Czech Update
The latest updates from news and events for all interested in Czech language and culture.
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Amazing images of Czech countryside on Flickr
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: January 22nd, 2009
A photographer calling himself 'svedek' (wittness) has an a set of absolutely astonishing snapshots of the 'Czech lands' on Flickr. A must-see for anybody nostalgic after their visit or looking for motivation to go have a look. It's a collection of the new and the old, city and country, sacred and mundane. read more »
Czech Language Institute makes dictionary available online
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: January 16th, 2009
Czech Language Institute, the guardian of Czech language usage guidelines, made available a wonderful online resource on http://prirucka.ujc.cas.cz. It's targeted at Czechs, thus the interface and many of the grammatical explanations are in Czech but even beginner learners can take advantage of the search. Just type in any word in any form, click [Hledej] and get a full listing of its other forms as in the picture below. read more »
Google Announces Czech<->English dictionary - Best Online Tool Yet for Learners
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 11th, 2008
Google just released a Czech/English - English/Czech http://www.google.cz/dictionary that is the best online tool I've seen for learners. read more »
Google Translate now does Czech, makes for a useful phrasebook
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: May 20th, 2008
Google Translate is mainly a source of merriment when funny mistranslations occur as they do on almost any text. But if it's all you have to get the gist of a page, it is (marginally better than nothing). And now, you can get Google translate for Czech (and many other related languages). read more »
Czechs succumb to blogging craze (says Jyxo)
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: November 12th, 2007
According to Czech Google-wannabe's press release blogging has become the next big thing on Czech Internet. One of the indication is that Blog.cz has become one of the top 10 Czech websites with 2 million unique visitors a month. 60% of Czech bloggers are under 30, most are employed and more than half visit their blog more than 20 days a month. read more »
Learn Czech web navigation with Aktuálně
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: September 18th, 2007
This nascent Czech news service has finally introduced an RSS feed but even more importantly it provides its non-Czech speaking users with a handy little glossary for understanding the Czech navigation on their site. Perhaps the most important: read more »
Czech opera on YouTube
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: August 25th, 2007
YouTube is known mostly for funny little clips or stolen content. But it is also a great resource for music. One thing I came across by accident are a number of clips from Czech opera. This one is a famous and beautiful aria from Dvořák's Rusalka. It is sung in Czech by the American soprano Renée Fleming. read more »
Improve your Czech with Windows Vista Ultimate
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: February 4th, 2007
Windows Vista a lokalizační balíčky | Windows Vista Blog Pokud si uživatel koupí anglickou kopii Windows Vista Ultimate, může do ní nainstalovat libovolné množství jazykových balíčků - mezi nimi i češtinu, která bude k dispozici pravděpodobně 1. března.One of the best ways to learn a language is to practice it in an environment where you need it to do something specific. Such as, navigate a piece of software. Well, it appears that you can do that if you get the Ultimate edition of Windows Vista. read more »
Czech 'YouTube' to come out of Beta with Gynecology 2
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 27th, 2006
Český „YouTube“ nabízí seriál od Čtvrtníčka - iDNES.cz Na začátku příštího roku se má oficiálně rozjet český server, který nabídne podobné služby jako populární YouTube. Vedle možnosti zveřejnit zde svá videa se případní uživatelé mohou těšit i na původní tvorbu. Svá videa zde mají podle plánu vydávat studenti filmových škol, místo bude i na zprávy či reportáže.New Year will bring a new online service to the Czech internet to challenge YouTube called Stream.cz. And to draw new audiences it starts with an original show called Gynekologie 2 (Ob-gyn 2) which is a very funny parody of medical dramas with only slightly lascivious content. Stream.cz differs from YouTube in several important respects: it features (at least for now) very professional-looking content created for the site by film students, the quality of transmission is high, live content is planned (mostly transmissions from night clubs), concert footage, news, etc. Not all the videos require Czech, such as this short film on Brutal Ping Pong or this animated gruesome take on What was left out of fairytales. read more »
Koledy: The sounds of Christmas
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 24th, 2006
Tradice koled pochází ze středověku - www.lidovky.cz V dnešní době jsou koledy synonymem pro vánoční písně. Ve středověku tomu tak nebylo.Koledy (Carols) are as indispensable for a Czech Christmas as carp and Christmas trees. In fact, they have a long history, going all the way to +šth century. Originally, they were associated with small gifts from householders to roving singers (trick-or-treat - Czech verb: koledovat) and were not limited just to Christmas. Now, they can be heard in homes around the country, they come on radio and appear in shopping malls and elevators. read more »
Dumpling News Weekly - Czechs in America
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 12th, 2006
Internet newsletter offers Czech-American news, hard-to-find products - 12-12-2006 - Radio Prague Numerous newspapers and magazines serve the Czech community in the United States, from "nationwide" publications such as Americke listy to regional titles like Czech Nebraska. There are also several internet websites and email newsletters, such as the weekly Dumpling News; it is produced by Zora Pergl, a woman of Czech descent based in Florida. I asked her how Dumpling News has been received since its launch in April last year.read more »
Czech faux pas on Wikipedia
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: November 11th, 2006
Categories: Culture
• Online Resources
List of faux pas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Czech Republic and Slovakia * It is considered mildly impolite to wear baseball caps inside. [citation needed] * Women's last name tend to carry the appendix "-ova". For example Mr. Johnson's wife's last name would be Mrs. Johnsonova. Addressing a man with a female form of his last name (e.g., Mr. Johnsonova) is a serious faux pas. [citation needed]Useful tidbits from Wikipedia. Bohemica has read more »
28. říjen - October 28 - Day of many memories
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: October 28th, 2006
28. říjen - Wikipedie, otevřená encyklopedie # Státní svátek: Den vzniku samostatného československého státu # Socialistický kalendář: * Vyhlášení samostatnosti Čechů a Slováků (1918) * Den znárodnění (1945) – významný den Československé socialistické republiky * Schválení zákona o československé federaci (1968)As this short extract from Czech Wikipedia shows, the 28th of October has played a significant role in recent Czech history. These days it is a státní svátek - meaning a day off work (unless it falls on a weekend) - in memory of the 1918 founding of Czechoslovakia (dissolved in 1939 and then again in 1993) and gaining independence of the crumbling Austrian Hungarian Empire (perceived partly as German). read more »
Learn multiple Slavic languages at once with NiceTranslator
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 13th, 2008
Nicetranslator.com uses the Google Translate service to give instant response as you type and you can even choose multiple languages at once including Slovak, Polish, Russian, Slovenian, or Croatian. This could be useful for students of Slavonic languages in general but it also shows bits of sentences as you type them in. read more »
Spread Bohemica.com with new widget!
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: June 24th, 2008
You can now help spread Bohemica.com by sharing this widget on your site or on Facebook.
read more »
Expand your vocabulary with this online gadget!
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: February 27th, 2008
I just got an early look at a great new gadget by the good people at Learnit Lists! It helps you practice 10 new words every day by putting it on your iGoogle page or in one of your social networks. read more »
Free pocket guide to Czech language
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: September 30th, 2007
Single-serving.com has come up with an easy to print and fold PDF brochure covering most of the basic phrases a tourist coming to the Czech Republic may want. The format makes it easy to carry in your pocket.
Czech news in English from a Czech online paper
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: September 12th, 2007
Categories: About Czechs and Czech Republic
• International perspectives: Czechs and the world
• Online Resources
Pavel Vondra » Yes, we speak English here Another milestone in Czech online journalism, or a tragically miscalculated flop? You be the judge. read more »
Foreign investment in the Czech Republic
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: February 5th, 2007
Europe : Foreign Direct Investment in the Czech Republic: A Challenge for Domestic Firms An economic analysis concerning Foreign Direct Investment in the Czech Republic has been published by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs The Czech Republic has been one of the primary recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI) among Central and Eastern European countries. Soon after transition, it attracted the attention of foreign investors based on sound economic fundamentals and the opportunities offered by early privatizations. Substantial foreign investment over a fifteen year period has profoundly affected the structure and performance of the economy. This country focus looks at the way in which foreign investment has influenced productivity and market dynamics, including intra and inter-industry spillovers, and the expansion of the economy as a whole.read more »
Charter 77 - 30 years on legacy questioned but unavoidable
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: January 8th, 2007
Czech press survey Prague- Not much has be left of the Charter 77 human rights movement that was launched 30 years ago, Bob Fliedr writes in Lidove noviny today, and adds that only few signatories have succeeded in politics. The group, headed by later president Vaclav Havel, who took over power in late 1989, has practically disappeared from public life, he says. The few Charter signatories who have succeeded in politics. "were not much good in team work in managing public affairs, the less so in the power struggle," Fliedr writes.read more »
Christmas Trees in Public Spaces: Images
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 24th, 2006
OBRAZEM: Vánoční stromy z Čech, Moravy a Slezska - iDNES.cz Na mnoha náměstích v Česku už řadu dní stojí vánoční stromy, tradiční symbol křesťanských oslav narození Ježíše Krista.MF Dnes published an interesting gallery of images of Christmas trees in public spaces. Here's one:
A Czech Christmas dinner in Texas
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 20th, 2006
Categories: Food and drink
• Habits and customs
• Holidays
• International perspectives: Czechs and the world
• Online Resources
A Czech Christmas: fish soup, potato salad and False Snails | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle Everywhere in the Czech Republic, people enjoy the same menu on Christmas Eve: appetizers, fish soup, fried fish, potato salad, Christmas bread, Christmas cookies and apple strudel. By tradition, the fish is Czech carp, which is prized all over Europe but difficult to find here. In Marcella and Tomas Klima's family, the appetizer on Christmas Eve is always False Snails. These recipes come from Czech Family Cookbook - Cooking With the Klimas.read more »
Santa vs. Ježíšek - The fight is on
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: December 2nd, 2006
Categories: Culture
• Online Resources
Neberte nám Ježíška, vzkazují Češi Santa Clausovi - iDNES.cz Santa Claus s dárky, soby a "mimořádnými vánočními slevami" na nás kouká z každého rohu, z každé výlohy. Spousta lidí prská nad touto zjevnou "amerikanizací", aniž by si uvědomovali, že i českým reklamním agenturám se lépe pracuje s výrazným červenobílým tlusťochem, než s biblickým novorozencem, který se nedokáže ještě ani postavit, natož unést pytel s dárky.It turns out that red-clad reindeer-drawn Santa Claus is treading on the territory of the rather abstract Baby Jesus (Ježíšek) not because of some cultural imperialism but rather because it is much easier to brand things with Santa. Also, all Santa-related products are mass-produced and therefore much cheaper. For now, it seems that Santa and Ježíšek can coexist although the authors of the Anti-Santa.cz website , who compared Santa's rise to power in the Czech lands to that of Hitler, might disagree ("Santův nástup v Česku má paralelu v tom Hitlerově"). read more »
Czech Republic - Home of the Free Antivirus
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: November 9th, 2006
I never really thought about it until recently when I needed to replace my antivirus software (getting rid of the bloatware that is McAffee and Symantec's Norton) but three of the major players on the global antivirus scene come from the Czech Republic. And two of them offer free versions (meaning that the freeware antivirus all comes from Central Europe - the only other contender is Antivir from Germany). They are:
What the world wants to know about Czech stuff
Author: Dominik Lukeš Posted: October 25th, 2006
Google released an interesting tool for comparing search trends. I tried to compare searches for Czech, Czech Republic, Prague, Brno and Czechoslovakia (see here). It is interesting (if not surprising) to discover that Prague was by far the most common search term followed by Czech. Brno and Czech Republic were about the same but significantly lower. Czechoslovakia is still in there but gratifyingly not too prominent (a lot of people who knew the old name still haven't made the switch). read more »
