#multilingualism

[ follow ]
fromThe Conversation
1 day ago

AI's fluency in other languages hides a Western worldview that can mislead users a scholar of Indonesian society explains

The response was in Indonesian but shaped by values that centered individual autonomy over the consensus-building, social harmony and collective family dynamics that tend to matter more in Indonesian social life.
Philosophy
#language-learning
Online learning
fromwww.theguardian.com
4 days ago

Don't stop at Duolingo, set realistic goals, balance skills: how to start learning a new language

Being multilingual enhances sophistication, cultural understanding, and cognitive abilities, making language learning beneficial for personal and social growth.
Online learning
fromwww.theguardian.com
4 days ago

Don't stop at Duolingo, set realistic goals, balance skills: how to start learning a new language

Being multilingual enhances sophistication, cultural understanding, and cognitive abilities, making language learning beneficial for personal and social growth.
UK politics
fromwww.theguardian.com
3 days ago

The Guardian view on Welsh language learning: cultural shifts can deliver a bright future for Cymraeg | Editorial

Plaid Cymru aims to promote the Welsh language and culture, reflecting a significant shift in societal attitudes towards bilingualism since devolution.
Psychology
fromSilicon Canals
1 week ago

9 cognitive habits people develop when they grew up bilingual that have nothing to do with language and everything to do with how their brain learned to hold two realities at once - Silicon Canals

Bilingualism can delay Alzheimer's onset by five years and reshapes cognitive processes beyond language.
Education
fromwww.theguardian.com
5 days ago

A fire that's burning again': Welsh language resurges thanks to adult learners

Elinor Staniforth's journey from disinterest to teaching Welsh reflects a growing trend in adult language learning in Wales.
#translation
Media industry
fromMashable
2 weeks ago

AI translation tool turns English into 'LinkedIn'

Kagi, a premium search service, offers a free AI-based tool that translates standard English into LinkedIn's characteristic self-promotional jargon and corporate speak.
fromFrenchly
2 weeks ago

La Francophonie: How Louisiana Keeps the French Language Alive - Frenchly

The territory was named La Louisiane in 1682 by French explorer René-Robert Cavelier de La Salle, in honor of King Louis XIV, who claimed for France the vast Mississippi River basin. When French settlers later founded New Orleans in 1718, the region quickly became a center of French culture in North America.
History
Online learning
fromThe Good Life France
1 week ago

Microlearning French: Small Lessons, Big Results - The Good Life France

Microlearning French involves short, focused lessons that enhance retention and make language learning manageable and enjoyable.
fromwww.scientificamerican.com
2 weeks ago

Can you solve these language puzzles? Test your skills with these problems from North America's biggest linguistics competition

Computational linguistics is a two-way street: You're either using a computer to do things with human language or communicate or translate or teach a foreign language, or you're using computational techniques to learn something about human languages. Her work documenting and preserving endangered languages uses a little bit of both.
Education
Relationships
fromBusiness Matters
3 weeks ago

Real-time video translation for families: How to end awkward multilingual calls

Real-time video translation removes language barriers in family calls, enabling natural conversations and preserving emotional connection across multilingual households.
Psychology
fromMail Online
2 weeks ago

People with foreign accents are seen as less competent, study reveals

Foreign accents reduce audience engagement on TED Talks despite equal content quality, creating an 'accent penalty' that affects reach and influence.
Public health
fromPsychology Today
3 weeks ago

Can Media Literacy Games Travel Across Cultures?

Culturally tailored misinformation games significantly outperform generic Western-designed versions in building media literacy across different populations.
#french-language
fromIndependent
1 month ago
Education

'We are your nearest EU neighbour' - ambassador urges Irish primary schools to adopt French in new language drive

Paris food
fromFrenchly
3 weeks ago

10 Cities Outside France Where You Can Practice Your French - Frenchly

Over 320 million people speak French across five continents, with colonial history establishing French as an official language in many countries, making immersive French learning possible in diverse cities worldwide.
fromIndependent
1 month ago
Education

'We are your nearest EU neighbour' - ambassador urges Irish primary schools to adopt French in new language drive

History
fromwww.theguardian.com
3 weeks ago

Where Duolingo falls down: how I learned to speak Welsh with my mother

A grandson attending his Welsh grandmother's funeral in a Methodist chapel experiences a profound connection to his Welsh heritage through the singing of a traditional hymn, despite not understanding the Welsh language spoken throughout the service.
Psychology
fromHarvard Business Review
2 weeks ago

Research: How the "Accent Penalty" Determines Who Gets Heard

A speaker's accent significantly influences idea reception in organizations, often overriding merit-based evaluation despite assumptions that good ideas rise objectively.
Europe politics
fromwww.thelocal.com
3 weeks ago

Which countries in Europe impose language tests for residency permits?

European countries have varying language requirements for residency, with Sweden proposing A1/A2 proficiency for permanent residence from 2027, Spain requiring no residency language tests, and Germany mandating specific levels for permanent residency.
France news
fromThe Local France
1 month ago

Ask the expert: When is the best time to start learning French?

Learning French before moving to France is essential because immersion after arrival is significantly more difficult than expected, as the nervous system enters survival mode while managing multiple life changes simultaneously.
London food
fromIndependent
1 month ago

'Weaving bits of Gaeilge into each pose, my dormant abilities start to waken' - how to put your cupla focail to the test

Growing interest in learning Irish exists beyond traditional Gaeltacht regions and annual Irish language weeks, with accessible opportunities emerging in urban areas.
fromTravel + Leisure
3 weeks ago

This Is the Friendliest Language in the World, According to a New Study-and No, It's Not English

When respondents were asked which languages feel the most welcoming, Portuguese emerged on top, selected by 34 percent of participants. Spanish came in a close second with 33 percent of respondents calling it the friendliest, followed by Italian in third. Together, these languages form a clear cluster associated with warmth and approach.
Psychology
fromwww.customerexperiencedive.com
1 month ago

Duolingo looks to limit friction as key metric of growth slows

Duolingo is confident that it can find ways to grow its subscriber base without adding more friction to its free tiers. Only about 10% of the language learning app's active monthly users pay for its services. Adding friction to the free experience has been the fastest way for Duolingo to increase monetization, but it came at the expense of daily active user growth.
Startup companies
Education
fromPsychology Today
1 month ago

Fluent at Home, Silent at Work: Growing Up Bilingual

Heritage speakers lack formal language instruction in their native language, creating gaps in professional and academic domains that they internalize as personal failure rather than systemic educational gaps.
fromESPN.com
1 month ago

Lionel Messi 'deeply regrets' not learning English

I regret many things. To not have learned English as a boy. I had the time to have at least studied English and I didn't do it. I deeply regret it. I experienced situations where I was with incredible and spectacular personalities to be able to talk and have a chat and you feel half ignorant.
Miami Heat
Education
fromIndependent
4 weeks ago

Maire Treasa Ni Cheallaigh: I speak only Irish to my daughter, so why is she not guaranteed a place in our local Gaelscoil?

Irish-medium education opportunities remain limited despite Gaeilge being Ireland's official first language, creating challenges for families seeking immersion in the language.
Music
fromNature
1 month ago

Music is not a universal language - but it can bring us together when words fail

Music continues to unite people globally and remains central to debates about universality, human uniqueness, and responses to AI-driven inhumanity.
Writing
fromwww.aljazeera.com
1 month ago

Where are the most endangered languages in the world?

Over 7,000 languages exist worldwide, with roughly 44 percent endangered and major languages like English and Mandarin dominating global use.
France news
fromThe Local France
1 month ago

Endless rain, Montpellier, and growing up bilingual: 6 essential articles for life in France

France faces prolonged rain; Paris and Montpellier attract Americans; bilingual upbringing requires balance; 2026 mutuelle hikes can be challenged; selling property incurs hidden costs.
Artificial intelligence
fromTechCrunch
1 month ago

Cohere launches a family of open multilingual models | TechCrunch

Cohere launched Tiny Aya open-weight multilingual models supporting 70+ languages, runnable offline on everyday devices with a 3.35B-parameter base and regional variants.
Education
fromwww.bbc.com
1 month ago

The campaign for Romanian to become a GCSE option

A campaign seeks to add Romanian as a GCSE option, citing 2021 census data showing 159,000 Romanian speakers in London as the second most-spoken language after English.
fromSearch Engine Roundtable
1 month ago

Google Expands AI Mode To 53 New Languages

Google has added 53 new languages to AI Mode, which means the AI Mode works in just under 100 languages. This was announced by Nick Fox from Google on X yesterday. Nick Fox said, "Shipping AI Mode to 53 new languages (spoken by more than a billion people globally!)"
Artificial intelligence
fromPsychology Today
1 month ago

Is It Better to Learn a Second Language as a Child or Adult?

Parents often hear the warning: "If your child doesn't learn a second language early, they'll never be fluent." Adults, meanwhile, are told: "It's just too late for you to learn now." These claims are familiar and tidy, but misleading. Are they actually true? Is it better to learn a second language as a child or as an adult? The short answer is that it depends on what we mean by "better."
OMG science
Education
fromeLearning Industry
1 month ago

International Mother Language Day 2026: The Importance Of Multilingual Competence In Shaping A Competitive Future

Multilingual education strengthens cognitive agility, preserves mother tongues, and offers cultural and economic advantages that increase youth competitiveness in education and the workforce.
US politics
fromenglish.elpais.com
1 month ago

Welcome to the calenton': no nation speaks and thinks in a single language

Different languages enrich countries rather than weaken them, opposing xenophobic claims that a strong state must have a single national language.
World news
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

I thought it was going to perish': the remarkable revival of an endangered language in Lesotho

siPhuthi, a minority language in southern Lesotho and northeastern South Africa, has undergone a revival through local collaboration with linguists documenting speakers and traditions.
fromwww.socialmediatoday.com
2 months ago

Meta Adds More Languages to AI Translations for Reels

As explained by Meta: AI-powered translations for Reels are starting to roll out in more languages, including Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, and Kannada, on Instagram. These new additions build on our existing language support for English, Hindi, Portuguese, and Spanish. The addition of more of the languages spoken in India is significant, because India is now the biggest single market for both Facebook and Instagram usage, beating out the U.S. by a significant margin.
Tech industry
fromLondon Business News | Londonlovesbusiness.com
2 months ago

Localisation services explained: Scope, process, and actual complexity - London Business News | Londonlovesbusiness.com

Many people describe localization services as 'translation plus cultural adaptation.' While this is technically correct, it is not very helpful in practice. This definition misses the actual work, the decisions teams face, and the reasons some localization projects quietly succeed or fail. This article explains how localization services actually work for software, web platforms, and global content and gives a practical model for teams who want to know what they are getting into when they decide, 'We need localization.'
Software development
fromInside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs
2 months ago

Strategies for Supporting International Scholars (opinion)

While everyone is subject to their individual situations, for many, the process begins with an F-1 student visa, which they hold as they complete a Ph.D. over five to six years. After graduation, they may choose to transition to Optional Practical Training (OPT), which provides a year of work authorization, with a two-year extension for STEM graduates. Some may then transition to a H-1B temporary work visa, which provides for three years of work authorization and is renewable for another three years.
Higher education
fromThe Atlantic
1 month ago

Words Without Consequence

For the first time, speech has been decoupled from consequence. We now live alongside AI systems that converse knowledgeably and persuasively-deploying claims about the world, explanations, advice, encouragement, apologies, and promises-while bearing no vulnerability for what they say. Millions of people already rely on chatbots powered by large language models, and have integrated these synthetic interlocutors into their personal and professional lives. An LLM's words shape our beliefs, decisions, and actions, yet no speaker stands behind them.
Philosophy
fromPsychology Today
1 month ago

Are There Linguistic Conspiracy Theories?

The term "conspiracy theory" calls to mind a variety of dubious claims and controversies, like rumors about Area 51, claims that the Earth is flat, and the movement known as QAnon. At first blush, these phenomena would seem to have little in common with bogus word origins. But there are a variety of false etymologies that spread virally and refuse to go away, in much the same way that stories about chemtrails, black helicopters, and UFOs refuse to die.
Writing
World news
fromPrx
1 month ago

The World

Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years; Milan Cortina bans PFAS ski wax; Sanae Takaichi won snap election; Albania reviews 45 years of Hoxha films.
fromComputerworld
1 month ago

T-Mobile offers a reason to call, not text: simultaneous translation

"By bringing real-time AI directly into our network, we're delivering more than connectivity - turning conversations into community, starting with Live Translation," T-Mobile CEO Srini Gopalan said in a news release about the service. Subscribers will be able to dial *87* to turn on the new service, which will then translate their conversation in real time. Only one party to the call needs to be on the T-Mobile network.
Tech industry
Artificial intelligence
fromeLearning Industry
1 month ago

The Promise Of Personalized AI Education In A Country With Many Cultures

AI-driven learning platforms personalize instruction in Indian schools by analyzing student interactions to provide individualized support and expand equitable access to tailored education.
Online learning
fromTechCrunch
2 months ago

Language learning marketplace Preply's unicorn status embodies Ukrainian resilience | TechCrunch

Preply is valued at $1.2 billion after a $150 million Series D, EBITDA profitable, integrating AI to support 100,000 tutors while maintaining human-led instruction.
France news
fromThe Local France
2 months ago

Your views: 'How can you be allowed to become French without speaking the language'

Long-term residents perceive a double standard as celebrities receive expedited French citizenship while ordinary contributors face lengthy naturalisation barriers.
fromHarvard Business Review
1 month ago

"People Need Unifying Messages"

In this issue of the HBR Executive Agenda, editor at large Adi Ignatius talks to Harvard Business School professor Ranjay Gulati about how leaders can act with clarity amid rising social tension and rapid technological change.
Business
Psychology
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

I see sounds as shapes. Synaesthesia has given me an extraordinary ability for languages

Auditory-visual synaesthesia produces vivid visual imagery from sound, facilitating exceptional language learning but complicating everyday tasks like driving with loud music.
Artificial intelligence
fromEngadget
2 months ago

OpenAI quietly rolls out a dedicated ChatGPT translation tool

OpenAI offers ChatGPT Translate, a web-based translator that rewrites translations for tone and context but currently lacks offline, image upload, and real-time conversation support.
Business
fromFast Company
1 month ago

Navigating the ghosts of cultures past

Organizational culture constantly changes; leaders must discern which legacy cultural elements to retain and which to remove while balancing enduring beliefs with adaptive practices.
Artificial intelligence
fromInfoQ
2 months ago

Google Introduces TranslateGemma Open Models for Multilingual Translation

TranslateGemma is an open suite of 4B, 12B, and 27B translation models delivering efficient machine translation across 55 languages for diverse hardware.
fromwww.dw.com
1 month ago

How Philippines' schools embraced German language

A German lesson is starting in a public-school classroom in the Philippines, and it opens with a greeting: "Guten Morgen," the teacher says. Students respond carefully, shaping unfamiliar sounds before moving on to short dialogues about directions, food, family, and eventually, culture. German has a reputation of being a difficult language to learn, but this also makes it a valuable assetImage: Stanley Gajete/DW In a Philippine public school, that routine still feels unusual.
Education
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 month ago

Spanish is clearly now the world's coolest language. So why do we push British children to learn French? | Gary Nunn

Now, Gary, repeat after me: Quiero una margarita, por favor, my Spanish tutor instructs. I cringe at the butchered Spanglish my estuary accent produces. Like Del Boy Trotter ordering a cocktail: Key yeah row oon margari'a, pour far four. It's 2023, I'm 41, living in Argentina and battling the frustration and disempowerment of learning a new language at this age, longing for my elastic 11-year-old brain over this husked-out mush.
Education
fromThe Good Life France
1 month ago

Guide to French schools and education for expats - The Good Life France

Education is compulsory in France for children aged between three and 16 years of age. Schools can be public or private and, under certain circumstances, there is the possibility of home-schooling. Some parents moving to France may choose an international school for their children or teenagers, with lessons taught partly in English, sometimes following a UK or American curriculum. We moved to France with children aged 14 and 11 in 2018.
Education
Education
fromSilicon Canals
1 month ago

7 words highly intelligent people use in conversation that average people mispronounce - Silicon Canals

Correct pronunciation of commonly mispronounced words often reflects extensive reading, attention to language, and habitual auditory correction rather than showing off.
[ Load more ]