Punctuation marks

As we have seen previously, there are various symbols within the Kuapianese alphabet that serve much the same purpose as human punctuation marks, such as the period, the comma, or the exclamation mark. Let us now examine the different symbols used by the Martians, and how they have also been adapted for the romanization.

Colon (:): In most human languages, the colon serves to create a pause in a sentence and to draw attention to what follows. In the Kuapianese alphabet, the colon functions as a word separator, much like a space. It is particularly useful when reading Martian glyphs; however, it is sometimes applied to romanised texts for artistic purposes, or to assist Martians writing in the Creole—though a standard space could just as easily serve the same function as the Martian colon.

Méu: shéu: héumbioeg = Méu shéu héumbioeg

Semicolon (;): The Martians have a similar-looking symbol, but it carries a different meaning. The semicolon functions somewhat like both a comma and a period, indicating a pause between words. Unlike the colon, which acts as a word separator, the semicolon creates a pause similar to those found in human languages. Depending on the context, it may represent a brief pause (such as after a greeting) or a transition to a new topic.

Goekou; tou: wia: oek: biwik mhoe? (Hello; is your house large?)

Méu: wia: kuár: sheu biwik; Méu sheu heumuán (My car is large; I am human.)

This illustrates how the colon and semicolon complement each other. That said, as mentioned earlier, the romanisation is more accustomed to standard human punctuation. You only need to keep this in mind if you are writing using the Martian alphabet—a system in which text is written vertically, from top to bottom, with punctuation marks placed beneath the letters.

Extra Emphasis (“ ”): This is a feature absent from terrestrial languages. Martians do not use parentheses; instead, they emphasize or highlight specific elements using a unique glyph that resembles waves. In the Creole language, this has been rendered using quotation marks.

For example:

“Wuart” wia biwikia

This would be like saying:

Wuart’s (Martian vehicle)

We are emphasizing the fact that the vehicle belongs to Wuart, while the “Martian vehicle” aspect is secondary. This type of emphasis is also used colloquially to convey irony or double entendres; however, it is also common in history books, where entire sentences may be highlighted in this way (much like how we might underline “important points” in a book). This approach avoids the need for parentheses, which are typically used to downplay information. In the romanization, however, we use parentheses and quotation marks for distinct purposes, ensuring there is no confusion when texts are adapted for humans.