Even though there are differences between cultures or backgrounds, some proverbs have similarities because different cultures may have similar ways of thinking. Especially when there is a relationship of ethnicity, more similarities are found in proverbs. For example, the English proverb “Anyone can make a mistake” changes depending on the culture expressing it. See below for an example of this: English: Anyone can make a mistake French: l’erreur est humaine (The mistake is human) Latin: errare humaum est (The mistake is human) Chinese: 智者千虑, 必有一失 (Even the wise are not always free from error) Japanese: 猿も木から落ちる(Even monkeys fall from trees) Differences: Sometimes proverbs have completely opposite meanings depending on countries or the area. For example, there is an English proverb ‘The Squeaky wheel gets the oil’. The idea of this proverb is that people who keep drawing attention to themselves are more likely to get attention. But on the other hand, there is a Japanese proverb ‘The nail that sticks out gets hammered down’ because in Japanese society, people who stand out are often hated, or disturbed. Because humility or modesty is a virtue in Japan, their very similar proverb has a completely different meaning in comparison to the English version. As there are countless languages in the world, proverbs are everywhere in the world. Most of them are straightforward and often show characteristics of nationality, so they can be utilized as a source of good educational material to learn about different cultures. Here at LingoStar, even though there are vast differences between cultures, we can offer a high quality of services in various language services. Call us today...
Finding a professional translation company that you can trust entirely is not an easy thing. Trust is everything, don’t dive in and choose a translation company that you are not 100% sure about. It is your document, and ultimately your reputation on the line. Quality is everything and at Lingo-Star we can guarantee you that you will receive high quality Punjabi translation services. There are about 600,000 Punjabi speakers in Canada, which is about 2% of the Canadian population. Punjabi is mostly written in the Gurmukhi script from left to right. Our Punjabi translators work in sectors including business, medical, oil and gas, legal, financial, technical, engineering and many more. Lingo-Star Promise: – Our Punjabi translations are quick, efficient and reliable – We only use professional and experienced Punjabi translators with at least 5 years’ of experience – We will offer competitive translation rates – All of our Punjabi translators are native Punjabi speakers and provide high quality translation work Lingo-Star offers document translation, website translation, email translation, certified translation, business translation, manual and catalog translation, online translation, patent translation and software translation in...
It is no doubt that English is one of the most used languages in the world. It is spoken as an official language in more than 50 countries, and widely learned as a second language because of its usefulness. But the education of English differs depending on the country because of an assortment of reasons. Here are some examples: China The Chinese government initiated English education in elementary schools in 2001 aimed at getting their students to gain practical use of English. Even though there is a slight gap in the education between urban areas and rural areas, some schools hire native speakers to enhance their students’ ability to speak English. Germany Each province in Germany has most of the authority regarding English education, so each province has different styles in the way they offer English education. Approximately half of the provinces offer only English education. On the other hand, some provinces offer Italian, Russian, or French education. Education places an emphasis on listening and speaking more than writing and reading skills to enhance cross-cultural communication. Netherlands English education in elementary schools in the Netherlands started from early 1970. English class is offered 4 times a week, and it is a popular subject for students. Students don’t learn English grammar in a school. They just listen to English, and an emphasis is placed on speaking. Lots of teachers in the Netherlands are fluent speakers of English, so they mostly don’t hire native speakers of English. France Education of foreign languages started in the 1960s in France. Now education of English starts from elementary school (from 6 years old). After...
Do you want to be a translator? If you are interested in language, you might have thought about it. Being a translator is an ideal job for those who have a love for language. But of course, a high level of expertise is needed to do this job, so intensive training is needed to work as a professional translator. There are a lot of fields stemming from a job as a translator, and the requirements of translation are different depending on what kind of translation is needed. Here are some examples of different translation fields: Business Translation Contract, financial statement, manual, catalogue, pamphlet, advertisement, business letter etc. Accuracy is the most important requirement in this field. As well as fundamental knowledge of the business field. Translators should also know details pertaining to specific differing fields such as finance, marketing and their corresponding terminologies necessary to improve a quality of translation. Mistranslation in this field may cause serious issues and negative ramifications for a company. That is why accuracy is essential in this field. Literary translation Plays, novels, short stories, poems etc. As well as simple translation, translators of literary translation should include feelings, nuances, humor etc. in a text. Also, wide ranges of knowledge are required in regards to slang, jokes, fad words, history, custom, culture etc. That is why it is considered as one of the most difficult forms of translation. Compared to another field of translation such as business translation, only a small number of people can work as a literary translator because of its difficulty. Visual media Translation Subtitle, dubbing, voiceover etc. This type of translation...
Do you like your pet? If you have experience with pets, you most likely know how difficult it can be to communicate with animals. They can understand easy orders, but intensive training may be needed if you would like to make them understand complicated orders. And we can assume they experience feelings such as happiness, sadness, anger, or hunger based on their attitudes or actions, but usually they don’t have a method of communication with humans. Do you think it would be fun if they could communicate with humans more? Do you know the smart Gorilla named Koko? She can communicate with humans by using sign language. Her IQ is assumed to be between 80 and 90. (Average IQ of human is around 100). She has learned more than 2000 signs, and she expresses her emotion by using those. Furthermore, she can tell a lie, a joke and express her desire to humans. Of course, Koko’s case is an exception. Most of animals are not smart enough to communicate with humans, but this situation may change in the near future via the introduction of new technology. A professor in the U.S. is trying to make a translation device to translate a dog’s voice into English. He said that he would also like to apply his technique to translate the voices of other animals into English. If the translation device is functional and goes on sale to the public, the relationship between humans and pets would change significantly. There are countless languages people speak around the world, but all languages can be translated into other languages by hardworking translators. Therefore,...
How many emails have you gotten today? Are there 100, 200, or more emails in your inbox? Both in private homes and businesses, email has become essential in our daily life, and we always check our inboxes in our cell phones, computers, or social media websites. It is a fact that around 150 billion emails are sent worldwide per day (65% of them are actually spam). Numbers of them have been increasing year by year because computers, the internet, and cell phones have become common in our daily lives. As media changes, methods of communication also change significantly. The first email was sent in 1971 by U.S. programmer Raymond Tomlinson. This means that email has 43 years of history. Then after several decades, email has become an important communication tool among people around the world due to convenience, quickness, and cost effectiveness. But as you see, newspapers, books, and magazines still exist in today’s world, and written media is also still an important tool. Many people still send handwritten letters especially on special occasions. What is the difference between an email and a letter? The perception of them could be an answer. People write Christmas cards, New Year cards etc. instead of emails because it is more sentimental and special to compose a warm-hearted thoughtful letter than send a computer generated message. Even though it costs more and takes much more time, the letter is not considered an outdated form of communication. If all emails were physically mailed, our office would be packed and could not handle the quantity. And if written letters were prohibited, it would be hard...
We hope everyone who is reading this article is enjoying a nice spring season. We are going to talk about spring in March’s newsletter. The temperature goes up, snow and ice starts melting down, and buds of plants start to grow. Animals become active, insects come out of the ground, and flowers bloom. Everything starts moving and growing in this season and the atmosphere changes significantly. Even though weather in Vancouver is still chilly, warm and comfortable weather will be coming soon. With a nice atmosphere and lots of events, people have fun during this season. But the impression of this season may differ depending on the country because of many reasons. Not all countries have four seasons. It can be divided by wet season and dry season, or some countries have a different concept of seasons altogether. Or some cultural differences may influence the impression of the seasons. How’s this season treating you? We are going to introduce the differences between countries. * Canada Spring comes slowly in most of the places in Canada. We can occasionally enjoy favorable weather in March in Canada, but especially in the West Coast area such as Vancouver or Victoria, people can enjoy nice spring weather compared to other areas in Canada. The Tulip festival in Ottawa takes place in May, hence spring comes later there. In other countries the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade and Easter holiday occur in this season. In late May, there is Victoria Day to celebrate the honor of Queen Victoria’s birthday. Then people in Canada welcome Summer time. * Europe As you see a prefix ”pri-” in...
As women’s participation in society is increasing, their role in the business world is also becoming more important. But it is true that only women can give birth, so it is controversial that women have to be at home, or should be treated as same as men. But it depends on countries or cultures whether equality of men and women is regarded as important or not. It is a crucial issue for women who would like to pursue their careers the same as men, and this issue may force them to give up their goals or dreams. Here are some examples: Asia In Japan, data shows that only 11.1% of women were working as an administrative post in 2013. Also there are no female prime ministers in Japanese history. Korea is in a similar situation. In most of Asian countries, it can be said that women are not treated equally to men. It is mostly because of Asian conservative cultures, and it is not easy to get rid of them. Europe Among countries in Europe such as Sweden, Finland, and the Netherlands, at least 40% of members of the National Parliament are women. And it is common that women have infant-care leave as well as long-term maternity leave. Also there is wage gap between men and women, but it is not as obvious as it is in Asian countries. Such a situation shows that most European countries are successful in filling up the gender gap. Canada According to ‘The Global Gender Gap’ which measures gender gaps from the economy, politics, education, and health, Canada is ranked 20th out of...
As the world becomes more international, the amount of immigration is also increasing. In Canada, an officially multicultural country, more than 200 thousands of people immigrate to Canada every year. Since the immigration act was adopted in 1869, Canada accepted immigrants from all over the world, and now there are more than 200 races of people living in Canada. Canada attracts people who would like to assimilate with its equality, solid health care system, high level of educational standards and beautiful nature. But there are positive points and negative aspects to accepting large number of immigrants to be Canadian. Here are some opinions: Pros: – Enhancement of cultural exchange – Increase of population – Growth in economy – Increase of international competition Cons: – Financial burden – Racial problems – Risk of cultural devastation – Illegal immigration Even though there are positive points and negative points, Canadian multinationalism has enormous appeal for people around the world, and the amount of immigration is still increasing. Often described as a cultural mosaic, various cultures, languages, and races all co-exist in Canadian society, and it have built Canada its own identity. Here at LingoStar, we cover various languages all over the world. Call us today or send us an e-mail for a free...
There is a Japanese proverb “The eyes say more than the mouth”. It means eyes show one’s real feelings, and it is more trustworthy than spoken words. According to a professor of Psychology at UCLA, when there is an inconsistency between verbal information and non-verbal information, people tend to believe non-verbal information rather than verbal information. For example, if someone says “It was really nice to meet you today” with a frown face, most people will feel that he/she is not happy. Verbal communication is simple. It is divided by just spoken words and written words, but non-verbal communication is more complicated. Here are some examples: Body Language and Posture: Gesture, Attitude, Behavior, Body movement etc. Facial Expression: Smile, Frown, Eye Gaze (Hold, or avoid eye contact), etc. Voice tone: Tone of voice, pitch, etc. Appearance: Height, weight, clothing, hairstyle etc. In this way, non-verbal communication is important in face-to-face communication. It is beneficial to be aware of non-verbal communication when you would like to leave someone with a positive impression. Verbal communication is also essential in our daily life and businesses. Here at LingoStar, we provide various types of services related to languages. Call us today or send us an email for a free...
