Hebrew is most successful attempt ever at language revival. We find out why. Also, Malaysians are rioting after a court rules that a Catholic newspaper can use the word Allah. Then, two reports on alphabet letters: in Sweden, parents win the right to name their newborn Q; and in Turkey, using the Kurdish-associated letters Q, W or X can land you in jail. And, a two-nations-divided-by-one-language examination of the word grit.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
We talk to the director and central figure in a PBS documentary about a Catholic church’s struggles with language. “Scenes From a Parish” follows the priests and parishioners of St Patrick’s in Lawrence, MA. The priests introduce more Spanish masses to cater to Lawrence’s predominantly Latino population. Some English-speaking parishioners are less than thrilled. Also, how do you say Neptune and Uranus in Hebrew? The answer used to be: Neptune and Uranus. Now the two planets have Hebrew names. Finally, a New Year’s Day hangover courtesy of the good people of Denmark
Download MP3