Re: Some suggestions

[Padraic Brown <pbrown@nova.umuc.edu>]

On Wed, 20 Jan 1999, Andrew Smith wrote:

> 
> Which reminds me of another point I was meaning to raise: should Brithenig
> have alternative month names?  I'm not advocating an adoption of the
> Kernu month names, although Kemrese lawyers probably learn the legal names
> universally, but the Roman calendar has not survived intact into
> modern Welsh with some of the names of the later months replaced with the
> events of the season and I'm wondering if Brithenig should preserve these
> also, at least as 'rustic' alternative names.

I suppose I ought to clear this up a bit, for those of you who don't know. 
Currently, the system in use within the Province has essentially three
calendars full of month names: the Legal, the Common and the Standard. 
The first uses the Celtic month names (taken from the Gaulish calendar)
entirely and is suitable for use in Court and in legal documents; the
second and most common is rather like the Welsh, if I understand it right: 
many of the months are Roman in origin, but several Celtic names are
retained for months of particular import and is what you see in
stationers' calendars, banks, newspapers, etc.; currently the "Standard" 
form exists solely because the regular Kemrese calendar has all Roman
names and is used only to coordinate the Common calendar with what the
rest of the country apparently uses. 

Do you perhaps mean adopt the system used in Kernow, wherein some of the
months are Celtic and the rest are Roman?  I somehow can't imagine
transplanting actual Kernu wordforms into Brithenig!

	Legal		Common		Standard
	Ogronios	Oyrons		Marts
	Cutios		Apreys		Apreys
	Giamonios	Maes		Maes
	Simivis		Yuns		Yuns
	Equos		Ecuis		Yulis
	Elembivios	Ogustis		Ogustis
	Edrinis		Septemrei	Septemrei
	Cantlos		Ottemrei	Ottemrei
	Samonios	Samons		Nawemrei
	Dumannios	Dumans		Decemrei
	Riuros		Yanouers	Yanouers
	Anagantios	Fevrouers	Fevrouers

If such an adoption were to take place, it might be suggested that the
rest of the country at least adopt Samo. and Duma. because of cultural
import.  The Province retains Oyrons because it's the first month in the
Legal Cal. and Ecuis because it's the month of the great horse fairs,
racing, etc.  Even rugby fares poorly during this time.  I would have no
problem with either: making the Celtic names "official" or making them
"rustic".

Padraic.

> - andrew.