neudlal

Neudlal is a constructed language (conlang) developed for speculative-fiction settings. It was created by linguist and author Mira Kasten in 2016 to populate the fictional world of her series The Valley of Whispers. Since its introduction, Neudlal has appeared in novels, companion guides, and fan-created materials, and it has attracted a small online community of learners and language hobbyists who study its grammar and vocabulary.

Linguistic features: Neudlal follows a subject–object–verb (SOV) word order and uses postpositions rather than prepositions. It is predominantly agglutinative, attaching suffixes to nouns to mark case and number, and to verbs to indicate tense, aspect, mood, and evidentiality. The phonology centers on five vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and a modest consonant inventory that includes p, t, k, m, n, s, l, r, and h, with no phonemic tone. The writing system is Latin-based, with diacritics in some editions to indicate vowel length. Dictionaries and grammars describe a core vocabulary derived from natural-language roots, supplemented by frequently used function words.

Usage and reception: In-world, Neudlal is used in formal diplomacy, ceremonial speech, and literature, while everyday dialogue blends loanwords from neighboring languages in the imagined setting. Outside fiction, learning resources—grammars, phrasebooks, and example dialogues—are circulated by the author and fan communities. Neudlal is cited as an accessible yet expressive conlang that demonstrates conventional morphology and consistent syntax without sacrificing naturalism.