Nojalengo

Nojalengo (Νοιαλενγω) is an a posteriori constructed language that began its life in the seventh century AD, when a monk known by the name of Cosmas embarked on a project to create a "lingua communicationis universalis", or a language of universal communication. Suppressed by the Church for over a millennium, in the nineteenth century it was rediscovered and amended by a secretive club of linguists in London.

Cosmas and the lingua communicationis universalis
In the seventh century, a Byzantine monk by the name of Cosmas decided to construct a "lingua communicationis universalis", or a language of universal communication. This project, he believed, would solve conflict and restore peace and harmony the world over; to create an almost Edenic calm to the world. He chose the Greek alphabet, it being the lingua franca for the region where he lived. The roots of the language were taken from a variety of different languages (Cosmas, it is believed, was a talented polyglot), including Germanic, Arabic, Slavic and Romance roots. However, the Church looked down upon Cosmas's works scornfully; it was viewed as disobeying God's will. Their justification was the story of the Tower of Babel; God made people speak different languages so they would not become too powerful. By constructing a universal language that all people could speak, Cosmas was going against God's wishes. The abbot of the monastery where he worked warned him that if he did not stop by his own accord, his work would be punished. These threats did not deter Cosmas, who continued his work on the language. At first, his abbot was taken aback by this blatant rebellion, and begrudgingly let him continue. But after mounting pressure by other Church officials, Cosmas was ordered to stop or be excommunicated. Cosmas stopped his public work on the language, but continued to work in secret long into the night. He wrote manuscripts on and in the language, and hid them away in metal caskets which he buried in the grounds of the monastery. When Cosmas died in around 703AD, he had left behind a grammar of the language and around five thousand words, as well as some small sections of the Gospels translated into Nojalengo. (It is believed by some that Cosmas had helpers in his monastery due to some manuscripts having subtly different handwritings, but these slight variations could just be due to Cosmas's aging.)

The Babelbane Society
In 1865, while on a holiday in Turkey, English eccentric and amateur archaeologist Eberhard Stanbury started digging up a patch of ground near an old stone wall. For several days he dodged Ottoman officials and worked tirelessly, until he uncovered several old vellum-bound manuscripts and illuminations of the Bible, chant books, a variety of monastic possessions and eight metal caskets.