ENGLISH AND THE DUTCHMAN

New Zealand Listener, Volume 26, Issue 664, 28 March 1952, Page 14

ENGLISH AND THE DUTCHMAN

By

IAN A.

GORDON

HE suggestion made at a dinner of the Master Builders’ Federation at Rotorua that foreign-language papers should be banned in this country might appear at first glance to have some justification. But a little reflection on the history of the English language and the experience of other countries in the assimilation of foreign-language speakers should quieten the doubts of those who fear that this country will develop a series of "little Hollands" (or "little Polands," or little elsewheres) composed of aliens who never become absorbed

into the hile around them, At the moment

there are some 5000 ‘Dutch settlers in the country. By the ‘end of 1952 there may be as many as 10,000. Even with the higher figure ‘there will be two hundred Englishspeaking New Zealanders to every one with a Dutch background. The English language has in the past stood up to more serious infil-

trations and emerged on. every occasion triumphant, gaining richness and colour rather than losing its own character. This has happened even when the for-eign-language speak-

ers have been invaders who overran the country and became for a time the

conquering race. In the 9th Century the Danes possessed two-thirds of what we now call England. Within a few years they had lost their own language and spoke English. The Normans in the 11th Century went further. They made French the official language of the Court and of government. They made it the only language for the education of their children. Even against such handicaps English gained the upper hand, because

it was the language Englishmen spoke. If our language can

-- survive assaults by hostile and unfriendly invaders, it seems a little ungracious to talk about banning the newspaper of a few thousand peaceful Dutch settlers. America has. had several generations of experience in assimilating settlers from many countries and speaking many languages, Her experience can be of value to us. The first-generation settler from Europe finds English | difficult. Picking up a new language successfully is for middle-aged people seldom easy. It is certain that many of the older settlers who come to this country will never entirely master the language. A

paper in their own tongue which is mainly concerned with New Zealand affairs will make easier for them the change from Dutch to English. Such a paper will aid rather than hinder their grasp of the language and institutions of the country they have adopted. A little generosity and tolerance by those of us who speak the English language will complete the process of assimilation. With the young the problem solves itself. After a year or two in school the English of the children of the foreignspeaking settlers cannot be distinguished from the language of the other children. A year or so ago a college public-speak-ing contest was won by a Chinese student, whose parents probably still used Chinese as the language of the home. This country needs more people. If we are to wait until they can speak perfectly the Queen’s English before we accept them, we shall have to wait a long time. : Meanwhile, anything we can do to help the English of those settlers who are above school age is of value to the Dominion, A foreign-language paper will do something. Classes in the technical colleges for adults in the cities will do even more. Here is an opportunity, too, for the Broadcasting Service. The increasing numbers of foreign speakers in yur midst justifies a regular series of broadcasts on how to use the English language. Some who have spoken the language since childhcod might find that it is not only the Dutch who find English occasionally difficult.