Requests for new languages/Wikipedia Norfuk

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Norfuk 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 pih: 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 00:10, 22 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Proposal summary
  • Language details: Norfuk (norfuk, pih ISO 639-3)
  • Editing community: Pallmall (NP)
    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: —
  • External links:
Please read the handbook for requesters for help using this template correctly.
  • Notes/comments
    • Number of speakers=3000-5000
    • Locations spoken=Norfolk Island, Pitcairn Island, New Zealand, Fiji, Australia
    • Related languages=Pitcairnese, Tahitian, English
    • Co-official language of Norfolk Island, with speaker communities on Pitcairn Island, Australia, and New Zealand.
    • Wikipedia article says: "The language itself does not have words to express many concepts". So do you use this language a lot in writing, Pallmall? Furthermore, given the very small number of speakers, I think it will probably be very difficult to find a sufficient number of competent contributors to write a useful encyclopedia. Arbeo 14:56, 2 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]
      • Living in Australia, I don't have the chance to use it as often as I like, but I regularly correspond with my parents back home in it, yes. Schools, churches, and even the Norfolk government all use it to some degree.

The comment in the article about it not being used too often is worded poorly, but I didn't want to edit it, lest it be seen as me trying to "cook the books". There are many concepts that don't have native Norfuk words, like "molecular geochemistry", "pneumatic vice" and "postsoviet gender theory". This is a problem with many languages with small speaker bases. However, your basics are all there, and new terms can be Norfukised if necessary. Pallmall 12:23, 4 October 2005 (UTC).[reply]

      • As it is an official language, it must at least have acquired some possibilities to express some of these concepts formerly unknown. As Kreyol borrows from French, Norfuk, surely borrows from English, so I think it will work and support this request. Caesarion Velim, non opto 21:33, 2 October 2005 (UTC) By the way, isn't this the language spoken of in the book The Island Pitcairn form the Bounty trilogy, first spoken by Fletcher Christian and his fellow mutineers? What a romantic idea to have a Wikipedia in it! Caesarion Velim, non opto 08:29, 8 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]
I've not read that particular book, but yes, it is the language originally spoken by Fletcher Christian and the Bounty mutineers, although "modern" Norfuk is probably very different to their speech. Pallmall 05:42, 16 October 2005 (UTC).[reply]
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