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Re: Caraboo

From:Philippe Caquant <herodote92@...>
Date:Friday, August 6, 2004, 6:12
--- Caleb Hines <cph9fa@...> wrote:

> Anyway, "Princess Caraboo" was a great movie from a > conlang perspective. A > must see! In fact, it demonstrates a great way to > use a conlang. I wonder if > anyone on the list has ever tried doing something > similar in real life. Have > any of you ever walked up to someone (preferably a > complete stranger!) and > started speaking your conlang to them? I mean > seriously speak it, as if it > were your L1, and you didn't understand English? I > wonder what would happen. > Probably in this world of international globalism, > nobody would hardly > notice or care. > > The only specific sample word I can remember off the > top of my head is > 'nai!' which, in context, obviously meant "no". It > occurred in the following > scene: > > Deeply moved by a chamber ensemble's music (I think > it was a piece by > Schubert), the princess starts crying. Mrs. Worral > misinterprets this, and > asks the orchestra to stop playing, but the princess > jumps up and shouts > "nai! nai!" and motions for them to continue. The > ensemble, pleased to be > performing in the presence of such an admirer, > happily continues. I remember > this particular word because I remember thinking how > similar it was to IE > words for 'no'. My own non-IE Akathanu even has 'na' > (one of the first and > few words I actually know in thej language). >
Which obviously proves that Princess Caraboo (whom I don't haven the pleasure to know personnally) is Alsacian. The word for "no" in Alsacian is "nei", pronounced "na:j". The hypothesis that "nai" in fact wouldn't mean "no", but "please go on" would refer to female psychology, rather than to compared linguistics. ===== Philippe Caquant "High thoughts must have high language." (Aristophanes, Frogs) __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? New and Improved Yahoo! Mail - 100MB free storage! http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail