I feel so silly because I got so excited when I saw NerdApproved’s post about Tolkien’s reading of his poem Namárië in Elvish. I was thinking that I had never heard Elvish spoken, till it was pointed out – in a veiled manner – that I have watched LoTR more times than I could count. [...]
I Can Has Thesis?: Linguistics Applied to Lolspeak
Posted on January 12, 2012 Written by 1 Comment
You might as well admit it. You have used Lolspeak at least once. You might even be using it regularly. I think some people find using Lolspeak convenient when they want to come off as cute or cool, but that could be just me. While it is amusing to read those captions on silly pictures [...]
Lingodroids: Robots That Invent Their Own Language
Posted on May 30, 2011 Written by Leave a Comment
I am in the middle of reading the Ender’s Game series, and my mind has been full of thoughts of aliens, computer programs, and robots as sentient beings. One aspect that has always fascinated me is their means of communication. Language is such a wonderful thing – ever-changing and taking on so many different forms. [...]
Looking for a New Language to Conquer? Try Dothraki
Posted on May 23, 2011 Written by Leave a Comment
Doth what? HBO’s Game of Thrones has now pretty much become part of today’s TV culture, with viewers from all over the world. Those who are still waiting for the series to be shown in their part of the world are itching to get their hands on it. It’s safe to say that HBO has [...]
A Christmas Carol, Klingon Style
Posted on November 19, 2010 Written by 3 Comments
Remember the first ever full-length opera delivered entirely in Klingon? Apparently, that wasn’t such a novel idea as I first thought it was. Early this morning, as I was gulping down my first cup of coffee, I saw a tweet from Neil Gaiman himself (@neilhimself). This is what it said: “RT Absolutely not. @jenusellis: Any [...]
A Complex World: Language Families, Their Spread and Longevity
Posted on October 4, 2010 Written by Leave a Comment
Did you know that every 14 days a language dies Most geeks love playing with language. Sadly too often too little is known about languages or the language families. While not everyone ought to be a polyglot, knowing more than one language is always a bonus. Having an insight in languages and their families can [...]
Want to Learn a New Language? Try Na'vi.
Posted on September 21, 2010 Written by Leave a Comment
Last week, the first ever opera in Klingon was held at The Hague. Language enthusiasts can’t help but get excited about something like that, even though the idea of learning a “fake” language may seem silly to some. (Think about it though – is there really such a thing as a fake language?) Needless to [...]