What comes first, language or thought? A series of papers published in 1951 grappled with this very question and established itself in linguistic theory. The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, proposed by American linguist Edward Sapir and his student Benjamin Whorf is probably one of the most mainstream linguistic theories out there today, going so far as to set the stage for the 2016 film Arrival.
This linguistic theory has gone on to inspire studies in anthropology, sociology, and other related disciplines.
But as usual, time and the telephone game have largely stretched and changed this theory for the rest of us. It’s common for academic concepts to become simplified and watered-down over time. Because a powerful idea resonates in society, whether that person is a linguist or not. And this idea, the idea of language coloring our fundamental perceptions, is more than powerful.
Like many in the diaspora, I grew up with a yiayia, who sometimes spoke Greek, but mostly spoke English. Her own parents came to the United States back in the 1920s, so needless to say that the family is primarily “American” at this point. Except for Greek food on holidays, a few words, and maybe genetics, it would be hard to say we were Greek at all.
But after visiting the family village one summer and meeting distant relatives, I grew attached to a language that had felt foreign to me for the most part.
I remember seeing many maaaany years ago like within my first years of Tumblr, a handy post/chart for learning the differences between shared (and unshared) symbols used in Chinese, Korean and Japanese, and so I wanted to throw something together quick to help people learn the differences between languages using the Arabic script– they’re not all Arabic!! These are just some of the more common ones you see online.
Many many languages use a modified Arabic script, and I couldn’t possibly detail each and every one, so here are links to some info about others as well! Including:
matia mou, what you said other men have only said drunk, smothered in the sweet scent of spirits. jani na, jani na where did you learn such bitter phrases - certainly not in the dictionary we penned together.
There’s nothing sacred in love or violence. Did we light the diya without a lick of oil? Or did the little lantern only overflow and we burned clay to ash?
matia mou, amar shona, if I could see even the moon in your eyes, I’d devour my suffering and call it delicious.
-Five years in, Kelsey Ray Banerjee
glossary:
matia mou - my eyes, Greek jani na - I don’t know, Bangla diya- it’s like a little lamp, Hindi (possibly Bangla, too. idk. My Bangla is still weak ya’ll) amar shona - my beloved, Bangla
Another poem - this time I’m experimenting with a multilingual one, rather than translating. Left everything Romanized to make it easier to pronounce/read.
Coffee and music and books are the main things I use to take a break from work and studying and stress (cafés are perfect for all of that) and I just found a new place I love to go!
just like everyone learns and studies differently, taking time to relax is a personal experience too
question for you guys: What do you do to relax and take a break? Is it reading? watching a show or movie? listening to music? making tea? origami? going for a walk or run? doodling?
A while ago I made a post about Dutch websites that can help you practice your Dutch, and a bunch of lovely people added some websites to the original post so I figured it was time to update the post. The websites are now sorted into more specific categories to keep the post more organised.
A special thanks to @onzin-en-talen for adding the Belgian websites!
Beginner (kids websites)
jeugdjournaal.nlis the website forhet Jeugdjournaal (daily on tv for 7-10 year old kids). Easy language, so easier to follow. Daily news ‘episodes’, 15 minutes long.
AD.nl is an online newspaper - it is for adults so if you want news that’s familiar to items you can find on your newspaper you could go to the topic Buitenland.
NU.nlis another online newspaper which might be harder to read so again, if you go to Buitenland you’ll find worldwide newsitems.
demorgen.beI couldn’t find a Buitenland section, but they do have, among others, a MusicandTechnology section on which you can find interesting articles.
hln.be another Belgian newspaper. This is the link to the Buitenlandsection.
VRT NWS is the Belgian public broadcasting service’s news website.
More advanced: Sports
sportnieuws.nl offers the latest sports news in the Netherlands.
sporza.beis the Belgian public broadcasting service’s sport news site.
More advanced: TV
NPO 1 is the Dutch national broadcasting channel, here you can watch live TV.
uitzendinggemist.nl here you can watch TV too, this website uploads recent episodes you might have missed on TV.
More advanced: Magazines
humo.beis a Belgian magazine, which provides interviews. They also offer reviews of concerts, CDs, TV programs and movies.
knack.be is a magazine that offers news as well as interviews on their website.
More advanced: Radio
onlineluisteren.nl offers all radio stations in the Netherlands, sorted by genre (if you scroll down). You can also find the regional channels on here! These offer more news about the province.
qmusic.nlis the website for Dutch radio station Q Music. You can find music, videos from the studio and music related news on here.They mainly focus on pop.
radio 538 is another Dutch radio station, focused on pop. They have a section called Gemist that offers the latest interviews and other cool stuff they did.
stubru.be is a Belgian alternative rock radio station - @onzin-en-talen recommends the interview Linde Merckpoel had with Ed Sheeran. They offer music news and more.
mnm.beis another Belgian radio station, which is more focused on pop.
Learning vocab
woordjesleren.nlis a website where you can look up lists of words and sentences from a lot of language methods we use in Holland. There are not only Dutch - English lists, but also Dutch - other languages. It isn’t that great though if you don’t have the schoolbooks that belong to the lists… There also is an app but that probably will only work if you’re in the Dutch Appstore.
wrts.nl wrts is short for woordjes which translates to words. I think it’s free - at least when I made my account. You can make lists by yourself, or download lists from woordjesleren.nl.
Let me know if you have any questions or are looking for something specific! Voor nu wens ik je veel succes en plezier!
If you attempt to gatekeep anyone learning Italian you are legally obligated to tweet the phrase “cancello culture” at least once, I don’t make the rules
The only remnant of 2021 I want aliens to find is the words “vaxx”, “variant” and “virus” badly Photoshopped onto a typography poster of the speech from ‘V For Vendetta”
The only remnant of 2021 I want aliens to find is the words “vaxx”, “variant” and “virus” badly Photoshopped onto a typography poster of the speech from ‘V For Vendetta”
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