LL-L "Lexicon" 2004.05.18 (06) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

======================================================================
L O W L A N D S - L * 18.MAY.2004 (06) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
http://www.lowlands-l.net * lowlands-l at lowlands-l.net
Rules & Guidelines: http://www.lowlands-l.net/index.php?page=rules
Posting: lowlands-l at listserv.linguistlist.org or lowlands-l at lowlands-l.net
Server Manual: http://www.lsoft.com/manuals/1.8c/userindex.html
Archives: http://listserv.linguistlist.org/archives/lowlands-l.html
Encoding: Unicode (UTF-8) [Please switch your view mode to it.]
=======================================================================
You have received this because you have been subscribed upon request.
To unsubscribe, please send the command "signoff lowlands-l" as message
text from the same account to listserv at listserv.linguistlist.org or
sign off at http://linguistlist.org/subscribing/sub-lowlands-l.html.
=======================================================================
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)
=======================================================================

From: Stella en Henno <stellahenno at hetnet.nl>
Subject: LL-L "Lexicon" 2004.05.18 (03) [D/E/LS]

> "Frisian Borrowed Nearly Every New Word
>
> LEEUWARDEN - Virtually every new word that appears in the Frisian language
> has been borrowed from Dutch or English.  According to a study by Hindrik
> Sijens, lexicographer at the Frisian Academy, 65 percent of Frisian
> neologisms are loans and 29 percent are loan translations, accounting for
a
> total of 94 percent.  He encountered 364 new Frisian words in the period
of
> 2000-2002.
>
> The fact that Frisian borrows many words can be explained in the light of
> the fact that Dutch occupies a dominant position.  According to Sijens,
> other minority languages are less quick to adopt a word.  For example,
> Faeroe Islanders go to more trouble in considering importation of new
terms
> into Faeroese."
>
I'm afraid that most minority languages score such a percentage of loans and
loan translations from their respective dominant language, especially when,
such as in the case at hand, these languages are close linguistically and
belong to the same family of languages.
Faeroese eg. has a far greater distance to Danish than West Frisian to
Dutch. Also in Catalan many words from Spanish are adapted, sort of
"catalanified" by "substitution rules", especially in spoken language, when
the sepaker wants to immediately use a Spanish word but makes a quick
"translation" (which not even always happens) to Catalan. The same is very
common in West Frisian wrt Dutch and Saterfrisian and North Frisian wrt
German (or Low German, sometimes, but less nowadays). Even Dutch has done
the same thing (the so-called "germanismen" etc.) but there a norm is
defended which condemns these forms. These things are more sensitive in
minority languages, where (concious) speakers are often "distancing" their
language from the dominating one by purposefully avoiding even indigenous
words that "sound Dutch" (in the case of West Frisian). But I'm all for a
healthy amount of creativity when coining new words (too fill gaps that are
already filled in the dominating language). Eg. for West Frisian
"rûgeltsjes" (= Dutch hagelslag), "nútsjesmoar" (= pindakaas, peanut
butter), "feech-op-fytbelied" (lik-op-stukbeleid) and more. All of these are
quite recent words that are not simple loan translations..

Henno Brandsma

==============================END===================================
* Please submit postings to lowlands-l at listserv.linguistlist.org.
* Postings will be displayed unedited in digest form.
* Please display only the relevant parts of quotes in your replies.
* Commands for automated functions (including "signoff lowlands-l") are
  to be sent to listserv at listserv.linguistlist.org or at
  http://linguistlist.org/subscribing/sub-lowlands-l.html.
=======================================================================