[Wikipedia-l] Re: Languages

[Ray Saintonge]

Anthere wrote:

>Every little bit can help perhaps. What else would you
>suggest we can do ?
>
For the most part we are limited to encouragement and letting them know 
that the medium is there for them.

>We did the same with our languages, breton, basque,
>corse... The french unity is not so much relying on
>political unity, than cultural, linguistic and
>religious (less and less now of course, but the
>principles running the society are christian based
>even if we are a laic state). To achieve that unity,
>in the past time, kids also were hit at school if they
>talk their "home-language" (patois).
>
I'm familiar with that, but the Corsicans have never been content to be 
a part of France.  Of course one has to distinguish between what 
Christians say and what they do.

>>>The Encyclopedia is not translated and will not be
>>>translated in other languages. Each language is free
>>>'''in''' its own creativity. Articles from one
>>>
>>language can
>>
>>>influence another language. But they are not copies.
>>>
>Some topics, I cannot even translate from english to
>french because I do not know the french words for
>these.
>
If it's '''just''' a matter of words, a good dictionary can deal with 
it.  Cultural context is more difficult.

>By the Ec... the definition for "sect" seems to be
>notably different from our "secte".
>
>Someone changed the international link and now our
>"secte" is linked with your "cult".
>
> What do you think ?
>
That's tricky, because I know that the words are used differently.  In 
English "sect" is often used to distinguish different religious 
sub-groups.  Among Protestants Lutherens, Calvinists, Presbyterians, 
etc. are all protestant sects. There is some affinity with schismatics 
whose separation from the church was more often for reasons relating to 
the governance of the church than to theology.   Any of these groups 
 tends to still be socialy acceptable.

 "Cult" is more often used to refer to deviant religious groups, 
heretics with significant doctrinal differences.  Outsiders sometimes 
tend to believe, without a stitch of evidence that the cultists do weird 
things like drinking blood or engaging in orgies.

I haven't researched the matter, but my impression is that in French 
"culte" is far more socially acceptable.

Ec