Free Espernato Language Course

For anyone interesting in learning Esperanto there is an interactive web site with free courses (beginner through advanced).

lernu!: Library / Films / Esperanto estas...
Just clck on the courses link at the top of the page.

I came across this hymn in Esperanto and it sounded beautiful.

YouTube - Restu kun mi

PS No that is not me singing. First, I cannot speak Esperanto and second I certainly cannot sing.

 

Esperanto -- a solution to a language problem that doesn't exist

 

Yes, in research it, it is fascinating. Esperanto is the most successful constructed language (estimates run up to 2 mil speakers and they have a presence at the UN and around the world) but there have been many attempts to create international languages. These include interlingua (a unification of romance languages) Union Mundial pro Interlingua | Interlingua, communication sin frontieras Looked kind of interesting but not enough material developed for study.
And two different attempt to make a universally understood Slavic language
Slovio (web presence appears to have disappeared. Also appears to have critics in terms of grammar structure and their strong pan slavic orientation)
Slovianski Slovianski ? ????????? ? ?????????? Interesting thought but still in the developmental stage. From the site it appears quite democratic in its development.

 

I did not but it does not surprise. Trekkies are an interesting group and very dedicated, though certainly far beyond my understanding (ie just a tad different in their zeal). Somewhere I read about a professor who tried to bring up his kids speaking Klingon.

 

From what I have read, it is just a case of human nature. Just like denominations. Someone constructs something systemic one way and someone else decides that they did not quite get it right and breaks away to start a better version and so on.

Of those above Esperanto has been the only one with staying power and expansive resources on line and in print. I thought Interlingua looked pretty cool since it is some mix of Italian, Spanish and Portugues.

Here is an article by a Romanian Archbishop who argues it (Esperanto) can be the next Latin for the Church and Ecumenism.
Esperanto - The New Latin for the Church and for Ecumenism

 

Interlingua is not just a unification of romance languages - it includes two Germanic languages, English and German, in the Mix.

For a romance language speaker like me (Portuguese speaker native) interlingua is really fantastic - I can read any text in interlingua without having studied anything about the language. I know that french, italian and spanish speakers can do the same.

I'm not sure if it's so easy for a English or German speaker though.

Esperanto is kind of useless - English nowadays has pretty much the role that Esperanto once aspired to.

 

I think for many that is the problem. Esperanto is relatively neutral. As I understand twice, Esperanto was almost adopted by the UN but it was defeat once by the French and once by the US (half century ago) because in both cases they felt their language was fine for everyone to speak.

Esperanto was developed to be logical (etc) and systematic in a way that makes learning it easier (though looking at some of the advanced stuff it still takes dedication). With no real exceptions.

You are correct that English is the Lingua Franca but some want something more neutral. These advocates range from some young Irish politicians, to the fact that in China of all places there is a growing interest in Esperanto. I believe Brazil is encouraging it as an elective class in elementary schools (due to the fact that once you have learned Esperanto it seems to make learning other languages easier.

Yeah, I am fine with English because that is what I speak (with a very small amount of German I recall from school). I like the ideal of Esperanto and the potential. It was not designed to replace national languages but as a neutral, universal, auxiliary language. Whether that is ever realized is anybody's guess. Just imagine the money entities like the UN and EU could save in translation costs (estimates are in the 100's of millions) or documents and so on.

 

My great great grandfather Wagner spoke German as a child until he learned English at grade school in Pennsylvania. Over the years, the Wagners have sort of learned to speak, read, and write English, so I think we'll be sticking with it for awhile...

 

Here is the link for Slovio that I could not find or at least get to work earlier If anyone speaks Slavic languages I would be interested whether Slovia is understandable in the same way Interlingua appears to be to speakers of Romance languages Slavic language - simplified universal international planned language

 

Mi spikas Esperanto . . . or at least I once did. A friend and I took a course in college, in ancient times . . . and passed an exam, and qualified to wear the little green-headed map pins, which were to enable Esperanto speakers to identify one another, when traveling. As I recall, I wore mine for about a year, without ever seeing another wearer, other than my friend, nor did anyone ever approach me because of it.

At least, around the same time, my Mensa yellow-headed map pin was noticed by about three people over 5 or 6 years, before I misplaced it.

 

I enjoy reading your personal anecdotes on these boards. You sound like you have led life to the nth degree (amazing travel and encounters) and that is something many of us dream of doing but never actually do. I hope you spend many more years to come accumulating new stories for that posthumus edition you promise.

 

The main failing of this and other constructed languages, are they are Euro-centric. Designed by "westerners" with a (obviously) western/euro mind and thought patterns, and producing languages learnable and more easily recognizable for western people.

Most people in the world are Asians continent'ers. The first step in producing a universal language may very well to be once that does NOT use "A, B, C's" for example.

 

I have seen a number of articles that note the relative popularity of Esperanto in China. This article just mentions it in passing.
Esperanto language, alphabet and pronunciation

Apparently, the Ayatollah Khomeini promoted Muslims learning it as a medium for better understanding among peoples and advocated it replacing English but later dropped the idea when he discovered the Bahai were interested in it.
http://www.101languages.net/esperanto/religion.html

 

Esper-what-to?

 

Pictographic language -- good idea.