Re: USAGE: 2nd pers. pron. for God

On Wed, 11 Sep 2002 13:19:19 +0100 =?iso-8859-1?q?bnathyuw?=
<bnathyuw@...> writes:
> what do some of the non-atheists on the list have to
> say on this ?
>
> bn
-

Well, i usually pray in Hebrew, but when i have said impromptu things to
God that were in English, i always used "you" and not "thou" - "thou" is
too stilled and formulaic; i'd use it if i were reading an English
translation of a prayer, but not if i myself were talking.  I actually
use very colloquial language in those 'impromptu prayer' type things... i
think i started one once with "hey, c'mon..."  :-)

Actually, according to my Yiddish textbook, Yiddish-speakers use the
familiar |du| second-person pronoun to talk to God, instead of the formal
|ir|.  However, it doesn't explain if that's because they see God as
their friend/relative, or if it's because (like the Ladino form |el dyo|
has been explained) they want to avoid anything that sounds plural, and
|ir| is also the second-person plural pronoun.

ObConlang, in Rokbeigalmki they only have one singular second-person
pronoun, |ez|, which they use for everyone.


-Stephen (Steg)
 "there is darkness all around us;
  but if darkness *is*, and the darkness is of the forest,
  then the darkness must be good."
     ~ song of the BaMbuti in troubled times

Replies