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Simple grammar

Simplified grammar, or Slovianto, is a highly simplified form of Interslavic that allows non-Slavic people to express themselves at a very basic level when visiting Slavic countries or maintaining contact with Slavs via the Internet. Grammar is limited to a bare minimum, and forms that are not strictly necessary are not used at all. Because it does not contain anything that cannot be found in the Slavic languages, the result wil not look or sound too awkward to Slavic speakers, but rather remind them of the kind of language used by small children.

Slovianto can also be used as a first step in the process of learning the „real” Interslavic language. It has been constructed in such way that it can gradually be expanded with new bits and pieces that occur in more complex versions. Thus, we distinguish three different levels, each of them adding new elements that bring Slovianto closer to Interslavic:

  • Level 1 – the simplest level: no gender, no cases, only singular/plural, one verb ending per tense
  • Level 2 – introduction to gender, simple model for conjugating verbs (things that can be found in all Slavic languages)

The working title Slovianto is a portmanteau word for „Slavic Esperanto”. This name, albeit somewhat tongue-in-cheek, refers to the simplicity of Slovianto: it has no gender, no cases, no aspect, little conjugation and no irregularity. Yet, that is where the similarity to Esperanto ends, because Slovianto's means of simplification are in fact far more similar to those used by Interlingua.