nasin sitelen kalama: Difference between revisions

'''{{tp|nasin sitelen kalama}}''' is a popular alternative method of writing names in {{tp|[[sitelen pona]]}} based on {{w|Mora (linguistics)|morae}}. It was created by {{tok|jan Pumiko}} of {{tok|kulupu kasi}} as a response to similar, but unmarked systems, which she felt were too unreadable.

[[File:jan Kulumin Sinpin.png|thumb|{{tp|jan Kulumin Sinpin}}, written in {{tp|nasin sitelen kalama}}]]

The system is primarily based on {{w|Mora (linguistics)|morae}}, a unit of speech similar to a {{w|syllable}}. In the [[moraic analysis]] of Toki Pona, a mora is either a vowel (V), a consonant–vowel pair (CV), or the [[coda n|coda {{tp|-n}}]] (N). For example, the word {{tp|anpa}} is split into the morae {{tp|a-n-pa}}.

In {{tp|nasin sitelen kalama}}, a word followed by no symbol is read by their first letters, similarly to the system in {{lipu pu}}. Each dot adds another mora. If the word starts in a valid mora (i.e. a single vowel), it indicates the next mora. For example:

:{|

|-

| {{sp|jan [anpa]}}

| {{tp|jan A}}

|-

| {{sp|jan [anpa ..]}}

| {{tp|jan An}}

|-

| {{sp|jan [anpa .. ..]}}

| {{tp|jan Anpa}}

|}

{{w|Colon (punctuation)|Colons}} indicate the entire word and is equivalent to dots with the number of morae in the word. For example:

:{|

|-

| {{sp|jan [kepeken]}}

| *{{tp|jan K}}

|-

| {{sp|jan [kepeken ::]}}

| {{tp|jan Kepeken}}

|}

In writing, the dots and colons are usually placed in the midline of the text and sometimes with {{w|fullwidth}}.

===Previous attempts at syllabic spellings===

Over time, some {{tp|sitelen pona}} users began to write their names in more experimental ways. Based on the existing {{tp|pu}} way of representing a name by writing a {{tp|sitelen pona}} character for each letter in the name inside of a cartouche, these ways changed into usually using less characters to write a name. These experimental methods include:

* Preferring a glyph to be used syllabically:

:{|

|-

| {{sp|jan [sitelen sona]}}

| {{tp|jan Siso}}

|-

| {{sp|nimi [insa pan telo]}}

| {{tp|nimi Inpante}}

|}

* Impossible sequences of sounds adding sounds based on what the next sound in the sitelen pona character would be:

:{|

|-

| {{sp|jan [sitelen sona ale]}}

| *{{tp|jan Ssa}} → {{tp|jan Sisa}}

|-

| {{sp|telo [uta anpa]}}

| *{{tp|telo Ua}} → {{tp|telo Uja}}

|}

* Using different forms to the cartouches to indicate a name that is spelled like a word:

:{|

|-

| {{sp|kasi {seli}|font=linja lipamanka}}

| {{tp|kasi Seli}}

|-

| {{sp|nimi {insa pan telo}|font=linja lipamanka}}

| {{tp|nimi Insa Pan Telo}} / {{tp|nimi Insapantelo}}

|}

* Characters get combined to form syllables:

:{|

|-

| {{sp|soweli [kili-awen wile-esun]|font=linja lipamanka}}

| {{tp|soweli Kawe}}

|}

[[File:nsk.png|250px|thumb|alt=Screenshot from a discord message in sitelen pona: "toki a. mi pali e nasin sitelen sin. ona la sina ken sitelen pona e kalama pi nimi sina. nasin ni li: sitelen nimi wan la o toki e kalama open taso. kalama [nena] li sama nimi n. sitelen [dot] li lon poka pi sitelen nimi la o toki e kulupu open pi nimi ni. kalama [mu dot] li sama nimi mu. sina pana e sitelen [dot] mute la o toki e kulupu kalama ante. nimi [kalama dot dot] li sama nimi kala. sitelen [colon] li lon poka la o toki e ale nimi. nimi [telo colon] li sama nimi telo. nasin ni la sina ken lili e sitelen kalama sina li ken sona pona e ona. -jan Pumiko"|Original message describing nasin sitelen kalama]]

{{tp|nasin sitelen kalama}} was created by {{tok|jan Pumiko}}, a member of the {{tok|kulupu kasi}} system, in 2022. This was in order to formalize the previous systems.

{{Needs work|scope=section}}

[[File:Kijetesantakalu sewi (sitelen pona) - chorus.png|250px|thumb|{{tp|nasin sitelen kalama}} used to indicate morae in the sheet music for {{tp|kijetesantakalu sewi}}]]

{{tp|nasin sitelen kalama}} can be used to write {{tp|sitelen pona}} lyrics in [[sheet music]].

{{Needs work|scope=section}}

*Cartouches may be [[ambiguous]] on the rare, but feasible, occasion that multiple words share a glyph. Examples include {{spt|[ale ::]}} representing {{tp|Ale}} or {{tp|Ali}}, and, less standardly, the case of [[abbreviation]]s with different pronunciations but unchanged glyphs.