21 Language Facts
Some old, some new, some obvious, some quite cool! Did you know that… 01. There are between 6000 and 7000 languages in the world – spoken by six billion people divided into 189 independent states. 02. There are about 225 indigenous languages in Europe – roughly 3% of the world’s total. 03. Most of the [...]
Click here to continue readingSo, Which Foreign Language Is Most Difficult To Learn?
Many of those who study foreign languages wonder which language is the most difficult one in the world. Linguists say that there is no precise answer to this question because everything depends on which language you speak. Neurophysiologists believe, though, that the Chinese or the Arabic could be described as the world’s most difficult languages. [...]
Click here to continue readingGlobe to Globe: See 37 Shakespeare Plays in 37 Languages!
Since the 16th Century, the spiritual home to the plays of William Shakespeare has been London’s Globe Theatre (currently in its third incarnation). But after more than 400 years as a distinctly English institution, the theater is putting its name to good use and truly going global. As part of the massive Britain-wide run up to the [...]
Click here to continue readingJoin the Cult of the Hyperpolyglot
Many people want to speak a second language, but for some people two can never be enough. Welcome to the world of the hyperpolyglot. Ray Gillon speaks 18 languages. To be precise, he only speaks eight fluently. His grasp on the other 10 is merely conversational. Throw anything at him in Portuguese, Thai, Turkish, Russian, [...]
Click here to continue reading35 Cool Language Facts
1. French was the official language of England for over 300 years 2. Italian is the fifth most taught language, after English, French, Spanish and German. 3. German is the most widely spoken native language in Europe 4. English speakers will be able to recognise over 3,000 Spanish words 5. Portuguese has 178 million native [...]
Click here to continue readingCan You Work Out the English Song Title from these Translated Beatles Lyrics?
Somewhat Lost in Translation For most people the world of translation and translators themselves is a strange and mysterious one. Their work is one that people do not ask questions about, preferring instead to send off a document and receive a perfectly rendered translation back. But for those of us who have ever wondered what [...]
Click here to continue readingHow Does Language Influence Likes On Facebook?
How do you like this: Some languages might be more conducive to Facebook likes than others. Cultural factors are a much larger determinant, however. So says online translation portal Bab.la, which has tallied up the use of the famed Facebook like button in different languages. Now, let’s qualify the data: These statistics show how often speakers of different languages like Bab.la’s [...]
Click here to continue readingThe Holy Qu’ran’s French & German Translator
Muhammad Hamidullah, the world famed scholar who knew 24 languages and wrote 170 books in 22 languages, lived in France for about 50 years. His greatest contribution is the translation of the Holy Qur’an into three languages — English, French and German. He was an authority on Islamic and international law, which he taught at [...]
Click here to continue readingRosetta Stone Now Offers On-the-Go Coursework Capabilities on the iPad
New Mobile Platform Maximizes Organizations’ Language-Learning Investments Rosetta Stone, a leading provider of technology-based language-learning solutions, today announced that its latest innovation, Rosetta Stone TOTALe Companion HD, an app for the iPad device that supplements and enhances the company’s comprehensive language-learning experience, will be available to Rosetta Stone Enterprise TOTALe customers later this summer. Rosetta [...]
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