The Language Feed - June 19, 2005

Sun Jun 19 21:22:38 UTC 2005

The Language Feed
June 19, 2005

This issue and archives can be read on the web at
http://mason.gmu.edu/~smorris2/feed
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Rebirth of language
Sunday Tasmanian, June 19, 2005
New life has been breathed into the Tasmanian Aboriginal language. After
more than five years' research and analysis, the Tasmanian Aboriginal
Centre has given the Tasmanian community a glimpse of its language,
known as palawa kani.
http://www.themercury.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,15658081%255E3462,00.html

Iraq Journal: Filtering language in Fallujah
USNews.com, June 18
One of the biggest challenges for U.S. military advisers is
communicating with the Iraqi soldiers they are supposed to be training.
Most of the small "firm bases"—the forward military outposts where
Iraqis and Americans live and work—have translators stationed at them,
though many of the translators have only a rudimentary understanding of
English.
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/050618/18iraq.htm

Professor argues the case for tolerating bad language
New Zealand Herald, June 19
When Lynne Truss laid down the law on apostrophes and sloppy language in
her bestseller Eats Shoots and Leaves, the nation quailed. But for those
who failed to brush up on their grammar, hope is at hand from a new book
that celebrates slang and poor punctuation.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=18&ObjectID=10331478

Chinese-language learning hot in Indonesia
China View, June 16
Chinese-language courses are mushrooming across Greater Jakarta, as
Indonesian businessmen, impressed by China's rapid economic growth, rush
to establish contacts with their Chinese counterparts.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-06/16/content_3092924.htm

Research: Noise, Visual Cues Affect Infants' Language Development
Ascribe, June 15
Even moderate background noise can affect how infants learn language at
an early and crucial time of their development, according to new
research from Purdue University.
http://newswire.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050615.144946&time=15%2007%20PDT&year=2005&public=0

EU makes Gaelic 21st official language
ISN, June 15
Gaelic will become the 21st official and working language of the EU on 1
January 2007, EU foreign ministers decided in a unanimous vote on Monday
in Luxembourg.
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?id=11482

Need to safeguard Malay language: Nasir
Daily Express, June 16
More efforts are needed to check the Malay language from deteriorating
and losing its honour, said Minister in the Chief Minister's Department
Datuk Nasir Tun Sakaran.
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=35160

Hawaiian School Children Rekindle Passion for Native Language & Culture
VOA News, June 15
Students at Anuenue Hawaiian Immersion School in Honolulu straddle 2
worlds. At home they speak English. In school -- from gym class to
science lab -- they speak Hawaiian. They also learn Hawaiian chants and
the ancient Hawaiian art of conflict resolution.
http://www.voanews.com/english/AmericanLife/2005-06-15-voa22.cfm

Foreign speakers swamp schools
Washington Times, June 19
School enrollment growth of immigrant non-English speaking students in
18 states through mid-America has surpassed 200 percent since 1990.
Teachers and administrators in those states have faced a surprising
demographic reality as enrollment of students who don't speak English,
mostly Hispanic, has grown more than 10 times faster than the overall
rise in school enrollment in the past 15 years.
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20050619-125538-6909r.htm

Give kids an edge, a foreign language
Des Moines Register, June 19
Perhaps the biggest mistake I've made in life - and I've made some
doozies - was in not learning a foreign language. It's an error I hope
today's school kids don't repeat.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050619/OPINION01/506190316/1056/NEWS09

Structural Brain Changes as Vocabulary Increases in Monolingual Adolescents
Medical News Today, June 18
Learning a language is a skill that begins early in childhood, but
continues to be refined through adolescence. Indeed, adding words to our
vocabulary is lifelong. Until recently little was known about how
changes in the brain might underlie language acquisition.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=26375

Tribe fights to save language
SunStar, June 19
In modern clothes, the leader of the Escaya tribe looked nothing like a
tribal chief.
But after years of teaching their language in secret, then finally
gaining government’s recognition, he hoped their ancient culture would
be preserved in the modern years to come.
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ceb/2005/06/19/news/tribe.fights.to.save.language.html

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