Download or read book The Story of French written by Jean-Benoît Nadeau and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2008-01-08 with total page 597 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why does everything sound better if it's said in French? That fascination is at the heart of The Story of French, the first history of one of the most beautiful languages in the world that was, at one time, the pre-eminent language of literature, science and diplomacy. In a captivating narrative that spans the ages, from Charlemagne to Cirque du Soleil, Jean-Benoît Nadeau and Julie Barlow unravel the mysteries of a language that has maintained its global influence despite the rise of English. As in any good story, The Story of French has spectacular failures, unexpected successes and bears traces of some of history's greatest figures: the tenacity of William the Conqueror, the staunchness of Cardinal Richelieu, and the endurance of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Through this colorful history, Nadeau and Barlow illustrate how French acquired its own peculiar culture, revealing how the culture of the language spread among francophones the world over and yet remains curiously centered in Paris. In fact, French is not only thriving—it still has a surprisingly strong influence on other languages. As lively as it is fascinating, The Story of French challenges long held assumptions about French and shows why it is still the world's other global language.

Download or read book The Languages of the World written by Kenneth Katzner and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2002-09-11 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This third edition of Kenneth Katzner's best-selling guide to languages is essential reading for language enthusiasts everywhere. Written with the non-specialist in mind, its user-friendly style and layout, delightful original passages, and exotic scripts, will continue to fascinate the reader. This new edition has been thoroughly revised to include more languages, more countries, and up-to-date data on populations. Features include: *information on nearly 600 languages *individual descriptions of 200 languages, with sample passages and English translations *concise notes on where each language is spoken, its history, alphabet and pronunciation *coverage of every country in the world, its main language and speaker numbers *an introduction to language families

Download or read book External Language Promotion by Major Foreign Countries written by United States Information Agency. Office of Research and published by . This book was released on 1974 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Fall of Language in the Age of English written by Minae Mizumura and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2015-01-06 with total page 237 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the Kobayashi Hideo Award, The Fall of Language in the Age of English lays bare the struggle to retain the brilliance of one's own language in this period of English-language dominance. Born in Tokyo but raised and educated in the United States, Minae Mizumura acknowledges the value of a universal language in the pursuit of knowledge yet also embraces the different ways of understanding offered by multiple tongues. She warns against losing this precious diversity. Universal languages have always played a pivotal role in advancing human societies, Mizumura shows, but in the globalized world of the Internet, English is fast becoming the sole common language of humanity. The process is unstoppable, and striving for total language equality is delusional—and yet, particular kinds of knowledge can be gained only through writings in specific languages. Mizumura calls these writings "texts" and their ultimate form "literature." Only through literature and, more fundamentally, through the diverse languages that give birth to a variety of literatures, can we nurture and enrich humanity. Incorporating her own experiences as a writer and a lover of language and embedding a parallel history of Japanese, Mizumura offers an intimate look at the phenomena of individual and national expression.

Download or read book Fluent Forever written by Gabriel Wyner and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2014-08-05 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NATIONAL BESTSELLER • For anyone who wants to learn a foreign language, this is the method that will finally make the words stick. “A brilliant and thoroughly modern guide to learning new languages.”—Gary Marcus, cognitive psychologist and author of the New York Times bestseller Guitar Zero At thirty years old, Gabriel Wyner speaks six languages fluently. He didn’t learn them in school—who does? Rather, he learned them in the past few years, working on his own and practicing on the subway, using simple techniques and free online resources—and here he wants to show others what he’s discovered. Starting with pronunciation, you’ll learn how to rewire your ears and turn foreign sounds into familiar sounds. You’ll retrain your tongue to produce those sounds accurately, using tricks from opera singers and actors. Next, you’ll begin to tackle words, and connect sounds and spellings to imagery rather than translations, which will enable you to think in a foreign language. And with the help of sophisticated spaced-repetition techniques, you’ll be able to memorize hundreds of words a month in minutes every day. This is brain hacking at its most exciting, taking what we know about neuroscience and linguistics and using it to create the most efficient and enjoyable way to learn a foreign language in the spare minutes of your day.

Download or read book Learn French Must Know French Slang Words Phrases written by Innovative Language Learning and published by Innovative Language Learning. This book was released on 2019-04-29 with total page 115 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do you want to learn French the fast, fun and easy way? And do you want to master daily conversations and speak like a native? Then this is the book for you. Learn French: Must-Know French Slang Words & Phrases by FrenchPod101 is designed for Beginner-level learners. You learn the top 100 must-know slang words and phrases that are used in everyday speech. All were hand-picked by our team of French teachers and experts. Here’s how the lessons work: • Every Lesson is Based on a Theme • You Learn Slang Words or Phrases Related to That Theme • Check the Translation & Explanation on How to Use Each One And by the end, you will have mastered 100+ French Slang Words & phrases!

Download or read book French Foreign Policy written by France. Ambassade (U.S.). Service de presse et d'information and published by . This book was released on 1966 with total page 790 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Way of the Linguist written by Steve Kaufmann and published by AuthorHouse. This book was released on 2005-11 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Way of The Linguist, A language learning odyssey. It is now a cliché that the world is a smaller place. We think nothing of jumping on a plane to travel to another country or continent. The most exotic locations are now destinations for mass tourism. Small business people are dealing across frontiers and language barriers like never before. The Internet brings different languages and cultures to our finger-tips. English, the hybrid language of an island at the western extremity of Europe seems to have an unrivalled position as an international medium of communication. But historically periods of cultural and economic domination have never lasted forever. Do we not lose something by relying on the wide spread use of English rather than discovering other languages and cultures? As citizens of this shrunken world, would we not be better off if we were able to speak a few languages other than our own? The answer is obviously yes. Certainly Steve Kaufmann thinks so, and in his busy life as a diplomat and businessman he managed to learn to speak nine languages fluently and observe first hand some of the dominant cultures of Europe and Asia. Why do not more people do the same? In his book The Way of The Linguist, A language learning odyssey, Steve offers some answers. Steve feels anyone can learn a language if they want to. He points out some of the obstacles that hold people back. Drawing on his adventures in Europe and Asia, as a student and businessman, he describes the rewards that come from knowing languages. He relates his evolution as a language learner, abroad and back in his native Canada and explains the kind of attitude that will enable others to achieve second language fluency. Many people have taken on the challenge of language learning but have been frustrated by their lack of success. This book offers detailed advice on the kind of study practices that will achieve language breakthroughs. Steve has developed a language learning system available online at: www.thelinguist.com.

Download or read book French Fun written by Steve Timmins and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 1995-11-06 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you grapple daily with spoken Québec French, are thinking of visiting or doing business in la belle province or would like to communicate more effectively with your Québécois friends and colleagues, French Fun is the book for you. With lively illustrations and hilarious literal translations, it introduces you to the French language of Québec through a collection of some of the most common and colourful idioms heard in Québec today. These are words from the real spoken French of Québec — some standard, some informal, others with a fascinating linguistic or cultural story behind them. The perfect complement to all French programs, French Fun is a must for anyone wishing to have a more intimate acquaintance with the French language of Québec and the people who speak it. Ce livre constitue un recueil des mots et expressions les plus courants et colorés de la langue québécoise de tous les jours. En le publiant, l’auteur veut partager cette richesse linguistique avec les anglophones de partout. Bien que s’adressant principalement aux anglophones, cette oeuvre peut aussi être intéressante et utile pour les francophones.

Download or read book Library of Congress Subject Headings written by Library of Congress and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 1708 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Fluent in 3 Months written by Benny Lewis and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2014-03-11 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Benny Lewis, who speaks over ten languages—all self-taught—runs the largest language-learning blog in the world, Fluent In 3 Months. Lewis is a full-time "language hacker," someone who devotes all of his time to finding better, faster, and more efficient ways to learn languages. Fluent in 3 Months: How Anyone at Any Age Can Learn to Speak Any Language from Anywhere in the World is a new blueprint for fast language learning. Lewis argues that you don't need a great memory or "the language gene" to learn a language quickly, and debunks a number of long-held beliefs, such as adults not being as good of language learners as children.

Download or read book Cambridge IGCSE tm French Teacher s Guide Collins Cambridge IGCSE tm written by Collins Uk and published by Collins. This book was released on 2019 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Collins IGCSE(R) French provides comprehensive coverage of the Cambridge IGCSE French (0520) syllabus. To support the Student's Book and Workbook, this full and comprehensive Teacher's Guide provides teaching notes and support material to enable teachers to plan and manage their lessons. An indispensable resource for teachers, this Teacher's Guide provides clear and concise notes for all units to support teachers in preparing, planning and managing their lessons. A comprehensive introduction explains the approach of the course and how teachers can make best use of the resources. The units then follow the same structure as the Student's Book, making it easy to use alongside the other resources. There is advice on how to use the Introductory unit as a diagnostic tool at the start of the course, to help assess levels of knowledge within the class. There are also suggestions throughout as to how to work with a mixed ability class, offering differentiated support and activities for all levels. The course can also be used by teachers and students of Cambridge O Level French (3015) and IGCSE (9-1) French (7156). Collins is working with Cambridge Assessment International Education towards endorsement of this title for teacher support for examination from 2021.

Download or read book The Rise of English written by Rosemary C. Salomone and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2022 with total page 489 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A sweeping account of the global rise of English and the high-stakes politics of languageSpoken by a quarter of the world's population, English is today's lingua franca- - its common tongue. The language of business, popular media, and international politics, English has become commodified for its economic value and increasingly detached from any particular nation. This meteoric "riseof English" has many obvious benefits to communication. Tourists can travel abroad with greater ease. Political leaders can directly engage their counterparts. Researchers can collaborate with foreign colleagues. Business interests can flourish in the global economy.But the rise of English has very real downsides as well. In Europe, imperatives of political integration and job mobility compete with pride in national language and heritage. In the United States and England, English isolates us from the cultural and economic benefits of speaking other languages.And in countries like India, South Africa, Morocco, and Rwanda, it has stratified society along lines of English proficiency.In The Rise of English, Rosemary Salomone offers a commanding view of the unprecedented spread of English and the far-reaching effects it has on global and local politics, economics, media, education, and business. From the inner workings of the European Union to linguistic battles over influence inAfrica, Salomone draws on a wealth of research to tell the complex story of English - and, ultimately, to argue for English not as a force for domination but as a core component of multilingualism and the transcendence of linguistic and cultural borders.

Download or read book Speaking Culturally written by Fern L. Johnson and published by SAGE. This book was released on 2000 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Speaking Culturally examines the changing cultural demographics of the United States from a linguistic perspective. The author highlights the discourses associated with gender and with African Americans, Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans.

Download or read book Exploring Language in a Multilingual Context written by Bettina Migge and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-11-01 with total page 373 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Proposing a new methodological approach to documenting languages spoken in multilingual societies, this book retraces the investigation of one unique linguistic space, the Creole varieties referred to as Takitaki in multilingual French Guiana. It illustrates how interactional sociolinguistic, anthropological linguistic, discourse analytical and quantitative sociolinguistic approaches can be integrated with structural approaches to language in order to resolve rarely discussed questions systematically (what are the outlines of the community, who is a rightful speaker, what speech should be documented) that frequently crop up in projects of language documentation in multilingual contexts. The authors argue that comprehensively documenting complex linguistic phenomena requires taking into account the views of all local social actors (native and non-native speakers, institutions, linguists, non-speakers, etc.), applying a range of complementary data collection and analysis methods and putting issues of ideology, variation, language contact and interaction centre stage. This book will be welcomed by researchers in sociolinguistics, linguistic anthropology, fieldwork studies, language documentation and language variation and change.

Download or read book Trajectories and Origins Survey on the Diversity of the French Population written by Cris Beauchemin and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-10-24 with total page 391 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides the main findings of a ground-breaking survey on immigrants and the second generation in France. The data, collected from more than 20, 000 persons representative of the population living in France, offer invaluable insights into the trajectories and experience of ethnic minorities. The book explains how France has been an immigrant-receiving country for over a century and how it is now a multicultural society with an unprecedented level of origin diversity. While immigrants and their descendants are targets of clichés and stereotyping, this book provides unique quantitative findings on their situation in all areas of personal and working life. Is origin in itself a factor of inequality? With its detailed reconstitutions of educational, occupational and conjugal trajectories and its exploration of access to housing and health, this book provides multiple approaches to answering this question. One of the work’s major contributions is to combine objective and subjective measures of discrimination: this is the first study in France to focus on racism as experienced by those subjected to it, while opening up new methodological perspectives on the experience of prejudice by origin, religion, and skin colour.

Download or read book You Are What You Speak written by Robert Lane Greene and published by Delacorte Press. This book was released on 2011-03-08 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "An insightful, accessible examination of the way in which day-to-day speech is tangled in a complicated web of history, politics, race, economics and power." - Kirkus What is it about other people’s language that moves some of us to anxiety or even rage? For centuries, sticklers the world over have donned the cloak of authority to control the way people use words. Now this sensational new book strikes back to defend the fascinating, real-life diversity of this most basic human faculty. With the erudite yet accessible style that marks his work as a journalist, Robert Lane Greene takes readers on a rollicking tour around the world, illustrating with vivid anecdotes the role language beliefs play in shaping our identities, for good and ill. Beginning with literal myths, from the Tower of Babel to the bloody origins of the word “shibboleth,” Greene shows how language “experts” went from myth-making to rule-making and from building cohesive communities to building modern nations. From the notion of one language’s superiority to the common perception that phrases like “It’s me” are “bad English,” linguistic beliefs too often define “us” and distance “them,” supporting class, ethnic, or national prejudices. In short: What we hear about language is often really about the politics of identity. Governments foolishly try to police language development (the French Academy), nationalism leads to the violent suppression of minority languages (Kurdish and Basque), and even Americans fear that the most successful language in world history (English) may be threatened by increased immigration. These false language beliefs are often tied to harmful political ends and can lead to the violation of basic human rights. Conversely, political involvement in language can sometimes prove beneficial, as with the Zionist revival of Hebrew or our present-day efforts to provide education in foreign languages essential to business, diplomacy, and intelligence. And yes, standardized languages play a crucial role in uniting modern societies. As this fascinating book shows, everything we’ve been taught to think about language may not be wrong—but it is often about something more than language alone. You Are What You Speak will certainly get people talking.