Struggles of Japanese people learning English There are many aspects that make it difficult for Japanese people learning English. At first, we think about the differences between the English and the Japanese alphabet. However, I would like to introduce three others that many struggle with. Vowels following Consonants Firstly, in Japanese, a consonant is always followed by a vowel, like in the word ‘arigatou’ which means ‘thank you’. When Japanese people speak English, they tend to unconsciously add vowels after consonants, especially in words that end with consonants. In the case of ‘cat’, for example, many Japanese speakers will pronounce it like “kato”, with an additional ‘o’ at the end. That’s why English spoken by Japanese people can sometimes sound strange. English has many sounds that are not existent in Japanese and it is also one of the main reasons why our pronunciations can be peculiar. Number Another difficulty is that in Japanese, singular and plural forms are not important, so, Japanese people will often forget to use the correct form when speaking English. It may sound like it’s not a big problem, but when it comes to translating from Japanese into English it can pose some challenges. Since the number is not a grammatical construct in Japanese, it isn’t always clear which form should be used. Articles Finally, most Japanese people struggle with the use of articles because they do not exist in Japanese. Even those who have lived in English-speaking countries for a long time find it difficult to use articles properly. It is one of the most challenging aspects of English for Japanese people to master....
What is Coltan? Nowadays we tend to spend most of our time looking at our phone or working on our computer. You might not realize it, but if you have a phone or laptop, you have one of the most valuable minerals in the world in your possession: Coltan. Simply put, Coltan is a mineral. But it is not just any mineral. This compound consists of a mixture of Tantalum and Columbite, some of the most much-appreciated minerals of our time. It’s very resistant to acids, transmits electricity rapidly (80 times faster than copper), and supports large loads, so it is used in almost all modern electronic circuit components. Where do we find it? Coltan can be found in many places around the world but 80% of it is located in Congo. To mine it, they dig caves in extremely bad conditions. They get it at a very low cost and sell it at a very high price. The Problem brought by Coltan Congo is the perfect place to exploit labor. They force people to work in bad conditions and earn poor wages. Afterward, the mineral is introduced in devices worth a small fortune. Raising Demand The world keeps developing so it needs more technology but the quantity of Coltan is decreasing. So the demand goes up along with the market value. The smartphone: Friend or foe? Most of us have at least a phone in our possession so we are all responsible for this situation. How are we destroying ourselves? All the time we need more technology more often: better communication, find a location, etc. But it is also...
Canada Is Second in the Best Countries Ranking! This is official, Canada got the second place this week from the U.S. News Best Countries ranking in their ranking for the best countries in the world. And we are sufficiently proud of it. But let’s be sincere: Who does actually know what it takes to succeed in this ranking? How do they carry it out and which factors count in? Because “Best country” sounds quite general. So let us give you a brief insight into the ranking, the methodology, and the data. What Is the Best Countries Ranking? The Best Countries ranking is the result of a yearly study which is carried out by the US News & World Report. It is a project created to capture how countries are perceived on a global scale. The final ranking is made according to a set of 65 countries’ attributes which are grouped in 9 categories. These 9 sub rankings listed below eventually calculate the country’s overall ranking score. Adventure (3.24 percent) friendly, fun, pleasant climate, scenic, sexy Citizenship (16.95 percent) cares about human rights, cares about the environment, gender equality, progressive, religious freedom, respects property rights, trustworthy, well-distributed political power Cultural Influence (12.93 percent) culturally significant in terms of entertainment, fashionable, happy, has an influential culture, modern, prestigious, trendy Entrepreneurship (17.42 percent) connected to the rest of the world, educated population, entrepreneurial, innovative, provides easy access to capital, skilled labor force, technological expertise, transparent business practices, well-developed infrastructure, well-developed legal framework Heritage (3.17 percent) culturally accessible, has a rich history, has great food, many cultural attractions Open for Business (11.99 percent) bureaucratic,...
The Spanish Language With 410 million native speakers the Spanish language is the second most-spoken language in the World. It is the official language in 21 countries above all and it counts many different accents. As one of six official languages of the United Nations, it is the official language of the European Union, the Organization of American States, and the Union of South American Nations, among other international organizations. The language of the Castile region of Spain became the official Spanish language thanks to King Alfonso’s efforts in the 13th century. The Royal Spanish Academy (Real Academia Española), created in the 18th century, is widely considered the arbiter of standard Spanish. It produces authoritative dictionaries and grammar guides. Although its decisions do not have the force of law, they are widely followed in both Spain and Latin America. Although Spanish comes from the Iberian Peninsula as a descendant of Latin, today it has far more speakers in Latin America. This is mostly due to the Spanish colonization of the New World Arabic was the next big influence on Spanish after Latin and today, the language exerting the most influence is English. Spanish has adopted hundreds of English words, especially those related to technology and culture. Need a translation in Spanish? No problem! Do you need a translation in European Spanish or Latin American Spanish? We can help you! Here at Lingostar, we have professional translators who are native speakers of both Spanish languages. We also have a range of other services to offer such as revising, updating and localizing your content into more than 100 languages. And if you...
What makes Quebec and French Canadian special Quebec is a ‘special’ Canadian province in many ways, but it is especially known for being the only province where English is not an official language! It is well known that the people of Quebec fought for the French Canadian language despite the huge English influence. Finally, in 1977, the French Language Charter set French as the only language for advertisement and education in Quebec. Despite this, it is important to refer to the French dialect in Quebec explicitly as Canadian French in order to differentiate it from the Metropolitan French dialect from France. French people often claim that they have trouble understanding Canadian French. Let’s explore some of these potential differences. Pronunciation differences The most notable differences between Metropolitan and Canadian French are probably to do with pronunciation. Whereas French, in general, contains a very rich vocalic inventory compared to other languages, Canadian French has even more vowel sounds (around 15) than that of France. Quebeckers also tend to reduce their use of consonants significantly and to use abbreviations extensively. The use of articles (le, la) is similar to Portuguese. Instead of saying “le” or “la” (the), they will often say “el” (or l’) and “a”. In some cases, “le” becomes “l apostrophe” in front of a consonant. Vocabulary in French Canadian changes from French European French Canadian vocabulary is distinctive from the vocabulary of Metropolitan France. This is not surprising considering that since its arrival in Canada, the French language was exposed to many different influences. It couldn’t possibly have developed in the same manner as in Europe. Some even...
Bilingual signs are a necessity in Canada As a bilingual country, Canada provides a great number of services in both French and English. Labels, product descriptions, and road signs are therefore often bilingual. Sometimes, however, they get lost in translation. The stop sign, most often found in Quebec and New Brunswick, is common in jurisdictions with significant francophone and anglophone populations. Translating the single word “Stop” seems somewhat unnecessary as STOP and ARRET could both be considered valid French words. But what about following sign found in Fredericton, New Brunswick: The yellow warning sign reads: “Caution: Raised manholes/Attention: Trous d’homme sur éléves”. If we put this in the online translation service Google Translate, we get “Warning: Manholes on pupils”, which makes no sense at all. It’s almost worse if we literally translate it to “men’s holes over-elevated”! No doubt a professional translator’s help is the safest way to make sure the sign reads naturally in both Canadian English and French. These bilingual signs need a precise translation In regards to food labels, the legislation in Canada is even more strict. Companies have to show mandatory information in both languages. This is restrictively defined by the Canadian Consumer Packaging and Labeling Act. And let’s be honest, without some of these bilingual signs we would certainly be lost!! 😀 Some product designers use the bilingual labeling law with a sense of humor. Although these bilingual signs might sometimes seem ridiculous or redundant, only a small fraction of the population speak both languages fluently. Professional translation services are therefore indispensable, especially in regards to more extensive documents and signs that affect public health and safety....
Looking at Christmas Traditions From All Over the World Our final 2015 newsletter will focus on Christmas: one of the most important holidays celebrated throughout the world. Although every culture has its own traditions, there are many surprising similarities in Christmas traditions from all over the world. First, you will always find candles and lights, even in countries that celebrate Christmas during summer. There is also the decorated tree and the old white-bearded man that plays one of the leading roles. His name diverges from Santa Claus to Baba Chaghaloo, to Sheng dan lao ren to Papa Noel. Wherever you might be, Christmas is a time to highlight the value of being with family and friends. This newsletter, however, aims to feature some countries that do something completely different. We will present you with some Christmas traditions from all over the world you might have never heard of before. We also invite you to learn about traditions in the countries of Armenia, Costa Rica, Ethiopia and Finland. Armenia – Շնորհավոր Սուրբ Ծնունդ (Merry Christmas) The Armenian people celebrate their Christmas on January the 6th, a date otherwise known as Epiphany or Three Kings’ day in some countries. In Armenia, however, they celebrate the birth of Christ and his baptism on this day, the 6th of January. While many countries enjoy a lot of culinary delicacies during the time before Christmas, Armenians do the contrary. Traditionally, they fast during the week leading up to Christmas, avoiding eggs, dairy products, and meat. The name of the traditional Christmas Eve dinner to which families gather together is khetum and consists of rice, fish and...
Denmark and the Danish Language Denmark, where the Danish language is spoken, is a country with four hundred islands surrounded by two seas. It’s a beautiful country with the charming capital of Copenhagen, as well as Greenland, the biggest island in the world, which also belongs to the great Kingdom of Denmark. Lego, The Little Mermaid and beautiful castles are all part of the Danish identity. The country is full of intelligent, agreeable and welcoming people. But the Danish language in Denmark has experienced some challenges as of lately. It has strongly been influenced by English. Therefore, changes are happening in the Danish language and there are several reasons for this. Firstly, the Danish phonology, which is how sounds are organized and used in languages, has been mutating strongly since 1950. Danish people like to shorten their words and try to use the least energy possible to pronounce them when speaking. Danes are said to talk like they have something in their mouth. Secondly, all Danish people learn the language growing up but increasingly like to speak the English language because it’s easier to learn and pronounce. Thirdly, you see a greater influence of the English language in traffic signs, media and advertisements all over Denmark. All this impacts the way the Danish language is being presented in its written and spoken form and how it is perceived by the younger generation. Check out an interesting video below explaining some of the challenges of Danish. Here at LingoStar, we translate all cultural materials and business documentations from English into Danish, and other Scandinavian languages, such as English to Swedish,...
A serious language-related issue The government is planning to resettle 25,000 refugees in Canada by February 2016 with 10,000 of them coming over the next few weeks, just like Europe did years ago. This raises some concerns: how to create enough accommodation, how the economy will be affected, and how well they will integrate into society. But there is another issue that is extremely important: The language barrier! It can be a serious problem for immigrants, especially for professionals, who cannot just continue their careers because of missing language skills. This is how stories about doctors driving cabs and engineers washing dishes become truth. Language teachers and translators are already at the start gate. Which will be the most required languages connected to the influx of refugees? Here’s a short overview: Arabic refugees in Europe, عربي ,عربى Over 290 million people worldwide speak this language, in countries like Tunisia, Egypt, and Syria – the country of provenance of most of these refugees. You might have heard that Arabic speakers write from right to left or that they use a different alphabet but did you know that the English language consists of many words with Arabic origins like cotton or magazine? Kurdish refugees in Europe, کوردی, Kurdî Kurdish is not just one language but a continuum of different languages which has a number of dialects spoken by Kurds in Western Asia. Its standard form, Sorani, is one of the official languages of Iraq – another departure point of many refugees. The Kurdish language is still a bit of a mystery to most historians but it is apparently born during the Medieval...
