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From: elna@netcom.com (Esperanto League N America)
Subject: Re: Number of Esperanto speakers
Message-ID: <elnaDoLJn6.J5y@netcom.com>
Organization: Esperanto League for North America, Inc.
References: <4ind4b$10es@seminole.gate.net>
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 1996 02:45:06 GMT
Lines: 36
Sender: elna@netcom3.netcom.com

hrick@gate.net (Rick Harrison) writes in a recent posting (reference <4ind4b$10es@seminole.gate.net>):
  If E-o really had 2 million
>speakers, there would have been more than half a dozen compact discs of
>Esperanto music published by now; _Monato_, the most prominent E-o news
>magazine, would have more than a couple of thousand subscribers; 

How many CDs or magazines are in Fulakunda? or Chuvash? or Nung? It is
necessary to recall that Esperanto is still mostly a ThirdWorld and
SecondWorld phenomenon. It should be little surprise that there are 
not great manifestations of hightech applications.

   [stuff deleted]
                    Look at the physical evidence (the
>number of new books printed each year, number of daily newspapers, etc)
>for E-o and compare to any natlang having a small number of speakers (e.g.
>Icelandic) and there is simply no support for the 2 million speakers
>claim. 
>
Compare the same evidence to other languages of nonrich peoples for a 
fairer comparison.

>There might be 2 million people who know what Esperanto is and support 
>its goals, but that's not the same thing as speakers.
>
The question of quantity is not simple. How many people in the world
play chess? If you look at the number of chessclub members, subscriptions
to chess magazines, sales of chess books, etc. you would conclude that
rather few people play the game. Most Esperanto speakers do not join clubs
and cannot afford magazines.

>
-- 
Miko SLOPER                   elna@netcom.com         USA  (510) 653 0998
Direktoro de la          ftp.netcom.com:/pub/el/elna   fax (510) 653 1468 
Centra Oficejo de la     Learn Esperanto! Free lessons: e-mail/snail-mail
Esperanto-Ligo de N.A.      Write to above address or call 1-800-828 5944
