Shady English...Not to Be Trusted...

Pokemon

19:06 < talvi> Myrddhin: Y'know, all this time I've seen you and Wiseman and
               Publius and snass discuss "Manga", I still don't know what it is.
19:06 < talvi> Myrddhin: I've just assumed it's another kind of Pokemon.

The Status of English in the USA

English has never had official status in the US. I was interested, therefore, in finding out which states, if any, had made English their official language. To my surprise, there were roughly half of the states with English having the designation of "official language." Even more surprisingly, such states as California and Florida, both with relatively large, Spanish-speaking Hispanic communities, have declared English as their official language.

Now, I know that the increasing prevalence of Spanish (and for that matter, other languages too) is upsetting various groups of people, most notably the hard-line Conservatives. And since there _is_ no federal official language, a lot of these same people are making it their business to have English claim that status.

How do I feel about it? I'm ambivalent. Really rather straddling the fence on this one--I just can't decide. Anyone who reads this: I would love to read your responses and get your takes on the situation. Should English be a federal official language?


Here's a link for a website advocating English as our federal official language:

US English | Making English the Official Language


I would like to hear opinions from everybody, regardless of which country they come from, or are living in now.

Hiberno-English

 There's one type of English that interests me above (most of) the rest, because it's unique and--if you're a linguist--easy to identify. This is the Irish take on English, called Hiberno-English. 

First, a little bit on the etymology. "Hibernia" is the Latin name for Ireland, much like "Confoederatio Helvetica" is the Latin name for Switzerland (which, incidentally, is still used on Swiss currency, and even in their Internet domain, which is .ch). Thus, "Hibernia English" is the dialect of English spoken in Ireland.

The majority of Irish today speak English in the home, with the exception of a large swath of western Ireland, where Irish Gaelic is still commonly spoken. It is, however, still an official language of both Ireland and the European Union. But, although English replaced Gaelic as the majority language long ago, there is plenty to be seen in the dialect of Gaelic extraction. Below, some of the traits that define Hiberno-English's distinctiveness:

1. Emphasis. Interesting topic to me especially, because some of my maternal grandmother's "people" hailed from Ireland. It involves the repetition of something already said in the same sentence ("reflection"). It interests me particularly because my mother still does this. Some examples:

"We missed the bus, so we did."

"She's baking biscuits, so she is."

2. Affirmatives and negatives. Irish Gaelic does not have direct yes/no answers, and this comes through in Irish English:

"Did you go to the part?" "I didn't."

"Is she going to the store?" "She is."

3. To be. This emphasizes the continuous present following:

"She does be baking a lot on Saturdays."


There is of course a great deal more that distinguishes Hiberno-English from other dialects. For a wealth of information, simply enter "Hiberno-English" in the Google search field.