One Year of Language Love!

Today exactly one year ago, I started Language Love to create a blog where I could freely talk about that topic I love most--languages. I hoped that I might gain some readers who would enjoy what I write, but never would I have thought it possible to achieve this much. My pageviews per month have soared to heights I had never imagined possible for my little blog, and yet, it happened. This tells me one thing above all else:

I have awesome readers!!!

All of you who have shared your experience with us in guest posts, or who have regularly read this blog, have made this huge success possible. I want to thank you for your readership and your loyalty. You really make me feel special and make me smile whenever I have a look at my page view statistics or receive a comment, either on this blog or via email or other ways, since I know I am read, and people enjoy my blog.

As soon as my current situation allows me some time to breathe, I want to go through all these blog posts and comments I have received so far, and want to compile a "Best Of", so stay tuned for that.

As for now, all that needs to be said:

THANK YOU!!!

Default Language

Did you know that your mind operates in a default language, and that this language can change? I noticed it when I travelled to the United States. My mind, usually operating in German, switched over to English as default language, to that extend that I had a hard time expressing everyday things in German since the English expression came to my mind first, and I literally needed to translate it before speaking. Although there were still situations where I suddenly talked German to someone who didn't know German, usually right after waking up whenever my last dream had been in German, English became my mind's number one language to turn to.

Even after a few days back in Germany, I still notice that my mind wants to give me the English version of a sentence first, and then reluctantly translates it for me. It went so far that I told my dad something in English, and realised it after the fact...or that I want to say something, and an English word or two slips out in between, and I have to pause and think about it before starting the sentence anew completely in German.

Since I know my mind can reset its default language to the more prevalent language, I'm just waiting for it to happen again; however, I'm curious to see how long it will take me this time. It happened pretty fast when I switched from German to English at the beginning of my stay.

Even the notes I take are mostly in English (usually, they are a wild mix of both languages). I still write dates the American way (month/day/year), which may well cause irritation and confusion among other Germans, so I really try to remind myself to use the German layout whenever I date something others might have to read. It's really weird right now, but I guess that's what you get for being bilingual and travelling between two countries....

Have you had similar, or completely different, experiences? I would love to hear all about it! You can use the comments function, or if you like, you can send me an email and maybe we can set you up for a guest blog post with your opinion.

Travelling and Stuff

First of all: I am very sorry that I didn't write this post yesterday, as I should have!

Please let me explain the reasons:

I had planned on writing and scheduling this week's blog posts on the weekend. However, on Saturday, I got news which required me to fly back to Germany on Sunday--with less than 24 hours notice! By the time I arrived at the airport in Düsseldorf, Germany, on Monday morning, I had already been up for over 32 hours, and travelling for over 20 hours. I then took the train--or should I say trains--to northern Germany, which took about 9 hours and required me to change trains 5 (in words: five!) times. In the morning when I bought the ticket, I joked about that fact and called it a "city trip", but by the time I finally arrived at the final station, I was simply glad it was over. I read through two thirds of a book during the day, simply to keep myself from falling asleep. (The book is really great, though, and I intended to read it anyway!)

After over 30 hours of travelling and almost two full days without sleep, you will forgive me that I did not plug in my laptop and write Monday's post in time but went straight to bed instead.

Here's a huge thankyou to the stewardesses on my flight who managed to make it an agreeable flight, although the circumstances that led to my travelling were less than agreeable. They were really nice and went out of their way to make me feel better; they were my Advent angels.

I will resume my regular posting schedule tomorrow with my take on how our minds seem to be set in a default language, and are able to switch this default language.

My Two Cents ... XXVII

Today's phrase is

"in the nick of time"

What does it mean?

If something happens in the nick of time, it happens in exactly the right moment.

Where does it come from?

Apparently, "nick" in this phrase means a notch which was used as a marker in former centuries; thus, something that is "in the nick" is exactly where it should be. The oldest record of this phrase is from the 1640s, although the meaning seems to be several decades older.

My two cents:

I like this phrase a lot better than the more common phrase "just in time", which has a similar meaning. This is definitely another phrase which will be saved in my memory for future use.

Learning Vocabulary

Whenever you learn a new language, you also need to learn new vocabulary. Whether you learn the second language in school, in evening classes or on your own, the more words you know, the greater your possibilities. But how can you learn new vocabulary the most effectively?

Cluster Learning
New words stick best if you learn them in connection to something. For example, make a word cluster with words that have to do with holidays, or with school. Then, learn the whole cluster.

Three Times Ten
Instead of learning new words for a long period of time every day, dedicate three times ten minutes per day to new words. The human brain is not able to "save" new input for longer periods of time; instead of remembering everything, it will concentrate on the first and last things you learnt. If, however, you split the time to shorter intervals, your brain can actually save everything more easily.

15 Words
Every time you learn new words, limit the amount of words to about 15 and repeat those 15 words a few times in random order.

Rinse and Repeat
New words need some time and several repetitions in order to be saved in your long-term memory. Repeat new words every day for three or four days, and then go over older sets of words every week until you feel you really know them.

Make it a Game
Learning vocabulary can be very tedious. If you manage to make it fun, though, the task doesn't only become more pleasant, the words will also be easier to remember. Try to make the longest word chain (start each new word with the last letter of the previous word) you can think of, or grab some friends who learn the same language and try to come up with words from different categories which start with the same letter (for example nouns, verbs and adjectives which begin with an a).

If you have other tricks to learn new vocabulary, I would appreciate it if you shared them with us. Thanks!

British English versus American English

Since I was taught British English back at school, and am now exposed to American English on a daily basis, I thought I would give you a short breakdown of the basic differences between those two variants of the English language. Actually, this subject came up last week between my boyfriend and me, which is what made me think about it again. So, here is what I remember:

Spelling:

ou versus o
humour/humor, armour/armor, behaviour/behavior

re versus er
centre/center, theatre/theater

l versus ll
fulfil/fulfill, but: fulfilling/fulfilling

sc versus sk
sceptical/skeptical

s versus z
scrutinise/scrutinize, realise/realize

c versus s
licence/license, defence/defense

y versus i/a
tyre/tire, pyjamas/pajamas

ae versus e
paediatrician/pediatrician, encyclopaedia/encyclopedia

Pronunciation:

[a:] versus [ae]
dance, can't

Vocabulary:

pavement/sidewalk
lift/elevator
lorry/truck
marks/grades
tuition/tutoring
flat/apartment
torch/flashlight
jumper/sweater

Can anyone think of other examples? I would love to collect more examples of differences, either in spelling, pronunciation or vocabulary. Simply put your examples int he comments, please! Thanks!

My Two Cents ... XXVI

This week, we'll have a look at an idiom I came across in a Youtube video:

"fill yer boots"

What does it mean?

It is used in the sense of "go ahead" or "help yourself".

Where does it come from?

I found two possible origins of this phrase, both of which date some centuries back in English history.

The first possible origin claims that this idiom comes from the English sailors who had a leather cup called a "boot" and who were told to "Fill yer boot!" when things were good and they could go ahead and get another rum ration. This meaning is first mentioned in a book published in 1818.

The other possible origin claims it goes back even further, back into the 17th century. In that time, cavaliers used to drink and, according to the source, just peed into their boots instead of getting up, thus the meaning of "go ahead, just do it".

My two cents:
I definitely like the story about the sailors better, and I tend to believe that one since I found a book quote supporting this origin. However, it might be possible that the phrase was first used during cavalier times and later adapted by sailors.