Ninklish

Destiny Saga

📘 Ninklish

The Nink are a people whose speech differs from others; instead of conventional language, they communicate using bells and whistles. Their unique vocal abilities have led to the development of a language tailored to these sounds.

Notation

To facilitate the study of Ninklish, a specialized notation system has been created. The details of this system are documented below.

Solfage

Nink Solfage is a system that assigns unique symbols to musical phonemes, enabling the Nink to communicate using bells and whistles. Each phoneme (Do, Re, Mi, etc.) is represented by a specific letter, allowing for precise notation of their language.

Note Symbol
Do  D
da  d
Re  R
ri  r
Mi  M
Fa  F
fi  f
So  S
su  s
Lu  L
le  l
Ti  T

Voice

Ninks communicate using two primary vocal modes: bell voice and whistle voice. These modes can be switched freely during conversation, and the notation system specifies which voice is active and indicates any changes between them.

Symbol Meaning
(none)  default Bell voice
' Bell Voice
* Whistle Voice

Octave

Ninks typically communicate using a three-octave vocal range. Upon reaching adulthood, they gain a fourth octave, which can expand their range either lower or higher. Octave markers in the notation indicate when the vocal range shifts; all subsequent notes remain in the new octave until another marker changes it.

Octave Marker Semitone Shift
\\ or¡¡ –24 (lower)
\ or ¡ –12 (low)
(none) or # +0 (natural)
/ or ! +12 (high)
// or !! +24 (higher)

Lenght

Ninks pronounce a note with a duration of 1 beat, typically at 140 bpm, though this tempo varies among individuals. They may shorten or lengthen notes as needed. The notation specifies the duration for each subsequent note.

Marker Duration
none 1 beat
: ½ beat
:: ¼ beat
_ 2 beats
__ 4 beats

Tempo

Term BPM Range
Toll  20 – 60 BPM
Gong  60 – 80 BPM
Slide  80 – 100 BPM
peal  100 – 140 BPM
clash  140 – 180 BPM
trill  180 – 220 BPM
roll  220 – 280 BPM

Rest

Rests in Ninklish indicate pauses or silences between notes, allowing for rhythmic separation and phrasing in speech. A rest can be marked by a space or a dot (.) in the notation. Multiple rests can be combined for longer pauses, and rests can be assigned durations using length markers, just like notes.

Marker Duration
none 1 rest
. 1 rest

DoTi mode

By default, Nink notes are interpreted as words. However, there are situations where they need to represent something other than words. “DoTi” is a term in Ninklish that signals the following notes should be interpreted differently. DoTi mode continues until a double pause or a longer rest occurs, which ends the mode.

Mode Notation
Numbers *:D:T
Letters ':D:T
Nink Names ':D*:T
Foreign Names *:D':T

Numbers *:D:T

Cardinal numbers are always conveyed in whistle voice and use the natural octave. They are primarily used for counting.

Note Digit
d  0
R  1
r  2
M  3
F  4
f  5
S  6
s  7
L  8
l  9

Letters ':D:T

Ninks use a distinct system for ordinal numbers, separate from their cardinal numbers. There are 26 ordinal levels, each mapped to a letter of the alphabet. Ordinals are always pronounced in bell voice and utilize notes from both the low and high octaves.

High letter   Natural letter   Low letter
/S A   l I   \T S
/f B   L J   \l T
/F C   s K   \L U
/M D   S L   \s V
/r E   f M   \S W
/R F   F N   \f X
/d G   M O   \F Y
/D H   r P   \M Z
      R Q      
      d R      

Nink Names ':D*:T

Nink names start with at least one order (letter), followed by a count (number) : D935, T983, B137, KR1574, A923, GW797.

Nink name normalization

Nink names are often normalized to make them easier to pronounce or remember. This can involve substituting parts of the name based on how they sound when spoken, or by using visual similarities between letters and numbers. For example, the number “4” resembles the letter “A” and, when pronounced, “four” can be used in place of “F” or “FO”.

Used to represent names of individuals who are not Nink. When encoding a foreign name, each vowel in the name is mapped to one or more corresponding notes, as shown in the table above. Any note associated with a vowel is valid, and the speaker may freely choose between bell or whistle voice for each note.

Vowel Options
A d , F
E R , l
I r, M, f , T
O D , S
U s , L

Voice Properties

Each Nink has unique properties that shape their vocal characteristics:

Name: D935 - “Dimitri”
Natural Tone: C3
Whistle Offset: 0
Fourth Octave: Higher
Full Range: C2 - B5
Pace: Trill Note: He tends to Shift -4 when speaking to M174 - “Mila”

Grammar

the meaning of a base word can be changed by the manner the last note is pronounced. this is marked by an accent mark: ` ~ (tilde) , ´ ` (acute) and `(grave) marks. alternatively, “ := “,” :+ “, and “ :- “ can be appended after the modified note. This is used to indicate if the pronounciation of the note would be doubled, pitched up, or pitched down. in effect, the modified note in question is split from on beat to two half beats. the first half be note is the same as the original. the second half note is either the same note, one semitone higher, or one semitone lower.

Script Typed speech
DRM̃ DRM:= DR:M:M
DRḾ DRM:+ DR:M:F
DRM̀ DRM:- DR:M:r

while it depends on the root word, typically a double note indicates plural. it can also make it grater, bigger, or even the opposite. pitch up notes tend to signify agreement, good, increasing or one variant. pitched down indicated disagreement, bad, decreasing, or another variant.

Base Note Double (:=) Pitch Up (:+) Pitch Down (:-)
D D̃  :D:D D́  :D:d D̀  :D:\T
d d̃  :d:d d́  :d:R d̀  :d:D
R R̃  :R:R Ŕ  :R:r R̀  :R:d
r r̃  :r:r ŕ  :r:M r̀  :r:R
M M̃  :M:M Ḿ  :M:F M̀  :M:r
F F̃  :F:F F́  :F:f F̀  :F:M
f f̃  :f:f f́  :f:S f̀  :f:F
S S̃  :S:S Ś  :S:s S̀  :S:f
s s̃  :s:s ś  :s:L s̀  :s:S
L L̃  :L:L Ĺ  :L:l L̀  :L:s
l l̃  :l:l ĺ  :l:T l̀  :l:L
T T̃  :T:T T́  :T:/D T̀  :T:l

Vocabulary

one beat words

Word Base ( := ) Double ( :+ ) Pitch Up ( :- ) Pitch Down
D I / me :D:D we / us   –   –
d you :d:d you all   –   –
R he / she / it :R:R they / them   –   –
r to speak/state   – :r:M shout/born :r:R silence/die
M to eat/drink   – :M:F feast/heal :M:r starve/suffer
F to hear/understand   – :F:f no :F:M yes
f and :f:f not :f:S or :f:F either
S if :S:S while :S:s then :S:f else
s to sense/experience   – :s:L joy :s:S sad
L to do/act/work   – :L:l active/ awake :L:s laze/ rest
l to possess/belong   – :l:T receive/ take :l:L give/ lose
T to stop/finish   – :T:/D dont stop :T:l STOP NOW

two beat words

Base Word Meaning ( := ) Double ( :+ ) Pitch Up ( :- ) Pitch Down
Dd friend D:d:d “friends” D:d:R “ally” D:d:D “frenemy”
Rd rival R:d:d “rivals” R:d:R “challenger” R:d:D “enemy”
MD food M:D:D “meal” M:D:d “delicious” M:D:\T “spoiled”
sL water s:L:L “beverage” s:L:l “medicine” s:L:s “poison”
lL tool l:L:L “tools” l:L:l “masterwork tool” l:L:s “broken tool”
Dl home D:l:l “village” D:l:T “sanctuary” D:l:L “prison”
ST day / light S:T:T “days” S:T:/D “dawn / morning” S:T:l “dusk / twilight”
dr dark / night d:r:r “nights” d:r:M “midnight” d:r:R “shadow”
sT sky / above s:T:T “skies” s:T:/D “heavens / zenith” s:T:l “storm / overcast”
Lf land / ground L:f:f “lands” L:f:S “fertile ground” L:f:F “barren land”
fS Sun f:S:S “Noon” f:S:s “Sunrise/ Morning” f:S:f “Sunset/ Twilight”
Sf Moon / Full Moon S:f:f “New Moon” S:f:S “Waxing Moon / First Quarter” S:f:F “Waning Moon / Third Quarter”
LR thought L:R:R “ideas” L:R:r “insight” L:R:d “confusion”
TS time / present T:S:S “NOW” T:S:s “future” T:S:f “past”
TT warning / danger T:T:T “calamity” T:T:/D “foreboding” T:T:l “all-clear / safety”
LL parent L:L:L “family / clan” L:L:l “mother” L:L:s “father”
DT (encode) shift   (none)   (none)   (none)
rM Warm Colors r:M:M orange r:M:F yellow r:M:r Red
Mr Cool Colors M:r:r blue M:r:M purple M:r:R green

Three Beat words

Word Base ( := ) Double ( :+ ) Pitch Up ( :- ) Pitch Down
lLl weapon   –   –   –
lLs instrument   –   –   –
RTR The North Tree   –   –   –
STS Eastern Cliffs   –   –   –
FTF Southern Falls   –   –   –
MTM West Caverns   –   –   –

WIP Notes

note base double Pitch Up Pitch down
         
         
         
  English Singular   Plural
1st person I / me D we / us :D:D
2nd person you d you all :d:d
3rd person he / she R they / them :R:R
Base Note Base Meaning Negative (:X:down) Positive (:X:up)
F to hear/understand :F:M (“not hear”/no) :F:f (“hear”/yes)
s to sense/experience :s:S (“lose,” sadness) :s:L (“win,” joy)
R to speak/state :R:d (“silence/kill”) :R:r (“shout/born”)
L to do/act/work :L:s (“laze/rest”) :L:l (“be active/awake”)
l to possess/belong :l:L (“give/not have”) :l:T (“receive/acquire”)
M to eat/drink :M:r (“starve/suffer”) :M:F (“feast/heal”)
T to stop/finish :T:l (“don’t stop”) :T:/D (“STOP NOW”)
Connector Notation Meaning
and f conjunction
or :f:S disjunction
either (xor) :f:F exclusive or
not :f:f negation
Control Notation Meaning
if S conditional “if …”
then :S:s “then”
else :S:f “else”
while :S:S “while” (loop)

Common Ninklish Words

Ninklish Meaning Plural (:X:X) Pitch Up (Positive) Pitch Down (Negative)
Dd friend D:d:d “friends” D:d:R “ally” D:d:D “frenemy”
Rd rival R:d:d “rivals” R:d:R “challenger” R:d:D “enemy”
MD food M:D:D “meals” M:D:d “delicious” M:D:T “spoiled”
sL water s:L:L “beverages” s:L:l “medicine” s:L:s “poison”
lL tool l:L:L “tools” (none) (none)
Dl house / dwelling D:l:l “village” D:l:T “home” D:l:L “prison”
ST day / light S:T:T “days” S:T:d “dawn” S:T:l “dusk”
dr dark / night d:r:r “nights” d:r:M “midnight” d:r:R “daylight”
sT sky / above s:T:T “skies” s:T:d “Calm” s:T:l “Windy”
Lf land / ground / below L:f:f “lands” L:f:S “fertile ground” L:f:F “barren land”
LR thought / to think L:R:R “ideas” L:R:r “insight” L:R:d “confusion”
TS time / present T:S:S “NOW” T:S:s “future” T:S:f “past”
TT warning / danger T:T:T “warnings” none none
LL parent L:L:L “family” L:L:l “mother” L:L:s “father”
DT (encode) shift none none none
Clan Word Meaning Pattern Note Value Population Direction
RTR The Tree Re–Ti–Re 2–12–2 North Tree North
MTM The Caverns Mi–Ti–Mi 4–12–4 East Caverns East
FTF The Waterfall Fa–Ti–Fa 5–12–5 South Falls South
STS The Cliff So–Ti–So 7–12–7 West Cliffs West
  water DSR   DS:R:S
  friend MRS   MR:S:S
  enemy sRf   sR:f:f
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August 9, 2025