We’re all about formality today, from the intricate politeness system of Korean to some crazy Nahuatl stuff to the subtle syntax of the English polite request. We talk on just what kind of things languages do to produce formal, polite, or literary language. Then we have a little discussion of Teonaht, which is quite a good conlang, though the site design drives us a little crazy.
We talk about kinship terminology: what kinds of kinship schemes exist in reality, how they are related to family structure and marriage customs, and where you can find resources to give you ideas about these concepts. We also talk a little about Tepa (which I mispronounce a couple of times in the episode, it should be [teva]), a conlang from someone who studies American languages and decided to make one.
George says: check out the LCS Podcast interview of Sheri Wells-Jensen. Meanwhile, on this side of the conlanging podosphere (literally, the other side, there are only two podcasts), we talk a little about how you can fill out that lexicon with words. And after that we talk about a language whose creator apparantly decided not to bother too much with words.
We talk at length about linguistic typology and all the weird and wonderful tendencies that human languages seem to have. We also talk a little on Láadan, the language for women that our own token woman isn’t too fond of (philosophy-wise, anyway).
We’re back to talk about scripts: what kind of script to use, how con-history fits into it, tips for developing a realistic script, etc. Then we talk about a language that, while not having a unique writing system per se, has incorporated existing systems in an interesting way.
Featured Conlang: Rangyayo (see here, here and here)
It’s just George and Bianca this week, as Will ended up dealing with the spontaneous combustion of a server. We do our best to stumble through some some recommendations for new conlangers and later take a look at an interesting little Germanic conlang.
I have created a form for people to make suggestions about main topics as well as featured conlangs for the show. Just click on the “suggestions” tab above. Make sure you leave a good description of topics and include links for any featured conlangs, so that we know what you are talking about.
Also, I have set up a Google Voice for people to call in with voicemails. The number is (304) 873-6281 and is a local call in West Union, WV (USA). Please keep voicemails to one minute or less. You can send in a recording of yourself to our email: conlangery@gmail.com
George finally gets Bianca’s last name right (it’s [mæŋgəm]) and we talk a little about people mispronouncing our names. Then we get into what makes a language good or bad, and don’t come to much of a good conclusion other than the old “eye of the beholder.” Then after Bianca leaves Will and George are left to sputter about the enigmatic Ithkuil — Well, George sputters, and Will is a little more lucid.
Tomás insults George’s Spanish, then we get into a discussion about why we conlang and just how personal the hobby is. Then, we talk a little about measure words and genders, and about our Conlang of the Week: Feayran — The language of a race of shapeshifters created by David Edwards.
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