Stories about Language from March, 2008
Brazil: First blogger celebrates 10 years of Lusosphere
“Ten years ago, exactly on March 31, 1998, I was publishing my first blog, the modest Diário da Megalópole [Megalopolis Diary, pt], which was possibly the first blog ever in Portuguese”, remembers Nemo Nox, who still goes strong.
Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago: Liming
“While the term might have its origins in Trinidad, the pass time (and don't tell me it should be pastime) is truly Caribbean”: Living in Barbados is in the mood for a good lime.
Jamaica, Cuba: Poetry in Motion
Jamaican Geoffrey Philp blogs about MiPOesias Magazine's newly released issue, which he says “showcases the work of poets of Cuban descent who live in the U.S…no matter the subject, these poems blend the romance and sorrows of the past with a crisp view of daily life.”
Russia: Russian Reading Challenge 2008
Megan Case reviews novels by Andrei Makine and Olga Grushin for the Russian Reading Challenge 2008 at Ex Libris.
Burkina Faso: Home of black bags, baobabs and cute kids?
This roundup will begin with some old business. From Stephen Davis of Voice in the Desert: His book Sophie and the Albino Camel is up for the Norfolk Shorts shortlist of books under 150 pages. While he won’t know the outcome until April 16, he did expound on why he loves writing short fiction.
Malawi: Blogging about marriage, language, lifestyle and health
The Malawian blogging community is gradually growing in terms of size and topics. In this roundup, I introduce four blogs dedicated to marriage and children issues, Tumbuka language, health and lifestyle issues.
March Madness in Kuwait
Just as there is March Madness in the US, the phenomena seems to have spread to Kuwait - not for basketball but elections. Abdullatif Al Omar brings us the Kuwaiti bloggers reactions to the resignation of their government, the dissolving of Parliament and the looming elections in June.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: “Graffiti Street”
Bosnia Blog writes about a documentary on the “meeting of [Sarajevo] musicians after a separation caused by war.”
Latvia: Musings on Ethnic Homogeny
Among other things, Marginalia muses on the “basic bonds between peoples and their languages, lands, beliefs, cultures and even cuisines” and how it relates to Latvia.
Sri Lanka: Blogging in Sinhala
ramblinglankan on blogging in Sinhala in Sri Lanka and if it makes sense to do so.
Blogger of the Week: Renata Avila Pinto
A lawyer by profession, Renata Avila Pinto brings us the voices of bloggers from Guatemala on Global Voices Online. Amira Al Hussaini interviews Renata about her voyage with blogging, her likes and dislikes and hopes for the future, in today's Blogger of the Week series.
Kuwait: Copying the West in Everything
Kuwaiti blogger Frankom (Ar) urges his readers to stop copying the West in everything - from reality television shows, to movies and even when speaking to friends.
UAE: Egyptian English
From the UAE, BuJassem shares with us an Egyptian joke.
Jamaica, Haiti: Felix Morisseau-Leroy
“Although the controversy still rages in Jamaica about English vs patwa or ‘nation language'…from as early as 1958, Felix Morisseau-Leroy was writing plays and poems in Kreyol”: Jamaican Geoffrey Philp pays tribute to the Haitian writer.
Sri Lanka: Blog Marathon!
The Sinhala Bloggers Union [Sri Lanka] presents the Sinhala Blog Marathon – where participants have to blog every 15 minutes over 24 hours!
Africa: Role of African languages in development
What is the role of African languages in development?: “I've been e-mailing some non-governmental organizations involved in African development about the role of African languages in their work. This is an exploratory research on a small scale that hopefully will help further research in related areas.”
Russia: Mari El vs Microsoft
Window on Eurasia writes about one “small Finno-Ugric people”‘s demand that Microsoft add six “additional modified Cyrillic letters their language requires but that are not found in Russian to his company’s Windows operating system.”
Russia: Putin on Khodorkovsky's Pardon
Robert Amsterdam writes about various (mis)interpretations of Vladimir Putin's quote on a possible pardon for Mikhail Khodorkovsky – in the Russian press as well as in the Western media – and offers a translation of his own.
Cuba: “My Life” in Hindi?
Child of the Revolution reports that there are plans to translate Fidel Castro's biography into three ancient languages, “with Castro sharing his views and thoughts on issues as diverse as French cheese and solar panels. No, it's not a fun read.”
Palestine: Arabic Tattoo Craze
Kabobfest‘s Maytha takes a closer look at the tattoos of international celebrities and their growing fascination with having Arabic words painted on their bodies.
Thailand: Blogging In English
Isriya says blogging in English needs more effort but the benefit it offers is worth the effort.
