Press: Na'vi goes viral as creator visits Perth

[Payoang]

http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/navi-goes-viral-as-creator-visits-perth-20101018-16qqg.html?autostart=1

If Klingon is the king of languages crafted for film, Avatar's Na'vi is fast becoming the prince, with online communities springing up to teach it and a recent US invitation-only convention garnering avid fans from as far as Europe.

The language's creator Professor Paul Frommer said he did not underestimate the power of the internet in fuelling people's desire to learn the language spoken by the fictional Na'vi people who inhabit the planet Pandora in the 2009 James Cameron film.

It has even been picked up by television-musical phenomenon Glee, with new student Sam Evans uttering a phrase that sparked pages of Na'vi forum comments, debating everything from what Sam actually said to whether he used the correct pronunciation.



There's also the @LearnNavi Twitter feed and a free iPhone and iPad app was released last week.

Websites spruiking the "concise Na'vi dictionary" and "Na'vi in a nutshell" have succeeded in splitting Avatar fans into two schools of thought, where some say words for objects known on earth like tables shouldn't be translated into Na'vi because the indigenous people would not have been exposed to them.

Others say Avatar's sky-people may have spoken about earth and it would be legitimate for such words to be created.

"It's a labour of love, it's remarkable. I'm still the decider and nothing is officially recognised until I put my stamp on it," Professor Frommer said.

"There are a lot of people who are suggesting some very good developments and they really want to use it as a genuine means of communication but you need more than 1300 – 1400 words for that."

There is even an Australian link to the language. Professor Frommer said Na'vi shares a tripartite grammatical system with the Aboriginal language Wangkumara, spoken in Queensland but which may now be extinct.

Professor Frommer can't say whether he's been asked to continue developing the language and coaching actors for Avatar's sequel but he has embarked on a whirlwind speaking tour, which will culminate in visits to Perth on November 5, Melbourne and Sydney.

"I just attended the first Na'vi convention and workshop by invitation only and there were people who flew in from Europe," he said.

"These were the leaders of the Na'vi community the ones who are the teachers and one of them was a young man from France who had seen the movie in theatres 33 times."

He said it was a thrill to hear a language that took five years to perfect and countless hours on film sets coaching actors to use the correct pronunciation.

"This whole thing has been kind of surreal, it was a lot of fun and it was challenging at times because the actors had a very difficult job ahead of them in terms of the language," he said.

"They had to memorise this stuff that no one had ever heard before, they had to make it sound convincing, like they'd been speaking it all their lives."

Perth's Sam Worthington, who starred in Avatar as human Jake Sully, had the easiest job of the seven actors who had to learn phrases in the language, Professor Frommer said.

One of his favourite parts of the film was when Pandora native Neytiri gives Jake a Na'vi lesson, but his mangled attempt at saying the word 'eye' or 'nari' prompts a frustrated slap from Neytiri.

"Sam was not acting in that scene, he in fact cannot pronounce the 'r' sound, so he was just coming out with the best he could do," he said.

When Professor Frommer fronts this year's National Conference for Translators and Interpreters in Fremantle he will be giving a short lesson in Na'vi, which may include his favourite word, a difficult clash of vowels.

"Meoauniaea, which means harmony and living at one with nature," he said.

[Ekirä]

This is so cool. I personally rather liked this quote:

If Klingon is the king of languages crafted for film, Avatar's Na'vi is fast becoming the prince

Wonder how long it will take for the prince to overthrow the king.

[Nyx]

It has even been picked up by television-musical phenomenon Glee, with new student Sam Evans uttering a phrase that sparked pages of Na'vi forum comments, debating everything from what Sam actually said to whether he used the correct pronunciation.

Haha, we're such nerds

I haven't seen many articles that mention learnnavi.org this much, this is cool!

['Oma Tirea]

This is so cool. I personally rather liked this quote:

If Klingon is the king of languages crafted for film, Avatar's Na'vi is fast becoming the prince

Wonder how long it will take for the prince to overthrow the king.

Mllte nìwotx.  This is interesting

[Toruk Makto]

"Spruiking"?  Must be an aussie term.   

[Ekirä]

"Spruiking"?  Must be an aussie term.   

I wondered about this too. I looked it up:

Spruik [sprook]
–verb (used without object) Australian Slang .
to make or give a speech, esp. extensively or elaborately; spiel; orate.

You were right on it being an Aussie term.

[Toruk Makto]

Oh, and the You-tube "lesson" example was probably not one of the better ones...  

[Txonä Unil Stä'nìyu Rolyusì]

Oeru teya si nìngay fwa fì'uti tsive'eia! Ke tsun oe spivaw futa lì'fya leNa'vi verirä fìtxan nìwin! Sìlpey oe tsnì Karyu Pawl 'ayì'awn karyu lì'fyayä fpi Uniltìrantokx frakrr ulte tsnì po zaya'u ne "Portland, OR" fte pivlltxe lì'fyateri ye'rìn. 'Ivong Na'vi! *

-Txonä Rolyu

[Ekirä]

Oh, and the You-tube "lesson" example was probably not one of the better ones...  

Yeah....I just watched it....made me wince.

Kältxi? Ouch.

[Nyx]

From the clip: "...or you could salew wrrpa" xD
How about learning Na'vi outside? Am I missing their point? Haha

[Tsäroltxe te Eyrutì Tantse'itan]

I'm going to have to quote Darth Sidious now.

Anakin!  The Na'vi are taking over!

Also, this is cool.

[Kemaweyan]

Wou! Txantsana fmawn nìgay. Irayo
Wow! Really excellent news. Thanks

[DJ Makto]

If Klingon is the king of languages crafted for film, Avatar's Na'vi is fast becoming the prince

I for one welcome our new Na'vi language overlords.  

[Kì'eyawn]

Joy.  I has it 

[Nìwotxkrr Tìyawn]

I was happy , now i'm not . I just watched the video that's on the site. Completely condescending towards us and others like us, just a real jerk.

[Seze]

...and a free iPhone and iPad app was released last week.

WOU, my App got mentioned in an actual news article!!!   

[`Eylan Ayfalulukanä]

Good article, DREADFUL video. The tone and inflection of the speaker suggests that he thinks we are a bunch of ayskxawng. 'Too much imagination'? I wonder where that speaking example came from? I bet most of the learners here could do better.

[Seze]

I wonder where that speaking example came from? I bet most of the learners here could do better.

That youtube video was from way back during the time of the first posts.  I'm guessing late December or early January if my memory is correct...

Edit:
I found the video on Youtube.  My guess on date was right on, December 23, 2009.  Most definitely from the time of the first posts.  This forum was only 2 days old when that video was posted...

[Kì'eyawn]

Hmph.  Yeah, the video wouldn't load for me until now.  It's a bit...dismissive, isn't it.

[Toruk Makto]

Yet another "journalist" fails to research his story properly.
*sigh*

ta Markì