· January, 2012

Stories about Language from January, 2012

Bhutan: Promoting National Language

  28 January 2012

Penstar protests against the tendency of some Bhutanese newspapers to undermine Dzongkha language and suggests that the national language needs to be promoted everywhere.

Greece: Cretan Masterpiece “Erotokritos” Translated into Turkish

  19 January 2012

Stella Tsolakidou of the Greek Reporter website writes about the recent publication of the Cretan literature masterpiece “Erotokritos” in Turkish. Erotokritos is a 17th century epic romance, and has been translated by Professor Hakki Bilgehan, a Turkish microbiology professor, and published by the Foundation of Lausanne Treaty Emigrants [Turkish].

Malaysia: Ministry Blames Google Translate for Website Errors

  17 January 2012

Don’t wear “clothes that poke eye” and remember the “Mongoose fight” uniform for official functions. These are some of the funny English translation errors in the website of Malaysia’s Ministry of Defense. The errors have been removed already but not before netizens were able to discuss them thoroughly in various social networks

South Africa: Braille Burgers and Social Media

  13 January 2012

A fast food chain in South Africa  delivered 15 burgers to organizations for the Blind: through social media, the story of those 15 burgers reached more than 800,000  people, letting them know about the restaurant's new Braille menu.  What made that strong impression? The burgers’ buns had messages in Braille...

Global Voices Aymara: Experiences in Translation in 2011

  12 January 2012

Some members of the Global Voices in Aymara translation team write about their experiences in 2011, which for them reached a milestone for growth in terms of the number of translators and articles translated. It was also the year where it became an official Lingua site and first indigenous site on Global Voices.

Global Voices in French: Translators’ Choice 2011

  11 January 2012

In 2011, volunteer translators at Global Voices in French translated hundreds of articles and updates on world events and we'd like to say "'Merci!". We've asked them which translation struck them most, during this epic year. Here is the French translators' selection!

Philippines: Davao Tagalog

  10 January 2012

RM Bulesco blogs about what he calls “Davao Tagalog,” a mongrel language combing Cebuano, Tagalog, and other Filipino languages that is spoken in the southern Philippine city of Davao.

Jamaica: “Official” Languages

  6 January 2012

Under the Saltire Flag is proud of the job his uncle has done as Chairman of Jamaica’s electoral committee, following the country's recent general elections, noting that he “made one unfortunate comment leading up to the elections. He said that all electoral officers should speak ONLY in English”. The blogger...