a whole sentence or two~ ( Iea sebenne keir'chet, a'na! )

[Liëka]

Well, at the moment it's looking easier than Modern Foreign Languages at school, that's for sure. o.o

I printed off the PDF file thing instead. |D Ripe for confusing people if they come across it!

...Iea maganne da kemenne..... uh, combining words. Apostrophes and the like. Apostrophes in some of the example sentences seem pretty random to me. o.o

[Frith-Rae]

If I remember the more prevalent pattern of apostrophes is when two words are combined.

So while it may look more random, it maybe that its combining parts of two words and we just aren't recognizing the original words. But its the same general idea of English apostrophe's (besides the 's ones).

Glit'sita for example is the combination of two fuller words. There wasnt' a formal dragon greeting so Keir Chet got together and played with a variety of words that could be used. When we finally decided on the final two word combo - apostrophe inserted to makeup for the missing letters (in a way that sounded the best...lol).

And yea, for 99.9% Of the dragons - fluent still means "broken". As you'll notice there are many missing words, often simple ones, so that "broken" is many times the best you can do anyway .

[Liëka]

Can you combine words personally, though? Is there a way of saying "don't" or "can't"?

[Frith-Rae]

oooh - uhh, if its not listed in the language already then no, there's no offical wording for it.

Not to say we can't create something and add it to the language, which we've already done for several words. But I think for most - just using no/not for don't/can't is what we've been doing - and just kinda inferring from there even if its improper translation .

[Essra]

Hmm.... well, i've always taken it to be that those words are used interchangebley, depending on context.

[Frith-Rae]

Yes, they are interchangeable in that there is also no specific draconic equivalent - so depending on how the sentence reads the simple "no" could be read as can't, don't, etc...

At least if I'm understanding the discussion .

TO me I think of it as someone from say Russia or China (someone with a different alphabet altogether) learning English - though certainly not being profecicent at it. Often times words that have no equivalent in their langauge are more inferred or the english equivalent is used interchangeably - so that even though its improper english, people get what they are trying to say. Or even the person learning the language doesn't know all the appropriate words or when to use them, and so will use one in the wrong place though is easily understood.

Think of Early Arnold...lol.

Saying somthing like "I am not a horse" is not possible in its specific words. But "Iea D'na Scov" (I no Horse/I Not Horse) gets the message across just the same.

Annnd keeps the language easier to use without having to memorize every conjunction ever lol.