[Wikipedia-l] Request for language: (Jersey) Norman

Sun Nov 13 20:30:28 UTC 2005

I'm making a request that Jèrriais (Jersey Norman) be created for the list
of Wikipedias (and a wiki thus be created). I couldn't find any protocol for
making such requests, but I expect reasons should be given, so I'll list
several here. I apologize if this is unnecessary (and if so, feel free to
ignore the following).

Norman as a language is native to Normandy and the Channel Islands. Jersey
Norman, or Jèrriais, is the most-spoken, highest-profile, and most
literarily accomplished of the Insular Norman dialects. Much more
information appears to be available in and about it on the web (in part
thanks to *Les Pages Jèrriaises* and the *Section de la Langue Jèrriaise de
la Société Jersiaise*) than Continental Norman, as well. I am unaware of the
speakership of Continental Norman (last I checked, a survey had not been
done), but Jèrriais has thousands of speakers, and is generally considered
the dominant dialect of Norman.

Jèrriais has a comprehensive Jèrriais-French dictionary, and an
English-Jèrriais dictionary is in the works. Software, books, and cassettes
are available to teach and learn the language, and it is being taught in
Schools in Jersey. (I know that Continental Norman is being taught [often as
a dead language] in some universities in Normandy, but I am unaware of other
educational activity among the dialects). Jèrriais has an ongoing radio
program(me), and several books have been published in and on the language,
including *Jèrri Jadis* and *Histouaithes et Gens d'Jèrri*.

Linguistically, Norman is one of the *langues d'oïl*, closely related to
French, but with its own history reaching back hundreds of years (notably
marked by the writings of Wace in the twelfth century, who may be considered
the earliest Norman—indeed, Jèrriais, for he was from Jersey—writer), as
well as its own idioms, grammar, and vocabulary. Major dialectal groups of
Norman include Old Norman*, the Insular dialects (two to four major living
dialects, depending where one draws the line, and one dead), Continental
Norman, and Anglo-Norman* (the ruling language of England for a few
centuries).

Unfortunately, as Jersey Norman has not yet been adopted as an official
language (previously, this was felt unnecessary—the two political languages,
English and Jersey French, have been Jersey's official languages), but work
is being done on a GCSE program in Jèrriais, and extensive efforts are being
made to revive the language. However, it is because of Jèrriais' lack of
official status that it, currently, has no language code. I propose the code
"jer" be used, and that Jèrriais be adopted as the official Norman dialect
used for Wikipedia.

More reasons could be listed, but I feel this will suffice.

Thank you,
Miché-Forêt Mêssèrvy