Neal Hocking Language Services

Ever wondered where the English words for colours originated? There are certainly some interesting etymologies in this chart!

Some of the typefaces (fonts) we use frequently in programmes such as Microsoft Word have quite interesting origins.

More etymology - this time, it's punctuation that we use in English! I can't say I have ever had the need to use the word 'pilcrow', nor would I use 'period' (as a Brit), but there is some interesting info here on where we get these words from!

A little information on what those little marks and lines on letters in a number of languages are!

'The History of English Podcast' goes into this in some detail in one of their early episodes (Episode 5, I believe), but this is a nice visual representation that I found online of how so many modern languages are tied together due to their shared PIE heritage. If you learn a little bit of a small number of languages, even if you only cover the very basics, you really start to see how languages can weave together, and the language-learning process becomes all the more rewarding as a result!

Having another crack at beginner's Chinese through an audio course - here's my vocabulary list so far! This, of course, has nothing to do with the fact that I'll be teaching Chinese students all summer for Durham University and they'll no doubt be saying lots of interesting things to each other in their L1! :D

Solution: get in contact and practise in a comfortable, safe, and enjoyable online lesson! https://nhlanguageservices.com/tutoring/

This is Mariana, who lives in Argentina and has just started her second 10-hour course with me! Recently, we have worked on various aspects of English such as delivering an online presentation in a professional context, improving upper-intermediate grammatical structures and vocabulary, and various aspects of pronunciation and fluency. If you are interested in taking a similar journey to Mariana, you can find out more here! https://nhlanguageservices.com/tutoring/

I remember first making the connection between the root of the word 'vaccine' and cows whilst living in Portugal for the first time, where ordering beef in a restaurant would require one to ask for 'carne de vaca'. Much of English's medical language derives from Latin (and is thus very similar in Portuguese, Spanish, etc.), although it's only in words like 'vaccine' and 'quarantine' where we see some particularly interesting etymologies! (For those unaware, quarantine derives from the Italian word for 'forty' ('quaranta'), signifying the forty days that ships would need to spend in port at Venice in order to prevent plague-like diseases from being spread across cities.)

Map source: https://mapologies.wordpress.com/

Reaching the next level when learning a language can feel like an impossible task, but taking smaller steps such as learning five new words or phrases every day, watching one foreign film a week (with subtitles of course!), or scheduling a one-hour chat in the target language can be both rewarding and productive! After all, when you switch to climbing that ladder with shorter steps for one year, those smaller steps will have given you a vocabulary with 1,500+ new words, a far broader passive comprehension of accents and phonetic systems, better contextual connections between words and phrases, and a vital reinforcement of words that need to be heard or used a few times before they become a part of your long-term memory.

Language students have all kinds of motivations and reasons to learn, but perhaps the sheer enjoyment of feeling a language develop in your mind is the best thing about learning a language? For me, it always feels great to drop a new word into a conversation when speaking a new language whilst living abroad. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

There are many wonderful things about learning a new language!
But what do you think is the best thing about learning English?
Let’s talk!

Some Monday revision of German adverbs taking the dative case! :D

New York City is a wonderful place to visit. It only became known as New York, however, when the English took over the city in 1664 (naming it after the then Duke of York). Before that, it was known as New Amsterdam, and a huge linguistic connection with the earlier Dutch language can still be seen all over the city today in hundreds of places.

For instance, Harlem quite simply takes its name from the city of 'Haarlem' in the Netherlands, and Brooklyn similarly comes from 'Breukelen' in Utrecht. Elsewhere, Bowery derives from 'bouwerij', meaning 'farm' in older Dutch, some claim that Broadway is a literal translation of 'Breede Weg', and it is argued that Wall Street is named after a boundary that surrounded parts of what was New Amsterdam.

The Bronx is named after Jonas Bronck, who established the area as a part of the New Netherland colony, and Greenwich Village comes from 'Groenwijck', which is Dutch for 'Green District', although it was actually known as 'Noortwyck' ('Northern District') before 1664!

New York is such an incredible place beyond mere linguistics, of course, but I found this quick research session on Dutch and NYC quite interesting! If you would like to read more about my actual travels in New York for Christmas 2018, you can find plenty of photos and details on my personal blog here: https://amirrorofmind.com/2019/01/13/walking-in-new-york-city-five-very-full-days-overview/

A Friday language trivia teaser!

What is the Japanese word for apple? Is it:
a) Devgrol
b) Ringo
c) Kithmun
d) Ryoja Teila

Will comment with the answer later (or you could just Google it, but that would be far less fun)!

A lovely idea! https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/07/french-senior-citizens-link-up-with-language-students-in-lockdown

French senior citizens link up with language students in lockdown ShareAmi scheme aims to combat the isolation felt by many older people during the pandemic

Learning the numbers 0-10 is always an early challenge when taking on a new language, but things can get more complicated when learning numbers between 11-20. This map shows how languages differ from one another, how common patterns can be seen across some European languages, and why it can be easy to mix your dreizehns, your trezes, and your 'тринадцать's! Living in Italy, getting it right in Italian was a particularly funny one with that little switcheroo at 17!

Quite an effective representation of a range of 'geography' vocabulary - you might need to dive into a good dictionary in order to properly learn and use some of these terms, though!

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INTRODUCING A NEW SERVICE... CELTA TEACHER TRAINING!

Over the years, I have taken great pleasure in helping friends and former colleagues who have taken the plunge and decided to become a TEFL teacher. Whether face-to-face or over messaging services, I have had various extensive chats about grammar, teaching methodologies, and the general principles required to become a teacher and, ultimately, take a Cambridge CELTA course so as to become fully qualified.

Therefore, I am formally starting up a CELTA coaching service for budding teachers who aim to gain a CELTA qualification. From personal experience, I know it can be a daunting process when entering the field for the first time, with a huge amount of theory to tackle, the need to deconstruct and demonstrate knowledge of the English language in order to clearly communicate it to learners, and various other elements through the course.

As it can be quite overwhelming, I am offering both more intensive coaching sessions via online video services and a text chat option, where candidates can receive expert advice and assistance over longer periods of time via shorter, far more frequent exchanges of messages. I hope these services will ultimately help a lot of people out in the years to come, and would be delighted to hear from anyone considering becoming a teacher, taking the CELTA, and unlocking the incredible travel and professional opportunities it can offer!

Some interesting pieces of information about modern computer language here. I would also add Bluetooth to this as its etymology is quite interesting; namely, that its name comes from Harold 'Bluetooth', a 10th-century king of Denmark, and its logo is a combination of the runes Hagall (ᚼ) and Bjarkan (ᛒ), which were his initials. This also reminds us of Bluetooth's Scandinavian origins.

This is nice - a representation of how it can feel to learn a language.

Some language / technology news from close to home! https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jan/27/facebook-apologises-flagging-plymouth-hoe-offensive-term

Facebook apologises for flagging Plymouth Hoe as offensive term Social media site mistakenly labels posts referring to the seafaring landmark in Devon as misogynistic

A lovely review I received earlier today from Pamela (thank you so much!), one of my current online students who comes from Bolivia! At the moment, we are working through a B1 Grammar/Conversation course together, mainly concentrating on intermediate grammar and more advanced pronunciation in our classes. If you think you would also like to take a course with me, send me a message using the button below! Alternatively, if you would like more information on lessons, please visit https://nhlanguageservices.com/tutoring/.

With well over a decade of expert teaching experience, the very best industry-standard English teaching qualifications, years of experience teaching English with the likes of the British Council and Durham University, and years of fantastic feedback from students and employers, your English is guaranteed to improve in an engaging, professional, clear set of lessons.

Learn more here: https://nhlanguageservices.com/tutoring/