Arika Okrent
Arika Okrent
Arika Okrent is an American linguist and writer of popular works on linguistic topics.
"If you decide to get into Esperanto, that means youre not listening to all the people who say, "Why not learn a real language?" or "Isnt that the crazy utopian cult thing?" So theres an element of eccentricity in that, but also an element of toughness. You can stand up to the judgment and negative reactions and do it anyway. Theres something admirable in that."
"With Esperanto conferences, it was the level of fluency. I sort of thought it would be like watching a video of "Chapter 1 Dialogue" in a language class, like "Where is the library?" But it was very fluid, like watching someone speak Spanish. So seeing that happen convinced me that its a real language; its not people playing dress-up with a different vocabulary."
"Language really isnt about information transmission. You speak a language in order to join the group that speaks that language."
