Re: Wagging the Slovak tongue, By David Ferguson, Vol 10, No 18, May 10 - 16
I've tried learning both English and Esperanto as foreign languages, and believe me, Esperanto is less a burden; I still feel English is a foreign language that masters me; while in Esperanto (with about five times shorter practice) I feel that I master it.
Unless I am naturalised in an English-speaking country, I shall never have the feeling of freedom and equality with English that I normally and effortlessly have with Esperanto. There are actually railway timetables in Esperanto in Hungary, The Czech Republic, and, up to 1999, Slovakia. Nor does the language lack literature and culture.
The European Union in some years could choose to be the country with labels in Esperanto, which would be a great benefit to this multinational and multicultural region, much greater than for Esperanto itself.
Martin,
Bratislava, Slovakia
