Mango Languages

Nordic World Ski Championship

Like to ski? Based in Switzerland, the Federation Interationale de Ski (International Ski Federation for all of you English speakers) is the organization that puts on the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Oslo, Norway. This organization is the main international organization for ski sports, and consists of 111 national ski associations.

The competition is being held from February 23rd to March 6th this year. 50 nations are participating in 21 events, and if you are a ski enthusiast, then this is the place to be!

Do you ski?

Celebrate Mother Languages

Today is International Mother Language Day. It is a celebration of all the things we at Mango Languages believe and are inspired by: the emphasis and acknowledgment of the value of language as a integral part of communication throughout humanity. International Mother Language Day was proclaimed by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It has been observed for over a decade to promote linguistic and cultural diversity, multilingualism, and to preserve and protect all languages spoken by all people.

Here at Mango Languages, we strive to do just that. Our passion for languages and cultures have allowed us to see the diverse world we live in as storybook full of history. The story can be told in many different ways and it is our responsibility to uncover as much as possible of it through the power of language. This in turn will force us to be more aware of the cultural diversity around us and allow us to take further steps to peace.

Embrace what makes our world such a beautiful place: the diverse people who live in it. We may all come from a different background, and may speak a different language, but we all have a story to tell. Let’s all listen and try to understand.

“Languages are the most powerful instruments of preserving and developing our tangible and intangible heritage.” -United Nations

What is YOUR mother tongue?

Celebrate Greek Carnival

Halloween and dressing up occurs in October in the United States, but in Europe and South America (Rio) it is in February. So here are some things about how we celebrate it in Greece, including a bit of linguistics, folklore, and religion.

According to one view, the word “carnival” comes from early Italian carve + levare, which means “take away the meat” (carne). The Greek word for it is apokreea (stress on the last -a-), which again means “away from meat.” In both Orthodox and Catholic religions, the focus is on eating what meat is left in the house before Lent (the traditional period of fasting before Easter) starts.

Greek carnival is a combination of religious and pagan festivities. Following the Church, there are three weeks dedicated to gradually reducing the consumption of certain foods up to the beginning of Lent. In these three weeks people should also celebrate and have a good time before starting the fast, a period of repentance. Two are the high points of this season: the Thursday of the first week, which is dedicated to eating meat, is called tseeknopemptee: pemptee is the name of the day (Thursday or the fifth day of the week) and tseekna refers to the smell of charcoaled meat, what you smell at barbecues. On that Thursday night people go out to tavernas to celebrate and drink and have a good time; you can smell tseekna everywhere.

The last of the three weeks is dedicated to the consumption of dairy products and fish and the Monday just after it is called Clean Monday, something like Shrove Monday, which marks the beginning of Lent. On this Monday we should not eat meat or dairy products – we should be “clean” of all that.  Only shellfish is allowed, and people go out to the countryside and have picnics and fly kites since the weather is usually permitting .  During these weeks people dress up and play pranks.  Parades are held in all the cities. Dressing up is a pagan custom that has to do with scaring away the evil winter spirits before spring comes.

How all this is connected to the way people lived:

According to Professor N.S. Margaris, all these traditions are closely related to the way people lived. Sheep and goats usually breed in January. Because there was lots of snow on the ground,  shepherds could not take them out to the pastures and were forced to reduce their number: tsiknopemptee is a relic of this tradition. After that, spring comes and there is plenty of grass; eating meat is thus forbidden up to Easter so that sheep and goats can grow.

Another tidbit:

On two of the Saturdays during this period people honor the dead. In many places in Greece people cook pasta. Now, the food that is given to those who come to wake the dead is called makareea, which means “blessing.” According to one view, the word “macaroni,” a kind of pasta, derives from makareea, or makareea + (e)oni(a) [eon] = “eternal blessing.” And all this time you thought that pasta was Italian?

Baoutha

Exactly three weeks before the start of Lent, the Chaldean Catholic Church celebrates Baoutha — a three day celebration composed of fasting and prayer.

As the story goes, in the 6th Century, a severe plague was inflicting the northern regions of Iraq, what would today be the city of Mosul. Out of desperation, the people ran to their Bishop to help them with this plight. A three day fast was declared, and the city was not destroyed. On the fourth day, the Chaldean people rejoiced, giving rise to Baoutha.

Baoutha is a word which in Aramaic means “pleading.” Since the actual event, Chaldeans all around the world have celebrated this by fasting for three days. In modern days, this event is treated as a penance, wherein people ask for forgiveness.

We have several people in the office who celebrate this holiday.

A Trip to the Netherlands

I had never been abroad until a work assignment took me to the Netherlands in the mid March in 2005.  Our first day/night after the eight hour flight from Detroit was in Amsterdam.  I remembered a great suggestion from fellow travelers, when making an international flight “not to go to sleep” when you arrive but continue to go about your daily activities until nighttime in your new time zone.  I followed this suggestion and after dinner we were off to at the lovely was Hotel De Nachtegaal (Golden Tulip) Lisse.

The Golden Tulip Nachtegaal is located in a well-known dune and bulbfield (tulips) area. Although I was in town in March, the hotel is ideally located near the beach, the sea, lakes and dunes, as well as the lively cities Amsterdam and The Hague about 30 miles away (48.2 km), 33 minutes by train.

The hotel has a trendy restaurant, a swimming pool, sauna, solarium and rental bicycles and boats.  Nearby in seaside town Langevelderslag (Noordwijkerhout) we enjoyed a variety of restaurant choices, and settled on a quaint and colorful Mexican Restaurant, where we enjoyed conversation and margaritas.  Timing of our extended business travel was perfect, as March is the opening of the world famous Keukenhof Garden.  This year the Keukenhof opens on March 24, 2011 with a beautiful array of floral designs and garden displays.

An afternoon tour at the Keukenhof, walking among the tulips, the crocuses and other spring blooms was a colorful way to whisk the “winter blues” away.

At the conclusion of my business travels, I traveled to Lisse, a small town where company headquarters (Swets Information Services) was located.  I stayed at a small traditional hotel, the Hotel de Duif and enjoyed a lovely euro “apartment-type” suite at the bargain rate of less than $100 US/74 EUR.  The Hotel de Duif located in Lisse, a picturesque village also known as the “heart of the bulb-growing region”. Lisse has traditionally been central to bulb-growing, not just due to its location, but also because of its role in the cultivation of, and trade in, bulbs. To this day, Lisse is still home to a thriving collection of bulb fields, major bulb auctions and bulb export businesses. I remember walking one morning to a local Pancake House and saw an elderly man walking his dog while wearing wooden shoes.  Watch out however for the local friends who want to share a toast over some“jenever.”  Dutch Gin, traditionally “jenever” is served in completely full shot glasses that have just been pulled from the freezer. The first step to drinking jenever properly is to keep the glass on the table, bend down to the glass and take the first sip without holding the glass.  Before you know it, you will be dancing!

On my last day/night in the Netherlands I returned to Amsterdam.  I was able to visit many local tourist attractions including the Anne Frank House.  It was a solemn way to remember my visit to the Netherlands, a land of colorful flowers, artistic masterpieces, great pancakes, incredible chocolate, and friendly people.

It was an amazing trip overall, and I can’t wait to go back! If you haven’t been to the Netherlands yet, start practicing your Dutch with Mango,  pack your bags, don’t forget your clogs and make your way to the country that is famous for its tulips!

International Love

Love, a universal concept, is in the air today. It’s Valentine’s Day, a day to celebrate love and affection between couples.

It may sound different but in every nation, every culture, and in every language, but the notion of “being loved” means the same thing.

Over the weekend I got to know the story behind the red “I am loved” buttons that you maybe have seen around. I found out that the creator of the buttons, Barnett Helzberg Jr., had a personal and romantic story behind the three words that have now become an icon.

Helzberg came up with the “I am Loved” button in 1967 when his fiance accepted his marriage proposal.  He was was so ecstatic that she said “yes,” that he wanted the whole world to know that “he was loved.” The buttons were also immediately popular with religious groups delivering messages of love. Schools used the buttons to encourage students and build self-esteem. Everyone connected to the message on the button in their own unique way. It wasn’t long before “I am Loved” spread around the world and Helzberg responded by producing buttons in French, Spanish, Russian, Polish, Japanese, Italian, German, Hebrew, Chinese, and Portuguese. Over 50 million buttons have been given away.

Spread the message of love. Here are a couple of ways,

I am loved.

Soy Amado

Io sono amato

Kto’s Mnie Kocha

Je Suis Aimée

меня любят

אוהבים אותי

What language do you spread the message of love in?

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Ja makin’ me crazy

On vacation, I thought I was leaving behind my Mango friends and going to have a break from language learning. I love languages. I always want to know what folks are saying if I hear a foreign tongue. Lucky for me…I learned about a whole new language while on vacation. One of the crew members on my cruise last week was Jamaican. He was in charge of many of the activities on board. I heard him speak all week and he was easily understood, then I witnessed him speaking to a co-worker and didn’t understand but a few words. I was excited because I thought it sounded like creole and he confirmed it. But what I didn’t know was that there is such a language called Jamaican. Yep, I know…crazy!

Per wikipedia: “Jamaican Patois, known locally as Patois (Patwa) or Jamaican, and called Jamaican Creole by linguists, is an English-lexified creole language with West African influences spoken primarily in Jamaica and the Jamaican diaspora. It is not to be confused with Jamaican English nor with the Rastafarian use of English. The language developed in the 17th century, when slaves from West and Central Africa were exposed to, learned and nativized the vernacular and dialectal forms of English spoken by their masters: British English, Scots and Hiberno English.”

Just goes to show that even a language loving gal like myself can learn a few things everyday! So cool.

What languages have you encountered that you didn’t even know existed?

Vacation? A Cruise of Diversity

I was lucky to take a fabulous vacation last week, a cruise to the Bahamas. I thought I was leaving behind all the international, culture and language learning world behind. Little did I know…I was going to be surprised.

One of the best things about this vacation was the diversity of the staff and the passengers. My waiter was from St. Vincent, our assistant waiter was from Mexico, and our stateroom attendant was from Jamaica. After asking around, I found that over 60 nationalities were represented in the staff of 750 people. That is amazing diversity! Ultimately, they live 6-8 months of the year together on a small floating city, and from what I hear, in general, get along wonderfully. It seems we can learn a lot from them. All different languages, cultures, and traditions combine to form a microcosm of the world! English was definitely the uniting language but you could hear all sorts of languages being spoken by the crew and the passengers. On a daily basis, I heard Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Russian, and many more. What a great place to practice my language skills. I used my Portuguese and Spanish on more than one occasion and even found myself seeking out those that I could chat with.

If you want to practice your language skills, meet really wonderful people, and see the world at the same time. I highly recommend a cruise.

Where have you gone to meet very diverse people?

Sharing an American Tradition: Football

It’s the first week of February… which means it’s Super Bowl time. This Sunday, February 6th, two teams will play against each other to receive the ultimate football honor, become the winner of the Super Bowl. The Pittsburgh Steelers will be playing against the Green Bay Packers in Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas.

The Super Bowl championship has been a great American tradition for the past 45 years. However due to the advancement of technology and social media, people all around the world will be able to share this experience, cheering for the Super Bowl. The NFL championship has become an international event, bringing people together from all around the world.

Here are some fun facts:

151.6 million: Number of people who will watch at least part of the game.

194 million: Approximate number of blades of grass on the football field.

232: Number of countries and territories in which the game will be broadcast.

34: Number of languages the game is broadcast in.

1: Number of languages in which the word “football” doesn’t mean “soccer.”

(Source:  www.treehugger.com)

While most people in the United States are gearing up in their favorite NFL apparel in preparation for the game, all over the world people are doing the same.  They’re getting ready to watch some football, but this time around it’s American Football.

Share with us: Have you ever watched the Super Bowl from another country?

Lost in Traslation – Language and Culture

Hello Everyone!

I came across a really interesting article, Lost in Traslation in the Wall Street Journal, about the influence that foreign languages have on how people see the world . The author uses a few languages as examples to show that people express themselves differently when talking about the same thing because of the structure of the language. This brings up questions about the definition of “meaning.” Does the meaning change due to the language you use?

In the article the author, Lera Boroditsky, quotes Emperor of the Romans, Charlemagne, saying that “to have a second language is to have a second soul.” This is a very deep and intricate thought. While reading this article, as a person who speaks more than one language, I realized that even though speaking different languages comes naturally to me, the make up of each language has its own structure, which in turn creates a unique approach to the way a person will use it to express their thoughts.

In any language that you are fluent in you can easily put together greetings, complete sentences, questions, etc. But when comparing these in different languages you see that the structure is not the same. For example, in the article it mentions that in Pormpuraaw, a remote Aboriginal community in Australia, to say hello, one actually say, “Where are you going?” If you don’t know that they don’t even use terms like “left” or “right” you would have a very hard time responding to the greeting. This particular community uses a different approach for greetings than English speakers do.

The article continues, with a focus on space, time, and gender when comparing different languages. The author goes to say, “the structures that exist in our language profundity shape how we construct reality, and helps make us as smart and sophisticated as we are.” I couldn’t help and connect this to our understanding of culture. The world we live in is so diverse with so much to offer in cultural learning, what makes them all so different? To me, it’s languages, the way we express ourselves. In some languages gender is a major part of being able to communicate in other it is the idea of space and time, this all plays a major role in how people think in those languages, which in turn establishes that unique culture.

“Do English, Indonesian, Russian and Turkish speakers end up attending to, understanding, and remembering their experiences differently simply because they speak different languages?”

What are your thoughts? Do you agree with the author?