[Foundation-l] Allow new wikis in extinct languages?

[Pharos]

On Sat, Mar 29, 2008 at 5:33 PM, Mark Williamson <node.ue at gmail.com> wrote:
> I think it depends on the community.
>
>  For example, in the case of Coptic, it is very much alive in certain
>  senses of the word - it is a thriving liturgical language, and it
>  represents their unique cultural heritage.
>
>  In the case of the Massachusett-Narragansett language, there is a
>  community actively working at reviving it as a living language in some
>  form.
>
>  In the case of, say, Old English, however, for which we already have a
>  Wikipedia, there is little interest in language revival, and most
>  people interested in the language are hobbyists.
>
>  I would thus personally recommend approval of Coptic and
>  Massachusett-Narragansett if they had enough "fluent speaker"
>  supporters, but against the approval of something analagous to Old
>  English.
>
>  Mark

Yes, I think the exact rule we should propose is: Does this language
have a contemporary literature?  Are new articles or books still be
written in it?

And is the contemporary literature respected by -scholars- of the
"historical" language (i.e. not something merely pursued by Sumerian
hobbyists)?

Because if there is a contemporary literature, then the language is
not truly extinct in the written form.

When we "provide the sum of human knowledge to every human being", we
must recognize the diversity of human expression, and that a -full-
accounting of the vehicles of intellectual discourse must include all
languages that have contemporary literatures, whether they havve
native speakers or not.

Pharos

>  On 29/03/2008, Jesse Martin (Pathoschild) <pathoschild at gmail.com> wrote:
>  > Hello,
>  >
>  >  The language subcommittee only allows languages that have a living
>  >  native community (except Wikisource, due to its archivist nature).
>  >  This is based on an interpretation of the Wikimedia Foundation mission
>  >  to "provide the sum of human knowledge to every human being". Thus,
>  >  the overriding purpose of allowing a wiki in a new language is to make
>  >  it accessible to more human beings. If a language has no native users,
>  >  allowing a wiki in that language does not fit our mission because it
>  >  does not make that project accessible to more human beings. Instead, a
>  >  wiki in their native languages should be requested if it doesn't
>  >  already exist.
>  >
>  >  Typically, the users requesting a wiki in an extinct language don't
>  >  want to provide educational material to more people at all, but only
>  >  want to promote or revive the language. While these are noble goals,
>  >  they are not those of the Wikimedia Foundation, so that a wiki should
>  >  not be created simply to fulfill them.
>  >
>  >  But that is my opinion. What do you think; should wikis be allowed in
>  >  every extinct language?
>  >
>  >
>  >  --
>  >  Yours cordially,
>  >  Jesse Plamondon-Willard (Pathoschild)
>  >
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