Approximately 7,000 languages are spoken today, but we mustn’t forget all those that have become extinct due to lack of use or the fact that the last speakers, or guardians, have died. As noted before, languages, as far as linguistics and contrastive etymology have allowed us to discover, arise as a result of the evolution of other languages by incorporating new words and expressions, modifying the syntactic and grammatical structures, as well as through contact with other communities of speakers. Therefore, we talk about languages as if they were living organisms that are derived from previous versions, which grow and can give rise to new organisms until, in some cases, they die. Likewise, based on this interpretation, languages arise and evolve as a direct result of the speakers, who come into contact with different trends and who incorporate them into their day-to-day speech. This means that, on the one hand, we can predict how languages spoken today will change (such as the coexistence of English and Spanish in the United States), but on the other hand, it is impossible to establish the processes they will undergo between now and a specific point in the future.
We must, however, be careful how we use the term “language” since it can mean two very different things, as is known by professionals of the language services sector. The crucial difference is that “language” is a human ability used to communicate through a system of symbols. Whereas, within this system of symbols category, there is A language (governed by articulated sound, or speech, and writing that reproduces these sounds), in addition to other systems, such as sign language. Having said this, it seems that both “language” and “language” are two really specialized words and that, in formal contexts, it is convenient to learn to use them correctly so as not to give rise to misunderstandings or inaccuracies.
It seems that both “language” and “a language” are two very specialized words and that, in formal contexts, we should learn to use them correctly so as to prevent confusion or inaccuracies. But, what are artificial languages? They are languages that exist alongside the natural languages we have mentioned above. These languages are created from scratch or are based on other languages, they do not evolve, are born from the inventive capacity of a creative mind and are used in very specific contexts. Therefore, there are no communities that speak them as an indigenous language, but similarly to other languages, they can be learned and used actively. To give some well-known examples, you may be aware of attempts to create universal languages, such as Esperanto, which sought to create a language shared by all humankind by mixing syntax and lexicon from a group of major languages (in terms of number of speakers). However, this “constructed language”, as it was also known, did not spread and it lost supporters during the 20th century due to its lack of adaptability. Specifically, it’s colonial roots that aimed to unify all languages with the resulting loss of cultural identity for its speakers was criticized. Furthermore, the question also arose of whether, with Esperanto as a consolidated working language, there would be a risk of new variants of Esperanto forming in each community of speakers, which are spread across different regions of the world. In the distant future, these variants would once again give rise to branches of different derived languages, as happened with Latin and Romance languages.
The category of artificial languages also includes so-called fictional languages, which serve a completely different purpose and which, for reasons we will explain later, are very popular among their followers, even though they are not studied or spoken for day-to-day use. Fictional languages are essentially completely invented languages that are used by a group of speakers that only exist in fictional, literary or audiovisual works. These languages have a very specific role, that of making a group of people, taken to mean a community, town, country, etc., more exotic and fascinating and to develop a specific culture for this community of speakers that is far more realistic and is more credible within the work of fiction. Here are a few well-known fictional languages:
Game of Thrones contains two perfect examples of a fictional language, both of which were created by David J. Peterson. First we have Dothraki, created for the nomadic warrior peoples living on the fictional continent of Essos. It is a language that contains 3,163 words of Russian, Swahili and Turkish origin, and the phonetics of which is completely different to any natural language. Then there is High Valyrian, which emulates Latin, as it is referred to as a classical and dead language. Some of its most well-known expressions are valar morghulis (all men must die) and dracarys (dragonfire). In The Lord of the Rings, there are two artificial languages created by J. R. R. Tolkien to give voice to the elves: Quenya and Sindarin. The first has Finnish, Latin and Greek roots and uses affixes that can change the meaning of words, while the second is based on Welsh.
These languages are very popular because they are part of very successful franchise. Some fans go a step further and, deepening their fandom, start to learn these languages and use them to communicate with other fans. Does this mean the start of a new natural language based on an artificial or fictional language?
Ref. de la imagen: https://www.pxfuel.com/en/query?q=dothraki
