The Linguist

@Linguist_CIOL What the papers say… 'Children who Grow Up in Bilingual Homes are Better at Shifting Attention and Detecting Visual Changes in Later Life, Study Finds', 22/1/21 'Early bilinguals' – those who learn a second language as an infant or young child – have cognitive advantages over those who learn a second language later… "This study is an exciting extension of our previous research, which suggested that infants raised in bilingual homes adapt to their more complex language environments by switching attention faster and more frequently," said study author Dr Dean D'Souza. '"Shocked by the Uproar": Amanda Gorman's white translator quits', 1/3/21 Dutch publisher Meulenhoff had announced [Marieke Lucas] Rijneveld, winner of the International Booker prize, as the translator of the Joe Biden inaugural poet's forthcoming collection, The Hill We Climb, last week. But the move quickly drew opprobrium. Journalist and activist Janice Deul led critics with a piece in Volkskrant asking why Meulenhoff had not chosen a translator who was, like Gorman, a "spoken-word artist, young, female and unapologetically Black". The latest from the languages world NEWS & EDITORIAL Non-academic language learning in the UK has increased at more than twice the rate as it has in other countries during the pandemic, according to learning providers. Duolingo reported that the number of new users in Britain had increased by 132% since 2019 compared to 67% worldwide; at Babbel there was an 80% growth in registrations from the UK and 50% globally; and Busuu noted that while its overall user base had tripled, its UK users had quadrupled to three million. This has led to a significant increase in language capabilities among British people, according to research from Rosetta Stone. Their annual survey found that the number of adults in the UK who describe themselves as multilingual has gone up from 23% to 28%. The survey also found that 61% of people now think a language should be compulsory APRIL/MAY The Linguist 5 'Iceland Supermarket Director Sacked after "Branding Welsh Language Gibberish"', 17/2/21 He said that in Wales "the supermarket signage" was "incomprehensible" and kids were educated in a "dead language that sounds uncannily like someone with bad catarrh clearing his throat". Pressure had been mounting on the supermarket giant to take action after Mr Hanns's [sic] comments prompted shoppers to say they would be boycotting the company. at GCSE, and that 71% of people who can't speak another language wish they could. There has also been a shift in motivation and attitude towards language learning. Before the pandemic, the main reason respondents gave for wanting to learn a language was overseas travel, but this has changed. As Duolingo's UK Manager Colin Watkins explained: "The UK now sees real value in learning a language for fun, not because they have to. People are learning because of culture, brain training, family and relationships, along with school and travel." At Babbel, Chief Executive Arne Schepker was keen to point out that the perception that Brits are not very good at learning languages is undermined by evidence from the app, with British people progressing at the same rate as users in other countries. The South African government has given new Xhosa names to cities and towns that were previously named after white settlers or otherwise linked to colonisation and apartheid. The names Gqeberha, Ntabozuko and Nqanqarhu have replaced Port Elizabeth, Berlin and Maclear, while other places have also been renamed. Xhosa speakers took to social media to help with the pronounciation of Gqeberha, which starts with a click ('Gqe'). UK languages' lockdown boost NHS highlights language needs South African towns renamed NHS plans to encourage black and Asian people to have the Covid vaccine have highlighted the importance of language services. Healthcare workers are distributing leaflets in 20 languages, including Arabic, Panjabi and Hindi, to counter misinformation. Clinicians have also recorded a series of videos on how to protect yourself from the virus in languages such as Somali, Swahili and Urdu to reach those who do not speak English fluently. © SHUTTERSTOCK

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