Letter to the Editor

To Editor,

Firstly, I would like to state that I do not agree with the statement "textspeak is eroding hard- learned skills in such basic areas as spelling and grammar". Why? Because studies have shown that 'txtspk' in fact is expanding children's dictionaries as it exposes them to a variety of forms of the English language, therefore they are able to witnesses the different ways English can be used and this is in fact beneficial to them. In total, over 3 billion have mobile phones (that's almost half of the Earth's population!)- so how can we expect everyone to get rid of their phones, to 'protect' themselves from txtspk as it 'erodes' their language skills- we can't, because this is false. People in general tend to look up to people who are higher than them in the social hierarchy (e.g. royalty), therefore if you try to tell someone that only 'uneducated' people use txtspk, they will disagree with you. But why? Because Queen Victoria did txt spking and that will definitely be a point of argument that they may use.
I believe that this article uses a large amount of hyperbole, because I am quite sure that children are NOT 'in danger of growing up with limited vocabularies', this is not life-threatening.
Texting is something that is essential is people's lives, it is there as a form of communication and for passing information to others and I know that many of us like to cut down on things that could be time-consuming, so that's why txtspk was created- it's not there to determine how educated we are.
Yes, there are people out there who do not form a line between the way they write in class and the way they text, but these people can not be generalised to all of us.  Also, txtspk is not a whole new language, it is simple the removal of vowels and unnecessary letters from ENGLISH words.


If texting is THAT bad, then why was it created in the first place?

Yours Truly,
Reem Abusin
Street 274
Dubai
12/10

 Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2587824/Twtr-Its-not-majorly-...her-condemns-text-speak-eroding-schoolchildrens-language-skills.html

Interview between J Cole and Billboard 

Hello J Cole, it's great to have you here with us today. We wanted to ask you a few questions about your latest album Forest Hills Drive. So, what is the meaning behind the album title?

Aye, what's up! I'm glad to be here, myself. Well, like y'know for dis title, I di'n't think much bout it cause it just came to me. I just wanted to like write smo'ing that was personal to me, like y'know sorta like a diary, but music diary, ya feel me? Well dis title is actually the name of me, my mamma, bro and pap address when we was growing up. Actually, the same year that I was writin the album, I bought out old house, because it holds our memories and all, y'know.


Oh really, that's amazing! So is the album's like the story of you growing up?

Yeah man, dis album is me tryna tell ma story to all them peeps who be going through the same thing, cause I know that all my homies from NC still ain't get out, like if you aks me where all my brodas at right now, I'll tell you that they at NC because I was the only one to get out- see this was an advantage because we got the dough when them other niggas di'nt. We was the only ones that got out, all them others trapped. Once you leave you ain't never going back. But I wrote dis one for all them homies, to show 'em that eventually one day they gonna be out just like me, nobody gonna stay in NC forever. If you got a dream then you gon achieve that dream, long as you put in that work.

What made you re-buy your childhood house, if it was so bad?

Man, I di'nt buy this house for them dollas (laughing). I bought it hopin that a new fam can live in it fo cheap and hopefully they follow them footsteps in life like me, y'know maybe it was the house that got me the good luck hahahah.

You recently realised a video called G.O.M.D and there was a lot of confusion about the meaning behind it, can you please explain once and for all what the actually meaning behind it is?

Yeah, so many people thought that dis video was about racism- it ain't not completely. It's more to show dat we all need unity and togetherness y'know because we [the black community] know all about oppression. But today, there be different levels of racism within our race. I'll explain, you only be 'in the block' if you got a story, y'know like a drug story or some gangsta story, like people only f*ck with you if you a "real nigga" and if you say som'ing like “What’s up fellas!” - they be looking at you like you some low standard nigga, where in reality we all low standard (laughing)

That'll be it for today. Thank you very much Jermaine for being here

Peace!

"Language shapes our identity, but doesn't define who we are"

First off, I am going to start off by saying that language is a form of communication- its a complex system of vocal signs (made up of patterns, rules and connecting elements), which humans communicate through, however it is not the only way of communication, but it plays a huge role in that. Moreover, our identity is who we are, not what we speak. The language we speak may help shape our identity, but it may or may not define who we are. 

Many people could argue that we need language to be able to get through our lives, because many believe that we are brought into this world as linguists- from the moment of birth. An article published on TIME.com (Understanding how the brain speaks 2 languages) stated that when humans are born, they produce a babble made up of hundreds of phonemes from hundreds of languages; this will lead their parents to react to phonemes from their native tongues and later on the baby will use and repeat the selected phonemes. This supports the idea that language shapes our identity, as it helps others identify as a certain nationality. As I said in my previous blog, our 'native' language relates to the country we originate from, not who our parents are or who we may turn out to be in the future, thus this reinforces the idea of language shaping our identity, without defining who we are.

On the other hand, some people may believe that our native language is not extremely beneficial, if it's the only language we speak. This is because, studies have proven that bilingualism and multilingualism could lead to intelligence. There is also scientific evidence supporting the theory stating that bilingual brains are "better functioning". It has been proven that they cope better with diseases such as: alzeihemers;  However, there are disadvantages, as well as advantages, of bilingual and multilingual brains. Some studies have found that bilingual children has a smaller vocabulary than monolingual children- this could be because their of their parents' mixing of words, which leads the children to confusion. This may lead some individuals to think that the number of languages we are able to speak define us as either more capable or less capable, in terms of the strength of our brain.

Personally, I both agree and disagree with the statement, above the page. Firstly, language HELPS shape our identity, however it does not have the ability to shape it on it's own. Also, I believe that language CAN define who we are, because in some cases, it can label our brains as either 'more capable' or 'less capable', while the language we speak doesn't have the authority to label us, without any solid evidence. Overall, the above statement has a large amount of for/against arguments. This is because, our identity may change, depending on the moment and the situation, therefore many people don't have a set identity. 

My Mother tongue or Mother's mother tongue?

The term 'mother tongue' is defined as: the language which a person has grown up speaking from early childhood, thus the phrases 'native language' and 'mother tongue' are equivalent in meaning, however they are not synonyms. As, the noun 'native' refers to a country/nation, whereas the noun 'mother' relates to the individual's parent. 

Today, we had a class discussion about the article 'Mother Tongue' written by Amy Tan, where she discussed the perks of speaking multiple types of English or as she states, "Englishes".
Personally, I can relate to this article, as I, myself, have to switch up my "Englishes" sometimes, depending on who I am communicating with. For example, when I speak to my grandfather, I tend to pronounce letters like "t", whereas if I'm speaking to my friend I wouldn't. I see eye to eye with Tan when she states that there is a "different sort on English that relates to family talk".

In addition to that, in the article 'Mother Tongue' Tan addresses the numerous issues that come with having family members who speak a different type of the English language and she has personally experienced that with her mother's simplified English, and yes I said it was a simplified version of English, as there many types of "Englishes" out there and her mother's version is solely simplified, it's NOT 'broken' or 'limited'.

Sadly, the world we now live in is incredibly hypocritical. How? Why? Because, the English language did not originate from England or America or Canada, it mostly originated from other languages such as, French and German, and most people don't acknowledge that, as, if they heard someone with a German or French 'mother tongue' attempt to speak English, I'm quite certain that they would perceive them as "lower" than them. In all honesty, that isn't even logical, because without those Germans and French people, the English language would not even exist; all these songs you turn up to, wouldn't of have been made. So here's what I have to say to everyone out there who thinks that Cristiano Ronaldo's english is "broken"- people like Ronaldo are actually "higher" than you, why? Because they are BI or TRI-lingual when you're not. Therefore, they are actually more privileged in life, because they have the ability to communicate with a variety of cultures, whereas you're missing out!

In conclusion, I believe that a person's 'mother tongue' is the language that associated with one's 'family talk' and for that I have a better understanding to why Tan kept referring to her mother's English as her 'mother tongue', this is because Tan herself doesn't originate from an English speaking country, therefore 'standard English' isn't a norm in her 'native' country. Also, I hope that after reading my point of view on this topic, everyone can learn to respect all types of "Englishes". 

As I mentioned in my first blog, the name 'Reem' translates to 'gazelle' in Arabic. Now, I will expand on my name and the "elegance" behind it. 

The name "Reem" is of African and Swahili origins, therefore it has multiple roots. 

Wikipedia defines my name as: (Arabic: ريم‎‎) is an Arabic female given name, which means "gazelle" and symbolizes purity, elegance and grace. Reem is considered to be an upper-class name, and many princesses have held it. Reem is often used in Arabic literature and poetry as a metaphor for beauty and elegance. 

Wikipedia is here to inform us and provide us with definitions, however that doesn't necessarily mean that my personality should not conform wikipedia's definition of the type of individual 'Reem' should be. Why? Because your name is not a label, it is something that is given to you and it's acceptance is not mandatory, as you are not forced to accept everything that is given to you, right? But, I accept my name because it suits me, not by definition, however by it's simplicity. I admire my name, because it can be easily pronounced by multiple accents and it still sounds (quite) the same! 

Also, "Reem" is used as a slang word in England, specifically by Joey Essex in a show named 'The Only Way in Essex' and it holds a similar, but not identical, meaning to what my parents initially aimed for. Joey Essex's definition of 'Reem' is: brilliant, good, cool, fashionable; close, but not close enough. When I visit England, people there do not take my name seriously; all as a result of Joey Essex.

Below is a song Joey created, without my consent.

African or Arab?

Welcome back,
Today I will give you all more insight into my 'secluded' life (like I promised previously).

When it comes to culture, I wouldn't exactly say that I belong to a one culture solely, that is because I come from a country that I have no history with, therefore I would be more likely to identify with the country which I spent my entire life in, however that is not the case. Sudan is the country which holds my identity.

Now, to explain the title of this post. Many people from other Arab cultures identify us as 'Arabs', while people from non-Arab cultures identify us as 'Africans', only because Sudan is located in Africa. Yes, I know that it's location makes it an 'African' country, however it doesn't necessarily makes us 'Africans', as Sudan's first language is Arabic NOT Afrikaans. The frustrating thing about this is not the 'African' label, it's the fact that Egypt and Sudan are siblings, they share the nile river, and I've never witnessed an individual label Egyptians as 'Africans'.

Furthermore, it is very irritating how much Sudan is ignored not only in Africa, however in the whole world. On that point, I have noticed, while growing up, that Egypt seems to be more familiar to people. Yes, I know that this could be because of it's famous pyramids, however Sudan itself has a legendary history- Sudan was the largest country in Africa (7th largest in the world), until it split up in 2011.
Let me tell you something that really put me off a few months ago when I was researching a few things about Sudan for my history homework. I typed 'Sudan' into google and the first link I click on defines Sudan as 'A country in Africa, south of Egypt'. No, Sudan is: an Arab country located in Africa.

Fact: Sudan and the UAE flags are made up of the same colours. 

Sobre Mi

Hello World,

My name is Reem an you probably already know that, as it's written all over my page. I'm not usually the type of person who likes to give a lot away, I tend to receive more. But change is good right? Change helps us discover new things in life and that's what I'm all about.
So here we go, I'm going to try and let you all in to my 'secluded' life.
Firstly, my interests. I like to be proactive and try out new sports, I don't stick to one sport, however I shift from one sport to another, not only does that make each sport more entertaining but it also benefits you in the future. On that note, I should probably mention something I believe is a necessity, planning ahead, no I'm not just talking about a homework schedule, but I'm talking about making the right decisions that will help us out in the future. We don't want to grow up and question our poor decisions right? No regrets.
Finally, I hope that this first blog post wasn't too bad, as i'm not much of a writer, hopefully over time I will get more comfortable and say more about myself. For now, I will leave you all with a picture of a gazelle. Why you ask? Because (another fact), my name means 'gazelle' in Arabic.