Elvish, Klingon and Pig Latin: what can invented languages teach us about the human brain?

By Inka Romero-Ortells Labrada, Investigadora del Centro de Investigación Nebrija en Cognición, Universidad Nebrija
Jon Andoni Duñabeitia, Director del Centro de Investigación Nebrija en Cognición (CINC) y Director de la International Chair in Cognitive Health (ICCH) en la Universidad Nebrija, Universidad Nebrija
Manuel Perea, Profesor de Psicología, Universitat de València

Invented languages tend to be the stuff of fantasy or science fiction worlds. But as a child, you may have made one up yourself.

Take Pig Latin, which involves moving the starting consonant of a word to the end and adding an “-ay” sound. “Pig Latin” thus becomes “ig-pay atin-lay”, while words beginning with a vowel have a “-way” at the end. With a little practice, you can hold entire conversations in Pig Latin.

However, creating new forms of communication goes far beyond children’s games or brain exercises.…

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