Since the year 2000, February 21st has been observed around the world as the International Mother Language Day, in order to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity, and multilingualism. In view of that, let’s see how the words mother & mother language (mother tongue) are said in some of the languages. Whether we speak just our mother tongue, or on top of that our father tongue (if it’s not the same as our mother’s), or acquire yet another language skill in childhood or later on in life, we can all appreciate the emotional familiarity of the very first language we learn. Continue reading

This time in First Names First we will concentrate on the names Greta, Grete and Grethe. An old name that appears a lot in the news these days due to the environmental activist Greta Thunberg. Greta Hällfors-Sipilä* (b Hällfors) painter – Helsinki, GD of Finland (1899) Greta Kuckhoff* (b Lorke) German resistance fighter – Frankfurt an der Oder, German Empire (1902) Greta Garbo* actress – Stockholm, Sweden (1905) Grethe Meyer* architect/designer - Svendborg, Denmark (1918) Continue reading

This time in Monthly Latin about the fact that we human beings, as we learn all sorts of things about the world and ourselves and how we could use that knowledge and our special talents to advance our own interests, we mustn’t at the same time forget to contribute to the greater good of humanity as well. We are all fallible, all capable of making mistakes or being wrong for the simple reason that no one – quite naturally – can be expert on all facets of life. Continue reading

Jude Meinhart - Apr 4, 2020It was helpful. Keep on posting! Very good info. Lucky me I discovered your site by accident (stumbleupon). I have saved it for later! Thank you! I’m glad you found something interesting. More articles coming up on a pretty regular basis :) Thanks for your comment Jude! Sorry it took a while to respond. I sure will keep on posting, in First Names First as well as all the other article series and the individual articles. Continue reading

This time in First Names First we will concentrate on George, one of the most popular boys' names through the ages. Other forms of George included here are Georg and Georges. Since there are so many Georges, maximum five names per decade are shown. George of Podebrady* King of Bohemia – Podèbrady Castle, Bohemia (1420) Georg von Peuerbach* astronomer/ mathematician/instrument maker – Linz, Austria (1423) George Sandys* traveller/colonist/poet – Bishopsthorpe, England (1578) Continue reading

Bonngasse 515, Bonn two German composers, Johann Peter Salomon (1745-1815) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) were both born at Bonngasse 515 in Bonn, Germany? 35 years apart from each other. Beethoven who knew Salomon from his days in Bonn, wrote to fellow composer Ferninand Ries on hearing of his death, “Salomon’s death grieves me much, for he was a noble man, and I remember him since I was a child.” Continue reading

And. A word that never appears alone. Always preceded by something, and followed by something. Although it may sometimes start a sentence. But always loaded with promise and hope of continuation. So a very positive word, right? Which by itself doesn’t mean a thing. We’ll, of course it can be involved in a list of sinister things as well. And was also the first foreign word that I learned. We kids always walked to school, situated a couple of miles from our home. Continue reading

This time in First Names First it is all about Donna. It is Italian for “woman”, the original meaning being closer to “lady of the home”. It was a title of respect in Italy, equivalent to “Don” for men. Donna Reed* actress – Denison, IA USA (1921) pic Donna Axum* beauty pageant/author/philanthropist – El Dorado, AR USA (1942) Donna Leon* author – Montclair, NJ USA (1942) Donna Fargo* country singer – Mount Airy, NC USA (1945) Continue reading

Another one in our article series One Day in the Life of. November 24th, 2018 was supposed to be just another Saturday night for pastor Christopher Haley from Winnipeg as he was watching the match between Winnipeg Jets and hometeam St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri. The Canadian supermarket chain Safeway (owned by Sobeys) has a continual promotion called “Score & Win” where it randomly selects a shopper to potentially win prizes for a player’s achievements. Continue reading

This is part in the article series Streets and Squares that provide some interesting background information on street signs around the world. A fun way to learn about the history and culture of the cities you visit or even live in! This time we go to Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. The Danish name of the city, København, descends from the old Norse Kaupmannahofn, meaning merchants' harbor. Some vocabulary to help you along the way: allé (avenue), bro (bridge), gade (street), plads (square) Continue reading

So another one in our recurring series First Names First. This time it is Donald, according to this little sample here most common especially in the 1930’s. 1897-0620 Donald Keyhoe* naval aviator/ufologist – Ottumwa, Iowa USA (1988/91) 1919-1005 Donald Pleasance* actor – Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England (1995/75) 1926-0921 Donald A. Glaser* physicist/neurobiologist/N – Cleveland, OH USA (2013/86) 1930-1226 Donald Moffat* actor – Plymouth, Devon England (2018/87) 1932-0709Donald Rumsfeld* businessman/politician – Evanston, IL USA Continue reading

is a new article series here in Journeys of Life. It can entail most anything, and is really about creative writing - as opposed to some other article series here. The publication date will be the 8th of each month. The When can be a beginning of a question sentence, or a story that follows. These stories will typically be short ones, but can be long-reads as well. So we always start with When, and go on from there. Continue reading

two great industrialists - and later philanthropists - were born two days apart in July 1839? One on Long Island, New York, the other in Kastel, Germany. John from New York built an empire around oil, Adolphus from Kastel around beer. 1839-0708 John D. Rockefeller Sr.* industrialist/philanthropist - Long Island, NY USA (97) 1839-0710 Adolphus Busch* co-founder of Anheuser-Busch/philanthropist - Kastel, Hesse, Germany (1913/74) If you happen to be in Manhattan in New York City, it is pretty hard not to notice the name Rockefeller. Continue reading

Let’s learn some Hawaiian this time around in Language Day. It is a Polynesian language and, along with English, the official language of the State of Hawaii. Read more about its background and politics here. This article will deal solely with the language itself. The Hawaiian alphabet has 13 letters. That is a lot less than in most languages. There are five vowels: a, e, i, o, and u - each with a long pronunciation and a short one. Continue reading

This time in First Names First **it is all about Hanna(h)! **Pick one of the names below, then follow the Wikipedia link to read about that person, and see what if anything she could contribute your life with. Lives lived have all something worthwhile to tell us – let them! Hannah Pritchard* actress - England (1711) Hannah More* religious writer/ playwright/philanthropist - Fishponds, Bristol, England (1745) Hannah Adams* author - Medfield, Massachusetts (1755) Continue reading

This time Streets & Squares goes to Rome, the capital of Italy - and the city where all roads lead to, or so they said! The river Tiber flows through this ancient city, and in the list below the locations are given either as ET (East of Tiber) or WT (West of Tiber). Vatican City is to the west of Tiber. Like always, clicking on the addresses will open Google Maps for you, and clicking on the names will (usually) lead to the person’s Wikipedia page. Continue reading

This time in First Names First it is all about Hannes! A male name abundant in countries like Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Iceland, Sweden and Finland. So go ahead and pick one name, then follow the Wikipedia link to read about that person, and see what if anything he could contribute your life with. Lives lived have all something worthwhile to tell us – let them! Hannes Ignatius* army general/advocate for independence - Helsinki, GD of Finland (1871-1941) Continue reading

Many of us enjoy walking in the woods, don’t we! Hiking, picking berries, listening to birds, or just walking there whether alone or in the company of friends. If you are one of these people, it is probably easy for you to identify with the following quote: “Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best” Imagine if some birds could and then would decide not to sing if they thought their song was not up to standard that day, or any day! Continue reading

This time in Language Day we concentrate on just one single language - as opposed to the usual multilingual theme we have here. This language is the Skolt Sami language. It is one of the many Sami languages spoken in the northern parts of Finland, Sweden and Norway, and all of them belong to the Uralic language group. Year 2019 is - among other things - the International Year of Indigenous Languages that are spoken by millions of people around the world. Continue reading

Another one in our series First Names First! Your “task” – should you accept it – is to pick one of the names below, then follow the Wikipedia link to read about the person, and to see what if anything she could contribute your life with. Lives lived have all something to tell us – let them! This time it is all about Anne/Annie! Anne of Bavaria* queen consort of Bohemia (1329) Continue reading