Name! That! Language!!! How solid is your knowledge of Europe’s main languages?

Name! That! Language!!!

How solid is your knowledge of Europe’s

main languages?

Which World Language?

● Listen to each audio recording. ● Try to name the language that is

spoken (2 pts).● If needed, get a hint. You’ll see a

written script of the recording.● Guess again (1 pt).● Find out your result at the end.● Copy and complete the following

graphic organizer as we progress!

Language Graphic OrganizerLanguage Language

FamilyLanguage

GroupEstimated Number of

Native Speakers

English

German

Russian

French

Italian

Acknowledgments The audio and text are readings from Article 1 of the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights. Visit here for the full text. Watch the video.

Readings from Librivox and the U.N.

Languages in Europe

● Europe’s population is more than DOUBLE the population of the US

● In the US, English is the dominant language

● Europe is home to more than 200 HUNDRED native languages

● A few language groups in Europe are dominant:

1) Germanic

2) Romance

3) Slavic

● Having so many languages can be a problem - difficult to live, work and trade with people who cannot communicate

● The European Union has 23 “official languages”!

● How to solve this “problem”? Teach schoolchildren other languages!

Name! That! Language!!!

Name! That! Language!!!

English

The English Language

English belongs to the Indo-European family, Germanic group, and is the official language of over 1.7 billion people. Native European speakers tally over 330 million. English is the official language of the UK, Ireland, and European Union.

Name! That! Language!!!

Tous les êtres humains naissent libres et égaux en dignité et en droits. Ils sont doués de raison et de conscience et doivent agir les uns envers les autres dans un esprit de fraternité.

Name! That! Language!!!

French

The French Language

French belongs to the Indo-European family, Romance group, and is the native language of about 110 million people.

Spoken in France, Belgium, and Switzerland

Name! That! Language!!!

Все люди рождаются свободными и равными в своем достоинстве и правах. Они наделены разумом и совестью и должны поступать в отношении друг друга в духе братства.

Name! That! Language!!!

Russian

The Russian Language Russian belongs to the Indo-

European family, Slavic group and is the native tongue to 144 million people, making it the most widely spoken Slavic language in the world.

Spoken in Russia.

Many Slavic Languages Written with Cyrillic Alphabet

Name! That! Language!!!

Alle Menschen sind frei und gleich an Würde und Rechten geboren. Sie sind mit Vernunft und Gewissen begabt und sollen einander im Geiste der Brüderlichkeit begegnen.

Name! That! Language!!!

German

The German Language German belongs to the Indo-

European family, West Germanic group and has an estimated 100 million native speakers.

Spoken in Germany and Austria*English is a Germanic language so it is

not surprising to find a high degree of similarity.

Name! That! Language!!!

Tutti gli esseri umani nascono liberi ed eguali in dignità e diritti. Essi sono dotati di ragione e di coscienza e devono agire gli uni verso gli altri in spirito di fratellanza.

Name! That! Language!!!

Italian

The Italian Language

Belongs to the Indo-European family, Romance group, and is the native language to an estimated 60 million people. Of all languages, Italian retains the closest resemblance to the Latin spoken by the Romans (Romans… Romance… get it?).

*Spoken in Italy and Switzerland