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From: wald@zarquon.uchicago.edu (Kevin Wald)
Subject: Re: Scots and English (was: Re: Flemish and Dutch)
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References: <3nh9mo$kgi@vixen.cso.uiuc.edu> <3p4rsn$i5j@bertha.gssec.bt.co.uk> <D8MICD.A1v@festival.ed.ac.uk> <3p8032$dbc@bertha.gssec.bt.co.uk>
Date: Tue, 16 May 1995 16:19:31 GMT
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In article <3p8032$dbc@bertha.gssec.bt.co.uk>,
Colin Wilson <cwilson@gssec.bt.co.uk> wrote:

>However, I take the general point - languages other than Scots and English
>belong to Britain just as much as they do, so perhaps "Britannic" is not
>a good term to denote them after all.
>
>I like your suggestion of "British Germanic", although I think "Germanic
>British" has a slightly better ring to it - it's hard to say why.
>
>"Scots and English" doesn't quite fit, I think - perhaps a combination of the
>two names as "Scotio-English" would be another possibility.
>
>Perhaps someone else can suggest a better alternative.

Well, if we're looking for a name for the modern descendants of Anglo-Saxon,
how about just "Modern Anglo-Saxon"? 

It may be, however, that we're approaching the matter from the wrong end.
The problem with referring to the modern descendants of Anglo-Saxon as
"English" is that "English" is generally taken as an adjective meaning
"pertaining to England", and is thus an inappropriate heading under which
to subsume the Scots tongue. However, the Anglo-Saxons themselves called
their language "English" (well, "Englisc", actually) long before there
was any place called England (according to the OED), so by simple
chronological priority, we should continue to call the Germanic tongues
of Britain "English", and simply get the English to change the name of
their country (to, say, "East Wales" or "Transtweedia" or "Greater Kent").

Kevin Wald               |   Hwaet saegest thu, yrthlingc?
wald@math.uchicago.edu   |         -- AElfric, _Colloquium Martianum_
