Блиц-турнир ко дню Европы Do you know that?

Муниципальное бюджетное общеобразовательное учреждение

«Журавлёвская школа» Симферопольского района Республики Крым

ул. Мира,15-а, с. Журавлёвка, Симферопольский район, Республика Крым, 297512, тел. (3652) 325-183, е-mail: [email protected] Код ОГРН 1159102024146

Мероприятие ко дню европейских языков

Блиц -турнир подготовила учитель английского языка Рагулина В.Г.

Did you know that...

1.There are between 6000 and 7000 languages in the world - spoken by six billion people divided into 189 independent states.

2.There are about 225 indigenous languages in Europe - roughly 3% of the world's total.

3.Most of the world's languages are spoken in Asia and Africa.

4.At least half of the world's population are bilingual or plurilingual, i.e. they speak two or more languages.

5.In their daily lives Europeans increasingly come across foreign languages. There is a need to generate a greater interest in languages among European citizens.

6.Many languages have 50,000 words or more, but individual speakers normally know and use only a fraction of the total vocabulary: in everyday conversation people use the same few hundred words.

7.Languages are constantly in contact with each other and affect each other in many ways: English borrowed words and expressions from many other languages in the past, European languages are now borrowing many words from English.

8.In its first year a baby utters a wide range of vocal sounds; at around one year the first understandable words are uttered; at around three years complex sentences are formed; at five years a child possesses several thousand words.

9.The mother tongue is usually the language one knows best and uses most. But there can be "perfect bilinguals" who speak two languages equally well. Normally, however, bilinguals display no perfect balance between their two languages.

10.Bilingualism brings with it many benefits: it makes the learning of additional languages easier, enhances the thinking process and fosters contacts with other people and their cultures.

11.Bilingualism and plurilingualism entail economic advantages, too: jobs are more easily available to those who speak several languages, and multilingual companies have a better competitive edge than monolingual ones.

12.Languages are related to each other like the members of a family. Most European languages belong to the large Indo-European family.

13.Most European languages belong to three broad groups: Germanic, Romance and Slavic.

14.The Germanic family of languages includes Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Icelandic, German, Dutch, English and Yiddish, among others.

15.The Romance languages include Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Romanian, among others.

16.The Slavic languages include Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovenian, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian, Bulgarian and others.

17.Most European languages use the Latin alphabet. Some Slavic languages use the Cyrillic alphabet. Greek, Armenian, Georgian and Yiddish have their own alphabet.

18.Most countries in Europe have a number of regional or minority languages - some of these have obtained official status.

19.The non-European languages most widely used on European territory are Arabic, Chinese and Hindi, each with its own writing system.

20. Russia (148 million inhabitants) has by far the highest number of languages spoken on its territory: from 130 to 200 depending on the criteria.

21. Due to the influx of migrants and refugees, Europe has become largely multilingual. In London alone some 300 languages are spoken (Arabic, Turkish, Kurdish, Berber, Hindi, Punjabi, etc.).

Now that you've learned so much - why don't you try?

What is the European Day of Languages?

The European Year of Languages 2001, jointly organised by the Council of Europe and the European Union, was successful in involving millions of people across 45 participating countries. Its activities celebrated linguistic diversity in Europe and promoted language learning.

The general objectives of the European Day of Languages are:

-Alerting the public to the importance of language learning and diversifying the range of languages learnt in order to increase plurilingualism and intercultural understanding;

-Promoting the rich linguistic and cultural diversity of Europe, which must be preserved and fostered;

-Encouraging lifelong language learning in and out of school, whether for study purposes, for professional needs, for purposes of mobility or for pleasure and exchanges.

Who is the European Day of Languages for?

The Council of Europe is hoping that this Day will be celebrated by both authorities in its member states and potential partners at the following levels:

-among policy-makers (specific measures or discussions on language policy issues, for instance)

-among the general public (awareness-raising on the overall objectives of the Day, including the importance of lifelong language learning, starting at any age, in educational establishments, at work, etc);

-in the voluntary sector (specific actions by and/or for NGOs, associations, companies, etc).

Who can participate?

-here are a vast number of ways in which you can celebrate the European Day of Languages depending on the time and means you have available.

These go from the simple (such as organising a film evening showing movies in different languages, or a language café serving specialities from a range of countries), to the more resource intensive (such large scale media events). The Calendar of events lists all activities which have been published on the EDL website since 2002 and offers a rich source of ideas. A cross-section is also available on the aptly named 'get inspired' page!

Whether large or small, the principle is simple...

-have a good idea (an event such as a party, a tournament, a dinner)organise it, promote it

-enter the event into our database, and make it happen!

Who can participate?

Get inspired by previous events

Organisation of the European Day of Languages

The Council of Europe does not issue directives (or financial support) for the organisation of activities. Member states and potential partners are given a free hand to organise activities as they wish, with a view to ensuring maximum flexibility in implementing the Day.

"National Relays"

In the majority of countries a person takes on the role of "relay" between event organisers and the Council of Europe on a voluntary basis. This also involves disseminating information and promotional materials produced by the Council at national, regional and local levels.

Role of the Council of Europe

The Council of Europe initiated the Day and each year sends out posters, stickers and other promotional materials illustrating the diversity of languages in Europe. The materials are distributed on a centralised basis to National relays who are responsible for their distribution nationally, in particular to meet the needs of EDL event organisers.