Et Cetera : Itimology (secret meaning)

Et cetera (frequently abbreviated as etc.) is an expression derived from Latin which could mean any of the following :

• The speaker wants to say more things, but could no longer do so
• The speaker wants to give the impression that he knows more than what he can actually say 
• The speaker has just forgotten what he was about to say next
• Et cetera, et cetera...

Et cetera means "and other things." It comes from two Latin words

• et (and)
• cetera (for the rest)

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Note: Itimology is a new section in this blog describing the secret meaning of words.  

It derives from the Filipino word for black- itim, since what is secret is usually something kept in the dark.

Sample Tagalog Math Questions in UPCAT (UP College Admission Test)

For those of you who are hesitating to take the UPCAT because you are afraid of the Tagalog questions, and are doubly afraid of the Tagalog Math questions- fear no more!
I have prepared for you sample Tagalog Math Questions to help you hurdle this intimidating entrance exam! Good luck taking the UPCAT! :)

Sample Tagalog Math Questions in UPCAT
T(anong) at S(agot)

T. Kung ang triangle ay tatsulok, ano naman ang square?
S. Patsulok

T. Kuwentahin : Tatlo itinaas sa kapangyarihan ng dalawa.
S. Siyam

T. Kunin ang parisukat na ugat ng apat.
S. Dalawa

T. Ano ang simbolo ng torta*?
S. Wala (o sero).
   * sin(π)

T. Ano naman ang simbolo ng kalahating torta?
S. Isa

T. Isalin ang sumusunod sa isang ekspresyong matematikal : Lima, nagulat.
S. 5!

T. Payb taymis payb is ekwals tu __?
S. Tuwentipayb

T. Problema Bilang 1 :
Pumunta si Pedro sa isang estasyon ng gas.  Ano ang panimulang basa (initial reading) sa makina na namamahagi ng gasolina (gasoline dispenser)

S. Sero-sero.
("Sir, sero-sero," ika nga ng gas boy).


T. Problema Bilang 2:
Ako ay may lobo, lumipad sa langit. Kung ang ekis ay ang bilang ng aking lobo, hanapin ang ekis.

S. Ang ekis ay hindi mailalarawan (undefined)

Katunayan :
Hayaan ang ekis na maging bilang ng (mga) lobo.
Ang (mga) lobo ay lumipad sa langit (Binigay ng Problema).
Hindi na nakita ang lobo (Kung lumipad (ang mga) ito sa langit, malamang di na makikita).
Samakatuwid, hindi na mahahanap ang lobo.
Dahil ang ekis ay ang bilang ng lobo, hindi na mahahanap ang ekis.
Samakatuwid, undefined, o hindi mailalarawan, ang ekis.

Emitte Spiritum tuum et renova faciem terrae

Today is the feast of Pentecost. A good phrase to repeat today is the following:

Emitte Spiritum tuum et renova faciem terrae!
Send forth your Spirit and renew the face of the earth!

It recalls how the Holy Spirit was active during the Creation of the world and reminds us how the Holy Spirit can be implored to re-create, to renew, the face of the earth- or of society, so that it can be made pleasing once again to the Creator.

Vocabulary
Emitte- Send forth, emit (verb, imperative of emittere )
Spiritum- Spirit (noun, accusative of Spiritus)
tuum - your (possessive pronoun, accusative of tuus)
et - and
renova - renew (verb, imperative of renovare)
faciem - face (noun, accusative of facies)
terrae - of the earth (noun, genitive of terra)

Ego Sum Pater Tuus : Latin Star Wars meme

Found this funny Latin Star Wars meme :

Text and translation below

Left side :
Hic Darcus Vadorus : Here (is) Darth Vader
Luxgladium tenet : Holding a lightsaber
Non, ego sum pater tuus : No, I am your father

Right Side :
Hic Lucius Caeliambulus : Here (is) Luke Skywalker
Imo, non est verus ; No!!! That's not true!

Vocabulary
hic - here
lux - light
gladium - sword
luxgladium - lightsaber
tenet - he holds/ is holding (from tenere, to hold)
non - no, not
ego - I
sum - I am (First person, singular of esse, to be)
pater - Father
tuus - your
caeli - of /from the heavens/sky
ambulus - walking (from ambulare, to walk)
caeliambulus - skywalker
imo - No! No way!
est - it is
verus - truth

Language Learning Tip : Parallel Reading

One of the techniques that has really helped me learn a new language (at least at the level of reading) is to read a text in English then read the same text in another language. It worked for me when I was learning Latin, and it worked again for me now that I'm learning Cebuano.

I make use of the text of the New Testament since I am quite familiar with it (especially the Gospel narratives since they contain stories; the Epistles (or Letters) are more difficult to process).  What I would do is to read the Gospel, sentence by sentence, in English, then in Cebuano. Of course, at the beginning, I would not understand, word for word, what I read in Cebuano, but I just continue.  After some time, the mind begins to identify individual words (e.g. conjunctions, articles), expressions, parts of the sentence (subject, object), what are the verbs and what are the nouns, word order within the sentence, and other language constructs.  This just shows how great the human brain is in processing disjoint data at first, then making a sense out of them after being given many previous examples (a technique which is exploited by some machine-learning techniques in artificial intelligence).  One can say that this is learning just by "soaking it in"- allowing language elements to enter one's mind without minding at first the language rules or grammar.

Advantages of this practice

• One can learn new words without consulting a dictionary.  These words will also be learned in context - according to how it was used in the sentence.
• One can learn expressions  or words taken together to take on a new meaning
• One can deduce language constructs (e.g. formation of verb tenses, declension of nouns)
• One can identify the word order in a sentence (position of subject, object, verbs with respect to the sentence)
• One can reinforce what he has learned so far, by finding examples in the text he is reading. This helps encourage him learn new things, avoiding the discouragement of thinking that none of what he learns ever comes out in his conversations or readings

How to apply this technique

• Identify a text that you are familiar with (something that you have already read, or you usually read).  Examples : Bible, your favorite children's novel, comic book or manga, news articles  
• Find a translation of that work in your target language (the language you are trying to learn)
• Read that work, first in the language you're familiar with, then in your target language. Do this one "mouthful" at a time, i.e., according to how much your mind can learn. At the beginning, it could be after one clause, or as soon as you encounter a comma or semicolon. As you progress, you can read one sentence at a time, then two sentences at a time, then whole paragraphs at a time.
• Take note of new words, expressions that you learn along the way (in your notebook, or in your handheld gadget). Review these from time to time.
• Once you have taken a bit of mastery in your target language, reverse the process: read continuously in your target language, only stopping when you encounter a word/construct you are not familiar with. Then check out its meaning in the text written in your first language.

Warnings

• The applicability of what you have learned depends on the type of text you are reading. For example, if you're reading the Bible, expect that what you will learn is the formal form of the language, whereas if your text is a manga or comic book, what you will learn is the informal/vulgar form of the language. By formal/informal form of the language, I basically mean the choice of words. However there are some languages (e.g. Spanish, and more so Japanese) which have different sets of construct for formal and informal speech.
• This technique will help you tremendously in reading. However, you have to apply other techniques for improving your listening and conversational skills.

Your feedback is most welcome.

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I won't wish you luck, Ganbatte!

It's the season for exams! During these days, people usually greet each other with "Good luck!"
I know of some people who don't like greeting people this way, because they believe that success will not just come from luck, but from hard work. For this type of people, there is a Japanese greeting that may just fit, and that is :

Ganbatte!

がんばって!

Do your best!

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Levels of Language Proficiency

For a long time I have believed that there are three levels of language proficiency :

1st level : One is able to read the language;
2nd level : One is able to write in the language;
3rd level : One is able to speak the language,

     until a friend introduced me to a fourth (and highest) level :

4th level : One is able to dream in the language.

He explained that it is only when one reaches the 4th level that one can be assured that the language has already taken deep root in one's mind- the language has already entered the subconscious!

My friend lived in Spain for a couple of years so I asked him if he has ever dreamt in Spanish. He answered 'Several times.'

During my first few months in Cebu (I came from Manila where Tagalog is spoken, different from Cebuano which is spoken in Cebu), I thought I already reached the 4th level of Cebuano proficiency when I dreamt in Cebuano.  The setting was in a street in Cebu City.  I could hear people- vendors, pedestrians, speaking in Cebuano.   When I woke up, I was so happy that I was able to dream in Cebuano. The problem was, I did not understand the conversations in the dream.  Then I realized : I am not even in the first level  of Cebuano proficiency. Way klaro!*

* "Way klaro" which literally means "It's not clear!" can have the following translations depending on the situation: "It's absurd!", "I can't understand it!", "It's not fair!" There's a Tagalog expression that has the same literal and linguistic meaning: "Ang labo!"

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Japanese Love Trivia

愛

Here's a February 14 trivia:
Did you know that the first 2 Japanese Hiragana characters form a word that means love?

The first 2 characters are あ(a) and い(i),  forming あい (ai).

screenshot from Google Translate (translate.google.com)

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Why Study a Foreign Language?

I heard that C.S.Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia studied Italian so that he could read Dante's Divine Comedy in its original and thus better appreciate it. I make an allusion to this fact when some friends ask me why I study Japanese. I tell them that  the reason is that Voltes V (a popular anime in the Philippines from 70s through the 90s) is in Japanese, and for me to fully appreciate it, I have to learn Japanese. Of course, I was joking. 

I have asked myself many times why I find studying another language amusing.  What are the reasons and rewards for studying a foreign language?  I'm sure that there are  academic researches and articles about this, but to keep a certain level of freshness and spontaneity in this article, I will just mention things as they come to my mind.




The Reasons

Passion
Some study a language as a passion.  As some may have a seemingly natural liking for sports, arts or science, others have a natural liking for language. To go back to the question on why I study Japanese, on the external I could say that my motivation was to study a language which is completely foreign to me, but internally, for me it carried a certain significance; it was to study a 'first love' of some sort, that is, the first to ever enkindle my interest for languages.

Necessity
Of course we have to list necessity as one of the main reasons for studying a language. One may be working or studying in another country and so he needs to learn the language in that country. One's profession may also require it. For instance, a Filipino historian should study Spanish since many early documents in Philippine History are in Spanish.

Tourism
One can take advantage of a visit to another country to study a new language. With the visit comes  additional motivations- to be able to go around the new country, to have basic conversations with the nationals, etc. When I went to Rome, I studied a bit of Italian. When I went to Spain, I listened to a lot of Spanish podcasts.

Complementarity
I like mathematics and analysis. Some people claim that people who are into mathematics have a natural propensity for learning learning languages. I think this has a basis.  Sentence structures can actually be broken into parts (e.g. subject, object, verb, articles, etc.) and be defined by mathematical/logical constructs. Analyzing this analogically, in computer science, each programming language has its own grammar which defines how the tokens (equivalent to words in real languages)  in a program are to be arranged and interpreted.


The Rewards

Acquire a New World View
Learning a new language gives you a new vision of the world. This is because the culture of peoples is imprinted in their language.  When one studies Japanese, for example, one can easily see how the idea of 'respect' permeates the entire language. This is because respect is an essential feature in the Japanese society.

Receive Intellectual Gratification
I feel a certain satisfaction when I begin to understand a new language - read, heard or spoken. I attribute this to the additional intellectual effort that doing such activities in another language would entail. Perhaps its the same thrill that people get from solving a puzzle or an analytical problem.  Of course, this satisfaction does not come in an instant- many times it takes a long time of effort (and confusion). For this reason, one has to find a good reason for studying a language.

Defeat Boredom
Learning a new language can help prevent boredom and doing things mechanically. Reading, hearing or speaking in one's native language is always easier.  But just as in many things, a certain boredom could come from doing things so easily- especially if these are things you do often. For example, when I would do some readings in the afternoon, I notice that I can easily fall asleep. But if I read the same material in Spanish, I can keep myself more awake since my mind has to remain active in translating from the text I read. 


Sharpen the Mind 
I started studying Japanese a few months ago. Then when I had to study something related to my own field, I felt that my level for abstraction of ideas increased. Perhaps it was just my perception,  but the reality is that I was able to grasp concepts that up till then I found difficult.

Acquire Affinity to a Wider Range of People
To be able to engage with a wider range of people and have a bit more affinity to them. Currently, I live in Cebu and am learning Cebuano/Bisaya. Learning Bisaya gives me a bit more affinity to several million other countrymen who speaks this language.

Encode Messages
Learning a new language character set (like Japanese, Thai or Elven) can help you encode or encrypt messages.  For example, one can write in Japanese katakana or hiragana personal notes that he wants to be constantly reminded of, but which he doesn't want the others to know about or understand.

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