--- In conlang@yahoogroups.com, Sally Caves <scaves@F...> wrote:
> Vyko!
Lar pav hedak gedeth.
> Have you based your conlang(s) wholly or partially on a Celtic language?
> If so, on which? or combined with which?
Not I.
> How many of you were inspired to invent a language because of your
exposure
> to Tolkien?
Not I.
> How many of you have a constructed world, and, if so, does it
include some
> of the races we associate with Celtic or Scandinavian mythology? (Elves,
> Dwarves, medieval societies of humans, Faeries or Fays? Selkies?
Wizards?)
I use a pre-constructed world for one language and one of my own
construction for the other. The first has very few such elements.
The second is very consciously iron age, with no "medieval" elements,
but heavy drawings from all IE mythology.
> How many of you were inspired to examine Welsh, Hebrew, or Finnish
because
> of your examination of Tolkien?
Not I.
> How many of you were inspired to invent a conlang or a conculture
because of
> some influence OTHER than Tolkien?
I
> How many of you were inspired to invent a language because you engage in
> Roll-Playing Games?
Never played a roll-playing game. However, role-playing games have
led me to design language.
> How many of you were inspired to invent a language because you heard
of this
> listserv?
Not I.
> How many of you are members of the Mythopoeic Society, or the
Society for
> Creative Anachronism, or other High Fantasy Groups?
I used to play at that, but it eventually bored me.
> What is your name and what do you call your conlang?
One language I call "Praxian", although that's not its name. The
other language has no name.
> So what is unappealing about the Indo-European model for conlanging? Or
> Tolkien's Elvish?
The un-named language is consciously IE. For Praxian, it's a non-issue.
> How did you start conlanging? What was your initial inspiration?
Wanting to fill in gaps in a fictive setting.
> Did you know about Tolkien's inventions? Read the books, the
appendices?
> etc. Or not?
Yes.
> What language types have you modeled your language(s) after?
No explicit types.
> Some of you, and I'm thinking in particular of a conversation I had
with And
> Rosta, are not interested in producing a language that is
> "mellifluous"--that "mellifluousness" is a thing to be avoided in your
> conlang and especially as it is associated with Tolkien's Elvish or
copiers
> of Elvish. Is this so? Why?
Mellifluence is a non-issue.
> For how many of you, though, is beauty and/or efficiency a factor in
your
> language? Or elegance? How would you define these terms?
These are essentially non-issues in my work.
> For how many of you is the "exotic" a desired feature of your invented
> language?
So unimportant that I neither court it nor avoid it.
> How many of you invent a non-human language? And if so, how alien
are its
> sounds and constructions?
Not I.
> Do you prefer inventing an a posteriori language or an a priori
language?
> In other words, how many of you invent a language wherein you base it
> closely on a natural language (Arabic, Tagalog) or a combination of
> languages, and how many others of you invent a language from, well,
scratch?
> (if that can be done.)
Praxian is _a priori_. The other language is _a posteriori_ based on
IE roots.
> How many of you invent a language based on a particular type (Ergative,
> Accusative, Trigger, etc.)?
Not I.
> To what degree is difficulty and irregularity of language important
to you
> in your conlang? what natural language eccentricities (or
efficiencies) do
> you like and try to reproduce?
It helps with verissimilitude. One thing I try to go for is
remembering to insert "loan words".
> To what degree is accessibility, efficiency, and regularity important to
> your conlang? What natural language "faults" are you correcting?
None.
> How many of you invent logical languages?
Not I.
> How many of you invent IALs?
Not I.
> How many of you have invented non-Tolkienesque or non European
concultures
> and what are they like?
Invented, no. Expanded upon, yes.
> How many of you started out by pulling words out of the air, originally?
> How many of you have chosen a more methodic form of vocabulary building?
> I.e., how have you gone about setting up the framework for your
words and
> your grammar?
I've combined methodological and arbitrary approaches.
> Why do you conlang? Who will speak it? Read it? What's the point?
What's
> the beauty? what's the intellectual draw?
Nobody will speak it but me. Other folks might get a taste of it now
and then. It's kind of like the beer I brew or the tobacco I
blend--mainly for my own consumption.
> To what would you compare a conlang? Is it a miniature? Is it a
model? Is
> it a tapestry? Is it an act of obsession and madness? <G> Or is it a
> communicable language?
It's a communicable disease. Aside from that, it's a pastime. The
only conlangs that have had serious worldwide success have been Hebrew
and computer languages.
> To what extent is the opacity or "alterity" of your language
something that
> pleases you? In other words, the sounds and the script have, even
for you,
> a quality of being foreign, and this delights.
It's a non-issue.
> This is a difficult question: how is it that a word sounds "right"
to you?
I just go with whatever sounds like it fits.
> How many of you are fictive map-makers, designers of fictive floor
plans,
> fictive yachts, fictive star-ships, world-builders, calligraphers,
> cartoonists, etc.? (These pursuits have been associated with
conlanging. I
> 've done most of them.)
I have done these things.
> How many of you have a special script in your conlang?
Not I.
> If you use Roman script, how recognizably "phonetic" is your writing
system?
> In other words, do you use unconventional letters to represent sounds?
> Why?
I use diacritics on some vowels and the "eth". This is because I
dislike digraphs.
> This is a question Heather asked, but I also asked it four years
ago: how
> many of you write in your language? What do you write?
Short sentences.
> How many of you sing in your language and have invented songs for that
> purpose?
I first need to figure out the modes and other foundations of the
music. Otherwise, I would really only be doing a "reterpsichoration"
of Western music.
> How many of you started conlanging when you were a teenager and have
stuck
> to the same language over many years? Why?
Not I.
> How many of you change conlangs regularly, developing structures for
many
> languages but not sticking with any one for very long? Why?
Not I.
> For how many of you does your language function as a spiritual
instrument?
Not I.
> For how many of you was your language at least at one stage of its
making
> meant to fool others, or to write secret diaries? (Me, waving my hand).
Not I.
> How many of you can speak your language, at least to yourself and
your pet?
> child? spouse? <G> To what extent?
Not I.
> How many of you have put up websites where your language can be
showcased?
> If so, what is the website address?
I had, but I have since moved and only one page is now up
(http://mypage.iu.edu/~brmalone/praxian_sample.html)
> How many of you have made soundbytes of your language so the rest of
us can
> hear it? If so, give the site.
(http://mypage.iu.edu/~brmalone/praxian_sample.html)
> How many of you are comfortable talking to your boss, your
professors, your
> family members about this pursuit? How many of you have received
> condescending or other negative responses to your disclosure? (I
have.) Or
> even been called "pathological"?
I've no problem talking about it. Never got a negative response.
> For how many of you is the damning statement "better to learn real
languages
> than invent private ones" a criticism you have encountered? What
would be
> your response to such a remark?
Never encountered it. If I did, I'd ask the person in question if
every single tiny little thing they did was "useful", and if they
admitted to a SINGLE thing they did for fun, I'd ride their ass for it.
> What is your age (optional--and can be general: 30-40, for instance).
37
> What is your profession or your station in life (i.e., if you are a
student,
> what is your MAJOR; if a middle or high-school student, what is your
> intended major)?
Layabout, curmudgeon, and biologist.
> What is your gender?
Male.
> What is your nationality and your native language?
Native US citizen, English.
> What natural languages do you speak or have studied?
English, German, Spanish, Irish
> How many of you have chosen a profession in linguistics because of your
> interest in inventing languages? Or plan a profession in linguistics?
Not I.
> What have you learned from conlanging?
Languages are like ogres.
> What texts on language and linguistics have you consulted to help invent
> your language?
I forget.
> Do you know of anyone who has not connected with the Internet or the
List
> who has invented a language? (I'm firmly convinced that "conlanging"
No.
> Can you give me a short sample of your language with interlinear
description
> and translation?
Not at the moment, since I'm revising some features.
> Would you object to my mentioning your conlang/and or your name in
my talk?
> I will be discreet about some of the more personal questions you
answered.
I have no objection.
Pav tawakek.