A history of languages in the USA

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Last week, a report was published using a series of maps to show the distribution of languages besides English and Spanish in the USA. We thought it was really interesting to see the huge number of languages spoken in one country; it’s easy to assume one country means one (or maybe two) languages. Here’s a … Read more

Found in translation – untranslatable words, in pictures

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If you liked our recent infographic on words that don’t exist in English, you’ll love this. New Zealand-based designer Anjana Iyer has been working on a project called Found in Translation, illustrating 41 ‘untranslatable’ words so far, with more to come. We asked Anjana about the background to her project, and where she gets her … Read more

10 reasons to visit… Russia

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Today, we’re going to Russia. At least in spirit. Here are my top ten reasons for visiting Russia – and, trust me, it’s been hard narrowing it down to ten! 1. Train Travel Travelling by train is arguably the best thing you can do in Russia, so try to leap on one as soon as … Read more

What’s so good about Eurovision?

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This Saturday is the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Denmark, with 125 million people expected to watch across Europe and beyond. The contest, now in its 59th year, has become known for its wacky performances and tends to divide opinion; while some people love it (although maybe not as much as this man), … Read more

The true meaning of character names from fiction

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The other day, I was watching one of my favourite films, The Lion King (yes, I know it’s a kids’ film but I love it) and I was reminded of a fun fact I read recently, that many of the characters’ names are taken from Swahili. Simba means ‘lion’, Rafiki means ‘friend’, ‘Nala’ means ‘gift’ and Pumbaa means ‘simpleton’. … Read more

10 reasons to visit… Amsterdam

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As part of our non-stop quest to bring you an insiders’ guide to the cultural and linguistic highlights of Europe and beyond, here are my top ten reasons why you should visit Amsterdam. 1. The beautiful canals Of course I knew that Amsterdam was famous for its canals, but I didn’t realise that they’re everywhere. … Read more