Šis un tas
The Balkans
A headline on the Web site of the Evansville Courier & Press confuses the Balkans and the Baltics.
March 23, 2006
Latvia should just quit the Baltic family and move in with the Balkans down south. Some folks already think the country is part of the Balkans, and the Balkans generally are warmer, too.
The latest example comes from the March 23 edition of the Evansville Courier & Press in Indiana. A story by Washington, D.C., correspondent Mara Lee examines Rep. John Shimkus, a Republican member of Congress from Illinois. The headline announces “Balkan heritage behind Shimkus’ status” and the representative is described in the story as “co-chairman of the House’s Balkan caucus.”
Shimkus, whose ancestry is Lithuanian, is co-chair of the House Baltic caucus.
It’s a common error, but one that seems to appear less frequently than it used to. When we Googled “Latvia” and “Balkan” together, we found only a few errors.
We were delighted to locate Michael Tarm’s review on Baltics Worldwide of press coverage of U.S. President George W. Bush’s visit to Latvia last year. While Tarm’s story highlighted the splash the Baltics made in the Western press as a result of the president’s visit, it also pointed out some problems, including an error in a headline posted on the Web site of National Public Radio. NPR has since changed the headline that once read “Bush Visits Latvia, Hails Balkan Democracy.”
A site for travelers and food lovers, The Worldwide Traveler, notes that Latvia is “sandwiched between its Balkan neighbors Estonia and Lithuania.”
Heavy metal music’s Bast Magazine, in a look at Latvian band Heaven Grey, remarked that Latvia is part of the Balkan states and that it’s next to the Balkan Sea.
We also found confusion about the Balkans and the Baltics on Web pages emanating from such organizations as UNESCO and the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
As we write this, it’s zero Celsius in Rīga. In Ljubljana, Slovenia, it’s 5 degrees. In Dubrovnik, Croatia, it’s 12 degrees. The Balkans are calling.
— Andris Straumanis
What's new
Reviews
11 Feb 2012
Despite 25 years of making music, Bumerangs has just two albums
Bumerangs, from the northern Latvian city of Valka, has long been a Latvian schlager music institution. Celebrating its 25th anniversary in December 2011, the band has been one of the hardest working—playing, in some years, hundreds of concerts, and entertaining audiences not just in Latvia, but elsewhere in the world.
Multimedia
09 Feb 2012
Ar videoklipu biedrība mudina latviešus celties un iet balsot valodas referendumā
Biedrība “Par latviešu valodu” 9. februārī Rīgā atklāja akciju mudināt latviešus piedalīties 18. februāra referendumā un balsot pret grozījumiem Latvijas satversmē, kas noteiktu krievu valodu kā otro valsts valodu. Akcija ieskaita televīzijas reklāmas videoklipu ar nosaukumu “Celies un ej”, kurā dažādi sabiedrībā pazīstami cilvēki aicina skatītāju piedalīties referendumā.
News
08 Feb 2012
For upcoming language referendum, absentee ballot applications top 1,200
The hot-button language referendum scheduled Feb. 18 apparently has lots of voters abroad interested in letting their voice be heard, if figures from absentee ballot requests are any indication.
In the forums
Help with Latvian newspaper translation posted by shellym on 11 Feb 2012
The Arts Diplomacy Festival 2012 posted by ICD Academy on 09 Feb 2012
A place to see before dying... posted by anita on 07 Feb 2012
Who to trust Kremlin or Russia Greenpeace? Fire at Nuclear research institute! posted by Talisman Browns on 05 Feb 2012
«Karš bez noteikumiem» posted by Peteris Cedrins on 02 Feb 2012
