[BRIEF NOTE] Yes, the Wilamowicean language exists

[rfmcdonald]

Russian isn't my second language, but Altavista's Babelfish translation service works well enough for me to understand its translation version of avva's post questioning whether the Wilamowicean language--referred by me here--actually exists or whether the original Wikipedia article was incorrect. In that thread, dmitryle cites the abstracts of two articles attesting to the language's existence.

1. Majewicz, Alfred F (1999). Records of Wilamowicean, the Smallest Literature in a minority Language in poland. Linguistic and Oriental Studies from Poznan, 4, 81-86.

Abstract: Ethnic minority groups now living in poland are considered, eg, Ukrainians, Byelorussians, Lemk(.o).s, Lithuanians, Jews, Gypsies, Slovaks, Czechs, Karaims, Tatars, Armenians, Germans, Russian, Kashubians, Greeks, etc. Practically all of these maintain their national identities & separateness from others through some form of language distinction. Such languages & dialects are used to varying degrees in media, education, & religious life - eg, Jews & Karaims still use Hebrew & Karaim, respectively, at least in their religious lives, if not in other domains. Special attention is paid to the Wilamowicean ethnolect of the Wilamowice "Flemings," which was lost, practically within one generation, following WWII. The ethnolect became the object of scholarly interest in the first three decades of the 20th century; dictionaries & collections of folklore materials were published in the 1920s & 1930s. Like other ethnic groups, the Wilamowice Flemings had their own songs, sayings, proverbs, anecdotes, & fairytales; these linguistic aspects of their folklore were complemented by music, dances, & other aspects of extralinguistic folklore. Examples of the Wilamowicean written literature are considered, including excerpts from The Divine Comedy translated into Wilamowicean. It is suggested that despite being "the smallest literature in a minority language in poland," the Wilamowicean ethnolect & literature are of scholarly interest.

2. Wicherkiewicz, Tomasz (1999). The Impact Of Politics And Social Factors On The Death Of A minority Language (The Case of Wilamowicean in poland). Linguistic and Oriental Studies from Poznan, 4, 87-95.

Abstract: The status of minority groups in poland is considered, & special attention is paid to one such group, the inhabitants of the town of Wilamowice/Wymysau/Wilmesau in southern Poland. Despite being surrounded by a polish majority, this town retains some elements of its minority culture, eg, its ethnolect & the women's folk costumes. The whole population of the town is Polish speaking in all areas of social life (eg, school, administration, church, & everyday communication), but through thorough fieldwork, researchers have found some 100 elderly persons who are fully bilingual (& some of them are trilingual, having some knowledge of standard German). A brief historical outline of the Wilamowicean community is presented, & various hypotheses as to its origin are reviewed. Wilamowiceans themselves have adopted the belief that their community derives from a group of settlers of Flemish origin. This idea underlies their self-identification & feeling of distinctness from both their Polish & their German neighbors. Since only a few elderly persons can still speak Wilamowicean, it is maintained that the ethnolect is dying out. Social & political factors that have contributed to the death of Wilamowicean are considered, among them the Polonization policy of the Austro-Hungarian empire & the Germanization occurring during the Nazi occupation. It is suggested, however, that in recent years, Wilamowicean has shown some signs of revitalization as language courses are being organized for those who want to learn it.