· July, 2012

Stories about Language from July, 2012

Wales: Imagining the Welsh Language Web

  31 July 2012

For the 600,000 speakers of Welsh the Internet represents a galaxy of new opportunities to use and see their language. But what exactly is 'y we Gymraeg' - the 'Welsh language web' - and how can it benefit the language's speakers?

Africa: Speaking My Language

  28 July 2012

Read Ngugi wa Thiong’o's address at the 2012 Sunday Times Literary Awards in South Africa: “One of the basic, most fundamental means of individual and communal self realization is language. That’s why the right to language is a human right, like all the other rights, enshrined in the constitution. It’s...

Global: A Marathon to Translate the Declaration of Internet Freedom

  26 July 2012

The Olympic Games are taking off in London, but Global Voices Lingua translators are also excited with another marathon: the Internet Freedom Translathon, a challenge to get the Declaration of Internet Freedom translated in as many languages and dialects as possible in 24 hours. Global Voices Lingua project is curating translations: you don't have to be an Olympic athlete or professional translator to join us!

Language War in the Hong Kong Book Fair

  25 July 2012

A Cantonese-Mandarin language war broke out in a talk given by movie director Pang Ho-cheung for the 2012 Hong Kong Book Fair. To serve the big mainland Chinese market, the organizer arranged the talk to be in Mandarin. This provoked the anger of Hongkongers given they are the majority of...

Wales: The State of Welsh Language Blogging

  21 July 2012

In the 1990s, William Owen Roberts, a Welsh author and playwright, remarked that writing in Welsh is akin to "writing on the edge of catastrophe". If that is the case, a Welsh language blogger might be half way off the edge already.

Myanmar's Unique Naming System

  20 July 2012

Most Myanmar citizens do not have a family name. Ever wonder how they fill out forms which ask for both first name and last name or wonder what is the meaning of 'Daw' in Daw Aung San Suu Kyi? Here's a look into Myanmar's unique naming practices.

Arab World: Detect Dialect Search Tool for Twitter

On Twitter, @Detect_Dialect is pushing for Detect Dialect – a dialect-specific search tool for Arabic content on Twitter. In addition to Classic Arabic, Arabs speak their local dialects, which sometimes differ even between neighbouring villages. This new tool claims to detect the dialects of Gulf, Iraqi, Levant, Egyptian and Maghreb...

Puerto Rico: Bilingual Schools Revive Debate on Language

  9 July 2012

The government of Puerto Rico wants to gradually replace Spanish with English as the official language of education in the country's public schools. The measure has provoked strong reactions from supporters as well as critics, reviving the old debate on language and culture in Puerto Rico.