European day of languages: we love tongues
Every 26 September since 2001, Europe has celebrated the international day of languages – and why not, as the EU has 23 official languages. A Eurostat survey shows that English is the de facto EU lingua franca, which is also a source of constant polemic in the continent, whilst over 35% of EU’s adults speak one language. Will the Italian language be the solution?
French citizens ‘Balkan-level’ skill at the English language
The nineteenth-century attitudes to language learning here are not just wasting people’s time, but wasting an extraordinary amount of their money, opines a young Irishman who teaches English in Paris, capital of a country which an 'archaic' education system
discrimination, employment, life-long learning, youth, paris, education system, best of cafebabel.com, languages, culture
Tongue twisters
Red lorry, yellow lorry, red lorry, yellow lorry - and its European counterpart expressions to say over, and over, again. From Poland's Jerzy to Spain's coconuts, it's the weekly language tricks
Videos: Europe's sports stars grapple with foreign languages
When professional players have to move around, they are often forced to adapt to other countries, their cultures and languages in too short a time. Watch four of the best, including Lother Matthaeus, Sebastian Chabal, Giovanni Trapattoni and the late Jesus Gil
E-learning: a new way to learn languages online
New technologies help students improve their languages; if the e-learning business is booming, does it mean we don't need a physical teacher in front of us anymore?
Too much English spoken in Europe?
The European Day of Languages on 26 September has prompted some to ask whether we need to re-assess the dominance of the English language in Europe, and in the European economy. Should there be a linguistic tax on English speakers?
