worship of words

Love it. Gives me another word for those who think language can't take care of itself.


Of whom there are legions. Several of my Maaori-speaking friends bemoan the artificaially standardised Maaori being taught today, calling it ugly and awkward. Yet the growing numbers of people who speak the "new" Maaori, and particularly its uptake among the young (half of all Maaori speakers are under 25), have guaranteed the survival of the language, and present an opportunity to watch language evolution happen in a very compressed timeframe. Fascinating stuff.