Post #8

 Words that are difficult to use

Today, I've decided that we're going to talk about Goodbyes. I can start writing how the word is translated in each language to fit this blog, or I could just keep doing what I am trying to do. If you follow along here, dear readers, you will notice that my selected choice was the latter.

I have a question for you, have you realized the power of the word goodbye?

We can use it daily, as we can use it in situations that completely change our lives. Situations that hurt us, situations that make us angry, situations where we feel nothing, and situations where we say it with a smile. Maybe I've used the word situations in this line too often, but that word is so flexible. You can say goodbye to a friend you just spent a pleasant evening with, but in a second, you have to say goodbye to someone you don't want to say goodbye to, but life gave you no choice.

Some goodbyes are more meaningful than others, but if you think about it more deeply, they are still goodbyes. But something I want to highlight today is that, just as we say goodbye, we should say thank you. Sometimes, we have so much on our minds that we normalize our lives. We normalize breathing without help, we normalize walking, and we normalize seeing the people around us. Did you know that in Japanese there is a phrase of thanks "arigatakimono" "arigataku" which alludes to what "is not easy to possess". Sometimes it is hard to say, thank you, there are days when I have more pessimism than personality in my being. However, with time I realize that even the moments that made me sad, shaped me. They became part of me and who I am. They taught me, and they become part of the mosaic of memories that make me smile when I go back in time. And I am thankful, because I got through it, because I moved on because I grew.

I must admit that it became more sentimental than I expected, but if anyone is reading this and read what I've written before. Thank you, time is a resource that you can't get back. Now, if you think that, on the contrary, it was a waste of time, thank me, I taught you that sometimes in life you lose and you win. I have one last question for you, did you know that the word goodbye comes from "I commend you to God"? Religion is a very delicate subject to touch on, but the intention conveyed by those words is that they wish you well. Goodbye.

Post #7

If the Amazon River were included in the linguistic world, it would be the Khmer alphabet.

Today We will begin by remembering the somewhat peculiar languages that we have known so far, among all those languages. The Pirahã always comes to light before my eyes. This time, I remember it because it had 11 letters in its alphabet. For me, a native speaker of Spanish, which has 27 letters in its alphabet, it was something very curious. Now, dear readers, you may wonder why I am mentioning this.... well

What would you think of an alphabet of 74 letters, of which 32 are vowels?

Let's move to Asia, specifically Cambodia, which has Khmer as its official language. Do you remember the language of Yoga that we saw a few weeks ago? Sanskrit has influenced this language. Which, despite its intimidating alphabet, some may believe is even easier to learn or use than Spanish. This is alleged because this language has no verb tenses, no gender, no number, and no articles in its grammar. Khmer is the oldest recorded language. 

Regional differences are small and generally mutually understandable. Based on the dialect of the capital, Phnom Penh, modern Khmer is used throughout the country and is widely understood by residents. Much of the Khmer vocabulary used in literature, the military, and administration is borrowed from Sanskrit or Pali. Due to the French colonial rule of the year, many French words have been transposed into the language as well.

How do you feel about the fact that this language contains what is considered to be the longest alphabet in the world? Do you find it easy? I certainly still find it intimidating. 

Post #6

 What language is spoken in all countries and yet in none of them?

It sounds like a riddle to which, I don't know about you, but I didn't have the answer. Today we are going to meet the so-called spy language, Esperanto.

A planned language that has been growing year after year. 

While I was learning about Esperanto, which is the most spoken artificial language. I found it curious that it was created by a Polish ophthalmologist. "Nothing personal". He called the language at first <<universal language>> because it was expected to be, then he changed the name. The alphabet used by this language resembles the Latin alphabet but includes 6 letters with diacritical accents (ĉ, ĝ, ĥ, ĵ, ŝ, and ŭ). Moreover, the letters 'Ñ', 'Q', 'W', 'X', and 'Y' disappears from common nouns. It has 16 grammatical rules without exceptions to any kind and a very accessible conjugation system (verb tenses do not change according to person or number, and there are no irregulars). 

Now, while I was reading, I had a question, Does Esperanto give me hope for a better future? Because I feel that the name rings a bell because of the translator. Which for me means that it is known and important. "I have to be honest at this point, in Spanish I like this question better since Esperanto and Esperanza sound similar -don't blame me sometimes it makes me laugh too easily-" Well, the answer is no "for me, you can be masters of your own ways", it is the most spoken planned language, but it still doesn't fulfill its purpose of being the universal one. So, I think there are more practical languages to learn, however, it is still an interesting language that is acquiring more speakers every day. If you find it interesting, do it, create your own path and your own opinion.

Do you think you are capable of inventing a language? Once, when I was a child, I tried and wrote nonsense words. I thought it was the best investment of my time, I forgot the words and where I had written them. That was the end of my planned language, which never saw the light of day. 

How about you? Tell me about it in the comments.

Post #5

 The last of us is not just a tv series

So far, we have gone far away from Ecuador. But what if there is such a curious language nearby? 

Let's talk about Taushiro, a language that only one person is known to speak fluently. In Peru, near the border of Ecuador on the banks of the Aucayacu River. There is a community with the same name that has disappeared. Records have been left by missionaries who arrived in the area. Which mentions that around 3,000 people used the language many years ago. 

Now, due to the mixture of languages, and the cholera epidemic.  The people of this community began to die and to find it necessary to stop being monolingual. The people who spoke the original language of this community were reduced over the years until only Amadeo García García remained. He still identifies himself as Taushiro, belonging to the community and using the language.

Don Amadeo lucidly recounts many details in different studies of how his community gradually disappeared.

In fact, one of these writings identifies him as a co-translator and corrector of the research materials. Amadeo still preserves his customs, he dedicates himself to the weaving of the leaves, then sells the product.

Everyone in the village knows his skill and orders large quantities from him. He goes into the forest for several days until he collects the requested amount; he also lives from the sale of some of the products he collects, such as the fish he catches, etc.

What do you think about this story? I think it is a little sad, I feel that he was left living alone in the past, not even his children remember his language or his customs. It reminds me of the Pirahã who on the contrary decided to live only in the present.  

Why choose if we can have both? To move forward and learn from the advanced.

Post #4

 What do you mean, namaste does not refer to tea?

With your attention, or lack thereof. My dear reader, I will ask you two questions:

- Have you ever practiced Yoga?                                   - Do you know any words in Sanskrit?

Let me introduce you to the language of Yoga, which is actually called Sanskrit. If you have ever even practiced yoga, you must have heard some terms in this language, but did you know about its origin?

Sanskrit, originating in India, is considered the original language of yoga. It is one of the 22 official languages of that country. With its millinery origin, we can attribute the development of several aspects of human life. We have religious, philosophical, and cultural contributions.

Something curious about this language is that in English dictionaries we find the words and their meanings. In their dictionaries we will find the roots of the words, that is to say, the words from their origin.   The alphabet has 33 consonants classified according to the point of occlusion or articulation, 14 vowel sounds distinguished between long, short, and diphthongs, and 4 semi-consonants.

Learning Sanskrit allows you to overcome language barriers and receive the teachings directly from the texts. It is a bridge to understanding the richness of Indian traditions and their diverse manifestations. That means many students repeat the mantras and Sanskrit words as they can, without knowing the importance of the sound, the correct pronunciation, or their meanings. There are even those who teach them without sufficient preparation. On the other hand, there are very few people who have professional training in Sanskrit, as well as an interest in sharing their knowledge.

That said, Sanskrit is more present today than we think. Most likely you have heard at least once one of these words: yoga, namaste, asanas, or chakras. Or perhaps: guru, karma, avatar, or nirvana. As you can see, you don't have to go far to find some words from the Sanskrit language in your daily life.

Did you know about this? if we know these words can we say we know Sanskrit? let me know in the comments.

POST #3

The click is not just a sound produced by the mouse?

Have you ever heard someone making sounds while speaking?

I do not mean the utterance of words per se. I am referring to clicks of the tongue between one word and another, clicks within sentences. If it is something new for you, WELCOME. We have several languages of clicks. All of them developed on the African continent, in which the clicks fulfill their function as consonants in any language. Let's get to know the Xhosa language.

Xhosa has important roots as a tribe and is one of the official languages of Africa. It should be noted that the fact that it is an official language does not mean that it has the largest number of speakers. The advantage that speaking this language in the country can provide is that it will give some advantages in some areas. Those involved in fields such as various genres of literature and film. South Africa is also known for its incredible cuisine, which refers to high-quality wines.

In this language, the tone in which it is pronounced is important because otherwise, the words can be confusing as it is a tonal language. The sounds produced by the tongue and palate can be related to the noises normally made to stimulate horses (if we are looking for a reference). In fact, if you are reading Xhosa without clicking on the beginning of this word, I'm telling you we did it wrong. This language processing alphabet is quite familiar to Spanish speakers, the Latin alphabet. However, the main influence on the Xhosa language comes from the media, with English and Afrikaans being two of the main languages from which the Xhosa language is derived. There are three types of clicks used in this language: "c "for dental clicks, "x" for lateral ones, and "q" for postalveolar one

What do you think about clicking while talking? Did you know about this language before?

Post #2

Happiness has a Language 

This week we will start with some questions for you, What makes languages peculiar? How about a language without numbers, colors, and verb tenses? Do you think such a language is possible?  At first, it may be hard to imagine, and the answer may be a resounding "NO" or maybe some of you know the answer. For those who, like me, doubted it, the answer is that yes, there is a language with several peculiarities. For us, speakers with an established and well-defined structure would be a "rare" language and it will definitely be a language without such a specific structure as ours. Let's get to know "Pirahã" a little better. Let's get to know "Pirahã" a little better.

Pirahã is the name given to the tribe and the language, however, among themselves the name they call themselves is HÍATIIHI / XAPAITÍISO. In this language, we have several particularities. They emit words and also sounds, such as moans to tell secrets or whistles when they hunt and do not want to be detected. In their alphabet, they have only eleven letters, which consist of eight consonants and three vowels. This is an isolated language since it has no connection to any current language. Many very similar words can have completely different meanings, depending on the intonation. It is not considered an endangered language since it is their only language.

In their language, they do not have numbers. For colors, they only say them with references such as the unripe fruit, which for us would mean a "green" color. Nor verb tenses. They do not have cardinal points, since this aspect is also handled with references. Something that I consider curious is their family circle. Which does not have uncles, cousins, or grandparents, they do not exist as terms in the language nor as family, making the possibility of marrying any of the tribe more extensive. Since their close circles such as siblings, children, father, and mother are the only members identified as family members.

Having mentioned those particularities, this is the part where the title makes sense. They are known as the happiest people in the world, and it was found that most of the time they walk around with smiles on their faces. As they have no worries whatsoever. They are not thinking about what the future holds and are not tormented by the past. That means they live entirely in the present, and that's why they don't count words that identify those times. They are also not interested in money and the amount of it, the only two words they need are few and many. Luxuries, and technologies, do not occupy space in their minds. They have a lot of knowledge about the wildlife that surrounds them, so it is the only thing they need and serves them.

Is it a language that can be considered peculiar? What did you think of their philosophy of life? Would we be happy if we forgot everything?

The documentary film "Grammar of happiness" By Daniel Everett

If you found it interesting, you can learn more about them in this documentary.