Creating a language is a three-step thing... it's much simpler than making a map (from my point of view) but it takes a very long time.Originally Posted by Aenigma
Step 1 :
First, you need to create a dictionnary, the best thing to do is to find a list of world in your own language, then patiently (you'll need a LOT of patience) write a word of your own for each and every word (even if it's a one-letter word).
Do to do that :
- Invent your own list of sufixes and prefixes, (it's the most important part !)
- Assemble the biggest dictionnary in your own native language possible,
- Invent your own tonality (a language must have a uniform sound and tonality,
- Invent your set of syllabs ( Take, for exemple, the same number of syllabs as in japaneese on their 2 basics alphabets, it's a good number)
- Assign to each syllab either a symbol (and you get a japanese / arabic type of alphabet) or a letter (accentued or not, you can even invent your own accents); the best is to create the two of them
- Create your dictionnary
This step can take up to a year, since there is actually no software developper who has thought of making a soft for that (I've tried to create it, the software is too complicated for my level) using MS Access can fasten the process.
2 : Create a language structure
2.1 Create a grammar
This is where you should copy an existing one, my advice : French or English are tbe best to copy. You can use Japaneese or arabic if you want symbol based language (throug you can apply english or french structure to symbols too). The best is to use the one you're most comfortable with.
2.2 Create a civilization
No language is born out of a civilisation, a language depends on the value of a civilisation. Some exemples :
- Asian language shows how much they value respect by having suffixes for the different familly members, friends, and a hierrarchie of respect (san, sama, chan, obasan, neesan etc...)
- Turquoise (RPG Invented language, don't remember the author through) is born in a military driven civilisation, there is suffixes and words for the differents populations, warrior / non-warriors aren't allowed to use the same type of words, thus leads to a two-level language...
2.3 : Rethink your dictionnary for a most efficent use with the 2.1 and 2.2, add the words your world needs. Don't forget to invent words for new / non-existent species and plants.
3 - Laws
One of the most importants parts of the language is to add laws to it. Think about the strong words, what's authorized to pronounce, some words can be forbident (like voldemort in Harry Potter) and have to be replaced.
You create some references textes (religions, rought outdraft of laws that rules your countries).
Create a set of 10 000 words who are specifics 5000 first names, 5000 familly-names.
END of making a language (basic way)
Once you've done that, the changes in the whole thing will be natural during the play (players will most likely shorten some words, mispell and such, write it all down with the number of occurence) and consider this as the natural language evolution. If you're writting a book, consider doing so on your own to make the language evolve... don't forget that the only languages who never evolves and stop having dialects are dead languages, so if your civilization is still alive, don't fix it into stone...
Hope it helps you a bit in your language-making and helps you fasten your language-making.
Thank you so much for your support. I'm curently doing so. Fact is that what I want to make is a map that appears in a datapad. The datapad is old (It's 30 years old so the technology should look somehow out-of-date for a faraway futurist world)....
I didn't found any artworks showing datapads, maybe I'm using the wrong keywords : Future, Datapad.
If you have any sugestions about how to research better, I'm all up for it !
DF.
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