When Alban Michael passed away earlier this year at the ripe young age of 89, the occasion really marked two deaths. You see, Mr. Michael was the last surviving speaker of the Nuchatlaht language once spoken by his Native American ancestors of the Pacific Northwest. His death also marked the quiet end of yet another language that has died out over the millennia of human existence.
If you’re a regular reader of our newsletters and blogs, you know we like to share examples of the unique and rich languages that exist around the world. Many times a word or expression in one language doesn’t translate exactly into another one, but they reflect universal emotions or experiences. Below…
For most of us, the Summer Solstice – the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere — is just another day. We don’t really notice that the day is, in fact, roughly 3 seconds longer than the day before.
For the record, those along the parallel of, say, New York City enjoy a 15-hour-and-five-minute day on June 21st, with twilight officially ending at 9:04 p.m. Much better than the abbreviated 9-hour-and-15-minute day we suffer through in December on the Winter Solstice.
Although most of us don’t celebrate those extra couple of seconds of daylight, there have been plenty of celebrations and festivities to mark the Summer Solstice over the centuries, some of which carry over today. Here are a few interesting ones we wanted to share:
When you think of Easter, do you think of a giant omelet made with 4,500 eggs? Or sprinkling perfume on someone’s head in exchange for a kiss?
Did you know the very first Passover was celebrated in Egypt more than 3,300 years ago or that the world’s largest Passover seder is held yearly in Nepal?
Just like diverse cultures themselves, for all we think we know about these two holidays, there is always more to learn.
In our desire to send warm wishes to our friends celebrating Easter and Passover all around the world, we wanted to share some fun and interesting facts you may not already know. For example:
We live in an interconnected world. Lightning-fast communication and modern modes of transportation mean that our interconnectedness will only increase. Of course, some isolated areas will remain, but they will grow smaller and smaller with time. Any industry that wants to expand internationally (or reach new domestic markets) will have…
Your company may be performing well locally, but to continue to thrive you need to expand your base-to go global and reach potential customers in all corners of the world. Before wading into the international business market you are going to have to translate all your products, product information, website…
There are a handful of global app storefronts, however, the majority of mobile app developers create and publish in their native language. Irrespective of language, the burden on localization falls on the developers themselves and they need to be aware of many issues when dealing with the localization challenge. The…
The Kentucky Derby has a long and rich history. In 1882, Col. Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr., grandson of William Clark (explorer) of the Lewis and Clark expedition, traveled to England and visited the Derby, a famous race that had been running annually since 1780. From there, Clark moved to Paris,…
“We live in a global economy.” How often have you heard that said? In today’s world this is a cliché that has become a reality. In such a global atmosphere businesses need to reach the widest possible audience or risk missing out on a large number of potential clients. Many…
Esperanto is the international language created by Dr. Ludwik Zamenhof from Poland. The goal of Esperanto was to allow all people to communicate with one another. Dr. Zamenhof published the first brochure about the Esperanto language in 1887. Esperanto, which means “he who has hope”, was thus born. Since its…