[conlang_learners] Submission of conlangs

[Padraic Brown]

--- On Thu, 6/18/09, Amanda Babcock Furrow <langs at quandary.org> wrote:

> -0700, Padraic Brown wrote:
> 
> > I had also thought, though I may be wrong, that this
> is not just a one-off 
> > deal. In other words, if for example Verdurian were
> chosen in Sept., 
> > there's no reason the project couldn't start over with
> another language 
> > chosen by Sol Invictus.
> 
> I think that's a great idea, but I also personally would
> rather choose one
> language and stick with it - with the idea of building a
> community of 
> speakers for that language, not just to move on to the next
> one.

That's fine. I'm not suggesting that everyone has to leave after a set amount of time! What about someone who doesn't like the language chosen? Do we force everyone to stay with one language forever? What if someone likes the language, but eventually grows away from it, or wants to try something else? Eventually there will probably be a "ok, been there done that" feeling to it, at least for some people, and they'll want to try something else.

>  If others
> feel the same, there might be some attrition after the
> first round or two.

Could be. This certainly isn't a short-term project. But is it a life-long affair either? I would imagine that learners could easily spend three to six months getting a good feel for the language and another six perfecting their skill. But at what point does the cycle end? Is this really a spring-board for a full-fledged speaking community? Are we expecting people to teach these conlangs to their kids? That I really would have a problem with, and would never want someone to (ab)use my conlangs that way.

I suppose if someone wants to stay active with the chosen conlang, that's fine and admirable, but is this going to be a requirement of participation?

I guess it's cos I see conlangs as pieces of art. I mean, becoming part of a real honest-to-God speaking community for a conlang is rather like buying a statue of a nymph and going to bed with her...

I haven't even done that with my own conlangs!

> Amanda

Padraic