Re: [conculture] Re: Greetings!

On Mon, 29 Mar 1999, Mathew Willoughby wrote:

> I know it's a "no-no" but I've cross-posted this message because
> I'm responding to a post in conculture but many of my questions
> are conlang related.
>
I considered replying to this separately on both lists but as others have
been 'wicked' and cross-replied, I shall be wicked and do the same.  You
only live (in my cosmology, at least).
>
> I've been to your Brithenig webpage a couple of times now.  Very cool!
Thank you (represses urge to go tidy up webpage...tomorrow!)

> Is the kingdom on the eastern part of Britain called England or is that just
> a translation into English of what it is called in the Brithenig timeline?  Do
>
The Brithenig name for England is Saesoin, the land of the Saeson, or
Saxons.  I see no reason to believe that the English don't call themselves
'the English' or their homeland 'England' *there*.

> they speak the same English as we do has it evolved completely differently?  I
> would
> imagine that they might have more celtic loanwords than
> our English does.  Also, with greater resistance to the Viking invasions, I
> imagine that it would have far less of a Norwegian/Danish influence
> than our English does.
>
As far as I can make out there are only two words from the Celtic
languages that have 'gone native' in English: crag and clan.  It's
possible that *there* the English say '*to was' rather than 'to
be'.  It's hard to say concerning the Viking raids.  Kemr would provide a
richer target than Wales did *here*.  Who knows, maybe there were Viking
dynasties in Castreleon and Aberddui as well as Dublin.

Modern day English would borrow from Brithenig to refer to Kemrese
institutions.  What would be interesting is an investigation into the
history of Scots as the language of the Scottish parliament at Edinburgh
*there*, in contrast to its supression *here*.

> I've been learning a little about the Gaelic languages recently.  Is the
> Brithening
> (and Welsh) rh the same as the Irish "slender" r?  What about ll?  Is it
> analogous to "slender" l?
>
Slenderness and broadness is a feature of the Gaelic or Goidelic languages
and not the Brythonic languages (Welsh, Cornish, Breton).  It is found in
Breathanach, the Celto-Romance dialect spoken in SE Ireland.  In
Brithenig and Welsh rh is an aspirated trill, and ll is a lateral
fricative.  Under certain conditions they mutate to r and l.

- andrew.

Andrew Smith, Intheologus                       hobbit@earthlight.co.nz

"Break someone's leg."
                        - Old Orc Saying.