Esperanto
Constructed (a posteriori)
Also known as: Esperanto
Esperanto is the most widely-spoken constructed language, created by L. L. Zamenhof (a Polish-Jewish ophthalmologist from Białystok, then Russian Empire) and published in his 1887 Unua Libro under the pseudonym "Doktoro Esperanto" ("one who hopes"). Designed as a politically-neutral international auxiliary language (IAL) with regular grammar (16 fundamental rules with no exceptions), invariable affixes, and a vocabulary drawn 80% from Romance languages (Latin, French, Italian, Spanish), 20% from Germanic and Slavic. Phonology: 5-vowel inventory (a/e/i/o/u), penultimate stress, no homophones. Speaker estimates range from ~30K to ~2M depending on definition; ~1-2K native L1 speakers from Esperanto-speaking families (denaskuloj). Recognised by UNESCO in 1954 (Montevideo Resolution) and 1985 endorsement; Universala Esperanto-Asocio (UEA) holds annual world congresses since 1905. Notable achievements: William Auld's Esperanto poetry was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Esperanto
Water
akvo
/ˈakvo/
Fire
fajro
/ˈfajro/
Sun
suno
/ˈsuno/
Moon
luno
/ˈluno/
Mother
patrino
/paˈtrino/
Father
patro
/ˈpatro/
Eat
manĝi
/ˈmandʒi/
Drink
trinki
/ˈtrinki/
Love
amo
/ˈamo/
Heart
koro
/ˈkoro/
Tree
arbo
/ˈarbo/
House
domo
/ˈdomo/
Dog
hundo
/ˈhundo/
Cat
kato
/ˈkato/
Hand
mano
/ˈmano/
Eye
okulo
/oˈkulo/
Hello
saluton
/saˈluton/
Thank you
dankon
/ˈdankon/
One
unu
/ˈunu/
Good
bona
/ˈbona/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Constructed (a posteriori) languages
| Meaning | Esperanto | Old Italian (Dantesque) | Chavacano | Old Spanish | Golden Age Spanish (Siglo de Oro) | Romagnol | Emilian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | akvo /ˈakvo/ | acqua /ˈakːwa/ | agua /ˈaɡwa/ | agua /ˈaɣwa/ | agua /ˈaɣwa/ | acua /ˈakwa/ | âcua /ˈakwa/ |
| Fire | fajro /ˈfajro/ | foco /ˈfɔko/ | fuego /ˈfweɡo/ | fuego /ˈfweɣo/ | fuego /ˈfweɣo/ | fugh /ˈfuɡ/ | fôg /ˈfoɡ/ |
| Sun | suno /ˈsuno/ | sole /ˈsole/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sol /sol/ | sòl /ˈsɔl/ | sôl /ˈsoːl/ |
| Moon | luno /ˈluno/ | luna /ˈluna/ | luna /ˈluna/ | luna /ˈluna/ | luna /ˈluna/ | lónna /ˈlonːa/ | lónna /ˈlonːa/ |
| Mother | patrino /paˈtrino/ | madre /ˈmaːdre/ | nana /ˈnana/ | madre /ˈmaðre/ | madre /ˈmadɾe/ | mêdar /ˈmeːdaɾ/ | mèder /ˈmɛdɛɾ/ |
| Father | patro /ˈpatro/ | padre /ˈpaːdre/ | tata /ˈtata/ | padre /ˈpaðre/ | padre /ˈpadɾe/ | pêdar /ˈpeːdaɾ/ | pèder /ˈpɛdɛɾ/ |
| Eat | manĝi /ˈmandʒi/ | mangiare /manˈd͡ʒare/ | come /koˈme/ | comer /koˈmeɾ/ | comer /koˈmeɾ/ | mâgna /ˈmaɲa/ | magnèr /maˈɲɛɾ/ |
| Drink | trinki /ˈtrinki/ | bevere /ˈbevere/ | bebe /beˈbe/ | bever /beˈveɾ/ | beuer /beˈβeɾ/ | bér /ˈbeɾ/ | bevvre /ˈbevːɾe/ |
| Love | amo /ˈamo/ | amore /aˈmore/ | ama /ˈama/ | amor /aˈmoɾ/ | amor /aˈmoɾ/ | amour /aˈmouɾ/ | amôr /aˈmoːɾ/ |
| Heart | koro /ˈkoro/ | core /ˈkɔre/ | corazón /koraˈson/ | coraçón /koɾaˈt͡son/ | coraçón /koɾaˈt͡son/ | côr /ˈkoːɾ/ | côr /ˈkoːɾ/ |
| Tree | arbo /ˈarbo/ | albero /ˈalbero/ | árbol /ˈaɾbol/ | árbor /ˈaɾβoɾ/ | árbol /ˈaɾβol/ | arbal /ˈaɾbal/ | arbal /ˈaɾbal/ |
| House | domo /ˈdomo/ | casa /ˈkasa/ | casa /ˈkasa/ | casa /ˈkaza/ | casa /ˈkasa/ | ca /ˈka/ | cà /ˈka/ |
| Dog | hundo /ˈhundo/ | cane /ˈkane/ | perro /ˈpeɾo/ | can /kan/ | perro /ˈpero/ | can /ˈkan/ | can /ˈkan/ |
| Cat | kato /ˈkato/ | gatto /ˈɡatːo/ | gato /ˈɡato/ | gato /ˈɡato/ | gato /ˈɡato/ | gâta /ˈɡaːta/ | gât /ˈɡat/ |
| Hand | mano /ˈmano/ | mano /ˈmano/ | mano /ˈmano/ | mano /ˈmano/ | mano /ˈmano/ | mân /ˈmaːn/ | mân /ˈman/ |
| Eye | okulo /oˈkulo/ | occhio /ˈɔkːjo/ | ojo /ˈoho/ | ojo /ˈoʒo/ | ojo /ˈoʃo/ | ucc /ˈutʃ/ | ucc /ˈutʃ/ |
| Hello | saluton /saˈluton/ | salute /saˈlute/ | buenas /ˈbwenas/ | salud /saˈlud/ | Dios os guarde /djos os ˈɡwaɾde/ | ciô /ˈtʃoː/ | cciô /ˈtʃoː/ |
| Thank you | dankon /ˈdankon/ | mercede /merˈt͡ʃede/ | gracias /ˈɡɾasjas/ | mercedes /meɾˈt͡seðes/ | gracias /ˈɡɾat͡sjas/ | gras /ˈɡɾas/ | gràzie /ˈɡɾaːtsje/ |
| One | unu /ˈunu/ | uno /ˈuno/ | uno /ˈuno/ | uno /ˈuno/ | uno /ˈuno/ | ón /ˈon/ | un /ˈun/ |
| Good | bona /ˈbona/ | buono /ˈbwɔno/ | bueno /ˈbweno/ | bono /ˈbono/ | bueno /ˈbweno/ | bón /ˈbon/ | bón /ˈbon/ |
Word order compared
Compare with major world languages
Compare with closely-related languages
Part of LangMap — a linguistic visualization project. This is a static, crawlable summary; the interactive maps offer pronunciation audio, filters, and a globe view.