Other Thoughts on Language Development

I had a few more thoughts in discussing the development of Italian language that didn't really fit in the last post, so I thought I would make another one to mention them. For one, the way that The Divine Comedy and other works played an important role in setting a gold standard for Italian language reminded me of similar examples in other languages. One that comes to mind is the Quran, which was seen as the gold standard for Classical Arabic, which later developed into the modern dialects of today. Arabic has an interesting relationship with the Quran and all of the dialects of Arabic, as there are three main categories of Arabic: Classical Arabic, which is based on the language of the Quran and later works; Modern Standard Arabic, a language used for most formal writing and spoken only in contexts like the news and which is based on Classical Arabic but is somewhat simplified; and the various dialects of spoken Arabic, of which there are many. Most people who speak Arabic and especially Muslims speak a dialect particular to their region, but can also read and speak MSA and Classical Arabic. The development of Arabic is somewhat similar to that of Italian in the large variety of regional variants, but these local dialects have remained even as the lingua franca of MSA has emerged, whereas in Italian the Florentine dialect became the dominant spoken and written form. And much like in Italian where works of literature like The Divine Comedy and the Decameron have had great influence on the development of the language, the Quran has had a great impact on Arabic.

Another interesting comparison I discovered in researching the development of Italian is the institution of the Accademia della Crusca, a linguistic society established in 1583 devoted to maintaining the purity of the Italian language, which was used as a model for the Academie Francaise, which has a similar role for the French language. Both were established as concerted efforts to make bodies to standardize their language and grammar. Both did this by introducing dictionaries and grammatical standards, and both still exist today. I've learned about the Academie Francaise in French class, and it's an interesting solution to the problem of language standardization. It's also weirdly cultish, consisting of members who are called "Immortals", but regardless, it has provided an effective means of codifying and promoting French language. It is not without its critics, though, as some people claim the Academie stifles development and can be conservative and sometimes even somewhat petty. As an example, the Academie maintains that the French word for email is not the commonly-used, anglicized "e-mail," but instead the artificially constructed word "Courriel." The Accademia della Crusca attempted to maintain a similar function, but was somewhat less influential in immediately standardizing the language as the Accademia was harshly criticized by those who held different opinions on the questione della lingua. Interestingly, there is no equivalent organization to either Academy for the English language, which results in no definitive standard for the English language in terms of an official dictionary. The Accademia della Crusca and similar organizations like the Academie Francaise are representative of the development of languages like Italian, which again was a very messy process that Dante played a major role in.