Neologisms in Conlangs

[Xeigrich]

TL;DR ALERT! SEE BOTTOM OF POST FOR SUMMARY!

It's been a while since I started one of my convoluted, insanely long first post, does-anyone-else-even-get-what-I'm-saying threads! Too long, I say!

As some of you know, I find great difficulty in creating and accumulating words for my conlangs, and on numerous occasions I have declared this to be the greatest conlanging obstacle for me.

Recently I've spent some time pondering on the many reasons as to WHY this is such a problem for me, and one of the things I realized involved Neologisms and how mature a conlang is meant to be. The way I see it, you have to treat your conlang as if it is from a specific snapshot in time, then describe how mature it is at that moment.

So the main topic here is Neologisms in conlangs. A neologism is a word that is made up because there is need for a word to describe something for which there is no word (or maybe, if there is no known word?).

One of the things you have to consider with neologisms in your conlang is your conlang's speakers' culture, and at what point of the conworld's timeline this conlang exists.... AND in what incarnation or level of maturity your conlang is at in terms of your conlang's "history." I know I'm probably looking into this too deeply, but I think there is some sense to this.

The main reason I mention incarnations and whatnot is because any detailed conlang will likely be accompanied by a conculture and fictional history. And of course, no language is truly unchanging and completely static. Languages change and evolve constantly, so your conlang MUST be comprised of features, words, traits, etc only of one specific moment or incarnation. If you tried to cram, say, 3000 years worth of language into a single conlang, you will have many inconsistencies unless you have a really slowly developing conlang (which is unlikely). Imagine having Old English, Middle English, King James English, Shakespearean English, 1900's American English, and the latest Modern English, all being used at once -- you'd have so many words being used contradictingly that it wouldn't make sense. And words are just the half of it... grammar, idioms, euphemisms, and pronunciations changes would effectively make the language incomprehensible. It would have to be broken down and separated before any sense could be made.

So let me give an example. You have a conlang, and you assume that in the context of whatever culture would be speaking this language, the language is at its most mature stage possible, analogous to our "modern times" (as opposed to an archaic form of the language like Middle English rather than Modern American English). Now, you might mistakenly assume that every word you create for your language has to be a "native word" or a direct "loan word" from another language (real or constructed), but this is not true! You can just as easily make a seemingly native word, that to your conlang's speakers would be a relatively new word.

So what do you do at this point? How do you decide which words should be neologisms and who coined them (this could be a lot of fun and silliness, really!)? More importantly: how do you decide when a word would have ascended from "neologism" status to "in the dictionary" status?

Also, my primary conlang Anzer Pex gives me a lot of trouble because it is actually two separate languages, which I really need to differentiate. I know I'm being hypocritical here since I made this sound like an awful idea a couple of paragraphs above. There is Anzer Pex on Athnamas, which is a conworld where Anzer Pex was created by the transhuman beings as a perfect means of non-psychic communication. This version of Anzer Pex does not include loanwords from natlangs, and includes a ******** of cultural references that will make absolutely no sense to anyone but me. Then, there is Anzer Pex on Earth, which is what someone would actually try to learn and speak here in real life. Most of what is in my Anzer Pex thread is this realistic Earth version, which includes loanwords and Earth-applicable cultural references as if Anzer Pex was a real language spoken by a minority ethnicity from a fictional location here on Earth. Fortunately, though, Anzer Pex in both forms is intentionally void of temporal changes except for the sole inclusion of necessary neologisms that would inevitably spring up as society continues to advances. Those who don't wish to conform to the strict rules of Anzer Pex move on to speak derivative "offspring" languages based off of Anzer Pex (such as Danga).

Here are a bunch of random ideas I've been tossing around, just as discussion bait if nothing else:
*A grammatical/morphological system for creating acceptable neologisms
*A separate system for "improvised" neologisms created on the fly
*Keeping etymological notes on each word created
*Limiting said notes to special cases like neologisms, loanwords, etc
*Compound words are neologisms, unless I'm mistaken
*Slang words are likely to disobey/ignore neologism rules
*Some neologisms will never gain popularity, and will be scarcely used
*Something similar to anagrams, acronyms, and clipping, but new


NOTE: I refer to neologisms as words, even though they can technically be phrases. Just assume I mean words when I say neologisms, though. It'll make more sense that way.

Wikireferences:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neologism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Word_formation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymology



--- TL;DR SUMMARY ---

How the hell do you handle "words recently created by some fictional person in the culture behind my conlang"?

How would you determine when a "newly created word" shouldn't be a neologism, but rather it should be a regular word?

Do any of you even bother to (or think to) include culturally relevant neologisms in your conlangs -- beyond obvious slang, jargon, euphemisms and idioms?

Example of a neologism: During the period in which your conlang is relevant, your culture has just developed indoor plumbing. They must have some word to refer to a toilet, so what do you do?  

[Homurakitsune]

Wall of text. Wow. (I read the summary. xD)

I base my vocab around the culture. (At least in Kakáku. Niora is going wherever it pleases at the moment.)

For example, in Kakáku, there is a term for 'magical arts', (Eyosanula, in case you're wondering) but no word for 'technology'.
The culture has very little contact with those outside the close-knit community, so the word simply never came about. (And Kakáku is spoken by faeries, so they don't really need technology, being content in simple environments.)

That's what you meant, right? I don't really wanna read all that right now... xD  

[Shen Trey]

when I work with these issues I NEVER (at least try to never) use any word that is a descriptive of obvious things, such as toilets, cars, automobiles, though some words I have no choice, such as sword, or house, or road (usually called path but I use road too) other things such as computers and telephones or anything involving technology I try to make up my own reason for what it is being called, usually I refer back to the ancient language I created, kind of like English borrowing words from Latin and other languages  

[Xeigrich]

Actually I'm looking more in the direction of "how do you handle words for things that are new, or words that are new to your culture."

I'm not really looking for "how do you come up with new words for new things." Although this is definitely related.

Is the whole snapshot/incarnation part clear, though? (You'd have to read the whole thing to get that part...) I know I think in pretty convoluted processes, but I think this part is pretty obvious even if you've never thought of it before. For example, in Homurakitsune's conlang's culture, the conlang is set in its incarnation from a time when there was magic but not technology. I don't want to force any predictions on her culture or anything, but you could assume that far off in the future of her conlang's culture, they could develop steam power or electricity or something, and they would need new words for that, but since the conlang's "snapshot" is before that possible point in time (or definite, if she were to decide the conlang was actually set in the past) then things in the future are irrelevant.  

[Shen Trey]

Xeigrich

Actually I'm looking more in the direction of "how do you handle words for things that are new, or words that are new to your culture."

I'm not really looking for "how do you come up with new words for new things." Although this is definitely related.

Is the whole snapshot/incarnation part clear, though? (You'd have to read the whole thing to get that part...) I know I think in pretty convoluted processes, but I think this part is pretty obvious even if you've never thought of it before. For example, in Homurakitsune's conlang's culture, the conlang is set in its incarnation from a time when there was magic but not technology. I don't want to force any predictions on her culture or anything, but you could assume that far off in the future of her conlang's culture, they could develop steam power or electricity or something, and they would need new words for that, but since the conlang's "snapshot" is before that possible point in time (or definite, if she were to decide the conlang was actually set in the past) then things in the future are irrelevant.

I think I understand what your getting at. yeah they probably would either do what most languages do and "borrow" words from other cultures and adapt them to follow the rules of their own personal language. or they could use small broken down words in their own language and form new words this way. is that what your kind of trying to say?  

[Homurakitsune]

Xeigrich

Actually I'm looking more in the direction of "how do you handle words for things that are new, or words that are new to your culture."

I'm not really looking for "how do you come up with new words for new things." Although this is definitely related.

Is the whole snapshot/incarnation part clear, though? (You'd have to read the whole thing to get that part...) I know I think in pretty convoluted processes, but I think this part is pretty obvious even if you've never thought of it before. For example, in Homurakitsune's conlang's culture, the conlang is set in its incarnation from a time when there was magic but not technology. I don't want to force any predictions on her culture or anything, but you could assume that far off in the future of her conlang's culture, they could develop steam power or electricity or something, and they would need new words for that, but since the conlang's "snapshot" is before that possible point in time (or definite, if she were to decide the conlang was actually set in the past) then things in the future are irrelevant.

Kakáku is set in the past... it's going in a book that I'm gonna write. Ehem... eventually. xD

But suppose they did come up with some sort of technology.

They're magical system is based in numerology, so they most likely would derive things from the name/number(s) of the spell that would accomplish the same thing without the use of technology. Then they'd probably add on an ending that means 'not magic' or 'new way of doing'. (But then again, why use technology if they've gotten so far with magic? Magic's more fun anyway. =P)

Does that touch base on what you were talking about?  

[419scambaiterKoko]

Mine is a mix of modern technology and mythological beings such as vampires and fairies. In Kokussen, Vykosteni and Muskraši use basic and difficult concepts to refer to different things.

Examples:

Volcano- {Mountain} + {Fire} + { Earth movement particle}+ {fire movement ending}
Mall- {place}+ {meeting of people}+ {to shop verb} +{to buy} +{ to sell (past tense)}+ {people movement particle}+ {building} + {movement by feet ending}
Cow- {overweight}+ {animal} + {noise} + {white and black} + {grass} + {common noise ending}
Magic wand- {spells}+ {stick made from wood} + {illumination particle} + {to change (present tense)}+ {person with special abilities} + {to cast ending}  

[TheFrogDaysAreOver]

Hmm... my conlang isn't very developed at the moment, so I can't really answer... but I suppose, knowing myself, that I would just come up with a zany word to describe whatever it is right on the spot. That's how I came up with the vocab I already have anyway. Not very scientific, but hey, it gets the job done! xD  

[Xeigrich]

Everyone's still hitting on the "how you come up with words for new things" point.

I know I'm not being clear enough, since most things that make perfect sense in my head are complete gibberish to others...

One more whack at this:

I'm basically asking, how does your conlang treat words that you have decided are "recently created" according to your culture?

By "treat" I mean... Do "new words" behave differently, like in English, we often put quotes around words that are "new" and having been broken in yet. Like, back in the nineties we'd say something like, "Hey, have you heard of this 'Internet' thing that AOL is doing?"

Well, that's misleading, I guess, I don't mean how do people use neologisms in your conlang/conculture. But I think it kind of hits closer to my original question.

A better question might be: Do you make any differentiation whatsoever of common words compared to "new" words that have just popped up? That's a bit to specific of a question, but I'll take "specific" over lack of clarity. xp By differentiation, it doesn't have to be grammatical. I figure that half of a decent conlang is really up to the culture, so a lot of neologism-related content is probably culture based.


Just keep in mind, since your conlang can only effectively be based on a specific era (possibly as specific as a single decade, such as referring to "American English during the 50's")... Some of the words in your conlang are inevitably "new" to your speakers, even if they are just slang words, or technical jargon. This includes technical jargon, like words for a new type of spell that was discovered, or maybe a word describing a new dance that has become popular among the youngins. Or even a new slang word referring to those despicable persons who dwell in such-and-such land.

EDIT: Let me also make a note for you that Neologisms are best described as words that your speakers came up with by themselves! Yes, you technically created this word since you have no real speakers (unless you're really lucky and popular). But, these "neologisms" will have been created specifically by speakers of your language, either on a whim, by accident, or to fulfill a need of a word.

Maybe you forgot to make a word for "constellations" in the sky, so you could have one clever speaker of your language come up with a word (say, "star-pictures" or something) and that word "becomes" a somewhat popular word among your speakers. You came up with the word, but you could differentiate this word from existing words simply by specifying that it is a neologism and probably won't be used by everyone speaking the language. A word like this might be used with caution by lesser educated folk, or maybe it is used inappropriately by teenagers, or maybe children try to use the word they heard on the news and goof up to the amusement of their parents (who themselves probably just heard the word within the last few months).

EDIT #2: You must also remember that a lot of neologisms from the past are now normal words. We have words in English like "laser" or "alone" that once were not words at all, but someone went and used a non-word as a word, and well, it became a word. That's when it was a neologism, but now, these are just considered regular words and there's nothing new about them. This is also a big point I was trying to make, and how you might decide which words should be considered "new" instead of "common."  

[Goddess Rukus]

Xeigrich

how you might decide which words should be considered "new" instead of "common."

Er... I don't really know... I mean, in Yiwoyuwa, there are older words versus younger ones, but I don't really have a way of differentiating between them. A word is sort of... just another new word. =/
A 'new' word would most likely have to do with technology or a new invention in Yiwoyuwa. Maybe slang, but I haven't made much of that either. So I dunno....

I suppose if it's a new concept, then I would put quotes or brackets around it.

EX: new word = comupter

I got this new [computer] thing the other day. / I got this new 'computer' thing the other day.

People in Yiwoyuwa would use the word for 'new' when describing it, I guess. And they also might tag 'irlo'(miscellaneous) to the end of it to indicate that they aren't really familiar with the concept.

Wow, I guess I really do differentiate, huh? xD  

[Layra-chan]

nerurav is built so that all words are (theoretically) decipherable, so there wouldn't be a need to differentiate between a standard word and a well-formed neologism. On the other hand, given the culture itself, there will most likely arise a sort of elitism regarding which words are actual "words" and which are dismissed as slang, a sort of linguistic canon. Neologisms will inevitably fall under slang and be dismissed offhand as crude, anti-systematic individualism.
Neologisms that aren't decipherable in the standard sense wouldn't even be considered, so that gets rid of abbreviations and most idioms; of course some idioms will become canonized, but someone will make up some justification and the elitists will cling to it blindly.
Given that the language is supposed to be spoken almost exclusively by misguided academes, it will essentially all be elitist and anti-neologist, except for possibly in the philosophy department.  

[Eccentric Iconoclast]

This is a non-issue in Aquénandi for reasons that are obvious to anyone who knows anything about the language; the concept that they have words at all is iffy, just morphemes. However, they generally bawk at the addition of new morphemes and find ways to express the same concept using old ones. xd

The Mazdrivonians, Prutts and Arbitians all use hand gestures to distinguish neologisms in speech.  

[MassuReverse]

I actually had to deal with this fairly early on, developing my conlang, because the alien culture I had built around it was influenced at a fairly early point (within the first 1000-1500 years of civilized culture) by human culture and human language. So, while little of the human technology survived to the "modern day" (which ends up being around 2500 years in our future), much of the early terminology for it survived as archaic speech.

So, when Terkati civilization began redeveloping technology like computers and automobiles, they simply began using the archaic terms to refer to them, often shortening them to simpler terms to make them easier to use in common speech.

As for genuine nelogisms, though, I imagine most of them would come from descriptions of the object, situation or whatever was being referred to. It seems like the most logical. I haven't really thought of the cultural side of this, though, since I'm mainly focused on linguistics right now.