Blog, Interviews

Interview with Dr. Pat Barr-Harrison Scholarship Awardee

On January 1, 2024, Dr. Patricia Barr-Harrison, a Museum co-founder, passed away.  The National Museum of Language started a scholarship fund to honor Dr. Barr-Harrison’s work in promoting language learning.  In May 2025, Cindy Moussangui became the first winner of…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Linda Thompson

Bridging Ancient Languages and Art: An Interview with Linda Mitchell Thompson We’re delighted to sit down with Linda Mitchell Thompson, Chief Artist-in-Residence at the National Museum of Language, to explore her inspiring blend of ancient languages and art. Through her…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Gregory J. Nedved

Interview with Gregory J. Nedved: Exploring Language in Leadership and Presidential Language Skills In this exclusive interview, Gregory J. Nedved, a highly experienced military linguist, historian, and author, provides in-depth insights into his extensive career in cryptology, national security, and…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Dr. Laura Murray

An In-Depth Interview with Dr. Laura Murray: From Shaping Government Language Programs to Leading Museum Initiatives In this interview, we speak with Dr. Laura Murray, a leading expert in language education and cultural heritage preservation. Her experience showcases a deep…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Linda Murphy Marshall

This interview is with former Trustee of the Museum Linda Murphy Marshall, who has authored two memoirs, the most recent of which focuses on her career as a linguist. Laura Murray conducted the interview. You can also listen to a…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Maarit Jaakkola, Ph.D.

Interview conducted by William Zhang 1. Can you tell me about your language and education background? I’m originally a journalism researcher, with a doctoral degree from Journalism Studies from Tampere University in Finland. However, as a university student, I took…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Dr. Pat Barr-Harrison Scholarship Awardee

On January 1, 2024, Dr. Patricia Barr-Harrison, a Museum co-founder, passed away.  The National Museum of Language started a scholarship fund to honor Dr. Barr-Harrison’s work in promoting language learning.  In May 2025, Cindy Moussangui became the first winner of…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Linda Thompson

Bridging Ancient Languages and Art: An Interview with Linda Mitchell Thompson We’re delighted to sit down with Linda Mitchell Thompson, Chief Artist-in-Residence at the National Museum of Language, to explore her inspiring blend of ancient languages and art. Through her…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Gregory J. Nedved

Interview with Gregory J. Nedved: Exploring Language in Leadership and Presidential Language Skills In this exclusive interview, Gregory J. Nedved, a highly experienced military linguist, historian, and author, provides in-depth insights into his extensive career in cryptology, national security, and…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Dr. Laura Murray

An In-Depth Interview with Dr. Laura Murray: From Shaping Government Language Programs to Leading Museum Initiatives In this interview, we speak with Dr. Laura Murray, a leading expert in language education and cultural heritage preservation. Her experience showcases a deep…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Linda Murphy Marshall

This interview is with former Trustee of the Museum Linda Murphy Marshall, who has authored two memoirs, the most recent of which focuses on her career as a linguist. Laura Murray conducted the interview. You can also listen to a…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Maarit Jaakkola, Ph.D.

Interview conducted by William Zhang 1. Can you tell me about your language and education background? I’m originally a journalism researcher, with a doctoral degree from Journalism Studies from Tampere University in Finland. However, as a university student, I took…

Blog, Interviews

Interview with Brandon Locke

Greg Nedved interviews Brandon Locke, Director of World Languages and Immersion Programs for the Anchorage School District. https://youtu.be/bMqvvAEwxa8 Locke has also written about the Alaska Native History Curriculum. See the article here. The text below is automatically generated from the…

Vidya Nahar doing yoga on a beach
Blog, Interviews

Interview with Vidya Nahar, Author and STARTALK Instructor

Interview conducted by Greg Nedved Please provide some background about Balodyan  I grew up in Mumbai, India, speaking 5 languages fluently (Marwadi – my mother tongue, Marathi, Hindi, English, Gujarat, and 4 languages at functional proficiency – Kutchi, Konkani, Sanskrit,…

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Fanni is Radnóti's wife
Located near the Tang capital city of Chang’an, site of the modern city of Xi’an in Shaanxi province, in central China.
Soldiers of that time commonly wore a white head cloth, similar to what is still worn by some peasants in China today.  The implication is that the conscripts were so young that they didn’t know how to wrap their head cloths, and needed help from elders.
Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.
The area of Guanxi, meaning “west of the passes”, refers to the area around the capital city of Chang’an.
This is an alternative name for a province in western China, now known as Qinghai, which literally means “blue sea”.  Kokonor Lake, located in Qinghai, is the largest saline lake in China.  
Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.
Oulart Hollow was the site of a famous victory of the Irish rebels over British troops, which took place on May 27, 1798. The rebels killed nearly all the British attackers in this battle. (Source: Maxwell, W. H. History of the Irish Rebellion in 1798. H. H. Bohn, London 1854, pp 92-93, at archive.org)
The phrase "United Men" is elaborated upon in the Notes section below.

Ghetto

An Italian word meaning “foundry.” It originally referred to a part of the city of Venice where the Jews of that city were forced to live; the area was called “the ghetto” because there was a foundry nearby. The term eventually came to refer to any part of a city in which a minority group is forced to live as a result of social, legal, or economic pressure. Because of the restrictions placed upon them, ghetto residents are often impoverished.

"You’re five nine, I am do-uble two"

A reference to the year 1959 and the year 2020.

"The Currency"

Meaning US dollars - this is drawing attention to the fact that Cuba is effectively dollarized.

"Sixty years with the dom-ino stuck"

This sentence is a reference to the Cold War notion that countries would turn Communist one after the other - like dominos. Cuba was the first domino, but it got stuck - no one else followed through into communism.

رحلنا

رحلنا, or "rahalna," means "we have left."

Habibi

Habibi means "my love."

Ra7eel

Ra7eel, or "raheel," means "departure."

3awda

3awda, or "awda," means "returning."

أهلاً

أهلاً, or "ahalan," means "welcome."

a5 ya baba

a5 ya baba, pronounced "akh ya baba," means "Oh my father."

golpe

Treece translates "golpe" as "beating", which is correct, however misses the secondary meaning of the word: "coup".

Carlos

The “Carlos” referred to in the poem is most likely Carlos Bolsonaro, a politician from Rio de Janeiro and the second son of Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s current president. His and his father’s involvement in Marielle’s murder has been questioned and investigated.