Course: The Power of Languages

In the earlier video, we learnt about translanguaging, which challenges traditional views of how multilingual people use their languages. Rather than having separate language systems which they access independently, translanguaging …

Earlier, we learnt about plurilingualism. In this film, Maria introduces the topic of translanguaging. Translanguaging is a similar concept, but it goes a step further by rejecting the notion of …

The phone rings. Itto, a German woman who lives in Morocco, picks up the phone and sees it’s her Berber husband calling. The conversation goes like this: “Salam alaikoum, labas? …

We have seen that language can help us to forge personal and community-based identities, but what happens when people belong to more than one community? This is often the case …

In this film, Sam explores Romanian and Moldovan, and then Hindi and Urdu, in terms of what makes them the same, and what makes them different. Is there anything here …

As well as being the birthplace of the world’s fourth most-spoken language (Ethnologue, 2025), Spain is home to many other languages. While these linguistic differences contribute to Spain’s rich cultural …

Belgium is home to a complex linguistic landscape that profoundly impacts its society, politics and daily life. The country is divided into two main language groups: the Dutch-speaking Flemings in …

Home to 800 languages, Papua New Guinea (PNG) is the most linguistically diverse nation in the world. In a world where minority languages are often marginalised and revitalisation efforts often …

In gendered languages, nouns are classified into categories: masculine, feminine and, in the case of German, neuter. This pervasive gendering can marginalise women and create barriers for individuals who identify …

In this film, Jamie introduces the use of English and other languages in non-English settings, by youth. As always, please do share any thoughts that the film raises for you!

The post-colonial era has seen significant efforts to revitalise indigenous languages, many of which were suppressed or marginalised during colonial rule (McCarty & Nicholas, 2014). These revitalisation movements are often …

We know from Week 1 that extended contact between people from diverse linguistic backgrounds influences the languages that people speak, so much so that new languages can form. In the …

We have already seen that the global status of French, especially in Africa, may be challenged by the promotion of indigenous languages and an increase in alignment with English-speaking communities. …

From 1830 to 1962, Algeria was subject to French rule, during which a policy of “Francisation” sought to supplant local languages with French. The brutal Algerian War of 1954-1962 saw …

In this film, Angela looks at how global linguistic dominance can be short-lived, using a case study of French in Africa. Is there anything from the film you would like …