<![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place - io9 Comments]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place - io9 Comments]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> @Rusty626: Here, here.

Pakuni, anyone?

ideaman2020

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Ridley Walker is an amazing book. All hail the Eusa Head!

BadUncle

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> This reminded me of a story I read as a kid. It was done in the form of a report about how humans, who are able to translate animal languages, had discovered a work of literature found in an anthill, written on Acacia seeds. it was a worker Ant's manifesto and ended with the phrase, Up With the Queen! which to ant's is like sayign down with the Queen, because Up is unknown to ants and thus like saying, the Queen can go to Hell.

It always stuck with me and this reminded me of that. And so I went looking for it and it turns out to be The Author of the Acacia seeds by Urlula K. Le Guin.

Which explains why it was so memorable. Thanks, Annalee!

Gyrus

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Also: The Scar.

braak

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> 'Feersum Endjinn' is written phonetically, but the narrator is speaking in a very broad Scottish accent.

muteboy

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Wasn't the narrator of Feersum Endjinn just dyslexic?

sir_eccles

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Hmm.. I didn't know Hoban wrote children's books! Loved "Riddley Walker" but I feel that like "Feersum Endjinn" it was meant to be read as the narrative of someone who spoke English but only wrote phonetically.
Marain is pretty cool, yes, but Banks has only provided a partial alphabet and a few non-name words. Only a hint of grammar etc.. Maybe it's up to a few great Minds to flesh it out?

Grey_Area

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Russell Hoban wrote adult books?? I only know him as a children's author and a young one at that (Frances the Badger, mainly).

Whoa, and scratch that past tense. He had a book out as recently as last year!

desiredusername

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> The "Foreigner Universe Books" by C. J. Cherryh are all about language, how they are used and the hero is a linguist. Seems odd they they are not mentioned. There are at least 9 books in the series.

OldDog1

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Oh, and no "Firefly" in future human languages. The need a TV/film section.

Rusty626

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> U Mich is the University of Michigan. it may be geographically right next door to Eastern Michigan U, but they are COMPLETELY separate schools.

Rusty626

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Even more odd than the list not mentioning Feersum Enjinn, it omits Marain entirely - Bank's/the Culture's language based on a nonary system.

Discodave

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> @MaxTwice: You'll have to be more specific than that!

Annalee Newitz

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> @avidreader514: OK I stand corrected. I thought it was a futuristic English, but I also haven't read it in ages.

Annalee Newitz

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> Annalee, what's the name of that '78 book again? Is it still in print?

MaxTwice

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> @Theoban: You're right - Feersum Endjinn is just phonetics, not a different language.

avidreader514

]]> <![CDATA[All the Best Alien Languages in One Place]]> I always thought Feersum Endjinn wasn't a 'different language' just phonetics.

I could be wrong though, been a long time since I last read it.

Theoban

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