ConLang Related: Christmas (was: Country Related: Christmas

At 10:14 am -0500 21/12/98, Padraic Brown wrote:
>On Mon, 21 Dec 1998, Carlos Thompson wrote:
.....
>> How these hollidays are derived in our conlangs (those who apply).
>
>I forget the proper Brithenig...  Nadiwdad perhaps?
Welsh 'Nadolig', Cornish 'Nadelek' and Breton 'Nedeleg' surely are clear
testimony that BritoRomance was *natalicu(m) [na:'ta:liku].  IIRC the 'The
Grand Master Plan' would give: Nadalig.  But I guess Andrew will let us
know the definitive form  :)

The etymologies of Christmas in the two conlangs I've known the longest
(other than Esperanto) are:

(a) SPEEDWORDS which I learnt round about 1956 -
FETL ['fEtIl] <-- 'fet' = celebration, feast, festival (<-- Fr. fe^te) +
   the suffix -l which denotes 'particular', 'special'.

(b) NOVIAL - My copy of Novial Lexike was given to me as a Christmas
present in 1953.
Novial Lexike (1931) in fact gives two words; I quote:

Kristonasko = yule, D Weihnacht.
yule E, E Christmas, F noe"l, D Weihnacht.

Jespersen is clear that 'yule' is derived from English "Yule" (tho I'm sure
he was influenced also by Scandinavian Jul).
'Kristonasko' is a compound from 'Kristo' (Christ) and 'nasko' (birth) <--
'naska' (be born) <-- Latin 'nasci' (to be born).

NADOLIG LLAWEN - AMUS FETL - JOYOSI YULE!

Ray.