LL-L "Lexicon" 2007.11.23 (01) [E]

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L O W L A N D S - L  -  23 November 2007 - Volume 01
Song Contest: lowlands-l.net/contest/ (- 31 Dec. 2007)
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From: Paul Finlow-Bates <wolf_thunder51 at yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: LL-L "Lexicon" 2007.11.23 (05) [E]

From: Sandy Fleming <sandy at scotstext.org>
Subject: LL-L "Lexicon" 2007.11.22 (01) [E]

Yes, but as soon as you overreact, you lose. They drop "dig" from the
language, you drop "excavate". Either way, the language is impoverished.
Worse still, non-native learners might still stick with "excavate" and
so on, and the language starts to split into different varieties in
which the meanings of the remaining words adjust to fill the gaps left
by the abolished words, so that none of them are any longer English as
we knew it, nor as we tried to engineer it.

One of the problems with anglosaxonics, shavianism, esperantism and so
on is that enthusiasts believe in the idea that the whole world will one
day embrace their ideas. Anglosaxonics was sick unto death in its
heyday, what's different now? The Internet makes these things more
available but it doesn't seem to make them catch on.

I suppose all language enthusiasts suffer a bit of Weltschmertz over how
certain groups use a language, but you ponder the meaning of that word
and realise that this is how things are. Language use in the real world
will always disappoint the purist.

Just for the record, as a geotechnical engineer I use "excavate" all the
time :)

I think we're essentially saying the same thing, I just lean more to
"Anglo-Germanic" where it does the job. I can't talk about medical,
scientific or indeed a lot of everyday social/economic matters without
Classical or Romance input.  As for other borrowings, I eat a version of the
Nahua *Xocolatl*, rather than "sweetbrownstickyfood".  But I'd still rather
walk in the hills than perambulate in the elevated terrain.

Paul

•

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