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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Hairdeis

The earliest example of writing in a "Germanic" language is the Bible. (Translator died 381 A.D.) Look at Chapter 10 of the book of John:

Amenamenqiþaizwis:saeiinnniatgaggiþþairhdauringardanlambe:aksteigiþaljaþro:sah hliftusistjahwaidedja. iþsainngaggandsþairhdaurhairdeisistlambe.

This is much closer to way people still speak than the usual translation. We say amen not verily. Lamb garden is more understandable than sheepfold and so on.

Usual translation: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

Likewise, reading Voltaire is much easier than reading approved French.



Hairdeis became “Sceapa hyrde” in Saxon and Shepherd, Swineherd, Goatherd, Neatherd, etc. in English because of the Aristotelian tradition of trying to create a word for everything. Putting spaces between words became the start of endless confusion in the language. With the advent of computers, mathematics and science you would think they would see the errors of their ways. But, no they simply create more specialized languages so people cannot communicate with each other. It is a joy to read the New Testament before the spaces were added. Grammar became more important than meaning. In English, hairdeis has for the most part been replaced by manager because of the connotations of sheep and herder. Gothic did not have this problem being so civilized; the word for sheep simply does not exist and you have the inherently good connotation of hairdeis since Gothic is a synthetic language. What does hairdeis mean? Read a book written before they started putting the silly spaces between words and you can begin at last to understand the meaning of your language.

Silent Night in Swedish

Sunday, August 28, 2011