# Nelôxi — Register Showcase

One scene in the two varieties of Nelôxi: the **metrolect**, the shared speech of the
port–capital–Marīsô metroplex and the standard written language; and the **inland**
dialect of the rural interior, which keeps the older Finnic-heavy forms.

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## The scene: morning at the harbor market

**English:** In the morning the fisher comes to the harbor. He sells fish at the market.
Grandmother buys mushrooms and makes soup. The child wants a donut. "Are you coming?" —
"Just now." The old woman pays with small change. Good morning, goodbye.

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### Metrolect (port · capital · Marīsô — the standard)

> Mati, kalāj tul satāmôl. Tä vend kalān markôtôl. Babkô komprā gribôn ja kuin supôn.
> Läpx vol flœzīn. *Ka sä tul? — Nūlô, nūlô…* Vana nān maks drobôk. Jôvā mati — adē!

The metrolect clips final vowels in casual speech, reaches for the Slavic forms **babkô**
"granny" and **gribô** "mushroom," and counts in the Slavic dozenal system. It carries the
prestige gradient within itself: the same speaker upshifts to full forms (*tulē, kalāji,
vanamǟr*) for official or literary registers, which is the written standard.

### Inland (rural interior)

> Matī kalāji tulē satāmôl. Tä vendā kalān markôtôl. Vanamǟr komprā pôlūn ja kuinā supôn.
> Läpx volē flœzīn. *Ka sä tulē? — Nūnū.* Vana nān maksā rāk. Jôvā matī, adē.

Inland keeps every full form, the native **vanamǟr** "grandmother" and **pôlū** "mushroom",
the native reduplication **nūnū** "right now", and plain **rāk** "with money". The deep
interior still counts the old Finnic way — "how grandmother counts" (see
`archive/extinct-numbers.md`).

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## The tell in one line

"Grandmother buys mushrooms":

| Variety | Form |
|---|---|
| Metrolect | *Babkô komprā gribôn* |
| Inland | *Vanamǟr komprā pôlūn* |

**Babkô** and **gribô** mark a metroplex speaker; **vanamǟr** and **pôlū** mark the interior.