Asian praise for Esperanto. (Esperanto) Language Learning Forum

Asian praise for Esperanto.
Tags: Esperanto
Language Learning Forum : Esperanto

Volte
Tetraglot
Senior Member
Switzerland
Joined 6443 days ago
4474 posts - 6726 votes

Speaks: English*, Esperanto, German, Italian
Studies: French, Finnish, Mandarin, Japanese

Message 1 of 5

23 December 2009 at 8:15pm | IP Logged

Recently, I've been reading "Raportoj el Japanio". They are written by a Japanese man who has been professionally teaching English in Japan since 1965.

In the forward to the 8th book in this series, he replies to praise from an American Esperanto speaker, for the insights his books give into contemporary Japan. His reply struck me as notable enough to be worth translating an excerpt of it for this site.

Hori Jasuo, translated wrote:

As a teacher of the English language, I have always been discontent that Japan always receives and never sends out. And sometimes I want to send out my opinion to the world in English, but I cannot. My ability is not sufficient, I didn't have people to read my badly-written English works, I couldn't find magazines which would accept them, and so on. In conclusion, it was difficult to do this in English.

I started writing reports about Japan in 1991, when I decided to relearn Esperanto seriously. I really enjoy learning languages - so I well knew that not only reading but also writing is a necessity to learn languages, and I started writing essays about Japan and sending them to the world. I wanted to do this, which I couldn't do in English.

In 1991, when I began to write essays, I sent them to some pen-friends, one year later to 10-odd people, then some tens, and then to "MONATO" and thousands of people read my essays. To my surprise, I am a "writer". This is a miracle. Esperanto is a truly wonderful* language.

I want other people in other lands write essays about their land too, and publish them, especially Asians, because Asian countries always received "more modern" culture and civilization from Europe and the USA, but rarely sent theirs out.

* The word 'mirinda' literally means 'marvel-worthy' or 'wonder-worthy', and doesn't translate well to English; it carries connotations similar to 'amazing', is translated as 'wonderful' by lernu's dictionary, and is a very evocative word.

While his essays in the first book have some grammatical quirks, they're extremely readable and engaging; given that the first ones are from his first months of getting serious about Esperanto, it really is quite amazing.

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wildweathel
Newbie
United States
Joined 5567 days ago
32 posts - 71 votes

Speaks: English*
Studies: Esperanto, Japanese

Message 2 of 5

25 December 2009 at 3:29am | IP Logged

Vere dankindas. Ĉu vi dirus kie oni povas preni tiojn verkojn? Mi trovis kelkajn tie sed ne tutajn.

Thanks very much. Could you say where to get those books? I found a few here, but not all of them.
1 person has voted this message useful

Volte
Tetraglot
Senior Member
Switzerland
Joined 6443 days ago
4474 posts - 6726 votes

Speaks: English*, Esperanto, German, Italian
Studies: French, Finnish, Mandarin, Japanese

Message 3 of 5

25 December 2009 at 6:31am | IP Logged

wildweathel wrote:

UEA is the first place I'd look.

Aside from that, no idea; I've borrowed them from an acquaintance. I suppose I could ask him where he bought them.

1 person has voted this message useful

Captain Haddock
Diglot
Senior Member
Japan
kanjicabinet.tumblr.
Joined 6772 days ago
2282 posts - 2814 votes

Speaks: English*, Japanese
Studies: French, Korean, Ancient Greek

Message 5 of 5

25 December 2009 at 10:35am | IP Logged

bżóh wrote:

Volte wrote:

who has been professionally teaching English

Hori Jasuo, translated wrote:

And sometimes I want to send out my opinion to the world in English, but I cannot. My ability is not sufficient, I
didn't have people to read my badly-written English works

That's par for the course in Japan, and probably China too. The English teachers don't really speak English.

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