Mango Languages

Happy International Mother Language Day!

“The language of our thoughts and our emotions is our most valuable asset. Multilingualism is our ally in ensuring quality education for all, in promoting inclusion and in combating discrimination. ”
- Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO

Today is  International Mother Language Day, which is meant to promote linguistic and cultural diversity, as well as multilingualism. It was originally announced in 1999 by UNESCO and has been in observance since February 2000.

Do you have any plans to celebrate your Mother language today? Here are different suggestions on how you can celebrate in your own way:

1) Read a poem, story or book in your mother language
2) Do you know someone who has a different mother language than you? Ask them to share a short song or poem in that language. Or maybe teach you a couple of words.
3) Watch a film in your mother language. Or celebrate someone else’s mother language and watch a film with them in their language with subtitles in your language.
4) Visit your local library to explore their foreign language book offerings and check out if they have Mango Languages.  ;)
5) Use Mango Languages to practice a language you’re learning or celebrate by trying to learn a new one.
6) Check out your local university communities to look for cultural events, discussions, celebrations, and festivals
7) Learn more about endangered languages and what individuals and organizations, including UNESCO, are doing to help prevent different languages becoming extinct.
8) Visit UNESCO.org to learn more about International Mother Language day and what different organizations around the world are doing.

Do you have any other suggestions on how to celebrate this multilingual day? 

Happy Thanksgiving – Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias!

As Thanksgiving is only one day away in the United States, all of us at Mango want to express our gratitude to you for your constant support and passion that make our job  so enjoyable!

Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful but it is also a time to celebrate culture. And what a better way than to explore how people from all over the world celebrate their own Thanksgiving and how people all around the US add their unique traditions as well.

Growing up in a Mexican-American household, Thanksgiving is a perfect example of how two culture can fuse together while still bringing unique traditions to the table (no pun intended!).

While we have the traditional Turkey, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie, you can’t expect to sit at my family’s table without also having tortillas and Mexican rice. And instead of only saying Happy Thanksgiving, we also say “Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias”, with a combination of Spanish, English, and even Spanglish conversations all around the table.

And with so many different cultures in the United States, I know my family isn’t the only one to incorporate different cultural foods or traditions into a very traditional American holiday. Take a look at how Arabic cuisine can incorporate “…hummus, tabouli salad, garlic dip, batata harra, which is sautéed potatoes, as an alternative to the mashed potatoes,”  as  Denise Hazime, of Mediterranean cooking website DedeMed.com explains.

Other countries also celebrate Thanksgiving in their own way. The day and way of celebrating may be different, but it is clear that traditions, culture, and most importantly, giving thanks, are always the main components of this special day.

In what ways do you add your own flavor to Thanksgiving?

Mango Languages in Ohio Libraries

Mango loves Ohio libraries.

In fact, everyone in the state of Ohio has access to Mango Languages through their public library, university library or public school thanks to the State Library of Ohio.

Check out Mango Languages on Your Morning Saturday Toledo to see how your library card can save you lots of cash.

Are you librarian in Ohio who’d like to use Mango in your library? To find out how you can utilize this resource in your community, sign up for one of our Ohio-specific library webinars:

Wed, Oct 31, 2012 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT
Tue, Dec 18, 2012 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM EDT

Laughing my Mango off.

Show us your Mango meme.

We love memes. We love laughing. And we love you. Put it all together and you get: a Mango meme contest.

Head over to Meme Generator, create your hilarious language-learning or Mango-related meme and email it to rachel.reardon@mangolanguages.com.

We’ll post the top entries on Facebook for Mango fans to vote for their favorite. The creator of the winning meme will get:

• A gift certificate good for one Mango Passport Journey course.
• Hoards of adoring fans.
• Their meme as Mango’s Facebook profile picture for a week.
• A unicorn.*

*While supplies last.

Godspeed, meme-makers.

Congrats, Madison County Library.

Mango would like to wish hearty congratulations to Madison County Public Library in Kentucky for being selected as the library with the “Most Outstanding Usage” for the month of September.  The number of total user sessions at MCPL skyrocketed an awe-inspiring 347% between August and September.

Library Director, Ruthie Maslin, explained that they have worked hard to increase awareness of their digital resources by highlighting tie-ins with special collections and creating visual displays.  She said that Mango is also a great resource to promote at the Back-to-School Fair hosted by the library in the fall.

Congrats again, MCPL – and keep up the great work!

Don’t forget, through the end of the year we’re going to be recognizing a different library each month for outstanding usage, based on user sessions.  Each library will be entered into a grand prize drawing at the end of the year for $500 towards hosting a Mango Day, as well as other cool prizes and swag for your patrons.

Interested in ways your library can promote Mango and increase usage?  Give your Account Rep a call.  We’d love to help you out!

Mango’s favorite recycling program.

We want to shine a library spotlight once again on a library staff that never ceases to amaze us with its enthusiasm and creativity.

When Mango sends marketing goodies to libraries, we fill the boxes with love and orange and green crinkle paper.

The staff at the Bedford Public Library saved the Mango packaging, added some love of their own and turned it into beautiful pumpkins.

Thank you, Bedford Public Library, for making us smile.

And now for a serious question: if mangoes stay out too late, do they turn into pumpkins?

In the Mangolight.

What is round, delicious and read all over? Mangoes of course.  Check out what libraries like yours are saying about Mango in the news, online and in print.

Mango bears fruit of fluency
Five area colleges plan to create a Foreign Language Institute on Missouri State University property.

Is there a smart card in your wallet that keeps on giving?
Two-thirds of Americans have a library card in their wallet but most don’t realize all of the free stuff they can get because of it or how much money it can save them.

College student gadgets & patch buddies deal
Colleges and universities are gearing up for parents’ days and family weekends. Do your kids have everything they need?

Speaking volumes: Arg! Prepare for Talk like a Pirate Day
Arr, mateys! Sept. 19 is International Talk Like a Pirate Day, and we be celebratin’!

Freebee Friday: Lingua Digita
A library card is good for more than taking out books these days because you can use Mango’s unique and innovative online language learning course via many local libraries.

Mango Languages leaps forward on Inc. Fastest Growing Companies list
The expansion of Farmington Hills-based Mango Languages over the past three years is nothing short of amazing.

Signed Up for Mango 101 Yet?

Mango is dedicated to helping your library become a hub for language and culture in your community.  Join us for a short and sweet virtual training on how to make the most of your Mango subscription.  Topics include:

-  Quick Mango demo: get your staff up-to-date on what Mango is all about!
-  Frequently asked questions
-  Ways to promote language-learning in your library and boost your usage

Join the party and register for Mango 101 on any of the following dates:

Wednesday, December 12, 2012 from 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST
Wednesday, January 16, 2013 from 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST

Ohio libraries, please register for one of the following sessions:

Wednesday, November 21, 2012 from 2:00-3:00 PM EST
Wednesday, December 19, 2012 from 2:00-3:00 PM EST

Mango: A+ for Academic Value

Fact: libraries love Mango, and Mango loves libraries.  But when it comes to our academic clients, we’ve found that Mango’s broad appeal makes it a hit not only at the library, but with many other programs as well.

Here’s just a few of the on-campus programs that Mango can benefit:

Career Center:  As a professional development tool, Mango helps students and alumni build in-demand language skills for the job market.  According to Salary.com, the average pay range for bilinguals is approximately 5-20 percent more per hour than the base rate for their position.

Study Abroad Program:  Mango is the ideal resource to help students prepare for study abroad, volunteer trips, or international internship programs, especially for languages not taught on campus.  Did you know we offer over 50 foreign and ESL language courses?

International Student Programs:  International and foreign exchange students benefit from Mango’s large selection of ESL (English as a second/foreign language) courses.

Alumni Association:  Unlike most other databases, Mango is available to Alumni Associations through your library at no additional access fee.  Alumni Associations can offer Mango as an attractive membership perk.

Faith-Based Organizations:  Mango can help members prepare for international missionary or volunteer trips.  Also, our specialized religious courses appeal to those who wish to explore Biblical texts in their original language.

So whether preparing to study abroad in China, trying to learn Spanish as a resume booster, or helping international students acquire practical English skills, Mango is the go-to resource to help students, alumni, and even faculty succeed in their mission to learn a foreign language.

To learn more about how Mango Languages can benefit academic institutions, click here.

Patrons Give Props to R&S.

When we released our Religious and Scholarly Course Collection last June, we were excited about the appeal it would have with students and religious scholars.  After all, the collection – which allows users to study classical and religious texts in their original form – was the only one of its kind on the market, as it continues to remain today.

However, what we didn’t expect to see was so much excitement and positive feedback from our younger generation of Mango fans.  But according to many “Mango Moms”, their kids have had a blast learning about ancient cultures and civilizations from the R&S Collection.

Take Jody M., for example, who told us: “I just started using your program through my local library with my 8 year old who wants to learn Latin and Ancient Greek.  Thank you so much for including these courses, since they are often difficult to find!”  Or Sara P., who shared that she was “learning Latin with a 9 and 11 year old.”

Who knew that Mango would inspire a new generation of mini-scholars?  We’re sure they’re heading great places – keep up the awesome work!

Don’t forget, Mango’s R&S courses appeal to faith-based schools, religious organizations, and community centers – providing your library with a great opportunity to conduct outreach and promote your resources to other groups in the area!