The Minions Language Based language that I know about conlangs , this is one that I identify and articles about this language. “You don’t understand their words, you don’t understand their grammar, but you do understand when they’re in a position of conflict, if they’re sad or if they’re happy,” Coffin said in the production notes. First, in order to help him visualize how these characters would physicalize their language, he looked to his heroes in the silent film era for guidance. “When you look at the history of films, they start out as being totally mute with actors like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. Those guys were the best storytellers ever, and it goes across generations," Coffin said. "I showed my kids The Gold Rush, and they loved it. There are no words in it, obviously, but they were just hooked on the visuals. Everything was so timed and well-executed without any language. The Minions are all about that. They’re this legacy of silent films, except that we stuck ridiculous words on them.” The Minions have been around for a long, long time, and, as a nomadic tribe in search of their next master, have absorbed bits of many languages as they've traversed the globe. The etymology of Minionese includes the basics of ancient Egyptian (they worked for the Pharaoh), a dash of high-society French (they backed Napoleon), some proper Transylvanian (from their time serving Count Dracula), all the way back to the grunts and grrrs of early Homo sapiens. The fact that they inadvertently topple every master they serve, up until Gru, explains why their language is so rich and varied—they are always on the move again after putting an end to the regime of whatever tyrannical master they had chosen. With this history spelled out, Coffin could then plunge into developing the unique vocalizations and intonations that differentiate Kevin, Stuart and Bob, as well as flesh out Minionese.