New item in ISO 639-2 - Zaza
John Cowan
cowan at ccil.org
Thu Aug 24 21:17:39 CEST 2006
Caoimhin O Donnaile scripsit:
> What appeals to me is most is #1 - and addressing the stability problem
> of macrolanguage inclusion by means of an online database of
> macrolanguage inclusions for both current and obsoleted codes.
> Applications would include an internal copy of the database which they
> would update from the Internet at intervals.
That's closer to what ISO 639-6 is doing: a complete hierarchy of language
varieties. See my previous posting for why a macrolanguage gets created;
the circumstances are very special (closely related languages, frequently
treated as a single language, ISO 639-2 code).
To make a way-out hypothetical: if the Goidelic languages underwent
spelling and other reforms to make them close enough to be mutually
intelligible, at least within limits; and if the common form came to
be thought of as a single language; and if ISO 639-2 assigned a
single code to this newly recognized single language -- then there
would be a strong case for a new macrolanguage code, given that
the three existing languages have codes. But how likely is all that?
--
First known example of political correctness: John Cowan
After Nurhachi had united all the other http://www.ccil.org/~cowan
Jurchen tribes under the leadership of the cowan at ccil.org
Manchus, his successor Abahai (1592-1643)
issued an order that the name Jurchen should --S. Robert Ramsey,
be banned, and from then on, they were all The Languages of China
to be called Manchus.
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