Bi-lingualism in America

    Quote from seahunter49

    Very interesting. Do these names have meanings in dutch? From the little bit of history I know the English, Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch were the main competitors for this continent. I'm not %100 sure but I remember there are some isolated areas far south in south America where only dutch is spoken.


    Sorry to have hi-jacked the thread btw, but I guess this is where my national pride get the best of me...


    They are phonetic bastardizations of Dutch cities more than anything


    Brooklyn = Breukelen
    Flushing = Vlissingen
    Harlem = Haarlem
    Staten Island = Staten eiland (Island of the states)
    Stuyvesant was the Govenor of New Netherland at its prime and mostly responsible for it flourishing trade and peace treaties with the local Indians.


    You are sort of right, that would be Suriname. Although not far in south in South America. They gained independence in the 70's but Dutch is still the official language. Check the attached map, it shows where the Dutch, a tiny nation, had solid colonial interests in the world. Pretty impressive, I think.

    Yup, pretty impressive. Due to their prowess as seafarers. Great to know about the city names.


    The place I was talking about is small and is very far south. I did a search and turns out I was wrong. I knew the place was Patagonia but the language is Welsh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_settlement_in_Argentina

    Quote

    The Welsh settlement in Argentina began in 1865 and occurred mainly along the coast of Chubut province in the far southern region of Patagonia, Argentina. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries the Argentine government encouraged the immigration of Europeans to populate the country outside the Buenos Aires region; between 1856 and 1875 no fewer than 34 settlements of immigrants of various nationalities were established between Santa Fe and Entre Rios. In addition to the main colony in Chubut, a smaller colony was set up in Santa Fe by 44 Welsh people who left Chubut, and another group settled at Coronel Suárez in southern Buenos Aires Province.[1] In the early 21st century, in Patagonia the Welsh-Argentine community numbers about 20,000. The community in Chubut's own estimate of the number of Welsh speakers is 1,500.

    Quote from seahunter49


    The place I was talking about is small and is very far south. I did a search and turns out I was wrong. I knew the place was Patagonia but the language is Welsh http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_settlement_in_Argentina


    Cool fact to know. I love all those little know facts. They might seem useless, but they give you a good sense of history and at times help you understand the complicated situations and conflicts that are currently happening in the world. It's always good, in my eyes, to look beyond one's own borders and history. Whether it is through travel or reading foreign media. A different perspective helps a lot....


    I also thought he was talking about Suriname/Guiana. I have a friend(Carpet Installer) that works with us that's from there. You can't understand a freaking word he speaks in any language.

    Quote from seahunter49

    Indeed I forgot the French, good point. I was wondering why I forgot and realized I didn't think of the French as noteworthy seamen. I'm probably completely wrong about this.


    Yeah, that was my point, nothing more. LaSalle was likely a very worthy seaman (not to be confused with semen). He sailed from the Great Lakes of Canada all the way down the Mississippi River and into the Gulf of Mexico, claiming the territory for France and their King Louis. Hence, Louisana. They left a fur trading outpost on the delta called New Orleans.


    Sorry for the degression, but I'm also a history buff.

    God, we sound like a bunch of nerds ;)


    Rolo, you in town Friday night? I'm dropping my mom of in Jupiter for a seminar. Let me know if you want to have a beer.

    Quote from gerald

    God, we sound like a bunch of nerds ;)


    Rolo, you in town Friday night? I'm dropping my mom of in Jupiter for a seminar. Let me know if you want to have a beer.


    I'm always down to have a beer although I was in Chicago for over a week (No, Gerald. I was not there to listen to Obama's acceptance speech;)) and promised the wife a dinner date Friday evening.


    Can you imagine the voyage these guys took to turn a corner of a river and not knowing what to expect on the other side. With all the Indians roaming around and vast unknowns. All these exployers don't get enough credit sometimes and usually viewed as colonialists just out for riches, but it must have been something in those days to cross an open ocean on a wooden ship and coming ashore to these immense unknown lands. Reminds me of the final scene in Apocalypto where the indians run on shore and see these huge ships anchored and Spaniards rowing towards them.

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