语言建造家:自造语言的无穷魅力_BEC初级作文

语言建造家:自造语言的无穷魅力

Back then he was under the illusion he was the first person to create a language just for himself. “I thought I’d cornered the market and there would be demand for invented languages.” Later, when he searched the internet, he saw there were legions of people just like him, picking holes in grammar rules and admiring the poetry of their new lexicons in chat rooms around the world.

当时，他还以为自己是头一个为自己创造一门语言的人。“我以为自己会垄断市场，人们对新语言的发明会有需求。”后来，他在网上搜索后发现，世界上有许多像他这样的人，他们在聊天室里给语法规则挑毛病，欣赏用自己新发明的词汇写成的诗歌。

The invention of new languages has a rich history. Some have a political purpose such as Esperanto, created in the 19th century to foster peace, or the feminist Láadan, created in 1982. Another, Toki Pona, uses positive words to engender positive thinking.

新语言的发明史丰富多彩。一些语言带有政治目的，例如，发明于19世纪的世界语(Esperanto)是为了促进和平，发明于1982年的拉丹语(Láadan)带有女权主义色彩。还有一种道本语(Toki Pona)，这种语言使用积极词汇，以鼓励积极思维。

Today Mr Peterson is a professional “conlanger” – the name that those who construct languages give to themselves. What transformed his hobby into a trade was the growing desire by television and film producers to infuse science fiction and fantasy dramas with authenticity, including completely fabricated and naturalistic languages. Fans scrutinise the languages, sharing inconsistencies on Twitter and discussion forums.