�մDZ�����ü��

Though “conlangs” are not a new phenomenon—Esperanto and �մDZ�����ü�� were 19th-century examples—they have exploded since 1990.

A German Catholic priest tried to make “�մDZ�����ü��” catch on seven years earlier, but it died out because, “he didn’t want anyone else to make decisions about it,” says Arika Okrent, linguist and author of In the Land of Invented Languages.

The late 19th century was the heyday of the artificial language, and before Esperanto, an artificial language called �մDZ�����ü�� was all the rage, with almost a million speakers across Europe.

After two days came a message couched in Volapuk or some other hybrid combination, which led him to believe that his property had been started for London.

“A kind of animal Volapuk,” said the Colonel laughing.