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Interlingua, a created language. If you know a Romance language, you can probably read it. (I don't know one, but I've had enough exposure to French and Italian in class and enough knowledge of Latin roots that I can read most of it. Not quickly, but enough to get the gist.)

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...All I can think of when reading that is "Finally! A language where my annoying tendency to try to combine my limited knowledge of French and Spanish into one language actually could be helpful!"

Same here!

Now, remembering how, inexplicably, my French started coming back when I was in Japan, if only there was a language that combined French and Japanese, I'd be halfway there! XD

Oh, cool. I can actually read that pretty well!

I was most intrigued by the way it apparently helps people learn Romance languages - there's a mention in the English Wikipedia version of the article that says a class of Interlingua learners were able to translate a Spanish text when a class of Spanish learners couldn't. I can see why - you're learning word roots and not the grammars of the individual languages with Interlingua, and you can usually glean the meaning from context if you know the words. (It's how I read Italian with a dictionary. XD)

That's fascinating! I was just thinking that this was easy to understand, but I wouldn't have the first clue how to actually put a sentence together myself - that's exactly what you say about the word roots.

And you know what? I've forgotten what French and Spanish I once knew, but the phonetic systems clearly have embedded themselves in my brain - I "hear" some of the words in Spanish, others in French. (And the rest in Latin as pronounced by a German. *g*)

I can read that at speed with about 90% comprehension. Which is weird because if it were in Spanish I'd only get about 40% comprehension at the same rate of speed.

Intriguing.

Probably because the grammar is simplified?

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Hee!

I have a mad desire to learn it now, especially after I read in the English Wikipedia version that knowing it makes learning Romance languages much easier. XD

Wow, cool!

I wasn't fast, but there was maybe one word in the first paragraph that really I wasn't sure of and it wasn't necessary to understand the jist of the sentence, I just felt I was missing some nuance. I kind of want to try to learn it now, too....

Knowing this probably would make learning romance languages lots easier -it seems like a much simpler version of Latin, and most romance languages suddenly start making sense if you know that one a bit. Kind of silly that they missed the opportunity to stamp out the concept of masculine and feminine nouns once and for all. *still suffering grammar-related traumas from Latin class, because the Romans had no TV and so whiled away the evenings making up new word categories and inflections and rule exceptions for fun*

Sometimes I wish I'd had the opportunity to learn Latin when I was younger. Then I remember how difficult I find all the grammar in learning any language and realize I'd have hated Latin class just as much as any other language class. XD

They said we had to learn Latin because it would make learning other languages easier for us later, and they were absolutely right, because after Latin you laugh in the face of any stupid little grammar that thinks it's all grown up and complicated ;) In all seriousness, it did help and I'm glad I learned it (or sort of learned it). All the fascinating history surrounding the language does make up for the crazy grammar.

Pretty cool! I got a lot of it with fair Spanish knowledge. Would be a great language for travelers.

That is super fantastic. My dad would love it - he's one of those Esperanto freaks. :)

I've friended you on Twitter for Echo Bazaar, BTW - I'm just starting out. It's the best thing to play here while working at the library EVER. I'm pigtailninja on Twitter.

That was indeed scarily readable.

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