Alien language
Encyclopedia
Alien language is a generic term used to describe a possible language originating from a hypothetical
alien species
. The study of such a hypothetical language has been termed xenolinguistics, although alternative terminology such as exolinguistics has found its way into use through the medium of science fiction
.
The first use of the term "xenolinguistics" in science fiction occurred in 1986, in the novel "Triad" by Sheila Finch.
The nature and form of such languages remains purely speculative because projects in the field of the research for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI
), have until now not yet detected signatures of intelligent life in the Galaxy or beyond. The SETI effort is coordinated by the International Academy of Astronautics
(IAA), in particular, by the Permanent Study Group SETI (PSGS) of the Academy. However, the alleged possibility of future contact with intelligent extraterrestrial life makes the question of the structure(s) and form(s) of alien languages a valid topic for scientific
and philosophical
discussion. Under the term astrolinguistics, an academic debate has taken shape on the nature of bodies of knowledge, that is, common ground in a semantic sense, shared between alien and human languages for interstellar communication.
In addition to creating academic debate, the potential nature of an alien language has also been tackled by science-fiction writers, with some creating fictional languages for their characters to use, and others circumventing the problem by proposing translation devices or by creating universal language
s that all involved species can speak.
Life on Earth employs a variety of non-verbal methods of communication, and these might provide clues to hypothetical alien language. Amongst humans alone, these include many visual signals such as sign language
, body language
, facial expression
and writing
(including pictures), and it is possible that some extraterrestrial species may have no spoken language. Amongst other creatures, there are some which use other forms of communication, such as cuttlefish
and chameleons, which can alter their body color in complex ways as a method of communication, and ant
s and honey bees, which use pheromone
s to communicate complex messages to other members of their hive
s.
In relation to the question of languages, Ludwig Wittgenstein
wrote that "if a lion could speak, we would not be able to understand him." On the other hand, many referentialist and verificationist accounts of language would make this gap seem more bridgeable. For example, if aliens evolved under pressure of natural selection
, we would expect them to have the same drive to survive and reproduce that we have. Willard Van Orman Quine
also advanced the thesis of the indeterminacy of translation
, according to which any hypothesis of translation could be defended only by appeal to context, by determining what other sentences a native would utter.
, described in a monograph by the prominent Dutch mathematician Hans Freudenthal
of Utrecht university in The Netherlands. A body of basic mathematics was chosen as "common ground." The setup chosen for that book, published in 1960, is described in the article Were it Perfect, Would it Work Better? Survey of a Language for Cosmic Intercourse.
Since then a new, second-generation Lingua Cosmica has been developed by the Dutch-Swedish astronomer and mathematician Alexander Ollongren of Leiden University, also in The Netherlands. The new Lincos, designed as a system for communication, is based on two premises. To begin with, messages meant for contact with extraterrestrial intelligent societies should essentially be multi-level—-they could for example consist, in part, of a (large) text in some natural language, supplemented with annotations at a deeper level. The second premise is that annotations including deductions and inductions be formalized in constructive logic
. In this manner, the logical contents of messages formulated in new Lincos are embedded in an abstract descriptional framework. The framework, the logical universe of discourse, contains an environment as well, comparable to a set of declarations in computer programming, cf. "Data structure
". As "common ground," constructive logic was chosen.
By taking the approach outlined, the conceptual problem of designing a language for communication between mutually alien intelligent species in the universe is given a new perspective. The orientation of the novel Lingua Cosmica (defined in an as yet unpublished monograph dedicated to the memory of Dr. Freudenthal) is multi-disciplinary, concerned as it is with applied logic and universal aspects of linguistics (at the core of astrolinguistics in the sense used here). But also conceptual issues in the field of possible message exchange (communication) between intelligent species or information processing artifacts in the Galaxy are relevant. The modality of the logic employed is constructive (see "Mathematical logic
" and the descriptions at). In this way, the linguistic system proposed is supplied with a solid foundation. Lincos, under further development, has a signature distinct from those of natural languages. Its expressive power is considerable, at the expense of the length of expressions (logic terms). Some further details can be found in Astrolinguistics, a Guide for Calling E T.
's Martian language in his 1880 novel Across the Zodiac
. As the science fiction genre developed, so did the use of alien languages. Sometimes these are explicitly detailed, as in Greg's work, at other times they are implicit.
Some science-fiction works operate on the premise that alien languages can be easily learned if one has a competent understanding of the nature of languages in general. For example, the protagonist of C. S. Lewis
's novel Out of the Silent Planet
is able to use his training in historical linguistics
to decipher the language spoken on Mars. Others work on the premise that languages with similarities can be partially understood by different species.
In some cases, authors avoid linguistic questions by introducing devices into their stories that seamlessly translate between languages, to the point that the concept of different languages can largely be excluded from a franchise. Notable examples include Douglas Adams
's babel fish, the TARDIS
from Doctor Who
, the translator microbes in Farscape
, and the universal translator
from Star Trek
. In other cases, the question of language is dealt with through the introduction of a universal language
via which most, if not all, of the franchise's species are able to communicate. In the Star Wars
universe, for example, this language is known as Basic and is spoken by the majority of the characters, with a few notable exceptions.
Some fictionalized alien species take advantage of their unique physiology for communication purposes, an example being the Ithorians of the Star Wars universe, who use their twin mouths, located on either side of their neck, to speak in stereo.
In some franchises this universal language is an intermediary language; one that different species can easily translate to and from their own languages, thus allowing simple communication between races. Examples of this approach include Interlac
from the Legion of Super-Heroes
, and later Babylon 5
.
In the Uplift Universe
, the numerous sapient species use at least twelve "Galactic" languages; each version is used in communication between species that can articulate it, and that find it useful in expressing their concepts.
Not all of these universal/intermediate languages take the form of spoken/written languages as is recognized in the human world. In the film and book Close Encounters of the Third Kind
scientists use a language based on musical tones, while in the film
and book
Contact, aliens send the instructions to build a machine to reach them using mathematics
, which the main character calls "the only universal language". Similarly, in Stargate SG-1
, the protagonists encounter a galactic meeting place where different races communicate with one another using a language based on atomic structures which is "written" in three dimensions rather than two.
A number of long-running franchises have taken the concept of an alien language beyond that of a scripting device and have developed languages of their own. Examples include the Klingon language
of the Star Trek universe (a fully developed constructed language
created by Marc Okrand
), the Zentradi language from the Macross
Japanese science-fiction anime
series and the DC Comics
Kryptonese (for which there exists an alphabet and language glossary).
The existence of alien languages and the ease or difficulty of translation is used as a plot device or script element in a number of franchises, sometimes seriously, and sometimes for comedic value. In the film Mars Attacks!
, the language spoken by the Martians appears to consist only of the words "ack!" and "rack!" spoken at different pitches and volume. The film's universal translator consistently translates these as being offers of friendship despite the fact that the aliens' actions are anything but friendly. Also in Dragon Ball Z, Bulma speaks in her usual language (Japanese) and thereby involuntarily activates some functions of an alien starship, as her words are identified by the ship's computer as Namekkian orders.
C. J. Cherryh
's Chanur
series of books relies heavily on linguistic and psychological problems of communication between various alien races. Some examples include usage of obscure languages and cultural references to conceal information from others, imperfections of computer translation, use of pidgin
and linguistic barriers, psychological concepts which do not have matches in other races' languages, and a race so alien that it cannot be understood at all without a translation by another race which itself can barely be understood due to manifold meanings in each message. In the Foreigner universe
, Cherryh explores the interface between humans and atevi, whose language relies on numerical values, causing the main character, Bren Cameron, to constantly calculate as he speaks the atevi language, Ragi. Conversely, in the Simpsons
the fact that English is mutually understood by the show's human and alien characters is noted as being "an astonishing coincidence".
Some stories, however, have alien beings speak near-unpronounceable tongues. Clark Ashton Smith
, in one tale, has the sorcerer Eibon struggle to articulate the name of an alien, Hziulquoigmnzhah.
Still other science-fiction stories imagine communication through telepathy. There is for example the Vulcan mind meld in Star Trek. How an alien mind can communicate with a human mind is not discussed. In the science-fiction novel Ender's Game
, the "Buggers" are an alien species in which their queen
can telepathically communicate with every member of her species, but no humans except Ender. The inability of the two species to effectively communicate serves as a critical element of the novel's plot.
Sheila Finch
published a collection of short stories about first contact and alien communication, The Guild of Xenolinguists, (Golden Gryphon Press), in 2007.
For his 2009 science-fiction epic film
Avatar, creator and director James Cameron
constructed the fictional Na'vi language
(with the aid of college professor Paul Frommer) for his fictional alien Na'vi race in the film.
In the 2009 J. J. Abrams
film Star Trek, Starfleet
Cadet Uhura
(Zoe Saldana
) is studying Xenolinguistics. During the bar scene, when Kirk (Chris Pine) meets Uhura for the first time, Kirk fully defines what the subject is.
In 2008, the game Dead Space introduced a form of alien language known as Unitology, for the religion that mainly uses it. Unitology is only shown to be written with no example or indication of a verbal dialect.
The game Spore brought forth several different forms of Xenoliguistics that had no form of translation. Several groups of fans however has created several Xenoliguistic languages that match what the game pronounces in both verbal and written forms. They have been dubbed: Skopi, Grox, Sermon, Avian and Razon, and all have been spoken in one form or another.
such as Linear A
have been discovered by archeologists. Any extraterrestrial language can be expected to be far more foreign than any of these. Our inability to understand the writings of our ancestors should be an indication of the challenges that could be expected in communicating with the truly foreign inhabitants of another world.
Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. The term derives from the Greek, ὑποτιθέναι – hypotithenai meaning "to put under" or "to suppose". For a hypothesis to be put forward as a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it...
alien species
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
. The study of such a hypothetical language has been termed xenolinguistics, although alternative terminology such as exolinguistics has found its way into use through the medium of science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
.
The first use of the term "xenolinguistics" in science fiction occurred in 1986, in the novel "Triad" by Sheila Finch.
The nature and form of such languages remains purely speculative because projects in the field of the research for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI
SETI
The search for extraterrestrial intelligence is the collective name for a number of activities people undertake to search for intelligent extraterrestrial life. Some of the most well known projects are run by the SETI Institute. SETI projects use scientific methods to search for intelligent life...
), have until now not yet detected signatures of intelligent life in the Galaxy or beyond. The SETI effort is coordinated by the International Academy of Astronautics
International Academy of Astronautics
The International Academy of Astronautics is an international community of experts committed to expanding the frontiers of space. It is a non-governmental organisation established in Stockholm on August 16, 1960....
(IAA), in particular, by the Permanent Study Group SETI (PSGS) of the Academy. However, the alleged possibility of future contact with intelligent extraterrestrial life makes the question of the structure(s) and form(s) of alien languages a valid topic for scientific
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and philosophical
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
discussion. Under the term astrolinguistics, an academic debate has taken shape on the nature of bodies of knowledge, that is, common ground in a semantic sense, shared between alien and human languages for interstellar communication.
In addition to creating academic debate, the potential nature of an alien language has also been tackled by science-fiction writers, with some creating fictional languages for their characters to use, and others circumventing the problem by proposing translation devices or by creating universal language
Universal language
Universal language may refer to a hypothetical or historical language spoken and understood by all or most of the world's population. In some circles, it is a language said to be understood by all living things, beings, and objects alike. It may be the ideal of an international auxiliary language...
s that all involved species can speak.
Academia
The question of what form an alien language might take, and whether humans would recognize it as a language if they encountered it, has been approached from several perspectives. Consideration of such questions form part of the linguistics and language studies programs at some universities.Life on Earth employs a variety of non-verbal methods of communication, and these might provide clues to hypothetical alien language. Amongst humans alone, these include many visual signals such as sign language
Sign language
A sign language is a language which, instead of acoustically conveyed sound patterns, uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning—simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speaker's...
, body language
Body language
Body language is a form of non-verbal communication, which consists of body posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements. Humans send and interpret such signals almost entirely subconsciously....
, facial expression
Facial expression
A facial expression one or more motions or positions of the muscles in the skin. These movements convey the emotional state of the individual to observers. Facial expressions are a form of nonverbal communication. They are a primary means of conveying social information among humans, but also occur...
and writing
Writing
Writing is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols . It is distinguished from illustration, such as cave drawing and painting, and non-symbolic preservation of language via non-textual media, such as magnetic tape audio.Writing most likely...
(including pictures), and it is possible that some extraterrestrial species may have no spoken language. Amongst other creatures, there are some which use other forms of communication, such as cuttlefish
Cuttlefish
Cuttlefish are marine animals of the order Sepiida. They belong to the class Cephalopoda . Despite their name, cuttlefish are not fish but molluscs....
and chameleons, which can alter their body color in complex ways as a method of communication, and ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s and honey bees, which use pheromone
Pheromone
A pheromone is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting outside the body of the secreting individual to impact the behavior of the receiving individual...
s to communicate complex messages to other members of their hive
Beehive
A beehive is a structure in which bees live and raise their young.Beehive may also refer to:Buildings and locations:* Bee Hive, Alabama, a neighborhood in Alabama* Beehive , a wing of the New Zealand Parliament Buildings...
s.
In relation to the question of languages, Ludwig Wittgenstein
Ludwig Wittgenstein
Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. He was professor in philosophy at the University of Cambridge from 1939 until 1947...
wrote that "if a lion could speak, we would not be able to understand him." On the other hand, many referentialist and verificationist accounts of language would make this gap seem more bridgeable. For example, if aliens evolved under pressure of natural selection
Natural selection
Natural selection is the nonrandom process by which biologic traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of evolution....
, we would expect them to have the same drive to survive and reproduce that we have. Willard Van Orman Quine
Willard Van Orman Quine
Willard Van Orman Quine was an American philosopher and logician in the analytic tradition...
also advanced the thesis of the indeterminacy of translation
Indeterminacy of translation
The indeterminacy of translation is a thesis propounded by 20th century analytic philosopher W. V. Quine. The classic statement of this thesis can be found in his 1960 book Word and Object, which gathered together and refined much of Quine's previous work on subjects other than formal logic and set...
, according to which any hypothesis of translation could be defended only by appeal to context, by determining what other sentences a native would utter.
Astrolinguistics
Astrolinguistics is the science concerned with the development and application of cosmic languages for interstellar communication between intelligent species in the universe. Included are discussions on the matter of what "common ground" (a body of knowledge assumed to be universal) can be chosen and what representations to use. Research in this area is usually carried out in a linguistic setting because the semantics of the "common ground" need to be explained in some way, e.g. by examples formulated in some language. The first-generation language of this kind developed for this purpose was LincosLincos (language)
Lincos is an artificial language first described in 1960 by Dr. Hans Freudenthal in his book Lincos: Design of a Language for Cosmic Intercourse, Part 1. It is a language designed to be understandable by any possible intelligent extraterrestrial life form, for use in interstellar radio transmissions...
, described in a monograph by the prominent Dutch mathematician Hans Freudenthal
Hans Freudenthal
Hans Freudenthal was a Dutch mathematician. He made substantial contributions to algebraic topology and also took an interest in literature, philosophy, history and mathematics education....
of Utrecht university in The Netherlands. A body of basic mathematics was chosen as "common ground." The setup chosen for that book, published in 1960, is described in the article Were it Perfect, Would it Work Better? Survey of a Language for Cosmic Intercourse.
Since then a new, second-generation Lingua Cosmica has been developed by the Dutch-Swedish astronomer and mathematician Alexander Ollongren of Leiden University, also in The Netherlands. The new Lincos, designed as a system for communication, is based on two premises. To begin with, messages meant for contact with extraterrestrial intelligent societies should essentially be multi-level—-they could for example consist, in part, of a (large) text in some natural language, supplemented with annotations at a deeper level. The second premise is that annotations including deductions and inductions be formalized in constructive logic
Intuitionistic logic
Intuitionistic logic, or constructive logic, is a symbolic logic system differing from classical logic in its definition of the meaning of a statement being true. In classical logic, all well-formed statements are assumed to be either true or false, even if we do not have a proof of either...
. In this manner, the logical contents of messages formulated in new Lincos are embedded in an abstract descriptional framework. The framework, the logical universe of discourse, contains an environment as well, comparable to a set of declarations in computer programming, cf. "Data structure
Data structure
In computer science, a data structure is a particular way of storing and organizing data in a computer so that it can be used efficiently.Different kinds of data structures are suited to different kinds of applications, and some are highly specialized to specific tasks...
". As "common ground," constructive logic was chosen.
By taking the approach outlined, the conceptual problem of designing a language for communication between mutually alien intelligent species in the universe is given a new perspective. The orientation of the novel Lingua Cosmica (defined in an as yet unpublished monograph dedicated to the memory of Dr. Freudenthal) is multi-disciplinary, concerned as it is with applied logic and universal aspects of linguistics (at the core of astrolinguistics in the sense used here). But also conceptual issues in the field of possible message exchange (communication) between intelligent species or information processing artifacts in the Galaxy are relevant. The modality of the logic employed is constructive (see "Mathematical logic
Mathematical logic
Mathematical logic is a subfield of mathematics with close connections to foundations of mathematics, theoretical computer science and philosophical logic. The field includes both the mathematical study of logic and the applications of formal logic to other areas of mathematics...
" and the descriptions at). In this way, the linguistic system proposed is supplied with a solid foundation. Lincos, under further development, has a signature distinct from those of natural languages. Its expressive power is considerable, at the expense of the length of expressions (logic terms). Some further details can be found in Astrolinguistics, a Guide for Calling E T.
Science fiction
The first alien language in a work of science fiction may have been Percy GregPercy Greg
Percy Greg , son of William Rathbone Greg, was an English writer....
's Martian language in his 1880 novel Across the Zodiac
Across The Zodiac
Across the Zodiac: The Story of a Wrecked Record is a science fiction novel by Percy Greg, who has been credited as an originator of the Sword and planet sub-genre of science fiction.- Plot :...
. As the science fiction genre developed, so did the use of alien languages. Sometimes these are explicitly detailed, as in Greg's work, at other times they are implicit.
Some science-fiction works operate on the premise that alien languages can be easily learned if one has a competent understanding of the nature of languages in general. For example, the protagonist of C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
's novel Out of the Silent Planet
Out of the Silent Planet
Out of the Silent Planet is the first novel of a science fiction trilogy written by C. S. Lewis, sometimes referred to as the Space Trilogy, Ransom Trilogy or Cosmic Trilogy. The other volumes are Perelandra and That Hideous Strength, and a fragment of a sequel was published posthumously as The...
is able to use his training in historical linguistics
Historical linguistics
Historical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
to decipher the language spoken on Mars. Others work on the premise that languages with similarities can be partially understood by different species.
In some cases, authors avoid linguistic questions by introducing devices into their stories that seamlessly translate between languages, to the point that the concept of different languages can largely be excluded from a franchise. Notable examples include Douglas Adams
Douglas Adams
Douglas Noel Adams was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television...
's babel fish, the TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
from Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, the translator microbes in Farscape
Farscape
Farscape is an Australian-American science fiction television series filmed in Australia and produced originally for the Nine Network. The series was conceived by Rockne S. O'Bannon and produced by Jim Henson Productions and Hallmark Entertainment...
, and the universal translator
Universal translator
A universal translator is a device common to many science fiction works, especially on television. First described in Murray Leinster's 1945 novella "First Contact", the translator's purpose is to offer an instant translation of any language...
from Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
. In other cases, the question of language is dealt with through the introduction of a universal language
Universal language
Universal language may refer to a hypothetical or historical language spoken and understood by all or most of the world's population. In some circles, it is a language said to be understood by all living things, beings, and objects alike. It may be the ideal of an international auxiliary language...
via which most, if not all, of the franchise's species are able to communicate. In the Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
universe, for example, this language is known as Basic and is spoken by the majority of the characters, with a few notable exceptions.
Some fictionalized alien species take advantage of their unique physiology for communication purposes, an example being the Ithorians of the Star Wars universe, who use their twin mouths, located on either side of their neck, to speak in stereo.
In some franchises this universal language is an intermediary language; one that different species can easily translate to and from their own languages, thus allowing simple communication between races. Examples of this approach include Interlac
Interlac
In the DC Comics fictional universe, Interlac is the designated communication language of the 30th century United Planets.In its basic form it is a simple one-to-one substitution cipher. The Interlac alphabet corresponds perfectly to the twenty-six letters of the Latin alphabet and the numbering...
from the Legion of Super-Heroes
Legion of Super-Heroes
The Legion of Super-Heroes is a fictional superhero team in the 30th and 31st centuries of the . The team first appears in Adventure Comics #247 , and was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino....
, and later Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...
.
In the Uplift Universe
Uplift Universe
The Uplift Universe is a fictional universe created by science fiction writer David Brin. A central feature in this universe is the process of biological uplift.His books which take place in this universe:* Sundiver...
, the numerous sapient species use at least twelve "Galactic" languages; each version is used in communication between species that can articulate it, and that find it useful in expressing their concepts.
Not all of these universal/intermediate languages take the form of spoken/written languages as is recognized in the human world. In the film and book Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a 1977 science fiction film written and directed by Steven Spielberg. The film stars Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, and Cary Guffey...
scientists use a language based on musical tones, while in the film
Contact (film)
Contact is a 1997 American science fiction drama film adapted from the Carl Sagan novel of the same name and directed by Robert Zemeckis. Both Sagan and wife Ann Druyan wrote the story outline for the film adaptation of Contact....
and book
Contact (novel)
Contact is a science fiction novel written by Carl Sagan and published in 1985. It deals with the theme of contact between humanity and a more technologically advanced, extraterrestrial life form. It ranked No. 7 on the 1985 U.S. bestseller list....
Contact, aliens send the instructions to build a machine to reach them using mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, which the main character calls "the only universal language". Similarly, in Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1
Stargate SG-1 is a Canadian-American adventure and military science fiction television series and part of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Stargate franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is based on the 1994 feature film Stargate by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich...
, the protagonists encounter a galactic meeting place where different races communicate with one another using a language based on atomic structures which is "written" in three dimensions rather than two.
A number of long-running franchises have taken the concept of an alien language beyond that of a scripting device and have developed languages of their own. Examples include the Klingon language
Klingon language
The Klingon language is the constructed language spoken by the fictional Klingons in the Star Trek universe....
of the Star Trek universe (a fully developed constructed language
Constructed language
A planned or constructed language—known colloquially as a conlang—is a language whose phonology, grammar, and/or vocabulary has been consciously devised by an individual or group, instead of having evolved naturally...
created by Marc Okrand
Marc Okrand
Marc Okrand is an American linguist and is most notable as the creator of the Klingon language, which he speaks.-Biography:Okrand worked with Native American languages. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1972...
), the Zentradi language from the Macross
Macross
is a series of science fiction mecha anime, directed by Shōji Kawamori of Studio Nue in 1982. The franchise features a fictional history of Earth/Humanity after the year 1999. It consists of three TV series, four movies, six OVAs, one light novel and five manga series, all sponsored by Big West...
Japanese science-fiction anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series and the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
Kryptonese (for which there exists an alphabet and language glossary).
The existence of alien languages and the ease or difficulty of translation is used as a plot device or script element in a number of franchises, sometimes seriously, and sometimes for comedic value. In the film Mars Attacks!
Mars Attacks!
Mars Attacks! is a 1996 American science fiction film directed by Tim Burton and based on the cult trading card series of the same name. The film uses elements of black comedy, surreal humour, and political satire, and claims to be also a parody of multiple science fiction B movies...
, the language spoken by the Martians appears to consist only of the words "ack!" and "rack!" spoken at different pitches and volume. The film's universal translator consistently translates these as being offers of friendship despite the fact that the aliens' actions are anything but friendly. Also in Dragon Ball Z, Bulma speaks in her usual language (Japanese) and thereby involuntarily activates some functions of an alien starship, as her words are identified by the ship's computer as Namekkian orders.
C. J. Cherryh
C. J. Cherryh
Carolyn Janice Cherry , better known by the pen name C. J. Cherryh, is a United States science fiction and fantasy author...
's Chanur
The Chanur novels
The Chanur novels is a series of five science fiction novels written by science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh and published by DAW Books between 1981 and 1992. The first novel in the series is The Pride of Chanur , which was nominated for both the Hugo and Locus Awards in 1983...
series of books relies heavily on linguistic and psychological problems of communication between various alien races. Some examples include usage of obscure languages and cultural references to conceal information from others, imperfections of computer translation, use of pidgin
Pidgin
A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a simplified language that develops as a means of communication between two or more groups that do not have a language in common. It is most commonly employed in situations such as trade, or where both groups speak languages different from the language of the...
and linguistic barriers, psychological concepts which do not have matches in other races' languages, and a race so alien that it cannot be understood at all without a translation by another race which itself can barely be understood due to manifold meanings in each message. In the Foreigner universe
Foreigner Universe
The Foreigner universe is a fictional universe developed by science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. The series centers around the descendants of a ship lost in transit from Earth en route to found a new space station...
, Cherryh explores the interface between humans and atevi, whose language relies on numerical values, causing the main character, Bren Cameron, to constantly calculate as he speaks the atevi language, Ragi. Conversely, in the Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
the fact that English is mutually understood by the show's human and alien characters is noted as being "an astonishing coincidence".
Some stories, however, have alien beings speak near-unpronounceable tongues. Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith
Clark Ashton Smith was a self-educated American poet, sculptor, painter and author of fantasy, horror and science fiction short stories. He achieved early local recognition, largely through the enthusiasm of George Sterling, for traditional verse in the vein of Swinburne...
, in one tale, has the sorcerer Eibon struggle to articulate the name of an alien, Hziulquoigmnzhah.
Still other science-fiction stories imagine communication through telepathy. There is for example the Vulcan mind meld in Star Trek. How an alien mind can communicate with a human mind is not discussed. In the science-fiction novel Ender's Game
Ender's Game
Ender's Game is a science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. The book originated as the short story "Ender's Game", published in the August 1977 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact. Elaborating on characters and plot lines depicted in the novel, Card later wrote additional...
, the "Buggers" are an alien species in which their queen
Eusociality
Eusociality is a term used for the highest level of social organization in a hierarchical classification....
can telepathically communicate with every member of her species, but no humans except Ender. The inability of the two species to effectively communicate serves as a critical element of the novel's plot.
Sheila Finch
Sheila Finch
Sheila Finch is a science fiction author. She has won the Nebula Award for her 1998 novella “Reading the Bones,” which was later expanded into a novel...
published a collection of short stories about first contact and alien communication, The Guild of Xenolinguists, (Golden Gryphon Press), in 2007.
For his 2009 science-fiction epic film
Epic film
An epic is a genre of film that emphasizes human drama on a grand scale. Epics are more ambitious in scope than other film genres, and their ambitious nature helps to differentiate them from similar genres such as the period piece or adventure film...
Avatar, creator and director James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
constructed the fictional Na'vi language
Na'vi language
The Na’vi language is the constructed language of the Na’vi, the sapient humanoid indigenous inhabitants of the fictional moon Pandora in the 2009 film Avatar. It was created by Paul Frommer, a professor at the Marshall School of Business with a doctorate in linguistics...
(with the aid of college professor Paul Frommer) for his fictional alien Na'vi race in the film.
In the 2009 J. J. Abrams
J. J. Abrams
Jeffrey Jacob "J. J." Abrams is an American film and television producer, screenwriter, director, actor, and composer. He wrote and produced feature films before co-creating the television series Felicity...
film Star Trek, Starfleet
Starfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
Cadet Uhura
Uhura
Nyota Uhura is a character in Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series, the first six Star Trek films, and the 2009 film Star Trek...
(Zoe Saldana
Zoe Saldana
Zoe Saldana , sometimes stylized Zoë Saldaña, is an American actress. She had her breakthrough role in the 2000 film Center Stage and later gained prominence for her roles as Anamaria in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and Uhura in the 2009 film Star Trek, and a starring role...
) is studying Xenolinguistics. During the bar scene, when Kirk (Chris Pine) meets Uhura for the first time, Kirk fully defines what the subject is.
In 2008, the game Dead Space introduced a form of alien language known as Unitology, for the religion that mainly uses it. Unitology is only shown to be written with no example or indication of a verbal dialect.
The game Spore brought forth several different forms of Xenoliguistics that had no form of translation. Several groups of fans however has created several Xenoliguistic languages that match what the game pronounces in both verbal and written forms. They have been dubbed: Skopi, Grox, Sermon, Avian and Razon, and all have been spoken in one form or another.
History
The difficulty in deciphering an alien language can be seen from the many Undeciphered writing systemsUndeciphered writing systems
Many undeciphered writing systems date from several thousand years BC, though some more modern examples do exist.The term "writing systems" is used here loosely to refer to groups of glyphs which appear to have representational symbolic meaning, but which may include "systems" that are largely...
such as Linear A
Linear A
Linear A is one of two scripts used in ancient Crete before Mycenaean Greek Linear B; Cretan hieroglyphs is the second script. In Minoan times, before the Mycenaean Greek dominion, Linear A was the official script for the palaces and religious activities, and hieroglyphs were mainly used on seals....
have been discovered by archeologists. Any extraterrestrial language can be expected to be far more foreign than any of these. Our inability to understand the writings of our ancestors should be an indication of the challenges that could be expected in communicating with the truly foreign inhabitants of another world.
See also
- Asemic writingAsemic writingAsemic writing is a wordless open semantic form of writing. The word asemic means "having no specific semantic content". With the nonspecificity of asemic writing there comes a vacuum of meaning which is left for the reader to fill in and interpret. All of this is similar to the way one would...
- aUI (artificial language)
- Code nameCode nameA code name or cryptonym is a word or name used clandestinely to refer to another name or word. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage...
- Codex SeraphinianusCodex SeraphinianusCodex Seraphinianus is a book written and illustrated by the Italian artist, architect and industrial designer Luigi Serafini during thirty months, from 1976 to 1978...
- GlossolaliaGlossolaliaGlossolalia or speaking in tongues is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables, often as part of religious practice. The significance of glossolalia has varied with time and place, with some considering it a part of a sacred language...
- Hélène SmithHélène SmithHélène Smith was a famous late-19th century French psychic. She was known as "the Muse of Automatic Writing" by the Surrealists, who viewed Smith as evidence of the power of the surreal, and a symbol of surrealist knowledge...
- Interpretatio graecaInterpretatio graecaInterpretatio graeca is a Latin term for the common tendency of ancient Greek writers to equate foreign divinities to members of their own pantheon. Herodotus, for example, refers to the ancient Egyptian gods Amon, Osiris and Ptah as "Zeus", "Dionysus" and "Hephaestus", respectively.-Roman...
- Klingon languageKlingon languageThe Klingon language is the constructed language spoken by the fictional Klingons in the Star Trek universe....
- Lincos (artificial language)
- Na'vi languageNa'vi languageThe Na’vi language is the constructed language of the Na’vi, the sapient humanoid indigenous inhabitants of the fictional moon Pandora in the 2009 film Avatar. It was created by Paul Frommer, a professor at the Marshall School of Business with a doctorate in linguistics...
- SETISETIThe search for extraterrestrial intelligence is the collective name for a number of activities people undertake to search for intelligent extraterrestrial life. Some of the most well known projects are run by the SETI Institute. SETI projects use scientific methods to search for intelligent life...
Further reading
- McConnell, B.S., 2001. Beyond Contact: A Guide to SETI and Communicating with Alien Civilizations ISBN 0-596-00037-5
- Meyers, W.E., 1980. Aliens and Linguistics: Language Study and Science Fiction ISBN 0-8203-0487-5
External links
- Interstellar Message Composition (SETI)
- A Primer In SF XENOLINGUISTICS, by Justin B. Rye
- "Omnilingual", by H. Beam Piper by Tenser, said the Tensor
- ENG 480/580; Extraterrestrial Language
- Communicating with Aliens: the Psychological Dimension of Dialogue
- Conlangs seeking to emulate what an alien language might look like:
- A Booklet on Daharran Grammar from the Orion's ArmOrion's ArmOrion's Arm, is a multi-authored online science fiction world-building project, first established in 2000 by M. Alan Kazlev, Donna Malcolm Hirsekorn, Bernd Helfert and Anders Sandberg and further co-authored by many people since...
Universe Project - Fith: An Alien Conlang With A LIFO Grammar and Ilish – by Jeffrey Henning
- Machi and Bogomol languages - by Terrence Donnelly
- Rikchik by Denis Moskowitz
- A Booklet on Daharran Grammar from the Orion's Arm