LL-L: "Frisian" LOWLANDS-L, 26.JUL.2001 (03) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 26.JUL.2001 (03) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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 A=Afrikaans, Ap=Appalachean, D=Dutch, E=English, F=Frisian, L=Limburgish
 LS=Low Saxon (Low German), S=Scots, Sh=Shetlandic, Z=Zeelandic (Zeeuws)
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From: "Aviad Stier" <aviad2001 at hotmail.com>
Subject:

I would like to back what Reinhard/Ron said, and maybe to elaborate a little
more. He wrote:
"Firstly, there is the age-old question "What is a dialect, and what is a
language?", for which there are numerous possible answers, none of which can
be expected to predominate, except perhaps this one: "It depends on whom you
ask."
>From what I read, it seems to me that linguists nowadays are very wary of
this question, and generally try to abstain from it, saying that the
difference is more a social / political one rather than a clear-cut
scientific distinction. For example, Danish and Norwegian (both its types)
are much more similar to each other (and mutually intelligible), than, say,
the Sicilian dialect and the Lombardic one. And yet, The first two are
widely considered as separate languages, while the other couple are seen as
two dialects of the same language (Italian). Why is that? Probably because
Danish and Norwegian are spoken in two separate Politiical entities, as
oposed to Sicilian and Lombardic. Another example: Catalunyan (Catala'),
which nowadays is seen as a distinct language, was presented during the
Franco years as an (inferior) dialect of Castillian Spanish, because it
served the aims of the regime then. Of course, the nationalistic movement of
the Catalunya has the opposite agenda, of promoting Catala' as an
independent language. And I suspect there aren't any criteria to tell
between the two concepts.
Aviad Stier
Brussels.

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