Saturday, June 30, 2018

Gymnosophia XVII - Layers upon Layers (+ptl, es, fr)

Layers upon layers
of selves
speak to us through
tens of thousands
of years,
in a language
of silence
that is easily
missed.
Each action,
if we listen,
is a consensus
of them all
that is called
wisdom.






[portunhol surenho]

Camadas sobre camadas
de eus
falam com nós através
dezenas de mishares
de anos,
em um idioma
de silencio
que é facilmente
perdido.
Cada asón,
se escutamo,
é um consenso
de todos eles
que é chamado
sabedoría.


[español]

Capas sobre capas
de yoes
nos hablan a través de
decenas de miles
de años,
en un idioma
de silencio
que es facilmente
perdido.
Cada acción,
si escuchamos,
es un consenso
de todos ellos
que se llama
sabiduría.


[français]

Couches sur couches
de soi
parlent-nous à travers
des dizaines de milliers
d'années,
dans une langue
du silence
qui est facilement
manquée.
Chaque action,
si nous écoutons,
est un consensus
de tous
que l'on appelle
sagesse.

I Will Admit

I will admit that some of the more popular posts in this poetry blog are those that feature nudity in the illustrations. In a way this isn't so surprising, because most people love nudity, whether or not they are in the habit of admitting it. Regular poems in the English language do well too, especially when there is something in them that recommends itself to a large number of readers (a good example is Prayer for the World). A real surprise, though, is the popularity of posts in the Udugi language, with or without a translation.

Perhaps this should not be so surprising, either. Udugi is a constructed language, based on Cherokee vocabulary and a very simple, Esperanto-like grammar. Its goal is to preserve what can be preserved of the Cherokee language, as well as the use of the Cherokee writing system. Fortunately, Cherokee is the best-documented indigenous language of North America. The melding of the vocabulary and the new, simple grammar has been done quite seamlessly, creating a beautiful and very usable product.

But who are the users of this new-old language? I don't know, since they haven't yet told me, but I can say that the greatest interest, by far, is in the United States. Other countries where there is significant interest in the language are Germany, France, and Brazil. If you are among those interested in the Udugi language, I'd love to hear from you. I can be reached by email: exolinguist at gmail dot com. Thanks for your interest!




Fun Fact (+ptl, es, fr)

Fun fact: Except for the "m" sound, you can speak both Cherokee and Udugi without closing your mouth. Does anyone know of other such languages? Comment to reply.





[portunhol surenho]

Curiosidade: Exceto pelo som "m", voce pode falar Cherokee y Udugi sem fechar a boca. Alguém sabe de outras tales línguas? Comentário para responder.


[español]

Dato curioso: a excepción del sonido "m", puede hablar tanto cherokee como udugi sin cerrar la boca. ¿Alguien sabe de otros tales idiomas? Comentario para responder.


[français]

Fait amusant: Sauf pour le son "m", vous pouvez parler tant Cherokee comme Udugi sans fermer la bouche. Est-ce que quelqu'un connaît d'autres langues semblables? Commenter pour répondre.