LL-L "Lexicon" 2003.05.11 (12) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 11.May.2003 (12) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) N=Northumbrian
S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic V=(West)Flemish Z=Zeelandic (Zeêuws)
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From: Colin Wilson <lcwilson at btinternet.com>
Subject: LL-L "Lexicon" 2003.05.11 (08) [E]

At 20:26 11/05/03, Críostóir Ó Ciardha wrote:
>On the other hand, though, we must recognise that every language - and I
>mean every language - has 'turns of phrase' that sound absolutely
>delightful in that language alone and lose something in translation,
>which was I think the point that Crisdean was getting at with Gaelic.

Possibly, but this is a different thing from being "expressive", which
is another word for "communicative". If it's a question of some
languages
or their use being aesthetically pleasing, that's a different
matter.

>If it really were the case that no language were more expressive than
>any even in the case of turns of phrase, then we wouldn't have loanwords
>in any circumstance, or calques.

I don't agree. The adoption of loan-words is often a consequence of
the lending language being perceived as more prestigious, such as e.g.
the use of French _faux pas_ in English when "gaff" would express
exactly the same thing.

>Go raibh maith agaibh (try saying thank you to more than one person in
>English without resort to 'yous' or 'y'all', for example, Colin - easily
>done in Gaelic!)

I'd say "thank you". It isn't clear that more than one person is being
addressed, but (to my knowledge) that isn't entirely clear from
"go raibh maith agaibh" either. If I did want to make it clear I'd
say "thank you both/all", which isn't resorting to anything, but is
just how that idea is expressed in English.

Guidwull tae ane an aw,

Colin Wilson.

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