next book in the Meniscus Series: the Gel-head dictionary
From the beginning, I have included an alien language dictionary at the end of my science fiction books. Gel-speak is the common language on the planet Meniscus. Many of my Human characters speak a little Gel-speak; the genetically-altered Humans, the Slain, speak it fluently. In each book, there are lines of Gel-speak, usually translated, occasionally not.
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The Gel-speak language originates with the Gel-heads, the most maligned of the aliens on Meniscus. The intelligent Dock-winders also have a language but it is not spoken in the presence of other species.
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By the eighth book, I have added to the dictionary until there are 170 words.
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The Gel-speak language has a grammar, or set of rules governing the words and their order. There are verbs and nouns, articles and adjectives. The Gel-speak language includes many of the same sounds as English and includes a ‘click’ at the end of certain words. Any linguists among you are now laughing.
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So, with the dictionary, you can count in Gel-speak to five:
u-hath – one
ull – two
undel – three
urth – four
v-hath – five
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Gel-speak words have ‘roots’ and build on one-another. For example, here are words associated with the female gender:
ora – light
ora-nee – home
ora-nell – female
ora-nell-elan – mother
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or, with the idea of sharing a hearth:
parelan – family
parennel – friend
pargath – hearth
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OK linguists, you can stop laughing now. This is fiction, after all.
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Want a look at the entire dictionary? Have a look at the books in the Meniscus Series, beginning here.
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All my best,
staying home (ora-nee),
and staying in my two-family (ull-paralan) bubble,
Jane
nichepoetryandprose 
I'd love to hear what you think...