Richmond’s Chinese and English population Richmond, located south of Vancouver, has grown into a modern and multicultural city. Its population of 213,000 people makes it the fourth largest city in B.C; and with an immigrant population of 60 percent, it has the highest in Canada. Over the years, Richmond has become a dynamic and multi-ethnic community, and 50 percent of its residents are Chinese. After World War II, large numbers of Asian immigrants from China and Hong Kong settled there and today many Chinese and English speakers call Richmond home. Advertisement signs in both languages In Richmond, there is advertising in both Chinese and English. Recently a huge debate has arisen regarding Chinese only advertisement signs, and whether or not they should be banned. This debate was sparked by Budweiser’s January 2016 advertisement of their beer in Chinese, with only a few words appearing in English. The Richmond city council voted against banning signs that are only in Chinese, but advised that at least 50 percent of advertisement signs should be in English. The Translink bus advertisement in Chinese which was not well received either. This debate has led to misunderstandings, since some residents think that Chinese people do not respect the English language community. However, this doesn’t hold water in the above case, since Budweiser is an American company, not a Chinese one. Furthermore, the problem is not as extensive as it seems since, in fact, less than five percent of advertising signs in Richmond are in Chinese only. Most of these businesses do not even realize that they are deterring business from English speakers. Advertisement in Chinese...
Germans and beer The Germans. Organization and structure? Yes, please! We Germans love rules and have them for everything. And I really mean EVERYTHING. What else do we love? That’s right! German Beer! And how are rules and beer related? Well, let me show you. Why do people always use beer and Lederhosen to describe Germans? Because we know how to brew good German beer (and needed some hardwearing pants…). There are over 1300 breweries in Germany, and so what do the orderly Germans do to guarantee high-quality beer? We lay down rules! And since beer is such an important part of German culture, we pay a lot of attention to the brewing method. By the way, the translation of “Prost” is “Cheers!” And if you are looking for some German beer in Vancouver, there are a lot of pubs where you can try some. The German Beer Purity Law The Reinheitsgebot (translation: “German Beer Purity Law”) is a series of regulations limiting the ingredients of beer made in Germany. This goes back to 1516, Bavaria, Germany, when beer could only be made from water, barley and hops. The law passed in order to prevent price competition with bakers for wheat and rye, in an attempt to ensure the availability of affordable bread. The rules were so strict that breweries were punished for producing impure beer! And the Bavarian government wasn’t kidding… “Furthermore, we wish to emphasize that in future in all cities, markets and in the country, the only ingredients used for the brewing of beer must be barley, hops and water. Whosoever knowingly disregards or transgresses upon this ordinance,...
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....
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,...
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...
