1. A super-quick look at conlangs

2. Constructed languages

Were invented intentionally by identifiable people 3. For lots of reasons:

• To create a single international language 4. For fun 5. For use in literature, movies, etc. 6. For linguistic or philosophical research, training, or experimentation

7. The most-used conlang

Esperanto 'the Hoper', invented by L. L. Zamenhof, with the aim of creating a common second language for the entire world 8. Now spoken by a million or two people 9. Up to a thousand native speakers, the most famous being George Soros

10. Klingon

Created for Star Trek by the linguist Marc Okrand 11. Spoken by somewhere between 19 and 2,500 12. One native speaker, who subsequently chose to stop speaking it

13. Quenya and Sindarin

J. R. R. Tolkien's Elvish languages inThe Lord of the Ringsand the rest of his Middle-Earth works 14. Also with their own writing system

15. Lojban

A logical language based on formal logic with no linguistic ambiguity 16. Invented by James Cooke Brown (Loglan) and Robert und Nora LeChevalier, with the Lojban community

17. Lojban

Has logical predicates instead of functions 18. For example: tavli X1 X2 X3 X4 19. = X1 [speaker] talks to X2 [hearer] about X3 [topic] in X4 [language] 20. .i tavli mi do la lojban. la lojban.

• 'I talk to you about Lojban in Lojban'

21. Ithkuil

Created by John Quijada 22. Even he can't speak it because it's too complicated

An experiment about how compact language can be, to allow information to be conveyed at a higher rate

• Among other things, by using almost all distinct sounds from existing languages and tones!

23. Ithkuil examples

Oumpe xuktx 24. Pull uqix mawag eyaufnien pw auxyat xnewtaui tua kit ll yaqazmuiv liyrzika pam alowa uyehta

25. Toki Pona

Created by Sonja Kisa to express her philosophy of simplicity and positivity 26. Simple phonology and grammar; tiny vocabulary (about 123 words), but surprisingly expressive

27. Toki Pona: Tower of Babel

jan ali li kepeken e toki sama.

jan li kama tan nasin pi kama suno li kama tawa ma Sinale li awen lon ni. 28. jan li toki e ni: "o kama!mi mute o pali e kiwen.o seli e ona."

jan mute li toki e ni: "o kama! mi mute o pali e tomo mute e tomo palisa suli. sewi pi tomo palisa li lon sewi kon. nimi pi mi mute o kama suli! mi wile ala e ni: mi mute li lon ma ante mute." 29. jan sewi Jawe li kama anpa li lukin e ma tomo e tomo palisa.

All people used the same language. 30. They came from the path of the sunrise and came to the land of Schinar and stayed there. 31. They said: Come! Let's work with stone. Heat it. 32. People said: Come! Let's make many buildings and a big tower. The top of the tower is in heaven. Our name will become important. We don't want this: we are in many different lands. 33. God came down and saw the city and the tower.

34. Toki Pona: Tower of Babel

jan sewi Jawe li toki e ni: "jan li lon ma wan li kepeken e toki sama li pali e tomo palisa. tenpo ni la ona li ken pali e ijo ike mute." 35. "mi wile tawa anpa li wile pakala e toki pi jan mute ni. mi wile e ni: jan li sona ala e toki pi jan ante."

jan sewi Jawe li kama e ni: jan li lon ma mute li ken ala pali e tomo. 36. nimi pi ma tomo ni li Pape tan ni: jan sewi Jawe li pakala e toki pi jan ali. 37. jan sewi Jawe li tawa e jan tawa ma mute tan ma tomo Pape.[Translation by 'Pije']

God said: People are in one country and use the same language and build a tower. Now they can do very bad things. 38. I want to come down and want to ruin the language of these people. I want this: People don't know the language of other people. 39. God achieved this: people are in many lands and cannot build the building. 40. The name of this city is Babel because God ruined the language of all people. 41. God sent the people to many lands from the city of Babel.