# Klingon language
**Klingon** (tlhIngan-Hol, pronounced roughly "TLHING-an-hol") is a constructed language created by the linguist [Marc Okrand](https://www.edgepedia.org/marc-okrand) in 1984 for the Klingon characters of the *Star Trek* franchise. It holds the [ISO 639-2](https://www.edgepedia.org/iso-639-2) code "tlh", and is described in Okrand's *The Klingon Dictionary*, first published in 1985.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) • [2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) • [3](https://loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/langcodes_name.php?code_ID=452)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Creator | Marc Okrand, a linguist, created the language in 1984; the first few words were coined by actor James Doohan for *Star Trek: The Motion Picture* (1979)[2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) |
| Core reference | *The Klingon Dictionary* (TKD), 1985; second edition 1992; *Klingon for the Galactic Traveler* (KGT), September 1997[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) • [2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) |
| Word order | Object-verb-subject (OVS), a pattern found in very few of the world's languages[2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) |
| Vocabulary | A few thousand words[4](https://daily.jstor.org/why-we-love-klingon-art-of-constructed-languages/) |
| Speakers | A small number able to converse in Klingon, with maybe several hundred others having some knowledge[5](https://omniglot.com/conscripts/klingon.htm) |
| Institutional status | ISO 639-2 code "tlh" (Klingon; tlhIngan-Hol); Klingon Language Institute founded 1992 with proficiency certification[3](https://loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/langcodes_name.php?code_ID=452) • [1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) |
| Dictionary sales | Over 300,000 copies of *The Klingon Dictionary* sold[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) |
## History and development
The language began as a handful of sounds. For *Star Trek: The Motion Picture*, released in 1979, the actor [James Doohan](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-doohan), who played Montgomery Scott, coined the first few Klingon words.[2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) When later films needed extended Klingon dialogue, Marc Okrand, a linguist, created a speakable language for *Star Trek III* in 1984.[2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) • [4](https://daily.jstor.org/why-we-love-klingon-art-of-constructed-languages/)
**Design under constraint.** Paramount wanted the language to sound guttural and harsh, and Okrand wanted it to sound unusual, so he selected sounds that combined in ways not typically found in other languages.[6](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/sounds-of-klingon/)
Okrand published his description as *The Klingon Dictionary* in 1985. A second edition with modifications and addendums appeared in 1992, and *Klingon for the Galactic Traveler* came out in September 1997. The dictionary has been translated into German, Czech, Italian, and Portuguese.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) • [2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394)
## Phonology and writing
Every Klingon sound occurs individually in existing human languages, but no single language uses the entire collection. The combinations are deliberately atypical: the language has a retroflex D alongside a dental t, but no retroflex T and no dental d, so the two series cross-cut in a way natural languages rarely show.[6](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/sounds-of-klingon/)
**Writing.** Astra Image Corporation designed Klingon letters for *Star Trek: The Motion Picture*, based on symbols created by Matt Jefferies.[5](https://omniglot.com/conscripts/klingon.htm)
## Grammar
Klingon's standard word order is object-verb-subject (OVS), a feature found in very few of the world's languages.[2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394) A typological analysis of the language concluded that, despite features rarely found in other object-verb languages, Klingon is a consistently OV language, fitting the generalizations linguists have established for object-verb languages worldwide.[2](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394)
## Vocabulary and canon
Klingon's vocabulary is a few thousand words.[4](https://daily.jstor.org/why-we-love-klingon-art-of-constructed-languages/) Okrand continues to expand the language, providing additional vocabulary and grammatical clarification through consultation with his purported Klingon informant, Maltz.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/)
**Canon.** As the inventor of the language and author of *The Klingon Dictionary*, Okrand's pronouncements are considered the standard of correctness, called "canon", by the community.[7](https://klingonwiki.net/En/MainPage) New words are revealed at the community's annual gatherings: over 100 country names were revealed at qep'a' 2023, and roughly 70 new words were revealed at qepHom 2023.[7](https://klingonwiki.net/En/MainPage)
## By the numbers
- Over 300,000 copies of *The Klingon Dictionary* sold.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/)
- A small number of people able to converse in Klingon, and maybe several hundred others with some knowledge of the language.[5](https://omniglot.com/conscripts/klingon.htm)
- A few thousand words of vocabulary.[4](https://daily.jstor.org/why-we-love-klingon-art-of-constructed-languages/)
- Over 100 country names revealed at qep'a' 2023; roughly 70 new words at qepHom 2023.[7](https://klingonwiki.net/En/MainPage)
## Community and practical use
Dr. Lawrence Schoen founded the [Klingon Language Institute](https://www.edgepedia.org/klingon-language-institute) (KLI) in 1992. The organization facilitates communication among Klingonists through publications, language proficiency certification, and an annual conference.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/)
**Literary translation.** The KLI has published Klingon editions of *Hamlet*, the [Tao Te Ching](https://www.edgepedia.org/tao-te-ching) (*pIn'a' qan paQDI'norgh*), and [Gilgamesh](https://www.edgepedia.org/gilgamesh) (*ghIlghameS*), and Klingon versions of *Much Ado About Nothing* (*paghmo' tIn mIS*) also exist.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) • [5](https://omniglot.com/conscripts/klingon.htm) *The Little Prince* was published in Klingon in October 2018.[7](https://klingonwiki.net/En/MainPage)
**Performance and media.** An original Klingon opera, *'u'*, has been written and performed, and a Klingon-language stage adaptation of Dickens' *A Christmas Carol* played in four cities over seven years.[1](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/) In March 2018 Duolingo launched its Klingon course.[7](https://klingonwiki.net/En/MainPage)
## Comparison with other constructed languages
Klingon belongs to a different category from [Esperanto](https://www.edgepedia.org/esperanto). Unlike Esperanto, fictional languages such as Klingon have often been created with real linguistic complexity and were not necessarily intended for everyday use.[4](https://daily.jstor.org/why-we-love-klingon-art-of-constructed-languages/) Despite that design intent, Klingon is really spoken: a 1997 French interlinguistics study in *Linx* set out to define the status of an artificial, "fancy" but really spoken language, examining how English metalanguage mediates its learning and the sociolinguistic questions it raises on the web.[8](https://doi.org/10.3406/linx.1997.1464)
## References
1. [Development and Use of the Klingon Language, Klingon Language Institute](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/klingon-history/)
2. [Hol Sarmey QeD QulwI' ghItlh: a typological analysis of Klingon (thesis)](https://doi.org/10.26021/4394)
3. [ISO 639-2 Language Code registration for Klingon (tlh), Library of Congress](https://loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/langcodes_name.php?code_ID=452)
4. [Why We Love to Learn Klingon: The Art of Constructed Languages, JSTOR Daily](https://daily.jstor.org/why-we-love-klingon-art-of-constructed-languages/)
5. [Klingon language and alphabet, Omniglot](https://omniglot.com/conscripts/klingon.htm)
6. [Sounds of Klingon, Klingon Language Institute](https://www.kli.org/about-klingon/sounds-of-klingon/)
7. [Klingon Language Wiki, main page](https://klingonwiki.net/En/MainPage)
8. [Métadiscours et enseignement d'une langue artificielle, Linx (1997)](https://doi.org/10.3406/linx.1997.1464)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Languages and linguistics › Languages and dialects › Named languages by region › Named languages overview*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license