Today is the European Day of Languages!
We want to use this day as an opportunity to remind you of our online workshop “european for beginners”.
During the digital european youthweek Susanne gave you some very cool links where you can test and refresh your language skills.
So go and check them out and have fun!
Let’s start with some nursery rhythms that we have in common.
You may have a look at: https://www.mamalisa.com/?t=e_family&c=58 where you find a variety of different versions of the song about the Itsy Bitsy Spider.
If you click the camera icon, you will find small videos of the song in different languages. You probably have to scroll down a bit first to find the video.
By the way, did you know that the German Christmas carol “Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht” composed by the Austrian organist Franz Xaver Gruber in 1818 has been translated into numerous languages? Here you find a list of not less than 121 translations:
http://www.silentnight.web.za/translate/
Is your language included?
And at the following facebook-website you may even listen to a version sung in French, German, Finnish, Italian Japanese, Spanish and Portuguese – at the same time!
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1538297086253002
We do have many sayings in common, like for instance “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” or “the apple does not fall far from the tree”.
However, here you’ll find really hilarious sayings in different languages that have no direct parallels in other languages:
https://thelanguagenerds.com/10-hilarious-idioms-from…/…
Did you ever wonder whether animals speak the same language? I don’t know, but today you may enjoy learning how animals sound in different languages:
https://www.boredpanda.com/animal-sounds-different…/…
We already had a look at some sayings. Many of the sayings that we have in common derive from the bible.
The website www.bibleserver.com is a very fascinating website in my opinion. Here you find various versions of the bible in many languages. For instance, more than 10 German version of the bible, 4 English versions and 1 Dutch version. Select “All translations” and mark the box of the versions you would like to be shown. Then just insert the word or phrase you would like to see translated.
For instance, this link shows you the phrase “eye for an eye tooth for a tooth” in English, German and French:
https://www.bibleserver.com/…/eye%20for%20an%20eye…
If you enter “camel” you will be shown a number of texts and of course also “Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
We end this virtual multi language workshop with tricky tongue twisters.
At the following website you find tongue twisters from almost 50 languages:
https://www.alphadictionary.com/…/tongue…/index.html
But of course, tongue twisters are only funny if you try to say them or if you listen to them. On Youtube you may find numerous examples, as for instance these 70 people trying 70 tongue-twisters from 70 countries:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SI1J2bbbOt4
