Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine - Evolution

Customer Review: Lot of music for the money!
Gloria arrived on the music video scene in the mid eighties. You will see some videos from that era. What was played on MTV or VH1 was that `cat video,' "Bad Boys". Even way back then, the cat costumes and makeup are very well-done. "Dr. Beat" is a goofy, conglomeration of people in a hospital setting. There are some concert stage videos "Betcha Say That" and "Words Get In the Way." Early music videos required color and dance to attract the attention of viewers and "Rhythm is Gonna Get You" fits that category as well as "Conga" and "Get On Your Feet", and "1-2-3." A superb balladeer with a sultry voice, you will see videos "Can't Stay Away from You." Although I am not a "Gloria fan", this collection is good because it is strictly music, no interview, no extra non-music footage. I like a collection with JUST MUSIC! For the people who love Gloria, you will see the English and Spanish versions "Oye Mi Canto" "Don't Wanna Lose You", and "Anything for You" and "Here We Are." If you are new to Gloria or love Gloria's music, this a great collection. It will introduce you to her evolution in music....Mzrizz
Customer Review: A must have for any Gloria fan or pop fan.
Very good collection of her early hits with Miami Sound Machine. It covers her songs from 1984(Dr. Beat) to 1989(Here We Are). My favorite Estefan song is on this video,(Can't Stay Away From You).


Have you ever wanted to do something excitingly challenging to you, while knowing it's good for you and won't require lots of boring work from you. Then, that something is clog dancing, also called clogging. You can do it solo, with a partner, or within a group. All three ways are fun, fun, fun. Also, if you join an organized clogging group, you'll find yourself having a new set friends while becoming more acceptable to yourself and your peers. Since clogging groups are special in their own way, you will be, too.

What is clogging?

Several sources describe the American form of clogging as hillbilly-tapping or foot-stomping folk dancing, where the dancer makes musically synchronized sounds with his/her feet. In the past, it was done to mountain and bluegrass music with high-kicking leg movements combined with foot shuffling, stomping, and tapping. Nowadays, it's done to many kinds of music the same way. Kids and teenagers generally do it at high speed, faster and more precise than adults.

Where did clogging come from?

Clogging dates back to the 16th-Century-or-prior European folk dances and jigs. It's been traced to the dances done by the Scotch-Irish steppers, Dutch cloggers (done in wooden shoes or in soft shoes having wooden soles), Euro-Russian gypsies, and English-French-German folk-dancers. In this continent, it evolved into its own early style through the immigrants who settled in Canada, the Appalachian Mountains, and the hill regions of the South. Among all the early settlers who liked to stomp and dance were the Native Americans, frontiersmen, African Americans, cowboys, farmers, ranchers, and the backwoods, hill-abiding, and small-town folks. All of these regional sects have influenced the clogging styles in one way or another at one time or another. Today, it's being shaped further through contemporary clogging groups, and through the various kinds of modern music in addition to the traditional ones.

How is clogging taught or done?

Generally, clogging is learned in groups under an instructor who carefully teaches its terminology and step-routines, and who makes sure it's done to the time of the music. However, if no such group is nearby, instructional videos and DVD's can be found in a few dance shops and on the Internet.

Briefly, the basic clog step is a double-toe tap done with one of your feet, followed by stepping on the balls of each foot. First, starting with your left foot, brush your toe forward and then backward, tap-tap, and then step on the same foot (ball). Immediately following that left tap-tap-ball movement, step onto your right ball, and then step back onto your left one, once more. That's it, the basic step, left-toe-tap-forward, left-toe-tap-backward, left-step-ball, right-step-ball, left-step-ball.

Now, repeat this step movement starting with your right foot, and then again with your left one, alternately. Once you have learned to repeat this step continuously in a light-footed manner, you will be able to do the slight variations it easily. As your balance and knee-bending capabilities increase, you'll move into longer and slightly varied routines based on these steps. Additionally, you'll be able to do them solo, with a partner, or within a group as in line dancing or as a team. You can also develop your own solo freestyle routines.

Note: the initial double-toe tap of the basic step can also be done as a heel-toe tap as it's sometimes done in certain parts of the country. The basic movement is same as above, except the initial toe-tap is replaced with a heel-tap, as heel-tap-forward, toe-tap-backward, step-ball, step-ball, step-ball and so forth.

Where is it done?

Clogging can be learned or done anywhere, out in the country, or in the villages, towns, and cities, usually on a fairly hard surface. Today, organized clogging is done mostly within local clogging groups under the leaderships of certified instructors. These groups meet and practice in schools, gymnasiums, churches, civic centers, ballrooms, garages, or homes large enough to accommodate them. Membership includes all ages and types, both adults and youngsters. These groups often have members who compete regularly at regional clogging events in addition to their having leisurely in-group fun. Many of the competitive dancers are young people, who can learn it easily, and do it fast.

Because these groups are generally nonprofit and semi-private, only a few of them are listed in the yellow pages. Still, clogging groups exist everywhere in North America, similar to the way square-dance clubs do. If you have a square-dance club nearby, chances are they can point you toward a clogging group. Some clogging groups can also be found on the Internet.

Additionally, in the regions where clogging has been done routinely for decades, the local cloggers might get together spontaneously without much organization. These cloggers will show up at local parks, community events, or county fairs, where small portable wooden clogging floors and recorded music are available to them and anyone else who wants to try it. A fiddler, guitarist, or banjo player might show up there, too.

How is clogging organized?

Modern clogging groups are organized under nonprofit federations. That is, each group operates under its own bylaws and the general provisions of a state board or council. The state board or council might sponsor annual workshops for the local chartered groups to attend. Such workshops offer expert clogging instruction, demonstrations, competitions, and entertainment, like, performances, games, or parties of sorts. They'll also provide displays of recent music, cue sheets, equipment sources, and other clogging information.

What does it cost?

Generally, group members pay annual dues to keep the group solvent, about $20-50. The dues cover the cost of rental space, member insurance, and a newsletter. For guest beginners, the only cost is for the instruction, $10-50, for about 10 weeks of classes, one-to-two nights a week. If you decide to go further into clogging after graduating, you'll need leather clogging shoes with "jingle" (double-action) taps attached to them, $35-70. The dues and shoes are the main costs. Normally, the dress codes are casual, T-shirts and jeans or shorts, for weekly lessons or practice sessions. You won't need special clothing unless you decide to perform competitively with the group, or to perform with them entertainingly for local charities, senior centers, conventions, and festivals. Even so, the outfits often are homemade.

What else?

Clogging groups are family friendly and socially fun. Because children are included in them, these groups maintain high behavior standards for its membership. They hold many get-togethers, potlucks, holiday parties, and fun times for everyone. Yet, some groups are setup for the grownups or for youth only. This condition occurs for the older grownups whose kids have left home, or for the youth who travel frequently to many competitions. Still other groups might be subdivided into both grownups and youth for training purposes. This kind of organization means participation of some kind of is available to almost everyone there. So, if you are looking for a clean, fun way to burn off your energy, and to gain some of it back with other benefits at the same time, try clog dancing. Your fancy footwork will glide you gracefully over the floor, faster and more uniquely than most folks can.

References

1. The National Clogging Organization, Inc. (C.L.O.G.) Copyright 2003, http://www.clog.org

2. Clog Dancing. Where Cloggers Come Together. Copyright 2007, http://www.clogdancing.com

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Rough Guide to World Music Volume Two: Latin and North America, the Caribbean, Asia & the Pacific (Rough Guide Music Guides)

Customer Review: Extraordinary: Overwhelmingly Wonderful
The research here is remarkable. The scholarship is first-rate, the information exhaustive (although never definitive since world music grows with leaps and bounds moment by moment). I love dipping into this attractively illustrated, logically organized, and utterly helpful guide to find whole realms of sound which I not only didn't know existed but also could not even have imagined existed without the help of these fine fans of the music about which they write so clearly and well. The world today is a depressing place. Sorrow is everywhere one turns. But this celebration of music continually energizes and revivifies. Buy it; enjoy it; and expand your CD collection.
Customer Review: Everything V. 1 was for Middle-East, African, & European ...
... this one is for Latin & North American, Caribbean, Indian, Asian/Pacific idioms. I picked up the original '94 edition to explore World Beat rhythms in improvisatory settings, and was excited to hear the new edition would cover two volumes. I am NOT displeased !!


A wedding reception is a great time to let loose after the more solemn ceremony. The pressure of getting your vows right is over, you are officially married, and now it is time to party! Many couples feel that the wedding reception should reflect the way that they live, and not be stuffy or sedate. The idea is to have a great bash, and dance the night away with friends.

Setting aside a section of the reception venue to be a cool disco lounge is a huge trend. Couples often like to have a traditional band for their first dance and the early part of the reception. Then, as the night goes on, the young people migrate to the "lounge" area, complete with a d.j. and mirrored balls on the ceiling.

The lounge area should have a flavor that is distinct from the more formal reception area. Comfy chairs and sofas are a must, and look great in bold colors. Lighting should be dim, like you would find in a dance club. Of course, the bride will want to use some of the same personalized touches as she did in the rest of the venue to tie her theme together. And don't forget the monogrammed cocktail napkins!

The traditional gown that the bride wore at the church just won't do for dancing 'til dawn in her own personal disco lounge. That is why many brides choose a second dress that is a little sexier and a lot easier to move in. You will also want custom bridal jewelry to complete the transformation from demure bride to fab party girl. A really great idea would be to have a suite of custom bridal jewelry made with pieces that you can mix and match. For instance, the bride might wear pearls with a few Swarovski crystal accents for her ceremony. Then when she changes into her second gown, she can change out the earrings for handmade long crystal drops, and layer on a few more bracelets for a fun and sparkly look.

The finishing touch to a late night of dancing is to bring out a second round of desserts. Serve the wedding cake in the usual way at the reception, then have passed trays of desserts brought around in the wee hours of the morning. Your friends who have stayed at the party all night will love it, and it is the perfect ending to an incredible wedding reception.

Would you like Bridget write about a particular aspect of weddings,romance,jewelry or fashion. She has extensive experience of providing advice for Silverland Jewelry.com

SilverlandJewelry specialises in bridesmaids jewelry gifts including beach wedding jewelry.

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Santa Fe Chamber Music 1998; Spanish Village by William Lumpkins,27 in. x 21 in.

  • Artist: William Lumpkins
  • Title: Santa Fe Chamber Music 1998; Spanish Village
  • Frame: None
  • Image Dimensions: 23.5 in. W x 15.31 in. H

Visit our ArtSelect storefront for a wide variety of top quality framed art prints, canvas, mirrors and more.


School fashion shows can be quite fun if done properly. If done the wrong way, however, it could end up being one boring affair which is only occasionally enlivened by the people laughing at a humiliated model. What you need are some tips to help you.

1) Think of a theme When putting up a school fashion show, it is always helpful if you use a theme. A theme gives a fashion show a sense of organization and people would be able to relate the fashion to the theme. There are various types of themes to choose from:

a) Season Basing your school fashion show on the season is always popular. You could design and model various outfits that correspond with the time of year. This would also give you an idea of how to decorate the venue. Basing your school fashion show on a season can help you unleash your creativity and make your brain cells work. How can you balance the freedom of creativity with the confinement of the theme? This will definitely help you improve your skills.

b) Literature Another great idea for a theme is literature. You should think about basing your school fashion show on a great piece of literature. How about basing it on the book The Great Gatsby? Ever tried creating fashion pieces for Frodo? This can be fun as you will be bringing the visions of authors to life. Basing your school fashion show on a piece of literature can also be a bit easier than other themes since most authors actually have pretty detailed descriptions of the clothes their character wear. This is especially true for fantasy novels. Cloaks, anyone?

2) Music The music sets the mood for the whole fashion show. It strikes the subconscious of the watchers and thus, determines how much attention they will be paying your school fashion show. This means, of course, that you need to choose the correct sounds to accompany your school fashion show.

You need to choose music that grabs the attention of the spectators enough to mesmerize them. However, you do not want the music to distract the spectators from the school fashion show. The best type of music to use would be instrumental. This is because instrumental music can set the mood for the show without distracting the viewers with familiar lyrics.

3) Lighting Proper lighting effects are always essential if you want to have a great school fashion show. Together with the background music, the lighting effects give the audience a general emotion to feel. How do you want them to react when they see a certain ensemble? You can make them react as you want them by simply combining light and sound.

4) Spontaneity Students hate predictability. Because of this, the best thing that your school fashion show could have is a surprise. You need to show your students something unexpected and completely new. In doing so, you will be able to grab their attentions and keep it. By being spontaneous, you will keep spectators guessing as to what will come next. This will keep their eyes on the school fashion show and off their watches and mobile phones. If you can make the audience forget about the gadgets on their pockets, then you would know that your school fashion show rocks!

Tim Yu
http://Online-Fashion-Sch.blogspot.com

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Video Explosion

Customer Review: Menudo Mania!
I am so glad I found this DVD! I am a Menudo fan from way back but grew up in the Midwest. Not much Menudo merchandise was available so at this time in my life I am playing catch up. This DVD IS a must, must have for any Menudo fan. I would even suggest it to fans of Ricky Martin who discovered him after he left the group...especially those who discovered him after the Grammys. If you never had a chance to see this group in concert, buy this DVD! Seeing Ricky Martin at age 14 is like going down memory lane. Its amazing seeing the stage presence and star power he had at such a young age. It become obvious that he was a super star in the making and just the cutest thing on the planet! Its also interesting seeing Robby Rosa (now going by Draco Rosa, singer/songwriter/producer) back then. You could see that he was a talented artist in the making as well. Its also amazing to see how much he has changed since the 80's. This concert DVD is fun and it will put a smile on your face from begining to end!
Customer Review: Menudo Mania!
I always hear people go on and on and on about The Beatles, but let's face it - they were no Menudo!




Music | Stream free mp3's from hot new indie artists.
Plays: Indie, Pop , Rock, Radio Friendly and Power Pop . Aaron Streng. active since Jan 7, 2008 ... Indie Pop , Latin Pop , Metro Pop , Piano, Pop , Pop Punk, ...
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Prodland - Your better option to buy CD and Videos of Latin Music
Online Shop of latin music, salsa, merengue, videos, dvd, electronicos ... Larry Harlow s Latin Legends Of Fania. Best Price :$20.99. Salsa Brava y Descarga ...
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Shakira Biography on Yahoo! Music
... about Shakira, including ringtones, bio, videos, radio , photos, discography, similar artists, reviews, fans, websites, ... into her Latin pop material. ...
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BBC - Radio - The home of BBC Radio on the internet
Classic Pop /Rock. Dance. Desi. Easy & Soundtracks. Experimental. Folk & Country. Jazz ... Subscribe to Radio 3 podcasts. Listen to The Essay: Greek & Latin Voices ...
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The Daily Bruin - Stereotypes, lack of diversity sink trendy Latin pop ...
Stereotypes, lack of diversity sink trendy Latin pop tunes ... It is a Latin boom of sorts, with social and economic effects in the United States. ...
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Marc Anthony : OLDIES.com
... and backing vocalist for pop acts including Menudo and the Latin Rascals. ... at the Latin music convention Radio y Musica, his first step on the road to ...
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RAIN: Radio And Internet Newsletter
There's 80's pop , 60's folk, classic radio dramas, latin , j-pop, world music, ... "Of course, I'm talking about Internet radio here...
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Radio Payola
In the world of white pop and rock radio , virtually everything on the air is ... More recently, Latin radio was rocked when the head of promotion for Fonovisa, ...
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THE KILLERS - Grid - Charcoal T-shirt

Brand New, never worn, front print charcoal THE KILLERS T-shirt. The Front Reads "THE KILLERS".




Latin Download DRM free DJ Jamsha - Midnight Party
Download DJ Jamsha - Midnight Party Mix 15, DJ Jamsha - Salsa Sensual 9, D aka Bootz - Salsa Radio 5, ... Listing downloads Music / MP3. Webmaster/Affiliates ...
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SalsaNewZealand.com : Find a DJ in New Zealand. Salsa , Latin, Samba ...
DJ " King Salsa " Region: Auckland. Music Type: Salsa - Merengue - Samba - Reggeton. Contact Info ... prestigious salsa dance school presents the most extensive ...
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Combo Records: Your On-Line Latin Music superstore
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Salsa Dance Guide, Salsa Dance Techniques, How to Dance Salsa Dance ...
Advanced Salsa dance lessons at The Secrets of Salsa . ... KING TUT. Liquid Silver productions Presents( AL & Edie Espinoza) Lesson 9 ... Edie, The Salsa FREAK! ...
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SitNews - Salsa Dancing by Jason Love
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Chondo | Jesse King And The Queens In The Palace
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Marc Anthony Infoplease.com
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Cynthia King Dance Studio - Offering dance classes in Ballet, Modern ...
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The Collected Poems of Octavio Paz, 1957-1987: Bilingual Edition

tr Weinberger, w/Bishop, Blackburn, Levertov et al
Customer Review: Collected Poems of Octavio Paz
This is an excellent edition of the collected poems of Octavio Paz, with English translations facing the Spanish originals. I purchased this as a gift for my Spanish teacher and she was delighted! My favorites are his poems written when he served as a Mexican diplomat in India and Japan. His sensitive mind absorbed the nuances of place and religion, which are recreated for us in the poems. His efforts at haiku en espagnol are enlightening, pun intended.
Customer Review: excellent poetry
I bought this book after reading an excerpt of one of Paz's poems at a camp. I didn't know what poem it was from, so I bought the book and scoured it until I found the poem. It was Brotherhood. The poetry is beautiful and moving. It is the type of poetry you can read and enjoy no matter if you understand what it is saying, the writing is that beautiful


Piano arranging is the process by which you take a written piece of music and rework it with chords, adding new bass accompaniment, fills, or even slightly altering the song's structure. And while it's a process that takes years to truly master, anyone with a basic education in piano and a working knowledge of a few key techniques can create an inventive, satisfying arrangement. It all boils down to one thing: chord recognition. And anyone who plays a little piano can learn piano chords to add excitement to their piano playing.

Most people learn to play the piano by playing just the written music. Playing by written music is exactly what the phrase says it is -- playing the exact notation on a piece of sheet music. But playing by chord symbol is a little different. Instead of following the harmony note by note, you follow the chord symbols (i.e. C7 or F) written above the harmonies, filling in the gaps with...well, whatever you want as long as it sticks to those chords. Of course, you'll still read the melody (it is, after all, often what makes the song recognizable) but even that is completely open to interpretation. Playing by chord symbol allows you a freedom that playing by written music simply doesn't. The freedom to create. The freedom to invent. The freedom to arrange chord patterns in the way you want.

Does that mean playing by written music is less important than playing by chord symbol? Absolutely not! The ability to play by written music is an extremely valuable skill, one that even some of the most famous musicians don't possess. And while you don't necessarily need to know the skill backwards and forwards to create great arrangements, it's a tremendous help.

Think about it this way. Some of the most revered modern artists create paintings that look very simple, very rudimentary. But the majority of those artists went to art school for years before they began creating that sort of work. They learned the fundamentals of drawing and painting, of color composition and light; they learned to draw or paint something exactly as it actually looks. Only after they mastered those skills did they move on to create the simple, yet often innovative, work that hangs in galleries and museums -- work that still abides by several basic principles. They learned the craft before bringing their imagination into it; after all, you have to understand the rules in order to break them.

So after you have learned the basics of reading piano sheet music, consider learning chords and chord symbols (such as G7, Fm, etc.) and chord progressions. There are many places online where you can learn all about chords just type in chords or chord piano into your search browser, and you will find several to choose from. When you can both read the written sheet music and then add chords and chord progressions to your piano playing, you have the very best of all musical worlds.

Duane Shinn is the author of over 500 music books and products such as DVD's, CD's, musical games for kids, chord charts, musical software, and piano lesson instructional courses for adults. He holds advanced degrees from Southern Oregon University and was the founder of Piano University in Southern Oregon. He can be reached at http://www.chordpiano.com. He is the author of the popular free 101-week e-mail newsletter titled "Amazing Secrets Of Exciting Piano Chords & Sizzling Piano Chord Progressions" with over 56,650 current subscribers. Those interested may obtain a free subscription by going to http://www.playpiano.com.

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Sonic Foundry Acid 2.0 Latin




Vietnamese is the official language of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. It is the first language of Vietnamese people and a second language of some ethic minorities in Vietnam. It is also spoken by overseas Vietnamese people.

Vietnamese is a language in the Vietic group, Mon-Khmer branch and Austroasiatic language family. Vietnamese is an analytical language, and its grammar relies heavily on word order and sentence structure.

During the period from the 1st-2nd and 9th - 10th centuries Vietnam was ruled by the Chinese; proto-Vietic was influenced and borrowed much vocabulary from Han, Tai-Kadai and Nam-Dao languages and then became ancient Vietic, a monosyllabic language.

From the 10th to 14th century, with the end of Chinese domination Vietnam established an independent feudal regime. As the result of Vietic being used as a mother-tongue by common people and Han being used as an official language, Sino-Vietnamese (Han-Viet) words were formed by borrowing from Han. This particular means of borrowing was different across the regions, which split Vietic into two parts. These parts are said to be the Vietnamese and Muong languages as known today. Although almost 50% of words were borrowed from Han but most of them were changed so Vietnamese did not lose its own characteristic. For example, Chinese has 4 different tones but Vietnamese has 6 - mid level, low falling, high rising, mid dipping-rising, high breaking-rising, low falling constricted.

A character called "Chu Nom" was said to be created by some Vietnamese Confucian scholars to record Vietnamese spoken sentences based on Han (Chinese) characters. It is known as the first obsolete script for recording the Vietnamese language. Research suggests it was created as a complete writing system around the 11th century. It was then used more during the 13th - 18th centuries and nourished Nom literature and Nguyen Du's Tale of Kieu.

From 16th century, missionaries from the West entered Vietnam and used Latin characters to record Vietnamese words and invented the modern Vietnamese script. Alexandre de Rhodes was the first person who printed the books in Quoc Ngu, which marked its first appearance.

Under French colonisation (19th century), French was taught at school instead of chu Nom. The French authorities also banned the use of classical Chinese (Han), leading to the decline of chu Nom since it is similar to Han. During the early half of the 20th century, it gradually died out whereas Quoc ngu grew more and more standardized and popular because it was simpler and easier to remember. At the same time, Vietnamese adopted many French terms into its lexicon, e.g. ga from gare [French] - train station, pho mat from fromage [French] - cheese or bup be from poupee [French] - doll.

However, the current Vietnamese scripts have been changed compared to the scripts at Alexandre de Rhodes's time. For instance, the words beginning with tr nowadays are tl or bl .The person who received credit for creating the current Vietnamese scriptswas Pierre-Joseph Pigneaux de Behaine with his Annam-Latin dictionary.

The alphabet of chu Quoc Ngu has 27 Latin letters, with 6 tones. It replaced French, Han and Nom because it records Vietnamese phonetics in a simple and scientific way. After The Geneva Accords (1954), the North-South division caused the development of Vietnamese to differ regionally. While the North imported some spoken Chinese words, the South imported some English/American words into everyday language. Since re-unification (1975) Vietnamese has been more standardised.

Presently, there are a total of over 80 million people that speak Vietnamese which includes about 73 million native Vietnamese. The rest is made up of and some ethic minorities in Vietnam, over 1 million people in USA and over 100,000 people in Canada and Australia. Vietnamese is also used in UK and some European countries and other Asian countries.

There are various mutually intelligible spoken dialects of Vietnamese, with three main dialects being: Northern (including Hanoi), Central (including Hue) and Southern (including Saigon). The Hanoi dialect is accepted as the standard. The central dialect is markedly different from the others due to its local vocabulary. Although all dialects use the same spelling and written language, they have the different tones and consonant in a given word.

Neil Payne is a writer at the London based consultancy Kwintessential. One of their many services includes Vietnamese translation.

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