Iranian leader bans usage of foreign words

[PACKY]

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ordered government and cultural bodies to use modified Persian words to replace foreign words that have crept into the language, such as "pizzas" which will now be known as "elastic loaves," state media reported Saturday.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAN_FOREIGN_WORDS?SITE=WIMIL&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

[PACKY]

 

[Machjo]

My thoughts on the Iranian President aside, I actually agree with the idea. Language policy, planning and implementation ensures consistency within the language itself.

A clear example of the price English has had to pay for the lack of an English Academy or similar authoritative regulatory body is the myriad foreign plurals in the language such as octopedes (for octopus), bacteria (for bacterium), and ulamah (for mullah), etc. Then we have phonetic exceptions (zz in pizza and Nazi, pronounced 'ts'), and spelling exceptions (Greek words with the letter phi, such as philosophy, physics, phylum, phonetic, sphere, etc.). One way of ensuring the internal consistency of a language is in fact through the establishment of a language academy and the promotion of its recomendations for a priori as opposed to post priori neologisms.

So let us not be so quick to reject an idea just because of its source. Heck, even Hitler publicly proclaimed the value of caring for German children. Are we to now say that we ought to mistreat or neglect German children just because we don't want to find ourselves in agreement with Hitler on anything?

Sorry, but we need to look past the face, and at the idea, at all times. Of course the same applies to people we like. Just asdistastefulpeople can come up with a good idea sometimes, people we like can sometimes come up with silly ideas. It's the idea, not the person, we need to look at here.

 

[Jonathan David]

Great post Machjo.... I agree.... I also think that, where there is a dominant language, others have to protect themselves... there is something called cultural imperialism..... and given the way that language communicates worldview, protecting language really is protecting culture. In Canada, we have language laws in Quebec.... some hate them... personally, I fully understand them.

 

[Machjo]

Great post Machjo.... I agree.... I also think that, where there is a dominant language, others have to protect themselves... there is something called cultural imperialism..... and given the way that language communicates worldview, protecting language really is protecting culture. In Canada, we have language laws in Quebec.... some hate them... personally, I fully understand them.

As for language hegemony, you might be interested in:

http://www.esperanto.net/

And as it applies to Iran:

http://www.sabzandishan.org/

If you can read the melodious zaban-i-Farsi of course.

 

[Machjo]

And a few photos of Esperanto activity at the University of Azad:

http://community.webshots.com/album/348687888CxWckk

The 12th Iranian Magazine festival, in which irana Esperantisto took part:

http://community.webshots.com/album/345597870ZNeBKQ

IREJO activities:

http://community.webshots.com/album/292587183repjfE

Japanese, Iranian and Afghan participation in the "Language of Peace" Project, funded at least in Part by the japanese Esperanto Institute, with Iranian volunteers and many Afghan refugees as students. I'd had the opportunity to meet some of the participants in Beijing in 2004.

http://community.webshots.com/album/118817523hIJgPB

Anyway, maybe these pictures can give a more human face of Iran. And there are plenty such photos on-line. It might also sow how a planned language such as Esperanto can contribute greatly to building even the most unexpected relationships between peoples, unlike any ethnic language such as Englsih can.

 

[Rochir]

My thoughts on the Iranian President aside, I actually agree with the idea. Language policy, planning and implementation ensures consistency within the language itself.

I agree with you, although I think anyone trying to outlaw specific words is pretty much fighting a fight against windmills!

On the other hand, the French did exactly the same thing - replace many borrowed foreign words with their own, and did pretty well with that policy!

 

[Machjo]

I agree with you, although I think anyone trying to outlaw specific words is pretty much fighting a fight against windmills!

On the other hand, the French did exactly the same thing - replace many borrowed foreign words with their own, and did pretty well with that policy!

The Arab Academies hd less success, however. One reason, I suspect, is that there were two, thus weakening the authority of both!

In the case of French, the Academy was lucky; the entire French-speaking world jumped on board, unlike Iraq and Egypt unable to agree on one academy.

Other nations with only one academy have had much success too.

 

[burrow_owl]

A clear example of the price English has had to pay for the lack of an English Academy or similar authoritative regulatory body is the myriad foreign plurals in the language such as octopedes

Oh nooooooooo!!!!! How evuh shall I go on knowing that owa plurals are irregular!

The irregularities of english are signs that the language is thriving. Regulatory bodies are for dying languages that are out to delay the inevitable (see also: French; Sanskrit)

 

[Yusuf Evans]

Oh nooooooooo!!!!! How evuh shall I go on knowing that owa plurals are irregular!

The irregularities of english are signs that the language is thriving. Regulatory bodies are for dying languages that are out to delay the inevitable (see also: French; Sanskrit)

I gotta agree with you on this. To limit the growth of a particular language simply because "foreign" words might enter into it is a sign of oppressivness. Just reinforces my idea that the Middle East isn't exactly a great place to live.

 

[jamesrwright3]

What a Farce..see

 

[Jonathan David]

What a Farce..see

ROFL

 

[Arnold_Philips]

My thoughts on the Iranian President aside, I actually agree with the idea. Language policy, planning and implementation ensures consistency within the language itself.

A clear example of the price English has had to pay for the lack of an English Academy or similar authoritative regulatory body is the myriad foreign plurals in the language such as octopedes (for octopus), bacteria (for bacterium), and ulamah (for mullah), etc. Then we have phonetic exceptions (zz in pizza and Nazi, pronounced 'ts'), and spelling exceptions (Greek words with the letter phi, such as philosophy, physics, phylum, phonetic, sphere, etc.). One way of ensuring the internal consistency of a language is in fact through the establishment of a language academy and the promotion of its recomendations for a priori as opposed to post priori neologisms.

Then there'd be nothing for philologists to study.

 

[Arnold_Philips]

I think this is a dumb idea. Ataturk did something similar to thrust Turkey into modern society, but I don't believe the Irani president has such goals in mind.

 

[UberLutheran]

I would have to wonder what Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's raison d'être is, and why he so often seems to lack a joie de vivre.

It might be because Ahmadinejad has an overly developed sense of schadenfreude.

 

[UberLutheran]

When I heard about what Ahmadinejad was doing to the language, I ran. When I told my friends, tehran too!

In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I decided Aswan Dam bad situation!

 

[UberLutheran]

What a Farce..see

 

[Jonathan David]

It might be because Ahmadinejad has an overly developed sense of schadenfreude.

This is so strange.... I am listening to a song by that title right now..... how odd... though I suspect that it might be the reference.... is it?

 

[Ave Maria]

A pizza is now an elastic loaf? That has got to be the strangest term for a pizza I have ever heard!

 

[justanobserver]

I would have to wonder what Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's raison d'être is, and why he so often seems to lack a joie de vivre.

It might be because Ahmadinejad has an overly developed sense of schadenfreude.

huh?