1880–85; vol, representing world + -a- connecting vowel + pük, representing speak
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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
A Volapük Grammar, for the study of the Volapük language, by Prof. Kerchkoffs, translated into English by Karl Dorubush, has lately been published.
From Buchanan's Journal of Man, November 1887 Volume 1, Number 10 by Buchanan, Joseph R. (Joseph Rodes)
Thus the name, Volapük; vola meaning of the world, and pük language.
From Buchanan's Journal of Man, August 1887 Volume 1, Number 7 by Buchanan, Joseph R. (Joseph Rodes)
An exaggeration of Volapük for good and ill.
From International Language Past, Present and Future: With Specimens of Esperanto and Grammar by Clark, Walter John
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
