I live in multilingualism. At home we speak Italian, with my colleagues I speak English, and in everyday life, in shops, at the doctor’s office or on the bus, the language of communication is Finnish. It is estimated that around 43% of the world’s population are bilingual, and 17% are multilingual, i.e. fluent in more […]
How multilingual plays and narratives can help build peace dialogues Read More »
There are many attitudes and beliefs about languages and their use that we repeat in our everyday lives and that we take to be true or reflective of reality. For example, we may listen to the dialect of a speaker and infer likely personality traits or the region of their origin. However, many of these
On multilingualism and language classification Read More »
In the light of current research, people learn new things throughout their lives. You can practice your language skills like any other skill. It is also known that language skills develop well in everyday interaction. The City of Helsinki has many work communities where multilingualism is commonplace and Finnish or Swedish is learned alongside and
Language skills improve at work – multilingualism as a resource in work communities Read More »
We are used to thinking of literature as words on a page. This perception is changing because of audiobooks, which were originally created for the needs of the visually impaired. Nowadays, audiobooks are a big business – with stunningly poor compensation for the author – but that’s not why we’re here today. Instead, let’s talk
Sign language expands our understanding of literature Read More »
Tämä artikkeli on luettavissa myös suomeksi: Laitilan kuukauden kieli vuonna 2024 A training session at the Multilingual Library, which covered topics such as the Multilingual Month (Satakielikuukausi), made me reflect on the people living in Laitila whose native language is something other than Finnish. I began to think that even many locals might not be
Laitila’s Language of the Month in 2024 Read More »
I now live a foreign country and attend a school where I don’t speak the language as an exchange student. I learn and forget increasingly confounding words on a daily basis. In a new language environment, surrounded by new people, I focus on being as outwardly approachable as possible to understand and be understood. In
Windows and doors into language barriers – on the accessibility of language in theatre Read More »
by Arlene Tucker. Stories are like a volcano bursting with multisensory and multidimensional elements. I love telling them, hearing them, reading them, passing them on, seeing them form in my mind, feeling how I react as the ideas flow into different parts of my body. There’s something very magical and transformational that happens with story
Nordic and especially Finnish culture is known for punctuality and organisation. It is widely appreciated to be at places on time and things are mostly taken literally. A lot of Finns are fortunate enough to foster the art of preciseness through high quality education. This also means a possibility to learn new languages. Sometimes it
Multilingual reality and reorganisation: Going beyond your comfort zone Read More »
The Finnish Reading Centre asked daycare centres about their experiences, challenges and needs in a multilingual operating environment. The very large number of responses – from 370 daycare centres around Finland – indicates that daycare professionals are clearly willing to express their needs and ideas to support multilingual literacy at daycare centres. Finland is becoming
Multilingual literacy needs diverse support Read More »
Contemporary plays originally written in languages other than English are rarely performed in Finnish theatres. Theatre statistics show that, in the past ten years, plays written in other languages only accounted for 12–15 per cent of the total before the pandemic. Finnish plays have played a strong role in the theatre in the 21st century,
How to bring the world to stage? Read More »
