LL-L "Language policies" 2003.11.16 (01) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 16.NOV.2003 (01) * 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: Roger Thijs, Euro-Support, Inc. <roger.thijs at euro-support.be>
Subject: LL-L "Language policies" 2003.11.14 (05) [E]

> From: Críostóir Ó Ciardha <paada_please at yahoo.co.uk>
> Subject: Language policies
"In Ireland, as I have stated, the Irish language has the strong backing of
the most important legal document in the country yet remains flouted and
obstructed at every turn."

What is/was the linguistic position/behaviour of the church on the Brittish
Isles?

For comparision and making my question clear:
In my native area (Southern Belgian Limburg) the church practically, but not
necessarely intentionally, contributed to:
- 1 - defending Dutch v/ French
- 2 - defending Dutch v/ Limburgish

- 1 - While French was the culturally dominant language in Belgium in the
19th century, and the language of most of the upper class in Northern
Belgium at that time, the Roman Catholic Church was sticking to Dutch in the
North of Belgium.

This form of "Dutch" had a Belgian flavour, often intentionally for
distinguishing it from the "protestant Dutch", and was often called "good
Flemish". (the local color was more "Brabantish" though and the name
"Flemish" was rather an incorrect name heritage by translating the French
"Flamand", which could cover [around 1840] for French linguists [as e.g.
Dellecour] all Low German, up to Tilsit.)

Most church priests, even while keeping frienship upright with the upper
class [with some exceptions; one of these got filmed, concerning Daens in
Aalst, and got an Oscar nomination in 1993, cf.:
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0104046/ ]
were more concerned by the "number" of souls.
Since the large lower class of workers and unemployed people, as well as
farmers, and quite some middle class people, didn't understand French in the
North of this country, the church maintained Dutch as preaching language and
language for individual confessions.
I'm sure the church was the last institution to keep local Flemish upright
in Northern France (till about 1950), as well as it was "the" institution
for keeping Dutch alive in linguistic enclaves [as e.g. in the Voerstreek],
even when the munical administration language switched to French [for some
time].

This is not to minimize the merits of politicians of the "Flemish
mouvement", but without this broad base of Diets-only speakers, these
politicians would never have been able to get Dutch firstly recognized as a
legally completely equivalent language, and finally as the "only" official
language for the North of this country  (the actual "Vlaanderen", covering
the former Vlaanderen, Brabant and Loon [Loon is now Belgian Limburg]).

- 2 - The language used in Church services in Northern Belgium was "written
Dutch". And even while people generally did not speak "good Flemish", they
were familiar with the language from the preaches by the priest, from the
"Cathechismus" book with the Roman Catholic Doctrine, further from imposed
instructions before First Communion, Holy Communion, Marriage etc. (The
church service itself was still in Latin till in the late fifties).

It was also the language of the individual confession, and here it comes:
People preferred to confess to a priest, who did not really know them. So
parish priests were often selected from villages quite some distance away
from the parish they were servicing. Since Limburgish has no standard form
in Belgium, and is varying significantly from one village to another [cf.
the Rhenanean transition zones between Low and High German in the West], the
priest and his parishers did not, or very hardly, understand each other's
dialect. So "Dutch" (good Flemish) became the obvious communication language
here.

When I was a kid, in the fifties [in Vliermaal, Belgian Limburg], all
communication was in local Limburgish, except with the parish priest. Kids
had to speak "good Flemish" with their teacher in the school, but these
teachers used Limburgish when talking with the parents, and eventually also
with the kids off-school.

[Some people, who could speak French, used it when shopping in Tongeren, for
giving a "good cultivated impression". In most villages the inhabitants of
the castle of the village continued to speak French. They had some
influence, since, while the French revolution abolished feodality, it did
not abolish property rights, and the people of the castle still had quite
some power at the time, since they had most of the land in property. My
village Vliermaal was an exception, because I guess since in feodal times it
was directly dependent from the Prince-Bishop of Liège, as Count of Loon,
since the bench of aldermen of Vliermaal was functioning as court of appeal
for the whole county, and the village was never transfered as a loan to a
local lord. The Court of Vliermaal itself was not a loan of Liège but
directly dependent from the Holy German Empire]

Back to the relationship Dutch v/ Limburgish. Even while the parish priest
came from some distance, and even while he was speaking Dutch (good Flemish;
"gowd Vlams" or "opte letter"), quite some people thought he knew them all
too good for being acceptable for confessions. So once a month, and the week
before Eastern, the parish got a franciscan father from Hasselt, for taking
confession (in Dutch) from most of the parishers.

So at the time Dutch was as well binding parishes with the church with a
language they understood, as well as separating them linguistically from the
parish priest, avoiding too much familiarity.

Things have changed nowadays. I think, while church attendance diminished,
individual confessions are virtually abolished (i think). Due to lack of
priests, one single priest has make a service tour covering 3 to 5 parishes,
and is often not familiar to individuals anymore. And parents started to
talk Dutch with their children (starting in the mid sixties), for giving
them - they think - better chances in school.

My question was: is their some similarity with the behaviour of the church
in Ireland or other places on the British Isles, and did the church
contribute to the survival of local languages?

Regards,

Roger

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