Tag: Language Learning

LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 5 — JAPANESE

- Jill Leave a comment

Not surprisingly, Japan is home to 99% of first-language Japanese speakers. But, as is the case with most languages, the Japanese language is not limited to the people of the archipelago nation. Japanese (also known as Nihongo) is the 9th most spoken language in the world with about 126 million speakers. There are another 5 million people outside of Japan who speak Japanese with some proficiency (todaytranslations.com). At least part of the populations in a number of countries and about 18 territories speak the language including in the United States, the Philippines, and Brazil. Japanese is also spoken in other parts of Asia and the Pacific: Guam, American Samoa, People’s Republic of China, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, and Australia. Japanese speakers can also be found in Canada, Mexico, and Europe – notably the United Kingdom – and many major world cities have Japanese speaking communities as well (worlddata.info).

The origins of the Japanese language are not fully understood. It is believed that Japanese began to emerge and develop into its own unique language somewhere between the 4th and 2nd centuries BC when the Yayoi people migrated from the Korean peninsula to the Japanese islands. The language was exclusively oral until contact with China in the 4th century and the development of the Kanji writing system. Chinese characters were adapted, expressing Japanese words as well as grammatical elements. This led to the further development of both the Hiragana and Katakana kana writing systems, both around the 9th century (dynamiclanguage.com).

In the United States, there are nearly a half million Japanese speakers, mainly concentrated in the states of California (141k), Hawaii (45k), New York (35k), Washington (26k), and Texas (18k). However, Hawaii has the highest percentage of Japanese speakers with about 17% of Hawaiian residents speaking it at home (statisticalatlas.com). While not as commonly spoken in Iowa as are Spanish, German, or Chinese, Japanese is also spoken here. Japanese affiliated organizations in Iowa, such as the Japan America Society of Iowa (JASI), offer language and cultural programs including drumming workshops and demonstrations (Soten Taiko) and even a Japanese language school (Kanaijuku) for both beginners and advanced learners. The Iowa State Japanese Association (Japanese Club) offers language and cultural programs as well.  And, the University of Iowa supports a four-year Japanese program offering comprehensive language classes and courses in linguistics, communications, visual culture, popular culture, literature, film, theater, and translation. There is even a Kimono club which gives those interested in Japanese traditional wardrobe an opportunity to share their interests through fashion shows and workshops. Annual events such as Anime demo ii and Tanabata (star gazing festival) are also popular cultural activities.

While there are not very many Japanese speakers in Davenport or Scott County, there are many reasons to consider learning the language. In the US alone, there are nearly 162,000 people learning the Japanese language (babble.com). This includes almost 67,000 students in higher education, along with another 56,000 in grades K-12 (asiasociety.org). According to nippon.com, there were nearly 3,800,000 students worldwide learning Japanese in 2021. Popular culture has spurred the interest in all things Japan. From Anime series to catchy J-pop tunes, there are many intriguing reasons to explore the unique Japanese language and culture.

Would you like to give the Japanese language a try? Try some of the FREE resources available to you at The Library as you begin (or continue) learning Japanese. See our online catalog or ask a Librarian for more resources.

 

FOR A QUICK INTRODUCTION TO THE LANGUAGE:

15-minute Japanese : learn in just 12 weeks by Mitsuko Maeda-Nye

Fast talk Japanese : guaranteed to get you talking.

Japanese for beginners : mastering conversational Japanese by Sachiko Toyozato

 

FOR A MORE LAID-BACK APPROACH:

Japanese step by step  by Gene Nishi

Learn Japanese with manga : a self-study language book for beginners by Marc Bernabé

Japanese short stories for beginners : 20 captivating short stories to learn Japanese & grow your vocabulary the fun way!

Japanese folktales for language learners = 昔ばなしで学ぶ日本語 |  by Eriko Sato

Intermediate Japanese short stories : 10 captivating short stories to learn Japanese & grow your vocabulary the fun way! : intermediate Japanese stories.

 

IF YOU ARE A VISUAL LEARNER:

       

Japanese English visual bilingual dictionary

Japanese picture dictionary : learn 1,500 Japanese words and phrases by Timothy G. Stout

Basic Japanese kanji. Volume 1 : high-frequency kanji at your command! by Timothy G. Stout

Mastering Japanese kanji. Volume 1 : the innovative visual method for learning Japanese characters by Glen Nolan Grant

Japanese hiragana & katakana for beginners : first steps to mastering the Japanese writing system by Timothy G. Stout

Guide to reading and writing Japanese by Florence Sakade

Let’s learn Hiragana by Yasuko Kosaka Mitamura

Hiragana from zero! by George Trombley

 

MORE COMPREHENSIVE LANGUAGE COURSES:

 

Complete Japanese grammar by Eriko Sato

Japanese by H.J. Ballhatchet

Langenscheidt Japanese at your fingertips by Tien Tammada

Unlocking Japanese with Paul Noble by Paul Noble

And, as a Davenport Public Library cardholder, you have FREE access to the language learning program, Mango Languages.

 

FOR THOSE WHO PLAN TO TRAVEL:

  

Japanese phrase book & dictionary (Berlitz).

Japanese phrasebook & dictionary (Lonely Planet).

Japanese : (Rough Guide Phrasebook).

 

NEXT MONTH…  LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 6 — ITALIAN

 

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LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 4 — GERMAN

- Jill Leave a comment

Continuing in our monthly series of language resources offered by The Library, our focus in April is GERMAN. While the German language is on the decline in the United States (according to census.gov), it is still in the top ten languages (other than English) that are spoken at home. And, while it is spoken in just over 900,000 homes across the nation, North Dakota is the only state in which German is the second most commonly spoken language according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. If you remove the Spanish language from the mix, 16 mostly Midwest and Western states emerge, revealing their German influence. The bulk of these German speaking populations are in Midwestern states, but the spread is from Alabama and Tennessee to the south and as far west as Idaho and Utah. Notable exceptions on the list in the Midwest are Minnesota (Hmong language), Michigan (Arabic), Illinois (Polish), South Dakota (Dakota), and Nebraska (Vietnamese), demonstrating our country’s diverse populations and the influence of immigrants from other nations.

In Iowa, German is the third most commonly spoken language. The Amish population in southeast Iowa accounts for some of that finding, although that does not completely explain the fact as German is the third-most spoken language in a lot of states that don’t have a significant Amish community. According to IowaPBS.org, “German immigrants historically were the second largest immigrant group (behind people from the British Isles) to settle in Iowa”. Beginning around 1840, millions of Germans began immigrating to the US. The entry point for many of these immigrants to the upper Midwest region and points west was Scott County (IA) where the first passenger railroad crossed the Mississippi River. In 1900, Joseph Eiboeck, a veteran German newspaperman, described Davenport as, “the most German city, not only in the State, but in all the Middle West, the center of all German activities in the State.”

These German immigrants spread widely into every county across the state – more than any other immigrant group – and by 1900, the US Census indicated that over half of the citizens in Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota were German immigrants or their descendants. By 1920, at least half of all farmers in Iowa were of German ancestry as well. Many of these Germans who settled in the Davenport area attempted to maintain a close-knit German community. They continued to speak their own language, published a local newspaper “Der Demokrat”, and formed their own social club, Turn Germeind, or Turnvereins (turner halls), which were an athletic and social gathering place for their community.

These immigrants also established the practice of going to parks for picnics, where they would listen to band music and drink beer. This brought alcohol consumption out of the saloons (that were typically only frequented by men) and perceptions slowly changed such that by 1900 the City of Davenport had over 100 taverns and beer gardens (Biergarten). Many orchestras and bands were formed within the city as well and they regularly played venues such as Schuetzenpark (which during its heyday, in addition to a music pavilion, also consisted of an inn, dance hall, shooting range, refreshments, bowling alleys, a roller coaster, and a zoo).  Music was such an important facet of German immigrant culture that their influence helped begin one of the oldest continually operating symphonic orchestras in the United States, The Quad Cities Symphony Orchestra. These are just some of the many cultural facets German immigrants brought with them from their homeland, becoming an integral part the “history and fabric of life in Iowa” as well as in the region and the country as a whole.

The decline of the German language is due to many factors including, among other things, the growth of industries in the area which draws in a talented and diverse workforce and impacts population growth. We also continue to see an influx of immigrants in the Quad Cities Area. We have a long history of welcoming immigrants, and our cities today continue to be a sanctuary for immigrants and refugees from around the world. Certainly, one factor that has impacted the decline was the Governor of Iowa’s ban on speaking the language in public near the end of World War I. Since the U.S. was at war with Germany, many Iowans became suspicious of their German neighbors. The governor issued a proclamation in May 1918 that prohibited anyone from speaking a foreign language in public, specifically German. German books were also removed from the library, and citizens of German birth were interrogated. After the war, many German descendants tried to hide their heritage and assimilate more closely with their neighbors. With the use of the German language declining, German names were removed from streets signs and towns, turner halls lost their popularity, and German businesses changed their names. Even Schuetzenpark was renamed Forest Park, for a time.

But, it’s not too late to reinvigorate the German language in our area!  In 2010, there were over 600 speakers of German in Scott County alone, with another 13,000+ statewide (MLA Language Map Data Center). Perhaps you have German heritage or have been influence by the culture that these immigrants have brought to our area. Maybe you have always wanted to travel to Germany and spend time in some of the beautiful alpine regions or see the architecture and museums of the Capital, Berlin. Whatever the reason you want to learn, we have lots of resources to help introduce you to the language.

Here’s just a sampling of the FREE resources available to you at The Library as you learn German. See our online catalog or ask a Librarian for more resources.

FOR A QUICK INTRODUCTION TO THE LANGUAGE:

15-minute German : learn in just 12 weeks by Sylvia Goulding

Fast talk German : guaranteed to get you talking (Lonely Planet)

Intermediate German for dummies

 

FOR A MORE LAID-BACK APPROACH:

101 conversations in simple German : short natural dialogues to boost your confidence & improve your spoken German  by Olly RIchards

Short stories in German for intermediate learners : read for pleasure at your level and learn German the fun way by Olly Richards

50 German coffee breaks : short activities to improve your German one cup at a time

German short stories for beginners and intermediate learners : engaging short stories to learn German and build your vocabulary

 

IF YOU ARE A VISUAL LEARNER:

German visual dictionary for dummies

5 language visual dictionary

 

MORE COMPREHENSIVE LANGUAGE COURSES:

 

Complete German by Paul Coggle

Langenscheidt German at your fingertips  by Tien Tammada

German by Paul Coggle

Basic German by Jolene Wochenske

Teach yourself German by Paul Coggle

#Language hacking German : a conversation course for beginners : learn how to speak German–with actual people–right from the start! By Benny Lewis

And, a Davenport Public Library cardholder, you have FREE access to the language learning program, Mango Languages.

 

FOR THOSE WHO PLAN TO TRAVEL:

German phrase book & dictionary (Berlitz)

Rick Steves’ German phrase book & dictionary by Rick Steves

German (Rough Guides)

 

NEXT MONTH…  LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 5 — JAPANESE

LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 2 — SPANISH

- Jill Leave a comment

Last month, we introduced you to some of the more general language learning resources that The Library offers. Take a look at those if you’re not sure what language you want to learn. This month, we’ll focus in on the most commonly spoken foreign language in Davenport, the Quad Cities, and the U.S. – SPANISH!  This is also the language that most people around the world indicate they want to learn.

There are over 493 million native Spanish speakers, making it the second most-spoken language in the world. Including everyone who speaks Spanish as a second language (at least decently), Spanish can be used to communicate with 591 million people around the world! This makes Spanish the third most-spoken language in the world, behind Chinese and English, and on par with Hindi. Spanish is also one of the most-used languages on the internet. The Spanish language continues to grow in traditionally non-Spanish speaking countries as well. In the U.S., 60 million people identified as being of Hispanic origin – about 18% of the population (in 2019). The Spanish language has by far the most native speakers, with 12% of the American population using it as their primary language (2021). And, Spanish is the official language in 20 countries and one U.S. Territory (Puerto Rico) and has widespread use in other regions. Besides Mexico and Spain, Spanish is the official language in many Central and South American nations, including: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. It’s even spoken in Equatorial Guinea (in Africa). So, if you are planning on visiting any of these places, learning at least some basic conversational Spanish or common phrases would be helpful.

According to US Census Bureau data in 2022, the Hispanic population of Davenport, Iowa was at just over 9% or 9,200 people. When expanded to include the Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL communities, the total number of people identifying as non-white Hispanic rose to 9.31% or 35.6K people. In Iowa, nearly 216K people self-identified as Hispanic or Latino (about 6.8% of Iowa’s total population, according to a 2022 report from the State Data Center of Iowa – a program of The State Library of Iowa.) Currently, 128K Iowa residents age 5 and older speak Spanish at home. Of this number, over 21K are Spanish speaking English Language Learners in Iowa’s public schools (2021- 2022). This represents a 240% increase from the previous year (Iowa Department of Education). Based on growth over the last 20 years, the projected total Latino population of Iowa as of July 1, 2050 will be around 518K (about 14.8% of the total state population). The numbers are even greater for Illinois, where some schools are even offering Dual Language Immersion Programs.

Hispanic businesses are on the rise nationwide, growing 8.2% from 2019-2020 (US Census Bureau). Hispanic-owned businesses yielded about $472.3 billion in annual receipts and employed about 2.9 million workers. According to the Greater Quad Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, this is reflected in the Quad Cities as Latino owned business are on the rise, along with Hispanic cultural enterprises such as Mercado on Fifth, an outdoor summer market in Moline, IL which had a record 115 vendors and almost $600K in revenue in 2022. The chamber also indicated that immigrants and refugees are among the biggest drivers of the population and economic gains in the Quad Cities. Newcomers to the region tend to be of working age (between the ages of 25 and 64). Immigrants also are more likely to open and operate their own businesses and employ others than U.S.-born Quad-Citians.

Learning Spanish will undoubtedly give you an edge in the Quad Cities Job Market. Being bilingual in a market where the Spanish language speaking population is growing can be a major asset. Many employers are actively looking to hire people who can communicate effectively with Spanish-speaking customers, colleagues, and community members. Having at least a working knowledge of Spanish in your skill set can open up job opportunities you might not have otherwise. From healthcare, hospitality, and customer service to manufacturing, Spanish proficiency enables workers to engage with the area’s Hispanic community. Increasing the number of Spanish speakers in the workforce will facilitate everything from better patient communication to more targeted marketing and improved workplace collaboration across language barriers. Salaries also tend to be higher for bilingual employees. Studies show the “bilingual bonus” can lead to thousands more in annual pay, providing not just a practical communication benefit, but also a financial one. A growing number of job postings now list Spanish as a requirement or preferred qualification, but even a baseline conversational ability will give you an advantage. As the Hispanic community continues to rapidly expand across the Quad Cities area, mastering the Spanish language will only become more valuable to employers across diverse job sectors. For those entering the workforce, as well as experienced professionals, the ability to communicate and work effectively in both English and Spanish can give you the competitive edge.

Will you consider learning a foreign language?  If you’d like to get started learning Spanish, here are just a sampling of some of the FREE resources offered by The Library. See our online catalog or ask a Librarian for more resources.

FOR A QUICK INTRODUCTION TO THE LANGUAGE:

15-minute Spanish : learn in just 12 weeks by Ana Bremón

Spanish in 3 months : your essential guide to understanding and speaking Spanish by Isabel Cisneros

Spanish in 100 days.

 

FOR A MORE LAID-BACK APPROACH:

    

Spanish for the rest of us by William C. Harvey

Drive time Spanish. Beginner level.

#Language hacking Spanish : a conversation course for beginners by Benny Lewis

Becoming a bilingual family : help your kids learn Spanish (and learn Spanish yourself in the process) by Stephen G. Marks

50 Spanish coffee breaks : short activities to improve your Spanish one cup at a time

Teach your dog Spanish by Anne Cakebread

 

IF YOU ARE A VISUAL LEARNER:

 

Merriam-Webster’s Spanish-English visual dictionary

Spanish English illustrated dictionary by Thomas Booth

Spanish visual dictionary for dummies.

Bilingual visual dictionary. Spanish English.

 

COMPLETE LANGUAGE COURSES:

   

Berlitz Spanish all-in-one

Complete Spanish step-by-step : the fastest way to achieve Spanish mastery by Barbara Bregstein

Spanish complete edition

Basic Spanish by Dorothy Devney Richmond

Instant Immersion Spanish deluxe v3.0

And, a Davenport Public Library cardholder, you have FREE access to the language learning program, Mango Languages.

 

FOR THOSE WHO PLAN TO TRAVEL:

 

Spanish: Rough Guides Phrase Book

Rick Steves’ Spanish phrase book & dictionary  by Rick Steves

Mexican Spanish phrase book & dictionary

Fast talk Latin American Spanish : guaranteed to get you talking.

 

NEXT MONTH…  LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 3 — FRENCH

LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 1

- Jill Leave a comment

Happy New Year!
¡Feliz Año Nuevo!
Chúc Mừng Năm Mới!
Alles Gute Zum Neuen Jahr!
Bonne Année!
新年快乐! (xīnniánkuàilè!)

Did you know that there are over 41 different languages spoken by students in Scott County, Iowa?  The top 6 languages are represented above: English, Spanish, Vietnamese, German, French, and Chinese. Across the state, over 177 languages are spoken (according to the 2022 report by the Iowa Department of Human Rights and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach). This is a nearly 60% increase in the foreign language speaking population since the last report in 2010. All languages (other than English) spoken in Scott County account for over 9,200 speakers – which is more than 6%. Spanish speakers account for greater than 3% of that. And combined, Vietnamese, German, French, and Chinese, add up to another 1.68% of speakers, leaving 1.44% to account for another 35 languages. These are roughly the same numbers when you compare Scott County with the State of Iowa as a whole.

While English is the most commonly spoken language in the United States, according to a 2019 U.S. Census Bureau Report about 22 percent of the US population (308.8 million at the time) speaks a language other than English when at home. Roughly 62% of these individuals speaks English “very well” such that they can be identified as fluently bilingual. According to the Journal of Neurolinguistics, 43% of the world’s population is bilingual, using two languages daily. 40% is monolingual, and the remaining 17% are multilingual.

Among U.S. students studying a foreign language, roughly 72% are studying Spanish, 14% French, 4.5% German, 2.5% Latin, and almost 1% Japanese. And, according to a 2021 report from the language learning app, Duolingo, the top 6 most popular languages to learn around the world (after English, which ranks #1) are: Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Italian, and Korean. The 5 most commonly spoken languages in the world in order are English, Mandarin, Hindi, Spanish and French.

Would you like to learn a foreign language to communicate better with others in our diverse community?  Perhaps you have always wanted to learn a specific language of your family heritage or to prepare for a long-awaited bucket list trip? The Library has an array of language learning resources. From complete courses (including an online program), to phrasebooks for travelers, visual dictionaries, and bilingual short stories, we have what you need to get started on your foreign language learning or ESL path. We even have Sign Language learning resources!

Over the next months, we will highlight resources for each of the top 6 most popular languages to learn: *Spanish, *French, *German, Japanese, Italian, and Korean. And, we will also include the most commonly spoken foreign languages in the Quad Cities Region: *Spanish, Vietnamese, *German, *French, and Chinese. ESL and Sign Language will also be included.
*We’ll only cover Spanish, German, and French once as they appear on both lists.

First, we’d like to point you to resources that will assist you in any language you want to learn. You can browse the online catalog for a specific language:  Davenport Public Library Catalog.  If you don’t see what you’re looking for there, reach out and let us know what language you’d like to learn or what resources you need.

As a Davenport Library card holder, you have FREE access to the language learning program Mango Languages found on our Online Resources page. Mango offers instructional courses for over 70 languages and ESL (English as a Second Language) courses for over 20 languages.

We also have these books that would be helpful no matter which language you choose to learn:

Fluent forever : how to learn any language fast and never forget it by Gabriel Wyner

Fluent in 3 months : how anyone at any age can learn to speak any language from anywhere in the world by Benny Lewis

How to speak any language fluently by Alex Rawlings

Bilingual families : a practical language planning guide by Eowyn Crisfield

 

Finally, you might find these two books useful as you begin planning your language learning adventure:

 

The first 20 hours : how to learn anything … fast by Josh Kaufman

Limitless : upgrade your brain, learn anything faster, and unlock your exceptional life by Jim Kwik

Stay tuned over the next months for language learning resources for specific languages!  First up, next month:  LEARN A LANGUAGE — Part 2 — SPANISH.