American

[cosmolinguist]

Further to this (and this), I suppose ...

In 1923, Washington J. McCormick, a Republican Congressman from Montana, proposed to displace English in favor of "American" as the national language. Apparently, this was the first official-language measure ever considered by the U.S. Congress. The bill died in committee, although it was adopted later that year by the state of Illinois.

McCormick's rationale for the change was quoted in The Nation on April 11, 1923:

I might say I would supplement the political emancipation of '76 by the mental emancipation of '23. America has lost much in literature by not thinking its own thoughts and speaking them boldly in a language unadorned with gold braid. It was only when Cooper, Irving, Mark Twain, Whitman, and O. Henry dropped the Order of the Garter and began to write American that their wings of immortality sprouted. Had Noah Webster, instead of styling his monumental work the "American Dictionary of the English Language," written a "Dictionary of the American Language," he would have become a founder instead of a compiler. Let our writers drop their top-coats, spats, and swagger-sticks, and assume occasionally their buckskin, moccasins, and tomahawks.

Illinois's declaration looked like this:

Whereas, Since the creation of the American Republic there have been certain Tory elements in our country who have never become reconciled to our republican institutions and have ever clung to the tradition of King and Empire; and

Whereas, America has been a haven of liberty and place of opportunity for the common people of all nations; and

Whereas, These strangers within our gates who seek economic betterment, political freedom, larger opportunities for their children and citizenship for themselves, come to think of our institutions as American and our language as the American language; and

Whereas, The name of the language of a country has a powerful psychological influence in stimulating and preserving the national ideal; and

Whereas, The languages of other countries bear the names of the countries to which they belong, ... now therefore

Sec. 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: The official language of the State of Illinois shall be known hereafter as the "American" language and not as the "English" language.

It was amended in 1969; English is now again the official language of Illinois.


(Crosslink: miss_newham writes about yesterday better than I could.)

Comments

[kennedybak.livejournal.com]

Wasn't there a vote, at some point early in the history of the US, as to what language would be the official one, and English only beat German by one vote?

(This is all I can remember of the story, and it might be complete bollocks. Carry on)

[cosmolinguist]

It is bollocks, but you're far from the only person to have that impression. I saw mention of it when I was Googling for this Illinois thing. Here's an example.

"There was never an attempt to make German the official language of the United States, although (1) there was a failed attempt in Congress in 1794, based on a petition of German residents of Augusta Co., Virginia, to have "a certain proportion" of the laws of the United States printed in German as well as English, and (2) beginning in 1828, reports were circulated in the German, English, and American press of an attempt to make German an official language, (alongside English,) of Pennsylvania, an attempt that was supposedly defeated by only one vote (Arndt, however, was unable to find any bill or resolution proposing to make German the or an official language of the state of Pennsylvania)."

[angel-thane.livejournal.com]

Doesn't surprise me. At the time of independence, there were some musings about making the official languge Spanish, just to shove it to the Brits.

Of course, us Canucks would be in a hellish bind if American became the official language of United Statesians. Oi, I can imagine the debates even now... which language would we speak?

[cosmolinguist]

Which language would we speak?

Yeah, you with your "tires" and "programmes"! You're just confused.

For what it's worth

[5-rings.livejournal.com]

The Chinese make an official distinction between American and British English, calling the former Meiyu and the latter Yingyu. While British English is still preferred in government work, increasing numbers of businesses want people who speak American English, and the number of Meiyu "academies" is flourishing.

Perhaps McCormick was reincarnated as a Chinese after death.

[strangeidea.livejournal.com]

Huh! That's fascinating (and a riot); thank you.

[miss-newham.livejournal.com]

Now you have crosslinked to me twice I think I can happily retire. x

[cosmolinguist]

Silly girl. You keep writing good things!*

* Or things about me ... those are good, right?