Interlingua

SPOKEN BY

Interlingua is spoken by those who wish to learn the constructed language.

DOCUMENTED BY

The International Auxiliary Language Association (IALA) developed Interlingua between 1935 and 1951, and then promoted the language as something that would allow scientists who spoke different languages to communicate their theories and findings.

BEHIND THE WORDS

Several large organizations provided the financing for the development of Interlingua, including the Rockefeller Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation. William E. Collinson, a professor at the University of Liverpool and an experienced Esperantist, began compiling the vocabulary of the language between 1936 and 1939. He drew for words on Europe’s major Romance languages; thus Interlingua does not have a constructed vocabulary but an extracted one. During World War II, the work on the language moved to New York and was completed in 1951 with the publication of the Interlingua-English Dictionary, containing more than 27,000 words. Today that compilation has expanded to more than 60,000 words.

DERIVATION OF THE LANGUAGE

The language has no grammar rule that doesn’t also appear in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, and English. If even one of those languages does not address the grammatical issue, Interlingua does not include the rule.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE LANGUAGE

Nouns have no gender.

Plurals are formed by adding -s or -es to the end of the noun.

Word order is generally subject-verb-object.

A TASTE OF THE LANGUAGE

annello (noun)—ring

aqua (noun)—water

attaccar (verb)—to attack

ave (noun)—bird

campana (noun)—bell

coragiose (adjective)—brave

dinar (noun)—dinner

estate (noun)—summer

gamba (noun)—leg

hiberno (noun)—winter

incendio (noun)—fire

mangiar (verb)—to eat

nigre (adjective)—black

ovo (noun)—egg

patre (noun)—father

prender (verb)—to take

riviera (noun)—river

serpente (noun)—serpent

sol (noun)—sun

verde (adjective)—green

SOME USEFUL PHRASES

Como sta vos? (How are you?)

Parla plus lentemente, per favor. (Please speak more slowly.)

Ubi es le lavatorio? (Where is the bathroom?)

Qunto costa isto? (How much is this?)

NUMBERING SYSTEM

un—one

duo—two

tres—three

quatro—four

cinque—five

sex—six

septe—seven

octo—eight

nove—nine

dece—ten

THE LORD’S PRAYER

Patre nostre, qui es in le celos,

que sia sanctificate tu nomine;

que veni tu regno;

in le celo como etiam super le terra

Da nos pan nostre quotidian hodie,

e pardona a nos nostre debitas

como nos pardona los a nostre debitores

e non duce nos in tentation,

sed libera nos del mal.

PHILOLOGICAL FACT

Alice Vanderbilt Morris (1874–1950) of the Vanderbilt family and her husband Dave Hennen Morris founded the International Auxiliary Language Association in 1924.

IF YOU’RE INTERESTING IN LEARNING THE LANGUAGE

The Societate American pro Interlingua (www.interlingua.us) is presented in Interlingua, although there is a link, “An Overview of Interlingua for English Speakers,” that leads to an essay that covers the basics of the language.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Review the works listed above, the resources listed in the bibliography, and the web page: “Concise English-Interlingua Dictionary” (www.interlingua.com/an/ceid).

SPEAKING OF LANGUAGES

“A language is a dialect with an army and a navy.”

—Linguist Max Weinreich, quoting someone
who audited of one of his courses