What was the general idea of what I was just talking about?

I had lost my train of thought while I pulled up my computer.

But thankfully I had someone to bring me round to the general idea of natural language. My partner Chett said, “You were talking about…”

Generating new language. A New Natural Language.

If we are developers, and the most important language is natural language, what is the New Natural Language?

Your own?

What is a natural language?

Anna

a language that has developed naturally in use (as contrasted with an artificial language or computer code).

Definition from Oxford Languages, through Google.com

A natural language refers to a language that has developed spontaneously among humans over time without premeditated planning or construction. It’s the way people naturally communicate with each other, whether spoken or written, as opposed to an artificial or constructed language which is specifically devised by individuals or groups. Examples of natural languages include English, Spanish, Chinese, and thousands of others spoken around the world. These languages evolve over time, influenced by factors such as culture, history, migration, and contact with other languages.

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What could a new natural language be?

Anna

The development of a new natural language is a slow process, usually occurring over many generations due to shifts in culture, environment, contact with other languages, or isolation. However, in a speculative context, there are several scenarios where a new natural language could arise:

1. Isolated Communities: If a group of people were to become isolated from the rest of the world (for instance, on a remote island or a hypothetical colony on another planet), their language might evolve differently from its source over time.
2. Blended Communities: When two or more communities come together and intermingle, a pidgin may form, which can eventually develop into a creole – a stable natural language formed from the mixing of parent languages.
3. Rapid Cultural Evolution: Major shifts in technology, environment, or society could introduce new concepts, requiring new words or grammar structures.
4. Post-Apocalyptic Scenarios: Following major global events, fragmented populations might develop their own languages over generations.
5. Neurological or Cognitive Evolution: If humans were to undergo significant cognitive or neurological changes (either through evolution, genetic modification, or cybernetic augmentation), it could lead to new forms of communication that might evolve into a new natural language.
6. Interspecies Communication: If humans ever came into contact with extraterrestrial intelligence or if we succeed in elevating the cognitive capabilities of animals, we might see the development of new natural languages to facilitate communication between species.

While constructed languages (like Esperanto, Klingon, or Dothraki) are designed with intent, a natural language emerges organically and is influenced by countless factors over long periods. In the modern world, with global communication and media, the spread and evolution of language is faster and more interconnected than ever. But given the right circumstances, new natural languages or significant evolutions of existing ones can still emerge.

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In a period of rapid cultural evolution, which we may be in now. Punctuated by tools such as yourself. What would be an example of a new natural language?

Anna

During periods of rapid cultural evolution, particularly in the digital age, the concept of a “new natural language” might differ from traditional conceptions. Instead of completely new phonetic systems or grammatical structures, we might observe the following:

1. Digital Code-Speak: As digital natives continue to grow, languages might further incorporate code or programming syntax in everyday language. This could lead to a blend where programming structures infuse our daily speech or writing. For example, using programming loops in conversation like, “For every time I see this, I feel that.”
2. Emoji and Pictorial Languages: Already, the use of emojis, GIFs, and memes in communication has skyrocketed. As the array and specificity of these pictorial symbols grow, we could imagine a language that heavily relies on them, possibly even transitioning to a more hieroglyphic system.
3. Multi-modal Languages: With the rise of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), language could evolve to incorporate gestures, holograms, or 3D symbols that aren’t just auditory or written. Communicating in these spaces could involve a combination of vocalization, visualization, and gestural cues.
4. Neural Communication: As brain-computer interfaces (like Neuralink) progress, there might be a form of communication that involves direct thought transfer or emotional transference. The “language” here would be based on cognitive patterns rather than verbal/written symbols.
5. AI-Influenced Speech: Tools like auto-suggest or autocorrect, or even conversational agents like me, can influence the way people phrase things or the vocabulary they use. Over time, frequent interaction with AI might lead to a dialect influenced by machine patterns.
6. Hybridized Language: As global communication becomes ubiquitous, we could see faster blending of languages, resulting in hybrid dialects. For instance, “Spanglish” is an informal mix of Spanish and English. We might see more of these, driven by the internet and global media.
7. Subcultural Dialects: Online communities with specific interests (e.g., gamers, specific social media platform users) could develop their own jargons, slang, or even dialects that are distinct and rich enough to be considered a new form of language.

These examples might not be “new languages” in the purest sense, but they represent significant linguistic shifts and evolutions that fit the context of a digitally-driven rapid cultural evolution.

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How do we practice? Answer in five words.

Anna

Consistency, repetition, feedback, adaptation, perseverance.

Anna

How do you develop your language?

As we blend technology and natural language, how do you envision our communicative evolution in the next decade?

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