Fundamento de Esperanto: the full 1905 text online

The Fundamento de Esperanto ("Foundation of Esperanto") is the book of 1905 in which L. L. Zamenhof fixed the core of the language. It has four parts: a foreword, a grammar with the 16 rules, 42 exercises and the dictionary Universala Vortaro. The first World Esperanto Congress made it binding in August 1905, and nobody may change it.

This section holds the whole text, copied without changes from the edition of the Academy of Esperanto.

• 1905published in Paris; binding since the Declaration of Boulogne
• 16grammar rules, printed in 5 languages
• 42graded exercises (§1–§42)
• 2,933dictionary entries with translations in 5 languages

#Why is the Fundamento binding?

Point 4 of the Declaration of Boulogne, adopted at the first congress on 9 August 1905, names the book as the only fixed base of the language: La sola unu fojon por ĉiam deviga por ĉiuj Esperantistoj fundamento de la lingvo Esperanto estas la verketo "Fundamento de Esperanto", en kiu neniu havas la rajton fari ŝanĝon. – "The only foundation of the Esperanto language, binding once and for all on all Esperantists, is the little work Fundamento de Esperanto, in which nobody has the right to make a change."

The same point says that Esperanto has no personal legislator. Zamenhof's own opinions and later works are private and bind no one, exactly like those of any other speaker.

The base can grow, but only by addition. The Academy of Esperanto adds official roots through Official Additions; it cannot alter the book. The levels of authority are explained in official Esperanto.

#What is in the Fundamento?

The entry counts are our own count of the Academy's edition. The Academy itself counts 2,768 "Fundamental elements" in the whole book, because it counts roots, affixes and endings from all four parts.

Apart from the foreword, the material is older than the book. The grammar comes from the Unua Libro of 1887; the dictionary and the exercises had appeared separately in 1893–1894. Hachette published the collected book in Paris in 1905.

#How do I read it here?

• Foreword first if you want to know why Esperanto has a fixed base; grammar first if you want the rules themselves.
• Tap any word in the foreword or the exercises. A box shows the parts of the word – root, prefix, suffix, ending – in colour, with the meaning and a link to our dictionary.
• Link to a single exercise: every § has its own anchor, for example §11, the start of the fairy tale La feino.
• Look up a root: the Universala Vortaro has one page per letter, and each entry links to the modern dictionary entry when we have one.

Old spellings and the 1905 translation errors stay in the text, as Zamenhof wanted. His foreword says: La fundamento devas resti severe netuŝebla eĉ kune kun siaj eraroj – "The foundation must stay strictly untouchable, even together with its errors."

#Is the Fundamento a good textbook?

No, and Zamenhof said so himself. The foreword states that the book "should not at all be regarded as the best textbook and dictionary of Esperanto". He recommended fuller textbooks for learning and the Fundamento as a guide to what is official.

To learn the language, start with our course and the 16 rules explained in plain English. Come back to the Fundamento when you want to check the original wording.

#Sources

• Akademio de Esperanto – Fundamento de Esperanto (online edition)
• David K. Jordan – The Boulogne Declaration (Esperanto text with English translation)
• Wikipedia – Declaration of Boulogne
• Wikipedia – Fundamento de Esperanto
• Vikipedio – Fundamento de Esperanto
• Akademio de Esperanto – Akademia Vortaro: Klarigoj