Exolang

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Exolangs (also 'alien conlangs', 'alien languages' or 'xenolangs') are a subset of fictional languages which are meant to represent the languages which are spoken by fictional aliens. Exolangs commonly violate linguistic universals.

The alienness of any given exolang lies on a spectrum. Klingon and Na'vi are exolangs in light of the definition given above, but their phonologies assume a human vocal tract, and their grammars are not beyond human comprehension. Another definition restricts exolangs to languages that do not use the human vocal tract, regardless whether they're spoken by literal aliens.

Exolangs are often produced via non-humanoid vocal mechanisms, such as the wama's blowhole in Cetonian, or the yinrih's throat (rather than tongue) in Commonthroat. Other languages may be conveyed in media other than sound, such as telepathy, tentacle signing, light bursts, etc. Notable exolangs include Kēlen and Fith.

Considerations When Developing an Exolang

When developing an exolang, it's important to keep a few things in mind:

• Body plan: What do your aliens look like? Are they humanoid? Do they resemble a real animal, or are they something more exotic?
• Locomotion: How do your aliens move around? Are they arboreal? Cursorial? Fossorial? Aquatic? Can they fly? This may affect how they view motion or perceive space, and by extension, time.
• Habitat: Do they live in trees? Water? the vacuum of space? They'll need vocabulary to refer to things in their environment.
• Reproductive strategy: How a species reproduces and how it raises its young will affect kinship terms.
• Sensory system: Aliens without vision won't have words for colors. Aliens with a powerful sense of smell will have complex vocabulary for dealing with different odors.
• Psychology: How do your aliens think about themselves and the world around them? Do they have instincts that humans don't? Or do they lack appetites that humans have?

To see a list of the exolangs which have pages on Frathwiki, please click here.

This article is part of a series on Types of Conlangs. "Reason" classification system: Artlangs * Funlangs * Engineered language * Philosophical language * Arithmographic language * Logical language * Fictional languages * Naming languages * Exolangs * Diachronic conlangs * Lostlangs * Altlangs * Auxlangs "Origin" classification system: A priori conlangs * A posteriori conlangs "Other" classification system: Sketchlangs * Kitchen Sink Conlangs * Colllangs * Relexes