INDEX

ENGLISH E N G L I S H

EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND LANGUAGES

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MAP OF EUROPE

Hello! My name is… and I am from Bulgaria. I will be your teacher in this video. First, let's see what you know about Bulgaria and the Bulgarian language.

1. Where is Bulgaria and which is its capital?

Bulgaria is located in Southeast Europe and is a part of the Balkan Peninsula. It has a strategic geographical location because it connects Europe with Asia and the Middle East. Bulgaria covers an area of 111,000 square kilometers and it is fourth among the countries of the Balkan Peninsula. Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic and our current president is Rumen Radev.

Sofia is the capital city of Bulgaria and it is one of the oldest cities in Europe. It is the 14th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1,302,297.

2. What is the official language in Bulgaria?

The official language is Bulgarian. It is the first Slavic language with its writing, created in the ninth century. From 1.01.2007, the Cyrillic alphabet is the third official alphabet of the European Union, together with Latin and Greek. Today, around 300 million people worldwide, use Cyrillic. Apart from Bulgaria, the alphabet is official also in Russia, Belarus, Serbia, Macedonia, Mongolia and others.

3. Do you know who speaks Bulgarian worldwide?

About 15 million people speak Bulgarian. 7 million of them are in Bulgaria, another 3 million in the Balkans and 5 million worldwide, which places it at 14th position. Well, that´s all for the moment. I hope you found this information interesting.

Довиждане! Bye!

Hello, my name is… and I’ll be your teacher in this video. Let's look, how much you know about the Czech Republic.

1. Where is Czech Republic?

The Czech Republic is located in Central Europe and borders Germany, Poland, Austria and

Slovakia. Thanks to location, the Czech Republic is often referred to as the "heart" of

Europe. It consists of historical parts of Bohemia, Moravia and parts of Silesia. The Czech

Republic has approximately 10.5 million inhabitants and covers an area of 78,867 km². The capital city is Prague with almost 1.3 million inhabitants. The Czech Republic is a parliamentary democracy and our current president is Miloš Zeman.

2. What is the official language of Czech Republic?

The official language is Czech. Czech originated at the end of the 1st millennium from the western dialect of the Slavic language. In addition to standard Czech, there are also around 16 dialects today. Czech and related Slovaks preserve up to 98% of Praslovanic vocabulary, most in comparison with other Slavic languages. The Czech language thus adopts new words from foreign languages, but also contributes words to other languages. A few words came from Czech to English: dollar, pistol, polka and robot.

3. And finally some interesting facts about Czech….

About 11.5 million people speak Czech, of which over 10 million in the Czech Republic.

Czech as a language is constantly evolving. At present, Czech has 300,000 word roots and the total number of Czech words is estimated at up to 2 million.

According to most data, Czech is indeed the only standard and literary language in the world, which has a spell Ř, whose pronunciation can trouble non-native speakers.

Thank you for your attention. That’s all for now and see you soon!

¡Hola! My name is … and I will be your Spanish teacher on this video. First of all, let´s see how much you know about Spain.

Here is the first question…

1. Where is Spain?

The Kingdom of Spain is located on the Iberian península, in the Southwest of Europe. Our neighbours in the European Union are Portugal and France.

Spain has a population of over 46 million inhabitants. The capital city is Madrid, which is situated in the center of the country. Other important cities in Spain are Valencia, Seville, Málaga, Barcelona or Bilbao. Our government is a Parlamientary Monarchy and our current King is Felipe VI, King Philip VI.

The second question is…

2. What is the official language of Spain?

The official language is Spanish, although there are other co-official languages: Galician, Catalan and Basque.

As a language, Spanish has evolved from Vulgar Latin, which was the language spoken by lower class citizens in Ancient Rome. This is the reason why Spanish and other European languages such as Italian, French, Romanian and Portuguese have similarities; in other words, they share a common origin and this group of languages is known as Romance Languages.

And one last question…

3. Did you know that Spanish has the second largest number of native speakers in the world?

Yes, there are about 400 million native speakers of Spanish all over the world. In fact, there are more native speakers of Spanish, for example, in the USA than in Spain. Well, that´s all for the moment. I hope you found this information interesting. ¡Adiós! Bye!

Hello again! How are you? In this video I will explain some things about Sign Languages in the EU.

First of all it is important to know that Sign languages are not modelled on spoken languages, yet are languages in their own right, with equally complex rules, grammatical structures and vocabulary that evolve and vary by region, social and age groups; convey meanings and emotions; create social and family bonds; and meet artistic and identity needs.

Varieties

There is no universal SL, and the EU has a large variety of SLs, including a French SL in France, (a different) French and Flemish SLs in Belgium, as well as, for example, Catalan and Galician ones besides the Spanish SL in Spain. The United Kingdom, the United States and Ireland do not use the same SL; Ireland uses its indigenous SL, while the US SL, having been introduced by the French, has a lot in common with the French SL. Nevertheless, there is an international system called the International Sign, a sort of lingua franca used at international conferences and meetings where participants do not share a common SL. It does not have a fixed grammar or vocabulary and relies heavily on gestures and context.

The users

One in a thousand persons in the EU (approximately half a million deaf or hard-of-hearing persons) communicates in one of 31 national or regional sign language as their first language. SLs have many more users, since people without hearing problems use them to communicate with deaf family members or friends.

Hallo! My name is... and in the following minutes you will learn a lot about Germany.

1. Where is Germany?

The Federal Republic of Germany lies in the middle of Europe and is a bridge between Western and Eastern Europe. Germany has 9 neighboring countries: Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands.

It is the most populous country in Europe and has about 80 million inhabitants. In the northeast is the capital Berlin, other important cities are Hamburg in the north, Munich in the south, Cologne in the west and Frankfurt in the center. The Alps begin in the very south, while Germany borders the North Sea and the Baltic Sea in the north.

Since Germany is a republic, there is no king. There is a president, who is elected every five years. A chancellor is the head of government. The government is elected every 4 years. Germany is a federal state, i.e. there are individual federal states, which have their own powers, for example in the area of culture. If the government decides on a law, the federal states have to agree or it does not come about.

2. Which languages are spoken in Germany?

The official language is German. In some regions, however, other languages are also taught at school. In the far north, on the border with Denmark, for example, teaching and speaking is also in Danish. In the east there is the Sorbian minority, where Sorbian is also spoken. On the border to the Netherlands, a dialect is spoken, Low German, which is very similar to Dutch. In addition, Germany is an immigration country. Many people have a different mother tongue and in many cities and schools there are up to 100 different mother tongues.

German is the most spoken language in Europe. It is also the lingua franca in Austria and in large parts of Switzerland. There are also minorities in Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and France, among others, who speak German.

Ciao! My name is... and I'd like to present the Italian contribution to this video. First of all, let´s see how much you know about Italy.

Here is the first question…

1. Where is Italy?

The Republic of Italy Is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea in the southern part of Europe. Italy is bordered to the north-west by France, to the north by Switzerland and Austria and to the north-east by Slovenia Italy has a population of more than 60 million inhabitants. The capital city is Rome, which is situated in the center of the country. Other important cities in Italy are Milan, Florence, Naples, Venice, Turin, Verona and Palermo.

Our government is a Parliamentary Republic and our current President is Mr. Sergio Mattarella.

The second question is…

2. What is the official language of Italy?

The official language is Italian, although in border regions there are other co-official languages: German, French and Slovenian. As a language, Italian has evolved from Vulgar Latin, which was the language spoken by citizens in Ancient Rome. This is the reason why Italian and other European languages such as Spanish, French,

Romanian and Portuguese have similarities; in other words, they share a common origin and this group of languages is known as Romance Languages.

And one last question…

3. Did you know that an Italian law of 1999 protects linguistic minorities and therefore the languages spoken in some local communities?

The official list of languages protected by the law is the following: Albanian, Catalan, German, Greek, Slovenian and Croatian, French, Franco-Provençal, Friulian, Ladin, Occitan and Sardinian.

Well, that´s all for the moment. I hope you found this information interesting.

Ciao! Bye!

Laba diena! Hello. My name is Ramunė. I hope that you will discover some new facts about Lithuania and Lithuanian language from this video.

Lithuania is a small country located in the North-East of Europe. Its neighboring countries are Latvia, Poland, Belarus, and Russia. It is interesting to mention that Lithuania is in the geographical center of Europe. The country has a population of 2.6 million people. Lithuania restored independence in 1991. Before this, the country was a part of Russia. The biggest city and the capital of Lithuania is Vilnius with a population of about 500,000 people. Some other bigger cities are Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai, Panevėžys, and Marijampolė. Lithuania entered the European Union and NATO on May 1st, 2004.

The official language in Lithuania is Lithuanian. Lithuanian is a very old language. Lithuanian - the language of the Lithuanian nation derived from the Baltic pronoun, together with Latvian, the dead Prussians, Jotvingians and other Baltic languages, belongs to the Baltic language group of the Indo-European language family. It is written in a Latin alphabet. Foreigners often name Lithuanian as a very difficult language to learn. Nowadays Lithuanians intensively learn foreign languages, but they still feel the love for the beauty of Lithuanian words.

Did you know that Lithuania is very rich in freshwater resources - lakes, rivers, and rivulets? There are approximately 2,600–2,800 natural lakes in Lithuania, and 29,900 rivers and streams in Lithuania. Lithuania borders the Baltic Sea. All the year round, Palanga resort attracts tourists from many countries, and the Curonian Spit is one of the most amazing places in Lithuania with its unique golden wind-blown dunes, impressive landscapes, cozy settlements and old fishermen's homesteads.

So, we kindly invite you to Lithuania to enjoy wonderful views of Lithuanian nature and experience unforgettable water adventures.

You are always welcome

Hi! My name is Marina and I want to see if you heard about Romania. Let me ask you some questions:

1. Where is Romania?

Romania is located in the south-east of Central Europe. There are 19 milion people living in Romania, although there are about 5 milion people who migrate to other EU countries like Spain, Italy, Germany for better salaries. On its territory is located almost the entire surface of the Danube Delta and a great part of the Carpathian Mountains. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Serbia to the southwest, Hungary to the northwest, Ukraine to the north and east and the Republic of Moldova to the east, and the Black Sea shore to the southeast.

Bucharest is the capital of Romania. It is the most populated and the most important industrial and commercial center of the country. Bucharest is the tenth city in population in the European Union. Other important cities are Cluj famous for Untold festival, Iasi, Brasov.

2. My next question is: What language do people speak in Romania?

The official language spoken in Romania.Romanian is a latin language like Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and French. It is spoken by about 90% of the population as the mother tongue, other important minority languages being: Hungarian, Serbian, Ukrainian, German, Turkish.

3. One more question…How many people speak Romanian?

The Romanian language is spoken mainly in Romania and the Republic of Moldova, but there are also important Romanian communities in countries such as Canada, the United States, Germany, Israel due to post war migration.

I hope you know some things about my country now and see you next time!

Zdravo! Hello. My name is Mojca and today we will learn more about Slovenia and Slovenian language.

Slovenia is a small country located in the Central Europe. Its neighboring countries are Hungary, Austria, Croatia and Italy. The country has the population of a bit more than 2 million people. Slovenia became independent in 1991. Before this, the country was a part of Yugoslavia. The capital of Slovenia is Ljubljana, located in the heart of Slovenia. Some other bigger cities are Maribor, Celje, Kranj Novo mesto and Koper. Slovenia entered the European Union and NATO in 2004.

The country is one of the most water-rich in Europe.

The official language in Slovenia is Slovenian. Although Slovenia was occupied by many nations, the Slovenian language was always the one that kept the nation together. It is a South Slavic language. Slovenia is not a big country, but you will hear more than 30 different dialects throughout the country. It is one of the few countries that has kept the dual grammatical number.

Did you know that Slovenia is a country of wine, forests and bees? Yes, you will a winery or a vineyard for every 75 people. And not only this, Slovenian town Maribor is the home to the oldest vine in the world – it is around 400 years old. One in 20 people in Slovenia keep bees at home and more than half of Slovenia is covered by forests.

Amazing, right?

Se vidimo! Bye!

Hello! Hello. My name is... and today we will learn more about Macedonia and the Macedonian language.

Macedonia is a small country located in the central part of the Balkan Peninsula, bordering Serbia to the north, Kosovo to the northwest, Greece to the south, Bulgaria to the east, and Albania to the west. With this geographical location, the Republic of Macedonia is an important crossroads, throughout the history of its territory, various civilizations, religions and cultures have intersected. The country has a population of about 2 million people. Macedonia became independent in 1991. Prior to this, the country was part of Yugoslavia. The capital of Macedonia is Skopje. Some other major cities are Bitola, Stip, Strumica, Prilep and Kumanovo. Macedonia is a member of NATO and is still a candidate for membership in the European Union.

Macedonia is mostly a mountainous country, with extraordinary natural resources and beauties. In Northern Macedonia there are 34 mountain peaks with over 2,000 meters above sea level which are rich in vegetation. Mountains and mountain ranges are intertwined with numerous green valleys. In the southern part of Northern Macedonia there are 3 large tectonic lakes: Ohrid, Prespa and Dojran, which with their lavish natural environment and a series of attractive recreational elements are well-known tourist centers. Lake Ohrid deserves the epithet "Macedonian Freshwater Sea", not only because of the pleasant blue color, which is more penetrating than the sky blue, but also because of its surface and because it attracts thousands of tourists every summer. Its unique natural conditions have enabled the survival of animal organisms even from the Tertiary period, which is why Lake Ohrid is often called the museum of living fossils. In 1979 and 1980, the surrounding beauties and the city of Ohrid along with the lake were declared by UNESCO as a natural and cultural world heritage site, the only one in Northern Macedonia.

If you visit Ohrid, do not miss to buy from the Famous Ohrid pearls, made from the scales of the endemic Ohrid fish (scarecrow) which makes them unique.

Macedonian is the official and national language in Macedonia and is also officially recognized as a regional official language in Albania, where a large Macedonian population lives, in Serbia, Romania and Kosovo. Macedonian is spoken in Australia, Bulgaria, Greece, Canada, USA, Montenegro, Turkey, in some countries − members of the European Union and the rest of the Macedonian diáspora.