<div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">========================================================================<br>L O W L A N D S - L - 15 April 2008 - Volume 03<br style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">
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=========================================================================<br></div><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">From: </span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" class="HcCDpe"><span class="EP8xU" style="color: rgb(121, 6, 25);">burgdal32admin</span> <span class="lDACoc"><<a href="mailto:burgdal32@telenet.be">burgdal32@telenet.be</a>></span></span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Subject: </span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" class="HcCDpe">LL-L "Idiomatica" 2008.04.14 (04) [E]<br><br></span><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Dag iedereen,</span><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
Inderdaad, het woordje 'maar' speelt een grote rol in het antwoorden met 'neen'</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">-Ei gie moa enen auto ? Nink</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
(Hebt u maar één auto? Neen (ik).)</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">En nu mag je als Nederlandstalige niet verward worden en vragen</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">-Hoeveel auto's hebt u dan?</div>
<div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Want de West-Vlaming heeft heel duidelijk gezegd dat hij juist één auto bezit.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br></div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
Ook met een volgende zin wordt een negatief antwoord gegeven om te bevestigen.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Zie'j gie nie ziek dè? Nink.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
(Bent u niet ziek? Neen) </div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Die persoon is dus niet ziek.</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span>Hier speelt het woord 'dè' de rol van 'maar' (dè = <font size="4"><span style="font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-size: 17px;">± </span></span></font>niet waar?)</span></div>
<div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br></div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Groetjes</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Luc Vanbrabant</div><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
Oekene West-Vlaanderen</div><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><div style="margin-left: 40px;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">From: <span style="color: rgb(0, 104, 28);">Luc Hellinckx</span> <span><<a href="mailto:luc.hellinckx@gmail.com" target="_blank">luc.hellinckx@gmail.com</a>></span></span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica"</span><br><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"></span><br><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> Beste Ron, Roland and others,</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> Ron wrote:</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"></div> <blockquote style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; margin-left: 40px;" type="cite">
<font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"></span></font> <div><font size="2"><i>En hé je gie mo twi oogn? Nin'k!</i><br> </font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">"And do you have [but/just] two eyes. No I!"<br>
<br> </span></font></div> <div><i><font size="2">En hét hen hie mo tien joengers. Nainhen! Twi knéchtjoengers én acht méjsjoengers!</font></i><font size="2"><br> </font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">"And does he have [</span></font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">but/just</span></font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">] ten children. No-they! Two boys and eight girls!"<br>
</span></font></div> <div><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br> </span></font></div> <div><i><font size="2">En zie je giender mo gister gewist? Nainme!</font></i></div>
<div><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">"And were you over there [</span></font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">but/just</span></font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">] yesterday? No-we!"<br>
</span></font><font size="2"><br> </font></div> <font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"></span></font><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The answer to all of these would be "yes" in our terms. <br>
<br> Crucial here seems to be the use of <i>mo</i>, the seeming equivalent of Standard Dutch <i>maar</i>, Afrikaans <i>maar</i>, Low Saxon <i>maor</i>, <i>maar</i>, <i>man</i>,
etc. (cognate of English "mere," I believe), which can serves as "but",
"just", "only" etc. The replies sound as though they negate the <i>mo</i> aspect. I can't profess to grasp this entirely yet.<br> </span></font></blockquote> <div style="margin-left: 40px;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">Just a guess. The "mo" in the question wants to minimize, to depreciate a situation:</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> "mo twi oogn" = hardly two eyes</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> "mo tien joengers" = hardly ten kids</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> "mo gister gewist" = been there only yesterday</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
The respondent then wants to counter this attempt to belittle his
situation and does this through denial; he's actually making an exact
statement in order to enhance the accuracy, replying:</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> No, I do not have hardly two eyes, I have exactly two eyes.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> No, I do not have hardly ten kids, more precisely, I have two boys and eight girls.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
No, I didn't go there only yesterday (as if I couldn't go any earlier),
I deliberately went there yesterday (on purpose and not any other day).</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> In short, the "no" wants to counter/negate the minimizing aspect of the "mo".</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
Psychologically speaking, this feature of Western Flemish doesn't
really surprise me, it sort of reflects the very high sensitivity for
being addressed in a disparaging way.</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"> Kind greetings,</span><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" color="#888888"> </font><br><font style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;" color="#888888"> Luc Hellinckx</font><br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;"></div> <br style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif;">