----- Original Message -----
From: "sjuler" <sjuler@...>
To: <norse_course@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Sunday, February 08, 2004 6:12 PM
Subject: [norse_course] Re: Jed to Reanna re patronymics - Jedsdaughter?
.


> Hey, why not 'Jedsdaughter'?
>
> /Sjuler
>
> Sjuler
Valid point...but I think the attraction of learning another language is in
trying to absorb its spelling and sounds as far as possible. I remember as a
thirteen year old being fascinated by the word 'Yggdrasil' and
subsequently by other words ....'Ospakar', 'Skallagrim' and so on. The
English (I don't know about the Scots, Welsh, Irish and Americans) have this
arrogance, subconsciously at times, of assuming that they don't need to
learn more than a few words of another language. Beyond that, let the damned
foreigners try to understand English.This is a mindset which seriously
hampers our ability to pick up other languages, living or dead, as fluently
as the Scandinavians seem to do. I sometimes wish I was born in Sweden,
Norway, Denmark or Iceland for that reason alone.
But when I tried to approximate the sounds of Old English (reading from a
short Old English text) to a peer group, they were quite enthusiastic about
it . It was just near enough Modern English in some of its pronunciations
for them to latch on to. And the next step after Old English of course, is
Old Norse. It's a shame that it took me nearly forty years to get round to
it.
I'll still be in trouble with my daughter, though.
Cheers
Jed
>
> --- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, "Gerald Mcharg"
> <Gerald.Mcharg@...> wrote:
> > Reanna
> > When I wished that my daughter had my patronymic, in no way was I
> belittling the Irish.
> > What about an indulgent compromise? - Megaera Jedardottir Mc Harg.
> > She'll kill me.
> > Cheers
> > Jed
>
>
>
>
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