Version 1.2
I read the other day that the basic prepositions in Italian are a closed word class and only eight in number. This gives some insight and inspiration for the prepositions in Diinlang.
“In” in Italian is the same as in English and the same word is used in Diinlang. Italian uses this word for some uses not commonly seen in English. “In” is used as a preposition for travelling to geographical and physical locations. The Italian for “Are you going to France?” is “Vai in Franca?” It could be said this is a contraction of “into” in English. Rather than travelling “on a train” or “by a train” Italian uses the more logical “vado in treno”. These uses of “in” should be acceptable in Diinlang. The former use has some overlap with “ad” in Diinlang.
“To” in Italian is “a” and is obviously derived from the latin “ad”. “Ad” is the word used for “to” in Diinlang. “a” is also used like “at” in English for contexts such as “at 7.00pm”.
“Di” and “da” in Italian have the meaning of “of/from” for the former and “from, since, by” for the latter. These meanings are covered by “del” in Diinlang. Scots uses “o” and this may be adopted in Diinlang instead, forming a nice counterpoint for the possessive marker “vo”. A play is “of/from” Shakespeare rather than being “by” him. A person is of/from Rome. Diinlang also has the word “apo” meaning “from” or “away”. This is more concerned with direction and should be seen as the compliment of “ad”. There is some overlap with “del”. For example “left of (del) ship” or “left from (apo) ship” can sometimes be used interchangeably but may also have distinct differing meanings. The Diinlang word for “near” is “veng” and this can be used instead of “by” in some constructions such as “meet by the café”. “Book del Shakespeare”, like the English equivalent “Book of Shakespeare”, is a little ambivalent. To stress that something is about or by a subject we may use “apo” or “on”.
“Con” in Italian is “kom” in Diinlang and means “with” in English. The usage in all three languages is much the same. In some context “kom” can be used instead of “and (en)”. Jon kom Dean = Jon en Dean. It may also be used instead of “of/from” in some contexts.
“Per” is another word used in Italian, English and Diinlang. Its use in Italian is a little more broader than in English and these applications should also be used in Diinlang. “Per” is used for “for” in uses such as “leave for Rome” or “bus for Milan”. In the past Diinlang has also used “pro” to mean “for” in the context of being in favour of something or inclined towards something. This usage needs to be considered in greater depth.
The Italian words “tra” and “fra” are interchangeable and mean “between” or “within (a time)”. “I get married in two years” is “mi sposo tra/ fra due anni”. I believe “tra” to mean “between” has already found its way into Diinlang so the usage can be extended to mean “within” or “during” too. This also suggests that “tra” can mean “than” in comparisons. Jon eta tra Dean = Jon bigger between Dean = Jon bigger than Dean.
The final Italian preposition is “su” meaning “on” or “about”. “Su” has been already used for another purpose in Diinlang and Diinlang has the word “on” for “on”. “On” can be used to mean “about” in the context of “a book about …” The literal translation in Diinlang would therefore be “a book on”. Constructions such as “talk about…” could either be “talk of (del)…” or “talk on (on)…”
The above gives us del, in, ad, apo, veng, kom, per, tra and on as prepositions to use with the directives previously discussed.