LL-L "Language status" 2003.01.09 (08) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

Sorry. My PC has a hiccup. RFH
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From: Ed Alexander <edsells at cogeco.ca>
Subject: LL-L "Language policies" 2003.01.09 (07) [E]

At 02:23 PM 01/09/03 -0800, Crisdean Mac Fhearghais wrote:
>It seems in inappropriate and unacceptable for you to be saying you are
>"giving an up to date view of the U.K" - and not to mention Scots in your
>reference to Scotland. Scots is spoken to various degrees by many people in
>Scotland - and has a significant influence on Scottish English ( not the
>same as Scots ). Scots has also a long and prestigious history - and in not
>mentioning Scots as a language I feel in fact you are in fact reinforcing
>traditional stereotypes - by giving the impression that Scots is a dialect
>of English - which it how it will be perceived by people visiting
>Scotland -as this is the impression that has been given to them.

Of course, this is one possibility.  However, by analogy, one does not
exclude women when one refers to "mankind" or "chairman" or the like, since
one of the original meanings of the word we spell "man" meant
"person".  Likewise, I don't think it irrational to presume that "Jamaican"
and "Appalachian" and "Scots" are all "dialects" of English - meaning they
have a common ancestry, and NOT referring to them as offshoots of the
"dialect" that developed from this ancestor in the southern parts of the
British Isles.  Of course, we all have to go around saying such things as
"Madam Chairperson", "Low Saxon" instead of "Low German", and I don't think
this is all bad or without good reason.  I say all of this because perhaps
you're not understanding their reasoning, and if you did, you might be able
to reason with them to see the negative implications of what is not
actually, technically incorrect.  You'll catch more flies with honey.......

I think it bears repeating for those who have never heard it, that the
definition of a "language" is a "dialect with an army."

Ed Alexander (with a name like that, I've a right to speak), Hamilton,
Ontario, Canada

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Language status

Ed,

Points well taken (though I can't speak for Chris).

> You'll catch more flies with honey.......
>
> I think it bears repeating for those who have never heard it, that the
> definition of a "language" is a "dialect with an army."

That's easy for *you* to say if you're a honey bear, but try and sell this
line to speakers of Yiddish, Ladino, Galician, Catalan, Nynorsk, Saami,
Sorbian, Frisian, Romany, Rusyn, Friuli, Rumansch, Ladin, Faeroese,
Tamazight, Bashkir, Tatar, Karakalpak and Livonian.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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