Suppose you’re a linguist working in a community where
\n• the speakers have a shaky grasp of literacy
\n• community development workers have a shaky grasp on the speakers’ languages
\n• there’s an existing orthography which is crying out for improvement
\nMy advice – block your ears to its cries….<\/p>\n
\nI’ve just had lunch with an anthropologist who started hissing like a tea-kettle when I mentioned the latest IAD Picture Dictionary (on which more in a later post). It’s of Western Arrarnte. Not Aranda, not Arrente, not Arrernte. That’s what got the steam whistling. Linguists (in league sometimes with community members) keep changing the spelling of languages, and other learners can’t keep up, and can’t see why we make them change.
\nAnd here’s what the belief that spelling’s arbitrary leads to..
\nFrom a conversation with an enthusiatic community development worker C who went on what sounds like a wonderful bush trip. C was collecting information with some knowledgeable people, including N, who loved language, who I and many others admired, and who has since died.
\nC: “Have a look at this booklet and photos from the trip. We’re planning to distribute it. N wrote the words down.”
\nMe: [gulps at seeing napa<\/b> for ngapa<\/b> ‘water’] “Oh?”
\nC: “Yeah I’m very proud of it. But some people have said some of the spellings are wrong.”
\nMe: “They’re right. I’d be happy to proof-read it for you.”
\nC: “But I’m thinking of keeping the spellings anyway. Because they’re N’s spellings.”
\nWhen I shoot myself, don’t write ‘Rest in Piece’ on my gravestone.
\nThe moral – for non-linguists reading this blog – is that semi-literate speakers of small languages can’t cope with lots of variation in spellings. It hinders them learning to read and write. So, use the normal spelling system consistently if you’re preparing texts for long-term or wide distribution (signs, books, pamphlets, posters). And as for linguists… yes, I am as guilty as any in creating variant spellings of individual words, but please let’s resist creating the major variations that come with changing the orthography.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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