Watch Your Language Blog

The sound of snow on the Mediterranean

English wasn’t the language I chose to learn, rather, even when I was ten, many more years ago than I’d like to admit here, it was clear to my parents that English and its speakers are gaining ground in the world and that you needed to learn the language to get anywhere. French was the language I loved and aspired to master as a teenager and then, continued to study in college. I simply absorbed Italian, the way I did my native Croatian, while imperfectly, by listening to my mother speak it to neighbors, and to acquaintances we ran into at the Korzo, and by spending way too many Saturday evenings watching Canzonissima. (You kind of like this? Here’s your chance to learn more about La Carrà “Sensazionale,” while practicing your Italian at the same time.) …And German was a mistake.* ... More


September 27, 2007

 

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

As far as good suggestions for language learning go, it seems that all that’s changed in 100+ years is the tone. ... More


September 26, 2007

 

Wikipedia Monchak

Here’s a chance for somebody to start an entry on the language Monchak, which as of now, does not appear in Wikipedia’s admirably large database. The New York Times has a little feature on it: “If you want to tell someone where to “go” in the dying language of the Monchak, you’d better have an intimate knowledge of the river currents in Mongolia, because that’s how the verb “go” is expressed in Monchak: upstream or downstream a bit or a bunch, never mind that there’s no stream in sight, or maybe there are a lot of streams going every which way.” ... More


September 25, 2007

 

Ahoy, me hearties!

‘Tis Talk Like A Pirate Day. Take out your pirate thesARRRus and start talking like one! You could even learn pirate-speak in German, Chinese, or Swedish. (Scroll down to “Further Study.”) What will ye be doin today, matey? I’ll be wondering if pirates really said “arrr” or owned treasure maps. (ELHAM)


September 19, 2007

 

A language dies every two weeks.

The New York Times ran a story about how nearly half of the languages spoken today are in danger of extinction. National Geographic has a great interactive feature on endangered languages; be sure to explore the language hotspots map, and the handy list of internet resources for endangered languages.


September 18, 2007

 

The Talented Multilingual Clock

Verbarius is a great solution for those having trouble learning how to tell time in a foreign language; it has the ability to write out time, for example: “Mitternacht” instead of 12:00 a.m. (Link via Swissmiss.) You can upload any language your PC supports, even Xhosa and Zulu.... More


September 14, 2007

 

R.I.P. Alex, the talking parrot

The New York Times reports on the death of the famous talking parrot Alex, who knew more than a hundred English words, could count, and recognize colors and shapes:... More


September 12, 2007

 

Translation telephony

Remember that kids game telephone? You can now play it here with translations, sans people. (Via Wired.) I just had fun plugging in: “I am a funky monkey,” which after being translated into Japanese, back to English, Chinese, English again, and then French, churned up: “J’évente le singe essentiel de matin de caractère.” Translate that back into English, and the machine comes up with “ventilating essential monkeys” and their morning character. ... More


September 7, 2007

 

My Travel Words and Phrases: Paris (around town)

Part III of Shaina’s essential words and phrases cover interesting tidbits on things to do in Paris, including some helpful advice about why (and when) not to ask for ice and butter in restaurants.... More


September 5, 2007