Esperanto-A Non-National Movement

Shire Renaissance
#1

For those of you not aware, in 1877 a Jewish eye doctor in what is now Poland invented a language designed to be easy to learn with the intend of removing the language barrier that so often leads to hate and distrust. He designed it as an auxiliary language intended to supplement, not replace, native languages and hopefully reduce conflict. I welcome you to check out the full history here:

Or if you just want the video summary, a Ted Talk here:

Spoiler: the Nazi’s didn’t like Esperanto because it was an international movement and it missed being an officially recognized universal language in the League of Nations by ONE vote!

I’ve heard theories that one reason Esperanto “failed” was because international harmony and peace was not a big enough seller to get people interested in learning it. It couldn’t compete with strong cultural traits like French food, American Rock and Roll, Japanese anime, etc.

But if ever there was a community that cared about peace and harmony, it is the Liberty Movement here in New Hampshire. WE can adopt Esperanto and give it a culture. Not to mention, link up with the millions of speakers that are a least a little interested in international cooperation. They are leaning away from Nationalism and are probably Voluntaryists and they don’t even know it.

And it is a fun language to learn on Duolingo. Learning it will cut years off your learning time for any other language you are interested in.

FYI, I’m building an Esperanto club in Manchester. We meet at the Bridge Cafe at 1PM on the last Sunday of every month.

Gis revido!

3 Likes
#2

One of the early “founders” of the FSP, and longtime member of the FSP board of directors, was Steve Cobb (now in Germany or Russia or somewhere), who is an accomplished Esperanto speaker (his handle is “Simpulo”).

One thing: Esperanto isn’t intrinsically “anti-nationalist.” It’s history indicates it was a way of connecting people who spoke different languages. That doesn’t make it “anti-nationalist.” An international language and nationalism can co-exist quiet easily and comfortably. (I.e. if I’m a nationalist for my own country, that doesn’t mean I’m anti-other-countries at all; in fact, I might enjoy other countries and cultures, and enjoy learning about and visiting them.) FYI.

#3

I recommend learning Esperanto at Duolingo or here:
http://learn.esperanto.com
and then practicing by watching the Esperanto version of The Philosophy of Liberty animation:
https://www.jonathangullible.com/esperanto-la-filozofio-de-libereco

The only Basques I’ve ever met have been Esperantists. Probably there are some nationalists among them.

Esperanto didn’t “fail” except according to excessively ambitious success criteria. There are 6000 languages in the world, only 3% have more than 1M speakers, and most are dying. Esperanto is among the top 3%, quite stable. It is so easy to learn that it will never disappear. It remains one of Wikipedia’s top languages.

#4

I understand Esperanto is not Anti-Nationalist. I used that title to get the attention of Voluntarists and Anarchists. We have a lot in common with Esperanto speakers, I don’t know why there isn’t more of an overlap. Thanks for your participation Condon. I hope to see you at the next club meeting.

#5

Dankon Simplulo!

Cu vi ceestos nia Esperanto klubo en Manchester?

#6

Has there been an interest in New Hampshire or libertarians in general to learn Esperanto?

#7

A little. I got four or five guys that said they would stop by, but only two did. I’ve only just started to get serious with advertising in the last couple weeks though.

Do you want to learn Esperanto?

FYI, I post news/updates here

here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/206859486920215/about/

and here: https://www.minds.com/groups/profile/927615458585489408

I’m working on a Meetup page too.

1 Like
#8

I’m interested in it. I just need to find the time. For it to worth it there would have to be more speakers or students of the language.

#9

Nuntempe mi logxas en Berlino (Germanio), sed mi nepre vin vizitos sekvontfoje kiam mi estos en NH!

#10

Esperanto and libertarianism share a key feature: simplicity. Simple rules generate complex behavior. And I have seen opponents of both react similarly: they instinctively reject simplicity. “X couldn’t possibly support a modern, complex society,” where X=Esperanto or libertarianism. They trust their gut reaction, and never bother to ask, “So, how does it actually work in practice?”

#11

Dankon Simplulo. Mi antaugxoji vin vizito.

Kio estas sekvontfoje? Tiu vorto ne en mia vortaro.

#12

Kenny,

Its only once a month. Just come to one meeting, if you don’t like it you don’t have to come back. Its not a cell phone contract. We should have another guy for the January meeting.

Ni havas du regula Esperantistoj. Mi esperas vi vizitas nin.

1 Like
#13

Simplulo,

Bela vortoj! Mi vidas simila situacio por ateismo; kvazau socio ne povas ekzistas sen supernatura kredas je.

I’m going to bring up Esperanto on a call to Free Talk Live soon, can I quote you?

1 Like
#14

sekvantfoje = next time (“next-timely”), except that I misspelled it. :wink:

#15

Got it. Any suggestions on keyboard translation software?

#16

I’ve always been interested in Esperanto, and in the possibility of learning it. BUT…why do so? Why commit the time and effort? Especially when we tend to live lives of manic chaos and quiet desperation? Give a decent answer to that, and who knows, people may flock to the Esperanto Free State. :slight_smile:

#17

I just type the six unique Esperanto letters with the two-letter method, using x (e.g. cx for ĉ), and heck with everybody else. For the few occasions (like just now) when I really do need the real Esperanto letter, I have an Esperanto keyboard installed, and I switch to it, open the keyboard viewer, and then click it with the mouse. I just googled esperanto+keyboard+mac and got several options. Apparently for MacOS there is a relatively simple way to add the letters to your keyboard:

#18

Funny, I was just answering that question yesterday, and then not for the first time. Why learn Esperanto? Why learn chess? Why play golf or frisbee? Why watch football? You’re here on this planet for the better part of a century, and you’ve got to kill the time somehow. However, if you have typical goals (live a long life healthy in mind and body, travel, interact with interesting people, be generally educated), then some of these activities do offer such side benefits. Esperanto is one such activity. As with learning any foreign language, it will stave off Alzheimer’s. You can travel anywhere in the world, link up with the local club, and have people to talk to. Esperanto is a modernized, rationalized Latin, so it will help you learn other Romance languages, and also your own language. For example, for all these collective nouns:


Esperanto uses just the suffix -ar:
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/-aro

#19

A respectable effort by Simpulo, but insufficient IMO. Golf, chess and frisbee are pastimes that are (presumably) enjoyable in and of themselves. Few people think learning a language is “fun”. Plus, learning how to play golf, chess or frisbee (at least at a low level) pales to insignificance compared to learning a language (even one as rationalized and simple as Esperanto). There needs to be something else, I think. It might be proclaimed to be the unofficial “Free State language” and become common among Freestaters (there would be utility in being able to speak to each other without agents of coercion being able to understand what was being said), not unlike the cryptocoin phenomenon in NH. However, making NH a center of Esperanto-speaking wouldn’t do anything to attract freedom-lovers (and might even attract statists and/or collectivists instead). I dunno…it seems to me there’s an answer in there somewhere. I’d personally like to learn it…but who’s got the time and raison d’etre for such a commitment, you know?

#20

Few people think learning a language is “fun”.

Not true.

Plus, learning how to play golf, chess or frisbee (at least at a low level) pales to insignificance compared to learning a language (even one as rationalized and simple as Esperanto)

Definitely not true, assuming your native language has Latin roots (as English mostly does). I still can’t properly flick a frisbee. You could be come modestly conversational in Esperanto in a couple weekends.