Uyghur

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Uyghur

Uyghur (Уйғурчә / Uyghurche / ئۇيغۇر تىلى‎ )

Uyghur is a Turkic language with 8-11 million speakers mainly in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the north west of China, where it is an official language. In Xinjiang Uyghur is used in the media, and as a lingua franca among other peoples. There are also communities of Uyghur speakers in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Uyghur was originally written with the Orkhon alphabet, a runiform script derived from or inspired by the Sogdian script, which was ultimately derived from the Aramaic script.

Between the 8th and the 16th century, Uyghur was written with an alphabet derived from Sogdian known as Old Uyghur. Unlike Sogdian, which was written from right to left in horizontal lines, the Old Uyghur alphabet was written from left to right in vertical columns, or in other words, it was a version of Sogdian rotated 90° to the left. Uyghur was also written with the Syriac alphabet, mostly in Christian documents.

From the the 16th century until the early 20th century, Uyghur was written with a version of the Arabic alphabet known as 'Chagatai'. During the 20th century a number of versions of the Latin and Cyrillic alphabets were adopted to write Uyghur in different Uyghur-speaking regions. However the Latin alphabet was unpopular and in 1987 the Arabic script was reinstated as the official script for Uyghur in China.

The name of this language is variously spelt Uigur, Uiguir, Uighuir, Uygur, Uighur, Uygur, Uyghur in English, and 维吾尔语 (Wéiwú'ěryǔ) in Mandarin Chinese. Native names of the language are written ئۇيغۇر تىلى‎ / ئۇيغۇرچە‎, Уйғурчә / Уйғур тили, Uyƣurche / Uyƣur tili or Uyghurche / Uyghur tili. Uyghur is the preferred spelling in the Latin alphabet: this was confirmed at a conference of the Ethnic Languages and Script Committe of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region held in October 2006.

Old Uyghur alphabet

Most of the Old Uyghur letters have different shapes depending on their position in a word. The initial shapes are used at the beginning of words, the medial shapes in the middle, and the final shapes at the ends of words.

Arabic alphabet for Uyghur (Uyghur Ereb Yëziqi / UEY / ئۇيغۇر ئەرەب يېزىقى‎)

The Perso-Arabic alphabet was introduced to the Uyghur people, along with Islam, in the 10th century. The version of the alphabet used to write Chagatai, now known as the Chagatay alphabet, became the literary language of the region, and was used until the 1920s. Alternative ways of writing Uyghur were devised from then. One of these, the Uyghur Ereb Yëziqi (ULY), is used mainly by Uyghurs in China and is an expansion of the Chagatay alphabet.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghur_Ereb_Yëziqi

Cyrillic alphabet for Uyghur (Уйғур Сирил Йезиқи / Uyghur Siril Yëziqi / USY)

The Cyrillic alphabet for Uyghur was introduced in the Soviet Union in 1937 as a replacement for the Latin-based alphabet for Uyghur that was devised in 1926. It was one way to weaken the ties between the Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples, particularly with Turkey, where the Latin alphabet was introduced in 1927.

This alphabet is still used by Uyghurs in the Russian Federation, and in former Soviet Republics such as Kazakhstan.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghur_Siril_Yëziqi

Latin alphabets for Uyghur (uyghur élipbesi)

Uyghur New Script

This version of the Latin alphabet, known as Uyghur Yëngi Yëziqi or Uyƣur Yəngi Yəziⱪ (UYY), was used to write Uyghur between 1965 and 1982, mainly in China.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghur_New_Script

Uyghur Latin Yéziq

The Uyghur Latin Yéziq (ULY) which was finalised in July 2001 after five conferences held at Xinjiang University in Ürümqi. It was further amended in 2008. It is an auxiliary alphabet for the Uyghur language.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uyghur_Latin_alphabet

Sample texts in Uyghur

Arabic alphabet (UEY)

Cyrillic alphabet (USY)

Һемме адем занидинла еркин, иззет-һөрмет ве һоқуқта бапбаравер болуп туғулған. Улар еқилге ве вийдан'ға иге һемде бир-бириге қэриндашлиқ мунасивитиге хас роһ билен билен муамил қилиши кэрек.

Latin alphabet (UYY)

H̡əmmə adəm zatidinla ərkin, izzət-h̡ɵrmət wə hok̡uk̡ta babbarawər bolup tuƣulƣan. Ular ək̡ilƣə wə wijdanƣa igə h̡əmdə bir-birigə k̡erindaxlik̡ munasiwitigə hax roh bilən mu’amilə k̡ilixi kerək.

Latin alphabet (ULY)

Hemme adem zatidinla erkin, izzet-hörmet we hoquqta babbarawer bolup tughulghan. Ular eqilghe we wijdan'gha ige hemde bir-birige qérindashliq munasiwitige xas roh bilen muamile qilishi kérek.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Ogham alphabet

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Ogham alphabet

Ogham

Ogham is an alphabet that appears on monumental inscriptions dating from the 4th to the 6th century AD, and in manuscripts dating from the 6th to the 9th century. It was used mainly to write Primitive and Old Irish, and also to write Old Welsh, Pictish and Latin. It was inscribed on stone monuments throughout Ireland, particuarly Kerry, Cork and Waterford, and in England, Scotland, the Isle of Man and Wales, particularly in Pembrokeshire in south Wales.

The name Ogham is pronounced [ˈoːm] or [ˈoːəm] in Modern Irish, and it was spelt ogam and pronounced [ˈɔɣam] in Old Irish. Its origins are uncertain: it might be named after the Irish god Ogma, or after the Irish phrase og-úaim (point-seam), which refers to the seam made by the point of a sharp weapon. Ogham is also known as or ogham craobh (tree ogham) beth luis fearn or beth luis nion, after the first few letters.

Ogham was probably pre-dates the earliest inscriptions - some scholars believe it dates back to the 1st century AD - as the language used shows pre-4th century elements. It is thought to have been modelled on or inspired by the Roman, Greek or Runic scripts. It was designed to write Primitive Irish and was possibly intended as a secret form of communication.

While all surviving Ogham inscriptions are on stone, it was probably more commonly inscribed on sticks, stakes and trees. Inscriptions are mostly people's names and were probably used to mark ownership, territories and graves. Some inscriptions in primitive Irish and Pictish have not been deciphered, there are also a number of bilingual inscriptions in Ogham and Latin or Ogham and Old Norse written with the Runic alphabet.

Notable features

• Type of writing system: alphabet
• Number of letters: 25, which are grouped into five aicmí (sing. aicme = group, class). Each aicme is named after its first letter. Originally Ogham consisted of 20 letters or fouraicmí; the fifth acime, or Forfeda, was added for use in manuscripts.
• Writing surfaces: rocks, wood, manuscripts
• Direction of writing: inscribed around the edges of rocks running from bottom to top and left to right, or left to right and horizontally in manuscripts.
• Letters are linked together by a solid line.
• Used to write: Primitive and Old Irish, Pictish, Old Welsh and Latin

The Ogham alphabet (vertical)

The pronunciation of the letters shown is for Primitive Irish the language used in the majority of Ogham inscriptions. The names and sounds represented by of the letters uath and straif are uncertain. There are many different version of the letter names - the standard ones are used here [with the Primitive Irish ones, where known, in bracketts] - others can be found at:evertype.com.

The Ogham alphabet (horizontal)

Transliteration

Tengwās īwerijonākā
Tut raddassodd trīs dītrebākī dīslondetun do bitū.
Tēgoddit in wāssākan do atareregiyī esyan kenutan writ dēwan.
Bāddar kina labarātun writ alaliyan qos qennan blēdaniyās.
Issit andan esset bīrt wiras dī ēbis writ alaliyan diyas blēdniyas: “mati ad tāyomas.”
Bowet samali qos qennan blēdaniyās.
“Issit mati sodesin,” esset bīrt aliyas uiras.
Bāddar andan ēran sodesū qos qennan blēdaniyās.
“Tongū wo mō brattan,” esset bīrt trissas uiras, “ma nīt lēggītar kiyunessus do mū, imbit gabiyū wāssākan oliyan dū swi.”

Old Irish (Sengoídelc) version

Tríar manach do·rat díultad dont ṡaegul.
Tíagait i fásach do aithrigi a peccad fri día.
Bátar cen labrad fri araile co cenn blíadnae.
Is and as·bert fer diib fri araile dia blíadnae, “Maith at·taam,” olse.
Amein co cenn blíadnae.
“Is maith ón,” ol in indara fer.
Bátar and íar suidiu co cenn blíadnae.
“Toingim fom aibit,” ol in tres fer, “mani·léicthe ciúnas dom co n-imgéb in fásach uile dúib.”

Modern Irish (Gaeilge) version (by Dennis King)

Triúr manach a thug diúltú don saol.
Téann siad ins an fhásach chun aithrí a dhéanamh ina gcuid peacaí roimh Dhia.
Bhí siad gan labhairt lena chéile go ceann bliana.
Ansin dúirt fear díobh le fear eile bliain amháin ina dhiaidh sin, “Táimid go maith,” ar seisean.
Mar sin go ceann bliana.
“Is maith go deimhin,” arsa an dara fear.
Bhí siad ann ina dhiaidh sin go ceann bliana.
“Dar m’aibíd,” arsa an treas fear, “mura ligeann sibh ciúnas dom fágfaidh mé an fásach uile daoibh!”

English version (by Dennis King)

Three holy men turned their back on the world.
They went into the wilderness to atone for their sins before God.
They did not speak to one another for a year.
At the end of the year, one of them spoke up and said, "We’re doing well."
Another year went by the same way.
"Yes we are," said the next man.
And so another year went by.
"I swear by my smock," said the third man, "if you two won’t be still I’m going to leave you here in the wilderness!

Source: http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/sengoidelc/donncha/tm/ilteangach/

Texts in Latin

Transliteration

Numus honoratur sine. Numo nullus amatur.

Translation

Money is honoured, without money nobody is loved

From: The Annals of Inisfallen of 1193

From: The Book of Ballymote (Leabhar Bhaile an Mhóta), written in 1390 or 1391.

Lesson of the day: Székely-Hungarian Rovás

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Lesson of the day: Székely-Hungarian Rovás

Székely-Hungarian Rovás (Hungarian Runes)

Székely-Hungarian Rovás, which are also known as Hungarian Runes, are thought to have descended from the Turkic script (Kök Turki) used in Central Asia, though some scholars believe the Székely-Hungarian Rovás pre-date the Turkic script. They were used by the Székler Magyars in Hungary until the 11th century. In remote parts of Transylvania however, the runes were still used up until the 1850s. During the 20th century there was a revival of interest in the alphabet.

Notable features

• Type of writing system: alphabet.
• Usually written on sticks in boustrophedon style (alternating direction right to left then left to right), although the right to left direction was most common.
• There are separate letters for all the phonemes of Hungarian and are in this respect better suited to written Hungarian than the Latin alphabet.
• Words were separated by three vertical dots.
• Ligatures were often used and sometimes an entire word was written with a single sign.
• There are no lower or upper case letters, but the first letter of a proper name was often written a bit larger.
• Vowels were sometimes not written, unless their omission would cause ambiguity.
• The consonants with (a) next to them were used before a, á, o, ó, u and ú, while those with (e) next to them were used before e, ë, é, i, í, ö, ő, ü, ű
• A number of separate symbols, known as capita dictionum or the head of the words, were also used, though their usage is uncertain.

Used to write

Hungarian (Magyar), a Uralic language with about 15 million speakers in Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine and Slovakia. There are also many people of Hungarian origin in the UK and other European countries, the USA, Canada and Australia.

Székely-Hungarian Rovás

Numerals

Sample texts

Translation into Modern Hungarian

(Ezt) az Úr születése utáni 1501. évben írták. Mátyás, János, István kovácsok csinálták. Mátyás mester (és) Gergely mester csinálták [uninterpretable].

English translation

(This) was written in the 1501st year of our Lord. The smiths Matthias, John (and) Stephen did (this). Master Matthias (and) Master Gergely did [uninterpretable]

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Old Italic alphabets

Old Italic alphabets

Origin

The Old Italic alphabets developed from the west Greek alphabet, which came to Italy via the Greek colonies on Sicily and along the west coast of Italy. The Etruscans adapted the Greek alphabet to write Etruscan sometime during the 6th century BC, or possibly earlier. Most of the other alphabets used in Italy are thought to have derived from the Etruscan alphabet.

Ancient Latin

The earliest known inscriptions in the Latin alphabet date from the 6th century BC. It was adapted from the Etruscan alphabet during the 7th century BC. The letters Y and Z were taken from the Greek alphabet to write Greek loan words. Other letters were added from time to time as the Latin alphabet was adapted for other languages.

Modern Latin alphabet

Faliscan

About 100 inscriptions have been found in the Faliscan alphabet dating from between 400 and 250 BC. Faliscan was closely related to Latin.

Marsiliana

Messapic

The Messapic alphabet is thought to have derived directly from the Greek alphabet, rather than developing from the Etruscan alphabet. The only known inscriptions in the Messapic alphabet date from the 2nd and 1st centuries BC. The Messapic language was not related to other languages of Italy, instead it is thought to have been a member of the extinct Illyrian family of languages.

Middle Adriatic / South Picene

North Picene

Oscan

Oscan is believed to have been spoken in Samnium, Campania, Lucania and Abruzzo in southern Italy. The Osci adapted the Etruscan alphabet to write their language sometime in the 7th century BC though the earlist known Oscan inscriptions appeared on coins dating from the 5th century BC. After the territory occupied by the Oscans was conquered by Rome in the first century AD, the Oscan language and culture disappeared.

Oscan was written from right to left in horizontal lines running from top to bottom. A dot was used to separate words.

Oscan alphabet

Umbrian

Seven bronze tablets, dating from between about 350 and 50 BC, are the only examples of the Umbrian alphabet that have been found.

Sul tradurre in inglese l’italiano

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Sul tradurre in inglese l’italiano

Sul tradurre in inglese l’italiano

Un esperto traduttore americano spiega che il difficile non sono le lingue diverse: sono i mondi diversi

Antony Shugaar è un traduttore statunitense con una lunga esperienza nella traduzione di testi italiani in inglese: ha tradotto diversi libri di Primo Levi e più di recente Resistere non serve a niente di Walter Siti e Il metodo del coccodrillo di Maurizio De Giovanni. In un articolo sul New York Times ha raccontato i tempi dei suoi primi lavori da traduttore in Italia e le difficoltà e i problemi più comuni in cui si imbattono i traduttori di lingua inglese quando hanno a che fare con dei testi scritti in italiano.

All’inizio degli anni Ottanta Shugaar si trasferì a Milano e lavorò per un po’ di tempo nella rivista italiana d’arte FMR, acronimo dell’editore Franco Maria Ricci: gli uffici si trovavano all’interno del sontuoso Palazzo Visconti di Modrone, e un paio d’anni dopo l’uscita in Italia FMR cominciò a essere pubblicata anche negli Stati Uniti (con uno slogan piuttosto ambizioso, ricorda Shugaar: “la più bella rivista del mondo”, secondo una definizione che veniva da Jacqueline Kennedy, amica di Ricci).

Per la traduzione dei testi della rivista Ricci si affidò a William Weaver, uno dei più noti e apprezzati traduttori dall’italiano all’inglese, che visse a lungo in Italia e che all’epoca aveva da poco tradotto Il nome della rosa di Umberto Eco (Weaver tradusse anche Svevo, Calvino, Zavattini, Moravia, Montale e altri grandi autori della letteratura italiana). Nel suo pezzo per il New York Times Shugaar cita alcune piccole e grandi lezioni che in quegli anni apprese da Weaver, che considera uno dei suoi grandi maestri e al quale è in parte dedicato il suo ricordo (Weaver è morto il 12 novembre scorso, aveva 90 anni).

Tra i testi più lunghi e complessi mai tradotti da Weaver già all’epoca, c’era Quer pasticciaccio brutto de via Merulana di Carlo Emilio Gadda, un romanzo – uscito per il mercato statunitense nel 1965, con il titolo That Awful Mess on Via Merulana: A Novel – che alla complessità della trama univa quella della lingua utilizzata da Gadda. Shugaar chiese a Weaver come si fosse regolato con la traduzione dei numerosissimi dialetti – romano, napoletano e altri  – utilizzati da Gadda, e Weaver gli rispose: «Ah be’, li ho tolti». Che nel caso del Pasticciaccio di Gadda, scrive Shugaar, “è come tradurre Moby Dick e togliere le barche”.

Nell’introduzione all’edizione inglese del Pasticciaccio, Weaver scrisse che “tradurre il dialetto romano o veneziano di Gadda nella lingua del Mississippi o delle Isole Aran (Irlanda) sarebbe assurdo come tradurre il linguaggio della famiglia Snopes dei romanzi di Faulkner in siciliano o in gallese”. Piuttosto aveva preferito tradurre quelle parti in un inglese parlato, chiedendo esplicitamente al lettore – nell’introduzione – lo sforzo di immaginare che quelle parole fossero pronunciate dai protagonisti in uno dei tanti dialetti italiani o in un miscuglio di dialetti differenti.

Nel lavoro di un traduttore casi del genere sono molto frequenti e racchiudono una difficoltà ineliminabile, di fronte alla quale il traduttore – scrive Shugaar, commentando quella scelta di Weaver – sostanzialmente si rassegna e rinuncia, che è un po’ come “perdere un paziente”. Sebbene negli Stati Uniti sia pratica piuttosto comune tradurre, ad esempio, il dialetto siciliano nel dialetto di Brooklyn – e Shugaar cita il caso di Stephen Sartarelli, traduttore inglese dei libri di Andrea Camilleri sul commissario Montalbano – secondo Shugaar si tratta di una scelta comprensibile ma “assurda”, esattamente come la convenzione americana di dare un accento inglese ai soldati tedeschi nei film ambientati durante la seconda guerra mondiale.

Un esempio cinematografico recente di grande successo, Bastardi senza gloria di Quentin Tarantino, presentava un caso ancora più complesso (ma gli spettatori italiani hanno perso anche l’accento a momenti inglese – assai rilevante nella trama – della protagonista di American Hustle). La produzione americana si trovò di fronte alla necessità di prendere una decisione riguardo alle tre lingue diverse dall’inglese parlate nel film, e anche in quel caso una sostanziale “rinuncia” finì per diventare uno dei maggiori pregi del film: le parti recitate dagli attori in francese, tedesco e italiano non furono doppiate in inglese – magari con accenti particolari, come nei casi citati da Shugaar – e nelle sale americane quelle parti furono sottotitolate.

Tornando ai libri, spessissimo è come se la traduzione richiedesse delle spiegazioni ulteriori per un lettore inglese, dice Shugaar, e fa una serie di esempi: se un autore italiano scrive di un tale che si ferma in un autogrill in autostrada, un lettore italiano immagina immediatamente di che luogo stiamo parlando – “questi piccoli negozi in stile anni Sessanta sparsi lungo l’autostrada da dove si vedono sfrecciare auto a 150 all’ora” – ma un lettore inglese lo immagina diversamente. Oppure, ancora: se un autore italiano scrive di uno che cade con “la faccia sull’asfalto” (“face-down onto the asphalt”), un lettore italiano capisce che può essere un marciapiede, e non una strada. Anche solo tradurre una scena normalissima in cui due persone entrano in un ristorante, prosegue Shugaar, presenta la difficoltà di dover tenere a mente che in Italia il più delle volte le porte degli edifici pubblici si aprono verso l’interno, non verso l’esterno come avviene negli Stati Uniti (per ragioni di sicurezza).

E poi ci sono altre difficoltà propriamente lessicali: “casa” in inglese è “house”, ma per gli italiani di solito si riferisce a un appartamento, e può essere anche un palazzo. Non solo: in Italia il primo piano di un palazzo è quello in cui ti trovi dopo aver salito una rampa di scale, mentre negli Stati Uniti quello sarebbe il “second floor” (“first floor” è piano terra). Infine ci sono dei casi paradossali – e anche vagamente comici – in cui certe espressioni suonano strane anche al traduttore: Shugaar scrive che uno dei suoi avvisi italiani preferiti – che a volte gli è capitato di trovare nei libri e di dover tradurre – è quello utilizzato dagli addetti comunali quando è in programma la pulizia stradale, per indicare il divieto di parcheggiare sia lungo le strade “sia sui marciapiedi”, da cui Shugaar deduce che in Italia i marciapiedi sono quindi considerati anche area di parcheggio per le macchine.

È per tutti questi motivi che tradurre richiede non soltanto particolare attenzione ma anche parecchio tempo e indagini “sul territorio”, spiega Shugaar: in una giornata di lavoro intensa, andando veloce, si riescono a tradurre 10-15 pagine di un libro. Ma tradurre è come “camminare su un’autostrada, laddove leggere significa guidare a cento all’ora”, e a volte devi fermarti e fare un giro nel panorama intorno.

Shugaar – per capirci sulle difficoltà del tradurre in genere – conclude il pezzo utilizzando un gioco di parole che esiste in inglese ma che è intraducibile in italiano e visto da qui, appunto, fa già molto meno effetto:

Spesso si parla di parole intraducibili (“untranslatable words”), ma in un certo senso non esistono parole intraducibili. Possono servire tre parole, o una frase intera, o un paragrafo aggiuntivo, ma qualsiasi parola può essere tradotta. A meno di non trasformare un libro in un’enciclopedia, però, non c’è modo di risolvere il problema più grosso: i mondi intraducibili (“untranslatable worlds”).

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Meroïtic alphabet

Meroïtic alphabet

Origin

The Meroïtic alphabet was derived from ancient Egyptian writing sometime during the 4th century BC in around 315 BC. A cursive form developed in 185 BC and the alphabet was used until about 440 AD. The alphabet was deciphered by the British Egyptologist Francis Llewellyn Griffith in 1909.

Notable features

• There are two versions of the alphabet - one based on the Egyptian hieroglyphic script, the other a cursive version based on the Egyptian demotic script.
• The hieroglyphic form of the alphabet was written in vertical columns from top to bottom and from right to left, while the cursive form was generally written in horizontal lines running from right to left.

Used to write:

Meroïtic, an extinct language that was spoken in the Nile valley and northern Sudan until about the 4th century AD, after which time it was gradually replaced with Nubian. Linguists are unsure about how Meroïtic is related to other languages and have therefore been unable to make any sense of the Meroïtic inscriptions.

Sample text

Text from Lost Languages by Andrew Robinson and regularized by Ian James

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Old Permic alphabet

Old Permic alphabet

Origin

The Old Permic or Abur alphabet was created in the 14th century by the Russian missionary Stepan Khrap (1373- 1395), who become St Stephen of Perm. It was modelled on the Greek and Cyrillic alphabets, but many of the letters resemble the Komi religious "Tamga signs". The alphabet was used for about 300 years until the 17th century.

Used to write:

Komi (Коми), which is also known as Zyrian, or Komi-Zyrian, is spoken by about 350,000 people mainly in the Komi Republic (Коми Республика) in the northeast of European Russia. There are also some Komi speakers in Perm. It is a member of the Permic subgroup, along with Udmurt, of the Uralic language family.

There are two main dialects of Komi: Komi-Zyrian, which is spoken in the Komi Republic and is the basis for the written language; and Komi-Yazva or Komi-Permyak, which is spoken by a small number of people in Perm and the south of the Komi Republic.

Komi was written with the Old Permic or Abur alphabet from the 14th century to the 16th century, when the Cyrillic alphabet was adapted to write the language. During the 1930s and 1940s Komi was written with a version of the Latin alphabet, then the Cyrillic alphabet made a come back.

Old Permic (Abur) alphabet

Cyrillic alphabet for Komi

Sample text in Komi-Permyak (Lord's Prayer)

http://www.language-museum.com/encyclopedia/k/komi-permyak.php

Sample text in Komi-Zyrian

Translation

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

John, 1: 1-6

http://www.language-museum.com/encyclopedia/k/komi-zyrian.php

Links

Introduction to Old Permic writing and the Komi language (in Russian)
http://www.peoples.org.ru/abur.html
Information about the Komi language and people (in English)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komi_language
Information about the Komi Republic (in Russian)
http://www.rkomi.ru/

The Todhri alphabet

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The Todhri alphabet

Todhri    

The Todhri alphabet is thought to have been invented by Theodor or Todhri Haxhifilipi (1730-1805) of Elbasan in Central Albania, although it is not known when it was invented or what alphabet(s) it was modelled on or derived from.

The alphabet featured in a number of scholarly works, including those by Johann Georg von Hahn (1811-1869), the Austrian consul in Janina, who discovered it and referred to it as 'the original' Albanian alphabet in his 1854 work, Albanesische Studien. He thought it had developed from the Phoenician alphabet, while Leopold Geitler (1847-1885) thought it was based on Roman cursive.

The Todhri alphabet was used to a limited extent in the Elbasan area from the late 18th century. It is not ideally suited to writing the Albanian language.

Notable features

• Type of writing system: alphabet
• Direction of writing: left to right
• Used to write: Albanian

Todhri alphabet

Lydian alphabet

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Lydian alphabet

Lydian

The Lydian alphabet was adapted from an archaic version of the Greek alphabet. The majority of letters are based on Greek letters, though ten of them were new inventiones to write sounds unique to Lydian. The pronunciation of some of the letters, the one transliterated as for example, is uncertain.

Approximately 100 Lydian inscriptions and bits of graffiti dating from the 5th and 4th centuries BC are known. A number of Lydian coins from the 7th century BC have also been found. The inscriptions are mainly epitaphs on graves typically beginning with eś w?naś (this grave).

Notable features

• Type of writing system: alphabet
• Writing direction: mainly right to left in horizontal lines. Occasionally written from left to right.
• Number of letters: 26
• Some letters have several variant forms

Used to write

Lydian, a member of the Anatolian branch of Indo-European languages that was spoken in western Anatolia (modern Turkey) up to about the 1st Century BC, when the Lydians adopted Greek as their language.

Lydian alphabet

Sample text in Lydian

Transliteration

[o]ṛaλ islλ bakillλ esṭ mrud eśśk [vãnaś]

3 laqrisak qelak kudkit ist esλ vãṇ[aλ]

4 bλtarvod akad manelid kumlilid silukalid akit ṇ[ãqis]

5 esλ mruλ buk esλ vãnaλ buk esνaν

6 laqirisaν bukit kud ist esλ vãnaλ bλtarvọ[d]

7 aktin nãqis qelλk fẽnsλifid fakmλ artimuś

8 ibśimsis artimuk kulumsis aaraλ biraλk

9 kλidaλ kofuλk qiraλ qelλk bilλ vcbaqẽnt

Translation (German)

Am 5. im (Monat) Marh.ašo-n, im Jahre 10 Artaxerxes des Königs,

2 in Sardes, in diesem Monat, die Stele und die Gruft (? und) die Säule,

3 das Grundstück und der Vorraum gegenüber der Grabkammer (?), dieser Vorraum von jetzt ab

4 dem Mane, Sohn des Kumli Sirukai (gehören wird). Und wer gegenüber dieser Stele oder

5 der Gruft oder der Säule gegenüber dem Vorraum bei der Gruft,

6 danach wer also beschädigen oder zerschlagen wird, welchen Teil auch immer davon,

7 die Artemis von Kolo und Ephesus soll sein Hof und Haus,

8 Habe, Boden und Wasser, welchen Teil auch immer zerstören, (ihm und) seinen Erben.

Georgian (Asomtavruli)

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Georgian (Asomtavruli)

Georgian (ႵႠႰႧႳႪႨ ႤႬႠ / ⴕⴀⴐⴇⴓⴊⴈ ⴄⴌⴀ / ქართული ენა)

Georgian is a South Caucasian or Kartvelian language spoken by about 4.1 million people mainly in Georgia, and also in Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Iran.

Georgian is related to Mingrelian (მარგალური ნინა), Laz (ლაზური ნენა), and Svan (ლუშნუ ნინ), all of which are spoken mainly in Georgia and are written with the Georgian (Mkhedruli) alphabet.

Georgian is thought to share a common ancestral language with the other South Caucasian languages. Svan is believed to have split from this language during the 2nd millenium BC, and the other languages split up around 1,000 years later.

Written Georgian

The Georgian language first appeared in writing in about 430 AD in an inscription in a church in Palestine in an alphabet known as Asomtavruli. Before then the main written language used in Georgia was a form of Aramaic known as Armazuli (არმაზული დამწერლობა). Two other alphabets have been used to write Georgian: Nushkhuri and Mkhedruli, which is the alphabet currently used.

Asomtavruli (ႠႱႭႫႧႠႥႰႳႺႠ)

The Georgian language first appeared in writing in about 430 AD in an inscription in a church in Palestine. At that time it was written with an alphabet known as Asomtavruli (ႠႱႭႫႧႠႥႰႳႺႠ - "capital letters") or Mrglovani (ႫႰႢႥႪႭႥႠႬႨ - "rounded"), which was used until the 9th century. Asomtavruli was probably modelled on the Greek alphabet, though nobody knows who was responsible for this. Armenian scholars believe that Mesrop Mashtots' (Մեսրոպ Մաշտոց), an Armenian missionary, created Asomtavruli, while Georgian scholars believe that King Pharnavaz I (ფარნავაზი) of Kartli (Iberia) did so.

Nuskhuri (ⴌⴓⴑⴞⴓⴐⴈ)

During the 9th century, Asomtavruli was gradually replaced by a more angular alphabet known as Nuskhuri ("minuscule, lowercase"), which was used until the 11th century.

Mkhedruli (მხედრული)

The Mkhedruli alphabet developed from Nuskhuri between the 11th and 13th centuries. The name Mkhedruli comes from the word mkhedari which means 'of horseman'.

At first Mkhedruli was used only for secular writing, while for religious writings a mixture of the two older alphabets was used. Eventually Nuskhuri became the main alphabet for religious texts and Asomtavruli was used only for titles and for the first letters of sentences. This system of mixing the two alphabets was known as khucesi (priest) writing.

Eventually the two older alphabets fell out of use and Mkhedruli became the sole alphabet used to write Georgian. However, in the writings of a linguist called Akaki Shanidze (1887-1987) and in works written in his honour, letters from the Asomtavruli alphabet are used to mark proper names and the beginning of sentences. Shanidze's attempt to popularise such usage met with little success.

The first printed material in the Mkhedruli language, a Georgian-Italian dictionary, was published in 1629 in Rome. Since then the alphabet has changed very little, though a few letters were added by Anton I in the 18th century, and 5 letters were dropped in the 1860s when Ilia Chavchavadze introduced a number of reforms.

Mkhedruli alphabet (მხედრული)

Notes

• The letters in red are no longer used.
• The names of the letters in the Georgian alphabet are the formal, traditional names. The letters names in the IPA are the usual way to refer to them.
• The letters used to have the numerical values shown.

Georgian pronunciation

Information about the Georgian alphabet from Konstantin Gugeshashvili

Chart showing the three Georgian alphabets together

The top row of letters on each line is in the Asomtavruli alphabet, the second row is in the Nuskhuri alphabet, and third row is in the Mkhedruli alphabet.

Sample text in Georgian in the Asomtavruli alphabet

Sample text in Georgian in the Nuskhuri alphabet

Sample text in Georgian in the Mkhedruli alphabet

Transliteration

Qvela adamiani ibadeba tavisupali da tanasts'ori tavisi ghirsebita da uplebebit. Mat minich'ebuli akvt goneba da sindisi da ertmanetis mimart unda iktseodnen dzmobis sulisk'vetebit.

A recording of this text by George Keretchashvili

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. 

(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

The world’s “poorest” President

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The world’s “poorest” President

Meet José Mujica. He may look like your average farmer or grandfather, but he is anything but. This man is globally known as the world’s “poorest President” because he lives a life of humility… all while leading the country of Uruguay. As a man who trulycares about his people, he doesn’t take an obscene amount of money to just act as a politician. He donates about 90% of his $12,000 monthly salary to charities that benefit poor people and small entrepreneurs.

Other countries, listen up.

It’s not uncommon to see Jose dressed like this. He doesn’t care about money and appearances, but just leading his country.

He has literally spent his entire life fighting for his country.

He was a guerilla fighter that battled for the rights of the country’s citizens, was imprisoned twice and was shot 6 times after an escape attempt.

This is Uruguay’s Presidential Palace. He doesn’t live here

Instead, he lives here, on a farm with his wife.

He actually is a part-time farmer. He and his wife also grow and sell flowers. He also drives a 1987 Volkswagon Beetle.

He only has two guards positioned on his road, showing true faith in his people.

Instead of acting like he is better than everybody else, the president of a country wholeheartedly believes that he IS like everybody else.

In a time when it seems that rich politicians rule the world, learning about Jose is truly refreshing. Please share this article with others.

Canzoni di Natale, White Christmas: testo, traduzione e curiosità

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Canzoni di Natale, White Christmas: testo, traduzione e curiosità

Canzoni di Natale, White Christmas: testo, traduzione e curiosità

Uno dei classici del Natale: scopriamo meglio il pezzo e le diverse interpretazioni.

White Christmas è una delle canzoni intramontabili per le festività natalizie. Suonata, cantata e ascoltata, ogni anno. E siccome mancano esattamente dieci giorni a Natale, scopriamo insieme qualche curiosità sul pezzo.

Secondo il Guinness Book of World Records, il brano di Bing Crosby è il più venduto di sempre con oltre 50 milioni di copie in tutto il mondo. Insieme alle altre versioni della canzone, invece, superiamo i 100 milioni.

E’ stata scritta da Irbing Berlin. Dopo aver avuto l’ispirazione per il pezzo, l’uomo è arrivato in ufficio, il giorno dopo, dicendo alla sua segretaria:

“Prendi la penna prendi appunti su questa canzone. Ho appena scritto la mia migliore canzone; diavolo, ho appena scritto la migliore canzone che chiunque abbia mai scritto!”

La prima interpretazione pubblica del pezzo avvenne a Natale 1941, durante il programma The Kraft Music Hall. Successivamente, Crosby ha registrato il brano con la John Scott Trotter Orchestra e o Ken Darby Singers per la Decca Records in soli 18 minuti, il 29 maggio 1942. E’ stato poi pubblicato il 30 luglio di quell’anno in un album di sei brani totali per la colonna sonora del film “La taverna dell’allegria”

Inizialmente la canzone non ebbe un successo immediato. Fu, anzi, oscurata dal pezzo “Be Careful, It’s my Heart”. Ma a fine ottobre, ecco il pezzo arrivare al primo posto della Your Hit Parade, fino al nuovo anno. Per mesi.

Solo nel 1942, è rimasto undici settimane al primo posto della Billboard. Pubblicato nuovamente nel 1945 e 1946, tocco nuovamente la vetta nelle festività. Ha vinto anche un Oscar.

La canzone che tutti noi conosciamo non è però quella originale ma una rivisitazione datata 18 marzo 1947: ci sono sottili differenze nella orchestrazione, in particolare l’aggiunta di flauti per illuminare ancora più l’introduzione

Sono state numerosissime, ovviamente, le cover del pezzo negli anni seguenti: Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Elvis Presley, Andy Williams, Dorsi Day, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, Dionne Warwick, Westlife, Andrea Bocelli, Kelly Clarkson e Leona Lewis

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas

Just like the ones I used to know

Where the tree tops glisten

And children listen

To hear sleigh bells in the snow

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas

With every Christmas card I write

May your days be merry and bright

And may all

Your Christmases be white

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas

Just like the ones I used to know

Where the tree tops glisten

And children listen

To hear sleigh bells in the snow

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas

With every Christmas card I write

May your days be merry and bright

And may all your Christmases

May all your Christmases

May all your Christmases

May all your Christmases be white

I’m dreaming of a white

Christmas with you

Jingle Bells

All the way, all the way

White Christmas, traduzione

Sto sognando un Bianco Natale

proprio come quello che ricordo

con le cime degli alberi scintillanti

e i bambini che sono in attesa

di udire il suono dei campanelli della slitta che corre sulla neve

Sto sognando un Bianco Natale

in cui ogni cartolina natalizia che io scrivo

ti possa rendere le giornate felici e radiose

e possa far sì che tutti i tuoi Natale siano immacolati

Sto sognando un Bianco Natale

in cui ogni cartolina natalizia che io scrivo

possa rendere le tue giornate felici e radiose

e possa far sì che tutti i tuoi Natale siano immacolati