In 1987, Mattos calculated that 84% of basic vocabulary was Latinate, 14% Germanic, and 2% Slavic and Greek. Since Zamenhof's day, a large amount of Latinate vocabulary has been added to the language. Many of the Latinate roots were given an Italianesque appearance, corresponding to the use of Italian as a model for Esperanto pronunciation, but in form are closer to French, such as ĉemizo 'shirt' (French chemise, Italian camicia ) and ĉevalo 'horse' (French cheval, Italian cavallo ). Zamenhof never admitted to a Yiddish influence in Esperanto, presumably to avoid arousing antisemitic prejudice. This pattern is not random, but reflects ei and ī in Old High German, a distinction preserved in Yiddish: hejmo 'home' (German Heim, Yiddish הײם hejm), fajfi 'whistle' (German pfeifen, Yiddish פֿײַפֿן fajfn). Words with the digraph ei in German may in Esperanto have either ej (corresponding to the spelling) or aj (corresponding to the pronunciation). Indeed, much of the supposedly German vocabulary actually appears to be Yiddish, specifically Zamenhof's native Bialystok (Northeastern) dialect, which had formed the basis of his abortive attempt to standardize that language. (There's also ronki (to snore), Dutch ronken.) Fajro (fire) matches the pronunciation of English fire, but is also spelled and pronounced as Yiddish פֿײַר fajr. des.Ī couple of words, strato (street) and gisto (yeast), are closer to Dutch (straat, gist) than German (Straße, Gest), but this may be a compromise between German and English the way ŝtono (stone) is a compromise between German Stein and English. Swedish: Comparative the (as in " the more the merrier") ju. The result was that about two-thirds of this original vocabulary is Romance, and about one-third Germanic, including a pair of roots from Swedish: The main languages contributing to Zamenhof's original vocabulary wereĪnd German, the modern languages most widely learned in schools around the world at the time Esperanto was devised. Some appear to be compromises between the primary languages, such as tondri (to thunder), per French tonner, Italian tuonare, German donnern, and English thunder. A large number are what might be called common European international vocabulary, or generic Romance: Roots common to several languages, such as vir- "man", found in English words such as virile, and okul- "eye", found in oculist. In whatever time, in whatever form, the word ‘patronus’ always relates to protection.Zamenhof took most of his Esperanto root words from languages of the Italic and Germanic families, principally Italian, French, German, Yiddish, and English. In turn, the word ’patronage’ most likely came from the term ‘Pater’, which means ‘father’ in Latin. ![]() ![]() A patronus in Ancient Rome was someone of a high class who had a ‘patronage’ relationship with a client, who would usually be less rich, or lower class. In Ancient Rome, the word ‘patronus’ meant protector, too, but with very different connotations. ![]() The actual result of the spell, the Patronus itself, has an even more interesting history. It’s a fascinating example of how language changes and evolves, so here’s a look at five of our favourite stories behind some of the wizarding world’s most famous spells… The Patronus CharmĮxpecto Patronum, the spell that conjured up Harry’s magnificent stag Patronus, roughly translates into ‘I expect (or await) a guardian’ in Latin, which is apt. Spells are no exception, with the origins of many incantations harking back to Latin terms and phrases some spells translate pretty directly, while others have been carefully crafted and assembled from fragments of other languages. Harry Potter is a world of strange and magical language, filled with words that sound alien and new, but in fact have their roots in the real world.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |