I wish I could say I’m an amazing linguist and could give you my take
on creating languages for fiction, but I’m not and I can’t.
So seems kind of strange I’m doing this post, right?
Well, recently I spent a good deal of time researching how to
actually make a constructed language (the term for a constructed
language is “conlang,” by the way), so I could create one for a
manuscript. It was easier than I was expecting (and yet more complex
than I was expecting at the same time), and super fascinating! So
I wanted to do a recap/review of my experience for anyone else out
there looking to do this from scratch. If I can do it, chances are so
can you! (For the record, I don’t speak any other languages.)
I used a couple of resources, but I found this guide to be my favorite.
As Always, Start with the Basics
The
idea of creating a language can seem really daunting, especially when
you look at conlangs like Tolkien’s Elvish or Star Trek’s Klingon–which
are essentially full “complete” languages. But like just about
everything, you don’t need to start with a huge complicated language,
you need to start with the bare basics, and you know what’s amazing
about the basics? Everything else builds off them!
And as an added bonus, for books, you don’t actually need a complete language, you just need to give the impression
of one. (However, if you are the type of person who really gets into
this, you might have so much fun that you don’t stop and that’s cool!)
At
this point, some of you may be wondering if it’s really necessary to
even create a language–that depends on the project, the effect you
want, and your personal opinion. Because I want to expand my conlang to
other projects, I decided to create one–even if I only needed 4 - 6
sentences for my current WIP. 😂🙈
The Very Basics
If you’re like me, when you think of creating a
language, you think of coming up with words and sentences. But guess
what? Those aren’t the very basics! Sounds are.
So if you are going to create a language from scratch, it will go in this order:
Sounds –> Syllables –> Words –> Sentences
Roughly.
You might have already made up a few words, and that’s okay. You can
break what you have down to syllables and sounds, and when you identify
those, build from there.
Selecting Sounds
Each of the three sources I used (including a
linguist briefly), said to start with sound. If you aren’t really sure
how to do that, I’ll get you going in this section.
So,
there is this thing called the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA),
and it includes every sound of every language (even has clicks!). If
you’ve looked up words in the dictionary, you’ve probably noticed
symbols like this:
That’s how to pronounce the word using IPA symbols.
You can go to InternationalPhoneticAlphabet.org and click on the symbols to hear the sounds. The chart is also organized based on where in the mouth (and how) a sound is made.
But if you want to give the impression of a real
language, you shouldn’t just jump in and pick a bunch randomly, because
there are natural reasons certain sounds occur together and others
don’t.
You think I know all the ins-and-outs of those rules? No way! But this video will help guide you.
Some of the common sounds in languages include: p, t, k, s, h, m, n
Some
sounds are voiced, some are not (compare how you say the “p” sound
with the “b” sound–they are essentially the same, but “b” requires your
vocal chords). If a language has the voiced version of an obstruent
consonant (ex. “b”), it will also have the voiceless version (“p”), but
not necessarily vice versa. Most languages have at least one nasal (such
as “m” or “n”) and one (what’s called) liquid (such as “r,” “l,” or
“w”)
Most languages have five vowels, but every language has at least two.
Most languages have 20-30 sounds. But if you want a distinct language with more “character,” it might be smart to go with fewer.
Making Syllables
I thought I had a good understanding of what a
syllable was. After all, I remember clapping words out like “ap-ple” and
“bas-ket-ball” when I was in elementary school. And as a native English
speaker, that was good enough for me.
What I didn’t know was that in other languages, there are actual rules for syllables!
That’s when I realized my understanding of syllables was rather narrow.
But don’t worry, it’s still not too crazy.
You can handle it.
In
general, a syllable is made up of these components: the onset, the
nucleus (hey, bet you didn’t know we had sciency terms), and the coda.
So
in the syllable “bas” (for “basketball”), “b” is the onset, “a” is the
nucleus, and “s” is the coda. Bas. Ket. The “k” is the onset, “e” is the
nucleus, and “t” is the coda.
Every syllable has a nucleus (almost always a vowel), but not every
syllable has an onset or a coda (for example “ap” in “apple” doesn’t
have an onset, and the “za” in “pizza” doesn’t have a coda).
Some languages have rules for codas.
Hawaiian
is what’s called an “open syllable” language. That means none of their
syllables have a coda. They all end on the vowel. Have you noticed?
Ho-no-lu-lu. A-lo-ha. O-ha-na.
Other languages have codas, but only certain sounds can be a coda.
Mandarin
has set codas. Only “n,” “ng,” and “r” can be codas. So every Mandarin
syllable will end in “n,” “ng,” “r,” or a vowel (nucleus) as an open
syllable.
