Re: One language or two?

--- Isidora Zamora <isidora@...> wrote:

> My question is this: considering the time scale
> involved, do these people speak one language
> or two?
I would guess two: an everyday language / dialect
continuum; an elevated language. If everyone
partakes in this shared oral tradition (like, if
èveryone tells stories in it), it will probably
be a source of borrowings and may well be subject
to some linguistic change. That is, it may be
pronounced much like the common language.

On the other hand, it could just as easily become
the intellectual property of the priests who
chant secret rites and scriptures in it away from
everyone else. It might become so fossilised and
inaccessible, even the priests will forget what
it means, until some philologist comes along and
realises that the two seem related.

Padraic.



=====
Samlan, isa-susansilo-war-mercumo crastandus, en! mercumes-don-crâgamando, en!
mercumes-dom-resmanstaro haccruçen-fon-Mursilbâm!

And now, the corpse lies limp, lo! even the body of strength, lo! even the body
of Mursilbâm that slew the monster!
  [Erronian fragment]

--

Come visit The World! --
<http://www.geocities.com/hawessos/>







.

Reply