UPDATE: See and hear the language students created in Spring 2017.
UAF Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Linguistics Robin Shoaps wants to bring conlang enthusiasts and the field of linguistics closer together so she is developing a new course called “Elvish, Klingon & Dothraki: The Art & Science of Language Creation.” In this course students will build off popular culture and the work of hobbyist groups in the area of “conlang,” or constructed languages.
The course is open to non-majors and is planned to be offered at the 200 level. The product of the course will be a new, collaboratively constructed language. Students will draw from the applied study of both real world languages and constructed languages to create their own “conlang” and publish their results as a multimedia-rich presentation for the linguistics and hobbyist community.
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the course’s development.
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Communications Manager
Karina has worked in higher education for over 15 years. Her passion for learning began at an early age when she learned how to speak English after moving from the tropic to the Arctic. Since then Karina has moved from one classroom to another — on campus, online, or overseas. She’s an alumna of UAF and UAA where she studied biology, psychology, and public health. Karina currently teaches for the UAF College of Indigenous Studies and UAF Community and Technical College.