Ch 28 · Lesson 10Esperanto · Chapter 28 · Lesson 10 · Grammar primer
The history of Esperanto: persecution, UNESCO and today
Germany dissolved the associations, s police shot the Soviet leaders, Zamenhof's children were murdered. Then UNESCO's resolutions, the internet, and how many speakers there really are.
The short version
Never banned, merely arrested
.
Why?Hide
The Soviet Esperanto union was never formally banned. In the Great Purge its leaders were arrested as spies until it stopped working: Ernest Drezen was shot in 1937 and Nikolao Nekrasov in 1938, both rehabilitated in 1957. In Germany, Himmler ordered the associations to dissolve in 1936.
UNESCO noted Esperanto; it never adopted it
Unesko .
Why?Hide
UNESCO's Montevideo resolution of 1954 notes Esperanto's results, recognises that they match UNESCO's aims and allows cooperation with the UEA. The Sofia resolution of 1985 congratulates the movement on its centenary and suggests that international organisations consider using it. Neither makes Esperanto a UNESCO language or asks governments to adopt it, whatever you may read.
7. 1933-1945: the persecutions
In Mein Kampf, Hitler gives Esperanto as an example of the universal language a Jewish conspiracy would impose. The then took the movement apart; the German association expelled its Jewish members to show loyalty, and it made no difference.
| Date | Nazi Germany |
|---|---|
| 1933 | the workers' groups are shut down |
| 17 May 1935 | teaching banned in schools |
| June 1936 | Himmler orders the associations to e |
In the Soviet Union, Esperanto was never formally banned. In the Great Purge its leaders were arrested as spies until the union stopped working: Ernest Drezen was shot on 27 October 1937, the Nikolao Nekrasov on 4 October 1938. Both were rehabilitated in 1957.
All three of Zamenhof's children were murdered. Adam was shot at Palmiry on 29 January 1940; Zofia and Lidia were killed at Treblinka in 1942.
.- The police arrested the leaders.
The standard history is Ulrich Lins, : the dangerous language.
8. 1954 and 1985: UNESCO
Both resolutions are real, and both say less than is often claimed. At Montevideo, on 10 December 1954, UNESCO:
| Verb | What it did |
|---|---|
| notes Esperanto's results in intellectual exchange |
| recognises that they match UNESCO's aims |
| commissions the Director-General to follow its use and cooperate with the UEA |
At Sofia in 1985 it congratulated the movement on its coming centenary, invited member states to mark it and to promote a study programme on the language problem and on Esperanto, and recommended that international non-governmental organisations consider using Esperanto among their members. Neither resolution makes Esperanto a UNESCO language, and neither asks governments to adopt it.
Unesko .- UNESCO noted Esperanto's results.
9. The internet
For a century, the hard part was finding someone to speak to. The internet fixed that.
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Vikipedio, the Wikipedia, begins |
| 2012 | Google Translate adds |
| 2015 | Duolingo launches its course |
Vikipedio now has about 390,000 articles.
.- Today people learn Esperanto online.
10. How many speakers?
Nobody counts Esperanto speakers, because no country does. The estimates depend on how fluent a speaker must be.
| Estimate | Figure |
|---|---|
| Sidney Culbert | about 2 million |
| Amri Wandel | over 2 million |
| S. V. Nielsen | 30,000 to 180,000 |
| from birth | 1,000 to 2,000 |
Treat any single figure with care: the estimates differ by a factor of ten or more, and each depends on what counts as speaking the language. What survives is a small, scattered speech community that has used the language every day for well over a century, with no state behind it.
, .- Nobody knows how many people speak Esperanto.
Going further: 1. Białystok: the boy and the four peoples and the rest of the guide, when you want them. This lesson does not need them.
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