Culturally Speaking

”What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”; the Bard’s famous line from Romeo & Juliet suggests that names themselves do not hold any intrinsic meaning. Are they simply labels to distinguish family from another or are names are intrinsic part of our identity? The National Statistics Office in many countries will report on the most popular names and some countries even have laws for the names children can be given. This week we explore how names are chosen, what they mean and who chooses them in different cultures. Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers might have thought names were inconsequential but what does your name say about you?

Stay Cultured, J & N xoxo

Please take a moment to subscribe, review and comment. We’d love to hear from you @culturallyspeakingpodcast.

”What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet”; the Bard’s famous line from Romeo & Juliet suggests that names themselves do not hold any intrinsic meaning. Are they simply labels to distinguish family from another or are names are intrinsic part of our identity? The National Statistics Office in many countries will report on the most popular names and some countries even have laws for the names children can be given. This week we explore how names are chosen, what they mean and who chooses them in different cultures. Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers might have thought names were inconsequential but what does your name say about you?

Stay Cultured, J & N xoxo

Please take a moment to subscribe, review and comment. We’d love to hear from you @culturallyspeakingpodcast.

Rio de Janiero conjures up images of sun-drenched Copacabana Beach, Sugarloaf Mountain in the distance and the imposing Christ the Redeemer overlooking it all; but the heart and soul is in the most famous dance party in the world – Carnival. This week we talk about how Carnival came to be, how Brazilians celebrate today and just how many feathers does it take to make the Samba Queen’s costume (a clue it’s a LOT!) Janice learns what pancake day is, I reminisce about pão de queijo and we even #throwback to a Gossip Girl episode.

Stay Cultured, J & N xoxo

Please take a moment to subscribe, review and comment. We’d love to hear from you @culturallyspeakingpodcast.

Rio de Janiero conjures up images of sun-drenched Copacabana Beach, Sugarloaf Mountain in the distance and the imposing Christ the Redeemer overlooking it all; but the heart and soul is in the most famous dance party in the world – Carnival. This week we talk about how Carnival came to be, how Brazilians celebrate today and just how many feathers does it take to make the Samba Queen’s costume (a clue it’s a LOT!) Janice learns what pancake day is, I reminisce about pão de queijo and we even #throwback to a Gossip Girl episode.

Stay Cultured, J & N xoxo

Please take a moment to subscribe, review and comment. We’d love to hear from you @culturallyspeakingpodcast.

We kick off the inaugural episode of Culturally Speaking by discussing a celebration near and dear to Janice’s heart, Chinese New Year. We cover the history and traditions of Chinese New Year and this is the Year of the Rat 🐭. We discuss how history has shaped some of the most famous traditions today (the couplet and red packets) and why there are some very specific rules about what is allowed during the festive period (no haircuts or throwing away rubbish). As is to be expected any time we get together food is the central topic of discussion and this festival is one for the foodies. Ever wondered if families really do sit round and make dumplings a la Crazy Rich Asians? Turns out you have to eat ALL the dumplings until someone finds the coin hidden in one of them #dumplingdreams! But I’m not so sure about the bird's nest…

Stay Cultured, J & N xoxo
P.S. this was our very first episode, so please forgive all the talking over each other and banshee laughs, we promise it gets better as the weeks go on!

We kick off the inaugural episode of Culturally Speaking by discussing a celebration near and dear to Janice’s heart, Chinese New Year. We cover the history and traditions of Chinese New Year and this is the Year of the Rat 🐭. We discuss how history has shaped some of the most famous traditions today (the couplet and red packets) and why there are some very specific rules about what is allowed during the festive period (no haircuts or throwing away rubbish). As is to be expected any time we get together food is the central topic of discussion and this festival is one for the foodies. Ever wondered if families really do sit round and make dumplings a la Crazy Rich Asians? Turns out you have to eat ALL the dumplings until someone finds the coin hidden in one of them #dumplingdreams! But I’m not so sure about the bird's nest…

Stay Cultured, J & N xoxo
P.S. this was our very first episode, so please forgive all the talking over each other and banshee laughs, we promise it gets better as the weeks go on!