ISO 639 macrolanguage
Macro language is a language category within the standard ISO 639-3, you face the category single language. ISO 639-3 has approximately 7300 living and extinct languages known to a three-letter identifier, the standard is managed by the SIL. Then macro languages are summaries of genetically closely related varieties that were previously listed only as individual languages whose Zusammfassung to a larger unit as " macro language " but only under certain aspects, seems to make sense. It states in Ethnologue 2009: The macro languages are determined as [ group ] of similar or closely related individual languages , which as a [ common ] single language can be considered in some contexts of use [ of ISO 639-3 ]. A total of 55 macro languages according to ISO 639-3 are listed in the 16th edition of Ethnologue ( 2009).
The term macro language may be confused in any case with the term macro family. A certain proximity is but the concept of roof language and, in certain cases, to the dialect group.
Criteria for macro languages
The basic prerequisite for the consolidation of individual languages to a macro language is the close genetic relationship of the individual languages. Furthermore, it must fulfill at least one of the following criteria (see also the below web link):
- The existence of a classical standards, understood, or at least recognized as a source of these individual languages by the speakers of several nahverwandter individual languages (eg Arabic, the modern spoken varieties, divided into more than 30, but also a common standard and a classic basic language - the Arabic of the Qur'an - has )
- The existence of a common font standards, but then rarely can be an alphabetic script (eg Chinese, which is a macro language about ten individual languages (or main dialect groups) composed, all of which use a common font, but read this very different language-specific and the Chinese individual languages are spoken form mutually unintelligible )
- The fact largely linguistic identity of language varieties, which for political reasons a separate development through (eg Serbo- Croatian as a macro language with the individual languages Croatian, Serbian and Bosnian )
- Group formation to be construed in closely related languages regarded in the literature rather than genetic unity of several individual languages, but sometimes from other ( political, ethnic ) perspective as a "language " (such as Rajasthani, the macro language by the Indo-Aryan individual languages Bagri, Gade Lohar, Gujari, Hadothi, Malvi and includes Wagdi )
- These cases of a revised assessment of dialects as separate languages come through the SIL. Languages that have been assigned in the literature of a dialect group were, in some cases, a " macro language " together (eg Zapotec is split into Ethnologue in nearly 60 individual languages , which, after conventional linguistic assessment of all dialects of a language or dialect group, namely the Zapotec are. According to the measurements of specific languages, the macro language Zapotec was also introduced, which includes the dialect group as a whole. )
Criticism
The concept of macro languages is criticized in his implementation as patchy and inconsistent. In particular, the summary of dialects to a " macro language " will hide only the previous misjudgment by the SIL. Unfortunately such obvious dialects would not summarized by going to macro languages . For example, German has still no macro language, under Germany Ethnologue also results in its latest 2009 edition of the languages Bavarian, Altfränkisch, Kölsch, Main Franconian, Palatine, Swabian, Westphalia, Lower German and various other, omitting the dialects of Swiss High German, Austrian Standard German, Federal German high German, and so forth, or Regiolekte spoken by millions as Berlinerisch, Rheinsch, Ruhr German and to consider further. Also Italian was not established as a macro language, a few of its numerous dialects continue to be made on an individual languages.
The definition of recent genetic units separate languages as a macro language is achieved seemingly arbitrarily (eg when Rajasthani, Lahnda, Bikol, Hmong, Luyia ), while in many other cases very similar stored even in the same language family is not.
In some cases, some dialects of a general as " language" prestigious unit can be arbitrarily combined to form macro languages, such as the Inuit dialects "Eastern Canadian Inuktitut " and " Western Canadian Inuktitut " the so-called macro language Inuktitut, but which, together with the Inupiaq ( now also " macro language " ) and the Greenland Inuit language accounts.
In the summary of macro languages may lead to name conflicts, as in the Malay language. While the code the single language called mly, msa stands for the entry of Malay as a macro language. To avoid confusion, the names of these entries must receive a qualifying addition. The example of Malay shows a summary of some very heterogeneous languages as the common origin can be summarized under a different aspect.
The overall conclusion is that the concept of macro- languages in ISO 693-3 and the Ethnologue is applied inconsistently in 2009, so that it raises for some applications more problems than it solves. So is required before any new language codes and language categories are created ( working on codes for genetic units of any level) the classification of varieties revised as language or dialect thoroughly and a common linguistic standard should be adjusted and, after exclusion of " countless " dialects there would certainly some meaningful groupings that one could define as a macro language, especially in politically -related or government splinter. The problem with such proposals, that there is no unity or consistency in cross- linguistic standards of distinction and political divisions related with linguistic criteria to mix easily lead to problematic results and provoke controversy could.
Based on the ISO 639-2 and ISO 639-5 is extended ( language groups ). It could be a way for the future, to outsource the macro languages of ISO 639-3 and to convert them into the ISO 639-5.
Examples of macro languages according to ISO 639-3
The "< " means composed of the individual languages :
- Akan [ aka ] < Fante, Twi
- Arabic [ ara ]
- Aymara [ aym ] < South, Central Aymara
- Azerbaijani [ aze ] < South, North Azerbaijani
- Baluchi [ bal ] < Southern, Western, Eastern Balochi
- Buryat [ bua ] < Mongolian, Chinese-, Russian - Buryat
- Mari [ chm ] < East, West -Mari
- Cree [ cre ] < Southeast, Northeast, Plains, Moose, Swampy, Woods Cree
- Delaware [ del ] < Munsee, Unami
- Slave [ the ] < North, South Slavey
- Dinka [ din ] < South Central, Southwest, Northeast, Northwest, Southeast Dinka
- Dogri [ doi ] < Dogri, Kangri
- Estonian [ est ] < Standard Estonian, Viru
- Persian [ fas ] < West Farsi, Dari
- Fulfulde [ ful ] < Maasina, Adamawa, Borgu, western Niger, Bagimi, Central, Eastern Niger, Nigeria Fulfulde, Pulaar, Pular
- Serbo- Croatian [ hbs ] < in Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian
- Hmong [ hmn ] < all 25 Hmong languages
- Inuktitut [ iku ] < Eastern, Western Canada Inuktitut
- Inupiaq [ ipk ] < North, Northwest Alaska Inupiatun
- Kalenjin [ kln ] < Markweeta, Keiyo, Nandi, Okiek, Pökoot, Kipsigis, Sabaot, Terik, virtues
- Komi [ com ] < Permjakisch, Syrjänisch
- Kurdish [ short ] < Kurmanji, Sorani, Südkurdisch
- Lahnda [ lah ] < Southern Hindko, Northern Hindko, Jakati, Pahari Potwari, Mirpur, Punjabi, Western Panjabi, Siraiki, Chetrani
- Malay [ msa ] < Malaisprachen all local and para- Malay languages
- Norwegian [ nor] < Nynorsk Bokmal
- Quechua [ que ] < 44 all Quechua languages
- Rajasthani [ raj ] < Bagri, Gade Lohar, Gujari, Hadothi, Malvi, Wagdi
- Albanian [ sqi ] < Arbereshe, Arvantika, Gheg, Tosk Albanian
- Syriac [ syr ] < Assyrian - Neuaramäisch, Chaldean Neuaramäisch (the other languages of this genetic unit missing, see Aramaic languages)
- Zapotec [ zap ] < all 58 local dialects of Zapotec
- Zhuang [ zha ] < includes northern and central Tai languages ( two genetic units within the Tai)
- Chinese [ zho ] < Mandarin ( standard Chinese ); Min Dong, Jinyu, Pu - Xian, Huizhou, Min Zhong, Gan, Hakka, Xiang, Min Bai, Min Nan, Wu, Yue
- Zazaki [ zza ] < Dimli, Kirmandschki
The complete list of codes for the individual languages refer to below web link.