Re: [Conlangs-Conf] Witty slogan

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Sally Caves

Sai,

I remember when this slogan was invented, but I don't remember who it was.  It
was invented on-line when someone was thinking about making a conlang t-shirt, a
project that never got off the ground.  You can search the conlang archives to
find when and who came up with it.

I wasn't particularly fond of it, for some of the reasons that are listed below,
but mainly because it just didn't make any sense.  I wasn't particularly
offended by it, either, although I've been grieved by the gradual diminishment
of the Celtic languages. But your conscientious objector has a point.  If the
conference intends to attract non-conlanging linguists, it should ditch this
slogan for being a) illogical and untrue, and b) potentially offensive to those
engaged in saving dying languages.

There was another one, really quite beautiful but probably too long to be a
witty slogan, and not witty enough:  it's attributed to Vladimir Illich-Svitych,
who invented it for translation into Nostratic, and it provided us with a
translation contest:

Language is a ford through the river of time.
It leads us to the dwelling of the Dead,
But he cannot arrive there who fears deep water.

We truncated it to: "Language is a ford through the river of time, but one
cannot arrive there who fears deep water."

More poetic than witty.

Perhaps you could forward this to the Conlang List if it bounces; I'm not signed
on from this account.  But basically my vote is: find another witty slogan.

Sally

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