Which language is closest to English?

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Hank W.
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Post by Hank W. » Mon Feb 23, 2004 10:06 am

Niall Shaky wrote: But according to Fionna then Niall is correctly pronounced "Neil" in Irish
Considering they pronounce 'Dun Laoghaire' 'Don Leary' - nothing is improbable :wink:


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Tom and Jerry

Post by Tom and Jerry » Mon Feb 23, 2004 12:24 pm

I've found Frisian, Dutch, Danish and Norwegian closest to English. Danish and Norwegian was in fact the same language a few hunderd years ago.

French is already too different, so is German.

Swedish has also a lot in common with English, so it's easier to learn Swedish for the English people.
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Andrew_S
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Post by Andrew_S » Mon Feb 23, 2004 5:13 pm

Niall Shaky wrote:Until I met Fionna last week I also thought that my parents had read "Niall" in a name-book, but then mistakenly pronounced it "Neil" rather than "Nile". But according to Fionna then Niall is correctly pronounced "Neil" in Irish
In Scots Gaelic "Niall" (pr. Finnish style "njial) is" the nominative form and "Neill"(grave on the e) (pr. Finnish "neel") is the genitive. Hence the Gaelic surname:
Mac Neill = son + of Niall

A woman has the surname Nic Neill = daughter of Niall
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BAT

Post by BAT » Mon Feb 23, 2004 10:30 pm

bohica wrote:Basically, English is a mix of a lot of languages, which is one of the reasons it's so hard to spell. :D
The main reason why English is hard to spell is because they settled on one dialect of English (the language of the courts) and standardised the spelling. The pronunciation changed so much since then (influenced by the many other dialects etc.), that it doesn't sound how it was originally spelled.
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eashton
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Post by eashton » Mon Feb 23, 2004 10:51 pm

BAT wrote: The main reason why English is hard to spell is because they settled on one dialect of English (the language of the courts) and standardised the spelling. The pronunciation changed so much since then (influenced by the many other dialects etc.), that it doesn't sound how it was originally spelled.
Well, don't forget the Father of Phonics....Webster. :) He screwed generations of Americans for spelling and pronunciation.

English was and remains the great whore of all time in languages since it 'borrows' words from everyone. If you're interested in the OED as the most massive undertaking of the English language, you should get a copy of Simon Winchester's "The Meaning of Everything". It's an excellent read in spite of Winchester's rather florid prose.
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Niall Shaky
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Post by Niall Shaky » Tue Feb 24, 2004 8:21 am

Andrew_S wrote:
Niall Shaky wrote:Until I met Fionna last week I also thought that my parents had read "Niall" in a name-book, but then mistakenly pronounced it "Neil" rather than "Nile". But according to Fionna then Niall is correctly pronounced "Neil" in Irish
In Scots Gaelic "Niall" (pr. Finnish style "njial) is" the nominative form and "Neill"(grave on the e) (pr. Finnish "neel") is the genitive. Hence the Gaelic surname:
Mac Neill = son + of Niall

A woman has the surname Nic Neill = daughter of Niall
That's very cool! Thanks for posting that!
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