Spanish Love: Spanish Poets and Their Spanish Poems

Love and its attendant passions has been the favorite subject of Spanish poetry since the time of the troubadours, medieval poets who earned their keep by singing for the people at the village square or for the nobility during royal gatherings at the palace. Composers in their own right, these court poets sang about courtly love and the bittersweet pain of unattained love for an idealized woman using the jarchas, a form of love song that was actually poetry written in very short stanzas.

It is important in the study of Spanish love poems to differentiate between poems that originated from countries outside of Spain including Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, The Philippines, Puerto Rico, The United States, Uruguay and Venezuela which were written in Spanish but whose authors were not from Spain. All these poets and their respective poems have contributed in some way to the development of Spanish Poetry as a genre because they all wrote their work in Spanish albeit in the form of Spanish common to their country of origin. Although some of them wrote patriotic poems about their motherland, most of them utilized images of love to depict the sorrow of a country that has lost its freedom.

Some of these well-known Spanish poets and their popular poems are:

Carlos Alberto Garcia – Amor
Que soy
Quisiera
Yo te conozco
Olvidarte
Nestor Oscar Morris – Quiero decirte algo
Pienso solo en ti
Jorge E. Diaz Leyton – Tu
Manuel M. Mendez – Pertenencia

Focusing attention on Spanish poets who trace their origins to Spain, however; poets who lived, loved and wrote their best work within the Spanish Peninsula or the so-called ‘Poetas de Espa?a’, we come up with a list of illustrious writers whose works contributed to the development of Spanish Literature as it is today.

* Rafael Alberti - La Amante
* Vicente Aleixandre ( Nobel Laureate 1977) – Destruction of Love
* D?maso Alonso – Hijos de la Ira
* Gustavo Adolfo B?cquer – Rimas y leyendas
* Saint John of the Cross - Dark Night of the Soul
* Luis Cernuda - La realidad y el deseo
* Francisco Domene - Arrabal?as
* Le?n Felipe – Drop a Star
* Federico Garc?a Lorca - Sonetos del amor oscuro
* Luis de G?ngora - Soledades
* Jorge Guill?n - C?ntico
* Miguel Hern?ndez - Nanas de cebolla
* Santa Teresa de Jes?s - Laughter Came From Every Brick
* Juan Ram?n Jim?nez (Nobel Laureate 1956) – La Poetica
* Antonio Machado - Nuevas canciones
* Jorge Manrique - Coplas por la muerte de su padre
* Emilio Prados - Veinte poemas en verso
* Francisco de Quevedo - Flores de poetas ilustres
* Ana Rossetti – Where is My Man
* Pedro Salinas - Ayer Te Bes? en los Labios
* Garcilaso de la Vega - Hora de Nuestra Se?ora
* Lope de Vega - La Arcadia
* Esteban Manuel de Villegas - Las Er?ticas
* Leopoldo Mar?a Panero – Dedicatoria

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Philip Nicosia

Selecting The Best Language School For Your Needs

Some people decide to work abroad, some decide to study abroad, some just want to learn a foreign language, or just need to brush up on their current skills. There are any number of reasons that people what to learn a second language.

When it comes to choosing a school, the choices can be overwhelming. Here a few things to consider before you select a Language School.

School Reputation:
There’s no better way to judge a school than by its past successes. Any reputable school will be able to refer you to previous students that were happy with their service. If a school can’t supply a list of testimonials, you have to ask yourself, why not?

Class size:
Class size is definitely one of the most important considerations in choosing a language school. As with any type of education, people tend to learn quicker in small groups. Look for a school that will specify a maximum class size. Individual attention quickly disappears in classes of more than 10 – 12 students.

One on One Instruction:
Whilst one on one tuition can work very well for intense periods of revision or to work on a specific area of weakness. In a general learning situation, especially with beginners, students tend to learn quicker when mixed with students on roughly the same level.

Small Group Classes:
In small groups of say, six to eight students, each student gets the benefit of learning from each others triumphs and failures. Plus the chances of getting individual attention when it may be required are much improved. Smaller groups tend to bond better, and assist each other to a much higher degree than happens in larger groups.

As in any other learning situation, repetition and reinforcement are the tried and tested methods that bring the fastest results. In small groups each student benefits from the opportunity to interact with others in the group more regularly than they would have the opportunity to in a larger group.

Private Tuition
Private tuition can be advantageous where a student has a particular problem such as with syntax, grammar or structure, that would benefit from some personal one on one attention. Another instance where private classes would help are when an advanced student needs some intensive coaching in a particular area, eg. in relation to the specific needs of a particular profession.

Standard versus Intensive Classes
Many schools offer both Standard and Intensive courses. A Standard Class will typically run for 4 hours per day, and an Intensive Class for up to 6 hours.

Both classes will cover the same syllabus, with the only difference being the extended time available for coaching. The Standard class is best suited to the requirements of most students, as it provides a good blend of class time and revision time.

This information should serve as a list of basic things for you to think about when you are looking to choose the language school that will best suit your individual needs. The single smartest thing you can do before making your final decision is to ask lots of questions, particularly about testimonials from people that speak your native language.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: David Neehly

By degrees: The different German dialects

German is one of the most popular languages in the world. In fact, the Guinness Book of World Records has listed the German language as one of the three languages that are learned the most by people. It is also included in the ten most spoken languages in the world. In the European Union it is the second most known foreign language.German is also one of the agreed upon official languages of the EU and is also chosen, along with English and French, as one of the three working languages used in the European Commission.

German is also considered as a pluricentric language much like English and French. With the wide scope of usage for this language, it would be quite expected to think that a person who knows German would be able to go to any part of Germany and be expected to communicate effortlessly. Unfortunately, this is quite far from the truth. In reality, the German language has many dialects that are spoken in a large part of the country (and even in other countries).

The German dialects are not mutually intelligible to each other. This means that people who only know the different German dialects and not the common German language will not be able to understand each other.

How did the dialects evolve into this? Each dialect has evolved to contain typical words that are not considered as cognates of the words used in standard German this makes it quite difficult to understand in areas where the dialect is not spoken or an area where a different dialect is used.

There is a so-called dialect continuum in countries where German is spoken. During normal situations the dialect that is used by a neighbouring region is understood quite well even if it is also distinctly different from the dialect that is used in the adjacent region.

The so called Low German dialects that are used in the Northern part of Germany are considered mutually intelligible but it still remains not understood in other parts of the country. Of the other remaining dialects, the German dialects used in Switzerland, Southern Bavaria, Austria, and the West Bank of the Rhine are notoriously known for being very hard to understand outside the regions in which these dialects are used. On the other hand, the so called Central and Eastern German dialects are seen to be more understandable in other parts of the country.

Low Germanic dialects are those dialects that were not affected by the High German consonant shift. The Low Germanic dialect is comprised of two subgroups – Low Franconian and Low German.

The High Germanic dialects are broken down into Central German and Upper German subgroups. The Central German dialects include Ripuarian, Moselle Franconian, Hessian, Thuringian, South Franconian, Lorraine Franconian and Upper Saxon. Upper German dialects include Alemannic, Swabian, East Franconian, Alsatian and Austro-Bavarian. The Upper German dialects are also used in certain parts of the Alsace, as well as in southern Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria, and in certain parts of Switzerland and Italy where German is spoken.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Philip Nicosia

Dutch progression: The changes in the Dutch language in the 20th century

The Dutch language is spoken by more than 22 million people, most of them in countries like the Netherlands and Belgium. Given this statistic, Dutch can be considered as one of the more popular languages in Europe.

Before the 17th century the Dutch language was not yet standardized. There were many dialects in existence that it was beginning to pose a problem.

After the 17th century, after the standardization of the Dutch language has taken place, it became so much easier to identify the distinctions between the standard Dutch language and its dialects. But the developments surrounding the Dutch language has continued well into the 19th and 20th century. Because of the influences being exerted by other languages like German, French, and English, the standard Dutch language is undergoing a change.

One of the more noticeable change in the Dutch language over the past century is with regards to pronunciation. The voiceless pronunciation of certain letters or syllables are now entering the standard language and is a unique feature that was more commonly heard from a dialect found in a province in Holland. These voiceless pronunciations commonly revolve around “v” as “f”, “z” as “s” and “g” as “x”. This current trend mirrors the desire for a change in spelling Dutch as near to its phonological sound as possible. This would mean that each particular sound is represented by a single letter or that a grapheme is only made in one particular way.

There is also a shift in how three diphthongs are being pronounced. The diphthongs in reference are ei, ui, and ou. The current shift for these are now moving towards aai, ou, and aau. This change was first seen among women who are middle aged and well educated and who come from the upper middle class. These women are identified with the world of the academia, politics, arts and literature.

From these beginnings the practice eventually spread out to women from other demographics. But lately even men have started employing this language change. It is also becoming employed by children, even those under the age of ten years and from very diverse backgrounds.

Already, this change can be heard in large parts of the Netherlands, but most especially among women of Turkish or Moroccan descent.

There are also some changes being seen in the area of morphology. One very significant change is inclusion of plural endings ( -s) even for nouns. This change is mostly seen in words that end in –e – for example, hoogte – de hoogtes, which was usually hoogten.

Even the suffix –baar is becoming more and more prevalently used in modern Dutch usage more often in the use of neologisms. In turn, the suffix -(e)lijk is becoming less and less used and in fact is being ignored in favor of the aforementioned –baar.

There is even a rising use of “concentrations” in modern Dutch. This is most commonly seen when using multi part compound nouns.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Philip Nicosia

Why Learn Swedish?

Aside from the possibility of living in Sweden or Finland (where Swedish is an official second language), or meeting someone important who knows to speak only in Swedish, you’re probably looking for other reasons to convince you to go through the trouble of learning it as a second language. After all, Swedish is not as widely used as Chinese, Spanish or English—it’s not even among the top 10 languages in the world—but knowing how to speak the language does have its perks.

If surviving in a foreign land is not enough of a reason for you, then it should be of interest that the Swedish language is one of the easiest to learn to those who fluently speak English. It is worth noting that Swedish has borrowed a lot from other, more popularly used and studied languages, such as French, German, and English, which may lend to the initial familiarity of the words to a first-time learner of the language.

Before borrowed words were included, however, Swedish has long enjoyed commonalities with most other Indo-European languages, particularly its closest kin—Norwegian, Danish, and Icelandic. It is even said, that by knowing how to read in Swedish, one is also instantly able to read Danish and Norwegian text, as probably the main difference between the three languages is in the pronunciation.

Another good reason to learn Swedish, particularly if you plan to stay in Sweden for a long period of time and want to get on the native’s good side is that knowing their language will make it easier for them to open up to you, with you being a stranger to the country. Learning the native language is important if you find it important to make many friends while you’re there, as it is seen as a means of showing respect to the natives in many countries.

Convinced yet? Here’s another good reason: with enough practice and reviewing, you’ll be able to gain expertise of language rules within a year of studying Swedish. Also, even if you’re studying the language outside of Sweden, you’re sure to find others to speak in Swedish with for practice, with tens of thousands of Swedish language students enrolled at any given time. However, nothing can introduce you to the language’s melodic and expressive quality quite like a regular conversation with a native Swede. It is a language best acquired for more than just deciphering the manual of an imported car.

Ready to join the bandwagon? Before you sign up for Swedish classes, be sure to browse for aids on how to make learning a second language easier for you. One such resource is provided at http://learnmylingo.com/freeguide.htm, which offers “Eight Ways to Learn a Language Quickly and Easily” for free! Later on, when you’re just about ready, click on the Swedish tab so that you’ll be prompted to start your journey to learning the Swedish language. Other language courses provided by the site are Spanish, French, Italian, German, Dutch and Japanese.

Article Source: http://www.articlerich.com - By: Philip Nicosia