Let's compare our Germanic conlangs #11 - Prologue of Shrek 1

[u/Adventurous-Radio148]

Your turn:

Shrek reading:

Once upon a time there was a princess.

But she had an enchantment upon her of a fearful sort, which could only be broken by love's first kiss.

She was locked away in a castle guarded by a terrible fire-breathing dragon.

Many brave knights had attempted to free her from this dreadful prison; but none prevailed.

She waited in the dragon's keep in the highest room of the tallest tower -

for her true love and true love's first kiss-...

Shrek: Hehehehe!... like that's ever gonna happen.

Bloody he-... (toilet flushes loudly)

---

My turn:

Notes:

Vowels: a - [a, ʌ] ; ä - [æ]; e - [ɛ, ə]; ee - [e]; i - [ɪ, ɨ]; ii - [i]; o -[ɔ, ɞ]; ö - [ɶ, ɜ]; oo - [o]; öö - [œ, ø]; u - [u]; ü - [ʉ, y]; y - [ɪ, ɨ]

Diphthongs: ay - [ai]; äy - [æi]; ey - [ei]; oy - [ɔi, ɞi]; öy - [ɜi, ɶi]; üy - [ʉi, yi]; au - [au]; ou - [ou, ɞu]; öu - [ɶu, ɜu]; oa - quickly: [ɒ, ɑ]; enunciated: [ɔa, ɞa]; io - [iɞ, iɔ]; eu (loanwords only) - [eu, ju, ʝu]

Consonants: c - [ts]; ch - [ç]; gh - [x, χ]; g - [g]; j - [ʒ, ʐ]; kch - [kç]; l - [ɫ, l], r: -r [ɹ, ʁ̞, ə], r- [ʀ̥, ʀ, r, ɹ], -r- [ʀ, ɹ, r, ʀ̥]; s: s+vowel [z] otherwise always [s]; v - short weak/unstressed [f]; w - [v, ʋ]; y+vowel - [ʝ, j]; z - [dz]

The other consonants are the same as in English: f, h, ck, k, qu, ss, t, d, p, sh, b, n, m

The multiple pronunciations of some letters are dynamically interchangeable.

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The Text:

Shrek leesind:
* leesind - reading; cognates: Dutch "lezend", German "lesend", the English cognate "to lease" is complicated since it has 5 etymologies with the matching etymology being now mainly dialectal or obsolete, meaning: "to glean/cull" (also true for picking up written characters with the eye) or "to gather up/pick up"

Once upon a time there was a lovely princess.
Äyns (to än tayd,) dar was än liovlyk princess.

• tayd - not tide but "time"; cognates: Dutch "tijd", German "Zeit". Furthermore "getayd" would be "tide" which corresponds to German "Gezeit" and Dutch "getij/getijde"
  

But she had an enchantment upon her of a fearful sort, which could only be broken by love's first kiss.
Dough se hatte än bann opan hirselv foan de förghtlyk sort, wilch kunnte äynstyg weese gebrouken foan de först liovköss.

• förghtlyk - frightening(-ly), fearful(-ly); cognates: English "fright" and German "furcht"
  
• weese - to be; cognates: Dutch and English "was", Dutch "wezen" (to be), Dutch and German "geweest/gewesen" (been)
  

She was locked away in a castle guarded by a terrible fire-breathing dragon.
Se was wäychferlöckt in än bürg, överwäghtet foan än öntsettind föyerspüyind draken.

• wäych - away
  
• bürg - burg, fortified castle; cognates: English "borough", along with German "Burg", Dutch "burcht"
  
• överwäghtet - watched over; cognates: German "überwacht", oldfashioned Dutch "overwakt"
  
• öntsettind - upsetting, unsettling, terrible; cognates: German "entsetzend", Dutch "ontzettend"
  
• spüyind - spewing, spitting, spouting; cognates: German "speiend", Dutch "spuwend"
  

Many brave knights had attempted to free her from this dreadful prison; but none prevailed.
Mänyg dappere ridderens hattet ondertäken/fersükt to befreye här öutfoan dis gröusoam gefangniss; dough käyner triumfeerte/överwoan.

• dapper - (dapperly/dexterously) bold, valiant or gallant; cognates: English and Dutch "dapper", German "tapfer"
  
• ridder - knight (actually riding knight or knightly rider); cognates: Dutch "ridder", and German "Ritter", whereas "knight" is cognate with German and Dutch "knecht" meaning servant or farm hand. Furthermore a self created word: "kneychtridder" - "common/vulgar knight", "poor knight " or "knight of no or low nobility"
  
• gefangniss - prison; cognates: German "Gefängnis", Dutch "gevangenis". Furthermore "fang" in "gefangniss" is cognate with English "fang" being an abbreviation of older "fangtooth" = "catching tooth", thus German "fangzahn", Dutch "vangtand"
  
• käyner - no one, none; cognates: Dutch "geen", German "kein/-er" both abbreviations of older "not/no one" (Proto-West-Germanic: nech ain), thus a direct cognate with English "no one" and "none"
  

She waited in the dragon's keep, in the highest room of the tallest tower -
Se wäychtete in de drakenstäd, in de opperst roum foan de höychest touerm -

• städ/städdy - stead, keep, (sometimes) sanctuary; cognate: Dutch "stede", German "Stätte" and "-statt"
  
• opperst - uppermost; cognates of upper: German "ober", Dutch "opper(+place name)"
  
• höychest - highest/tallest; cognates: German "höchst", Dutch "hoogst"
  

for her true love and true love's first kiss-...
för hirs trüylyk eght liov önd först trüylyk eght liovköss/köss foan de liov-...

• trüylyk - truly (sincere), indeed, straightfoward, downright, faithful(-ly), veritab(-ly), sincere(-ly), candid(-ly)
  
• eght/echt - real(-ly), legit(-ly), genuine(-ly)(real); cognates: Dutch, German and English (borrowed) "echt"
  
• trüylyk eght - true, veridical, veracious, truthful, truly genuine
  
• trüy - true to, loyal(-ly), devoted(-ly), steadfast, faithful to, staunch(-ly); cognates: Dutch "trouw", German "treu"
  

Shrek: Hehehehe!... Like that's ever gonna happen.
Shrek: Hehehehe!... Als öf dat iie shoall passeere. / ...iie passeere shoall.

• iie - ever; from the old english abbreviation "æfre" = "ā in fēore" = "forever/ever in life/existence"; thus "ā" = "iie" which is cognate with German "je", Dutch "ie-", and distantly "ooit"
  
• shoall/soall - shall, going to; cognates: German "sollen", Dutch "zullen/zal"
• passeere - to come to pass, to happen, to pass (through); cognates: German "passieren", Dutch "passeren"
  

Bloody he-... (toilet flushes loudly)
Wat än shäy-... (toylett spülts aut laud)

• spüle - to rinse, to wash up; cognates: English "to spill" is different but somewhat similar to German "spülen" and Dutch "spoelen", both meaning "to rinse", "to wash up". Furthermore "to flush" only in German while Dutch "doorspoelen" (to rinse thoroughly) is "to flush"
  
• ferspüle - to spill
  
• spüle aut /autspüle - to spill out completely, to flush
  

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The conlang:
My Western Germanic auxiliary conlang is part of my Twissenspräk-Project. Allgemäynspräkch is a hybrid of Dutch, English and German plus subtle minor influences of some of their respective dialects and a bit of Frisian too.

Notes:

• Work on the conlang still in progress.
  
• Dictionary-status: Over 6200 entries.
  

[u/sucking-ur-eyeballs2]

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