Language
Australians ready for a historic referendum recognizing First Nations people
On Oct. 14, Australians will vote on a referendum that would officially recognize First Nations people for the first time and establish an advisory body called Voice to Parliament.
A modern take on an ancient Chinese folk tale
Mexican American teen star sings on after heated controversy with Mexican audiences
Nonnative-English-speaking scientists work much harder just to keep up, global research reveals
Finnish Moomins book series finds new audiences in the US
This Israeli rapper brings people together through multilingual lyrics
Noam Tsuriely is a 28-year-old Jewish Israeli hip-hop artist from Jerusalem He says he likes to rap in both Hebrew and Arabic to get Israelis and Palestinians to learn both languages, so they can understand each other better. Tsuriely's story is the latest in The World's summer "Planet Hip Hop" series.
A silent movie cinema thrives in Brussels
For most of the world, silent films died out in the 1930s. But in Brussels, Belgium, the only remaining cinema in the world with a regular schedule of silent films, along with live piano accompaniment, is thriving.
Why are some sounds funny?
To English speakers, the word, “peanut” isn’t especially funny. But “peanut” in Serbian, “kikiriki” is widely considered by Serbs to be the funniest word in their language. This raises the question of why people laugh at some words (“poop”) but not at others (“treadmill”). Does it come down to their meanings? Or are people responding to their sounds? Psycholinguist Chris Westbury set out to discover the answer.
Hip-hop artists in India call out caste discrimination
In India, artists are using hip-hop to stand up to one of the world's oldest forms of discrimination: caste. In recent years, a new wave of Dalit artists is wielding some of the same musical elements that Black artists began channeling decades ago to call out prejudice and injustice.
How the Bologna Process expanded opportunities for students across Europe
Exchange programs allow students to move freely between universities across the European Union, while paying local tuition fees — which, in some cases, can be free. The Bologna Process has united university degrees across the continent under a common set of quality assurance controls and recognition standards.
'Embrace the culture, embrace the language': Offering bilingual courses benefits students beyond the classroom, Texan professor says
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is classified as a Hispanic-serving institution where some bilingual courses are offered. The World's host Marco Werman speaks with astronomy professor Juan Madrid about teaching his classes in both Spanish and English and what it means for the students.
Catalan separatists want university classes taught in the local language. Spanish academics resist the change.
Language has always been at the heart of the Catalan people’s campaign for independence. And the regional government is once again demanding that university professors teach their courses in Catalan. But does the Catalan-language law further the nationalist cause, or leave the region more isolated? Professors are already rebelling.
How Miami Dade College teaches students to learn, live in a bilingual world
The honors college wanted to create a program for high-achieving bilingual high school students who were uncertain about college — because they were recent immigrants, had low standardized test scores or weren’t sure what opportunities were available to them in US higher education.
This blues musician fled Russia for Serbia. But he sounds like he came straight from the Mississippi Delta.
It only took one listen for musician Sergei Grin (a.k.a. “Gringo”) to hear the blues and know that's what he was meant to play. Grin, who is originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, now travels around Serbia with his guitar, singing American country music and blues.
The long fight for arts and culture in Ukraine as war rages on
When Russia's full-scale invasion in Ukraine began on Feb. 24, 2022, the pursuits of many of Ukraine's leading artists and cultural institutions came to a halt. The World takes a look back at the myriad ways in which war impacted artistic and cultural expression in Ukraine, and how advocates continue to work tirelessly to keep making art against all odds.