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Lah! Abuthen Agaration Paiseh Aiyo Lah! Abuthen Han nah Paiseh

Aiyo

Paiseh

Computer Age The Internet is the virtual backbone of modern culture. It has changed the way people communicate, from acronyms in Whatsapp messages to fresh neologisms – like ‘selfie’ – on Facebook. Style and form are out the window, traded in for speed. The information era is moving fast, and language is constantly adapting to keep up with the race.

We’re now getting used to the idea of rapidly-developing technologies changing what we can do and how we do it, and the way we communicate is no exception. World-famous linguist David Crystal points out that neologisms and acronyms spread like ‘wildfire’ throughout the various social media platforms – and when they do, they become part of our everyday language.

During a recent trip to Lombok, an island in Indonesia whose inhabitants speak a localised Sasak language, I was surprised when my guide asked if I wanted a ‘selfie’ in front of a waterfall. It’s moments like this when you clearly see how technology has left its mark on all languages. We both understood what he meant by ‘selfie’, and it showed that Internet users are creating their own form of communication.

Technology has always affected language, from the introduction of the printing press (1476) to the birth of the automobile (1768), it has brought new words, and changed existing semantics. The Internet alone has brought new meanings to words such as ‘post’, ‘stream’ and ‘troll’. There are also linguists who suggest that instant technology has made our everyday conversations less formal, with instant messaging throwing standardised grammar out of the window.

Many casual conversations that we have today would have little meaning for someone from a previous century who spoke the same language. Imagine asking your great-grandfather if he has “posted his relationship status on his wall”! In the future, there will be so many more examples like this as technology develops even further.

An elderly woman selfies and emails while sitting in a traditional rice paddy

The Internet is the virtual backbone of modern culture left

The ASIAN Geographic Hot Soup Challenge returns for another year to put Singapore’s kids in the quiz hot seat and challenge their general knowledge about Asia. The school challenge will run in April 2017 under the theme of Climate Change. Students will have the opportunity to study up on relevant issues through the January edition, which will address issues relating to global warming. This year’s challenge will also dovetail with the Asia Dive Expo, which runs at Suntec from 7-9 April. The contest is broken down into three categories: • Junior (age 7–12) • Students (age 12–18) • Open Category (age 18 and above)

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1. A long history as a distinct, homogeneous ethnic group, native to the Korean Peninsula and Manchuria 2. A common nationalist historiography,

centred on the Korean minjok 3. A common cultural heritage 4. The same language origins, using

Hangul as the main writing system

Both islandstates use the same hangul (Chosŏn’gŭl) letters for writing.