The Digital Way to Spread Conlangs

Federico GobboUniversita degli Studi dell’Insubria

Outline

! Introduction

! How many conlangs?

! Conlangs and Internet

! Case-studies

! Evaluation

Introduction

A page from John Wilkins Essay Towards a Real Character, 1668.

What is a conlang?

! Constructed language (conlang)

! Artificial language

! Invented language (Bausani, 1970)

! Planned language

! Kunstsprache (Art language)

! ...

A lot of terms for a controversial linguistic phenomenon.

Defining a conlang

Conlang A complete language system written by one people,the langmaker. Primary modeling system inLotman’s terms. A posteriori languages in the termsof Couturat and Leau. A conlang is potentially (oractually is) spoken by people.

Here, we don’t deal with a priori systems such as John Wilkins’.

Types of conlang

Literary conlang Languages for literary purposes, i.e. conlangsbuilt according to some literary background.

Auxiliary conlang Languages for auxiliary purposes, i.e. conlangsbuilt to make people speak across native tongueboundaries. We call them auxlangs.

The conlang paradox: once launched, the only speaker of theconlang is the langmaker itself.

How many conlangs?

Cover of the Esperanto translation of The search of the perfectlanguage by Umberto Eco

Before the Web Era

In 1994 the Italian dictionary of invented languages descrivesalmost 3,000 conlangs and a priori secondary model systems.

Every conlang was launched before 1993, when the Web startedbecoming a mass phenomenon.

A langmaker had to publish a book with base grammar, dictionaryand sample texts.

Conlangs and Internet

Logo of the web site Langmaker.com

After the Web Era

In September 1998, the first post to the Constructed LanguagesList, based in Brown University.

In October 2005, more than 1,400 conlangs have been indexed bythe uno!cial repository www.langmaker.com

Now, a langmaker had to read a HOWTO web page and write ablog.

The Memory Loss E!ect

More than 2,000 conlangs referred in the Italian dictionary are notindexed by Langmaker.com. Mostly these conlangs are Esperantoo"springs and a priori systems.

As happened in other fields of knowledge, the web doesn’t keepmemory of conlangs published before the Web Era.

Case-studies

Let’s see the most important conlangs in the web

The Klingonian

The Klingon Language Institute Logo

A specimen of the Klingonian

From: Wikipedia in English

The Klingonian as a marketing tool for Star Trek

In 1985 the linguist Mark Okrand created the language of Klingonrace, as a tool of scripwriters and actors of Star Trek series.Copyright and financial support from Paramount Pictures

In October 2004 the first documentary about Klingon languageand culture, Earthlings: Ugly Bags of Mostly Water was presentedat Denver, Colorado. Director: Alexander Philippe. Star: MichaelDorn (‘Worf’ in Star Trek films).

What happened in 20 years to the Klingonian?

The Klingonian became a Human Language

People started using in the Internet and in informal meetings, theycreate neologisms, finally “humanizing” this alien language.

Only a minority of the Klingonists considerthemselves as trekkers and by the modernization ofKlingon that gives tha language more vocabulary notrelated to Star Trek concepts (Wahlgren 2004: 16)

Remark: conlangs are considered as a value in themselves,regardless of the background and scopes of launching.

The Elvish Languages

Vinyar Tengwar logo, the o!cial review about “Tolkienlinguistics”, indexed by the Modern Language Association.

A specimen of Quenya

Pater Noster and Ave Maria inn Quenya, by Sir J.R.R. Tolkien.

The Elvish Languages as ground for Tolkien’s mythopoiesis

As a philologist, Tolkien wanted to build an ancient dead languagefamily, not to create something suitable for using in thecontemporary world.

What happened in the Web Era to Tolkien’s languages?

Elvish Linguistic Scholars Just For Fun

In 2005, the 50th anniversary of the complete publication of TheLord of the Rings, the Tolkien Society organized the firstinternational congress of E.L.F. (Elvish Linguistic Fellowship)devoted to study scholarly these languages.

People still consider these languages as Sanskrit or Ancient Greek:ancient dead languages.

Remark: Tolkien’s conlangs are considered as a value, but in thiscase no one discussed the background and the scopes of launching.

Auxlangs: the Golden Age 1879–1951

! 1879: Schleyer launched Volapuk

! 1887: Zamenhof launched Esperanto

! 1894: the referendum of the review La Esperantisto refused toapply reforms to the language

! 1905: First Esperanto Congress in France: it enters its“semiological life” (F. De Saussurre)

! 1908: De Beaufront-Couturat launched Ido, the first reform ofEsperanto. Many others will be proposed after Ido.

! 1922: De Wahl launched Occidental

! 1928: Jespersen launched Novial

! 1931: Arie de Jong launched the only reform proposal ofVolapuk

! 1951: Gode-Blair launched Interlingua sponsored by IALA

How to measure the language vigour of an auxlang in the web?

Wikipedia as a possible metrics

The Wikipedia web page with its 207 languages, October 2005.

How Wikipedia works

Wikipedia is a one of the most advanced software engines, realisingthe “collaborative brain” (De Keckerkove). Its contents are undera strictly copyright-free licence.

Wikipedia entries are not-authored, made by volunterees.

Wikipedia is a web place which reflects the engagement of alinguistic community supporting a language.

Auxlangs: Wikipedia entries, 25 October 2005

! 786,293 entries in English (en)

! 115,780 entries in Italian (it)

! 71,581 entries in Spanish (es)

! 28,892 entries in Esperanto (eo)

! 9,700 entries in Ido (io)

! 2,830 entries in Interlingua (ia)

! 218 entries in Interlingue (ie; ex Occidental)

! 45 entries in Volapuk (vo)

Every language listed here has its own two-letter ISO code!

Volapuk: the very phoenix of auxlangs

An article from a Usa newspaper in 1898 about the new “worldlanguage”

A specimen of Volapuk

O Fat obas, kel binol in sus, paisaludomz nem ola!Komomod monargan ola!Jenomoz vil olik, as in sul, i su tal!Bodi obsik vadeliki govolos obes adelo!E pardolos obes devis obsik,as id obs aipardobs debeles obas.E no obis nindukolos in tendadi;sod aidalivolos obis de bas.Jenosod’ !

Pater Noster in Volapuk, from Wikipedia

Volapuk, an auxlang copyrighted by its langmaker

The autocrative personality of Schleyer, who didn’t accept changesproposed by the authority of the Academy of volapuk, starteddeclining the language.

The final straw was done by the rising of Esperanto. In 1931 Ariede Jong proposed a reform in the direction of Esperanto andNovial, but it failed.

The survival of the last volapukist periodical dates 1960 (Large1985).

Wikipedia gives life to Volapuk again

Today Volapuk is only a language divertissement, esp. forEsperantists.

Volapop! is a web site devoted to the translation of pop cultureinto Volapuk, whatever this may mean...

Remark: at least, internet has given less successful auxlangs theopportunity to demonstrate the tenacity of their supportingmovements.

Ido: the unwanted Esperanto o!spring

The presentation of the first number of Progreso, the Ido review,1908.

A specimen of Ido

Ostwald, president of the Commission of the Delegation pourl’adoption d’une Langue Auxiliaire Internationale, comments thelangmaking principles of Esperanto (translation in Progreso, 1,

1908, from German).

Ido was saved by Esperantists

In 1929 there were only 29 speakers of Ido in the world (Carlevaro1989).

After the Second World War, the first Ido Congress occurred in1960 in Swizerland (50 people), the second one in 1980 (35people).

Invariably Idists were Esperantists with a ‘double IAL’ identity.

Internet gave strenght to Ido

From 1990s Ido Congresses are one per year, according toWikipedia. Some people come directly, not through Esperanto, aspreviously.

Remark: the web may become the main medium for organizingcongresses: internet is a facilitator.

Interlingua: Standard Average Romance Language

The cover of the Interlingua English Dictionary by Alexander Gode,1951.

A speciment of Interlingua

Colonisation del Nove Anglaterra (Alexis de Tocqueville)

(Extracto de: DEL DEMOCRATIA IN AMERICA) Traducite deltexto original francese per Erich Berger.

Il es in le colonias anglese del nord, melio cognoscite sub le nominede Statos del Nove Anglaterra, que se ha combinate le duo o tresideas principal que forma le base del theoria social del Statos Unite.

Le principios del Nove Anglaterra se ha in le comenciamentoexpandite in le statos vicin; postea illos ha ganiate pauc a pauc leplus distantes, e finalmente, si il es permissibile exprimer se assi,illos ha ’penetrate’ le confederation integre.

From ‘Appendix 3 - sample texts’, Interlingua English Dictionary.

Esperanto, the most developed auxlang

Home page of Lernu.net, the free wiki-way-made e-learningEsperanto course for young people, now in 24 languages.

A specimen of Esperanto

Liza pentras bildojn. Liza paints images

Longe for de mia mond’ Long away from my worldMi portigis per etera ond’ I let myself go by an ethereal waveAl loko stranga tre To a very strange place

Fore de l’amika rond’ Away from my friendsPlene je demandoj sen respond’ Full of questions without answersKaj motorpane’ My car got broken

Marso au Aldebaran’ Mars or AldebaranStelo sen samidean’ A star without ‘samideano’Vere mankis ies akompan’ Really it lacks someone with me

From: ...sed estas ne, CD by Persone, Esperanto rock band.

http://www.bertilow.com/persone/mp3/liza pentras bildojn 1min.mp3

Esperanto: one century of continuos public life

Esperanto is the most successful auxlang: 1905-2005: one centuryof public life. It survived two World Wars. It has even a popculture by its own.

Internet plays two roles in the Esperanto movement:

! a socializing medium, i.e. a medium to get new peopleinvolved

! a facilitator, i.e. a medium to keep contacts and to organizecongresses.

Evaluation

Letters of Giuseppe Peano and Louis Couturat about the adoptionof an auxlang.

Evaluation

Literary conlangs.

Main remark: the main phenomena in literary conlangs areconlangs well supported by a culture.

An other remark: Internet is a condition not su!cient to make aconlang interesting beyond its langmaker.

Evaluation

Auxlangs.

Main remark: Internet may be the main medium to (re)vitalizeauxlangs.

Final remark: in the special case of Esperanto, Internet plays a roleof visibility – supporting the reasons of auxlang fans.