ULD update

 
So! I’ve resumed work on my quirky polyglot vocabulary called the Universal Language Dictionary. Abandoning version 2.7 and starting 3.0

For now, I am defining each concept in English, and then attempting to list the corresponding words in English, Japanese, Esperanto, and Papiamentu (the Curaçao variety of Papiamento).

Later, I hope to go back and add more languages. For the time being I want all the information to flow through my own fingers and brain. At some point in the future I might invite volunteers to add even more languages, especially conlangs. If I unexpectedly become wealthy, I will hire people to add languages.

Each entry in ULD3 has a random/arbitrary 4-digit ID number. You will be able to arrange the entries in any order you like by editing the sequence.txt file.

And here is a small sample of the lexicon file in ULD format: www.uld3.org/uld3/ULD3.txt (Obviously, it would be trivial to convert ULD format to XML.)

I had to switch from using sequential ID numbers for the entries to random numbers in order to keep myself from endlessly tinkering with the numbering scheme.

Writing new, clearer definitions of the concepts uses a bit of energy. Of course I take inspiration from existing dictionaries, including the 1913 Webster, but I also have to wrestle with my own ideas of what is needed for basic vocabulary creation, and what concepts can easily be glossed in the natlangs that I’m vaguely familiar with. It’s a wrestling match of astronomical proportions.

The project is a little humbler now. Maybe the pompous “Universal” should be removed from the name.