Esperantists Say No to Moresnet

Where will the capital of Esperantio be then?

It’s one of those odd bits of Esperanto history, the time it looked like a small nation might form with Esperanto as an official language. It didn’t happen. You cannot travel to the Esperanto-speaking county of Moresnet, because it isn’t there (the territory is now Belgium).

In hindsight, you might think that Esperantists of the period would have viewed this as a great success for Esperanto. There would be a population of Esperanto speakers using the language on a daily basis. Anyone who wanted to do business with Moresnet would have to do so in Esperanto. The language would move from being a sort of idealistic hobby to a living, working language. You’d think Esperantists would be delighted. You’d be wrong.

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The Esperanto State that Didn't Happen

Will there be a phrasebook in
the travel guide?

On June 14, 1908, the San Francisco Call, repeating a story from the Kansas City Journal, reported on the attempt to create an independent state between Germany , Belgium and Holland. Moresnet had been created as a neutral zone in the treaties after the Napoleonic wars. The tiny territory actually existed for a century, finally being annexed by Belgium at the end of World War I (Belgium, itself, had been part of the Netherlands until 1830).

There was still the question of the fate of Moresnet, a valley with 3,000 inhabitants. There were various proposals to set up the place as an independent micro-state. In 1908, it was proposed that not only should Moresnet become independent, but should be an Esperanto homeland. The Call reported that

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You can follow my blog on Twitter (@impofthediverse) or on Facebook. If you like this post, share it with your friends. If you have a comment just for me, e-mail me at impofthediverse@gmail.com.

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