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L O W L A N D S - L - 26 December 2011 - Volume 04<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><font> </font></p><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">From:</font> <span class="gI"><span class="gD">Douglas Hinton</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:douglas.hinton@gmail.com">douglas.hinton@gmail.com</a></span></span><div>
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</font><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Subject: </font><span class="gI">LL-L 'Traditions' 2010.12.25. (02) [EN]<br><br></span> I suggest that "spurcalia" still exists today as Easter. Easter was
once celebrated at the Spring vernal equinox, but was moved to a later
date. Maybe more accurately "spurcalia" was replaced by Mardi Gras or
Fastnacht as this takes place at about the vernal equinox and resembles a
pagan fest.<br><br><span class="HOEnZb adL"><font color="#888888">Douglas</font></span><br><font style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><span><font color="#888888"><a href="http://scotstext.org/" target="_blank"></a>
</font></span></font><div><font style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br>----------<br><br></font><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">From:</font> <span class="gI"><span class="gD">Marcus Buck</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:list@marcusbuck.org">list@marcusbuck.org</a></span></span><div>
</div><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</font><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Subject: </font><span class="gI">LL-L 'Traditions' 2010.12.25. (02) [EN]</span><br>
<br><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0)">From:</font><span> </span>George and
Dawn Work and Work-MaKinne <<a href="mailto:workmakinne@msn.com" target="_blank">workmakinne@msn.com</a>><span></span>
<blockquote type="cite">
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<font style="color:rgb(0,0,0)"> </font><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0)">Subject: </font>Sporkel<br>
<br>
I'm new to the list (again) so pardon me if this has been
discussed. A Church Council document from the eighth century
objects to pagan customs celebrating the return of the sun,
called the Spurcalia. Evidently this has survived in North
Germany as the name Sporkel for February. Does anyone know if
this is still a holiday in any way, or if there are still any
customs attached? <br>
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"Spurcalia" was not the native term of the festivities but a
derogatory term used by christianity. It's derived from the Latin
word "spurcus" meaning "dirty, filthy". They have indeed endured but
in their reinterpreted Christian form: Carnival. In German Karneval,
Fastnacht, Fasching, in Low Saxon "Fastelavend", "Faslom".<br><br><span class="HOEnZb adL"><font color="#888888">Marcus Buck<br><br></font></span><div class="gmail_quote"><div>----------<br><br><font style="color:rgb(0,0,0)">From:</font><span> </span><span class="gI"><span class="gD">Hellinckx Luc</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:luc.hellinckx@gmail.com">luc.hellinckx@gmail.com</a></span></span><span><span><a href="mailto:neelen.keppenne@skynet.be" target="_blank"></a></span></span><br>
<font style="color:rgb(0,0,0)">Subject: </font><span class="gI">LL-L 'Traditions'</span><br>
<br></div></div>Hello,<div><br></div><div>It's very simple:</div>
<div>A language has an army, a dialect has'nt.</div><div><br></div><div>Regards,</div>
<div><br></div><div>Jan Neelen</div><font style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><br>----------<br><br>From: R. F. Hahn <<a href="mailto:sassisch@yahoo.com" target="_blank">sassisch@yahoo.com</a>><br>
Subject: Language varieties<br>
</font>Beste George,<div><br></div><div><br><div><div>You wrote:</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><blockquote type="cite"><div style="color:rgb(0,0,0)"><div>I'm new to the list (again) so pardon me if this has been discussed. A
Church Council document from the eighth century objects to pagan customs
celebrating the return of the sun, called the Spurcalia. Evidently this
has survived in North Germany as the name Sporkel for February. Does
anyone know if this is still a holiday in any way, or if there are still
any customs attached?<br></div></div></blockquote><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>The name "sprokkelmaand" (metathesis of sporkel ~ sporco, Italian for dirty) is also older Dutch for February.</div><div>Apparently
the Church witnessed some pre-Christian wild festivities at the time,
and termed them "dirty", because they couldn't immediately be
interpreted within a new context.</div><div><br></div><div>The closest you may get to this holiday is "Shrove Tuesday", Pancake Day, Mardi Gras in French (Fat Tuesday).</div><div><br></div><div>Not
only in New Orleans of course, but a little south of here, in the city
of Binche, it's the most important day of the year, the highlight of
carnival: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnival_of_Binche" target="_blank">Carnival of Binche - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</a></div><div><br></div><div>In Brabantish we call this "vastelavond" (~ vastenavond (D)), in German catholic regions "Fassnacht, Fasching":</div>
<div><br></div><div><a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fasnacht" target="_blank">Karneval, Fastnacht und Fasching – Wikipedia</a></div><div><br></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian-Alemannic_carnival" target="_blank">Swabian–Alemannic Fastnacht - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</a></div>
<div><br></div><div>Btw, the day after is "aswoensdag", "assegoejnstag" in Brabantish.</div><div><br></div><div>Kind greetings,</div><div><br></div><div>Luc Hellinckx, Halle, Belgium<br></div></div></div>
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