Message: "That's interesting, Anneza..."

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That's interesting, Anneza...

by Daividh (guest)

7/15/2002, 8:30 PM

but I was wondering: since Afrikaans stemmed from 17th-century Dutch, do you or other speakers find much difficulty with translating or understanding modern Dutch phrases and idiom? (Doesn't appear that way.)

In the same sense, I've often heard that Frisian is the closest language in sound and substance to modern English, since they had common roots 1,500 years ago. Seems like a stretch, and I've never actually heard Frisian pronounced. Anyone have an opinion or insight on this?

Thanks,

Da.

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- Anneza (guest) +1

7/16/2002, 1:48 AM

Dutch is a minefield to us actually! Technical Dutch is fine - if you know what the meaning is, you're there. And the scholarly, non-colloquial kind as well. But I find that I can be reading a Dutch newspaper quite merrily and then suddenly I plunge into a black hole of total incomprehension. And one of the most embarrassing moments of my life was being harangued by an old lady with false teeth and strong opinions about the City Council of Amsterdam whom I had been foolish enough to greet on a traffic island - had to smile bravely till the lights changed ...

Frisian is obviusly closer to Dutch than it ever was to English. What this reference means I think is that the vowel sounds of Frisian are more like English and less like Dutch than one might expect. But that still doesn't make 'em close!

- Daividh (guest)

7/16/2002, 8:16 PM

Thanks for the info and insights! And unfortunately, old ladies with false teeth on traffic islands are much the same the world 'round. LOL!

: )

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