Have you ever been curious about the origins of the “strange” languages you encounter in books and movies? It’s a fascinating and creative endeavor that has garnered the attention of fans worldwide. People form online groups, such as Facebook communities, to discuss, analyze, and better comprehend these languages. Many enthusiasts even go the extra mile to learn and speak these fictional languages, often inspired by the books and movies themselves.
Today, our Day Translations Blog explores some of the emerging fictional languages from popular books and movies, and how people worldwide are embracing and enjoying them.
A Roundup of the Best Constructed Language Vocabularies and Fictional Languages
Klingon – The Fictional Language Spoken in Star Trek
Klingon is undoubtedly one of the most well-known fictional languages, largely due to its association with the Star Trek series. Created by Marc Okrand, Klingon has gained immense popularity and has continued to evolve over the years among the language creation society.
The Klingon fictional language has become so deeply rooted in popular culture that Marc Okrand has authored books dedicated to the language, including its very own dictionary. The Klingon language has its own dedicated fan base and even boasts a Language Institute solely focused on the preservation of this “spoken language”.
Translations of some Shakespeare plays into Klingon exist, and the language holds a special place in the heart of Sheldon from “The Big Bang Theory.” Klingon has fostered a vibrant community of dedicated fans who are committed to keeping the language alive as one of their preferred “natural languages”.
Minionese – Despicable Me
The Minions, those adorable characters from the “Despicable Me” franchise, have their very own fully-fledged language known as Minionese. Pierre Coffin, co-director of the Despicable Me movies, created this whimsical language, and as far as constructed languages go, this is one of the most well known in the fictional world.
At first listen, Minionese may sound like nonsensical gibberish, but upon closer inspection, you’ll notice that the entire language incorporates elements from various languages, including Spanish, French, English, Korean, Tagalog, and Japanese to make up a complete language. Minionese relies heavily on the melodic quality of words and employs onomatopoeia, often capturing the essence of the words rather than their literal meanings. The primary aim of Minionese is to sound amusing and silly, perfectly aligned with the Minions’ comedic nature.
Elvish Languages – The Lord of the Rings
J.R.R. Tolkien, through his renowned works such as “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings,” crafted a version of the Elvish language called Quenya, also known as High-Elven. Fans of Tolkien’s work will recognize Quenya as one of the Elvish languages.
Quenya bears striking similarities to the Finnish language in terms of its grammar. Those who engage with this language will also notice influences from Greek and Latin. In addition to Quenya, Tolkien created Sindarin, another Elvish language heavily influenced by Welsh. In total, Tolkien developed numerous languages, and his stories revolve around these languages rather than the other way around.
Interestingly, Tolkien constructed these languages, complete with extensive vocabularies, even before writing “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings.”
Alienese – Futurama’s Alien Language
Futurama, a widely popular animated series, captivated its audience with hidden jokes in the form of Alienese markings. Viewers had the enjoyable challenge of deciphering these markings and uncovering the jokes.
Initially, decoding Alienese in the early days of Futurama was relatively simple, requiring basic substitutions. However, the creators realized that this method became too predictable, leading to the development of Alienese 2. This time, decoding the language became more dependent on the viewer’s mathematical skills.
For example, in Alienese 2:
- The first symbol corresponds to its numerical value (e.g., A = 0).
- Subsequent symbols take on the value of the preceding symbol when subtracted. If the result is less than 0, 26 is added to obtain the correct translation.
Mangani – Tarzan
Within the captivating and adventurous world of Tarzan, a unique language called Mangani exists. Mangani is spoken solely by the Great Apes, with Tarzan himself being the only human capable of speaking this language. In fact, his name, Tarzan, translates to “white skin” in Mangani.
Edgar Rice Burroughs, the author of the Tarzan stories, created the Mangani language. He even compiled a Mangani dictionary, offering English equivalents for Mangani words. Burroughs developed Mangani based on sounds found in African languages native to the region his books and stories are set in.
Huttese – Star Wars
The Star Wars saga, which has united fans worldwide since its creation in 1977, showcases a diverse array of languages. One language that stands out is Huttese, spoken by the slug-like species known as the Hutts, originating from their home planet, Nal Hutta.
Huttese, created by sound designer Ben Burtt, draws inspiration from the ancient Quechua dialect spoken by the Incas. Huttese is widely spoken within the Star Wars universe, even in worlds where the Hutts hold no power.
Dedicated Star Wars fans can find collections of Huttese vocabulary with English equivalents, allowing them to learn various words and phrases and immerse themselves in the language of the Hutts.
Cityspeak – Blade Runner
In the 1982 film “Blade Runner,” based on the book “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by Philip K. Dick, Cityspeak serves as a notable language element.
It is important to note that Cityspeak doesn’t exist in the original book but was specifically created by the movie’s writer, Ridley Scott. The language is introduced through the character Gaff.
Cityspeak borrows elements from Japanese, Hungarian, Chinese, French, German, Korean, and Spanish. The essence of Cityspeak lies in its words, which sound familiar yet remain completely incomprehensible when analyzed for meaning.
One downside of Cityspeak is that it is spoken solely by Gaff in the first Blade Runner film, and its development was not pursued further. As a result, fans have limited information about the language.
Fremen – Dune
In the novel and film adaptation of “Dune,” the Fremen language is spoken by the desert-dwelling inhabitants. Fremen is a constructed language created by John Quijada and represents a simplified version of Arabic.
When watching the film adaptation of “Dune,” listeners will detect distinct Arabic sounds within the Fremen language. Understanding Fremen requires familiarity with Arabic’s phonological and morphological rules. If Fremen had an alphabet, it would likely feature the Arabic script.
Wrapping Up Fictional Languages
These are just a few examples of the numerous fictional languages that have emerged from books and movies. While we couldn’t cover them all, we hope that this glimpse into the world of constructed languages, or conlangs, has broadened your perspective. Stay tuned for more fictional language content coming soon on our Day Translations Blog.