<p>First of all, you should familiarise yourself with the common features of Indo-European languages. For a good starter see <a href="https://conlang.stackexchange.com/q/355/142">What are the defining traits of a Euro-centric conlang?</a> and its answers. Unfortunately, we don't have similar questions and answers for other major language families like Sino-Tibetan, Austronesian, Semitic, or Bantu.</p>
<p>The simplest way to deviate from well-trodden paths is by incorporating a restriction, e.g., on word-final sounds or on consonant clusters. <a href="https://conlang.stackexchange.com/q/589/142">Elvish conlangs</a> have some remarkable phonological features here, like the restriction of word-final consonants to coronals (/d/, /t/, /n/, /s/ ...). For more suggestions, see <a href="https://conlang.stackexchange.com/q/699/142">Designing a mildly weird phonology</a> and its answers.</p>
<p>Another device often used by fantasy authors <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hiatus#English" rel="nofollow noreferrer">hiatuses</a>, especially the &quot;defining fantasy vowel&quot; /ae/ (Laura Wattenberg), but also a fondness of /ie/ and /ue/.</p>
<p>You can restrict word-initial consonant clusters by adding a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prothesis_(linguistics)" rel="nofollow noreferrer">prosthetic vowel</a> to them; or you can go in the opposite direction and add consonants to words starting with a vowel, such that all words begin with a consonant or consonant cluster.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-02T10:34:48.697Z
2024-10-03T12:24:59.613Z
2024-10-03T12:24:59.613Z
Sir Cornflakes
<p>For use in worldbuilding, I am intending to construct some fictional names in a fictional language. I want the phonotactics in those names to be distinct from the more widely-known real-world languages/families (so preferably avoiding or diluting PIE, Sinitic &amp;c. features), but easy to convey in writing to an Indoeuropean audience, and plausible-sounding.</p>
<p>Given those constraints, what are good simple guidelines and principles for coming up with a set of phonotactics for such naming?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-03T19:30:31.283Z
PIE phonotactics are pretty strange compared to any modern language I've seen!
Anton Sherwood
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-12T03:06:13.277Z
The answer here may be of some interest.
https://conlang.stackexchange.com/questions/1608/how-does-one-go-about-designing-phonotactics-for-a-conlang
Vir
<phonology><names>
How to Construct Phonotactics?
# How to Construct Phonotactics?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-09-02)

For use in worldbuilding, I am intending to construct some fictional names in a fictional language. I want the phonotactics in those names to be distinct from the more widely-known real-world languages/families (so preferably avoiding or diluting PIE, Sinitic &c. features), but easy to convey in writing to an Indoeuropean audience, and plausible-sounding.

Given those constraints, what are good simple guidelines and principles for coming up with a set of phonotactics for such naming?

**Tags:** phonology, names

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: PIE phonotactics are pretty strange compared to any modern language I've seen!  
> **username_2**: The answer here may be of some interest. https://conlang.stackexchange.com/questions/1608/how-does-one-go-about-designing-phonotactics-for-a-conlang  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2024-09-02. Score: 4

First of all, you should familiarise yourself with the common features of Indo-European languages. For a good starter see [What are the defining traits of a Euro-centric conlang?](https://conlang.stackexchange.com/q/355/142) and its answers. Unfortunately, we don't have similar questions and answers for other major language families like Sino-Tibetan, Austronesian, Semitic, or Bantu.

The simplest way to deviate from well-trodden paths is by incorporating a restriction, e.g., on word-final sounds or on consonant clusters. [Elvish conlangs](https://conlang.stackexchange.com/q/589/142) have some remarkable phonological features here, like the restriction of word-final consonants to coronals (/d/, /t/, /n/, /s/ ...). For more suggestions, see [Designing a mildly weird phonology](https://conlang.stackexchange.com/q/699/142) and its answers.

Another device often used by fantasy authors [hiatuses](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/hiatus#English), especially the "defining fantasy vowel" /ae/ (Laura Wattenberg), but also a fondness of /ie/ and /ue/.

You can restrict word-initial consonant clusters by adding a [prosthetic vowel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prothesis_(linguistics)) to them; or you can go in the opposite direction and add consonants to words starting with a vowel, such that all words begin with a consonant or consonant cluster.


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