On 01/04/07, Dmcdevit <dmcdevit(a)cox.net>
wrote:
Oldak Quill wrote:
> I, for one, object to the closure of projects based on elitist
> concerns as to the origin of the language. What matters is the place
> of the language in the world now. This language is, crucially,
> recognised as a language by the International Standardisation
> Organisation
>
>
>
>
There is no sense of "recognition" in the ISO code designations. As they
say for the 693-3 codes, "it is a goal for this part of ISO 639 to
provide an identifier for every distinct human language that has been
documented, whether living, extinct, or constructed, and whether its
modality is spoken, written or signed." There are 7,589 currently. It's
not about elitism; in fact, it's rather likely to me that other
constructed languages of the same speaker population would not have
gotten a wiki in the first place. I agree that what matters is the place
of the language in the world right now, and that place is as a backdrop
to a fictional universe with a fanbase who are sometimes known to use
the words amongst themselves. It is encyclopedically interesting as a
cultural phenomenon, but has no place as a dictionary. Words that aren't
in common independent use except in reference to a literary work, or
discussion in the context of that work, are not material for a general
dictionary.
Wiktionary don't just contain the words of the language they're
written in. Words of all languages and contexts are ideally in
Wiktionary.There's no reason why Klingon couldn't get a broad coverage
of words.
Are you suggesting we make a dictionary that defines words in terms that
it does not itself define, since they cannot be attested according to
normal dictionary standards? Or are you suggesting that we make a