Conlangs    Babel Texts    Neographies    Books    more »    Submit

 

Site News 
Site News

August 2005
July 2005
June 2005
May 2005
April 2005
March 2005
February 2005
January 2005
December 2004
November 2004
October 2004
September 2004
August 2004
July 2004
June 2004
May 2004
April 2004
March 2004
February 2004
January 2004
December 2003
November 2003
October 2003
September 2003
July 2003
June 2003
May 2003
April 2003
March 2003

 

December 2003 Weblog   Advanced

This Month's Posts: Language Count Up · Top 10 Babel Texts · Morse Code · Trading Up · Coming Attractions · Whistling in the Dark · Body Maps · That's a language I'm inventing in my spare time. · Free Web Hosting for Model Languages · Jamalinaşķ File Jam · Alphabet Stew

Next Month's Entries

Language Count Up - 12/31/03 - 3:57 pm
As of today (12/31/2003), the model-languages database has exactly 600 languages, some of which are scheduled to be published in the next two weeks. The conlang statistical analysis page includes an analysis of all 600 languages. The year 2003 was the second-best year for the creation of constructed languages, dropping to 52 new languages from an all-time high of 85 in 2002. Over half of the languages in the database (55% actually) have been created since 1996. Already more languages have been created in the first four years of the 2000s than in all ten years of the 1990s. Language construction is here to stay.


Top 10 Babel Texts - 12/31/03 - 9:58 am
It wouldn't be New Year's Eve without a Top 10 list of some type. So here are the Top 10 Babel Text translations, the most popular from the site in 2003:

10. Basic Anglo-Saxon English
9. Crimean Gothic
8. Hyperborean
7. Romanid
6. Quenya
5. Adin
4. Huttese
3. Wasabi
2. Nadsat
1. Ellandh

I'm shocked that I've written two of the most popular 10, since I had horrible luck with placing my personal languages in the Top 100 model languages of the year.

Morse Code - 12/29/03 - 9:15 pm
Aaron Morse writes, "I have set up an online poll concerning which model languages are the best. I have been trying to get links to this so that I can get some actual feedback and readings on which are the best."

Trading Up - 12/28/03 - 7:11 pm
Loroi Trade language is background to an ambitious web comic, "Outsider". Check it out!


Coming Attractions - 12/28/03 - 10:40 am
The next two weeks will feature the following number of new or updated profiles:

Babel Text: 10
Book/Media: 0
Model Language: 12
New English Definition: 74
Resource: 1
Site News: 3

Whistling in the Dark - 12/21/03 - 9:45 pm
Kurayamino is looking for more information on Silbo Gomero:
I read an article on Silbo Gomero and have been poking around the net since, trying to find anything on the actual language itself and not another copy of that interview that gives practically no useful facts at all. I did find an MP3, but the only words that I can pick out are "hey" and "ok", and they seem to just be single syllables. The language only has 8 letters, and it's not like devising a method for writing them would be that difficult.

Body Maps - 12/20/03 - 10:12 pm
Israel Cohen writes in with some tips for how to extend your anatomical vocabulary to geographic features.
Anthropomorphic (body-part) maps are generated by configuring the virtual body of a god or goddess over the area to be mapped. Areas or features under each part of that body receive the name of that part. This produces a "map" on which each toponym automatically indicates its approximate location. Example of these maps include the map of Napi (creator of the Blackfoot Indians) in Alberta, Canada; the map of Hermes in Asia minor; and the map of Aphrodite in north Africa.

Attributes of Body-part Maps
Here are some attributes of these maps that may be of general application:
  1. The map tends to cover an area of political or economic influence. Larger maps are associated with larger, more powerful language communities. Larger body parts are associated with larger areas in a map; smaller body parts match smaller areas.
  2. Areas of male maps (gods) are later called Fatherlands. Areas of female maps (goddesses) become Motherlands.

That's a language I'm inventing in my spare time. - 12/19/03 - 12:13 pm
Well, Dilbert takes on conlangs. I wonder if Scott Adams knows me; in real life, I co-own a small company and employ 40 people. Next time I have to fire someone, I think I'll speak Dublex to do it.

Free Web Hosting for Model Languages - 12/14/03 - 7:32 pm
If you don't have a web site, you can join the Langmaker2 Group and upload a Word or HTML document to its directory.

Jamalinaşķ File Jam - 12/07/03 - 8:59 pm
Mattias Persson comments, "I love writing systems, and I often look for updates at Langmaker and at Simon Ager's Omniglot. I discovered an update regarding a language called Jamalinaşķ, which was said to have a new script and some unusual sounds. But I could not reach the web page, I just got an odd page about something called Yahoo! Groups, with some kind of registration form. I just want to see this writing system. Shouldn't everyone be able to view the pages linked to from Langmaker (unless the language author wishes differently, of course)?"

Good question. As a rule, I don't link to languages that don't have web pages; every week someone submits a profile of a language they've created in detail but haven't published to a site yet. That's not very useful to any of us. (The exception are languages created before 1900, which I will generally profile, with or without any website devoted to it.)

Since Yahoo! Groups hosts free mailing lists and provides free community areas, I've recommended it to language creators who lack web-site space. I didn't realize posted files were viewable only to members; unfortunately, Yahoo! doesn't offer a public view of uploaded files. Membership is free with registration, though. It will provide access to about 10MB of uploaded conlanging files, as well as members-only polls and messages.

Do note the Jamalinask file is no longer available. Instead check out the Jamalinaşķ Babel Text.

Alphabet Stew - 12/01/03 - 1:26 pm

One unusual alphabet reform is Alphabet 26, which does away with the two-case system of uppercase and lowercase. Uppercase letters in Alphabet 26 are just larger versions of the regular forms:



Conlang Profiles at Langmaker.com CC-BY 4.0: 1996 — 2022 .

FAQ - About Us - Contact Us - Features -