Language Matters: Dr Lisa Lim Talks about the Origin of the Word “Praya” and how it Became Part of Place Names in Hong Kong

18 August 2017 (Friday) – online

Dr Lisa Lim, Associate Professor in the School of English, talks about the origin of the word “Praya” and how it became part of place names in Hong Kong, in her fortnightly Post Magazine column: Language Matters.

“Hong Kong once had Praya Central, a glorious stretch of seafront that fell victim to reclamation in the late 19th century”

Please click on the following link for the complete article:

http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2107162/where-word-praya-came-and-how-it-became-part-place-names

Source: SCMP

Language Matters: Dr Lisa Lim Discusses the Reason of Adopting English as the Official and Working Language in Asean

6 August 2017 (Sunday) – online

Dr Lisa Lim, Associate Professor in the School of English, discusses the reason of adopting English as the official and working language in Asean, in her fortnightly Post Magazine column: Language Matters.

“Why the 50-year-old association, whose 10 members encompass 1,000 dialects, continue to converse in a foreign language.”

Please click on the following link for the complete article:

http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2105289/speaking-tongues-why-asean-members-stick-english

Source: SCMP

Language Matters: Dr Lisa Lim Explores the Dramatic Evolution of Ketchup

21 July 2017 (Friday) – online

Dr Lisa Lim, Associate Professor in the School of English, explores the dramatic evolution of ketchup from a preserved fish sauce to sweet tomato gloop, in her fortnightly Post Magazine column: Language Matters.

“The name of the world’s favourite sauce originated with Min Chinese, entered the lexicon in Indonesia, and from there was eventually absorbed into English via British India; along the way the sauce evolved dramatically.”

Please click on the following link for the complete article:

http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2103418/when-china-invented-ketchup-300bc-and-how-it-morphed

Source: SCMP

Language Matters: Dr Lisa Lim Talks about how 'kowtowing' Acquired a Negative Connotation in English

07 July 2017 (Friday) – online

Dr Lisa Lim, Associate Professor in the School of English, talks about how 'kowtowing' acquire a negative connotation in English, in her fortnightly Post Magazine column: Language Matters.

"The practice dates back to the Qin dynasty, when subjects prostrated in front of the emperor as an act of respect, but it was only after foreigners visiting China found the practice disdainful that the word came to mean ‘submissive’"

Please click on the following link for the complete article:

http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2101547/how-kowtowing-acquired-negative-connotation-english

Source: SCMP

Language Matters: Dr Lisa Lim Explains the Word "Nullahs"

26 June 2017 (Monday) – online

Dr Lisa Lim, Associate Professor in the School of English, explains the word "Nullahs", in her fortnightly Post Magazine column: Language Matters.

"The word “nullah” refers to an inlet of the sea, a river or stream, watercourse, gully or ravine, particularly in South Asia. Usually found in mountainous or hilly country, in India, nullahs are typically gravelly channels that contain a trickle of water in dry weather but can become a torrent in the rainy season..."

Please click on the following link for the complete article:

http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2099541/why-hong-kong-has-nullahs-not-drains

Source: SCMP

Language Matters: Dr Lisa Lim Discusses the True Significance lies in the Chinese Name of The Dragon Boat Festival

26 May 2017 (Friday) – online

Dr Lisa Lim, Associate Professor in the School of English, discusses the Chinese names of The Dragon Boat Festival, in her fortnightly Post Magazine column: Language Matters.

"Also called Tuen Ng or Duanwu, it is one of Hong Kong’s biggest festivals – but what do the dragons and rice dumplings signify?"

Please click on the following link for the complete article:

http://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2095688/dragon-boat-festival-its-true-significance-lies-its-chinese

Source: SCMP