Archive by Author
The Many Dialects of Spanish (and What They Mean for Language Learners) Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Feb 22, 2016
Ambitious language learners the world over are devoting hours and hours every week to learning Spanish, but most of them have never spared a thought for which Spanish. Last week we posted about European vs Latin American Spanish, but the differences don’t stop there. Spanish, like its distant cousin English, is a pluricentric language, meaning…
8 Video Tutorials to Perfect Your Spanish Pronunciation Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Jan 18, 2016
As we mentioned in a recent blog post, pronouncing Spanish can be a lot harder than people think. Maybe you’ve been learning for years, even living abroad in a Spanish-speaking country, and are still struggling with the stigma of speaking too gringo, so you’re striving for spectacular Spanish speech sounds. Or maybe you’re just starting out learning…
5 Online Sources of Streaming News in Spanish Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Jan 11, 2016
There’s a lot going on in the Spanish-speaking world right now. Venezuela is shifting toward democracy with the results of its last parliamentary election. Argentina has just undergone its first peaceful power shift from left to right. Spain’s grassroots podemos party winning unprecedented popular support. Colombia approaching a historic peace agreement. Apple moving into Mexico…
5 Sounds that Are Making Your Spanish Pronunciation Sound Super Gringo Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Dec 28, 2015
Speaking Spanish is kind of hard. Not just because every word has about 34 different meanings, but also because of its many nuanced sounds. For speakers of other languages, the sounds of Spanish — especially the consonants — can be counterintuitive. V‘s that sound more like B‘s and diphthongs that sound like not much of anything are just…
Peace in Colombia: Los #DialogosDePaz Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Dec 23, 2015
Modern history has seen almost constant turmoil in el Mundo Hispanohablante, but very soon Latin America will almost certainly be credited with ending its longest ongoing military conflict. Colombia, the country that’s been in civil war for half a century, is on the verge of brokering an unprecedented peace deal with the rebel Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias…
Immerse Yourself: 5 Free Ways to Learn Spanish Abroad Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Nov 30, 2015
Everyone knows that immersion is the gold standard of language learning. In 2015, we know better than to think that uprooting and moving to a new country is the only way to learn a language effectively, but it’s been proven time and again to be among the best ways. It’s also often the most expensive…
Learning Spanish on Netflix: 7 Binge-worthy Shows en Español Posted by Jakob Gibbons on Nov 23, 2015
Are you an unashamed Netflix addict? Has your binge-watching habit become a live experiment to test just how long a human being can go without sleep? Don’t worry, you’ve got an excuse now: you’re just working on your Spanish. I’ve only recently discovered the supreme bliss known as a Netflix subscription, and needless to say…