Archives West Finding Aid

Esperanto

The Esperanto language was created by Ludwik Lazar Zamenhof. According to his reminiscences, conflicts among Russians, Poles, Jews, and Germans in his native, multi-racial village of Bialystock, Poland, stimulated him to search for possible solutions to daily human discord and prejudices caused by these national and ethnic differences. Zamenhof became convinced that a common auxiliary language would lead to international friendship and tolerance among the many nationalities of the world. He wanted to emphasize the use of his language not only as a means of better communication, but in relationship to his goals for universal brotherhood One hundred years ago Zamenhof finished the rudimentary concepts of his language, and studied it with school friends who were in enthusiastic agreement to its utopian possibilities. Esperanto publications flourished between 1900 and 1940. During this time many Esperanto clubs and organizations were founded on a regional, philosophical, social, or professional basis; many such groups issued periodicals. Many Esperantists had hopes that their language would receive official endorsement and achieve recognition as a required auxiliary language. Some philosophical disagreements within the movement led to several short-lived schisms. The closest step to official acknowledgement of Esperanto occurred in 1954 when UNESCO stated that its programs were in agreement with the goals of Esperanto, and promised to cooperate with the Universal Esperanto Association (UEA) to aid in the use of Esperanto.

George Alan Connor

This collection was formed through the efforts of George Alan Connor, editor and moving force of American Esperanto Magazine for twenty years. Connor was born in Waterbury, Nebraska in 1895 and died in Portland, Oregon in 1973. His early printing experiences earned him a living while in normal school in La Crosse, Wisconsin,; a Washington post while in the U.S. Army; a graphic arts position in the New York City schools; and an opportunity to apply his trade in the Soviet Union, 1930-1932. Esperanto had been an early interest and upon his return from the Soviet Union he again felt very strongly the need for an international language. His enthusiasm for Esperanto led him to study it seriously, teach the language, and head tours for Esperantists through the Soviet Union and Western Europe. From the mid-1940s, George Connor and his wife Doris concentrated their energies on promoting Esperanto in America. They were active in the New York Esperanto Association of North America; they wrote for and edited the American Esperanto Magazine Amerika Esperantisto and served as its officers. The Connors assembled an enviable record as represented by their efforts and as reflected by the George Alan Connor Collection.