Scottish man dies, taking town's dialect with him

October 04, 2012

LONDON (AP) — In a remote fishing town on the tip of Scotland's Black Isle, the last native speaker of the Cromarty dialect has passed away, taking with him a little fragment of the English linguistic mosaic.

Academics said Wednesday that Bobby Hogg, who was 92 when he died last week, was the last person fluent in the dialect once common to the seaside town of Cromarty, 175 miles (280 kilometers) north of Edinburgh.

"I think that's a terrible thing," said Robert Millar, a linguist at the University of Aberdeen in northern Scotland. "The more diversity in terms of nature we have, the healthier we are. It's the same with language."

The demise of an obscure dialect spoken by a few hundred people may not register for most English speakers — "We'll all live," Millar said — but it's part of a relentless trend toward standardization which has driven many regional dialects and local languages into oblivion. Linguists often debate how to define and differentiate the world's many dialects, but most agree that urbanization, compulsory education and mass media have conspired to iron out many of the kinks that make rural speech unique.

Cromarty, which counts just over 700 people, is at the very end of a sparsely populated peninsula of forest and farmland. It's separated from Inverness, the closest city, by the Beauly Firth, a wide body of cold water where salmon run and dolphins frolic.

The Cromarty dialect included a helping of archaic "thees" and "thous" as well as a wealth of seafaring vocabulary, including three sets of words for "second fishing line." The aspirate "h'' was often added or subtracted, so that "house" would be pronounced "oos" and "apple" would be pronounced "haypel." The "wh" sound was often dropped entirely.

A lexicon of Cromarty words, relying in large part on Hogg's speech, gave "Oo thee keepan?" as Cromarty's version of "How are you?" and "Hiv thoo a roosky sazpence i thi pooch?" for "Can you lend me some money?"

Urban dialects may be strong — Millar referred to "Toonserspik," the "town speech" of cities like Aberdeen — but he said they don't replace what's being lost. He said urban dialects tend to be more similar to one another than their rural counterparts, with an emphasis on differences in pronunciation over differences in vocabulary. And even rival cities like Glasgow and Edinburgh "sound more like each other than they used to."

Author Mark Abley, who has written about the dynamism of the English language, agrees. "I don't believe there's a straightforward balancing act in which urban dialects grow as rural ones shrink," he said in an email. "Cities are always melting pots, and isolation for any group is very hard to maintain."

As the worlds' melting pots grow ever bigger — half the Earth's population now lives in cities — lesser-known dialects are evaporating. Worldwide, languages are disappearing regularly, with half of the globe's 6,000-plus languages expected to be extinct by the end of the century, according to UNESCO.

The British Isles saw two languages go extinct within living memory, UNESCO says. The last native speaker of Alderney French, a Norman dialect spoken in the Channel Islands, died around 1960, and the last speaker of traditional Manx, the language once spoken on the Isle of Man, died in 1974.

Donna Heddle, the director of the Center for Nordic Studies at Scotland's University of the Highlands and Islands, said the loss of each language or regional dialect leaves the world poorer than it was before.

"It's one less little sparkle in the firmament," she said. "One little star might go out and you might never notice it, but it's not there anymore."

Online:

The Cromarty Fisherfolk Dialect: http://www.ambaile.org.uk/en/download/files/The%20Cromarty%20Fisherfolk%20Dialect.pdf (PDF)
UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger: http://www.unesco.org/culture/languages-atlas/index.php

Hungary slot-machine ban bucks regional trend

October 04, 2012

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The government says it's trying to cure poor Hungarians of a gambling addiction. The gambling industry says that authorities are trying to seize control of a lucrative pastime.

Whatever the case, Hungary's decision to ban the ubiquitous slot machines seen in pubs, bars and parlors across the country goes against a gambling boom seen elsewhere in Eastern Europe, even as economic times get tougher.

The government announced the ban Monday morning, after an extraordinary Cabinet meeting called by Prime Minister Viktor Orban. It justified the surprise move by saying that tens of thousands of Hungarian families had been ruined by slot machines.

"Our objective is to ensure that our poorest, most disadvantaged and defenseless citizens ... be prevented from having the opportunity of spending their money on gambling activities," said State Secretary Janos Lazar.

The law, which is expected to take effect in a few days, forces slot machine operators to immediately surrender their licenses. Slot machines will have to be removed from pubs and gambling halls and will be allowed only in Hungary's three casinos — two in Budapest, the capital, and one in Sopron, a city on the border with Austria.

The government had already been cracking down on slot machine addiction. Tamas Huszar used to own eight slot machines, including four in a small pub he runs in north Budapest. After the government last year raised the monthly tax on each machine five-fold, from 100,000 forints ($450) to 500,000 forints ($2,250), Huszar decided to keep just one. Now he'll have to give up that one, too.

"Not only is my income going to fall, but I will be forced to lay off employees," Huszar said. The Hungarian move bucks gambling trends elsewhere in the region. Casinos and betting parlors have been proliferating in Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia and the Czech Republic. In Serbia, a boom in football betting has led to wagers even on games in the Finnish lower divisions.

On Tuesday, just over 24 hours after Lazar's announcement, lawmakers in the Hungarian Parliament voted 238-1 in favor of the bill, with eight abstentions. Experts estimate that there are some 100,000 gambling addicts in Hungary, a country of 10 million people, while another 500,000 are at risk of developing a gambling habit.

Istvan Schreiber, president of the Hungarian Gaming Association, said the industry has been blindsided by the government's change of heart, especially because a law passed in 2011 allowed for new, server-based slot machines due to be introduced early next year. Under the new system, slot machines would have been replaced by video terminals connected to a central computer, which would keep track of all gambling activities and could be monitored by state authorities.

But that has been replaced by a blanket ban. "The government has changed the law from one day to the next," said Schreiber, who also feared that the ban could strengthen illegal gambling. "Evidently, there is a business decision behind it. We'll see what is going to happen."

Schreiber said the association was considering filing class suits in European courts against the ban. Another trade group, the E-Casino Association, appealed to President Janos Ader to ask the Constitutional Court to review the law before he signs it.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs rejected the argument that the ban would cost up to 40,000 jobs as claimed by Schreiber's group. "In fact, the sad reality is that one slot machine can ruin the lives of at least 10 families," the ministry said in a statement.

Tamas Boros, a political analyst at Policy Solutions in Budapest, said the changes would likely increase state control over gambling in Hungary, putting it under the auspices of Szerencsejatek, the state-owned gambling company which has a monopoly on lotteries, scratch-off tickets and sports betting.

"The state is trying to centralize gambling activities and make all gambling revenues flow in to Szerencsejatek," Boros said. Lazar said the government was also planning to implement tougher conditions for opening a casino in Hungary. Boros charges that the plan could lead to the establishment of state-owned casinos.

To compensate for the 30 billion forints ($135 million) in lost tax revenues due to the slot machine ban, Lazar said the government was planning to regulate and tax Internet-based gambling activities.

Although it would be difficult to implement, Boros said it was also possible that the government could seek to prohibit access in Hungary to foreign Internet gambling sites and give Szerencsejatek a monopoly on such activities in the country.

Taking a break from feeding the machines at a Budapest gambling hall, Antal Lato said he sometimes got "totally wrapped up" in his gambling and welcomed the ban. "It will be good because at least you won't lose your money," said the 63-yer-old Lato, acknowledging that he sometimes spends up to 20,000 forints ($90) in one session. "The truth is, you have to struggle to win your money back."

Farmers, shipyard workers protest in Greece

October 04, 2012

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek police clashed with shipyard workers protesting pay arrears Thursday after they broke into the Defense Ministry grounds, while hundreds of farmers on tractors tried to invade the country's second-busiest airport on Crete during an anti-austerity protest.

Greece has been gripped by a severe financial crisis since late 2009, and waves of spending cuts and tax hikes have led to frequent strikes and demonstrations. The nation's 3-month-old coalition government is currently preparing a major new austerity package demanded by rescue creditors.

Unions have promised new protests and a general strike next week when the government's new €13.5 billion ($17.5 billion) program is debated in parliament — where the conservative-led coalition controls enough seats to pass the measures.

In Athens on Thursday, more than 100 protesters forced open the shuttered entrance to the Defense Ministry complex, crossing the courtyard and blocking the entrance to the general staff building. Riot police were called in to force back the demonstrators, who were demanding to meet with ministry officials.

Greece's top military officer, Gen. Michalis Kostarakos, was heckled by the shipyard workers when he came out to speak to them by using their portable loudspeaker. "First get off my base," Kostarakos told the protesters, arguing that the military had no part in the workers' dispute with the government.

Police said 106 people were detained for questioning, prompting another protest gathering outside police headquarters. Riot police used pepper spray to prevent a group of protesters from barging into the building.

Workers from the Skaramangas Shipyards, which deals mainly with military contacts, say they have not been paid in months. Scuffles broke out as protesters tried to push through the police cordon protecting the entrance to the main building.

On the southern island of Crete, hundreds of farmers taking part in an anti-austerity protest on Thursday tried to invade the terminal and the runway of Iraklio airport. Police kept them off with tear gas, and one man was detained for trying to drive his tractor onto the runway.

Airport authorities said flights were not affected by the protest. Crete is a major tourist destination, attracting more than 44,000 flights last year. Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said Wednesday there were still considerable differences between the government and Greece's debt inspectors from the International Monetary Fund, European Commission and European Central Bank over the new austerity package. But he said he hopes to clinch a deal by next week.

The country has been in recession since 2008, and the total contraction is projected to reach a cumulative 25 percent at the end of next year.

Bosnia's National Museum closes after 124 years

October 04, 2012

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — It survived the breakup of the Austrian empire, two world wars, the longest city siege in modern history and a bloody war in the 1990s that killed 100,000 people. Yet after 124 years, Bosnia's National Museum closed its doors Thursday due to dwindling state funding and disputes among rival ethnic groups.

Having not received their salaries for a year, employees gathered at the fountain in the museum's botanical garden and threw a coin into it, making a wish that the institution will reopen soon. Then they left the building in downtown Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital, and nailed wooden boards that read "closed" across its front door.

Museum director Adnan Busuladzic says he has lost hope that politicians will solve the problem any time soon. "There are two opposing ideas on how this country should be organized," Busuladzic explained. "This society is at war over those ideas and nobody cares about a museum."

This museum and six other institutions that are the custodians of Bosnia's national heritage — and care for precious medieval manuscripts, religious relics and natural history artifacts, among other items — are victims of the 1995 peace agreement that ended Bosnia's war. The deal split the Balkan nation along ethnic lines into two semi-autonomous parts linked by a weak central government and guided by a constitution that did not envisaged a ministry of culture.

This left the seven cultural institutions without a guardian and without funding. For years they have been surviving on donations or often-insufficient, ad-hoc grants from different layers of government and hoping that political leaders from the country's mostly Orthodox Serbs, Catholic Croats and Muslim Bosniaks will agree on what to do with Bosnia's shared historical and cultural heritage. The questions extend even to whether to preserve it.

Bosnian Serbs oppose giving the central government control over the cultural sites. Their leaders insist that Bosnia is an artificial state that should be dissolved and that each of the country's ethnic groups has its own heritage.

Bosniaks, meanwhile, say safeguarding the shared history of the Bosnian people is one way to keep the country unified and it was they who scrambled to beg for funds from several ministries. With Europe's debt crisis dragging into a third year, those ministries have no more reserves to tap into now.

To prevent the museum from closing, several students chained themselves to a pole in the lobby and remained inside, declaring they will stay there until the problem is solved and the museum reopens. Dozens of others held a sit-in in front of the building, many refusing to believe that it was truly closing.

"We want this museum to stay open. Tourists are coming to our city, they want to see our culture and history. How? How? All the institutions of culture are closed here," said protester Nihad Alickovic. "Is this a deeper game? To destroy the history of this country? They all should be ashamed because of this."

Bosnia's National Gallery and its Historical Museum closed down earlier this year. With the National Museum's closure, four other cultural institutions are still struggling: The Institute for Monument Protection, the Bosnian Art Gallery, the Bosnian National Theater and another small museum.

For an entire year, the National Museum's 65 employees still came to work every day without being paid. As she left the building Thursday, museum librarian Andrea Dautovic said the issue was not even about her not having a job any more — it was about what Bosnia has lost in the process.

"What will happen with future generations who now are losing this cultural jewel?" she said.

Russia, Tajikistan agree to military base deal

October 05, 2012

DUSHANBE, Tajikistan (AP) — Russia and Tajikistan agreed Friday to extend the presence of Russian troops in the ex-Soviet nation on Afghanistan's northern border until 2042.

An aide accompanying Russian President Vladimir Putin on a visit to the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, said Moscow would be assured use of the facility "virtually free of charge." Central Asian nations are apprehensive at the prospect of the NATO coalition's withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2014 and have expressed fears that violence could spill over, prompting them to see security guarantees from their Russian and U.S. partners.

"The Russian base in Tajikistan is an important factor in stability in this republic, with which we are bound by special, brotherly and very close strategic relations," Putin said. Tajikistan is believed to have sought large rental payments from Russia for use of the base, but those requests appeared to have been successfully resisted.

"We are talking about certain sums, but we are getting this base virtually free of charge," said Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov. The current base lease is due to expire in October 2014. The Russian 201st Motorized Rifle Division deployed in Tajikistan numbers around 7,000 servicemen and is the largest current deployment of Russian troops abroad. It is based in three garrisons — near Dushanbe and in the southern cities of Kulyab and Kurgan-Tube.

Russia's military presence played a part in negotiating an end to the five-year civil war that devastated Tajikistan in the 1990s. Tajikistan economy is heavily reliant on the money sent home by the roughly 1.1 million migrant laborers working across Russia. Remittances from Russia in 2011 totaled around $3 billion, equivalent to around half Tajikistan's gross domestic product.

Putin and President Emomali Rakhmon reached an agreement Friday to relax bureaucratic procedures for Tajik migrant laborers seeking to work in Russia, many of whom are frequently compelled to work illegally due to the complications of registration. Under the new terms, migrants will be granted work permits valid up to three years from one year, as currently.

"This will positively impact on the state of the labor market in (Russia) and enable the citizens of Tajikistan to form their life plans on a more solid basis," Putin said.

At least 6 killed in clash at Guatemala protest

October 05, 2012

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — At least six people were killed and 30 were shot in a clash between security forces and protesters opposed to high energy prices in Guatemala.

"Thirty people arrived to the hospital with shot wounds and another four were intoxicated with tear gas," said Deputy Health Minister Marco Vinicio Arevalo. President Otto Perez Molina said Thursday that two army vehicles were carrying troops to support police when they encountered a blockade set up by protesters on a highway in western Guatemala.

Molina said civilians in a truck in front of the army vehicles opened fire. He said the soldiers weren't armed and promised to clarify what happened. He said police officers in the motorcade also were unarmed.

Interior Minister Mauricio Lopez Bonilla said the president had suspended an order to evict the protesters from the highway. Defense Ministry spokesman Col. Erick Escobedo said seven soldiers were hurt.

This is the second clash between the army and civilians this year. In May, Molina declared a state of siege for a province on the border with Mexico granting the army emergency powers, after 200 people armed with machetes and guns briefly took over an army outpost to demand justice for a man killed in retaliation who opposed the construction of a hydroelectric plant.

Well-preserved mammoth carcass found in Siberia

October 05, 2012

MOSCOW (AP) — A teenage mammoth who once roamed the Siberian tundra in search of fodder and females might have been killed by an Ice Age man on a summer day tens of thousands of years ago, a Russian scientist said Friday.

Prof. Alexei Tikhonov of the Zoology Institute in St. Petersburg announced the finding of the mammoth, which was excavated from the Siberian permafrost in late September near the Sopochnaya Karga cape, 3,500 kilometers (2,200 miles) northeast of Moscow.

The 16-year-old mammoth has been named Jenya, after the 11-year-old Russian boy who found the animal's limbs sticking out of the frozen mud. The mammoth was 2 meters (6 feet 6 inches) tall and weighed 500 kilograms (1,100 pounds).

"He was pretty small for his age," Tikhonov told The Associated Press. But what killed Jenya was not his size but a missing left tusk that made him unfit for fights with other mammoths or human hunters who were settling the Siberian marshes and swamps some 20,000-30,000 years ago, Tikhonov said.

The splits on Jenya's remaining tusk show a "possible human touch," he added. The examination of Jenya's body has already proved that the massive humps on mammoths seen on Ice Age cave paintings from Spain and France were not extended bones but huge chunks of fat that helped them survive the long, cold winters, Tikhonov said.

Jenya's hump was relatively small, which means that he died during a short Arctic summer, he said. Up to 4 meters (13 feet) in height and 10 tons in weight, mammoths inhabited huge areas between Great Britain and North America and were driven to extinction by humans and the changing climate.

Wooly mammoths are thought to have died out around 10,000 years ago, although scientists think small groups of them lived longer in Alaska and on Russia's Wrangel Island off the Siberian coast. Their bodies have mostly been found in the Siberian permafrost. Siberian cultural myths paint them as primordial creatures who moved underground and helped to create the Earth.

Most of the well-preserved mammoths are calves. Jenya's carcass is the best-preserved one since the 1901 discovery of a giant mammoth near the Beryozovka river in Russia's northeastern Yakutia region, Tikhonov said.

Unfortunately, its DNA has been damaged by low temperatures and is "hardly" suitable for possible cloning, he said. However, an earlier mammoth discovery might be able to help recreate the Ice Age elephant.

Russia's North-Eastern Federal University said in early September that an international team of researchers had discovered mammoth hair, soft tissues and bone marrow some 328 feet (100 meters) underground during a summer expedition in Yakutia.

Scientists already have deciphered much of the genetic code of the woolly mammoth from balls of mammoth hair found frozen in the Siberian permafrost. Some believe it's possible to recreate the prehistoric animal if they find living cells in the permafrost.

Those who succeed in recreating an extinct animal could claim a "Jurassic Park prize," a concept being developed by the X Prize Foundation that awarded a 2004 prize for the first private spacecraft.