NationStates Jolt Archive

This (http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/10/25/turk.letters.reut/) has got to take the cake.

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) -- A Turkish court has fined 20 people for using the letters Q and W on placards at a Kurdish new year celebration, under a law that bans use of characters not in the Turkish alphabet, rights campaigners said.

The court in the southeastern city of Siirt fined each of the 20 people 100 new lira ($75.53) for holding up the placards, written in Kurdish, at the event last year. The letters Q and W do not exist in the Turkish alphabet.

...The 1928 Law on the Adoption and Application of Turkish Letters changed the Turkish alphabet from the Arabic script to a modified Latin script and required all signs, advertising, newspapers and official documents to only use Turkish letters.

Probably the most absurd piece of news I've seen in the last couple of months.

This (http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/10/25/turk.letters.reut/) has got to take the cake.

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) -- A Turkish court has fined 20 people for using the letters Q and W on placards at a Kurdish new year celebration, under a law that bans use of characters not in the Turkish alphabet, rights campaigners said.

Probably the most absurd piece of news I've seen in the last couple of months.
Almost as absurd as the lengths to which the French go to avoid "Aglicization" of their tongue-twisting language. :D

This (http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/10/25/turk.letters.reut/) has got to take the cake.

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) -- A Turkish court has fined 20 people for using the letters Q and W on placards at a Kurdish new year celebration, under a law that bans use of characters not in the Turkish alphabet, rights campaigners said.

The court in the southeastern city of Siirt fined each of the 20 people 100 new lira ($75.53) for holding up the placards, written in Kurdish, at the event last year. The letters Q and W do not exist in the Turkish alphabet.

...The 1928 Law on the Adoption and Application of Turkish Letters changed the Turkish alphabet from the Arabic script to a modified Latin script and required all signs, advertising, newspapers and official documents to only use Turkish letters.

Probably the most absurd piece of news I've seen in the last couple of months.
What part of Israel do you live in. I spent my September, in 2004, driving between Herzlia, Raanana, Ramat David, and Haifa. What a great place. Except for Friday evenings in Jerusalem. They seem to take the Sabbath thing pretty seriously

Almost as absurd as the lengths to which the French go to avoid "Aglicization" of their tongue-twisting language. :D

What an assinine comment. English is by far a more difficult language to master.

What part of Israel do you live in. I spent my September, in 2004, driving between Herzlia, Raanana, Ramat David, and Haifa. What a great place.
I live in Ramat Gan. I do visit Haifa and Herzliya occasionally, I have relatives there.


Except for Friday evenings in Jerusalem. They seem to take the Sabbath thing pretty seriously
In Jerusalem and Bnei Braq- absolutely. Although even there, if you have a car, there's still enough nightlife on Friday night. And it's not like Tel-Aviv is THAT far away, either.

What an assinine comment. English is by far a more difficult language to master.
I disagree. English is one of the easiest languages in which to gain a working knowledge, which goes a long way toward explaining why it has spread across the world. But you may be right about "mastery." Even people whose native tongue is English sometimes have trouble deciphering it. :)

:headbang:

Hmm, I thought they made the Kurdish language legal again in the early 1990's as part of the peace process after the civil war...

This is another discusting example of the racist oppression that is still kept over the Kurds of Turkey. Although beeing somewhat funny because of the absurdness, I find it mostly just sad and depressing.

Never let that country in EU, not as long as shit like this happens.

I disagree. English is one of the easiest languages in which to gain a working knowledge, which goes a long way toward explaining why it has spread across the world. But you may be right about "mastery." Even people whose native tongue is English sometimes have trouble deciphering it. :)

I disagree. English is by far harder than Germany, for example, but due the English political influence all around the world, most important beeing the USA of course, and the English beeing the major language there it has become the world number 1 language. It is not because it was easy, or even really logical.

Qwwwwqw!

Now, why does the US like Turkey, again?

Almost as absurd as the lengths to which the French go to avoid "Aglicization" of their tongue-twisting language. :D

And what lengths do they go to? Enlighten us, lest we think you're just spouting prejudice.

Hmm, so you can't advertise "Quality Wine" in Turkey. How silly.

Well, from what I know Turkey could become a member of the EU in about 10 year soonest, so I do really hope they get their human rights situation handeled until then.

I disagree. English is by far harder than Germany, for example, but due the English political influence all around the world, most important beeing the USA of course, and the English beeing the major language there it has become the world number 1 language. It is not because it was easy, or even really logical.

I would say that English's dominance is due in equal parts to the USA's current political hegemony and the British Empire spreading it around the world before.

I would say that English's dominance is due in equal parts to the USA's current political hegemony and the British Empire spreading it around the world before.

Yes. That is what I was (though miserably)trying to say.

And what lengths do they go to? Enlighten us, lest we think you're just spouting prejudice.

How about this? (http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59674,00.html)

I don't think it gets more paranoid than this.

How about this? (http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59674,00.html)

I don't think it gets more paranoid than this.

Why, that seems ok to me... It is not targettet against any minorities and I doubt if anyone will really suffer because of it.

How about this? (http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59674,00.html)

I don't think it gets more paranoid than this.
I don't see any problem. Courriel is practically the translation into French of 'e-mail'. And your example certainly doesn't show that French is harder to learn than English.

How about this? (http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59674,00.html)

I don't think it gets more paranoid than this.

The Culture Ministry has announced a ban on the use of "e-mail" in all government ministries, documents, publications or websites, the latest step to stem an incursion of English words into the French lexicon.

People can still use whatever they want - this only affects the government. Sweden does the same thing (http://www.regeringen.se/sb/d/2518) - Swedish terms are given precedence over foreign ones, and there is a language council (http://www.spraknamnden.se/andrasprak/english.htm) that issues recommendations in language issues. This is in no way uncommon, most countries do prefer to use their own language in government. Why is France singled out by mostly USians for doing this?

How about this? (http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,59674,00.html)

I don't think it gets more paranoid than this.

Freedom fries.

liberty cabbage. :D

and fass is -lo and behold, the surprise is near- right. basically every country does that with their own language.

liberty cabbage. :D

and fass is -lo and behold, the surprise is near- right. basically every country does that with their own language.

I anyone really surprised? ;)

liberty cabbage. :D

and fass is -lo and behold, the surprise is near- right. basically every country does that with their own language.
Not USians, we just steal from everybody else and it seems to work. Lends a certain j'ne sais quoi to our conversation, rather than the faux pas that other nations view it as.
But of course, I forget, USians are the cultural imperialists whose language must be stopped at the gates.

What an assinine comment. English is by far a more difficult language to master. True, but calling a CD player a "platine-laseur"?

I am taking a course in Ottoman Turkish (for which I am not learning as we speak). Let me tell you, it's a tough one - and I'm on my first lessons.
Not only that, they have a "k" letter that is used for both k and the rarer sound of soft-k. Soft-k is tough because it's not indacated in spelling, but it does turn to a soft-gh in declination. Why didn't they mark it any way? I can't tell you for sure.
Starting now, i'll spell it "q". Arrest me Turks, but you can't stop me.

Freedom fries.
^^^^^^^^
ZING

Not USians, we just steal from everybody else and it seems to work. Lends a certain j'ne sais quoi to our conversation, rather than the faux pas that other nations view it as.
But of course, I forget, USians are the cultural imperialists whose language must be stopped at the gates.

http://www.plainlanguage.gov/

http://www.plainlanguage.gov/
Bah, too many words. I'll just assume that the above website supports your cause and go on with what parts off my life aren't linguisticly based.
Fucking Beaurocrats, undermining me at every damn stage of my argument!

One thing I have to mention, because it seems no poster got it: the letters are to be found in Kurdish transcriptions. Turkey believes it can join the EU; the EU imposed fair treatment of Kurds; in consequence: Turkey will explain its policies against Kurdish culture (and politics - it was a political gathering, after all) as fighting for the preservation of Turkish identity. See? It's quite groovy.

What an assinine comment. English is by far a more difficult language to master.

No one said it was easier. But they honestly have tried to legislate to keep people from changing "le fin de semaine" (sp?) into the shorter "Le Weekend", for example.

No one said it was easier. But they honestly have tried to legislate to keep people from changing "le fin de semaine" (sp?) into the shorter "Le Weekend", for example.

In government documents.

No one said it was easier. But they honestly have tried to legislate to keep people from changing "le fin de semaine" (sp?) into the shorter "Le Weekend", for example.
I'm pretty sure that the average Franzosen just says "Weekend". Of course, this drives the people "who know better" nuts, but people "who know better" are always a little nuts.
And now I am siding with Fass, so I'm just going to get out of here.