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1. A national recovery programme for languages

Author:
Nia Griffith, Baroness Coussins, David Amess, Tonia Antoniazzi, Lord Dykes, and Baroness Garden of Frognal
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:
The case for languages is compelling and urgent. The UK’s languages deficit is holding us back economically, socially and culturally. But the UK is in a languages crisis. The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Modern Languages calls on Government, civil society and all stakeholders to act now, to reverse this national crisis.
Topic:
Politics, European Union, Constitution, Economy, Language, and Society
Political Geography:
United Kingdom and Europe

2. K-pop Fans’ Reaction Videos and Their Implications for Korean Language Learning

Author:
Soojin Ahn
Publication Date:
10-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
International Journal of Korean Studies
Institution:
International Council on Korean Studies
Abstract:
As social media platforms such as YouTube have become important access points for Korean popular music (K-pop), international fans have enjoyed recording and sharing their responses to K-pop music videos on social media. In particular, reaction videos have been the most convenient and popular way for many international fans to share their opinions on and reactions to K-pop songs with others. This study aims to investigate the unique characteristics of reaction videos to share K-pop fans’ cultural experiences through YouTube videos and discuss the potential use of such fans’ learner motivation and learning environment for Korean language education. Four YouTube reaction videos were investigated through thematic analysis and through a discourse analysis informed by interactional sociolinguistics. The findings show how the reaction video creators build a community with other fans by establishing familiarity through agreement, considering the audience, and exchanging information, not only about a specific song, but also about K-pop in general and Korean Wave genres. These creators also demonstrated multiliteracies by expressing their opinions and feelings through facial expressions, visuals, and dance. These creators make their reaction videos regularly, proving their long-term enthusiasm for K-pop and the Korean Wave. This research offers important implications for future Korean language education, which will embrace diverse groups of international learners who actively participate in K-pop fan activities online.
Topic:
Culture, Social Media, Language, Music, and YouTube
Political Geography:
Europe, Asia, South Korea, Korea, and United States of America

3. Hebrew and Polish: Mutual Influences and Their Contribution in Creating a Polish Criminals’ Jargon

Author:
Adam Adamczyk
Publication Date:
01-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
In this paper I wish to present the complexity of Jewish-Polish relations from the 19th century until the interwar period, with emphasis on sociolinguistic issues. I will illus- trate the circumstances of the contact between the Polish and Hebrew languages. Poles and Jews, who lived side by side, developed successful relationships, but mainly in the criminal underworld. That was reflected in a sociolect – a dialect of criminals that constituted a mix- ture of Polish, Yiddish, Russian, and several other languages, including quite a few Hebrew words, which with time adopted new meanings. Moreover, I will provide some examples of Hebrew words used in Polish criminal jargon, as well as those which have been coined in every-day Polish. Then I will refer to some Hebrew words that are not connected with a world of crime and are still in use in spoken Polish.
Topic:
Crime, Government, Religion, and Language
Political Geography:
Europe, Eastern Europe, Poland, and Central Europe

4. Choice of Language and the Quest for Israeli Identity in the Works of Tuvia Ruebner and Aharon Appelfeld

Author:
Michal Ben-Horin
Publication Date:
01-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
Immigration highlights the question of language and raises the dilemma of the relationship between the mother tongue and the language of the new land. For writers this question is even more crucial: should they write in the language of the place and its readers? Immigration to Israel is not exceptional, of course. What choices are open to those writers, and how are they to convey the complexities inherent in the formation of an Israeli identity? This paper focuses on two writers who demonstrate the role played by the “chosen language” in the cultural construction and deconstruction of Israeli identity. Tuvia Ruebner emigrated from Bratislava, Aharon Appelfeld from Bukovina. Ruebner shifted from German to Hebrew and back to German; Appelfeld wrote only in Hebrew. In both cases, their arrival in Israel en- abled them to survive. However, the loss of their families in Europe continued to haunt them. Inspired by Walter Benjamin’s concept of ‘translation’ and responding to Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s concept of ‘minor literature’, the paper shows how their work conveys a mul- tilayered interrelation between national and foreign languages, and between images of exile and homeland, past, present and future – all of which shed light on contemporary issues of Israeli identity.
Topic:
Nationalism, Immigration, Culture, Displacement, Language, and Identity
Political Geography:
Europe, Middle East, and Israel