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Who do you speak Esperanto with?
"I use this mostly on the Internet, but occasionally meet up with fellow Esperantists around Cambridge. I have written software for supporting Esperanto on the Palm handheld computers and I correspond in Esperanto with the users of that software." Matthew"I speak Esperanto at home, to my daughter, who is still too young to reply, sometimes with my wife, and with some friends and visitors. I also read books and magazines in Esperanto and have a lot of e-mail correspondence in Esperanto." Edmund"I use Esperanto with fellow Esperantists. I am now in Poland for a Baha'i year of service and Esperanto is my sole means of communication with many people. I intend to continue to use Esperanto once more in Britain, when I return." Nicholas"I use Esperanto at home with my partner, house mate and friends. I started to learn Esperanto three years ago from a colleague. I now speak it fluently, with my girlfriend (who is French), with other friends locally, with numerous visitors from across the world, and every time I go travelling.Being a speaker of Esperanto means that I am part of a worldwide community of people who, like me, believe in equality. Phrases like "We're all born equal" or "We're all just human beings after all" actually take on a concrete meaning, when I can talk politics, religion, family, relationships, food & drink, swap jokes and enjoy a few beers with a mixed group of people from across the world, and realise at the end of the evening that I still don't know where half the people come from -- it just didn't matter enough to ask." Tim"I have spoken and used the international language Esperanto since I was 14 (in 1962), worked in Holland, China and Japan using it." Geoffrey"No other speakers in my area, so it's not as fluent as I'd have liked." Andy"Socially (e.g. in clubs) and culturally with other Esperanto speakers e.g. at a recent week-end theatrical and literature workshop focusing on "The Monologue"; written as well as spoken; looking forward to using it abroad at e.g. at 2006 Esperanto Congress in Florence." John"I speak write and read Esperanto, primarily with those who live in other countries, but also fairly regularly with speakers in the UK." David"I use Esperanto to speak to people across the world - on holiday and in correspondence with pen-pals." BillAbout Esperanto:
"Esperanto has a rather unique speech community. The language was launched in 1887 as an easy and neutral language for international communication, and there is an Esperanto Movement that aims to improve the world by encouraging the use of Esperanto.
The aims are perhaps best summarised by
http://uea.org/info/angle/an_manifesto_prago.html
There is also an Esperanto community, which overlaps with but is not identical with the Movement. Estimates of the number of people who can speak (some) Esperanto vary from 100 000 to several millions." Edmund"It means sharing the vision of its creator, Ludwik Zamenhof, which is to establish one world society, with one world federal system of government, using an international auxiliary language which does not replace any national language, but in fact preserves the linguistic rights of all peoples and cultures. The concept of an international auxiliary language is also a principle of the Baha'i Faith, so this is important for me. Baha'u'l! lah (1817-1892), the Founder of the Baha'i Faith, said: "The day is approaching when all the peoples of the world will have adopted one universal language and one common script. When this is achieved, to whatsoever city a man may journey, it shall be as if he were entering his own home. These things are obligatory and absolutely essential." Esperanto has a real linguistic community of users, not only in the world, but also in Britain. Esperanto was created in 1887 by the Jewish Polish ophthalmologist, Ludwik Zamenhof, and has since spread to most parts of the world and is successfully used by its speakers as a neutral and egalitarian means of communication." Nicholas"Esperanto is a written language. There is quite a lot of original as well as translated literature." Marianne"I read novels in Esperanto when I have time, and subscribe to the magazine Monato, published monthly. It's also incredibly useful whenever I travel. Next month, for instance, I'm off to Poland for a week, and I'll be staying with Esperanto speakers when I get there. Not only do I save on hotels, I also get to meet locals, see their houses, take them out to dinner, and talk endlessly about every subject under the sun. And all that without having to learn the language of every different country, and without expecting anyone to learn my language either. We meet half-way -- it's a kind of linguistic handshake." Tim "Esperanto has been used in the UK for more than 100 years. The biggest collections of Esperanto literature are at the National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh, and the Butler Library, Wedgwood Memorial College, Stoke-on-Trent." DavidHow you feel about Esperanto:
"Being an Esperanto speaker gets me branded as an eccentric of sorts, which is a shame. I have studied and speak, to a greater or lesser degree, 7 other languages (in addition to English and Esperanto), but Esperanto is the only one that I have felt able to understand another speaker as if I were a "native". Spanish is the only other language that has come close, but I spent five years in evening classes to achieve that level, whereas Esperanto took me just a couple of months of correspondence courses to feel equally confident.It's a pity it's become a marginalised and "crank" language in this country; it has a lot to offer to help people "get into" languages in general, whether or not you are interested in the universal communication ideals that drive many Esperanto enthusiasts." Matthew"I learnt Esperanto at the age of about 20. Because of the many contacts I have through Esperanto the language has become an important part of my identity and my life. Most of my Esperanto-speaking acquaintances are in other countries, and most of my communication with them is by email, but I am also in regular contact with a few Esperanto speakers in my own town, by phone and face-to-face." Edmund "To me speaking Esperanto means being amongst friends, it's part of who I am. It comes naturally to me." Marianne"An Esperantist meets people from other cultures as equals, and has respect for other people's languages (i.e. I doesn't expect them to have to learn my own national language in order to speak/do business with me). I live in London and there is an active London Esperanto Club in my city." Bill |
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What do you think about your local accent?
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95% of people in Northern Ireland think of themselves as having a moderately strong accent, compared to only 63% of people in the east of England.
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Esperanto in the British Isles by Viv Edwards
Esperanto - one of a number of languages devised for international communication - means 'hope'. It was the pseudonym used by L.L. Zamenhof, a Polish Jew, who first proposed the language in 1887. His intention was not to replace existing languages but to create an easy-to-learn auxiliary language to spread his ideas on peaceful coexistence. Today Esperanto is the most successful 'constructed' language, spoken by up to two million people worldwide. Although most people learn to speak the language as adults, up to 2000 people use Esperanto as their first language. Because Esperanto is a constructed language, it does not belong to any language family. However, its vocabulary is based mainly on Romance languages, and its sound system is essentially Slavic.Esperanto is spoken in many different settings - with family and friends at home as well as in clubs and international gatherings. It is a common form of communication with followers of the Bah'ai faith. Esperanto literature is widely available, with magazines and novels, both original and translated. It is also used extensively in emails and letters.Some speakers complain that their enthusiasm for Esperanto gets them branded as eccentric. The prevailing feeling, though, is that the language opens doors, allowing you to speak to others from across the world. In the words of Tim, a contributor, "We meet half-way - it's a kind of linguistic handshake".
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