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Volapük Vifik: Lärnod Mälid

"Into forward gear - Full speed ahead!"


To be in top gear is always good for the gearbox and the car, providing it's done in the right way: if not, an unpleasant grating noise could well be the end product, and that is definitely bad for both the car and the gearbox!

This is also very true of verb tenses used in the wrong way. They grate terribly, either on the eyes or the ears of the listener, whichever is the first victim!

The 'straight' future tense is very simple in Volapük:

By adding the single letter o- to the beginning of the verb,we express the future, that is, an event which has not yet occurred, but which is expected to occur in the judgment of the person who is speaking or writing.

On the other hand, the single letter u- at the beginning of the verb brings out idea of the future event already having occured!   Here are a couple of examples:

Odelo (= tomorrow) ologob oli = I shall see you (no doubt at all!)
Klu (= therefore) ulogob oli = I shall (already) have seen you!!

Take particular note of the word meaning "tomorrow" above. Del is not a verb, as you know, but a noun which means "day"; by adding o- to such an idea of time, the future aspect is likewise added to it - the final -o has nothing to do with the future, of course,it merely tells us that the word is an ADVERB: "on the day to come".

The PASSIVE FORMS work just as before: they simply add the singleletter p- to the two vowels shown above, therefore:

Pologol fa ob = you will be seen by me
Pulogol fa ob = you will have been seen by me

Still at full speed ahead, we can now even consider going into overdrive,and issue a few orders (commands) to our various friends and neighbours.We must not be tempted to throw our weight about too much, however, lest we damage our vehicle or lose most of our passengers!

COMMANDS are formed by the addition of -ÖD to thewhole verb form:

Logomöd! = Let him see! (= He shall see!)
Logobsöd! = Let us see! (= We shall see!)
Logonsöd! = Let them see! (= They shall see!)

There's no doubt about the meaning of these 'orders': like it or not,they are all intended to be obeyed! Can you see, each time, how the ending -ÖD is added to give the idea of authority? This is calledthe IMPERATIVE MOOD and whatever mood you happen to be in at the time, you are expected to 'jump to it'! A much nicer way of giving out 'orders' is called the OPTATIVE MOOD. You simply add the ending -ÖS in exactly the same way: it is much more polite,and means:

Logomös! = May he see!
Logolös! = Do (please) see!
Logobsös! = Oh, that we may see!


Welcome to the sixth part of our rapid, inter-active course of VOLAPÜK VIFIK, in which we start, as usual, with some more words for you to practise out loud:

anik = several
as sam = for example 
asoaro = this evening 
balido = firstly 
bäldikün = eldest 
begö! = (if you) please 
benolabik = wealthy 
bevü = amongst 
cal = a profession 
cifik = chief, main 
da = throughout 
dat = so that 
degtelid = twelfth 
demü = on account of 
dö = about, in 
dot = a doubt 
dramat = drama
drogan = a chemist 
fiam = a firm 
gased = a magazine 
glofön = to grow 
gudikum (ka) = better (than) 
jünu = up to now 
ka = than 
kedet = a line (in a letter) 
kis? = what? 
klavan = a typist 
ko = with 
kod = a reason 
lä = at, with 
lätikün = latest 
lifayels = years of age 
lü = to (= direction) 

 

literat = literature
livüpajäf = a hobby 
lölik = whole 
lunedikum (ka) = slimmer (than) 
medinav = medicine (=science) 
musig = music 
nitedälön (dö) = to be interested (in) 
notedil = a small advertisement
nutimik = contemporary 
penedamäk = a postage stamp 
penön = to write 
plidön = to like 
poedav = poetry 
pospenäd = a postscript 
pöpajul = a primary school 
profäsoran = a lecturer 
pük = a language 
seimik = any 
spelabo = hopefully 
spodan = a correspondent 
spodön (ko) = to correspond (with) 
spot = a sport 
sunädo = at once, immediately 
täno = then (= after which) 
tefü = regarding 
tiädü = entitled 
tuvifiko = too fast 
ünü = within (a time) 
valik = all 
vedön = to become 
vög = a voice 
xam = an examination 
zesüdik = necessary

PENED LÜ HISPODAN

Tü del degtelid yulula, yela 20—

O flen Viktor!

Ereidob in gased lätikün tiädü «Vög Volapüka»,das vilol spodön ko flens da vol lölik.

Epenol in notedil ola, das nitedälol dö dins mödik, as sam: spots, penedamäks, poedav, läns e püks valasotiks...e das no spodol atimo ko jiflen seimik.

Binob Janin: labob lifayelis degvel, e lödob in dom gretik. Bü yels jöl, fat obik äbinom profäsoran, ab anu binom büsidan benolabik! Labom bäldoti yelas mödikum ka foldegas. Mot obik binof tidan in pöpajul, e binof yunikum ka om. Plidof vemo cali at! Labob blodis tel: eli Samül, bäldotü yels degzül, kel binom bäldikün de blods oba, ed eli Peter, bäldotü yels zül, kel binom yunikünan (do nen dot ovedom lunedikum ka ob, bi glofom tu vifiko!) Jünu ebinob klavan lä fiam veütik: ünü yels tel, ovisitob niveri ad studön medinavi, bi vilob vedön drogan:  täno ugetob xamis zesüdik oba.

Ed ol, kisi dunol-li calo?

Livüpajäfs cifik oba binons: musig, dramat e literat se läns valik!

Penolös obe sunädo, begö, dat okanobs gudikumo seivön odi!

Glidis gudikün ole ed olikanes

(sedof) Janin (jispodan balid ola, spelabo)

Pospenäd: Kikodo no nog labol-li jifleni bevü spodans olik?


1. After reading through this letter, why not make your own translation of it?

2. Note: Labom bäldoti yelas mödikum ka kildegas = He's in his thirties.

WRITE: He's in his forties; she's in her fifties; I'm in my sixties.