In part one of this series, I introduced you to constructed languages (conlang) and in part two, planned languages. Now I’ll conclude with languages games, also called ludling in English: In a playful way, children, but also adults change an existing language according to predefined rules. The result is a kind of secret language that…
In the first part of this short series on artistic languages we focussed on constructed languages (conlangs). Planned languages, previously also called international auxiliary languages, represent another large section. Their history goes back to the seventeenth century when scholars and philosophers, such as Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, developed so-called a priori languages. These were strictly logical…
Part 1: Extra-terrestrial and indigenous peoples All languages that are not natural languages – in other words, they have not developed historically and are spoken (or expressed in gestures) by people – are known in linguistics as artificial languages or constructed languages. This includes planned languages such as Esperanto, fictional languages such as Klingon from…
We talked about culture shock, here other examples:
The phenomenon of culture shock is seldom dealt with directly. In scientific literature, it is relegated to intercultural studies. In popular scientific literature, there are experts such as Chen (see below) who always have difficulty describing a culture without sounding cliché. The risk of doing so is normal and cannot be avoided. However, those who…
What is culture shock? A summary Culture shock is the result of the confrontation with a culture that is different from our own, so that a person falls into some kind of “shock.” Shock may be the wrong word. We are confused because rules we had known may no longer apply, and we do not…
After years abroad I returned to my home country. “Finally!” May be one thought. But on the other hand, “What a pity I couldn’t stay in my host country longer!” Upon arrival, I’m met with a rude awakening: The country I returned to is not the country I left! Everything is different! People speak my…
One of the main sources of culture shock – or, as we like to call it, cultural annoyance – is mis-perception. Even though I may think that I know and understand a lot about the culture I’m living in, when something goes wrong, I find myself caught off-guard. I feel disoriented, helpless, out of place.…
For five weeks now we’ve been back in Aix in France in a conference centre. We’re chipping in with all sorts of practical jobs to help polish our French. If we thought we knew France before, we were mistaken: only now we are getting to know it for real. For here we are totally immersed…
I know I am going to stay in a foreign country for longer. I know what to roughly expect. I am excited and happy but also nervous. That is normal. But, how do I prepare myself for the inevitable culture shock? How do I stop any emotional irritation? Do I do a lot of reading…