Conlangers' Calendar Add to google calendar
 
May 2020
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George Psalmanazar died, 1763.
He claimed to be the first Formosan to visit Europe. For some years he convinced many in Britain, but was later revealed to be an impostor. In 1704 Psalmanazar published a book entitled An Historical and Geographical Description of Formosa, an Island subject to the Emperor of Japan which purported to be a detailed description of Formosan customs, geography and political economy, but which was in fact a complete invention. The "facts" contained in the book were an amalgam of other travel reports, and were especially influenced by accounts of the Aztec and Inca civilization in the New World and by embellished descriptions of Japan. Psalmanazar's book also described the Formosan language and alphabet, which is significant for being an early example of a constructed language. His efforts in this regard were so convincing that German grammarians were including samples of his so-called "Formosan alphabet" in books of languages well into the 18th century, even after his larger imposture had been exposed.
May 3
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Afrikaans becomes an official language, 1925.
Previously it had been considered a simplified Dutchdialect.
May 5
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U.S. premiere of The Fifth Element (movie), 1997, featuring the Universal Language created by Luc Besson and refined by Milla Jovovich.
May 9
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Feast Day of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, creators of Cyrillic alphabet (Eastern Orthodox Calendar)
May 11
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Dr. Victoria Fromkin, creator of Pakuni, born, 1923
May 16
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In the Land of Invented Languages by Arika Okrent published, 2009.
May 19
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Cyrillic Alphabet Day
May 24
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