Dec 18, 2022 | Blog, Communication, Funny, Holidays
Numerous articles and studies have now been written and published about the benefits of multilingualism. You only have to Google these last three words to get thousands of results. If you have a little bilingual child and you’re stuck for what presents to buy this year, why not put multilingual toys under the Christmas tree? Here’s a brief rundown on why you should! Why is learning another language good for us? Back in the 1920s through to the 1960s, the tendency was to find that bilingual children were not as efficient thinkers as monolingual children. The good news today is that the latest research has shown that bilinguals have thinking advantages over monolinguals. Early research was flawed. It didn’t compare like-for-like subjects (different social and educational backgrounds) and tested bilinguals in their weaker language. Today’s research across the world shows that bilinguals are more fluent, flexible, and creative thinkers, and move more speedily through the stages of cognitive development. But over and above the personal linguistic and cognitive advantages, knowing two or more languages also enables communication beyond national borders. It helps to understand other cultures and to better integrate our globalized societies. When is it best to start learning another language? Therefore, if the above is indeed true, it makes sense that the earlier a child learns a second language, the better. Not simply because the earlier children are aware of differences, the better, but because young children learn languages just as naturally as they learn to walk, run, or jump. They’re not concerned about mistakes or mispronunciation; they keep trying and acquire the words they need to...
Apr 2, 2020 | Blog, Funny, Language Varieties, Traditions, Translation, Worldwide
How many people speak the Italian language all around the world? Italy has a total population of 60 million people and the official language is Italian. 61,860,418 people speak Italian as a native language. In addition, 16,957,243 people speak Italian worldwide as non-native speakers. What is the Italian language related to? Talking about the Italian language obviously takes you to stereotypes related to it. Let’s go over these together: “Italians are pizza and spaghetti eaters.” Yeah, that could be true. Italians eat pasta almost every day and pizza once a week, even if they are on a diet! “Italians talk with their hands.” It’s a scientific truth: everybody gesticulates to express themselves in a better way, but yes, let’s consider this stereotype true too. “Italians are loud.” No less than our Spanish, German and English neighbours! 😉 “Italians are always late.” It depends on the appointment. We’re hardly ever late for work. If it’s a meeting with friends, that’s another matter. “Italians drink espresso and cappuccino all day long.” INCORRECT. We meet for coffee to spend time with our loved ones. Cappuccino is only for breakfast, unlike other cultures. “Italians are disorganized.” Try telling that to my best friend. She is one of the most organized people I have ever known. And she managed to make me an organized person too! “Italians can’t speak English.” Of course, it’s not easy to get rid of our distinctive accent but that’s not true. At least, we try! 😊 Curious facts about the Italian language It derives from vernacular Latin (as opposed to ancient Latin). When Latin merged with the languages of...
Sep 17, 2015 | Blog, Funny, Tips, Worldwide
Well, well, well… Imagine that you are a native English speaker of Canadian English. You would love to learn a new language but you do not have the time. Well, your solution is here! After following this short, one-night program, you will be able to speak 4 new languages, just like that. Let’s have some fun! Phase 1: Warm up. The night begins by meeting some of your best friends at your favourite pub. For them this is just an occasional night out but for you, it’s so much more. You are on a mission to learn new languages! The waiter comes and asks you for your order. You order a Canadian brand IPA beer. This will get you loosened up and ready to learn. Phase 2: Irish. Now that you’re warmed up it’s time to step it up a notch. When the waiter comes back you order a good old pint of Guinness. After one you feel like having another and end up ordering two more. You will start to notice that you are no longer speaking English, you’re speaking pretty good Irish. One language down, three to go! Phase 3: German. Now that you have learned your first language, it’s time to move on to the second one. Learning this second language takes a little more time. When the waiter comes back again you order some fine German beers. This process will take longer so you need at least 4 or 5 German beers. The beers are now flowing and you feel great. You cannot speak at a normal volume anymore and start to shout aggressive, sounding...
May 4, 2015 | Blog, Funny, Testimonials, Translation, Worldwide
Cool Sports For the Olympics Every two years the Olympics come and an assortment of exciting and classic sports are spectated by millions. The most common of which include the well-known sports like Hockey, Soccer, Basketball, Swimming, Track and Field, etc. There are several sports around the globe that go unrecognised at the Olympic Games though, and there are five in particular I think would be awesome to implement in future games to amp the excitement up! Foosball (or Table Soccer, whatever you people call it) When I was a kid foosball was one of the most fun games I had ever played. It got extremely competitive between me and my friends and relatives, and I think it could have a place at the Olympic level. Just picture it like Tennis. There could be men and women’s singles matches, as well as doubles. I think it could do very well and be extremely popular. Dodgeball One of the best games ever invented? I think so! I have unleashed my wrath against my classmates so many times in dodgeball and I think you would be hard pressed to find someone who DOESN’T enjoy it. Throwing a ball as hard as you can at other people in order to win, how can you beat that!? Paintball A simulation to prepare soldiers for battle, this game is extremely tactical, strategic, and requires a huge amount of precision, skill and athleticism. Combining several exciting elements into one crazy sport, Paintball would be a great addition to the Olympic Games and would provide a very fast paced and exciting sport for spectators to watch. Sepak...
Apr 27, 2015 | Blog, Funny, Testimonials, Tips, Translation, Worldwide
Italian Food As An Important Trait of the Culture Food is one of the most distinctive traits of a culture. Each cuisine has its own local specific ingredients and flavors to mark its identity. However, in the interpretation of foreign dishes to fit in with the local cuisine, mistranslation happens. Today I would like to give you a quick insight into Italian food lost in translation. Ice-Cream Gelato is the Italian word for ice-cream. Therefore, being Italian myself, I was very confused when coming to Canada as I found out that the two are actually different. Apparently gelato indicates what I knew as such (soft, smooth and creamy) whereas ice-cream has a heavier and richer texture to it like Tim Horton’s ice cream. Prosciutto The same goes for ham and prosciutto (the Italian word for ham). Ham refers to the cooked ham known in Italy as prosciutto cotto. Prosciutto, on the other hand, refers to the dry-cured uncooked ham, called prosciutto crudo. Doing some research you will be able to find some more detailed and scientific descriptions of the differences. However, I learned at the expenses of my taste buds that the English-named product is, more often than not, the fatter and less refined version of its Italian food-named twin. Peperoni Is No Meat In Italy Totally misleading food-related words are also pepperoni (spelled peperoni). In Italy it has nothing to do with meat. It actually means bell peppers. In the same vein is latte, which translates into Italian simply as “milk” and doesn’t have any coffee in it. So if you go to Italy, ask for a caffè macchiato and...
