This week, we look at the folk art of the Matyó community from north-eastern Hungary, added to the Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2012. Floral motifs feature heavily in the artworks and embroidery associated with this art. It features on the traditional costumes of the region, in interior decoration, and in architecture. The floral motifs are particularly important in the traditional dress. Such costumes are worn during celebrations and folk dances. The national popularity of Matyó embroidery means it is a popular source of secondary income. It also furthers both individual artistic expression and community cohesion, as it is typically pursued as a communal activity. The aim of the Matyó Folk Art Association is to pass on the skills of this art form and organise cultural events.
From Italy, we cross over the Ionian Sea to Greece.
Greece has an old and rich heritage of musical and oral traditions, some of which have been listed by UNESCO on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list. One of these is Rebetiko, inscribed in 2017.
Unlike some other forms, Rebetiko developed in the early 20th-Century in the urban lower and working-classes. This was a way to express the customs and practices of their way of life both to an audience. As with most folk music, audience participation if often encouraged. Traditions or oral instruction are still maintained. However, to widen its reach, written forms of the music are now also used.
What you may not know is, that the traditional Neapolitan pizza-making process has been inscribed as a piece of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (2017). This is the art of the Neapolitan ‘Pizzaiuolo’. It consitutes the four different stages of dough preparation and baking (in a wood-fired oven).
The craft has been shaped by the knowledge and skills established over many centuries. It is mainly passed down from a master to an apprentice in their shop. This fosters both intergenerational exchange and a social cohesion. Pizza has become an integral part of Neapolitan and Italian culture.
Travel the countries whose langauges we teach and learn about a piece of their intangible cultural heritage to celebrate the 75th year of UNESCO (formed on the 16th November 1945).
Every month from now until November, we will feature short pieces about some intangible cultural heritage listed by UNESCO. Interested in finding out more about UNESCO’s work on cultural preservation? Click here.
As BSL is not on this list, we will celebrate the International Day of Sign Languages in September. Look out for a short introduction to deaf culture!
Portuguese is a Latin-based language. It started to develop in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula around 400 A.D., before Portugal became independent of Spain. When the Portuguese settled on that immense south American territory in the 1500s, they brought the language with them. Due to the mixture of races and nationalities who settled in Brazil alongside the Portuguese, the language started to diverge and to acquire its own flavour.
The most noticeable difference is the pronunciation.
The Portuguese tend to speak with their mouths half-closed, sometimes producing closed (soft) vowels, creating a more nuanced language. On the other hand, Brazilians open their mouth wider when they speak and pronounce all vowels strongly, as in Spanish. As a result, some people who learn Brazilian Portuguese struggle to understand European Portuguese whereas the reverse does not happen. So, learning European Portuguese enables you to communicate to Brazilians as well.
Another important difference is the use of the formal and informal treatment.
Latin languages have formal and informal ways of addressing people. In European Portuguese, tu and você are used to address people informally and formally, respectively. In Brazil, most people address everyone using você. Verbs in Latin languages are conjugated differently for every pronoun, so if you study Brazilian Portuguese there is one less verb conjugation you need to learn!
There are other small differences in vocabulary but, overall, the grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structure are mostly the same. Either one of these versions of Portuguese will enable you to communicate with people who speak the other form too!
Perhaps the biggest difference is in the way the Portuguese language reflects the culture of the country in which it evolved. Languages carry a lot of culture and history, and you cannot learn a language without learning a little bit of a country’s past and traditions. By choosing to learn European or Brazilian Portuguese you are also choosing between the sonority of fado or bossa nova, the moves of fandango or samba, the flavour of bacalhau or feijão com arroz, the myths of orixás or Nossa Senhora de Fátima.
So, which flavour of Portuguese appeals to you more?
Interested in learning Portuguese? Find out more here!
Today is the spring (vernal) equinox, meaning that spring has now officially sprung! The weather is becoming milder, and the days are getting ever longer.
It is the first astronomical day of spring, when day and night are the same length. Renewal and rebirth are synonymous with springtime and the equinox, which have been celebrated by many cultures around the world for centuries.
Many traditions surrounding the date have their roots in ancient civilisations and religious beliefs. These have morphed over the centuries into the religious and secular practices we see today.
In Japan, Spring Equinox Day (春分の日) is a national holiday, celebrating the end of winter and the arrival of spring. Typically, people take the opportunity to spend the time with their families or maintain the older tradition of visiting family graves.
The spring equinox falls within the cherry blossom season. From March to early May, Japan’s cherry trees (桜 – sakura) are in bloom. The first blossoms are on the southern island of Kyūshū (九州 – Nine Province) in March and reach the northernmost island of Hokkaidō (北海道 – Northern Sea Circuit) in May. The tradition of cherry blossom viewing (花見 – hanami) can be traced back to the Heian period (794-1185).
The importance of language and language learning cannot be underestimated. Language is a tool we use every day – it shapes the world around us, and we are ourselves shaped by the language in our surroundings.
[…] language is a material and historical force that opens us to the world that surrounds us […].
Catherine Boyle. (2020). ‘Shaping the world’, The Linguist (59/6), p.14.
However, learning a Modern Foreign Language both at school, beyond curriculum requirements, and in higher education has seen a steady decline in recent years. According to the universities’ admissions service UCAS, demand for Modern Language courses has declined by a third in the last decade. This was recently discussed on Radio 4’s BBC Today (4th February 2021, https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000rvnd (05:10 – 06:05))
The Norfolk Language Tutors initiative is passionate about promoting languages and cultures. We love to help you see the world through new eyes.
Norfolk Language Tutors was born out of an idea to give local Norfolk language tutors an accessible platform from which to reach prospective language learners. The drastic change to life as we know it has moved so many things online – language lessons included. Our tutors create bespoke lessons, tailored to your particular needs and goals.
Although most of our roots are in Europe – reaching as far east as Russia and as far west as Portugal – we have all made Norfolk our home, personally and professionally. Some of us have lived here for over 20 years, and love this charming corner of the country.
Having experienced the rich and diverse Norfolk culture, we were inspired to contribute to it ourselves. What better way than to share our cultures and languages with you?
Please explore our website for more information about our tutors.
