The Value of Keeping Silent (At Times)

 

Freedom of speech is a basic human right. People around the world are exercising this right. The availability of modern communication tools allows people to express their ideas and thoughts freely to more people than ever. Today’s generation specifically seems to have already forgotten that at times, being silent is important too. When too many people are expressing their opinion at the same time, it is hard to listen and sometimes, the best way to be heard is by keeping silent.

Silence is golden

This is a very old proverb, and yet its value is still immeasurable. Yes, it is fine to speak our minds out. However, we do not have to do it all the time, especially when we are hurt or angry. You know why? Because we have to remember that words are very powerful. Words are used to educate, bless, help and express one’s expertise. They can also harm, curse, reveal a person’s foolishness or cause damage.

It is all right to speak about things and ideas that arouse our passions. However, it cannot be stressed enough that at times, especially when we are hurt or angry that we should stop and hold our tongue, to avoid causing more hurt, damage or irreparable consequences. When we are in such a situation, we should refrain from using our mobile phones or visiting a social networking site and curb our tongues until our heads are clear.

Understanding the silent but dynamic language of hands

sign language interpreter

Most of us have been exposed to people who cannot speak and who are hard of hearing conducting conversions with the use of sign language. Sign language though, is learned and needs enrolment in a special school. And it is not just them that need to learn it but also people close to them so that they could conduct conversations normally, even if silently.

They belong to an exclusive clique, since not everyone knows sign language. Persons with speaking and hearing disabilities are still somewhat marginalized. On the other hand, they are fortunate since they are able to communicate and understand one another through sign language.

While people with hearing and speaking disabilities have their own language, there is another type of language that is more universal. It is not a unique language that is spoken by a specific country. It is not oral, nor is it written. It is more visual, but could be more forceful and impactful when you know how to read it. It is called body language, or rather; it is part of general body language. We are talking about something more pinpointed – the language of the hands.

Hand gestures could translate into so many meanings, whether positive, negative or in-betweens. It is believed that the hands are the second richest source of body expressions next to the face. As the hands also interact with other parts of the body such as the face, particularly the eyes, ears and nose, you would then realize just how extensive the symbols and meanings hand body language communicates.

Even the infinitesimal hand movement might show a subconscious thought, although at times some are done exaggeratedly or used when a point needs to be emphasized. While deemed universal, caution should still be exercised as some hand gestures that others think are innocent might have a different translation and interpretation in another culture.

Barack – Its Meaning in Different Languages

by Bernadine B. Racoma

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Official photographic portrait of US President Barack Obama

Barack – it is the given name of the 44^th and incumbent president of the United States. It seems like an uncommon name for someone from the United States. It is not an English name, but a name that has origins in Swahili, Hebrew and Arabic. Barack Hussein Obama, the full name of the U.S. President, came from his father, Barack Senior. Mr. Obama Senior was a government official, who held the position of senior economist in the Kenyan government. 

One word, different meanings in different languages

Barack or Baraka, spelled as Bārak in the Arabic language, is a variant of the name Mubarak or Mubārak, its spelling in Arabic. Mubarak and its variants are Arabic given names, which translate to “the blessed one” in English, and is suggestive of the Latin word, Benedict, meaning blessed.

Tracing its etymological origin, the word Barack came from three consonantal roots, the letters B, R and K, which means a body part, the knee. Taking it further, the three consonants become a verbal description of the act of prostrating oneself. And when you say that someone is prostrating oneself, it translates to the simpler and more common description, that of kneeling down “to receive blessing” from an elder or a person of higher authority, like a religious person or the head of a tribe or king or queen. Conversely, the feminine equivalent of the word Barack or Baraka is “barakah,” which means “blessing” when you translate it to English.

What Does Mitt Mean?

by Bernadine B. Racoma

Mitt Romney speaking at the 2012 CPAC

Looking at an English language dictionary, the word mitt is defined as a “glove with only two compartments.” One of the compartments is used for the thumb while the other is for the other four fingers. It is also the term that refers to the glove used by baseball players. Mitt is sometimes used as slang for “fist.” In a scientific point of view, a mitt is the prehensile extremity, like a paw, a manus or a hand of the eminent or greater limb. Prehensile translates to something that is specially adapted to grasping or wrapping around an object. Mitt is related to the Latin word moiety. Moiety on the other hand is a noun related to the literary or the law, and translates to “half” or the two parts of something. The word moiety is derived from the Latin word “medietas,” which in turn came from the word “medius” that means middle.

But while the preceding description refers to the technical aspect of the word Mitt, what we are after is the meaning behind the name Mitt.

Behind the name

According to books on baby names, Mitt is the diminutive or shortened form of the name Milton. The books also list the origin of the name as American. However, in other books, it is also said that the first name Milton, which is given mostly to boys, came from a surname that could be traced to names given to Old English places. It refers to the Old English place-name called Myletūn, which is a compound word from “mill,” which translates to mylen and “town” or “settlement” that translates to tūn. Myletūn in turn came from another Old English word, Middeltūn, which is combination of the words “middle” or middle and “tūn” that could be translated to enclosure or village that is situated in the middle of two settlements.

Biblia Sacra Vulgata, the Latin Translation of the Bible from Greek and Hebrew

Seven billion, thirty-six million, three hundred sixty-four thousand, four hundred eighty – a very long numerical word – which could be written as 7,036,364,480. This is not a magic number. It is the total number of humans living on earth, at least since September 1, 2012. While many statistical figures could be extrapolated from this number, let us concentrate on religion and the Bible.

Vulgate

Around the middle of 2010, the number of Christians in the world is 2,280,616,000 or 32.4% of the world’s total population. From this total Christian population, the highest number belongs to the Roman Catholic, which has 1,150,661,000 members. While most of the Roman Catholics are no longer practicing or are occasional churchgoers, it cannot be denied that they still remain true to their faith.

A Bible from 1859

The guiding book for Christians and from which the Church bases and obtains its doctrines is the Holy Bible. The dictionary defines the Bible as the collection of Christian scriptures, which consists of the Old and the New Testaments. It is also defined as the Jewish scriptures that consist of the Prophets, the Hagiographa and the Torah. Hagiographa, also called Writings, is the collection of twelve books of the Bible, the third of the three main parts of the Old Testament, based on the Jewish tradition. It consists of the Psalms, Job, the Song of Solomon, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Daniel, Ruth, Esther, Nehemiah, Chronicles, Lamentations and Ezra. The Torah is the Hebrew word for instructions or teaching. This consists of the first five books of the Bible based on Jewish tradition, and includes the Bereshit or Genesis, the Shemot or Exodus, Vayikra or Leviticus, Bamidbar or Numbers and Devarim or the Deuteronomy.

English is Spoken in Sweden, So Why Learn Swedish? (Nordic words used in English and all things Swedish)

Coat of Arms of Sweden

The Kingdom of Sweden is on the Scandinavian Peninsula, in the northern portion of Europe. It is bordered by the countries of Norway and Finland and is at the same time connected to Denmark via a long bridge. Swedish is the official main language spoken in this Nordic country. On July 1, 2009 the Swedish government created a language law to protect and promote its official language as well as the country’s minority languages, namely Finnish, Romani, Yiddish, Meänkieli or Torne Valley Finnish, and all the Sami dialects. Sweden ranks eighth with the highest per capita income in the world, with a total GDP/PPP in 2011 of around $ 381.719 billion. It was one of the great powers of Europe during the 17^th century and early part of the 18^th century and is now one of the world’s richest countries.

What come to mind when we think of Sweden?

·      Meatballs

·      Absolut Vodka

·      Automobile manufacturer Volvo

·      The Swedish Chef in the Muppets

·      Home furniture store IKEA

·      Ericsson, one of the largest is telecom companies in the world today

·      Nobel Prize

Some famous Swedes are:

·      Alfred Nobel, the chemist who invented the dynamite, but also gave us the Nobel Prize

·      Professional golfer Annika Sörenstam

·      Poet Erik Axel Karlfeldt

·      Poet/Novelist Verner von Heidenstam

·      Stieg Larsson, author of novel turned movie, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

·      Niklas Zennstrom, the co-founder of Skype

Happy 30th Birthday to Online Smiley, the emoticon that started it all

Who would think that a simple combination of characters would be able to convey so much meaning, oftentimes causing you to smile or chuckle and generally cheer you up?

Binette typographique à l'origine du smiley    

Emoticons, those little icons and sometimes a combination of several keyboard characters that create representative images, usually employed to convey a feeling or an emotion.

Thirty years ago, a researcher at the Carnegie Mellon Institute University, Scott Fehlman, proposed the use of two basic emoticons, a happy :-) and a sad :-( face. He never believed that these two small things would become so big and start a trend that continues to be developed and created up to this day. So to Scott Fehlman and his two little emoticons, three cheers for a Happy Birthday!

Let us then take a tour of the story behind emoticons, their uses and usefulness in today’s digital-centric life.

Emoticons Help Clarify Language

Mooning SkypeEmoticons

The Origins of Popular Words in Architecture and Design

When buying a home, there are many architectural details that people look for to ensure they buy the most beautiful home they can afford. For example, the façade of the home has to be inviting, the stucco walls have to be sturdy and free of graffiti, the balcony has to have a fabulous view and the interior carpet has to be soft and plush.

Whether it’s a studio you’re looking for, a palazzo or a villa complete with a portico, balcony and fountains with a replica of the various Greek gods of mythology, many of the words used in art, architecture and design are rooted in the romance languages.

Origins of architecture

The term architecture refers to the planning, design and construction process of a structure. The resulting buildings or structures are considered works of art, often defining a particular period in history.

The word architecture is from the Latin word architectura. In Greek, it is from the word arkhitekton, which is a combination of words meaning chief and builder or carpenter.

Going Goo-Goo Gaga for Baby Talk (How adults speak to babies)

Want some wawa?

Does baby want num-num?

Time for beddy bye.

If you don’t have children or you’ve never interacted with any, then you won’t understand that these sentences simply translate to asking a child if he wants some water (wawa), if he is hungry and wants food (num-num) or that it is time to sleep because it is time for bedtime (beddy bye).

These are examples of baby talk, the oversimplification and other nonsensical words that adults often use when speaking to young children.

Baby talk

Baby talk is a language all of its own, something that many child development experts have recognized and parents have been using for ages. It is a way that adults exclusively speak to babies and young children that simply can’t be avoided at times. After all, it’s hard to keep a serious face when an adorable baby is cooing and ahhhing to your every word.

Demystifying the Language of Yoga

Yoga in the Sivananda Yoga Tradition in La Mesa, Colombia

Many people unfamiliar with the practice associate yoga with some weird and body bending poses. However, the ancient practice of yoga has been finding itself in the limelight in modern times. Not only has it been credited for transforming some bodies into svelte and toned figures, it has also been credited for helping millions of people find peace, focus, relaxation and clarity of thought. After all, the practice of yoga involves more than the physical aspect.

What is yoga?

Yoga is the Hindu practice that involves the harmony of the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of a person. The practice originated in ancient India, making it more than 5,000 years old. Today, the word is also used to refer to meditative practices that have roots in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, although the practice and discipline of yoga can be performed by anyone from any religious belief. Through concentrated meditation, the yoga practitioner is able to attain a state of tranquility and gain deep spiritual insight.

Now Serving: Enchilada and Guacamole (Tracing the Spanish Origin of Some English Words)

Loco
Desperado
Nada
Macho
Vertigo.

These are just some Spanish words that English speakers have become familiar with, as these have become part of the language.

The English language is based on a number of other languages in the world. There are many commonly used words in English that have Spanish origin, such as fiesta or party, desperado, meaning desperate or amigo, meaning friend. Around the home, there is the patio or you may even live in a ranch, which is from the Spanish noun rancho. Even the weather patterns are described as El Niño or La Niña. There is also the word hurricane, which stems from the Spanish word huracan.

From romance languages

Many of these words can be traced to the romance languages, but it is widely thought that these words found their way into the vernacular, mainly through the Spanish language, rather than French or Italian. It is this similarity with Spanish that makes it quite easy for English speakers to learn Spanish.

Some of the words have become used too often; it is easy to forget that we have to thank the Spanish language for its contribution to the evolution and development of the English language.

Love Words? Then Call Yourself a Logophile!

A logophile is a person who loves words, a word buff if you please. But whether you are a logophile or not, you will surely learn a new word or two from this next installment of Little Known Words and More. So, buckle up because it's time to add more words to your treasure chest of English words.

Accouchers

Helping women give birth is not solely done by midwives. There are male midwives, too. These mid-men are referred to as accouchers.

Anosmia

Suffering from this condition will not allow you to enjoy the smell of roses and many other things around you. Anosmia can be a temporary or permanent olfactory disorder where a person is unable to perceive odors.

Ageusia

Life can be bland for people who cannot taste anything at all (sour, bitter, sweet, salty and savory or umami). This inability of the tongue to detect taste is ageusia. But if only partial loss of taste is present, the right term to use is hypogeusia.

Caruncula

Do you know where your tear and sweat glands are in your eyes? They are in the caruncula. This is the pink flesh that you find in the inner corners of your eyes.

The Evolution of Language: Thanks to Social Media

We live in a time of change and this is even apparent in the way the English language has evolved in the last few years.

Thanks to the use of social media, such as texting, the Internet and various sites, especially Twitter, the English language has taken a life of its own.

The power of pop culture

Pop culture has certainly changed the verbal landscape, with slang words in conversation or in songs that have become more mainstream. We have abbreviated words like LOL (laugh out loud) or LMAO (laughing my ass off) that have become acceptable not only in texting but also emails and even in conversations.

Television has also helped disseminate the use of many words and phrases that were unheard of in the last few decades. People now have come up with new words to describe how they feel, what they do and things they want.

The more extensive or popular the use of new words, the more acceptable they become. This is even if it isn’t a real word to begin with, but something that has been unusually conjugated or simply invented.

Giving Expressive English Words a Second Chance

At the beginning of each year, Lake Superior State University (LSSU) publishes its Banished Words List consisting of English words as well as phrases that have been deemed overused and abused and thus need to be banished from the current consciousness. LSSU began this Banished Words List in 1976 and it continues to this day. For the 2012 edition, some of the words that made it to the notorious list are amazing (which made the top of the list), baby bump, ginormous, man cave and occupy.

On the flip side, another American university has, this time, come to the defense of some English language words. Theirs is a list of words not for banishment but for revival. Wayne State University has come up with its own word list consisting of words that they believe should be once again, part of the communication process. Instead of banishing words to oblivion, WSU is all for reviving English language words and giving these words the chance to prove their worth and reason for being. A group within WSU called Word Warriors has made it their calling to give deserving words a chance for glory once again.

Borboryg-what?! Little Known Words and More

Have you ever been embarrassed by borborygmus? Chances are you have at least once in your lifetime. But a borborygmus is nothing to be red-faced about. Everyone experiences a borborygmus. It is part of being human. Even animals can experience it. What is a borborygmus? It is the sound you hear coming from your abdomen caused by gas. Sometimes, a borborygmus can be so loud that it causes embarrassment. There's no need to use a stethoscope to hear these rumbling and gurgling sounds. Winnie the Pooh knows how to best describe borborygmi (plural of borborygmus). When he is hungry, he would often say, "There's a rumbly in my tumbly."

John, Mary and Muhammad in Different Languages

If your parents named you John, don't be surprised that in France people will call you Jean. Or if you find yourself in Spain, an abuela (grandmother) may refer to you as Juan. Women with names like Mariska, Mariah and Mary owe their names to a Hebrew name. Muhammad, the most popular name in the world, has many different spellings in different languages. Fascinating, isn't it?

Most of the given names today originated from Latin, Greek, Hebrew or Arabic names. Throughout human history, given names have changed from one location to another. As people moved across lands and over seas due to migration, war or a multitude of other reasons, they brought with them their given names that came from their original mother tongues. The locals in their new communities must have spoken a dialect or language different from theirs. So when their names were adopted in these new settings, their original given names were changed in order to fit the local language or dialect better.

The Wonderful World of Dr. Seuss

"I like green eggs and ham! I like them Sam I Am!" Dr. Seuss wrote more than 40 children's books and won countless awards including two Emmy Awards, two Academy Awards), a Peabody and a Pulitzer. The man behind the penname Dr. Seuss, Theodore Geisel, was extremely talented, very witty, imaginative, artistic and politically and socially conscious. His writing style was entertaining to say the least. Because of his early reader books, reading and learning became more fun for new readers. Today, the same children who grew up enjoying his books and the many transformations of Dr. Seuss's stories are now introducing Dr. Seuss to a new generation.

Ted Geisel (Dr. Seuss), seated at desk covered with his books

Often times, the words he uses in his children's books sound like a lot of mumbo-jumbo. There's a lot of rhyming going on in every page. Nonsense and made up words form part of his stories. The locations and characters are often invented, but many parallel the people, places and situations Geisel experienced or observed throughout his life. He may have written his books for children but most adults enjoy them, too. If you are willing to suspend reality and enter the world of imagination, you will surely be in for a treat when you open a Dr. Seuss book.

Welcome to the colorful world of Dr. Seuss!

Italian – Music to the Ears!

Meraviglioso! Bello! Interessante!

Marvelous, beautiful and interesting!

These are just some of the words that can be used to describe the experience of hearing the Italian language spoken.

Italian is one of the many Romance languages and to hear it spoken is quite literally music to the ears. It is also the Romance language that has the most similarity to the vocabulary words used in Latin. Although its sentence construction, conjugation and use of male and female genders in the language are similar to French and the other Romance languages, Italian simply has a way of sounding poetic. Even when a cab driver is yelling at an errant pedestrian, or a seller is arguing with a buyer when he is unwilling to give his wares for a bargain, Italian can sound like a lullaby of a mother to her child or a love song between lovers. 

Andrea Bocelli

Whether it’s hearing an opera performance, listening to Italian football fans vigorously cheer on their teams or simply listening to the ingredients list on a menu, Italian is undoubtedly a language with a cadence that falls quite pleasurably on the ears. There’s a softness yet almost lyrical quality to it. Sometimes, it almost seems like a song is being sung to you as you hear the words.

Not just for the Italians

Mother's Day: Mothers Speak the Language of Love Around the World

Mothers play a multitude of roles in their children's lives. Aside from the care and love they provide, they can also function as breadwinners, personal doctors, nurses, counselors, chefs, tailors, housekeepers, financial advisers, drivers, coaches, security guards, hairdressers, fashion consultants, life coaches, and social secretaries.

One important role of mothers is that they are the primary teachers of their children. One of the first things that children learn from mothers is language. In fact, the primary language of a person is called his "mother tongue" or "mother language." It is the language that a child learns usually from his mother. Because the young child is often closer to his mother, he naturally picks up the language his mother speaks. Traditionally, mothers are the first caretakers of their children; they teach the young how to speak, read and write. The first songs they hear are the lullabies sung by their mothers.

Change Your Life – Learn a New Language

One of the best things you can do is to learn a new language. It's a challenge that can be fun, rewarding and best of all, life changing. For most adults, learning a new language is quite difficult. In fact, research has shown that as a person ages, his ability to learn a new language becomes more difficult. But don't listen to research! There are other factors that contribute to the ease or difficulty in learning a new language aside from one's age. In this age of globalization, it is easier to reach out to peoples of different cultures, races and creeds. One way to connect with them is by learning their mother tongues.

There is a Czech proverb that describes what it is like to learn a new language. It goes like this - Kolik jazyků znáš, tolikrát jsi člověkem. This translates to this:

“You live a new life for every new language you speak.
If you know only one language, you live only once.”