So, since the "solution" suggested here turned out to be just an April Fool"s joke after all, I will once again focus on the seriousness of the VMS:
The cipher has improved further. I have added and described typical Bavarian features that explain why certain things were done the way they were.
Most importantly, I have now identified more than 50 words that are consistent with the cipher and also match their frequency of occurrence in Middle High German texts. This is no longer comparable to the one-off word identifications proposed by other solvers, who simply suggested words without checking them systematically in context.
Before I list all of this, two things are becoming increasingly clear:
1. The likelihood that the VMS is based on a Bavarian text continues to rise.
2. Taken together, the frequency analyses of the individual components are becoming difficult to dismiss. Any single match could still be coincidence, but in combination the pattern is increasingly hard to explain away as chance.
---------------
1 ABSORPTION PREFIXES
Function words are not written separately, but are
absorbed as a prefix to the following content word.
o- = absorbed article (der/die/das)
qo- = absorbed preposition (+article)
y- = absorbed verb prefix (ge-/ver-/be-/er-/zer-/ent-)
s = “and” (standalone or as a prefix/suffix)
1.2 CONSONANTS
GALLOWS (plosive classes, one glyph each):
k = g/k (velar) 10195x 6.70%
t = f/v/w (labial) 5907x 3.88%
p = b/p (bilabial) 701x 0.46%
f = b/p (variant) 240x 0.16%
BANK GALLOWS (complex clusters, one glyph each):
ckh = ng 900x cph = pf 211x
cth = ??? 923x cfh = ??? 74x
tsh = ??? 177x
SINGLE CHARACTERS:
ch = m 10177x 6.68% (Ratio ch/m = 1.95x; ch≠n)
sh = sch/s(voiceless) 4357x 2.86% (Bavarian: initial s voiceless -> sh)
d = s(voiced)/z/t/d 6252x 4.11% (in-syllable/end-syllable-s -> d; initial-s -> sh)
r = r 7599x 4.99%
l = l/n 10660x 7.00%
SPECIAL:
pch = n (word-initial) 764x
dy = ch (ich-sound) 6964x 4.57%
1.3 VOWELS
a = Middle High German a (open vowels; occasionally also o)
e = Middle High German i (front vowel; occasionally also a)
o = Middle High German o, u (rounded vowels)
ai = Middle High German ei (confirmed: ein->aiin, wein->tain)
ee = Middle High German ie, uo, uee (NOT monophthongized Bavarian diphthongs!
Standard German ie->i, uo->u, uee->ue — but they remain Bavarian)
(confirmed: siech->sheedy, weiss->teed)
y = final -e (word-final; n-apocope: -en -> -e -> -y)
Vowel spelling varies: von/uon -> tol AND tal (o vs a)
PART 2: BAVARIAN / UPPER GERMAN FEATURES
2.1 LOSS OF ‘h’
The writer does not pronounce ‘h’: har->ar, honig->onig, halse->aldy
h does not exist as a separate character in VMS.
2.2 FINAL HARDENING
b->p, d->t, g->k at the end of a word.
2.3 LOSS OF FINAL CONSONANTS
kalt->kal, als->al, nicht->pchedy (final -t is dropped)
2.4 n-VARIATION AND n-APOCOPE
n is encoded in DIFFERENT ways depending on its position:
n -> pch (word-initial: nicht->pchedy, nun->pchol, nim->pchy)
n -> l (most common variant: von->tol, pfund->cphol, munde->choldy, getan->kedal)
n -> n (after a diphthong: ein->aiin, wein->tain)
n -> y (word-final: wann->taly, dann->daly, man->chey, magen->cheky)
n -> weg (abbreviation: nim->pchy)
n -> NOT ch! (ch = m, frequency: ch/m=1.95x, ch/(m+n)=0.49x)
Upper German n-apocope: The unstressed final syllable -en is shortened to -e
(singen->singe, sieden->siede). In the VMS, this appears as -y instead of -ech.
This explains the massive y-ending in VMS.
2.5 VOICELESS INITIAL s (s/sh VARIATION)
In High German/Bavarian, the initial s is VOICELESS — it sounds
like “sch”. The writer hears the voiceless sound and writes sh:
s -> sh (initial, voiceless: so->sho, sich->shedy, sol->shol, sucht->shody)
s -> d (medial/final, voiced or z/tz: sal->dal, sein->dain, sol->dol)
This is NOT an inconsistency but phonetically correct:
Voiceless (initial) -> sh, voiced/affricate (medial) -> d
2.6 NON-MONOPHTHONGIZATION (ie, uo, uee)
In Standard German, the Middle High German diphthongs are monophthongized:
ie -> i, uo -> u, uee -> ue
In Bavarian, they are PRESERVED as diphthongs (liebe guete Brueder).
This explains VMS “ee”: It is the PRESERVED diphthong ie/uo/uee.
siech -> sheedy (ie remains as ee)
weiss -> teed (ei -> ee?)
guet -> ked? (uo -> ee?)
2.7 ELIMINATION OF ch IN “NICHT”
High German: nicht -> nit/net/noet (ch is dropped).
In VMS: pchedy = nicht (with ch=dy), but shortened forms are also possible.
2.09 VOWEL REDUCTION
5 Middle High German vowels in 3 VMS slots: a=a, e=i, o=o/u
Vowel spelling varies: von -> tol (o->o) AND tal (o->a)
2.11 STENOGRAPHY
Personal phonetic stenography. The writer transcribes by
ear, not by rules. Therefore:
- Same words coded differently (tol/tal = von)
- High-frequency words heavily abbreviated (nim->pchy)
- Final consonants are often omitted
- Vowels vary depending on pronunciation
Note: Of course, this is all still "provisional".
The cipher has improved further. I have added and described typical Bavarian features that explain why certain things were done the way they were.
Most importantly, I have now identified more than 50 words that are consistent with the cipher and also match their frequency of occurrence in Middle High German texts. This is no longer comparable to the one-off word identifications proposed by other solvers, who simply suggested words without checking them systematically in context.
Before I list all of this, two things are becoming increasingly clear:
1. The likelihood that the VMS is based on a Bavarian text continues to rise.
2. Taken together, the frequency analyses of the individual components are becoming difficult to dismiss. Any single match could still be coincidence, but in combination the pattern is increasingly hard to explain away as chance.
---------------
1 ABSORPTION PREFIXES
Function words are not written separately, but are
absorbed as a prefix to the following content word.
o- = absorbed article (der/die/das)
qo- = absorbed preposition (+article)
y- = absorbed verb prefix (ge-/ver-/be-/er-/zer-/ent-)
s = “and” (standalone or as a prefix/suffix)
1.2 CONSONANTS
GALLOWS (plosive classes, one glyph each):
k = g/k (velar) 10195x 6.70%
t = f/v/w (labial) 5907x 3.88%
p = b/p (bilabial) 701x 0.46%
f = b/p (variant) 240x 0.16%
BANK GALLOWS (complex clusters, one glyph each):
ckh = ng 900x cph = pf 211x
cth = ??? 923x cfh = ??? 74x
tsh = ??? 177x
SINGLE CHARACTERS:
ch = m 10177x 6.68% (Ratio ch/m = 1.95x; ch≠n)
sh = sch/s(voiceless) 4357x 2.86% (Bavarian: initial s voiceless -> sh)
d = s(voiced)/z/t/d 6252x 4.11% (in-syllable/end-syllable-s -> d; initial-s -> sh)
r = r 7599x 4.99%
l = l/n 10660x 7.00%
SPECIAL:
pch = n (word-initial) 764x
dy = ch (ich-sound) 6964x 4.57%
1.3 VOWELS
a = Middle High German a (open vowels; occasionally also o)
e = Middle High German i (front vowel; occasionally also a)
o = Middle High German o, u (rounded vowels)
ai = Middle High German ei (confirmed: ein->aiin, wein->tain)
ee = Middle High German ie, uo, uee (NOT monophthongized Bavarian diphthongs!
Standard German ie->i, uo->u, uee->ue — but they remain Bavarian)
(confirmed: siech->sheedy, weiss->teed)
y = final -e (word-final; n-apocope: -en -> -e -> -y)
Vowel spelling varies: von/uon -> tol AND tal (o vs a)
PART 2: BAVARIAN / UPPER GERMAN FEATURES
2.1 LOSS OF ‘h’
The writer does not pronounce ‘h’: har->ar, honig->onig, halse->aldy
h does not exist as a separate character in VMS.
2.2 FINAL HARDENING
b->p, d->t, g->k at the end of a word.
2.3 LOSS OF FINAL CONSONANTS
kalt->kal, als->al, nicht->pchedy (final -t is dropped)
2.4 n-VARIATION AND n-APOCOPE
n is encoded in DIFFERENT ways depending on its position:
n -> pch (word-initial: nicht->pchedy, nun->pchol, nim->pchy)
n -> l (most common variant: von->tol, pfund->cphol, munde->choldy, getan->kedal)
n -> n (after a diphthong: ein->aiin, wein->tain)
n -> y (word-final: wann->taly, dann->daly, man->chey, magen->cheky)
n -> weg (abbreviation: nim->pchy)
n -> NOT ch! (ch = m, frequency: ch/m=1.95x, ch/(m+n)=0.49x)
Upper German n-apocope: The unstressed final syllable -en is shortened to -e
(singen->singe, sieden->siede). In the VMS, this appears as -y instead of -ech.
This explains the massive y-ending in VMS.
2.5 VOICELESS INITIAL s (s/sh VARIATION)
In High German/Bavarian, the initial s is VOICELESS — it sounds
like “sch”. The writer hears the voiceless sound and writes sh:
s -> sh (initial, voiceless: so->sho, sich->shedy, sol->shol, sucht->shody)
s -> d (medial/final, voiced or z/tz: sal->dal, sein->dain, sol->dol)
This is NOT an inconsistency but phonetically correct:
Voiceless (initial) -> sh, voiced/affricate (medial) -> d
2.6 NON-MONOPHTHONGIZATION (ie, uo, uee)
In Standard German, the Middle High German diphthongs are monophthongized:
ie -> i, uo -> u, uee -> ue
In Bavarian, they are PRESERVED as diphthongs (liebe guete Brueder).
This explains VMS “ee”: It is the PRESERVED diphthong ie/uo/uee.
siech -> sheedy (ie remains as ee)
weiss -> teed (ei -> ee?)
guet -> ked? (uo -> ee?)
2.7 ELIMINATION OF ch IN “NICHT”
High German: nicht -> nit/net/noet (ch is dropped).
In VMS: pchedy = nicht (with ch=dy), but shortened forms are also possible.
2.09 VOWEL REDUCTION
5 Middle High German vowels in 3 VMS slots: a=a, e=i, o=o/u
Vowel spelling varies: von -> tol (o->o) AND tal (o->a)
2.11 STENOGRAPHY
Personal phonetic stenography. The writer transcribes by
ear, not by rules. Therefore:
- Same words coded differently (tol/tal = von)
- High-frequency words heavily abbreviated (nim->pchy)
- Final consonants are often omitted
- Vowels vary depending on pronunciation
Note: Of course, this is all still "provisional".