Newsgroups: alt.politics.ec,sci.lang
Path: cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!rochester!udel!gatech!swrinde!pipex!news.sprintlink.net!EU.net!sun4nl!cwi.nl!dik
From: dik@cwi.nl (Dik T. Winter)
Subject: Re: Languages in the EC
Message-ID: <D3tDoq.C2t@cwi.nl>
Sender: news@cwi.nl (The Daily Dross)
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Organization: CWI, Amsterdam
References: <HINSENK.95Feb8120427@cyclone.ERE.UMontreal.CA> <3hbir3$9b4@fido.asd.sgi.com> <HINSENK.95Feb9113657@cyclone.ERE.UMontreal.CA>
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 1995 02:31:37 GMT
Lines: 53

In article <HINSENK.95Feb9113657@cyclone.ERE.UMontreal.CA> hinsenk@cyclone.ERE.UMontreal.CA (Hinsen Konrad) writes:
 > In article <3hbir3$9b4@fido.asd.sgi.com> livesey@solntze.engr.sgi.com (Jon Livesey) writes:
 >    As a metter of fact, they did.   Someone, I think perhaps you,
 >    suggested the Esteranto should be *required* of members of
 >    Parliament.
 > 
 > I said that it would not be unreasonable to require them to learn
 > it, as it is relatively easy to learn. I did not advocate making
 > such a requirement any time soon. It would probably happen some day
 > if Esperanto (or any other language for that matter) acquires
 > an official status in the EU.

I think Esperanto would never acquire official status in the EU within
the next 100 years or so.  As of requiring people to learn Esperanto,
ah, well, reminds me of the German Prime-minister (Kohl) who does not
even have a passing knowledge of English, and as far as I know of no
other language than German.

Why would it be a bad idea to force education in Esperanto on children
now?  That is easy, if the second language in Dutch schools for 10
year old chlidren would transfer from English to Esperanto they would
have no way to make use of that language, while their learning of
English can be made useful now.  Esperanto can not replace their English
learning, so somthing has to go.  What?

When I was 13 I also made a start with Esperanto.  I dropped it.  The
reason was that it was too much with my 3rd year French (at that times
children could start with French rather than English when they were 10),
1st year English, 1st year Latin, and German coming the next year.  Now
I have reasonable knowledge of English, French and German, and am able
to read things in quite a few more European languages, and can get by
in all of western Europe.  Eastern Europe is still difficult because for
many years the secondary language at schools was Russian (also in the
DDR, that is why most Germans from the east do not speak English).  But
this also changes towards English.

I find that in Northern Europe English is the lingua franca (not British
English, nor American English but some pidgin form).  In southern Europe
the case is a bit divided between French and English.  Portugal mostly
English, Spain (the parts where I have been) mostly French, and Italy
has been so long ago that I do not remember; I fared well with Italian.

Now what if Esperanto became compulsory.  Children would understand
television shows only when they are much older (and have acquired
enough knowledge of English), when crossing the border they would
have a bad time making themselves understood with Esperanto (even my
daughter got herself understood when asking a question in a shop in
Stockholm; try that with Esperanto).  It would take an awful amount
of time before Esperanto is so well known that it can replace the
other languages as lingua franca.
-- 
dik t. winter, cwi, kruislaan 413, 1098 sj  amsterdam, nederland, +31205924098
home: bovenover 215, 1025 jn  amsterdam, nederland; e-mail: dik@cwi.nl
