Oh, this is just too funny!! Thanks for a good laugh this morning, "Krt"!! (Isn't it odd how it starts to look Dutch or German in places, and then starts to look like Polish or Czech in others?? Very strange.) Dorie ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, November 22, 2000 2:20 PM Subject: Re: [GERMAN-LIFE] Fwd: Crisis of Letters in Germany > > <what is the reasoning for having five different ways to say the word 'the' > or alternatively 'a' ?> > It has to do with the gender of the word that it modifies. It is the same > in French. The gender of inanimate objects is something that hasn't much > logic, so each word must be memorized as to whether it is male, female or > neutral. The reason for this? Because that's how the language evolved > into what it is today. Lets face it, English has its problems with logical > spelling rules too, but that's the way it also evolved. Since the proposed > changes in German spelling occurred, the same is now scheduled to happen to > English: > > FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE!!! > The European Commission on the European Unification (EU) just announced an > agreement whereby English will become the official language of the EU. As > part of the negotiations, Her Majesty's government conceded that English > spelling has some room for improvement and has accepted a five-year > phase-in plan for "EuroEnglish." In the first year, "s" will replace the > soft "c". Sertainly, this consession will make the sensus takers in the > sivil servise selebrate. Also the hard "c" will be seded in favor of the > "k". This kould klear up konfusion and komputer keyboards kan be less > kumbersome. Kount on publik enkouragement koming in the sekond year, > konserning the konfounding "ph" which will be replaced with "f". This kan > kause words like "fotograf" and "fysision" to be more komprehensble. In the > third year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted to > kontinue to the next fase where more komplikated changes kan be konsidered. > Skools will enkourage kondensing double letters, which have always ben > deterent to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horible mes of the > silent "e" 's in the languag ar disgrasful, and thay wil be mad to disaper. > By the 4th year, peopl wil be konditiond to be reseptiv to replasing "th" > and "s" with "z" and "w" with "v". During ze fifz yer, ze unezezari "o" kan > be dropd vrom vordz kontaning "ou" and zimilar chanjz vud uv korz be aplid > tu ze ozer kombinajunz uv leterz. In yer zix, ve vil hav a vari zenzibl > riten ztil. Zer vil be no mor trublz or difikultiz und evrivun vil vind it > ezi tu unerztan ech ozer and evrizing vil be vundrvul. > > Hav u niz da, > Krt