Questions tagged [unnatural-features]
For questions about language features with no parallels in natural languages
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To make a conlang indeciphrable
How to make a language/code indecipherable or very hard to decipher/learn? What are the key points? How does linguists decipher languages?
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2
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An all consonant language? (Part Two)
I'd like to create a language with only consonants, using the letters b, ch, d, f, g(hard), j, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, sh, t, th (voiced and unvoiced), v, z, and (most importantly) h. I feel like the h ...
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An all-consonant language? (Part One)
I'd like to make a language that only has consonants. Since I kind of feel like the letter "h" is a consonant, I'd prefer to omit it. The language would include b, ch, d, f, g(hard), j, k, l,...
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Roadmap for effective construction of a novel language
I have trivially dabbled in Esperanto, Klingon, and a few other languages. Now I want to build one, and not a distorted copy of an existing one. I want to make a non-junk constructed language.
Is ...
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Are there conlangs designed to be whispered?
We all know that natural languages can be whispered and we use whispering for several purposes, e.g., to avoid someone unwanted listening, or in order not to disturb a larger audience. But are there ...
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A biphonic language
How could a language evolve such that the vowels are biphonic (like in throat singing)?
Note: Biphonicity is when two notes/tones are sung simultaneously.
There are languages that are whistled or ...
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4
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1
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Alternatives to independent verbs for encoding desiderative meaning
English uses an independent verb to encode desiderative meaning, namely want. It normally takes an infinitival complement, although I can take a direct object as well if the subject of the infinitival ...
- 1,705
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Should I include morphology in my proto language?
Most, if not all natural languages have some form of morphology, such as noun case or poly-personal agreement. However, these features are usually evolved from prepositions and auxiliary verbs, and ...
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Could you have a language with only three words?
Don't immediately dismiss this! Just give me a moment to explain and you might realize it's an idea that might have merit, especially considering the question title is a little misleading. Also, I'm ...
- 207
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IPA for Voiced Velopharyngeal Stop?
A conlang I am working on contains the nasal syllabic consonants [m̩] and [n̩] fairly frequently. It seems like it would be a natural step for the language to develop what I would call a voiced ...
user1254
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Are there constructed languages with a tense system inspired by Theory of Relativity?
For readers who aren't familiar with the Theory of Relativity, here is a sketch of how the Special Theory of Relativity structures space and time:
There is a point "here and now" where the observer ...
- 11.1k
2
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1
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Is there some more detailed information about Dritok available?
Dritok is a conlang by Dan Boozer without any voiced sounds. It is said to be based on chipmunk sounds.
While this language even has a wikipedia article, I was not able to discover some more detailed ...
- 11.1k
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2
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Are there human beatbox inspired conlangs?
Human beatbox is an art form producing percussion sounds with the mouth only. It uses techniques and sounds that are rare or entirely absent in natural languages.
Are the constructed languages that ...
- 11.1k
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1
answer
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Grammatical cases occurring only in conlangs
What are examples of grammatical cases that are not attested in natural languages, but occur in some conlang?
To qualify here, the conlang should have at least some bit of flesh (e.g., a few ...
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What reasons would there be for not having a human conlang with only vowels?
All natlangs have both consonants and vowels, but it's not immediately obvious why a human language couldn't be made from only vowels.
Has anyone theorised about why natlangs always have consonants?
...
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6
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Designing a mildly weird phonology
I want to design a mildly weird phonology with the following features
Not particularly difficult to pronounce for speakers of average European languages
Feeling somewhat unnatural or weird
The ...
- 11.1k
14
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3
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Which features make a language easier to learn?
Which features make a language easier to learn for children learning a constructed language as L1? Are children learning a language with these features able to learn the language faster than a natural,...
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Features of unlearnable languages
In this article about miniature artificial languages on motherboard.com experiments are described where children learn carafully designed miniature artificial languages. It is also said that children ...
- 11.1k
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answer
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Use of string reversion in conlangs
I came across the Esperantido Universal where reversion of stems (e.g., mega "big" ⁒ gema "small", -a is the adjective ending) is used to denote antonymy. Are there other conlangs using this unusual ...
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Are there any grammatical aspects which do not have parallels in natural languages?
In Describing Morphosyntax, Payne uses a number of diagrams for visually explaining aspects and what they say about actions relative to time.
Payne outlines the following, all of which occur in ...
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