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Post by indigo on Jul 11, 2009 8:31:26 GMT 10
For those that know German and/or several languages: how do you relate the German word Heimat to the word territorial micronation?
The word appears to be a little related to the English word homeland, to the French word foyer, but its meaning is not captured entirely.
Heimat also appears to be related to the German word Mutterland (motherland). Italians and Esperantists normally sense from the word meanings of piccola patria, luogo natio (small homeland, birthplace), or vilaĝo, urbo, regiono (village, town, region). While the Germans don't sexualise the word Heimat as the Russians sexualise Rodina (Родина), it does carry nurturing/feminine meanings like the neologism of matria does for Italian and Portuguese speakers.
So the word micronation, perhaps even the word hamlet, is related to Heimat, but so is the word matriotic (love for one's birthplace, hometown, hearth).
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Post by D. N. Vercáriâ on Jul 12, 2009 5:25:21 GMT 10
I don't know if "Heimat" is such a metaphysical word. It's kind of meaning "home" as in "home is where your heart is". It is indeed transporting some sentimental layer and has become a bit oldfashioned, AFAIK - at least I wouldn't known when to use this word. As for "Mutterland", this word is not denominating an individual's home country - "Vaterland" (fatherland) would be used instead, but that's also last-century-speak. Rodina, isn't that simply "family", while a lot of the above is "vlast"? At least in Czech? Anyway, micronationally speaking, Talossa is sort of a spiritual homeland to me, in a non-religious sense. As in "home is where your heart is".
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Post by indigo on Jul 12, 2009 6:44:16 GMT 10
I don't think the German word Heimat is metaphysical either, but it seems to have layers of meaning.
In Czech the word is associated with domov, domovina, otcina, and yes, vlast.
In Slavic languages like Slovene, Croat, and Serbian, the word dòmovina is almost identical in meaning to the German Heimat.
It seems that Heimat carries meanings that would interest the micronationalist, or perhaps more broadly the Fourth Worlder and Fifth Worlder.
Heimat doesn't have the same meaning as patria (Fatherland) in Italian. It has the meaning more of casa (home), piccola patria (small homeland), or luogo natio (birthplace/motherland).
This is clearly not the State or nation-state (Vaterland) in which we were born. It is more like the town, province, or region in which we were born. Not something Superofficial, but unofficial, familiar, homie. Think of a hamlet, a small community where your memories of growing up are connected.
This for me would therefore be Independent Long Island, not the United States. This for me is a Fourth World nation, not a First World nation. For the Fifth Worlder, it would probably represent a micronation which is one's matria more than one's patria.
Italians that move to Northern Italy for work don't call their hometowns in the south their patria, but actually use a new word with a feminine twist, the word matria. Matria is also used for Southern Italy in general, in its ancient historical sense of Magna Graecia (Latin for "Greater Greece"). I've also seen the usage from Italians working in Venezuela, so for them matria refers to Italy in general, or may simply refer to their hometown.
So not only Independent Long Islanders might look at Independent Long Island as their Heimat/matria, but also Nova Romans, and I can see someone with little affection/memory for their place of birth, or who have found a "home" elsewhere being Talossans. Heimat/matria may be the place we left in order to make a living, but it may also be the place we emigrated to if we hated or didn't love the place we were born in to begin with.
So Vaterland/patria seems to refer to everything in reference to the UN, the Official World. Heimat/matria refers to less official locales (regions, towns, or hamlets) or communities of people (Fourth and Fifth World nations).
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Post by commiczar on Jul 14, 2009 8:27:53 GMT 10
Just for the record...... In DeWaConian "Slanguage" ( i.e. Slang Language ), the word for "Motherland" is "Mohela" ( Motherland ).
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Post by indigo on Jul 14, 2009 10:00:52 GMT 10
Just for the record...... In DeWaConian "Slanguage" ( i.e. Slang Language ), the word for "Motherland" is "Mohela" ( Motherland ). Interesting... I was actually able to go a step beyond these thoughts in the new book I've written, and this, in turn, added almost an entire chapter to the contents! And the neologism I've invented in the process is also available in the book in German, Italian, and Russian. The rest of the chapter mentions something else, which I hope will broaden the appeal of the book.
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