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To help your (pl.) community?

by jkph00, August 13, 2014

Messages: 8

Language: English

jkph00 (User's profile) August 13, 2014, 8:10:37 PM

I am trying to express the idea of a plural "vi" in the phrase "to help your community." In Southern English I would write "y'all's community," or if I meant "y'all's community" on a big scale, I could write "all y'all's community." (Any Southerner immediately knows the difference) okulumo.gif .

Now, if I write "helpi al via komunumo," the plural nature of "vi" seems to me to get lost. I don't think saying "viaj komunumo" is possible. How do I express it?

Warmest thanks in advance for your help.

tommjames (User's profile) August 13, 2014, 8:33:12 PM

One possibility would be "helpi la komunumon de vi ĉiuj".

jkph00 (User's profile) August 13, 2014, 8:54:21 PM

tommjames:One possibility would be "helpi la komunumon de vi ĉiuj".
Just so. Thank you!

orthohawk (User's profile) August 13, 2014, 11:27:01 PM

jkph00:I am trying to express the idea of a plural "vi" in the phrase "to help your community." In Southern English I would write "y'all's community," or if I meant "y'all's community" on a big scale, I could write "all y'all's community." (Any Southerner immediately knows the difference) okulumo.gif .

Now, if I write "helpi al via komunumo," the plural nature of "vi" seems to me to get lost. I don't think saying "viaj komunumo" is possible. How do I express it?

Warmest thanks in advance for your help.

erinja (User's profile) August 14, 2014, 2:02:58 AM

Does it have to be so exclusive, as to say "via komunumo" - perhaps the solution would be to make it more inclusive and say "nia komunumo"?

As a northerner, though, I'm a non-user of y'all. I would assume that "via komunumo" is referring to everyone's community, not just to a single person's community. A community is not something that I ever think of as belonging to a single person.

morfran (User's profile) August 14, 2014, 4:55:45 AM

I think you’re OK with via komunumo, actually. Insofar as vi means “belonging to or associated with the person or people that the speaker is addressing”, it’s probably safe to say that anyone in the group you’re addressing will know that “your community” = “y’all’s community”, just as they would in standard American English.

jkph00 (User's profile) August 16, 2014, 12:43:33 AM

erinja:Does it have to be so exclusive, as to say "via komunumo" - perhaps the solution would be to make it more inclusive and say "nia komunumo"?

As a northerner, though, I'm a non-user of y'all. I would assume that "via komunumo" is referring to everyone's community, not just to a single person's community. A community is not something that I ever think of as belonging to a single person.
Erinja, I understand your thoughts, but in this case the difference is considerable. His community is in Tanzania. I live in West Virginia, USA. Hu. okulumo.gif

Bemused (User's profile) August 19, 2014, 12:36:36 AM

orthohawk:
jkph00:I am trying to express the idea of a plural "vi" in the phrase "to help your community." In Southern English I would write "y'all's community," or if I meant "y'all's community" on a big scale, I could write "all y'all's community." (Any Southerner immediately knows the difference) okulumo.gif .

Now, if I write "helpi al via komunumo," the plural nature of "vi" seems to me to get lost. I don't think saying "viaj komunumo" is possible. How do I express it?

Warmest thanks in advance for your help.
Say it.
Say it.
SAY IT.

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