You can't think of a New Year's resolution? Well, how about learning a new language?
Yes, I know you're busy, but how about learning just a few phrases of a language that you're not going to need until right at the end of 2013? That gives you plenty of time.
Sami is a group of six languages spoken in Lapland, and which I assume must be Father Christmas's mother tongue (actually, does FC have a mother? Ah well, you know what I mean.)
None of the Sami languages has many speakers: Skolt Sami has only four hundred speakers, and the most widely spoken, Northern Sami, has only a few thousand
I know that Father Christmas' translation elves work very efficiently, but I'm sure the great man would be touched if we took the time to learn a few words of Sami.
So here we are.
Gii dovie lea? [Who's that over there?]
Ja, Father Christmas don leat. [Ah, you are Father Christmas.]
Buorre Beavi! [hello!]
Mu namme lea Sally [My name is Sally]
Giitu! [Thank you]
...and, er, sorry, that's as far as I've got with Sami. Still, it's start, isn't it. After that we can just smile a lot.
And, as with almost everything, it's the thought that counts.
Word To Use Today: something in Sami. Sami contains all sorts of useful words. For example: albmaolmmoš means a real person; dolin means in the olden days, monnut means to lay eggs, and vustet means to make cheese.
There we are. All useful words we don't have in English. Marvellous, or what?
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I think I will leave the speaking/learning of Sami to you...was there some of it in Miss Smilla's feeling for Snow? I have a notion there was...and it's bound to crop up in Borgen sometime. Indeed it may have already in the episode in which they all visit Greenland. TAK!
ReplyDeleteOkay, Adele, but don't blame ME if Father Christmas brings you a pair of bed socks instead of the new coat with matching gloves, boots and handbag you had in mind!
ReplyDelete