Re: Ancient conlang

--- Tristan McLeay <zsau@...> wrote:
> On Wed, 14 Jan 2004, Costentin Cornomorus
> wrote:
>
> > > Provided it had the necessary modern
> > > vocabulary: there's no word for
> > > "email" or "hominid" or "chimp" in Hittite.
> >
> > Circumlocutions. For "hominid", use
> "manlike";
> > for "chimp" use "monkey".
> >
> > Email could be "lightning courrier" or
> similar.
>
> Yes, but 'lightning courier' doesn't _mean_
> 'email'.
So?

And anyway, the Hittites had neither "mail" as we
know it nor "electricity". To say nothing of
computers. Like the "epistula fulgurentis" (?)
example just given for Latin (the Romans had
neither, either!, yet this doesn't stop us from
making up new Latin words. Lightninging letter
doesn't mean "email" any more than "lightening
courrier".

> You might just as
> well borrow email into Hittite, but either way,
Well, we could - but John seemed to call for
words for email, hominid and chimpanzee. You can
either borrow or make a loan translation.

> an ancient Hittite (or
> even relatively modern people like my
> great-grandparents) wouldn't know
> what it was. You can't talk about email till
> it's been thought of.
Nonsense. How do you think missionaries convert
the savage heathen? They don't sit around waiting
for them to come up with concepts like salvation
and messiah on their own - they describe them and
give them names.

Padraic.


=====
la cieurgeourea provoer mal trasfu ast meiyoer ke 'l andrext ben trasfu.


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