The best known Artificial Languages

 

Artificial languages, also known as constructed languages, are human-made languages whose purpose is to bring people of different linguistic backgrounds together. They are created to provide a more efficient form of communication and translation than natural languages. There are many artificial languages in existence today and this article will provide an overview of six of the most known of them: Esperanto, Klingon, Lojban, Toki Pona, Volapük, and Interlingua.

 

What are artificial languages?

Artificial languages, also known as “constructed” or “invented” languages, are languages created by people. These languages are not derived from an existing language and can be used for various purposes. They may be used to communicate between people from different cultures without having to learn each other's native language, or they may exist only as a hobby.

 

The History of Artificial Languages

The earliest recorded example of an artificial language dates back to 15th-century Italy. Scholars attempted to create a universal language that could be understood by all regardless of cultural background or native language. Other artificial languages were invented in the late 18th and early 19th centuries with similar intentions in mind. In recent years, artificial languages have also been designed for computer programming and software development.

 

Artificial language in the modern world

Today, artificial languages are still being used for communication between people from different backgrounds, but they are also being used for artistic expression and creative writing. For instance, JRR Tolkien created two fully-formed artificial languages for his Middle Earth stories - Quenya and Sindarin -and these have become quite popular among fantasy fans around the world who practice speaking them regularly! Additionally, some modern computer programming and software development applications use artificial languages to communicate between computers and humans more efficiently.

 

List of the best-known artificial languages in the world

Esperanto language

Esperanto was created in 1887 by Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof and is the most widely spoken artificial language. It has been estimated that between 10,000 and 2 million people worldwide speak it as their first or second language. The Esperanto language is designed to be easy to learn and make language translation with simplified grammar rules and a small vocabulary base. It has often been used in international conferences and gatherings as a common language for speakers from diverse countries.

Klingon language

Klingon is one of the most well-known artificial languages due to its association with Star Trek franchise movies and TV shows. The language was developed in 1984 by Mark Okrand for the movie Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and has since become quite popular among fans of the franchise. Klingon language has an extensive vocabulary base consisting of over 3,000 words.

Lojban

Lojban is a more recent artificial language that was created in 1987 by John Cowan based on logical principles derived from formal logic systems such as predicate calculus and symbolic logic. The Lojban language has a very simple grammar structure but an expansive vocabulary base comprised of over 5,000 words taken from various linguistic sources including English, Chinese, French, Spanish, Russian, Turkish, Arabic, and Hindi among others.

Toki Pona

The Toki Pona is an artificial language designed to express concepts succinctly using just 120 root words which can be combined into longer expressions with multiple meanings. It was created in 2001 by Sonja Lang to be an easy yet expressive language for communicating complex ideas simply using a few words. The simplicity makes the Toki Pona language attractive for learning quickly but its limited scope means it cannot accurately convey abstract concepts like many other natural or artificial languages can do easily without any effort from learners.

Volapük

The Volapük was invented by Johann Martin Schleyer in 1880 to become an international auxiliary language that anyone could learn quickly regardless of their native tongue or level of education. Despite initially having some success during its early years when it had millions of speakers across Europe and beyond its popularity declined significantly after World War I due to competition from other auxiliary languages such as Esperanto which were simpler to learn while still conveying more information effectively than the Volapük language could manage at the time.

Interlingua

Interlingua (also known as Occidental) was created by Edgar de Wahl in 1922 with the intention that it would act as a bridge between all Romance Languages such as Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Catalan, Galician, etc. So that speakers from each country could understand one another without having to learn individual dialects or local variations on those tongues. The Interlingua language grammar structure follows closely that found in Romance Languages making it easier for native speakers to pick up while still allowing non-native learners enough flexibility when constructing sentences. 

Artificial languages have been around since the 15th century and continue to serve many purposes today. They allow people from different cultures to communicate without having to learn each other's native language; they provide an outlet for artistic expression; and they offer a more efficient way for computers to interact with humans in certain contexts. With their long history and a vast number of modern uses, it is no surprise that artificial languages remain so popular today!