Noun Declension

Velari nouns are shaped by their relationship to nature, place, belonging, and scale. The language does not use formal masculine or feminine gender, but it does distinguish between more living/natural forms and more built/settled forms through sound shape.

Animate or natural nouns often end in vowels and take smoother suffixes. Built or inanimate nouns may keep rougher consonant-final shapes.

Noun Formula

[ROOT] + [DIMINUTIVE] + [NUMBER] + [RELATION]

Not every noun uses every part of the formula. In ordinary dictionary forms, the most important suffixes are plural, possessive, locative, and diminutive.

Number

Velari pluralization uses the distributive suffix -al. This suffix suggests spreading, flowing outward, or becoming a collective group.

Examples:

• talu = water

• talal = waters / many streams

• mara = river

• maral = rivers

Possessive

The possessive marks belonging or origin.

Possessive suffixes:

• -au after low-vowel roots

• -ou after high-vowel roots

Examples:

• edra → edrau

• mara → marau

• suli → sulou

• velari → velarou

Locative

The locative marks position, place, or movement toward a place.

Locative suffixes:

• -ren after vowel-final roots

• -en after consonant-final roots

Examples:

• talu → taluren

• mara → mararen

• mareth → marethen

• vedam → vedamen

Diminutive

The diminutive marks smallness, affection, or “tributary” status. This can mean physically small, beloved, junior, or branching from a larger source.

Diminutive suffixes:

• -im after high-vowel roots

• -um after low-vowel roots

Examples:

• rumi → rumim

• mara → marum

• talu → talim

• aeni → aenim

Declension Table

Example with Mara

Root Freeze

Some built or human-made nouns resist vowel-dropping or smoothing. This is called Root Freeze. It makes inanimate or settled things sound more jagged and distinct from natural flowing nouns.

Examples:

• mari → maral

• vedam → vedamen