Fri Oct 10, 2008 22:59 EST (UTC -5)
Yesterday morning, I was reading articles at the Alligator's web site when a headline caught my eye. Student... club... language... hm... sounds like me. Oh wait, it is! I immediately went downstairs to pick up a hard copy.
Student starts club for little-known hybrid language
By REBECCA DEELY, Alligator Contributing Writer
Esperanto is a first language for many but unheard of by most.
Jordon Kalilich, a UF sophomore, is in the process of creating a UF club for the language, which combines traits of the different Slavic, Germanic and Romance languages.
The club is planning to hold its first meeting Oct. 16 at 8 p.m. with a presentation titled "Esperanto: The Solution to the World Language Problem."
A month ago, my friend Mark and I were teaching Esperanto phrases at a "language cafe" on campus. Rebecca Deely, a journalism student, was there looking for a story. She was very interested by Esperanto and interviewed both of us. She suggested that she could submit the story to the Alligator, and that's all I heard about it for a month. I kept thinking about what quotations of mine she would use — we talked quite a bit — and the only one I could remember was "It's not a word game." I couldn't really remember the context, but it stood out in my mind, so I thought it could end up as the all-important article-ending quotation.
But don't get Esperanto confused with gibberish.
"It's not a word game," Kalilich said. "It's a living language."
Ooh dang. Who called that?
I thought the article was good and positive, and it apparently did get a few people interested enough to join our Facebook group. It was also apparently Rebecca's first publication. Everyone wins! (By the way, the entire article can be found here for however long.)
Throughout the day, I was watching people read the Alligator to see if they would read our story. The placement could hardly have been better. It was an important issue, being the day after Student Government elections, so probably more people were reading it than usual. The front page story jumped to page 10, where it took up the whole page, and we were at the top of page 11. That's almost like being on page 2.
I got two copies for myself. I cut the article out of one and posted it on the door of my dorm room. More promotion for our upcoming event. And in fact, on my way home from class, I actually did see someone reading the story. I wanted to start talking to her, but that would have probably freaked her the heck out. "Hi, I'm the person you're reading about in the newspaper!"
Another Ask Jordon!
Cody - Natashas BFF: Why, on your Faq, do you have somebody set up us the bomb?, its someone set up us the bomb! =) Zero wing Rules
Sorry, but it's definitely "Somebody set up us the bomb." I know what I doing.
Check out this Multicolr Search Lab. Select some colors, and you'll get some photos from Flickr that contain those colors. It's pretty mesmerizing.
When you've got a word on the tip of your tongue, use Tip of My Tongue to get it out. You can enter some letters of the word, synonyms, and more.
And here are, according to someone, the Top 10 Amazing Prison Escapes.
Filed under Ask Jordon, Esperanto, Friends, Internet, Language, School, Stuff
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6 comments
#1 by Bill Chapman | Sat Oct 11, 2008 02:45 EST (UTC -5)
I've used Esperanto on my travels for many decades, and I recommend it. Life is too short to learn every language on the face of the earth!
#2 by Anthony E. | Sun Oct 12, 2008 17:30 EST (UTC -5)
I've been speaking Esperanto for about 10 years. It's quickly learned. Knowing Esperanto is like using Linux. Few people use it, yet we don't understand why that is so.
Esperato estas la plej bona lingvo por komunikado en ĉi tiun mondo. La angla estas tro imperiista. Se ĉio lernas ilian lingvon plus Esperanto, niaj komunikaj problemoj estas foritaj!
#3 by Jordon | Sun Oct 12, 2008 17:35 EST (UTC -5)
Thank you for your comments, Bill and Anthony. I'm still working on my presentation, and I'd like to close with some encouraging words that will reinforce what Esperanto is all about: communicating without boundaries.
Could you describe, in more detail, your experiences with Esperanto and the effect they've had on you?
#4 by Anthony E | Sun Oct 12, 2008 21:27 EST (UTC -5)
I'm a host for the Pasporta Servo which gives Esperanto speakers free room and board when they travel. I've had 3 guests from Spain, Lithuania & California. (Cali is a foreign country in my book :))
While in the US the avh person is stupid and too insular, people in general expect others to understand them.
But with Esperanto, everyone is on even footing because it's the native language of no one. If I go to Spain, matter how well I speak Spanish as a second language, the Spaniard ALWAYS has the upper hand in conversations. But if we spoke in Esperanto, nobody really has the "hometeam advantage" :) I would like Esperanto to be as big in the US as it is in Europe and Brazil. (Brazil & Hungary seem to be the new capitals of Esperanto.
#5 by Keith | Sun Nov 16, 2008 23:10 EST (UTC -5)
combines traits of the different Slavic, Germanic and Romance languages.
Umm, I don't think there's too much Germanic in the language. The vocabulary is mostly Romance (with some German), but the syntax and semantics are more based on Slavic (from what I've read). There doesn't seem to be much in the language's structure that's Germanic.
#6 by Jordon | Sun Nov 16, 2008 23:11 EST (UTC -5)
I guess vocabulary is a trait.