Almost exactly 150 years after the Neanderthaler was found, we still don’t know much about them, but we do know what their language sounded like – or at least, one Ruth Omphalius thought up a Neanderthaler language for a German TV series. It has two-word ‘sentences’ and is loosely based on Inuktut, the language of the Inuit. “Igunartok!” is a general curse and approximates what the Neandertaler said on the occasion of a famous meeting (and not ‘Cro-Magnon man, I presume?’).

Neanderthalers always spoke with exclamation marks at the end, and their words started with capital letters, like German nouns.
Akrigeuyak! you idiot
Pokreitok! fool
Piktauyok! good
Nutkarpok! shut up

etc. etc.

(On this page, click on Mediathek. Look for Bilderserie: Sprechen Sie neandertalisch! – and in the clip Clantreffen im Neanderthal you can hear them speaking. If you ever meet any Neanderthalers, which is not very likely, you can recognize them from the mysterious background music that always accompanies them).

Exhibition in Bonn

(Indirectly via Handakte WebLAWg, where Rainer Langenhan links Neanderthalers to more recent residents of Düsseldorf)

Udo Vetter:

Neanderthal man / Der Neandertaler:

Sunday July 30 is Autobahn Church Day, according to the Süddeutsche. German Wikipedia has a map and Deutsche Welle has an English article on these churches.

The first autobahn church was built in 1958, I gather. There are now 21 or 31 of them, depending on who you believe. I’ve been meaning to look at one for the blog for some time now, but every time I see that sign Autobahnkirche, some wicked impulse tells me to drive on. Die Süddeutsche spoke to Pfarrer Klamt at St. Christophorus, Himmelkron (see no. 39 on this diagram of the A9):

Eigentlich hätte er ja gerne was Naturwissenschaftliches studiert. Doch dafür seien seine Schulnoten zu schlecht gewesen. Nun zelebriert Theologe Klamt Gottesdienste für Fernfahrer, Autobahnpolizisten und Rotkreuzhelfer. Er nimmt Durchreisenden die Beichte ab, segnet Fortbewegungsmittel und legt im Foyer Schlüsselanhänger und Autoputzschwämme zum Verkauf aus.

In August 2005 I mentioned how useful the May 2005 edition of Clarity was for translators.

It’s online now as a PDF file. Earlier issues here.

I wrote on June 7 that the Coroner Reform Draft Bill was to be published in parallel versions, one of which was to be in plain English.

That bill was published on June 12, and here is a page linking to it and other materials.

It has now been pointed out to me that this is not really a parallel plain English version, but merely extremely extensive notes. But I wasn’t the only person fooled! Here’s an example relating to treasure (the new name for treasure trove, Schatzfund):

bq. This publication is set out so that the Bill is as easy to understand as possible. It
begins with an overview of the contents followed by a list of the Bill’s measures.
The Bill’s clauses and schedules are down the left hand side of the page, with an explanation of the purposes of the clauses on the right hand side.

bq. Act:
35 Investigations in relation to treasure
(1) The Coroner for Treasure must conduct an investigation in relation to an object in respect of which notification is given under section 8(1) or 8A(1) of the Treasure Act 1996 (c. 24) (but this is subject to section 38).

bq. Explanation:
Clause 35: Investigations in relation to treasure
This clause sets out the circumstances in which the Coroner for Treasure must conduct an investigation in relation to treasure, and the purpose of such an investigation. Currently, responsibility for inquiring into treasure finds falls to the coroner in whose area the find is made. In the reformed system, the duty to investigate treasure finds for the whole of England and Wales belongs to a single coroner, the Coroner for Treasure, who will be able to draw on Assistant Coroners for Treasure as required. The workload is not expected to require more than one full-time post-holder.
The Coroner for Treasure is required by subsection (1) to conduct an investigation into objects which have been notified to him under the Treasure Act 1996 and under subsection (2) he has a discretion to conduct an investigation into objects which have not been notified to him but which he suspects to be treasure under that Act.

I wonder if the problem arose in the Times article I originally quoted: it referred first to an ‘easy-to-understand interpretation’ and secondly to a ‘simultaneous translation’. Perhaps I should look at the debates to see what was really meant.

Thanks to Political Umpire at Fora

Anna Netrebko wird Österreicherin

Was, kein Test?

bq. Anders als die meisten Bewerber für einen österreichischen Pass muss der Star keinen Staatsbürgerschaftstest ablegen.

Staatsbürgerschaftstest Fragen Wien.

10. Wo können Mütter in Notsituationen neugeborene Babys anonym abgeben?
Im Neugeborenen-Nest in der Rudolfsstiftung
Im Babynest Glanzing im Wilhelminenspital (Flötzersteig)
In der Kinderkrippe im AKH
11. Welcher Brunnen erinnert noch heute an die Eröffnung der 1. Hochquellenwasserleitung?
Donnerbrunnen
Hochstrahlbrunnen
Der „schöne Brunnen“ in Schönbrunn

Das bekannte Weblog von Konstantin Binder London Leben hatte bisher seit Januar 2006 vierzehn Folgen zum Kauf einer Wohnung in London (die er wahrscheinlich noch nicht hat). Detailliert, informativ, gut recherchiert, kurzweilig und unter anderem vom rechtlichen Standpunkt nützlich. Auch die anderen Beiträge.

Mit etwas Glueck habe ich in sechs Monaten eine Wohnung und der geneigte Leser einen detaillierten Ratgeber zum Thema Wohnungskauf in London. Das kann bisweilen, fuer ueberzeugte Mietmenschen z.B., etwas droege wirken. Ich bitte da schon mal um Nachsicht. Der normale Blogbetrieb wird in keinster Weise beintraechtigt werden.
Was wird besprochen? Das volle Brett: Finanzielles, rechtliche Bestimmungen, mortgage, Anwaelte, stamp duty, Nebenkosten, leasehold, Kaufvertrag, Versicherung, einfach alles, was man wissen und beachten muss.

German weblog on living in London, with detailed entries on buying a flat in London.

In contrast, Keys Corner on Why German property hasn’t risen in value.