Re: Lexicon Making

> [mailto:CONLANG@listserv.brown.edu] On Behalf Of Henrik Theiling
> > When you make vocabulary, do you get a text and make what words you
> > need or make the words first and then translate?
>
> Hmm?  I think I don't understand.  For translating a text I
> *must* make
> the vocab first, otherwise I cannot translate! :-)
>
> Or are there conlangers that define texts untranslatable if there are
> not all words in the lexicon?  They'd then put the text aside until
> the vocab happens to be complete enough to translate that text?  I
> suppose I'd find that strange. :-)
Well, I do a little of both.  Sometimes when I'm pressed to translate
the text, I'll make it a priority to try to find words to fill in the
holes for the untranslated text, but when it's not possible I will
generally put the text aside rather than conjuring up something just to
get the job done.

I often use translating certain texts as a way to generate a lexicon.
I'll translate until I some across words that missing in the lexicon,
then try to find a good fill that spot.