I like Lojban. It is a neat little language with a nice ascetic, to me of course, and a great promise. However, at this xkcd points out, no one speaks Lojban really. One of the major draws of the language is preciseness, something I find a fascinating concept, but also the attitudinal aspect of the language. The wide ranges of emotions let you do simple emotions to fairly complex ones. For example, “.ui” is happy. “.uinai” is unhappy. “-cai” is strong so very happy is “.uicai”. You can do things like scope, I’m mentally happy “.uiro’e”. One of the phrases I use in chat is my pleasure or “.oinairo’e” or “my mental pleasure.” There are more obscure ones, such as “it phyiscally feels good but it makes me unhappy” or “.oinairo’o.uinai”.

One of the reasons Lojban (actually Loglan) was created was to see if language changes how you think. In this case, my view of emotions has changed because of the framework of identifying it. Before, it was fairly easy to say “I’m happy” or “I’m sad” but now, I find myself almost seeing more details in my emotions. That has been a wonderful experience, mainly because I learned more about myself. It also colors what people get in a game, when they can read emotions. There is an incredible complexity to our emotions, and having that framework, even though I don’t use most of the rest of the language heavily, lets me describe it that way.

Give me a language to describe something and then I can describe it.

I also like Lojban because you can use a program (cmafihe) to basically translate it as a form of crib notes.

I also use it to create interesting names for some characters. In Wind, Bear, and Moon, I have Welf’s family, Lurcukla. Lurcukla is basically “lur-” with is short for lunra or moon. “cukla” is round. So, “full moon”. Dyfan Selcribe. Dyfan is one of those names I just like, Selcribe is Lojban. I forgot what I got “sel” from but “cribe” is “bear.” And Sonia Brife, with “brife” being “breeze/wind/gale”. So, wind, bear, and moon. :)