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Middle Hick

Overview

Section titled “Overview”

Middle Hick (300 PF - 105 AI) represents a period of increased maritime trade and first contact with Iutlandish speakers. While maintaining the core phonological system of Early Hick, this period saw the integration of borrowed maritime terminology.

Phonological System

Section titled “Phonological System”

Core Rules Maintained

Section titled “Core Rules Maintained”
  • (C)(C)V(C)(C) syllable structure
  • Initial stress
  • Rising sonority in onsets
  • Falling sonority in codas
  • Permitted two-vowel sequences: /ai/, /ei/, /ae/

Borrowing Repair Strategies

Section titled “Borrowing Repair Strategies”

Consonant Adaptation

Section titled “Consonant Adaptation”

  1. Final Consonants:

    • Illegal finals → /l/ or /r/
    • Old Iutlandish *skip → skel [skel] “ship”
    • Old Iutlandish *haf → hafel [ha.fel] “ocean”

  2. Consonant Clusters:

    • Illegal onset clusters → simplified
    • Illegal coda clusters → split with epenthetic vowel
    • Old Iutlandish *strand → serand [se.rand] “beach”

  3. Special Cases:

    • /w/ permitted in borrowed terms only
    • Old Iutlandish *ward → ward [ward] “path”
    • Old Iutlandish *wood → wud [wud] “forest”

Vowel Adaptation

Section titled “Vowel Adaptation”

  1. Non-native vowels mapped to closest Hick vowel:

    • /ø/ → /e/
    • /y/ → /i/
    • Old Iutlandish *bøk → bek [bek] “beech”

  2. Stress Adaptation:

    • Shifted to initial syllable per Hick pattern
    • Added vowel length if needed for stress

Lexicon

Section titled “Lexicon”

Maritime Borrowings

Section titled “Maritime Borrowings”

Nautical Terms

Section titled “Nautical Terms”
skel [skel]

“ship” (< OI *skip)

ward [ward]

“path, direction” (< OI *ward)

wud [wud]

“forest, timber” (< OI *wood)

hafel [ha.fel]

“ocean” (< OI *haf)

serand [se.rand]

“beach, strand” (< OI *strand)

bek [bek]

“beech wood” (< OI *bøk)

stel [stel]

“stern” (< OI *stæfn)

arem [a.rem]

“arm, oar” (< OI *arm)

kener [ke.ner]

“skilled sailor” (< OI *kœnnær)

keper [ke.per]

“merchant” (< OI *køpær)

siler [si.ler]

“silver” (< OI *silfr)

Trade Terms

Section titled “Trade Terms”
keper [ke.per]

“merchant” (< OI *køpær)

siler [si.ler]

“silver” (< OI *silfr)

tel [tel]

“count, tally” (< OI *tal)

siler [si.ler]

“silver” (< OI *silfr)

Landscape Terms

Section titled “Landscape Terms”
hel [hel]

“hill, slope” (< OI *hæll)

mel [mel]

“sand, gravel” (< OI *mel)

mur [mur]

“wall, barrier” (< OI *mur)

mel [mel]

“sand, gravel” (< OI *mel)

mur [mur]

“wall, barrier” (< OI *mur)

Additional Compounds

Section titled “Additional Compounds”
stelward [stel.ward]

“stern-path” (wake of a ship)

helward [hel.ward]

“hill-path” (mountain trail)

murwud [mur.wud]

“wall-forest” (defensive tree line)

melskel [mel.skel]

“sand-ship” (beached vessel)

Compound Integration

Section titled “Compound Integration”

Borrowed terms could form compounds following Hick rules:

skelward [skel.ward]

“shipping lane” (ship-path)

wudward [wud.ward]

“forest path”

bekwud [bek.wud]

“beech-forest”

wudward [wud.ward]

“forest path”

bekwud [bek.wud]

“beech-forest”

hafelskel [ha.fel.skel]

“ocean-going ship”

Metal-Working Terms

Section titled “Metal-Working Terms”
siler [si.ler]

“silver” (< OI *silfr)

iren [i.ren]

“iron” (< OI *isarn)

stal [stal]

“steel” (< OI *stál)

smed [smed]

“smith” (< OI *smiðr)

irensmed [i.ren.smed]

“ironsmith”

silersmed [si.ler.smed]

“silversmith”

iren [i.ren]

“iron” (< OI *isarn)

smed [smed]

“smith” (< OI *smiðr)

Compound Metal Terms

Section titled “Compound Metal Terms”
irensmed [i.ren.smed]

“ironsmith”

silersmed [si.ler.smed]

“silversmith”

stalskel [stal.skel]

“steel-ship” (iron-reinforced vessel)

Northeastern Place Names

Section titled “Northeastern Place Names”

Coastal Settlements

Section titled “Coastal Settlements”
skipvik [skip.vik]

“ship bay” (< Iut. *skip-vik)

selholm [sel.holm]

“seal island” (< Iut. *sel-holm)

hvalbek [hval.bek]

“whale stream” (< Iut. *hval-bekk)

Inland Features

Section titled “Inland Features”
Storskog [stor.skog]

“great forest” (< Iut. *stor-skog)

Modern Seneran: Storskey

Langdal [laŋ.dal]

“long valley” (< Iut. *lang-dal)

Unchanged (fits native phonology)

Hegfell [heg.fel]

“high mountain” (< OI *høg-fell)

/ø/ → /e/

Possessive Markers

Section titled “Possessive Markers”

Inherited Early Hick Suffix

Section titled “Inherited Early Hick Suffix”
-ul [ul]

Possessive suffix (“belonging to, of”)

Still productive but becoming restricted to formal/sacred contexts

Example: torul “of the peak”

Borrowed Iutlandish Preposition

Section titled “Borrowed Iutlandish Preposition”
af [af]

“of” (< OI *af “of, from”)

Becomes primary possessive marker in common speech

Position: always precedes possessed noun

Examples:

  • af smed [af.smed] “of the smith”
  • af mal [af.mal] “of the pool”
  • af tor [af.tor] “of the peak” : Compound Examples:
  • af smedok [af.sme.dok] “of the smith”
  • af malok [af.ma.lok] “of the pool-keeper”
  • af skelward [af.skel.ward] “of the ship-path”

Usage Patterns

Section titled “Usage Patterns”
  • Sacred/formal contexts retain -ul suffix
  • Common speech adopts af preposition
  • Some fossilized forms preserve both: af torul “of the peak’s”
  • Later developments show af becoming affixed to following word

Agentive Marking

Section titled “Agentive Marking”

Early Period (300-200 PF)

Section titled “Early Period (300-200 PF)”
  • Inherited -ok suffix remains primary agentive marker
  • Used for both occupational and active agents:
    • materok “boatman/vessel-handler”
    • wardok “guide/one who directs”
    • threnok “watcher/one who watches”

Late Period (200 PF-105 AI)

Section titled “Late Period (200 PF-105 AI)”
  • Iutlandish contact introduces -er in maritime/trade terms:
    • kener “skilled sailor” (< OI *kœnnær)
    • keper “merchant” (< OI *køpær)
    • siler “silverworker” (< OI *silfr + -er)
  • -ok remains productive in native formations
  • Some variation between suffixes begins:
    • skelok/skeler “shipwright”
    • smedok/smeder “smith”