Requests for new languages/Wikipedia Buryat

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Buryat Wikipedia[edit]

submitted verification final decision
This proposal has been approved.
The Board of Trustees and language committee have deemed that there is sufficient grounds and community to create the new language project.

The closing committee member provided the following comment:

The requested project was created at bxr: at an indeterminate date. Note that this request was approved before the implementation of the standardised Language proposal policy, and should not be used as a model for future requests. Shanel 21:33, 23 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Proposal summary
  • Language details: Buryat (Буряад хэлэн, bxr ISO 639-3)
  • Editing community: Calmouk (P), Dodge (N), Tsebeen (N), dGalsan (N)
    List your user name if you're interested in editing the wiki. Add "N" next to your
    name if you are a native speaker of this language.
  • Relevant pages: Test project
  • External links:
Please read the handbook for requesters for help using this template correctly.

Language code= ISO 639-2: bua (Buriat macrolanguage[3]), ISO 639-3: bxr ("Buriat, Russia" in Ethnologue.com) Proposed domain= bxr.wikipedia.org bua.wikipedia.org Wikipedia article= en:Buryat language, ru:Бурятский язык, de:Burjatische Sprache Number of speakers= about 450,000 in Russia (about 30,000 in China, about 80,000 in Mongolia, but Russian Buryat literary dialect differs considerably from those spoken in Mongolia and China) Locations spoken= bxr: Russia (official language in Republic of Buryatia), bxu: China, bxm: Mongolia Related languages= Altaic family of languages

Test Page is here: [4] (uses the generic macrolanguage code for Buriat, however it is only the cyrillic version for Russia and Mongolia, but may be ideographs used for Buriat of China may be added there. (same language spoken dialects with important differences, but written form is really different).

Why did you change the initial request (Buryat language, bua) to Russian Buryat (bxr)? All the persons who voted before you have voted for "Bruryat language". I change my vote to Oppose. Hégésippe | ±Θ± 14:55, 22 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
(answered on talk page Hégésippe) Belgian man (nl na en) 16:12, 23 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Code of Buryat language is bua http://www.ethnologue.com/14/show_language.asp?code=MNB Please rollback changes
No I won't rollback these changes, because the link you gave is a page in Ethnologue 14. This information is ancient; click on "corresponding entry" please. Belgian man (nl na en) 16:47, 31 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Supportnl:Boudewijn Idema, 13:53, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

  • SupportI have buryat friends in the Altai area, and really sympatize with fellow mountaineers. You are great people, make a great wiki bertodsera, 01:28, 23 March 2006 (GMT+2)
  • Support But the available ISO codes are bua and bxr, not bur, which is one of the codes for Burmese. I very much doubt the ISO registration authorities will change this, since the code is already in use. --Chamdarae 18:28, 25 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]
ISO authorities are currently uncertain about burmese, and incline to using mya as code for burmese. Tsebeen 08:52, 29 March 2006 (UTC) (N)[reply]
The truth is that the language is still named "Burmese" as it was before the military Myanmarese dictature. But Myanmar is the name used by the government who currently seats and decides at ISO, and it insisted for the change of name not only for the country, but also for the language and script (something that all burmese people living abroad or that fled from the country reject. "Burmese" is the name used since long, and past versions of ISO 639, ISO 3166 used "bu" and "bur" to refer to the language or country. "bur" remains assigned, even though ISO now recommends "mm" and "mya" (and Unicode uses "Myan" for the new script code). I'm quite sure that when democracy will come back in Myanmar, they will restore the historic names "Burma" for the country, "Burmese" for the language and culture, with strong support from the now large Burmese community living abroad.

Conclusion[edit]

The idea of a Wikipedia written in Buryat is widely supported and there are native speakers willing to contribute. In theory, this request could be declared "approved" now. However, the code issue is still pending. According to ISO 639-3 (cf. [6]) there are two options:

  • bua (as suggested) would cover the whole Buryat "macro-language" (Russian, Chinese and Mongolian variants).
  • bxr would refer exclusively to the variant of Buryat used in Russia (this seems to be what we`re talking about here).

In other words: if the proposed wiki only covers the Buryat spoken in Russia 'bxr' would actually be the more appropriate choice. On the other hand, if there is a sufficient degree of mutual intelligibility between the three variants, we'll probably be better off with a "general Buryat" Wikipedia, i. e. code 'bua'. Maybe we can sort this out in the next few days and then move this request to "Approved". Thank you! - Arbeo 15:12, 31 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

In my opinion, we are talking here about a "general Buryat" Wikipedia and Buryat "macro-language". Anyway, Buryat people in Mongolia and China do not have their own written language. No Buryat newspapers, literature or any other written sources exist in Mongolia or China. Correct me if I am wrong. Calmouk 23:19, 1 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]
You're wrong -- Buriat is a written language in China, using Mongolian vertical alphabet. They won't understand a Wikipedia in Cyrillic at all. --Node ue 00:25, 10 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Buryat is not a written language in China. Mongolian is a written language in China. There is no Buryat nationality among officially recognized nationalities in China. Calmouk 04:02, 30 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Alright, the bottom line seems to be 'bxr' is less problematic than 'bua'. So I'd suggest to make it bxr.wikipedia.org --Arbeo 10:00, 10 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Done. --ajvol 07:45, 14 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I still suggest to create bua.wikipedia.org Calmouk 04:02, 30 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]
For the moment as far as the choice between bua or bxr is concerned the former is far more appropriate than the latter. First of all the buryat language in Mongolia and China is for the most part nothing else than one of its dialects, namely Khori. There are also some other dialects of Buryat in these countries, but the number of speakers is considerably less than Khori. Differences between what you call bxr, bxu, and bxm are so insignificant, that apparently Buryat doesn't need to have three codes instead of one. So for the moment I suggest using bua for Buryat as it is one common language understood by every Buryat regardless of where he lives: Russian Federation, Mongolia, or China. And I have to say once more that the proper self appellation of Buryats is Buryat-Mongols. The Buryat Republic untill 1953 was called the Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, and its name was illegally and forcibly turned into mere Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, there wasn't any kind of referendum at the time. So with regard of this fact the proper ISO name should be bmn. Though personally I have no objection to bur. Tsebeen 12:21, 26 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]