Spoken and Literary Varieties
Maldivian presents another aspect with which English speakers are not too familiar: the distinction between what is spoken and what is written. Every language that has a written idiom has this distinction to a greater or lesser degree. But Asian languages such as Maldivian seem to exhibit major differences between the two varieties of language.
Spoken Maldivian, for instance, has twenty seven consonants. In contrast, written or literary Maldivian contains these sounds and some Arabic sounds as well. Though these sounds are also used in speaking, their phonetics is not strictly observed. This results in pronouncing it as close as possible to the Maldivian sounds when speaking.
To make things simpler it may be said that every sentence in written Maldivian ends with the addition of ‘ve’, which is never used to end a sentence in spoken Maldivian. In using ‘ve’ a strict word-order also has to be maintained. But in spoken Maldivian word-order is not considered to be very rigid.
One of the very important things one has to take into account in written Maldivian which is not so important in spoken Maldivian is the ‘sukun’, on the letters ‘alif’ and ‘rhaviyani’. ‘Sukun’ in general, is a mark to indicate an abrupt stop on the sound of the letter on which it is placed. However if it comes within the word, the letter is repeated; if it comes on a ‘rhaviyani’ or ‘alif’, at the end of a word, it signifies the sound ‘h’; if it comes on a ‘thaa’, the sound is replaced by ‘iy’. Another thing to note! Though Maldivian has some dialects, these dialects are hardly used in writing. Only Malé Bas and Maliku Bas are used in writing, and both does not show much differences like the rest of the dialects.
Read more about this topic: Mahl Language
Famous quotes containing the words spoken, literary and/or varieties:
“In a pure society, the subject of marriage would not be so often avoided,from shame and not from reverence, winked out of sight, and hinted at only; but treated naturally and simply,perhaps simply avoided like the kindred mysteries. If it cannot be spoken of for shame, how can it be acted of? But, doubtless, there is far more purity, as well as more impurity, than is apparent.”
—Henry David Thoreau (18171862)
“Every American poet feels that the whole responsibility for contemporary poetry has fallen upon his shoulders, that he is a literary aristocracy of one.”
—W.H. (Wystan Hugh)
“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.”
—Bible: New Testament, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6.