Iotic
Encyclopedia
Iotic is also a fictional language
in the Saga of the Skolian Empire
books by Catherine Asaro
.
Iotic is one of the fictional
language
s used and referred to in the science-fiction
book The Dispossessed
, by Ursula K. Le Guin
. Iotic is spoken in A-Io, a superpower of the planet Urras, one of two settings of the story (the other one being the sister planet Anarres, where Pravic
is spoken).
In contrast to Pravic, Iotic is a natural language
, and as such probably exhibits many irregularities and complications, but the reader is not informed of them in the book.
Judging by what we have (and unless the transcription
is misleading), Iotic words tend to be relatively simple in phonetic
structure, with few consonant
s, only a few consonant clusters, and many vowel
s often strung together. The book contains many names that show this: personal names like To, Atro, Saio Pae, Laia Asieo Odo, Vea, Doem, Oiie, Dearri, Tuio Maedda, and place names like A-Io, Ieu Eun, Nio Esseia, Drio. Names with final consonants, like Efor and Rodarred, seem rare.
The Ioti society is highly stratified
, and accordingly Iotic is reported to have two registers or sociolect
s: one for the upper class
, also used in some media ("the telefax" is mentioned), and one low register for the working class
, the so-called Nioti. This "Low Iotic" is characterized (according to the narrator) by a reduction of verb
s to the present tense
.
According to one of the (upper-class) characters in the book, the Iotic employed in popular newspaper
s, to be read by the Nioti, is of very low quality, as well as the information provided therein (probably implying sensationalistic
content).
Fictional language
Fictional languages are by far the largest group of artistic languages. Fictional languages are intended to be the languages of a fictional world and are often designed with the intent of giving more depth and an appearance of plausibility to the fictional worlds with which they are associated, and...
in the Saga of the Skolian Empire
Saga of the Skolian Empire
The Saga of the Skolian Empire, informally called the Skolian Saga or Tales of the Ruby Dynasty, is a series of science fiction novels, novelettes and novellas by Catherine Asaro, revolving around characters from an interstellar empire known as the Skolian Empire and their power struggle with the...
books by Catherine Asaro
Catherine Asaro
Catherine Asaro is an American science fiction and fantasy author. She is best known for her books about the Ruby Dynasty, called the Saga of the Skolian Empire.- Biography :...
.
Iotic is one of the fictional
Fictional language
Fictional languages are by far the largest group of artistic languages. Fictional languages are intended to be the languages of a fictional world and are often designed with the intent of giving more depth and an appearance of plausibility to the fictional worlds with which they are associated, and...
language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
s used and referred to in the science-fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
book The Dispossessed
The Dispossessed
The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia is a 1974 utopian science fiction novel by Ursula K. Le Guin, set in the same fictional universe as that of The Left Hand of Darkness . The book won the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1974, both the Hugo and Locus Awards in 1975, and received a nomination for...
, by Ursula K. Le Guin
Ursula K. Le Guin
Ursula Kroeber Le Guin is an American author. She has written novels, poetry, children's books, essays, and short stories, notably in fantasy and science fiction...
. Iotic is spoken in A-Io, a superpower of the planet Urras, one of two settings of the story (the other one being the sister planet Anarres, where Pravic
Pravic
Pravic is a fictional language used and referred to in the science-fiction book The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. Le Guin. Pravic is a fictional constructed language: in the book, it is said to have been constructed by a person named Farigv...
is spoken).
In contrast to Pravic, Iotic is a natural language
Natural language
In the philosophy of language, a natural language is any language which arises in an unpremeditated fashion as the result of the innate facility for language possessed by the human intellect. A natural language is typically used for communication, and may be spoken, signed, or written...
, and as such probably exhibits many irregularities and complications, but the reader is not informed of them in the book.
Judging by what we have (and unless the transcription
Transcription (linguistics)
Transcription in the linguistic sense is the systematic representation of language in written form. The source can either be utterances or preexisting text in another writing system, although some linguists only consider the former as transcription.Transcription should not be confused with...
is misleading), Iotic words tend to be relatively simple in phonetic
Phonetics
Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech, or—in the case of sign languages—the equivalent aspects of sign. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds or signs : their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory...
structure, with few consonant
Consonant
In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract. Examples are , pronounced with the lips; , pronounced with the front of the tongue; , pronounced with the back of the tongue; , pronounced in the throat; and ,...
s, only a few consonant clusters, and many vowel
Vowel
In phonetics, a vowel is a sound in spoken language, such as English ah! or oh! , pronounced with an open vocal tract so that there is no build-up of air pressure at any point above the glottis. This contrasts with consonants, such as English sh! , where there is a constriction or closure at some...
s often strung together. The book contains many names that show this: personal names like To, Atro, Saio Pae, Laia Asieo Odo, Vea, Doem, Oiie, Dearri, Tuio Maedda, and place names like A-Io, Ieu Eun, Nio Esseia, Drio. Names with final consonants, like Efor and Rodarred, seem rare.
The Ioti society is highly stratified
Social inequality
Social inequality refers to a situation in which individual groups in a society do not have equal social status. Areas of potential social inequality include voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, the extent of property rights and access to education, health care, quality housing and other...
, and accordingly Iotic is reported to have two registers or sociolect
Sociolect
In sociolinguistics, a sociolect or social dialect is a variety of language associated with a social group such as a socioeconomic class, an ethnic group, an age group, etc....
s: one for the upper class
Upper class
In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...
, also used in some media ("the telefax" is mentioned), and one low register for the working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
, the so-called Nioti. This "Low Iotic" is characterized (according to the narrator) by a reduction of verb
Verb
A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...
s to the present tense
Present tense
The present tense is a grammatical tense that locates a situation or event in present time. This linguistic definition refers to a concept that indicates a feature of the meaning of a verb...
.
According to one of the (upper-class) characters in the book, the Iotic employed in popular newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s, to be read by the Nioti, is of very low quality, as well as the information provided therein (probably implying sensationalistic
Sensationalism
Sensationalism is a type of editorial bias in mass media in which events and topics in news stories and pieces are over-hyped to increase viewership or readership numbers...
content).