Written Language

[tcepsa]

With pretty much all known languages (with the possibility of sign languages), the language is based on speech.

What if there was a language that was purely written? No corresponding words. No corresponding sounds even. What would that be like?

Comments

[divinerose.livejournal.com]

Confusing. So much of our language is conveyed through mannerisms, inflection of speech, body language, etc. To lose that, I think, would lose a large part of our communication understanding, and lead to an insanely high rate of misunderstanding between people. Words are hard, but I wouldn't want to just have them. That is what makes it so hard with L. We talk every night, and I can hear the tone in her voice, but I feel like I lose so much not seeing her when we talk.

There are languages like this....

[elkor.livejournal.com]

And you work with them every day.

They are the programming languages we use to tell computers and machines what to do.

Re: There are languages like this....

[knotsteve.livejournal.com]

And yet, if you think about it, all of those computer languages can be spoken out loud in some fashion. If a word or sound doesn't exist for a symbol, someone will make one. Any character you can type has it's name, and if you invent a new symbol, someone will eventually name it. Heck, I even know some people who were, at least at one point, fluent in APL-speak. (Accurate comprehension of the spoken version, on the other hand, is a different matter. :-)

I think that would apply to *any* written language -- even if it originated with no spoken words or sounds, they would be invented so that the language could be spoken in *some* fashion.

[princesskaite.livejournal.com]

Hieroglyphics are kind of like that. I mean we look at them and say things like 'bird', 'pharoh', 'wierd looking dog thing' - but we're using our words and language to apply to pictures. We have no idea what the ancient egyptians called them. I know its not exactly the point you were going for, but it is kind of an example.