Volapük

American  

[voh-luh-pyk] / ˌvoʊ ləˈpük /

Also Volapuk

noun

1. one of the earliest of the artificially constructed international auxiliary languages, invented about 1879.

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Volapuk British  

/ ˈvɒləˌpʊk /

noun

1. an artificial language based on English, French, German, Latin, etc, invented by Johann Schleyer (1831–1912) in 1880

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Other Word Forms

• Volapukist noun

Etymology

Origin of Volapük

1880–85; vol, representing world + -a- connecting vowel + pük, representing speak

Example Sentences

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

From Slate • Oct. 30, 2019

According to its own Wikipedia page, it has 17 million entries in more than 250 languages—including 118,000 in Volapük.

From BusinessWeek • Jan. 6, 2011

Volapük was almost the first real attempt at an organic language capable of being used for the oral transmission of thought.

From The Task of Social Hygiene by Ellis, Havelock

The striking success of Volapük and Esperanto in gaining, within a few years of publication, many thousands of ardent supporters has also been a revelation.

From International Language Past, Present and Future: With Specimens of Esperanto and Grammar by Clark, Walter John

Why Esperanto should be condemned for the sins of Volapük is not obvious.

From International Language Past, Present and Future: With Specimens of Esperanto and Grammar by Clark, Walter John