Item Detail
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31271
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3
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0
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Dutch
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Language Planning in Frontier America : The Case of the Deseret Alphabet
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Language Problems and Language Planning
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1982
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6
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1
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Netherlands
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John Benjamins Publishing Company
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45 - 62
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"Under the leadership of Brigham Young, the Mormons created a new utopian society in their isolated fortress in the Rocky Mountains. One of their utopian goals was to prepare the English language for universal use. Accordingly, the board of the territorial university was given the function of a language planning committee. Although they were concerned with improving English vocabulary, the committee focused on spelling reform. In 1853, a committee consisting of the most influential poets, teachers, and socially respected people developed an alphabet of 38 phonetic signs, the so-called Deseret alphabet. Personal diaries, letters, and church and official documents were written in this alphabet. It was also used for shop and street signs. The promoters of the alphabet anticipated any objections by emphasizing the economy and efficiency of the new system." [Abstract from Publisher; Translated to English]