One thing I like about Israel (without discussing their state legitimacy here please) is that they took Hebrew, a language that was at the point spoken either by a handfew of historians and teachers and brought it back to life and now it is the official language of a country.
I once made a thread about a surviving anglo saxon England, and what if they could be considered Germanic had the Norman invasion failed, however as Abdominalz showed, this is not quite necessary:
Let's say that we got this Wilhelm of Orange point of divergence, they see him as a example of pan germanic and protestant unity, and about 120 years later on the 19th century the british government decides to bring back old english to live (only in England and some minor overseas territories like the Falklands, of course). Could it work, or with the 19th century school doctrines this would be impossible?
Edit if you want to have a idea of how different it sounds, you can find here a popular disney song in old english:
I once made a thread about a surviving anglo saxon England, and what if they could be considered Germanic had the Norman invasion failed, however as Abdominalz showed, this is not quite necessary:
I personally don't think we need a POD as far back as 1066 to achieve this. All what we need is an England which during the age of nationalism espouses a staunchly 'Anglo-Saxon' nationalist variety that solidly looks back to Anglo-Saxon England pre-1066. This ATL nationalism would be largely based on OTL thought, such as that of the 'Norman Yoke' and the Whiggish interpretation of history, which stated that Anglo-Saxon England was a kind of Garden-of-Eden liberal constitutional monarchy in which the Witangemot was England's first parliament, and that the Normans destroyed all that by imposing a foreign autocracy.
So what we need is an ATL English nationalism that emerges, say, in the long eighteenth century after the revolution of 1688 that is a reaction against French-backed Catholicism and Absolute Monarchy and could see Dutch support for that revolution and William of Orange as a sign of pan-Germanic (and Protestant) solidarity. This Anglo-Saxon revival, for it to permanently confirm England's place in the 'Germanic Club' would have to last continuously during the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. In addition to changing/ requiring a change of England's self image, literature and politics, I imagine that the following changes would be noticeable:
- The mass re-adoption of Anglo-Saxon first names in England during such a period: Names such as William, Henry and George go into decline and normal English names become names like: Athelstan, Edgar, Elfgar for boys and Godgifu, Elfgifu for girls. Scandinavian names (very popular just before 1066) could also become the English norm, such as Sveyn and Bjorn, which would further 're-scandinavianise' England.
- Indigenous English roots being used for new words that enter the language rather than importing Greek and Latin for say, modern concepts and technologies.
- The use of Anglo-Saxon words for newly created political institutions - so that when, for example, the American Revolutionaries were creating their constitution, instead of using the word Senate, they use the Anglo-Saxon word 'Witan' to refer to their upper house. Likewise when County Councils are created in England in 1889, have them be called 'Shire Moots' instead.
Let's say that we got this Wilhelm of Orange point of divergence, they see him as a example of pan germanic and protestant unity, and about 120 years later on the 19th century the british government decides to bring back old english to live (only in England and some minor overseas territories like the Falklands, of course). Could it work, or with the 19th century school doctrines this would be impossible?
Edit if you want to have a idea of how different it sounds, you can find here a popular disney song in old english: