<span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">L O W L A N D S - L - 02 October 2007 - Volume 01</span><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">Song Contest: <a href="http://lowlands-l.net/contest/">lowlands-l.net/contest/</a> (- 31 Dec. 2007)</span><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">
=========================================================================</span><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">From: </span>
<span id="_user_heatherrendall@tiscali.co.uk" style="color: rgb(0, 104, 28); font-family: arial,sans-serif;">"<a href="mailto:heatherrendall@tiscali.co.uk">heatherrendall@tiscali.co.uk</a>"</span><span style="font-weight: normal; font-family: arial,sans-serif;" class="lg">
<<a href="mailto:heatherrendall@tiscali.co.uk">heatherrendall@tiscali.co.uk</a>></span><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.10.01
(10) [E]</span><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">Reinhard wrote:</p>
<div style="margin-left: 40px; font-family: arial,sans-serif;">T<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">he way I see it, in
American English a team or a similar body of people is a singular unit,
while in non-American English the members are the focus. Similarly
non-American "they" vs American "it" for nouns like "team" or
"government." </span><br style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">American
English rarely uses "all the" in case of singulars, and then perhaps
only because of archaic idiomatic expressions. For example, you can say
"for all the world to see," but "for the whole world to see" sounds
right too. </span><br></div><p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">In
the original Literacy Document introduced into English education some
years ago now, the glossary ( to explain terms to the teachers who
themselves knew no grammar!) was very explicit that all collectives
were singular: the team is... the government is ...... etc</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">In the revision that came out a few years later, attitudes had
softened and both singular and plural were deemed correct/ possible/
acceptable.</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">I have to say I find the power of using one or the other depending
on the focus very powerful, depending on the unity of the collective
being used.</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">The government has decided .............. (unanimous)</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">The government have decided ........ ( some of them at least ... probably a majority or at least the voices that count!)</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">The team is playing well . The team were all over the place.</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">But the one that gets me ( apologies if I have ranted about this before!) is the use of a singular verb with 'none'.</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">What do Lowlanders 'see' in their mind's eye when they hear " None
of the men ... wearing hats ( or a hat). Do you see one man without a
hat or several men without hats?</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">'None of the men were wearing hats/ a hat' seems much more logical visually speaking.</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">What does BSL do, Sandy, to express the same idea?</p>
<p style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">Heather [Randall]<br><br>----------<br><br>From: <span id="_user_desnerck.roland@skynet.be" style="color: rgb(121, 6, 25);">Roland Desnerck</span><span style="font-weight: normal;" class="lg">
<<a href="mailto:desnerck.roland@skynet.be">desnerck.roland@skynet.be</a>></span><span style="font-weight: normal;" class="lg"></span><br>Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.10.01 (10) [E]<br><br></p><div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">
<font size="2">Beste Ron én oal de Laiglanders,</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">About "all the", "whole the" etc.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Enkele verschillen tussen (West)- Vlaams en
Nederlands:</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"> </div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Hail de wêreld = de gehele wereld.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Hail jen huus = je gehele huis.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Oal de mênsjhn = alle mensen.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Oal de vinters én wuuvers =alle mannen en
vrouwen.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Oal da ja refuzairt zie je kwiet = alles wat je
weigert, zie je je ontglippen, ben je kwijt.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Oal da je nie en waild hoorn, moe je dooft voorn
zien = voor alles wat je niet wil horen, moet je doof zijn (met een dubbele
ontkenning).</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">J' en wit mor holf de woarhéjd = je weet maar (je
kent maar) de halve waarheid (met een ontkenning).</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">En hé je mo twi joengers? Nin 'k! Heb je
slechts twee kinderen? Ja! (door de ontkenning is het antwoord in
West-Vlaanderen "neen" waar het in de andere provincies "ja" is! Vroeger heb ik
al eens bericht dat "ja" en "neen" in het West-Vlaams (en aangrenzend
Oost-Vlaams) verbogen worden:</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Jaa'k, joa je, joanhen, joas, nin'k, naime, naije,
nains ...(ja ik, ja jij, ja hij, ja zij ... neenb ik, neen wij, neen jullie,
neen zij).</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Go junder komm? Naime! Zullen jullie komen? Neen
(wij).</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"> </div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">About "team", "government".</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Wij zeggen:</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">'t is doar e groep; ze doen et
goed! er is daar een groep; ZE doen het goed
(meervoud)</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">dad is 't niewe bestier, ze wérkn goed tegoare! dat
is het nieuwe bestuur, ZE werken goed samen (meervoud)</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">'t is doar e bénde, 't zien kluntns! er is daar een
bende, HET zijn onnozelaars.</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Toetnoasteki!</font></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;"><font size="2">Roland Desnerck</font><br></div><br style="font-family: arial,sans-serif;">